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The Get of Fenris are one of the Tribes found in Werewolf: The Apocalypse. Fierce warriors with little room for mercy and compassion, the Fenrir view themselves as great heroes, but have been known to shock other Garou with their violent ways.

History[]

The mythic history of the Get of Fenris reads to outsiders as a twisted representation of Norse mythology. The Get, however, know that it was the humans who got everything wrong, and who cast Great Fenris in the role of a monster.

According to myths in the Garou Nation, Great Fenris was the Ahroun of the First Pack. Drawn to battle the giants of the Wyrm in the far Northern reaches of the world, Fenris refused to bring offspring into the world, for he felt that no mortal woman was strong and pure enough to be worthy to be his mate. In battle against the gigantic Jotunn, he beheld the first woman to ever catch his attention: the giantess Sigun of the Vanir people. Fenris pursued her into her homeland, where he proposed to her. Sigun told him that she was already betrothed to a frost giant, and Great Fenris, infuriated, challenged the giant to a duel. After a long and hard battle, Fenris proved to be victorious, but fell into unconsciousness. After being nursed back to health by Sigun, Great Fenris tested her honor, her wisdom, and her courage before taking her as his mate. From their union, Sigun bore Fenris three sons: Garm, an unrivaled skald; Rábjórn, heir to his father's fighting prowess; and Frode, who was the wisest among them. From these three, the Get of Fenris, named the Fenrir during these days, would be born. Tales from other tribes that the Get are descended from a line of Silver Fangs are regarded as propaganda and lies.

Early History[]

The traditional homelands of the Fenrir are considered to be northern Europe, where they lived with their kinfolk, the Germanic, Scandinavian, and Norse tribes. The Get say that they did not support the Impergium at first; after all, no true Get wants to take a mate from a race of victims. After adopting the practice, however, the Fenrir became viciously effective at holding their human tribes under control. During the War of Rage, the Fenrir regarded it as a manner of hierarchy: as the strongest of Gaia's children, the other Changing Breeds were subordinate to them. When they challenged this situation, the Fenrir turned on them to put their cousins in their place. Since they were superior to them, the Changing Breeds were decimated in battle until nearly no one were left. The modern Get of Fenris accept that this was behavior unworthy of Gaia's defenders, but maintain that the Fera were also to blame and should make amends.

During the Bronze Age, the Fenrir battled against the minions of the Wyrm that crept from the earth and had survived the Ice Age. The Fenrir worked to repopulate their protectorates, sowing forests to strengthen the Wyld and making alliances with its children, the Fae, especially the Trolls. During these days, the capital Caern of the tribe was Heimhalla in the Ural mountains, the residence of the Vanir and home to Fenris and Sigun. During these days, the Fenrir of Heimhalla were locked in war with the Jotunn kingdom of Utgard and the Aesir kingdom of Valhalla. Valhalla was led by a being named Odin, whose blood-brother was Loki Sky-Walker (later remembered as Loki False-Sayer), who desired to rule both Valhalla and Utgard. To achieve this goal, he enticed Odin to make war against Heimhalla by showing him fake visions of the Fenrir planning to invade Valhalla. In response, Odin marshaled his forces and attacked Heimhalla while the bulk of the Fenrir was in a campaign against the Utgardian forces. Aided by two traitors, Freke and Gere, Odin burst through the Caern's defenses and massacred the Fenrir's Kin. Sigun fought valiantly, but could not stand against Odin. Her sacrifice, however, saved the heart of the Caern, as the entire structure collapsed over the invading forces. The surviving Fenrir, lead by Great Fenris himself, vowed vengeance and turned westward, settling in the lands of modern Scandinavia. Multiple great Caerns were founded in these years.

The Get were infuriated by the dilutions of their Tribal stories among their Kin, but accepted teeth-gnashingly that they could not correct them without breaking the Concord. Instead, they focused on their battle against Odin and his Aesir. In the battle at the Fimbul-Winter Sept, the Fenrir called upon the essence of Great Fenris, allowing him to walk the mortal realm in their flesh. Great Fenris ripped through the Gallow-God's armies and and defeated him. During this battle, a young Danish Fenrir Get-of-Fenris-slays-Grendel, better known as Beowulf, won accolades and became a mighty Jarl of the Tribe. From him, the future name of the Tribe would be taken.

