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Society

The black Spiral Dancers live very much like other Garou. Despite the fact that most other Garou consider life among this tribe to be insane and brutal, it is not always so.

The black Spiral Dancers maintain most of their caerns (homes) in or around underground lairs, which they call Pits. The term Pit is not only applied to the caern itself, but to the surface area around it as well.
The Black Spiral call their septs Hives. They also divide themselves into packs, as do other Garou. A Black Spiral pack is formed with some purpose in mind, as are all other Garou packs.

Mating and relationships between Black Spirals are common, although actual love is not. Unlike other Garou who shun their metis (deformed or strange wolves), Black Spiral Dancers accept and consider their Metis as equals.

All Black Spirals wear talismans made of various metals, colors, jewels, and designs. These ornaments denote the Black Spiral's rank, family background, Hive and pack. Some Black Spirals are considered ronin (wanderers), but are treated as equals to all other Black Spirals unless they have been proven guilty of turning away from the service of the Wyrm. Those that turn traitor are hunted down and punished.

The Black Spirals maintain close Hive-to-Hive relations. Since they are much smaller in number than their enemies, they find it necessary to stay united. Because the Black Spirals often rely upon the tunnels that lace the underworld, they must maintain good relations lest they destroy each other.

The rites used by the Black Spiral Dancers are, for the most part, the same as those used by the other tribes. There are however, two of their own which are of real importance. These are the Rite of Passage and the Rite of Transmogrification. These two rites are important because they maintain the link between the Black Spirals and the Wyrm.

Rite of Passage / Rite of Transmogrification


Dance of the Black Spiral (Rite of Passage)

Black Spiral Dancers undergo a very unusual rite of passage. Until the age of adulthood the metis pups of the tribe live within the Pit. They are taught the ways of their ancestors, their language, their history, and their beliefs. They are considered useful, but may be silenced without any reason by any member of the Hive. This seldom happens since the tribe needs as many members as it can get, but if it does, no one acts against the perpetrator.

Black Spirals who reach adulthood, when they make the First Change, are brought before the Hive's Totem-hole. At the Totem-hole, pups witness the enactment of their tribe's story by the Hive's Galliards and whoever else is needed to play a role. Once they have been shown their history, they are lead before each member of the Hive for judgement. Those that survive the judgement of the Hive must then be accepted or denied by the Wyrm, by dancing through the Black Spiral Labyrinth. This is a spiraling circle on the floor of the cave, seemingly composed of shadowy tendrils that emanate from the totem-hole.

As they dance through the loops of the circle, the pups are tested by all sorts of evil creatures.They are subjected to horrifying visions, and at some point are transported to the Umbra (Home of Wyrm). If they survive and reach the center, they gaze upon the face of the Wyrm. If their hearts do not seize with terror, their minds shatter. They then wander back along the path they came. As they retrace their steps, the pups-no-more are indoctrined by spirits and given the Skills and Gifts necessary to survive as Black Spiral Dancers. When they exit the spiral, they will have a semblance of sanity, although it is a bulwark set against their lunacy.

Those that do survive are welcomed into the tribe as full members. Many of the new members gain awesome insight into what they perceive as reality, but many more start to suffer from their insanity, and are unable to maintain their new identities as Black Spirals.


The Naming

A Black Spiral receives their name as soon as the rite of passage is over. When they wander off its twisted path, made from their ordeal, the first syllables they utter are interpreted by the master of the rite as a name-form. Thus, Black Spiral names come in odd forms, mere syllables strung together, such as Gamush, Hang-gaal, Obobo, etc. A name is thus the first brand of the new Black Spiral's madness.


Choosing a Head of the Hydra

Upon completing the rite of passage, the young Black Spiral is tutored in the ways of his tribe and ordered to choose a Wyrm to follow. This is one of the many heads of the Hydra, the split and shattered thought-children of the Wyrm. The Black Spiral is shown all the Wyrms known to the tribe, and must choose one to follow to his dying days. The form of this allegiance is very important to the Black Spirals. Without it, a Black Spiral is considered weak and indecisive.

