b
ig fella,
aren’
t you? w
Hat are you…
size44? 46? p
erfect!
This is the first Johnny heard the spirits in his head or, more to the point, noticed them. He came to realize their voices had been with him his whole life, urging him forward, whispering how to serve them. He could be their hands exorcising the bad spirits that support the ancient enemy: the Uratha. The mongrels thought Johnny be- neath notice? Well, he would be no more than a shadow to them, a nightmare at the edge of sight.
Twice baptized in murder and rage, half-mad from the agony of his purification, Johnny learned to do as the spirits do: purge the skin of
its previous owner and use it to fool Luna herself. He would use Luna’s Gifts against them; he would turn Uratha against Uratha and
leave unnoticed. The spirits were pleased with their child, their shadow...at least, until Johnny picked up two silver bolts used to murder his pack and, with sizzling palms, he turned on his spirit mentors.
H
ate andp
ainPainfully but deliberately, Johnny bound the angel and demon from his shoulders (i.e., the two spirits) into a pair of crudely fashioned silver hooks. Hate and Pain were the watchwords of his new mis- sion, the things that made him strong, and with these tools, he would spread both like a dark gospel. The spirits who taught him how to wear the skins of his enemy weren’t going to sit idly on the sidelines, urging Johnny like their puppet. They would be with him every moment.
Aliases: The Skinner King (Regional variants: The
Doppelganger, Jan Vardøgr)
background
A rash of grotesque serial murders breaks out around the city — real “locked room” shit the cops can’t get their heads around. The savagery and power behind the killings implicate the Uratha; what’s really fucked up is all evi- dence points to Forsaken who have recently gone missing or been killed. Thus is the legacy of Johnny Shadow, the Skinner King, he who skins his enemies and, with those skins, steals their identities and power.
b
ads
eedBorn Jonathan Haine, Johnny was a troubled boy from the start, featuring all the charm and pathology of a future serial killer. Well before his First Change, he took an interest in torturing lesser creatures, starting with feeding insects to ant lions and working up to frogs, mice, squirrels, cats and, eventually, dogs and larger game. Noticing the boy’s predilection for coming home with fingers stained with blood, his father directed his attention to more productive means: specifically, taxidermy. While that was a more proper outlet, it only encouraged the boy. At eight years old, Johnny discovered a way to skin a rabbit without killing the creature until the last possible moment.
His violent and cathartic First Change came two weeks before his 14th birthday. When he awoke from his lycanthropic delirium to find both his parents dead, skinned and stuffed with old newspapers and the sofa pil- lows, Johnny knew his true purpose was finally calling. A month (living with their bodies) later, the Pure came for him.
t
Hes
laugH terJohnny lost his pack shortly thereafter to marauding Forsaken. Thinking he was too young to be of any threat to the savages, they made one mistake: letting Johnny live. He was always a scrawny boy, half starved and scarred from his initiation; did they see him as too weak to bother with? Was it some twisted version of mercy that stayed their claws from killing someone so young? If it was mercy, it’s a mercy Johnny has dedicated his life to making sure all Forsaken pay for a hundredfold.
As pure as his pain was, he would need to handle his new toys as both weapons and tools. For this, he soon hunted down those Forsaken that had assassinated his pack. He butchered them one by one, then cut into their flesh and removed their now-human skin.
The time spent tanning and healing his own wounds brought him to sharper and sharper focus. His mission couldn’t lose its way to passionate outbursts. He would need to be smart, careful and silent. Uratha travel in packs and stay huddled together for protection, but they couldn’t be together all the time. Johnny would have to wait for the op- portunities to present themselves if he was going to survive.
