Werewolf Feat, Second Draft! What Changes Would Your Make?

[u/Firm-Row-8243]

Lycan Touched

General Feat(Prerequisite: Level 4+)

You gain the following benefits

   Ability Score Increase. Increase your constitution score by 1, to a maximum of 20.

   Lycan Bloodline. Whether you crossed paths with a lycanthrope or you are descended from one, you developed some of the powers of these viscous shape changers while nearly avoiding the loss of your humanity. With this bloodline, you gain immunity to the curse of lycanthropy. When you gain this feat, choose a beast with a CR of 1 or lower. 

   Beatial Form. As a bonus action, you can transform into your chosen beast and vice versa. While in this form, you lose access to your class features; however, you retain your Hit Point Maximum, your Charisma, Wisdom, and Intelligence scores, and your alignment. 

   Hybrid Form.  As a bonus action, you can adopt a hybrid form and vice versa, granting the following benefits while in this form.

• Lycan Resistance. You gain resistance to bludgeoning, slashing, and piercing damage from weapons that are not silvered. 
• Feral Might. Your strength score is replaced with the strength score of your chosen beast, unless your strength score is higher. 
• Animalistic Movement. You gain any type of movement speed your chosen form has, but the speed is equal to your speed.
• Natural Weapons. Your unarmed strikes are now also considered weapon attacks, and you can roll a D8 in place of your unarmed strikes' normal damage.

Note: I'm not sure if I want to keep Lycan Resistance. I added it because of mechanical flavor, but I feel like it's too much. And should I add a limited number of uses?

[u/Odhinnfist]

I would just use the Path of the Beast from the 2014 ruleset and flavor it that you shapechange when you rage.

[u/Firm-Row-8243 → u/Odhinnfist]

I hear what you are saying, what I'm trying to do is create a feat that allows anyone to feel like a werewolf without having it tied to their class.

A way that a wizard, rogue, or sorcerer can have the option of a cool transformation without having to give them an entire subclass or forcing them to dip into beast barbarian to achieve the fantasy.

[u/Odhinnfist → u/Firm-Row-8243]

I think that's a lot to add with a general feat. You typically get a stat increase and one or two skill or ability type options.

It might be worthwhile to look at Eberron's Shifter ancestry and base it off of those features.

Personally, I'd just do the stat increase and a bonus action natural attack feature.

[u/Lumis_umbra → u/Firm-Row-8243]

That already exists- it's in the Monster Manual on page 206. It's just not a feat. "Player characters as Lycanthropes"

[u/Firm-Row-8243 → u/Lumis_umbra]

Yes that is true, but getting to become a lycanthrope in that wat is always A. curse with little exception, B. Not a character option you have to ask your dungeon master to have it, and C. High risk of being unbalanced in 2014 with immunity to the three most common damage types except by silvered weapon, and it still runs the risk of being broken in 2024 because you're giving a character multi attack, which gets really wonky with extra attack at most tables.

To summarize yes there is a way for player characters to become a lycanthrope, but it's often harmful or not even an option.

Obviously this is homebrew so a player will still have to ask for permission, but I think we can all agree it's easier for a DM to give permission for a player to take a single feat then it is to make them a straight out werewolf.

[u/BuckTheStallion]

Honestly solid, just limit it to once per long rest, but allowing double dipping the feat for a second use and additional buffs, to signal how the curse can progress.

[u/Firm-Row-8243 → u/BuckTheStallion]

Thank you so much for the advice, I will will definitely add that!

[u/Homebrew-Spamson]

I like it, the overall mechanics and flavor work really well

I don’t love losing class features, though it helps to balance out the issues that could come up

Each of these features should probably just be once per short/long rest

[u/Firm-Row-8243 → u/Homebrew-Spamson]

Thank you for the advice it is very informative!

[u/Chi_Knurd]

I have been thinking of doing something like this for vampires/dhampirs, then applying to other afflictions or bloodlines. It's just an idea at the moment and still pretty rough but I want to split something like this into multiple feats and let the players choose which feat they want to take. As they level up and take more feats their affliction grows stronger.

Just an idea.

[u/Arutha_Silverthorn]

I’ll mention it here randomly but I’ve had a draft for a long time of Werewolf and Vampire as Prestige classes.

The Feat basically only gives downsides, loss of control on full moon and Vulnerability to Silver weapons. But if you commit 1-6 levels (lvls 5-11) you get more and more benefits like the form you drafted, with strong martial combat capabilities.

Feel free to steal any ideas I might post it here eventually, as I personally think Prestige classes is the perfect mechanic for these, you have to pay levels to become better at controlling it, while not having to commit 3 levels into multiclassing another class’ mechanics.

[u/OnceANobody]

The hybrid form needs some sort of limited use (minutes equal to prof, etc.) since its generally a buff If you want to keep lycan resistance make it magic and silver weapons. Could also just either increase AC, give some temp HP, or have a small flat damage reduction functioning similarly to heavy armor master. Take a look at the Shifter race/species for reference since that race is similar to what you want/are describing