The different Wyrms often have different goals from each other, and sometimes fight among themselves. The Black Spiral is expected to follow his Wyrm blindly, even if it causes them to tear out the throat of a packmate who follows another Wyrm. Loyalty to the Wyrm comes before the pack or even tribe.

Following a Wyrm is not the same thing as following a totem. A totem is an alliance with a powerful spirit being, usually an incarna. Following the Wyrm is an allegiance to a grand ruler, the eventual victor (The Black Spiral hopes) in the war for ownership over the land.


The Rite of Transmogrification

The greatest award a Black Spiral Dancer can attain is to be chosen to reenter the mouth of the Wyrm. A Dancer survives gains more understanding of the universe and the role as the servitor of the Wrym. The Black Spiral Dancer may also be given special powers, as well as debilitating insanity. This is called Rite of Transmogrification, a Level four rite.

The Black Spiral will instinctively know the Proper time for the ceremony, and will then approaches the Hive's elder Thurge and demand to be given the rite. If they successfully intimidate the elder, the rite will be arranged. Should they survive the rite, they move up in Rank. It is a shortcut to power, but with the harsh results for those that fail... as most do.

The BSD will partake of the rite in a lonesome, darkened chamber of the Pit. They will strip themselves of all their worldly possessions and enter into the Umbra through a mirror or other shiny object. Once in the Umbra, a Bane will approach them and lead them to Malfeas, the Lair of the Wyrm. There, they will walk the true Black Spiral Labyrinth, trying to pass through as many circles as they feel they can withstand, although they must pass at least as many as the Rank they are trying to attain.

The true Labyrinth is rumored to have nine circles. Even in Black Spiral Legends, no one has passed them all to reach the center. For each circle successfully passed, the dancer moves up in Rank, but only to the Rank corresponding to the circle passed.

The dancer is presented with a major challenge on each circle, and must overcome them to walk away unscathed. The challenges can be of any type, but are somewhat different for every Dancer and for even each time the rite is undertaken. The challenges test the weaknesses, fears, and beliefs of the Garou.

After surviving the test, the Dancer will notice that they are not in their own body, but in that of the Wrym (no Garou has ever remembered what the Wrym's form looks like after reemergence into the material world). The Dancer will then realize that they are the Wrym. The Wyrm embodies not only the Dancer's thoughts, but also the body & spirit. They will be met with by the Bane that guided them to the tests and led back through the Umbra to the place they entered. On emerging they realize they reside in their old form, but may have gained many Gifts by surviving the tests. Its very likely they have also lost their sanity.

The nine challenges of the Labyrinth

Circle One: Dance of insight. The Dancer is shown a dark truth about their inner self, something they have hidden from themselves for their very sanity. Do they break, or dance on?

Circle Two: Dance of Rage. The Dancer must overcome certain power obstacles, but only anger and frenzy will see them through.

Circle Three: Dance of Endurance. The Dancer must endure tests of physical and mental anguish.

Circle Four: Dance of Cunning. The Bane Guardian of this path must be convinced, in a test of wits, to let the Dancer pass.

Circle Five: Dance of Combat. The Dancer must fight terrible foes to prove their strength.

Circle Six: Dance of Corruption. The Dancer must withstand overwhelming corruption, retaining their sense of self through vast psychical mutations and mental schisms.

Circle Seven: Dance of Loyalty. The Dancer's loyalty to the Wyrm undergoes the final test, Drink this...

Circle Eight: Dance of the Paradox. A riddle contest with a very mysterious Bane of Enigmas. This incomprehensible being rarely loses.

Circle Nine: Dance of Deceit. The Dancer must prove that they are above even the Wrym, by destroying the Wrym when they confront it.

The Black Spiral Litany & Connections

The Dark Litany is the corrupted song of the Garou from when the Dancers walked the face of Gaia as the White Howlers, containing the traditions, codes, and laws of the Spirals. All Philodox are required to learn it by heart and most good Moon Dancers learn a significant portion of it. The Black Spiral Fianna are the true Masters of the Litany, and even their Ragabash know most of its intricacies-- ideal for extricating themselves from various situations.