Dark Ages[]

The Get had followed their Vandal and Visigoth Kin south against the Roman Empire. It is told within the Tribe that Hermann Far-Runner, a Ragabash known as Arminius among the Romans, led them to a stunning victory against the superior forces led by Publius Quintillius Varro, and that future Rites of Passages are based on his strategies. The Fenrir fought with Gaulish Fianna against the Silver Fangs and Warders of Men that tried to protect Rome, and when Alaric sacked the city in 410, the Fenrir had taken up residence in nearly all parts of the former Empire.

Spurred by their victories, the Fenrir led great expeditions to find new places of Gaia they could protect. Following their Viking Kin, some reached Britain as early as 407, but clashed constantly with the native Fianna and Silver Fangs. Others are rumored to have reached the Pure Lands in Newfoundland, and founded the Ymir's Sweat Camp. The Fenrir also fought against the corrupted White Howlers, blaming the Fianna for the fall of their cousins. Seeing that they had become weak, the Fenrir launched invasions against Ireland to test their brethren's defenses and take their Caerns from them if they proved weak. Only after several hundred years was a truce called, seeing that the energies spent on fighting each other should rather be directed at the enemy. The Fenrir continued to travel with their Kin, even reaching as far south as Constantinople in their wake. During these days, the other tribes began to call the Fenrir the "get" of Fenris, originally to shame them. Most younger Fenrir, however, gladly adopted the name, pointing to the heroism of Beowulf and stating that it was better to be a mere "get" of Fenris than to be a part of any of the other weakling tribes.

In this epoch, Fenris returned to led his tribe against his nemesis Odin. Tracking him back to the Ural mountains, Odin was found, along with numerous vile servants, among them even Fenrir that had turned against Great Fenris. Among them was Tyr, who lost his hand in the struggle and later had regrets about his decision. The outcome of the battle was the complete eradication of Odin's army, but at the cost of the banishment of Great Fenris on the other side of the Gauntlet, bound in silver chains to prevent him from entering the Near Realms or the Gaia Realm. In the aftermath, members of the Tribe decided to leave the human nations to their own, instead focusing solely on battling the Wyrm and his minions to make Great Fenris proud.

Victorian Age[]

When the Get of Fenris arrived in the Americas, they saw a land overrun with corruption and incompetent Garou who were unable to turn the tide. Seeing that their cousins were weak, they ousted them from their Caerns to safeguard them instead. This caused conflicts with the three tribes that last to this day. Only the Croatans are acknowledged by the Get for being honorable and capable of fighting, while the Uktena were respected for their potent rites that bound great Banes beneath the earth. The feud between the Wendigo and the Get, however, continues even today.

Modern Nights[]

The Get of Fenris were greatly involved in the struggles of the European continent, partly because events like the Great War led to an upsurge of Bane activity. During the struggle, Get often ended up fighting Get, accusing the other of serving the interests of the Wyrm. This sentiment even worsened after the end of the Great War, and saw the support of numerous misguided Get for the growing Nazi Party and occult movement in Germany. Many felt that the reverence of the Übermensch was directed at the descendants of Fenris and Sigun and so supported the sentiment in the population. Others believed that such actions were heretical against Gaia's purpose for the Garou, since the battle against the Wyrm was all a Garou should strive for, not adulation from mere humans. During the War, Get fought Get again, this time with the entire tribe mobilized on either side of the conflict, until those opposed to the Nazis gained the upper hand.

