What do you like about werewolves?

Erickson9610 · March 7

In light of the upcoming Werewolf visual and combat refresh in Update 50, now seems like a good time to ask the community what they like about werewolves — both the mythological creature/monster in general, and their portrayal in The Elder Scrolls.

Specifically, what aspects of werewolves and the curse/disease of lycanthropy do you find appealing? What makes characters who have lycanthropy interesting?

In ESO, what makes the Werewolf playstyle fun to (role)play with, and how can it be improved? How does it match up with your expectations of what werewolves should be?

Be sure to catch the upcoming Dev Updates livestream on March 10th (the day after Update 49 launches) for the next look at the Werewolf refresh!

Radiate77 · March 7

The speed, simplicity, chaos, and normally… the visual design of them.

Werewolves in ESO have traditionally looked more akin to rats than wolves, and that’s part of the reason why I don’t play them in this game.

spartaxoxo · March 7

Biting and running

LunaFlora · March 7

wolf

Hollyniss · March 7

For me, it's always been about the fact a person can turn into a wolf or a wolf-like creature (wolves and lions are my favorite animals). Wish it wasn't so limited in ESO. I wish the wolf aspect was more prevalent rather than just a skill effect. It's something that Elder Scrolls has struggled with in general in my opinion. The wolf is too passive. They struggle to balance the man and beast aspects and make it believable. They do the same with khajiit (they're either too human or like cutsie cartoon house cats).

Werewolves aren't scary enough in this game. They're supposed to be terrifying like something out of nightmares. I preferred their look in Skyrim for that reason. They just looked like something you didn't want to mess with. They were also HUGE and far more savage and brutal in comparison to this game. I just didn't like how there was only one color (without mods). It'd be cool too if you could turn into an actual wolf, dire wolf though as they look better. It'd also be lore-friendly as there are lycanthropes who can do that (the Hound as well as the Wyrd Sisters). Be cool if werewolf or wolf form worked as a toggle similar to druids from WoW. Rather than a short-lived or situational (there are factors which can extend the duration such as passives, gear, devouring corpses, and being in a pack) ultimate transformation.

I'm not too sure how I feel about male and female models for the werewolves as that was never done (to my knowledge) in any of the previous games without mods. I always play female characters, but I don't really want my werewolves to look feminine. I want them to look brutal. It also doesn't really make sense as they don't procreate in the traditional sense (in animal form). Typically, you have to be turned. There have been Nords in Skyrim (Dragonborn expansion) that were born into it. But they were born in human form. It'd be different if they procreated like actual wolves (including having litters).

I think it'd also be neat if werewolves (and vampires) had fangs and claws in their humanoid forms.

Orbital78 · March 7

They run fast, decent play style for fun, but they're kind of garbage at a competitive or higher difficulty. At least vampires augment builds ww are really just for roleplay.

tomofhyrule · March 7

Werewolves are absolutely my favorite “traditional” monster. I love the concept of having a feral side, losing yourself to become a beast, and then the story possibilities for either learning to control the animal side… or losing yourself human side completely.

I have two werewolves in my ESO roster (ok, one’s not supposed to be a wolf). They’re both Skaal brothers, but even the two of them have very different views on being a Child of Hircine.

My Warden is the younger brother, and he’s been half-animal since he was born. But Hircine had followed him from the beginning - his father was First Hunter of the Skaal and ran across a werebear before he was born, so he always had the blood of the bear in him. But his father managed to hide it from everyone… until Hircine came to collect. He was taken during the Bloodmoon, leaving the kids to fend for themselves. Ragnar was never really into the Skaal way of life though, and eventually got the chance to leave. And then before long, Hircine found him and gave him the chance to become what he was born to be.