The following are some of the basic tenets of the Dark Litany, there are many others, often varying by sept or tribe.

1. Serve the Wyrm in All its Forms: This is the basis for the alliance and unity with the Wyrm's minions and the Sabbat. The tribe will only support them as long as they are supportung the Wyrm, not themselves.


2. Beware the Territory of Another: This dictum allows separate Hives to maintain separate territories. Competition for land is usually not a problem, since most new Hives are created from distant Garou caerns. This law also applies when Black Spirals from different Hives encounter each other within the tunnels of the underworld. A Black Spiral may travel through the tunnels of another Hive as long as he or she does not endanger it. If he does, the transgressor is tortured and devoured by the offended werewolves.


3. Slay Those Who Will Not Join You: Offering a Garou a chance to walk the spiral is a signal honor. Prisoners are sometimes afforded the chance to transmogrify instead of submitting to hours of messy torture. Those treated with such esteem should show proper deference. Those who reject such overtures are destroyed.


4. Respect All Those Who Serve the Wyrm: While the Black Spirals want revenge on the other werewolves, they will accept all members of other tribes who turn their backs on their kind and join the service of the Wyrm.


5. The Veil Shall Not Be Lifted: his ideal is not only upheld by Garou and Black Spirals alike, but by most supernatural creatures. By enacting their schemes silently and discreetly, Black Spirals can hide from the Garou who hunt them, infiltrate human society more thoroughly, and employ the advantage of surprise. In a more general context, this dictum sometimes becomes a point of contention between Black Spirals and the Sabbat. The werewolves don't care for plans that force them to compromise the secrecy of their Hives, but they also don't mind if Sabbat vampires bring down other retribution on themselves.


6. Do Not Suffer Thy People to Tend Thy Sickness: Unlike some tribes of the Garou Nation, the Black Spirals uphold this dictum religiously. A weak cub should not grow old enough to poison the tribe's gene pool. A weak elder is a liability, and if he cannot defeat challenges against his position, he should be destroyed. As a corollary to this, some Black Spirals are actually so insane that they pose a threat to the security of the Hive. In this case they are either made Ronin or torn limb from limb in sacrifices to dark powers.


7. The Leader May Be Challenged At Any Time in Peace: This stricture has remained in tact since the days of the White Howlers. Defeating Black Spirals of renown is an effective way to gain infamy and power. If a leader cannot defeat his own followers, he has no right to lead them against their enemies.


8. The Leader Shall Not Be Challenged in Time of War: Once battle begins, the forces of the Wyrm must be united. This is the Black Spiral's chief advantage over the Thirteen Tribes. Admittedly, arguing this point of the Dark Litany is difficult, as the tribe is almost always involved in some sort of conflict, but its usually reserved for when an outright skirmish has begun. There are few notable exceptions, such as when a vampire is attempting to lead Black Spirals in battle and does so poorly.


9. Ye Shall Take No Action That Causes a Pit to Be Violated: he interpretation of this guideline usually applies to security and secrecy. If anyone who is not a Black Spiral Dancer or Wyrm-spirit enters a Pit, he must be killed swiftly. Prisoners are never brought back to a Pit, nor does anyone speak of the sanctum when outside it's boundaries. If prisoners are honored with an invitation to the Shattered Labyrinth, the Rite of the Black Spiral must be performed away from the Hive's sanctum.


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Connections & Perceptions

Sabbat~ Black Spirals see the Sabbat as a servent of the Wyrm even though the sect does not see it itself. The Sabbat can be too manipulative and is not dependable or trustworthy. The Black Spirals realize the Sabbat is only willing to aid them if it is to the sect's advantage, and they wonder why the Sabbat has been so generous to them. They must want something.

Garou~ The Black Spirals see the other Garou as morons tricked by Gaia and the Wyld into protecting its overabundant creation. The Garou do not see that they are causing even more pain by not allowing the Wrym its just reign. The Garou must be destroyed.