In the aftermath, the Get viciously hunted down every last surviving traitor and Nazi-sympathizer, including the entirety of one of their own Camps, the Swords of Heimdall. One of their greatest heroes, Golgol Fangs-First, led the Amazon War and numerous Get traveled to the Amazon to prove themselves. Golgol has even made overtures of peace and cooperation to the Amazonian Fera. The Get were involved in the destruction of the Seventh Generation and in 2001, the Tribe eradicated the Thule Society, a coven of Nazi mystics that became a front for the post-war Asatru Futhark movement. After the event, the whole Tribe met in Uppsala, as the Red Star dawned in the sky. During the moot, the Tribe proclaimed that Ragnarök, the Apocalypse, was coming quickly, and that the Get would be ready to face it.

Organization[]

Get of Fenris are usually led by the strongest local member. Any Get that wishes to obtain a higher rank has to beat his opponent in a challenge. Tribal moots are full-moon affairs, beginning with a vicious gauntlet-running to determine who's worthy to participate in the rites of the tribe. Rites of Renown entail bloody runes carved into werewolf hide; even mystical rites dealing with spirits involve ritualized combat between ritemaster and spirit as often as not. Even their belief in an afterlife reflects the concept of Valhalla, a grand battlefield awaiting its heroes.

When the Get of Fenris split into camps, it is less often due to their vision of their individual roles or duties, and more commonly along lines of each individual's particular intolerance and hatred. One group, focusing on the core tenets of Fenrir philosophy, is unwilling to be distracted by the presence of someone or something that a fringe element feels is intolerable, and a new Get camp is born. Despite this fracturing along lines of prejudice, however, not all Get camps are bigots; intolerance of those who prey upon children is still intolerance, and hatred of corrupt warleaders, cowards, or wife-beaters is still hatred.

Camps[]

  • The Valkyria of Freya: The Valkyria fight for the equal station of women within the Tribe. While most Fenris scorn this Camp, believing it to grow their females into bitching weaklings that will only complain endlessly instead of taking what is theirs by right, the Valkyria themselves maintain that they are important for breaking many of the human preconceptions about the role of females within a society. They clash often (sometimes violently) with the Black Furies.
  • Hand of Tyr: The Hand of Tyr is comprised of Get that have turned their attention to fighting the Wyrm's influence within humanity, targeting rapists, child molesters, terrorists, and violent criminals.
  • Fangs of Garm: The Fangs of Garm seek to better integrate the Get of Fenris into the Garou Nation and seek to mend bridges with the other Tribes, so that at the time of the Apocalypse, they can stand together.
  • Mjolnir's Thunder: Mjolnir's Thunder dedicate themselves solely to the combat against the Wyrm at any cost, eschewing every other activity for the sake of dedicating themselves to eternal war. Most members are seen as homicidal maniacs by the Tribe as a whole.
  • The Glorious Fist of Wotan: The Glorious Fist of Wotan believes that only the eradication of mankind can save Gaia. Humans have become the greatest vector through which the Wyrm spreads, so in order to curb it, they have to be killed.
  • The Swords of Heimdall: Born from the aftermath of the American Civil War, these Get adopted American ideals of racial supremacy as their own. As a result, they sought to cleanse the Tribe from "impure" elements, including Black people, Indigenous people from the Americas, Asians, Romani, and in extreme groups, even Lupus, females, and other Garou. In the 1930s, the Camp gained a major member upsurge and was nearly eradicated by the rest of the Get at the turn of the millennium.
  • Ymir's Sweat: More of a bloodline than a true Camp, Ymir's Sweat is rumored to descend from Fenrir settlers that landed in northern Canada with the Vikings and interbred with Kin from the Wendigo and Croatans. If the Camp exists, they do their best to be kept secret.
  • Loki's Smile: Another faction that is more rumor than fact, Loki's Smile is said to control the Tribe from the shadows, its members communicating via storm-spirits and hiding from the rest of the Tribe.

Tribal Culture[]

The prime focus of the Get of Fenris is heroism; all members must act against their enemies, particularly the Wyrm. There is no room for cowardice or indecisiveness among the Fenrir, and retreat is not in their vocabulary.

