SHIFTER SPECIES FILE

[scott]

SPECIES NAME: Shapeshifters

APPEARANCE: Usually are athletic, tall and muscular. In their animal form they are always larger then normal animals of that species. Example being horse sized wolves. All shapeshifters are feline, canine, avian or ursine unless you win a contest or purchase a different option with TD dollars. They always run a bit warmer then all other species. When they are shifted their eyes are intelligent than normal animals.

HISTORY: Each species has a different story of how they became bonded to their animal. It usually happened a long time ago though when a native people in a time of need turns to the predators of that area for help. No shapeshifter just shifts into an animal without not first having to share land with that species of animal. Shapeshifters are created for different reasons mostly to fight the cold ones though also known as vampires, other times to fight the Children of the Moon, or really any species that threatens the human population surronding them.

The initial shift is always confusing and frightening. The new Shifter's temperature increases to a rate that would kill a human. It is very uncomfortable for them. When they first shift they usually need an experianced shifter to calm them. If they dont have that it can be a trying time for the new shifter who has to learn on their on how to function.

Some species prefer to be packless but others have strong pack bonds. If you have a family of shifters they automatically are mind linked since they share blood. If not mind Links and packs are only possable when the entire pack has the Bonding Ceremony. The entire pack must fight for position mixing blood with eachother, on the full moon, all must be shifter, and they must submit to their superiors once they feel they can not fight anymore much like real wolves. (Postitions must be decided before threaded out so the fight does have an end. No killing other peoples charries unless they ask or its a NPC).

Then they must hunt and share a kill to secure their unity(again must be either a regular animal or a NPC or someone who wants their charrie killed). After that they share the mind link and all normal traits of a pack. New members not present for inital Bonding must face the Alpha on the next full moon as well as mix blood with him to be accepted in the pack and share a mind link since the alpha has all the blood of his members inside him at that point. The kill can be made the next time the pack goes out hunting together afterall its only for unity purposes.

DIET: Anything!!! Shapeshifters have a unquenchable appetite probably because their metabolism is so fast and it takes alot of energy to run around as a huge animal.

BABIES: Males may breed at anytime with a human or another shapeshifter who has ceased shifting for the nine month gestation period and conceive children. While a male shifter may have relations with a hybrid they will always miscarry. Females must pause shifting for the nine month justation period to conceive a child if they shift in mid pregnancy they will lose their child. They may only breed with a male shifter or a human. Hybrid babies will result in a miscarriage. Again their will be oppurtunites to bend this rule with TD dollars and Contests.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: They turn into huge animals and they tend to be stronger, faster and have more acute senses in their human forms then normal humans. If injured they heal in a matter of hours though sometimes bones must be rebroken because they will set in a broken position. As animals they have claws and teeth strong enough to tare through stone. They are perfectly designed to kill the top predators vampires, children of the moon and others like themselves.

NATURAL ENEMIES: Vampires are of course their natural enemies, but some packs have rival packs that become their enemies or children of the moon that plague them.

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