“The full moon rises tonight, my son,” said the noblewoman to her boy, a child of only three winters. She pulled her furs around her shoulders, the frigid twilight air chilled her to the bone, despite the accursed boiling of her blood. Even a full day away, the waxing moon goaded her to succumb and submit to the power of the wolf. She knelt down and looked her son in the face, and gripped his hand tightly. “Remember what I’ve taught you. Every day, you resist this curse. And every day I’m proud of you. But tonight, you will not be able to resist. When the moon rises in the sky…” She twitched, and her nails, even now beginning to grow into long, pearly claws, dug into her son’s palm.
The boy yelped and recoiled. His blood trickled down his arm until the wispy, gray-black fur growing upon his skin halted its flow. He put the edge of his palm into his mouth to stem the bleeding. His mother stepped forward to pull his hand from his mouth, but stopped when a shadow fell over him. A figure stood atop the battlements, eclipsing the setting sun and casting the boy in darkness.
The figure dressed in the clothes of a man, but his limbs were long and hairy. His knees bent the wrong way, and his nails were long and dagger-sharp. His nose extended into a muzzle covered with blood-matted fur.
“Darling,” the wolf-man whistled. “Don’t fill our son’s head with such lies.”
The noblewoman stared defiantly up at the werewolf that loomed above her only child. She retorted with a bestial snarl. “You stay away from him.” She reached for her belt and drew a silver-edged dagger and almost retched from the sickening stench of the silver. She leveled it at her former husband with a trembling arm. “Don’t take another step closer.”
“My boy,” the werewolf said smilingly, “Your sweet mother has taught you to fight so hard, but for what? To lose control anyway on the night of the full moon?” He hopped down from the crenellation he was perched upon and strode towards the boy. “I’ve accepted my curse. I’ve accepted freedom. Your mother is stifling your spirit with her idiotic rules. Give in to your curse. Flee from this castle with its gates and walls and run through the midnight forests at my side. Don’t make tonight’s full moon more painful than it must be.”
“I said, get away!” roared the noblewoman. She lunged at the man, and the silver dagger dropped from her hand as her entire body stretched and distended, growing hairy and silver. Before the man could react, a monstrous wolf wearing the tattered remains of a nightgown was upon him, snarling and tearing into his flesh with razor-sharp claws.
As the werewolves fought, their son fled. Their battle raged until the moon rose high into the night sky, and the dark forest echoed with a chorus of bestial howls.
Werewolves are among the most iconic monsters of European folklore and Western fantasy. Even in times when fantasy fiction has fallen out of vogue, the myth of the wolf-man survived in horror films and other paranormal tales. Stories of shapeshifters who take on the form of animals, both good and evil, are widespread throughout all folkloric traditions. Much like witches, vampires, and other classic horror-fantasy creatures, the D&D version of the werewolf is a distillation of innumerable conflicting mythologies. Indeed, despite its lupine etymology, the term lycanthrope has been broadened to include all manner of were-creatures, including werebears, wereboars, wererats, and even weretigers!
Lycanthropes in D&D also have one major difference from almost all folkloric representations of were-beasts: they can transform at any time, not just on the dreaded full moon! This makes it easier to use lycanthropes as a traditional enemy, but requires a bit of specialized knowledge beyond the broad understanding of folklore most D&D players might have. Let’s dive into a werewolf, their mythology in the worlds of Dungeons & Dragons, and some tactics for you to run them as intelligent and cunning foes for your party.
Let’s dig in!
Lycanthropes in D&D
Whether you’re watching The Wolf Man (1941), reading Harry Potter, or researching the medieval werewolf trials, you’ll find that the exact powers and behaviors of the werewolf differ dramatically based on the tale’s teller. In D&D, a werewolf is a humanoid that gained the power to transform into a wolf (or a wolf-human hybrid) after being bitten by another werewolf. In D&D, a werewolf can also be born with the curse if one or both of their parents are also werewolves, though apparently not all natural-born children of werewolves are fated to bear the curse of lycanthropy.
