Lycanthropy

Lycanthropy

Contracting Lycanthropy

A ferocious werewolf, a powerful and sinewy predator.

Werewolves are lycanthropes: men and women who can transform into powerful, wolflike creatures. Some see this as a blessing, a way of drawing on the strength and ferocity of their inner beast. Some see it as a curse, a twisting of their wills and nature. And for some, it is simply a way of life.

Lycanthropy can only be contracted as part of the blood ritual that occurs during the Companions Quest: The Silver Hand. Your first transformation is particularly violent, causing you to prowl the streets of Whiterun as the inhabitants of the city flee for their lives. Soon you black out, and from this point on, you are more fully able to control your animal nature.

Beast Form

When you become a werewolf, you acquire a new power known as Beast Form. This allows you to transform into a werewolf once per day. Once transformed, you remain a werewolf for 2.5 minutes of real time. You can extend this time by approaching a corpse and activating it to feed on it. This restores 50 points of Health and gives you another 30 seconds of time as a werewolf.

The Werewolf Form is a transformation state. You access it in the Magic > Powers > Beast Form Menu. It’s a good idea to make this a Favorite ability you can quickly call upon.

Advantages of Beast Form include:

• Your maximum Health increases by 50 points (previously 100) but does not regenerate.
• Your maximum stamina increases by 100.
• You have a faster sprint speed.
• Wolves will treat you as an ally and won’t attack you.
• Any crimes you commit as a werewolf don’t count against your “normal” self, with one caveat (below).

But there are some disadvantages as well:

• You can’t loot any corpses you slay.
• You can’t pick up or use any items you find. Since this includes keys, your progress may be blocked in some dungeons.
• You can’t equip or use any of your normal weapons, spells, items, equipment, Shouts, or powers.
• Your large, hulking form may have trouble fitting through some narrow passages.
• You can’t speak with anyone, even your own Companions brethren.
• Citizens of Skyrim are terrified of you; some of them flee, while the battle-hardened, brave, or foolish stand their ground and attack you.
• If anyone sees you transform to or from a beast, the transformation is considered a major Crime. Consult the Crime and Punishment section.

Powers

Your focus is to kill, feed, kill again, and prolong your bloodlust.

As a werewolf, you gain an impressive array of combat-related bonuses.

Improved Combat Skills: While in Beast Form, your powerful claw attacks deal massive damage, and your toughened hide resists blows. Your damage and armor bonuses increase based on your level:

Immunity to Disease: You are completely immune to all diseases in both normal and Beast Form. Among other things, this protects you from Sanguinare Vampiris (the Vampire Disease), allowing you to fight Vampires without having to worry about contracting the condition yourself.

As an additional bonus, when you first become a werewolf, any diseases you had at the time will be cured. This includes both Sanguinare Vampiris and full-blown Vampirism. You can’t be both a werewolf and a vampire at the same time.

Increased Dexterity: In Beast Form, you can sprint on all-fours at an impressively fast pace, and jump much farther than normal.

Restless Blood: As a Werewolf, you can never receive a bonus for being Rested.

Werewolf Powers: While in Beast Form, you can call upon a special set of Werewolf-exclusive Powers, called Howls. You can use these as often as you like while your transformation lasts. Your default howl strikes fear (literally) into the hearts of men. However, by completing The Companions Radiant Quest: Totems of Hircine, you can acquire Totems that allow you to exchange this Howl for a different Power. You can change Howls as often as you like, though only one can be active at a time.

Many of your Werewolf Perks improve the potency and effects of your howls. Here are all of the howls you can attempt:

Ring of Hircine: During Daedric Quest: Ill Met By Moonlight, you are given the cursed Ring of Hircine. While the curse has no effect on most humans, if worn by a Lycanthrope, it can cause you to randomly shift into your Beast Form! It is wise to complete this Quest or risk revealing your beast form at an inopportune moment! The curse is lifted at the end of the Quest.

The Ring of Hircine (whether cursed or not) allows you to assume Beast Form one additional time per day.

Living as a Werewolf

You are fortunate that your Shield-Brothers and Sisters in the Companions are there to help you come to terms with your new Beast Form and that this strain of Lycanthropy is not affected by the waxing and waning of the moons. Therefore, it is quite possible to take full advantage of the powers of the wolf for the remainder of your adventure. Call upon your Beast Form when the speed and strength of the wolf are to your benefit or when facing a multitude of weaker foes.

Werewolf Perks: The Path of the Lycanthrope

• Constellation: Path of the Moon
• Available Perks: 11

When you speak with Aela the Huntress for the first time after completing the Companions Quest: Blood’s Honor (with the Dawnguard add-on installed), she mentions that the more you feed, the more your power as a werewolf will grow. She is correct in this advice: While in Werewolf Form, press your Character Menu button to access the Werewolf Perk Constellation (shown above).