My Arcanist is his older brother, and was Shaman of the Skaal, so he is very opposed to it. But he ends up being taken to Apocrypha when he comes across a Black Book, and then the only way he can survive is to use Mora’s powers against him. Mora doesn’t like that and tries to give him more power if he shares the secrets of the Skaal, but Skjoldr is too clever for that. He escapes, but Mora sends all of his minions to take him back. And he knows the only way he will ever be free of Mora is to leave Nirn… and if he has to be tormented in Oblivion, at least he’d choose to be with his brother.

It is fun to consider how being a werebeast would change you, and not just in the “growing fur and fangs” sense. I’m really excited to see what they have coming up.

KiltMaster · March 7

I think they're neat. It'd be nice if we could have a volume slider for them though.

C_Inside · March 7

In mythology I like the concept of shapeshifting in general. As someone who mains a human build irl I can tell you that it's rather boring to play. You're basically forced into an intelligence build. Sure, you can do stuff like finishing side quests for a "gym" guild which will net you some extra strength and endurance, but those points are super limited. Not to mention there's a hard cap on those attributes. Intelligence doesn't really have a cap so if you want to get into the end game you're forced to min/max it. Hopefully the devs can shake things up in the next patch. But from what I understand it's just 1 guy doing all the work so who knows when that will be.

Anyway, lycantrophy is a nice way to try a strength/endurance build without having to start over. You also get to experience the "world" from a whole new perspective and you get to play as something new and exciting for a bit. In general you can connect to nature in a way you really can't as a human because human mode just doesn't have the correct stat distribution to pass the needed skill checks.

Sadly, none of this applies to ESO. Werewolf doesn't offer anything that human mode can't achieve and it's worse at every task compared to it. So I'll stick to my normal character until ZOS gives me a good reason to play werewolf.

TX12001rwb17_ESO · March 7

I like the taste of their blood., yes I am a Vampire.

SpiritofESO · March 7

As a Wood Elf Nightblade, in my Armory I have five Stamina builds and five Magicka builds. Stamina builds work well for Wood Elves because of our Racial skills, and Magicka builds work well because of our Siphoning Class passives.

Two Stamina builds and three Magicka builds use stealth, so the Vampire passive Dark Stalker works well. I did use Werewolf for some time with Stamina builds and it works well, but once again using the Siphoning Class skills and passives also works really well... so I stopped using Werewolf.

However, when I run random dungeons as a Healer, I love to have Werewolves as damage dealers because they can clear a room and are rarely in danger of dying. Actually, a healer, a tank and two Werewolves would be excellent.

Emeratis · March 8

I probably have a different take than most. I've always loved shapeshifters in general. For me and my characters who are werewolves, I would like more synergy between their humanoid side and werewolf side and a more fluid way to switch between without penalty or having to build around one or the other.

My one werewolf in eso is an altmer dominion soldier who contracted lycanthropy throughout his adventure in Tamriel and slowly had to make peace with that and come to terms with it. It was fun to write his lycanthropy eventually leading him to freedom from his societal expectations and helping him choose his own path in life. I always found the mental/spiritual side of werewolf in stories and lore to be more compelling than "ooh scary beast."

I have other characters I would use lycanthropy on if we get skill styles for flavor because we also have nonwerewolf shapeshifters in game such as changelings (bosmer who in ancient time refused/rejected the green pact), a character of mine who goes through daedric transformations as he pushes more dangerous magic, etc. I like the possibilities that skill styles have given us for unlocking more flavor/character and I hope we get some of these options in the future as well as more traditional lycanthrope options in skill styles such as werebear, wereboar, wereshark, etc.

WerewolfMoonHunter · March 8

Erickson9610 wrote: »

In light of the upcoming Werewolf visual and combat refresh in Update 50, now seems like a good time to ask the community what they like about werewolves — both the mythological creature/monster in general, and their portrayal in The Elder Scrolls.

Specifically, what aspects of werewolves and the curse/disease of lycanthropy do you find appealing? What makes characters who have lycanthropy interesting?

In ESO, what makes the Werewolf playstyle fun to (role)play with, and how can it be improved? How does it match up with your expectations of what werewolves should be?