Magic can be used to cure lycanthropy, though some lycanthropes would rankle at the use of the word cure. Werebear lycanthropes are compelled to acts of good rather than evil, and they tend to only use their bite to spread the power of their transformation to people who have earned such an honor. Similarly, evil people who have gained the power of werewolf lycanthropy revel in their newfound power, and are loathe to relinquish their gift.
In real-world medieval Europe, werewolves were strongly associated with witchcraft and the heretical evil that they represented. However, some folklores included shapeshifters that transformed into animal shapes to fight against evil and Satanic forces. In D&D, not all lycanthropes are evil. Werewolves, wereboars, and wererats are innately drawn to the powers of chaotic evil, neutral evil, and lawful evil (respectively) by their curse. Werebears are drawn towards the neutral good alignment, and weretigers are compelled to acts of selfishness and isolation that causes them to tend towards true neutrality.
Also, Curse of Strahd includes wereravens as a suspicious but lawful good lycanthrope.
The most notable difference between D&D’s lycanthropes and the commonly known pop-mythology of the werewolf is that D&D lycanthropes can transform even when it’s not the full moon. Well, some of them can. In D&D, lycanthropes have a choice. If a being is cursed with lycanthropy, they can choose to resist it. The curse lingers within them, boiling and seething until the rising of the full moon grants it enough power to overcome the host’s resistance and take control. The Monster Manual says that “if the cursed creature is unaware of its condition, it might not remember the events of its transformation,” suggesting that some creatures might resist lycanthropy on instinct alone. Consider this house rule: unless a creature’s alignment is the same as the lycanthrope that passed on its curse, it automatically resists the curse unless it chooses not to.
Lycanthropes who resist transform only on the full moon, like most pop culture werewolves. They go on a bloody rampage, during which time the DM might even take control of their character. Note that this rampage matches the alignment of the type of lycanthropy they are afflicted by, so while a werewolf may transform into a chaotic evil monster at the full moon, a werebear transforms into a frothing neutral good creature. What does that look like? Perhaps the bear stalks the forests, protecting travelers from marauding monsters. If you’re playing a more lighthearted game, perhaps they rampage into the local governor’s mansion and tear up all the tax records for people who can’t afford to pay.
Lycanthropes who give into the curse, however, automatically change alignments to match their curse. Giving into the curse of werewolf lycanthropy, for example, instantly makes a creature prone to acts of chaos and evil. The Monster Manual suggests that the DM can automatically take control of a creature that gives in to the curse. In some games, this makes sense. If you have a group of players that can handle one person playing a chaotic evil character without ruining everyone else’s fun, there’s no reason for the DM to take your character away. Likewise, neutral weretigers and neutral good werebears (and frankly, lawful evil wererats) are probably all still good fits for the typical adventuring party.
The main benefit of giving into the power of the curse is the ability to transform at will, allowing them to transform between human, beast, and a human-beast hybrid form as an action.
Werewolf Traits
As monsters, werewolves and other lycanthropes are fairly straightforward combatants. Their defenses are numerically weak across the board, with low AC and hit points, but a powerful werewolf might commission custom armor to wear in their hybrid form. However, all lycanthropes possess a potent immunity to damage from nonmagical weapons that aren’t silvered. Magical weapons, silvered weapons, and damage from other sources like spells still affect them normally, making this immunity less useful when facing high-level adventurers. At low levels, however, this damage immunity makes werewolves incredibly difficult to defeat without extensive (and perhaps expensive) preparation.
Werewolves also possess a secret weakness—and a secret strength. They possess the “shapechanger” subtype, which has a few notable interactions. First, shapechangers like lycanthropes, mimics, and certain slaad are immune to the polymorph spell. This hidden resistance does little to help a werewolf, unfortunately, as a challenge rating 3 monster is probably not going to be the target of a character’s polymorph spell. It becomes much more potent in the hands of a lycanthrope player character or a lycanthrope NPC that has grown more powerful than the standard CR 3 werewolf.