Acquiring Werewolf Perks

Unlike the Skill Perks you normally gain through leveling up, Werewolf Perks are awarded after feeding on your foes: Every time you feed on a corpse while in Beast Form, you make progress toward your next perk. There are 11 Werewolf Perks to obtain, and each requires progressively more feedings:

So, in order to acquire all of the Werewolf Perks, you must defeat 165 foes in the manner previously described. About half of these perks improve your Howls; see the Werewolf Powers table (above) for details. The complete list of perks is as follows:

1–4: Bestial Strength (4 Ranks) ★

• Rank 1: Do 25% more damage as a werewolf
• Rank 2: Do 25% more damage as a werewolf (+50% total)
• Rank 3: Do 25% more damage as a werewolf (+75% total)
• Rank 4: Do 25% more damage as a werewolf (+100% total)

This significantly increases your attack damage, doubling it at the perk’s highest rank (25/50/75/100%). This perk is essential to using Beast Form effectively against higher-level foes, as you’re able to tear through them, feed, maintain your bloodlust, and regain your health, without fear of being overwhelmed.

5: Totem of Ice Brothers

• Werewolf Totem of Brotherhood howl calls Ice Wolves.

Consult the Bestiary for the specific differences between wolves and Ice Wolves. This perk is useful only if you have the Totem of Brotherhood. The more entities on your side, the better, and toughened Ice Wolves are excellent at helping you polish off your meals.

6: Totem of the Moon

• Werewolf Totem of Brotherhood howl calls Werewolves.

This perk is useful only if you have the Totem of Brotherhood. With two additional werewolves by your side for a minute of obscene bloodletting, your pack can really tackle a large group of foes or a few extremely troublesome enemies.

7: Totem of the Predator

• Werewolf Totem of the Hunt howl has extended range and shows whether the targets are not in combat, out searching, or actively in combat.

This perk is only useful if you have the Totem of the Predator. If you’d like to extend your feeding frenzy without reverting back, and no enemies are presenting themselves, this is helpful in getting your bearings, especially as you have no map as a werewolf. Of course, you could always plan your assault by remembering where a populated area is or reconnoitering it first and figuring out where to find “snacks” along the route!

8: Totem of Terror

• Werewolf Howl of Terror affects even higher level creatures.

This allows your default Howl of Terror to affect creatures of up to Level 30, rather than 20. Make sure you can easily follow the foe you’re frightening, as a fleeing foe who doesn’t end up as dinner is almost worse than one who betters you in combat! Use this when you need to scatter your foes so you can concentrate on one at a time and not be overwhelmed.

9: Animal Vigor

• 100 point bonus to Health and Stamina in Beast Form.

This obviously makes you much tougher in combat, allowing you to do more damage and absorb significantly more punishment before succumbing to your wounds.

10: Gorging ★

• Feeding heals twice as much Health.

This is a critical perk for high-level werewolves. Since feeding is the only way you can replenish your health, being able to draw double the health you recover from a single corpse may mean the difference between life and death.

11: Savage Feeding ★

• Able to feed off most dead creatures. Feeding off creatures instead of people only provides half the extended time.

This enables you to feed on nonhuman creatures like gargoyles and spiders. This makes Beast Form significantly more viable in creature- and undead-heavy dungeons, like Draugr crypts, vampire lairs, and the ruined sections of Castle Volkihar. Note that you still can’t feed on small creatures, like hares or foxes, or on highly magical ones like Dwarven Automatons or Atronachs.

Curing Lycanthropy

The Tomb of Ysgramor, where you can free yourself from the beast within.

After completing the Companions Quest: The Silver Hand, if you decide that a hairy alter ego with razor-sharp claws isn’t how you want to spend your nights, you can rid yourself of this burden in one of two ways:

• Finish the Companions Radiant Quest: Purity. You can complete this only once, so if you contract Lycanthropy a second time (see below), you can’t use this method to cure yourself again. As a part of that quest, you must cut off the head of a Glenmoril Witch, bring it into the depths of the Tomb of Ysgramor, draw the spirit of the wolf from your body, and defeat it. Once the ritual is complete, your cure is permanent, and you cannot contract Lycanthropy again.
• Or, you can agree to allow Lord Harkon or Serana to transform you into a Volkihar Vampire. Unlike standard vampirism (which is contracted through Sanguinare Vampiris, a disease werewolves are immune to), their transformation will work on you and has the side effect of removing your Lycanthropy as well.

After being cured of Lycanthropy, if you later change your mind, you can speak to Aela the Huntress and ask her to restore your beast blood. You can do this only once. This transformation will, again, cure you of vampirism in the process.