Be sure to catch the upcoming Dev Updates livestream on March 10th (the day after Update 49 launches) for the next look at the Werewolf refresh!

So... on the personal level my love for werewolves comes from a bit unusual place. Many years ago, back in primary school, I had an dream about werewolves. I already knew about them before but I didn’t care about them at all. After I had this dream I started to feel interest in them. I started researching lore, reading about them, going through internet forums. I loved the aspect of wild freedom they have. Back then I was very much limited by school and expectations, and werewolves were for me an escape for every day boring life. I viewed kind of alter-ego of me. Everything that I wasn’t yet wanted to be…
What I love about them in TES lore? Well for starters I first played Skyrim and became an werewolf there before I learned TES lore about them. But I loved the skills, look and power. Not to mention that back then I found Companions as the best guild ever. Hircine quest in Skyrim also helped me get deeper in love with TES werewolves.
After that I started playing ESO in 2015 where I recreated my Skyrim character. So of course I had to turn him into an werewolf too. For few months I just cared about being an werewolf and having fun in beast form. But then I joined my beloved guild, where we had role play. At one point I had to make an backstory for my character, including explanation why he is an werewolf. I realized that I don’t know much about lore of my favourite creatures. So I started researching. I learned about their true connection to Hircine, the perks and issues with being one etc. My love for them grew even deeper, but also more mature. I started to better understand them, see their strengths and flaws. I also became big fan of Hircine who is now my favourite Daedric Prince.
And this is my story with TES werewolves

Erickson9610 · March 8

This may come as a surprise, but I actually don't heavily associate werewolves with wolves. In my mind, werewolves are humans who, due to some external factors, turn into terrifying and powerful monsters. It took me a while to appreciate what people liked about wolves, when for so long I just considered them to be dull, real-life animals.

Above all, I like the ferocity of werewolves. The idea that a regular human can, with or without meaning to, turn into a savage beast that mauls and claws indiscriminately is really cool to me. I prefer werewolves over similar monsters, like zombies or vampires, because werewolves are just that powerful without needing to be undead. The power fantasy of being a werewolf is awesome — you have incredible strength, agility, toughness, regeneration, and so on.

However, I also like the themes of lycanthropy. A character can be an upstanding citizen publicly, but become a cruel monster when nobody's watching. Lycanthropy could be portrayed as a metaphor for trying to resist one's internal desires, or trying to find balance between several aspects of one's life. I personally like the idea that lycanthropy is a key to freedom from oppression, the ability to be self-reliant, or that a character can consider it to be their "true self" which they cannot reveal to others under any circumstances.

I like that ESO's werewolves lean into the power fantasy and appeal of werewolves from popular culture. They can turn other people into werewolves (reflected via certain NPCs as well as between players via the Bloodmoon passive), they have superhuman strength and agility (reflected via Savage Strength, Pursuit, and Pounce), and they're vicious predators who want to hunt (reflected via the transformation timer system, as well as Devour and Blood Rage). Further, ESO takes advantage of the multiplayer aspect of the game and gives you a bonus for grouping with other werewolves, which is more of a wolf thing but it fits the idea of werewolves hunting in packs.

Adding to that, I wish that ESO's Werewolf also had something to reflect their ability to prowl stealthily and use their sense of smell to track down their quarry. Maybe in the future we'll get the ability to sneak and have some way to detect enemies in stealth. I am hoping for a proper biting attack soon, though!

Soarora · March 8

Erickson9610 wrote: »

Specifically, what aspects of werewolves and the curse/disease of lycanthropy do you find appealing? What makes characters who have lycanthropy interesting?