Kinfolk~ The Black Spirals see their Kinfolk as useful connections to the surface world. While their kinfolk do not like them, they atleast meet arrangements of their bargain with the Black Spirals. The Kindred may not like their Garou cousins, but they still serve them.

Glossary & FAQ



Apocalypse The age of destruction, the final cycle, the birth of death, the everlasting corruption, the end of Gaia - a word used in Garou mythology to describe the time of the final battle with the Wyrm. Many consider this time to be the present.

Auspice The phase of the moon under which a particular Garou was born; commonly thought to determine personality and tendencies. The auspices are Ragabash (New Moon; Trickster),
, Theurge (Crescent Moon; Seer), Philodox (Half Moon; Judge), Galliard (Gibbous Moon; Moon Dancer), Ahroun (Full Moon; Warrior)

Bane Evil spirits that follow the Wyrm. There are many different kinds of Banes Scrag, Kalus, Psychomachiae and more.

Bawn A boundary area around a caern, where mortals are watched.

Blight Any corrupted area in either the sprit world or physical reality.

Breed The genetic predisposition of a Garou, be it lupus or metis.

Caern A sacred place; a meeting spot where the Garou can contact the spirit world.

Concolation A great moot, wherein many tribes gather to discuss matters that concern the Nation of Garou. While Black Spirals will and have called Concolations, their dark congress will only include other Dancers and servants and spirits of the Wyrm.

Concord, The The agreement all the tribes reached nearly 9,000 years ago, after which the Impergium was ended. The traditions thereof are still obeyed today.

Corruption The act of destroying, devolving or debasing life; also, the often overwhelming effects of the Wyrm's actions. In the present age, it often specifically refers to the ecological ruin humans wreak upon the environment.

Crinos The half wolf, half man form of the Garou.

Deep Umbra The aspects of the Umbra that are not Gaia, but are only found away from the Realm. Reality becomes more and more fragmented the farther out one gets.

Delirium The madness suffered by creatures who look upon a Garou in Crinos form.

Domain A mini Realm in the Umbra, usually connected to a larger Realm in the Deep Umbra.

Gaffling A simple spirit servant of a Jaggling, Incarna or Celestine
Gafflings are rarely sentient.

Gaia The Earth and related Realms, in both a physical and a spiritual sense; the Mother Goddess.

Garou The term werewolves use for themselves.

Gauntlet The barrier between the physical world of Earth and the spirit world of the Umbra. It is strongest around technological (Weaver) places, weakest around caerns.

Incarna A class of spirits; weaker than the Celestines, but still greater spirits by any measure. For lack of a better word, Demi-gods.

Jaggling A spirit servant of an Incarna or Celestine.

Keening The empathic calling some Garou perform when howling.

Klaive A fetish dagger or sword, usually of great spiritual potency and nearly always made of silver. Most Garou place spiritual value upon their klaives, and both Garou and Black Spirals have developed a ritual form of combat known as Klaive-Duelling though the BSD version is obviously more bloody and underhanded.

Litany and the Dark Litany The code of laws kept by the Garou and the perverted version upheld by the Black Spiral Dancers.

Lupus A Garou of wolf origin.

Membrane, The The barrier between the Near and Deep Umbras. To breach it, an Anchorhead must be found. Alternatively, the Garou can travel through the Dream Zone.

Metis The sterile and often deformed offspring of two Garou. Generally reviled by Garou society. The BSD revere these malformed beings as "blessed by the Father", their tribe boasting more Metis Garou than any other.

Moon Bridge A gate between two caerns; it most often appears during moots.

Moon Calf Idiot, simpleton

Moot A sept or tribal conclave that takes place at a caern.

Near Umbra The spirit world surrounding the Gaia Realm.

Pack A small group of Garou bound to each other by ties of friendship and mission as opposed to culture.

Penumbra "Earth's Shadow"; the spirit world directly surrounding the physical world; many, but not all, terrain features will be the same.

