Our Werebeasts Are Different: Difference between revisions

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== Related Tropes ==

* This is a [[Sub-Trope]] to [[Our Monsters Are Different]] and [[Animorphism]].

* [[Werebeast Tropes]] lists tropes related to werebeasts, including werewolves.

* [[Skin Walker]] is a Native American multi-animal shape-shifter capable of taking other human forms.

* [[Youkai]] are Japanese supernatural creatures that are sometimes depicted as having features similar to werebeasts. Examples of these should be listed under that trope.

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** ''D&D'' 3rd Edition uses the term lycanthrope to refer to any sort of therianthrope. There are multiple varieties of lycanthrope aside from the usual werewolves, werebears, wererats, wearboars, weretigers, dire wereboars (hill giants that turn into dire boars), and jackleweres. The 3.5 edition monster manual even has a template for any animal. They've always been able to take on the normal animal form and infect with a bite, but other details have cropped up with the evolution of the game, including the addition of a "hybrid" form equivalent to the Man-Wolf, the existence of natural lycanthropes in addition to infected ones, and the imposition of a whole new alignment (and personality) not just on the nonhuman forms but on the human(oid) as well. The most recent edition has the Lycanthrope template, allowing one to make were-''anything'' characters. Recent publications introduced the Shifter player race, descendants of humans and lycanthropes, who were effectively "lycanthrope-lite".

** ''[[Mystara]]'' has Chevall. The centaurs who turn into full horses at will and can be hurt only by silver or magical weapons and... that's all.

** [[Forgotten Realms]] had classic types and a few high-profile therianthropic characters.

*** [[Big Bad]] of the ''Threat from the Sea'' trilogy was an ancient were-[[Megalodon]]. As nasty as it sounds, and then some, since he was closely acquainted with several gods, had a habit of collecting artifacts and took the whole "sea world conquest" thing seriously. Known to most underwater races simply as "The Taker".

*** Selûne's divine portfolio includes good shapeshifters. ''Finder's Stone'' trilogy had a werebear Selunite high priestess.

** ''Van Richten's Guide to Werebeasts'' is an AD&D 2nd Edition, ''[[Ravenloft]]'' book with a host of rules on werebeasts. Unlike most settings, lycanthropes in Ravenloft are almost universally evil, except for the [[Lawful Good]] wereravens.

** ~~The tibbits, introduced originally in~~ ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' magazine ~~and~~ reprinted in the ''Dragon Compendium'' book, ~~qualify. Their~~ humanoid form is small, with [[Pointy Ears]] and [[Animal Eyes|cat eyes]], somewhat resembling [[Hobbits|halflings]]. They can turn cats at will.

** ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' magazine introduced a few extra types. The tibbits, reprinted in the ''Dragon Compendium'' book, has humanoid form small, with [[Pointy Ears]] and [[Animal Eyes|cat eyes]], somewhat resembling [[Hobbits|halflings]]. They can turn cats at will. Sillier variants included the werehare. Among other things, the creature could only be harmed by magic weapons and [[Monty Python and The Holy Grail|holy hand grenades]].

** ''Dragon'' magazine also included a sillier variant in the form of the werehare. Among other things, the creature could only be harmed by magic weapons and [[Monty Python and The Holy Grail|holy hand grenades]].

* [[Warhammer Fantasy]] has Werebears living in the [[Grim Up North|Northlands]].

* ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]'' has Werebears and Wererats.

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* ''[[The Wotch]]'' has a few lycanthropic minor characters (a hereditary werewolf (Samantha "Wolfie" Wolfe) and an inflicted werecat (Katie McBride). Transformations occur involuntarily under a full moon (or a spell capable of duplicating those conditions), and victims lose their normal personalities while transformed (though both above characters can overcome this thanks to a magic amulet). There's even a case of a "were-woman", a man who turns into a woman with an independant personality of her own (this is apparently super-rare even among weres, probably because most women don't go around biting people.)

* [[Living with Insanity]] has a cat that used a spell on herself and can now [http://www.livingwithinsanity.com/index/?p=507 transform into a human at will].

* ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'' has Shapeshifting is one of main themes. A traditional curse-based [[Werewolf]] ~~was~~ only in the backstory, but there are shapeshifting [[Little Green Men|Uryuoms]] and their hybrid offspring running around. A chimera typically is born able to shift between the [[Shapeshifter Default Form|default hybrid form]] and forms of parent species (other than Uryuom) while retaining some traits.

* ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'' has Shapeshifting is one of main themes. A traditional curse-based [[Werewolf]] appeared only in the backstory, but there are shapeshifting [[Little Green Men|Uryuoms]] and their hybrid offspring running around. A chimera typically is born able to shift between the [[Shapeshifter Default Form|default hybrid form]] and forms of parent species (other than Uryuom) while retaining some traits.

** Grace is sometimes referred to as a "were-squirrel", since she morphs between human, squirrel and squirrel/human (she does mix in the third base form, especially when upset, but early on this was rather subtle), due to genes of human, squirrel, and two different shape-shifting aliens.

** Then a new term was coined from Dewitchery Diamond's purpose and nature of the last "curse" it "removed": ''[[Gender Bender|weregirl]]''.