Web Walkers
The Web Walkers, formerly known as the Glass Walkers, are one of the thirteen tribes of Garou. Initially steeped in technology, human religion, and the ebb and flow of the city, the tribe evolved from their roots, embracing transhumanism and the Weaver's power to combat the Wyrm. Their transformation into the Web Walkers marked a shift in their creed from progress to integration, blending cybernetic enhancements with their natural abilities. While they fear the Apocalypse as any werewolf does, they believe that each passing day makes them stronger, that every new invention can be appropriated for their cause, and that every new philosophy might strengthen their resolve. In this way, Web Walkers are the quintessential Urrah and don't have the strong aversion to human populations that most Garou do.
Overview[edit | edit source]
There is pulse to every city, a movement not unlike the labored breath of an animal or the rhythm of the ocean’s waves. With each pulse, civilization evolves and the world changes. The Web Walkers not only stand at the forefront of that movement, they seek to push it forward into the future, guiding humanity and the tribes of werewolves to a place where their own evolution can combat the increasing power of the Wyrm.
Believing the Wyld’s power to be insufficient against the Wyrm, the Web Walkers found new purpose in supporting the Weaver. This shift began when high-rank members quested into the Umbra, discovering the Cyber Realm and confronting avatars of the Weaver. What transpired within that umbral realm remains a mystery, but the Garou who emerged were irrevocably altered. Some transformed into digital daemons, eternally bound to the cyber realm, while others returned with spiritual cybernetic fetishes and weapons. Embracing these changes, the Glass Walkers became the Web Walkers, aligning themselves with the Weaver and abandoning the Garou Nation.
Web Walkers focus on technology and cybernetics, leveraging these enhancements in their ongoing quest to fight the Wyrm. Though not inherently antagonistic toward other Garou tribes, they are almost universally shunned and unwelcome in most caerns. Their embrace of the Weaver’s power positions them as technological extremists in the eyes of other tribes, who often view their methods with distrust and dismay.
Members of the Web Walkers are deeply integrated into modern society, thriving in the highest echelons of corporate business, politics, and industry. They revel in the advancements of technology, believing that by mastering the Weaver’s creations, they can restore balance to the world. They use cutting-edge technology to wage an ancient battle, developing devices and weapons that were once the stuff of dreams.
The leaders of the Web Walkers are those with the most ingenuity, resources, or cutthroat political instincts. They value cunning and education, with challenges often being trials of intellect rather than brute force. Their rituals are frenetic, ever-changing, and a blend of tradition and innovation.
The destruction of many of the world’s caerns greatly diminished the Garou Nation’s resources, stunting its ability to combat the Wyrm. Initially, the Web Walkers focused solely on their kin, distancing themselves from the other tribes. However, the return of Roger Daly, a Glass Walker known for forging a lasting treaty with vampires in Vancouver, shifted their stance. He argued that from a position of strength and generosity, the Web Walkers could change the Garou Nation and potentially the world. Convinced by his logic, the Web Walkers funded efforts to rebuild the septs, repairing in years what might have taken decades.
The Web Walkers envision a future where the Weaver’s inventions help balance the Triat once more, aiming for a world where glass and green coexist harmoniously. Despite their differences, they strive to unify the Garou against the ravages of the Wyrm, blending ancient traditions with modern technology in their ongoing quest for balance.
Web Walker Breeds[edit | edit source]
Web Walkers are fairly stringent about their lineages—to a point. They revel in the glory of a prestigious ancestor or the fame earned by a sibling. Yet, when it comes down to it, Web Walkers are very “us against them,” more willing to band together than it might seem on the surface. They will consider accepting adoptees, provided they prove their worth and bring substantial resources, prestige, or power to the tribe.
Homids
Nearly all Web Walkers are born as Homids. Raised in cities, they are nurtured in the best schools, given every opportunity to thrive, and taught that the two cultures—werewolf and human—are not so distinct. They gravitate towards human religions and philosophies rather than pure Gaia-centric beliefs, adopting the Gaian ethos as an adjunct to Homid spirituality. Gaia, the divine figure, is sacred to them—but so, too, are their mortal faiths. These Homids often live in high-society urban environments, downtown penthouses, or wealthy suburban communities. They are computer programmers, CEOs, architects, and power brokers.