Protectorate The territory claimed and patrolled by a pack or sept.

Reaching Traveling into the spirit world.

Realms The worlds of "solid" reality within the Tellurian. Earth is referred to as the Realm.

Ronin A Garou who has chosen or been forced to leave Garou society. It is a harsh fate to become a "lone wolf."

Sept The group of Garou who live near and tend an individual caern.

Tellurian The whole of reality.

Totem A spirit joined to the pack or tribe and representative of its inner nature. A tribal totem is an Incarna, while a pack totem is an Incarna avatar (a Jaggling equivalent).

Triat, The The Weaver, the Wyld and the Wyrm. The trinity of primal cosmic forces. Collectively, all three of these beings exist beyond the realms of space and time.

Tribe The larger community of Garou. Tribes members are often bound by similar totems and lifestyles.

Umbra The spirit world.

Veil, The The Garou version of the vampiric Masquerade. Basically "don't let mankind know we exist."

Ways, The The traditions of the Garou.

Weaver, The Manifestation and symbol of order and pattern. Computers, science, logic and mathematics are examples of the Weaver's influence on the material plane. Wyld, The Manifestation and symbol of pure change. The chaos of transmutation and elemental force.

Wyrm, The Manifestation and symbol of evil, entropy and decay in Garou belief. Vampires are often manifestations of the Wyrm, as are toxic waste and pollution.

Wyrmhole A place that has been spiritually defiled by the Wyrm; invariably a location of great corruption.


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The younger Garou use these words to help distinguish themselves from their elders.

Cadaver A derogatory term for a vampire.

Feral Slang term for Lupus

Gremlin A malevolent spirit.

Leech See Cadaver.

Mule Slang term for Metis.

Run A ritual hunt or revel that takes place at the conclusion of a moot.

Stepping Sideways Entering the spirit world. Most elders consider this term flippant and disrespectful.

Throat To best another in ritual combat. Used as a verb (e.g., "I throated his sorry a**!")


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These are terms mostly used only by the Black Spiral Dancers, or in reference to them and their customs and rites.

Hive: A Hive is the Black Spiral Dancer equivalent of a Sept.

Hydra, Heads of: When a Black Spiral has completed their Rite of Passage, they are tutored in the ways of the tribe and must choose a Wyrm to follow. This is one of the many heads of the Hydra, the split and shattered thought-children of the Wyrm. The Black Spiral is shown all the Wyrms known to the tribe, and must choose one to follow to his dying days. This form of allegiance is very important to the Black Spirals. Without it a Black Spiral is considered weak and indecisive.

Naming, The: The act of discovering a Black Spiral Dancer's true name when they first emerge from their Rite of Passage. The first syllables they utter are interpreted by the rite-master as a name-form.

Pit: Pits are Black Spiral Dancer Caerns, they contain many traps, hidden chambers, secret doors, spy holes, pitfalls, and other devices for security, both mechanical and spiritual. Some Pits even have doors which only allow access to the leaders of the Hive (or the occasional Ragabash). The Pit is a sacred place to the Black Spirals, it is their sanctuary from the world above, they use it to provide privacy. Few outsiders ever become aware of the Pit tunnel systems; those who do are usually killed. Even the Sabbat do not realise what elaborate structures the Black Spirals have developed.

Totem Hole: The central pit in a BSD Caern. A potent Bane is bound to the glowing pit, always set in an otherwise empty chamber. The Bane is given enough power to materialise by the Hive on proper occasions, such as the Dance of the Black Spiral.

Transmogrification, Rite of: The greatest award a Black Spiral Dancer can achieve is to be chosen to re-enter the mouth of the Wyrm. A Dancer who survives gains more understanding of the universe and her role as a servitor of the Wyrm. The Black Spiral Dancer may also be given supernatural powers, as well as debilitating insanity. This is called the Rite of Transmogrification, a level four Rite. It is impossible for a Black Spiral Dancer to increase in Rank without dancing the Circle of the Rank they wish to achieve. In other words, Rank Five is only reached by successfully dancing through Circle Five.

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