Once the job was done, he took to the road, armed for his mission.
m
oduso
perandiJohnny’s M.O. consists of rolling into town and tracing the edge of Forsaken territory, etching boundar- ies into his mental map of the new area. This is a patient process; Johnny isn’t in a hurry as he waits to catch an Uratha alone. One night they just don’t come back to the pack. Once Johnny has his mark, he jumps him, bleeds him, hangs him and skins him alive. His ritual must be performed while the poor son of a bitch is living, in order to take the skin intact. Once complete, Johnny begins stalking the streets using stolen Gifts, scent and skin to begin his murder spree all over again.
Eventually he is going to shit where a pack eats, sowing confusion as they turn out to hunt their errant packmate or neighbors. One by one, he isolates the pack, killing them and taking their skin until he disappears just as randomly as he appeared. One or two might survive (usually women), but those lucky few often have no idea what they were up against in the end.
Johnny’s reputation seldom precedes him. He is, as he promised, a shadow.
descript ion
Johnny thinks himself in complete control of himself and any situation at hand. He’s often disarmingly subdued, with a quiet intensity that belies a darker demeanor be- neath the surface. The less control he has over a situation, the more frayed and erratic Johnny becomes (severe obses- sive-compulsive disorder), the upshot of which is Johnny gets sloppier, which also means he also becomes more violent and directly confrontational…with silver hooks.
Johnny grew from an awkward boy into a handsome, charming devil. Part of Johnny’s great trick is his ability to blend, tempt and charm his way out of being a suspect. He can play the wounded pup one minute and the all-out killer the next. Johnny hasn’t made it this long at his mis- sion without getting out of a bind or three.
While wearing the skin of his victims, Johnny would appear as a man wearing a loose-fitting costume, with- out his extra bit of needlework to pull the whole thing together. By making the extra effort to assure the skin is
functional enough to get around in, he looks like the Ura- tha in question from a distance. The closer one gets, the more apparent that something is “off” about the creature, and not just how or why it’s walking around in Gauru: the awkward gait, the empty eyes, the open, tongue-less mouth. Normal humans are still affected by Lunacy from the skin, as they would be if Johnny were in true Gauru.
CultiStS of perSonality
Johnny doesn’t have a pack, in the traditional sense. However, he has gathered something of a following, cultlike in its sycophancy. Various Pure have taken up Johnny’s trail and desire to learn his rite and sow discord through the Forsaken. These characters can be used as copycats and red herrings, or simply to even the sides when it comes to a direct confrontation with Johnny.
• Brother of Fire: A Fire-Touched convert and proselyte to Johnny’s cold religion of fear and pain. He met Johnny one night as his pack was hunting down the killer within its territory. Brother of Fire’s alpha ordered Johnny to stop under threat of death and turn himself over to the nearest ranking Ivory Claw for discipline. Johnny calmly but decisively ended the bastard’s life with a burning silver hook. His pack was stymied, but Brother of Fire knew at that mo- ment, he had met the embodiment of the Pure’s vengeance. Brother of Fire is largely responsible for gathering the rest of the so-called pack.
• Joshua Proudblood: Joshua Proudblood, by esoteric Ivory Claw birthright, ranks well above his local tribemates, despite being little more than a child. As the others looked to him for answers, he could only hem and haw, having none to give. When word reached him of Johnny Shadow, a prodigal son of sorts, Joshua was awe- struck at the stories surrounding the young man, who was barely older than himself. He knew he had to see for himself this traveler held down by no pack, no law, no birthright. Now, like Johnny, Proudblood is a fugitive from his own kind.
• Crack Tooth: Predator Kings, as a rule, don’t appreciate Johnny’s methods. Skulking around with silver hooks? Too much “serial killer,” not enough “predatory wolf.” And yet, he still does good work, doesn’t he? Crack Tooth, a Predator King, is less a sycophant and more a waiting watcher — does he want to kill Johnny, or anoint him as a saint?
secre t s
• For all of his Pure fan base, Johnny doesn’t consider himself one of them anymore: he believes he has tran-
scended to a new level of purity even they can’t under- stand. He’s not averse to skinning one or two of his own kind as a red herring, or to bring the religion of fear to his erstwhile kin.