The Get of Fenris is one of the most selective tribes when it comes to choosing members. A potential Fenrir must prove themselves to the rest of the tribe, even if they are born into it. The Rite of Passage for Fenrir cubs is one of the bloodiest and most brutal of rites, and even after they have passed, they are continuously tested to improve their battle skills and ability to survive. Weak Fenrir cubs are usually abandoned or, in more recent times, turned over to other tribes to be raised. Some Get also practice a belief in the purity of blood as a sign of worthiness.

In past times, the Get have been extremely harsh towards female members, but in the last century, female Get have had a chance to prove themselves to be as heroic and fierce in battle as the tribe's male members. Get blame this on Homid indoctrination: Females that believe that they are not great fighters will not become great fighters. By the time that these females underwent the First Change, they were so indoctrinated into human thinking that they had nothing to offer to the Get, who refused to coddle them or lower their standards. Since then, the attitude among mortals has changed again, and woman have become more self-confident, meaning that they now are capable of serving the Tribe again.

Even though the Tribe's reputation for cruelty and intolerance is well deserved, a sizable number of modern Get of Fenris have begun to incorporate compassion and kindness into their cultural creed. Strength, they reason, is a gift from Gaia that they have a responsibility to use to protect the weak with; and those who dare to bully the weak are therefore cowards of the lowest order, undeserving of life.

Caerns[]

Political Culture[]

The Get of Fenris, as a rule, disdain the politicking of the Garou Nation, instead preferring to focus on tangible war efforts and Wyrm incursions. Nevertheless, they see the waning strength of the Silver Fangs, and some believe that it may be the time to support a new Alpha for the nation, who can command the Get more efficiently.

Religious Culture[]

One of the most common practices of the Get is the recitation of skald, or epics of past Garou who have proven themselves worthy of heroism. Most Fenrir also strongly believe in fate, believing they are destined to die fighting for a worthy cause.

The Get of Fenris revere the Triat as Edda, the Weaver, Móthir, the Wyld, and Jormungandr, the Wyrm. The Weaver keeps the Wyrm at bay, while the Wyrm devoures Edda's strands to keep them from entangling the entirety of the Wyld. The dissonance came when Edda named Jormungandr, trapping it in a form rather than existing as a force of nature. It is the duty of the Get of Fenris to destroy Jormungandr's physical form during Ragnarök so that the original balance can be restored.

In addition to the Glyphs used by the rest of the Garou Nation, the Get of Fenris use a rune-system derived from Futhark runes to inscribe their Fetishes. These runes are also used for foretelling the future via Rites. The Tribe also makes use of mighty Jarlhammers instead of traditional Grand Klaives.

Individual Get of Fenris[]

see Category: Get of Fenris

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

  • The Get of Fenris (Children of Fenris) are one out of three tribes just named after their totem, rather than having a unique name. This wasn't really changed in Werewolf 5th edition, instead just slightly changing them to the "Cult of Fenris."
  • The Get of Fenris are based on the Scandinavian Ulfheðnar berserkers.
  • The Runestone (1991), adapted from the book by Mark E. Rogers (1979), is a horror movie that features a werewolf-like creature based on the Norse legend of Fenrir.
  • Vargr-Moon by Bernard King (1986), is about a wife of a Nordic warrior who is intent on becoming a werewolf.
  • Volsunga Saga: The Story of the Volsungs and Niblungs, translated by Eirikir Magnusson and William Morris (1888), contains a famous lycanthropic story of two Norse warriors who become werewolves after donning wolf-shirts.

References[]

Werewolf: The Apocalypse Tribes
Garou Nation Black Furies · Bone Gnawers · Children of Gaia · Galestalkers (Wendigo) · Ghost Council (Uktena) · Glass Walkers · Hart Wardens (Fianna) · Red Talons · Shadow Lords · Silent Striders · Silver Fangs
Beast Courts Hakken · Stargazers
Independent Boli Zouhisze · Cult of Fenris (Get of Fenris) · Siberakh · Singing Dogs · Stolen Moons (Skin Dancers) · Ronin
Fallen Black Spiral Dancers (White Howlers)
Extinct Bunyip · Croatan
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