Lupus
Lupus Web Walkers are rare creatures, torn between their feral nature and their tribal instinct towards civilization. Most of them live in the city, taking human shape as quickly as they can learn it. They are often adopted by kinfolk families, who help the young Lupus hide and learn about human culture during their early years. Being a Lupus isn’t looked down upon by the tribe, so much as it is seen as a modest disability, as Web Walker predilections lie in using technology rather than inventing it. These Lupus hold a special role in the tribe. Because many Web Walkers have essentially abandoned their wolf-like instincts, if they were ever inclined to have such drives at all, the tribe relies on its rare Lupus brethren to remind its members what it is to be a creature of the Wyld. For that reason, Web Walker Lupus are highly valued teachers and influences, helping to keep the tribe in balance.
Metis
Although somewhat more tolerant of Metis than many tribes, the Web Walker tribe takes a view that Metis must prove themselves even more than other Garou. Throwbacks and genetic frailties caused by illegal inbreeding, Metis are unfortunates who should be encouraged to better themselves. Web Walkers traditionally see Metis as creatures “closer to the Wyld.” However, that is less a boon than it may seem, as Web Walkers attempt to bring a worldwide balance between the Weaver and the Wyld.
Web Walker Auspices[edit | edit source]
The Web Walkers venerate their tribal totem, Cockroach, as a spirit of survival, adaptation, rebirth, subtlety, and subterfuge. Cunning Cockroach favors those who plan ahead for troubles, preparing themselves to survive any contingency.
Ragabash
Web Walker Ragabash run a broad gamut. From online trolls and hackers to high-tech spies and corporate agents, the Ragabash of the tribe specialize in subterfuge, treachery, and the art of the double-cross. Pranks from a Web Walker Ragabash are usually high-profile and cutting—the kind of thing that can leave a deep emotional scar—while teaching a valuable lesson. Many Web Walker Ragabash tend towards careers in activism, as well as computer and scientific fields. Embracing transhumanism, they often enhance themselves with cybernetic augmentations to improve their stealth, hacking abilities, and adaptability in both virtual and physical realms.
Theurges
Spiritualists, new-age fundamentalists, and servants of the Machine, the Theurges of the Web Walker tribe are less religious and more philosophical. They study the pulse of the city, finding spirituality in the interconnections of thousands of human lives. Their rituals are mechanical, mathematical, complex, and technological, dealing with the modern spirits of cities, computers, and chemical compounds. They are not afraid to integrate new ideas and new philosophies into the rituals of old. They are also the leaders in fusing spirits with circuits and cutting-edge technology, creating cyberfetishes that allow for an even more complex integration between the Weaver and the Wyld. Individuals from this auspice often become engineers, architects, and leaders in faith-based communities, utilizing cybernetic enhancements to deepen their understanding and manipulation of spiritual and technological realms.
Philodox
Of all the auspices of the Web Walker tribe, the Philodox are the most renowned. Judges, corporate leaders, and politicians, the Philodox auspice is, in many ways, the “face” of the tribe. They interface with humanity in public ways, acting as leaders in the community, or helping to push the advent of some particular invention or new method of dealing with the world. Other tribes mistrust them for their known proclivity to find theoretical holes in the Litany and because they argue for greater freedoms—even those that are against the traditional ways. You can often find these werewolves working as debate organizers, leaders of charitable organizations, and patent lawyers. Their cybernetic enhancements often include advanced communication devices, data processors, and other augmentations that enhance their abilities to lead, negotiate, and manipulate complex systems.