Secondly, the moonbeam spell—which can be cast by druids and paladins who follow the Oath of the Ancients—is especially powerful against shapechangers. Not only do shapechangers have disadvantage on saving throws to resist the spell’s damage, failing that saving throw also forces shapechangers to revert to their original form and can’t shift again until they leave the spell’s area. Since a werewolf’s humanoid form is weaker both offensively and defensively than its beast or hybrid forms, this spell can really spoil a werewolf’s day.
Werewolf Tactics
Werewolves and other lycanthropes don’t possess any innate special abilities other than their ability to shapeshift, and their Keen Hearing and Smell trait. While some lycanthropes, like werebears, gain an additional movement option (a climbing speed), werewolves are locked to moving along the ground. Werewolves are proficient in the Perception and Stealth skills, making them skilled ambushers who can detect and hide from their prey with ease. Their Keen Hearing and Smell trait makes it even easier for them to follow their quarries.
A werewolf always wants to engage its foes in its wolf or hybrid forms, unless it’s trying to conceal their lycanthropy. Since a werewolf’s immunities and hit points are the same no matter what form it takes, a werewolf might take the guise of an invincible champion of a human kingdom. Blades break against his “divinely blessed” skin, and he uses his power and reputation to get close to the nation’s monarch and transfer the curse of lycanthropy to them as well. Since D&D werewolves can choose to assume any form they like, you can use this to create a compelling mystery in your D&D game.
Even though a werewolf’s abilities are fairly vanilla, their unique damage immunities, skill proficiencies, and rapid 40-foot movement pace allows you to play them differently from other enemies, even from other chaotic evil creatures like orcs. A battle with a werewolf has two main phases. The first phase is stalking—the werewolf stalks its prey before striking from surprise. If the werewolf is hunting with a pack of wolves, dire wolves, winter wolves, worgs, or other werewolves, catching a group of adventurers unawares might lead to a devastating surprise round.
While other creatures might strike and then assume a defensive position, most werewolves are fully assured in their invincibility, and stand their ground even when outnumbered. Only when it’s revealed that a character possesses a magical weapon or a silvered weapon and can wound it would a werewolf start using more evasive tactics.
Making More Complex Lycanthropes
Since werewolves are mechanically straightforward, you may want to make them more complex to keep your players guessing. Fortunately, since nearly any humanoid can be afflicted by lycanthropy, it’s easy to simply add traits from other stat blocks to the werewolf stat block.
You might make a typical werewolf a more complex foe by giving it the spellcasting feature of a mage or a druid, allowing it to cast spells in humanoid or hybrid form, but not in wolf form. A werewolf spy or a goblin werewolf might use its Cunning Action or Nimble Escape feature to Disengage after every attack as a bonus action, forcing its foes to fight on its terms.
What NPCs or humanoid creatures would make for interesting lycanthropes? A githyanki wererat? A bugbear werebear? Let me know in the comments what cool lycanthropes you might throw at your party!
James Haeck is the lead writer for D&D Beyond, the co-author of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and the Critical Role Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, the DM of Worlds Apart, and a freelance writer for Wizards of the Coast, the D&D Adventurers League, and Kobold Press. He lives in Seattle, Washington with his partner Hannah and their feline adventurers Mei and Marzipan. You can usually find him wasting time on Twitter at @jamesjhaeck.
I would add it as a Druid Form. Is that possible?
If you mean Wildshape , Werewolf is CR 3, so even as a Moon Druid, I wouldn't be able to Shift into a Werewolf until level 9
Usually you need a DM's permission to play a werewolf/vampire
RAW, Lycanthropy is a curse, but the only way to have Lycanthropy show up on D&DB currently is to be a Lycan Blood Hunter.
Love this. Lycanthropes are one of my favorite monsters. Also, to reply to the question about them being a playable race-- couldn't Shifters be considered a racial version of races that have can be cursed with lycanthropy?