I've always been drawn to werewolves for some reason. As a kid, I begged my dad to transform our shared Skyrim character into a werewolf. A few years after that was my werewolf phase where I believed I was a werewolf. I don't think I was ever so into it that I was delusional, just childhood play. My first Skyrim character that I created and played myself... I turned into a werewolf, not sure why. Then, I made my first ESO character... didn't connect... and wasn't sure what to make... so I made myself. This "persona" ended up becoming a werewolf too. These days, I just really like Hircine and how his sphere is fair in it's cyclic nature-- you are the hunter until you are the hunted, but the hunted can always become the hunter. I also find that I can connect to the concept of being a werewolf in that I really do not like being angry... but when I'm pushed to a certain level of anger (which takes a lot to get me there) it feels akin to a werewolf transformation-- I don't feel like myself, consumed by the anger.

Erickson9610 wrote: »

In ESO, what makes the Werewolf playstyle fun to (role)play with, and how can it be improved? How does it match up with your expectations of what werewolves should be?

I'm a huge fan of indulging in the bloodlust. Kill everything in sight-- not to keep up the transformation for a practical reason but because that's what a werewolf would do. I haven't played ESO werewolf in quite some time and right now it feels very boring. I've never really tried optimizing it but the only option you have in terms of skill selection is which one of two morphs you choose. It's restrictive and the skills just don't really have an oomph factor. You're not leaping onto enemies and pinning them to the ground, in fact, the only cc I remember werewolf having is the fear.

NotaDaedraWorshipper · March 8

Even though I have werewolf characters in ESO, I don't think I find their gameplay fun in game. Not only because it's limited to just werewolf in looks, but also because of how it works is quite unfun to me, even leaning to stressful with how you activate it as an ultimate then you need to keep up eating corpses so the timer of it doesn't run out. Barely any time to loot things or look at it, just keep running and nom so you can keep the form. Then when it runs out it feels awkward when you built around werewolf because you need to get your ultimate up again.

Like most things in Elder Scrolls I like them from a lore and story view. The disease aspects with different strains, how it's at the same time some strange daedric curse/mild possession (and not a possession in the normal sense) that connects them to Oblivion and Hircine. Hircine is also one of my favourite princes as well, as a bonus. The different cultural views of it, such as how it's a negative for most major cultures, but for bosmer it's extra bad while for Reachfolk it's considered a positive and blessing.
I also enjoy that werebeasts can be people who are feral with no control, ones in full control of themselves, and of course everything in between. It's not one or the other, which gives room for a lot of creativity in story and roleplaying.

autocookies · March 10

The power fantasy of becoming a violent and cursed monster.

To me, werewolves are S-class beasts, equal in level to dragons and vampires, whether fighting in a group or alone. While they may have ancestral ties to wolves through their packs, werewolves are ultimately a different kind of creature. Other than honoring the Alpha out of respect or tradition, they do not require a pack for the hunt and are fully capable of fending for themselves—similar to how vampires operate within covens but do not strictly depend on them.

Werewolves are known for their immense strength, speed, agility, and regeneration. They can out-heal almost any wound, short of those caused by wolfsbane or silver. Some lore even suggests that the only true way to kill a werewolf is to separate its head from its heart through decapitation.

Ataskir · March 12

I’ve always loved transformations, especially combat transformations as a dragonball fan! Just the concept of turning into something vastly stronger to turn the tides has always been really hype for me!

Werewolves also have neat lore, and I’ve always appreciated it.

Hollyniss · March 7

@tomofhyrule that's really neat! I have two werewolf characters as well. A Wood Orc Warden who worships Hircine and relishes the hunt (no matter the prey) and a Khajiit Templar who also worships Hircine and uses his gifts to hunt only the wicked.

My khajiit werewolf is my favorite. A white lioness who transforms into a white wolf. She's a noble beast who serves as a guardian or protector of the innocent. She also helps other werewolves to master the beast within and use their gifts to help people.

Erickson9610 · March 8

TX12001rwb17_ESO wrote: »

I like the taste of their blood., yes I am a Vampire.

I bet vampires wish they could have beast blood, haha.

The rivalry between werewolves and vampires is kind of cool, I'll admit — but I liked how they worked together in the Gray Host. They really have more in common than they have different from one another.