Galliards
Web Walker Galliards are as much artists as innovators, serving to remind their tribe that technology is useful for more than simply ruthless advancement. These Garou love to spark art from raw science, to encourage creative thought, and to utilize technology in new and insightful ways. They are usually outspoken, creative, and more than a little full of themselves. Young Galliards have begun a new movement within the tribe, a proclivity to hedonistic decadence and one-upmanship in social engagements. (Who can throw a bigger and better party?) Such activity causes many of the tribal elders some concern—and an equal amount of pride. Typically, they thrive in jobs such as modern artists, art house or theater managers, graphics designers, or blog publishers. Cybernetic enhancements among Galliards often include sensory augmentations, neural interfaces, and creative tools that allow them to push the boundaries of art and technology.
Ahroun
The warriors of the Web Walker tribe are no less vicious and ferocious than any other Ahroun of the Garou Nation, though their tactics may seem unusual. They prefer to utilize technology over direct frontal attacks, using maneuver warfare, heavy munitions, and tactical assaults over raw force. Although you can certainly find brutish Web Walkers, Ahroun of the tribe are known for their subtler—though no less ruthless—assaults. Often, Web Walker Ahroun work in paramilitary organizations, corporate security, or as personal bodyguards. Their cybernetic enhancements typically include combat augments such as advanced targeting systems, enhanced strength and reflexes, and integrated weaponry, making them formidable foes on any battlefield.
Organization[edit | edit source]
Web Walkers see themselves as cogs in an ephemeral machine, a working unit struggling together toward a massive goal: the salvation of the world. They watch over buildings, technology, and civilization. Internally, they have recently experienced a shift in culture caused by the rise of the Corporate Wolves. Old traditions of leadership have been left behind; the tribe’s internal structure is now corporate. They are led by a powerful CEO, in concert with a board of directors representing internal houses, camps, and technological specializations. Young Web Walkers, more accustomed to raves and hacking, often struggle against the tribe’s strict hierarchy. Nevertheless, it is enforced.
Tribal moots take the form of conventions or raves. Web Walkers will often debut new inventions or new uses of technology at such gatherings, as well as performing rites intended to respect and honor Gaia and the Weaver in equal measure.
Camps[edit | edit source]
Corporate Wolves
The Corporate Wolves are big-business types, politicians, and major movers-and-shakers. Over the last 20 years, the Corporate Wolves have become the leading camp within the tribe, even absorbing other factions, such as the Wise Guys. Now, a significant number of Web Walkers belong to this camp. They provide leadership and continued pressure toward modernization—within the tribe and without. Embracing transhumanist ideals, they advocate for the integration of cybernetic enhancements to elevate the Garou above their natural limits. Politics, not spirituality, is their forte, and they wield that weapon with cunning and finesse. While they are political animals, Corporate Wolves are just as fierce on the battlefield as they are in the boardroom, where they wield claws, teeth, and guns with as much skill as they wield a pen and contract.
CyberDogs
CyberDogs represent the epitome of the Web Walkers’ transhumanist vision. Once a nearly extinct camp within the tribe, the rise of the Concordat of Stars has allowed them to reinvent themselves and become a small but growing force. Comprised of individuals ranging from mercenaries and spies to doctors and medical staff, CyberDogs enhance themselves and others with the powers of the Weaver to become more effective combatants against the Wyrm. Restoring lost limbs with prosthetic cybernetics that equal or exceed the abilities of the original body parts, crafting cyberfetishes for their tribemates, and experimenting with new technology to give the Web Walkers every edge they can are just a few of the roles that CyberDogs fill. Their zealousness occasionally worries the rest of the Web Walkers, but none can deny that they are strengthening the tribe at a critical time.
Random Interrupts
The camp of Random Interrupts works to free civilization of Wyrm Taint by ensuring that information, technology, and advancements remain unbound and free. Tech-thieves, internet pirates, downloaders, hackers, and Net Neutrality lawyers, members of this camp are often idealistic and quick to act. Embracing transhumanist principles, they see cybernetic enhancement as a means to achieve greater freedom and innovation. The Interrupts are willing to break the laws of man’s society—and on occasion, Garou society as well—in order to keep information free and to encourage civilization’s advance.
Random Interrupts do not tend to function well within the corporate structure of the Web Walkers. They resent dictates and dislike structure, yet they see the need to maintain order within the tribe. This creates a difficult situation, causing considerable internal strife for the Web Walkers.