Personally, I don't care much for werebears being always Good aligned, as that's not really much of a curse unless you were evil to begin with. That said, the Monster Manual does state that there can be Evil werebears. How I would play lycanthropes is have them default to a feral version of Chaotic Neutral/Chaotic Evil while in beast or hybrid form, or if they embrace it. Wererats could still be Lawful Evil. The exception to this rule would be if I wanted a recurring NPC, in which case I play them as someone who struggles to retain their personality while using their "gift". I think Wizards might feel the same way, as, and don't click on this unless you want a spoiler for a published campaign,
there is a Good aligned Weretiger during Tomb of Annihilation.
For the first one shot dungeon I created, one room had a group of caged werewolves who had been cursed into it by a coven of hags. They are understandably tight lipped about their condition, for fear of the party killing them, but unbeknownst to them, the light sources around the exit tunnel emit moonlight. If they end up shifting as a result of this, at the start of each turn, they can attempt a Wisdom saving throw to mostly regain control for one turn. It creates a fun situation where the players might not realize why the scary werewolf suddenly dashed away without disengaging and then killing it with an opportunity attack.
Stealing that encounter Dragarhir. Friggin genius
How would happen if a wolf got lycropanthy and turned into a human?
If you want to have a vampire but are turned off by the radiant weakness then just make a custom vampire that doesn't have the weakness to radiant.
Customizing creature stats such as resistances and weaknesses is encouraged. Just please don't make their skin glitter in sunlight. :)
You could also flavor it as over a long period of time the vampire drank very small doses of holy water gradually building an immunity to it, granted, that's not at all how that works but it sound cool,
I hope you enjoy it HopeBagels. ;)
Currently have a shifter Blood Hunter named Erin Moonlight. Neutral Evil, and just wants to kill things. He might take a level or two in Barbarian, because rage doesn't allow you to control your attacks when shifted. Kind of a point-and-shoot character.
Noice
Put it under “Features & Traits”.
Lycanthropy
-list features you wish to include
Maybe record the stats for animal and hybrid form separately.
Sahuagin Were-Shark, blessed by their goddess
Tabaxi Were-tiger. They basically just Hulk Out.
well how about an Astral dragon wereraven or a gith clan that is has wereraven, wererats and werebears :))))
"... during which time the DM might even take control of their character"
As a DM, I am torn. I love the idea of lycanthropes. I have 'lycanthrope season' written on the in-game calendar and I have townfolk prepare defences and warn travellers.
BUT
I have an issue where players WANT to be a lycanthrope. Traditionally, the curse is supposed to be a curse, not a power-gamer's wet dream. So I am trying to find a way to make the curse hard to live with in a game sense so there is a real drive to get a cure. And I want the cure to be arduous. I'd love some ideas on how to do this. Some of my ideas are:
i) waiving the ability to control it;
ii) making the abilities like immunity to non-magical or silvered weapons only present in their animal or hybrid forms;
iii) making the transformation happen during time of complete stress - and stripping its ability to recognise party members from foes (this can of course be used by the party);
iv) controlling the PC while it is transformed and asking the player to leave the room, so they get to hear about what they did after the event;
v) possibly killing of npc allies by the transformed pc;
v) spreading rumours about damage and victims other lycans have done; and
vi) making the lycanthrope get tracked and hunted by npc hunters.
Anything else? Anything anyone would change?
It would be awesome if we can get things like this and undead conditions as templates to be added to monsters, npcs, and player characters right here on DnDBeyond.
Go to your character sheet, go under the Creatures tab, add Werewolf (or whatever)
Best way currently to have easy access to it on your character sheet on DnDBeyond.
I realize that, but it doesn't really do what I want it to do. It brings up the statistics for the werewolf, but a player character or high level npc is going to very from the standard by a wide margin. Currently the best way I have to do it is to add the condition as an equipable magic item or a feat. It's not perfect, but it sort of works.