• Johnny suffers from the severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) common among his former Ivory Claw tribemates. Some are minor intrusions, such as being irked by odd numbers not ending in five; others become larger compulsions, such as cutting into his flesh to “drain out” unwanted doubts. Exploiting this potential weakness can drive Johnny to penalty-laden distraction. It may back- fire, however, and send him into an uncontrollable rage. Rampaging might be more predictable, but it comes with too many downsides to be seen as a good idea.
• Women are off limits to Johnny. Not only does he avoid them specifically with his murderous behavior, but even incidentally, he won’t target them in a fight or oth- erwise. He suffers from a severe repression that similarly activates his aforementioned OCD. Sexual thoughts and behavior cause Johnny to shut down and become with- drawn to the point of retreat. Johnny will then carve into his flesh, in a form of bloodletting he believes cures the unwanted thoughts. Whether he would fight a woman in a life-or-death situation has yet to be tested.
• Johnny keeps a stuffed bear. Not one that he’s caught and killed through taxidermy, but a buttons-for- eyes teddy bear named Scissors. Threadbare, one-eyed and fur gnarled with mud and blood, Scissors travels from city to city with Johnny (though not always on his person). It can be naturally assumed that such an artifact of child- hood means a great deal to Johnny.
rumors
“I heard tell about a werewolf who ain’t a werewolf. He’s kin who took to skinning his cousins until he stitched them up into a people suit. Lets him — no shitting — change shape same as us now. Heard he’s even started his own tribe out there.”
False. Close enough to see how this sort of rumor gains legs, but Johnny was bred an Ivory Claw, even if his experience among the Pure was limited by tragedy. He certainly isn’t interested in starting his own tribe, either. The cult of personality that follows him around, com- mitting murders and skinning Uratha in his name, lends weight to an otherwise ridiculous urban myth.
“Bare Claw — used to run with those wolves from the highway — told a story about patrolling down by that old rest stop. Said they used to always chase kids out of there, you know, smoking dope, putting their hand down each other’s pants, the devil’s business, et cetera. Well, one night he pulls in, sees a lot of cars but doesn’t hear a lot of noise. He doesn’t get within a hundred yards of the joint when he smells it. Like a charnel house, he says. He kicks in the door to the men’s room, and finds upward of a dozen bodies, skinned alive and hanging from the ceiling.”
False. Johnny is by and large a solitary killer. This does, however, have all the signs of his curious group of hangers-on. Such rumors may indicate that Johnny is in the area, but are not conclusive.
Story hookS
• A neighboring pack has gone quiet recently — not altogether strange in and of itself — but when three skinless bodies show up in the char- acters’ territory reeking of that pack’s alpha, it’s bound to force the issue.
• Johnny hits town and starts in with the pack’s kinfolk. Can the pack get them and keep them safe from the menace straight out of a slasher movie? By racing to the rescue, are they falling into Johnny’s trap?
• Johnny needs the pack’s help. No, seriously. He enlists the characters as a stranger to rid himself of an Ivory Claws tribunal calling for his head, charged with corruption of the youth, of all things. Sounds good to them, right? The pack gets to rid themselves of a nasty hangnail in the bargain, but what will they do when Johnny reveals his true colors?
j
oHnnys
Hadow Tribe: Ivory ClawsMental Attributes: Intelligence 2, Wits 2, Resolve 3 Physical Attributes: Strength 3 (4/6/5/3), Dexterity 3 (3/4/5/5), Stamina 3 (4/5/5/4)
Social Attributes: Presence 3, Manipulation 2 (1/2/0/2), Composure 2
Mental Skills: Crafts (Taxidermy) 2, Investigation 2, Medi- cine 3, Occult 2
Physical Skills: Athletics 2, Larceny 1, Stealth 1, Survival 3 (Skinning), Weaponry (Hooks) 3
Social Skills: Intimidation 1, Persuasion 2, Subterfuge 1 Merits: Ambidextrous 3, Fast Reflexes 2, Fetish (Hate and Pain) 4, Fighting Style: Two Weapons 3 (Whirling Blades, Deflect and Thrust, Focused Attack)
Willpower: 5 Harmony: 5
Virtue: Fortitude. The path has been long, broken and filled with pain and turmoil, but Johnny perseveres. So does his grim purpose.