NotaDaedraWorshipper · March 8

Hollyniss wrote: »

It'd be cool too if you could turn into an actual wolf, dire wolf though as they look better. It'd also be lore-friendly as there are lycanthropes who can do that (the Hound as well as the Wyrd Sisters).

Woldn't say it's lore friendly, because Wyrd Sisters shapeshift into wolves but they are not werebeasts, they're type of witches. Their shapeshifting has nothing to do with the disease, same as the druids of Galen shapeshifting.

The Hound we also only see as a wolf in a ghostly projection, and not an actual physical form. There are no example of werebeasts of what I can recall looking like just a big version of the animal, it's always mixed with humanoid to some degree.

Erickson9610 · March 8

NotaDaedraWorshipper wrote: »

Hollyniss wrote: »

It'd be cool too if you could turn into an actual wolf, dire wolf though as they look better. It'd also be lore-friendly as there are lycanthropes who can do that (the Hound as well as the Wyrd Sisters).

Woldn't say it's lore friendly, because Wyrd Sisters shapeshift into wolves but they are not werebeasts, they're type of witches. Their shapeshifting has nothing to do with the disease, same as the druids of Galen shapeshifting.

The Hound we also only see as a wolf in a ghostly projection, and not an actual physical form. There are no example of werebeasts of what I can recall looking like just a big version of the animal, it's always mixed with humanoid to some degree.

Don't forget that Songamdir is one of the few werewolves with the ability to shapeshift into an actual wolf. He's the Nord who introduces you to Hircine in the Werewolf tutorial quest, "Hircine's Gift".

Soarora · March 8

NotaDaedraWorshipper wrote: »

Hollyniss wrote: »

It'd be cool too if you could turn into an actual wolf, dire wolf though as they look better. It'd also be lore-friendly as there are lycanthropes who can do that (the Hound as well as the Wyrd Sisters).

Woldn't say it's lore friendly, because Wyrd Sisters shapeshift into wolves but they are not werebeasts, they're type of witches. Their shapeshifting has nothing to do with the disease, same as the druids of Galen shapeshifting.

The Hound we also only see as a wolf in a ghostly projection, and not an actual physical form. There are no example of werebeasts of what I can recall looking like just a big version of the animal, it's always mixed with humanoid to some degree.

https://en.m.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Songamdir

Edit: oh, he was already mentioned. I didn’t scroll down, oops!

AcadianPaladin · March 8

"Have you seen the werewolves? The really, really big wolves? I just want to jump in their arms! They are so big and furry. I love them! I have yet to talk to one, though. They're a little … intimidating."

Radiate77 · March 9

I’m very glad that Werewolves are getting a visual overhaul in 3 months, I can’t wait to see what they look like in the three Skill Styles they are releasing for them.

CastleCrasher · March 9

That must be totally madness style.But rarely see werewolves wearing pants.

ViggyBoi · March 11

Erickson9610 wrote: »

TX12001rwb17_ESO wrote: »

I like the taste of their blood., yes I am a Vampire.

I bet vampires wish they could have beast blood, haha.

The rivalry between werewolves and vampires is kind of cool, I'll admit — but I liked how they worked together in the Gray Host. They really have more in common than they have different from one another.

im pretty sure there's a lorebook written by a vampire who actually confirms that werewolf blood is tastier than mortal blood.

wolfie1.0. · March 11

For me its that werewolves should be treated as heros. In media and games its always depicted as a curse or villain.

Even in ESO wolves and werewolves are very very common mobs you have to hunt and kill.

Also, I like the animals always have. They are my mascot. If I had the money I would open a preserve just for the creatures.

TX12001rwb17_ESO · March 12

A rivalry would imply they were comparable, but the thing is Vampires such as Blood Scions and Vampire Lords are so far beyond Werewolves in terms of power it is not even funny and with the new visual update the player werewolf is going to appear even smaller by comparison, if they were not already the runt of the litter given most NPC Werewolves are slightly larger than the player Werewolf, how exactly can you feel powerful like that?

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What do you like about werewolves?

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