Indigenous culture includes customs for segre- gating men’s and women’s business, initiation rites, songlines, justice, and secrets. As well as these, each breed also knows their own secret “breed business.” Kinfolk are included in many of these, though not all. Animal breed members get little leniency for transgressions — the laws and business already account for ignorance of human traditions. An important difference between human and breed customs is that none of the breeds differentiate between men and women when performing breed business — too few shapeshifters exist for this to be practical; all must honor Gaia.
people brought tamed wolves with them — called dingoes in later years. In the blink of an eye, in the Dreamtime, these foreign people came and went. None stayed for long but their wolves found a new home and spread rapidly.
None foresaw the Bunyip reaction to the dingo. They became sick, as if allergic, and heightened emotions triggered uncontrolled shapeshifting. The Ananasi saw this, and remembered. Many Ananasi began using dingoes against the Bunyip, and encouraged the dingoes to spread across the continent. As the dingo spread, the Bunyip and their thylacine kin withdrew from their northern habitats, ever so slowly disappearing until the thylacine remained only within Tasmania.
When the Garou arrive the Ananasi find them more dangerous, but far more effective, than dingoes to use against the Bunyip. The tricksters masterfully direct European Garou against the Bunyip. They lead the Garou to Bunyip caerns, along songlines, and point them to Bunyip kin. After perpetual enmity, such revenge is sweet.
Camazotz
The Camazotz were the Bunyip’s closest allies until Bat fell into despair and madness. They had helped guard the Dreaming from the schemes of the Wyrm and the werespi- ders, and told the Bunyip what they heard exploring the darkest places. The Ananasi bore them no love for such indiscretions and their enigmatic schemes often ensnared the wary Camazotz.
Once Bat fell, the surviving Camazotz were distraught. Their patron passed on maddening visions of the future to those questing for answers. Prophecies mix strangely in the everlasting now of the Dreamtime. Kaleidoscopic images of past and future further broke the werebats’ minds.
The Bunyip hunted their broken allies with heavy hearts. The final twisted Camazotz fell into the webs of the Ananasi, who teased prophecies from his raving. This gave the werespiders an invaluable advantage over their enemies. The Bunyip uncovered evidence of Ananasi schemes in the 1880s. A hunting party sent to rescue the trapped Camazotz failed — it was too small, and the Bunyip could not spare more.
Corax
The indigenous Corax vanished a long time ago. The other breeds remember them only in the Dreaming. Bunyip share legends of spiderfolk chasing the wereravens away — some flying into the sun, some drowning in mud, others getting lost in the Dreamtime, too curious to return.
Adventurous Tengu sometimes flew into Australian skies from Asia, but few stayed long. The timeless aspects of these lands made for dull viewing. Those who stayed drew the attention of the Ananasi — who trapped and feasted upon them — or disappeared into the Dreaming.
The first European Corax arrived in 1859 — uncharac- teristically late for a breed known for inquisitiveness. Some introspective Corax wonder what the real reason for this is, rejecting notions of merely “hot, dry, and dull.” These mystery hunters explore land and Umbra with equal ease yet find the continent’s secrets difficult to unravel. After weeks or months, each feels drawn to explore the Dreaming — an urge to leave friends and family, and fly headlong into the vast never-never. Most squash these urges, but those who surrender never return.
Mokolé
Calling Australia home as they have done since time be- gan, the Gumagan Mokolé doze, lost in dreams and Mnesis. Their languid forms guard waterways and billabongs; only the most desperate — or foolhardy — disturb their slumber. Younger Gumagan tread paths no human can follow across the continent following ancient songlines. These walkabouts remind them the land is alive in the now, and the shape isn’t as Mnesis portrays it — and also reminds the southern people the Gumagan still exist.
When the Europeans come the weresaurians are uncon- cerned — foreigners have come and gone before. As the war against the Bunyip escalates they prove hard to rouse from their slumbers, leaving many Bunyip to face the Garou alone. By the time the urgency of the Bunyip deaths penetrates the Gumagan somnolence it’s too late. Raging Archid forms protect wallows and caerns from encroaching humans and werewolves, but it’s too little. The Garou use these encounters as more evidence the Bunyip are Wyrm-tainted.
Nagah
The indigenous Australians came to know the Nagah as gods of rain and fertility, and punishers of taboos. When any of the shapeshifters failed their Gaian task the Nagah would appear and pronounce judgement to the accused’s people. Few dared argue.
With the arrival of the European Garou the Nagah recalled the Wani’s ancient warnings and hid from all shapeshifters. Some among them think they hid too long, others that they did not hide long enough. Either way, the Nagah Sings-of-Silence revealed himself upon observing the Garou butcher an Aboriginal family for smelling like thylacine in the 1850s. The Nagah begin looking for guilty parties too late. In their desire for justice they execute many Garou. The overzealous even punish Bunyip in a desire to overcorrect for years of absence — ignoring all pleas of ex- tenuating circumstances. Unfortunately, the Garou blame the Bunyip for these Nagah killings, exacerbating the war.
Rokea
The Rokea pay little attention to the conflicts on land, but hold ancient pacts with the Australian shapeshifters. The weresharks swim up rivers to meet and deal with the
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other breeds many miles from the sea, and legends speak of the vast inland sea long lost to them. The Europeans’ arrival barely registers — only the arrival of Wyrm-tainted goods or personnel piques their interest, and their Rage. Many shipwrecks and coastal massacres have the Rokea to blame. Fishermen and whalers often catch the weresharks’ kin and waste no time slaughtering the animals. This too prompts deadly reactions. Some sailors make it back to land before the Rokea slaughter them. The Rokea attack the Garou with just as much ferocity. The Garou believe the Bunyip and Rokea are allied, and hold Rokea attacks against the Bunyip.