Vice: Wrath. For all his calm and measured practice, Johnny’s mission stems from his hate and anger. Initiative: 4 (4/5/6/6)
Defense: 2
Speed: 11 (12/15/18/16) Health: 8 (9/10/10/9) Primal Urge: 4
Renown: Cunning 1, Glory 2, Purity 3
Gifts: (1) Sense the Impure, Stoicism, Warning Growl; (2) Barbed Arrow, Relentless Focus; (3) Pain of Anguish; (plus one associated Auspice gift from his skinned victims) Rites: Skin of the Predator (below)
Essence/per Turn: 14/2 Weapons/Attacks:
Type Damage Range Dice Pool Special Hate/Pain 2(L) 0 Strength + Silver
Weaponry (below)
r
ite: s
kin of tHep
redator(••••)
A particularly ghoulish and grotesque rite, Skin of the Predator allows a Pure to steal access to Luna the Deceiv- er’s Gifts by binding and skinning Uratha. This rite isn’t widely known in modern nights, and only Johnny Shadow is known to have access to its secrets. The Pure would very much like to learn this rite, but Johnny isn’t telling.
Performing the Rite: In order to perform this rite,
the actor will need to have the Uratha in Gauru and be docile or otherwise restrained. A near impossible task, to be sure; if not for Hate and Pain, Johnny might agree. The Pure, however, know a number of methods to restrain the war-form for their various scarification rituals, and this is no different on the surface, albeit a less willing recipi- ent. Binding the victim cruciform with steel or silver is the most common method; however, choking the target with a fixed collar and agitating the creature to remain conscious is cheap and just as effective. With the Gauru incapacitated, the ritemaster must skin it alive to take the full Gauru pelt from the howling, gibbering thing. No easy task, but Johnny’s got practice.
Dice Pool: Harmony
Action: Extended (3 x victim’s Harmony score) Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The victim dies, taking all his
knowledge and gifts with him. Additionally, the ritemas- ter takes two additional levels of aggravated damage from
the silver, as Luna herself takes notice of the abominable bequest and rejects the ritemaster.
Failure: No progress is made. Two consecutive fail-
ures and the victim bleeds out, robbing the ritemaster of the opportunity to steal their gifts or scent.
Success: The performer of the ritual has skinned the
victim intact. The stolen pelt retains the scent of the vic- tim and allows the ritemaster access to one Auspice gift of the victim’s while wearing the skin for one lunar month.
Exceptional Success: As a success above, and the skin-
wearer gains the benefits of an additional Auspice gift.
f
e t isH(k
laive): H
ate(••)
andp
ain(••)
Hate and Pain are Johnny’s weapons of choice. Each is a silver hook, forged and shaped with his own hands and bound with spirits of malice and agony, respectively. To prevent the searing pain of carrying raw silver, he has wrapped the handles with the skin of his first Forsaken victims.
When Johnny successfully grapples and buries the hooks into his opponent’s flesh, he activates Hate to force the victim to change to Gauru. Meanwhile, Pain saps the target’s spiritual energy and, ultimately, his Willpower as it burrows deeper into Johnny’s victim.
Hate: Hate forces Uratha to their Gauru war-form for
a number of turns per success scored on the activation roll. If this keeps them in Gauru beyond the usual duration limit for the individual, the victim remains in Gauru but enters a comatose state until Hate is removed or they die.
Pain: While Pain is active, an Uratha feeling its ef-
fects has his will sapped for as many turns as successes on the activation roll. The victim bleeds out one Essence a turn; if he hits zero, he begins losing Willpower at one per turn instead.