Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast.

This is the other half of the barbarian plotline!

The Gray Wolf are another Uthgardt tribe. They share a lot of the same base culture, but also have several important differences. Namely, they’re werewolves! The condition has been with them since they were Netherese refugees, and by now it’s quite well-integrated into their culture. Until very recently, they behaved like your typical Uthgardt tribe: violent, yes, but turning that capacity for violence only towards those who invaded their territory.

This changed with the latest generation of leaders, which have been taking the tribe in a more aggressive direction. They’ve become raiders, killing for material gain and sometimes even for sport. This got worse when a bunch of mysterious shadow-people approached those leaders and filled their heads with dreams of glory and of becoming part of a reborn ancient empire. The Grey Wolf have stopped fighting for themselves and have begun fighting for lost Netheril. They’ve kind of become a neo-fascist gang.

A PC with this theme is a member of the Grey Wolves who took a stand against this early in the process, and was exiled. Rumors have reached them that the leaders of the Grey Wolves have switched to executing dissidents, and this has driven the PC to act. Their goal is now to drive the shadows of Netheril from the region and cleanse the tribe of their influence, getting them back on the right track. They see the other PCs as a “temporary pack” that will help them achieve this goal. Lone wolves are a myth, after all.

The Pack Outcast can belong to any class. The Gray Wolves also dislike arcane magic, but there was no one around to prevent the outcast from learning it if they so choose. Still, melee weapon users are going to benefit much more from it.

Most Grey Wolves are either humans or shifters.

Features

You’re a werewolf!

At level 1, you gain Body of the Wolf. This is an at-will power that lets you turn into a wolf (or back) with a minor action. When you transform, you can also shift 1 square. The character retains their stats, and gains a +1 bonus to Speed. All equipment melds into their form and provides its passive benefits (unless it’s a shield). The character can’t use item powers or access containers, but gains a wolf bite attack and becomes proficient with it. This counts as a melee weapon with a +3 proficiency bonus, 1d8 base damage, and the same magical enhancement as the character’s primary weapon.

This bite is much better than the one the Dead Rat Deserter gets at level 10! Its main advantage is counting as a magical melee weapon instead of being a specific power. This lets the PC use any of their weapon powers while in wolf form, meaning anyone that relies on this type of power benefits from it. This means all melee martials both from the PHBs and from Essentials material, as well as characters like wardens, barbarians, paladins, and even the Warpriest (Essentials cleric).

The bite is still useless for characters who rely on implements, and the book doesn’t say anything specific about whether implements work while melded to the animal form. A generous GM might interpret “You continue to gain the benefits of the equipment you wear” to say that they do work, giving you a spellcasting wolf.

Starting at level 5, enemies adjacent to you grant combat advantage to you and to all allies who are also adjacent to those enemies. You don’t need to be in a flanking position, any adjacent space will do. Also, you get CA even if you’re the only PC adjacent to the enemy. This is super useful for melee combatants.

At level 10, you gain a +2 power bonus to Athletics and Intimidate, which is kinda underwhelming after the two other skills but can still be useful.

Optional Powers

You can get even more werewolf-y!

Bite of the Wolf is a level 2 encounter power that can be used when you hit an enemy that grants combat advantage to you with a melee attack. This knocks the enemy prone. Despite the name, you don’t need to be in wolf form to use it. And remember that after level 5 every adjacent enemy will grant you CA.

Blood of the Wolf is a level 6 daily power that can be activated with a minor action and gives you regeneration equal to (1 + CON Mod) while you’re bloodied. Like a werewolf’s regeneration, it shuts down for a turn if you’re damaged by silver.

Soul of the Wolf is a level 10 daily power that lets you assume a hybrid form. You retain all of your equipment, armor and weapons, and can use them normally. You also gain the same bite attack as in the level 1 power, temporary HP equal to (10 + CON Mod), and a +2 power bonus to Speed, Fortitude, Athletics, Intimidate, and damage!

Impressions

If there’s a Dead Rat Deserter in the party, they’re going to spend most of their time looking with envy at the Pack Outcast. This is a theme that greatly boosts melee weapon users and has a spectacular level 10 power. Even if such a character already has something equivalent to one of its features and powers, they’re unlikely to have all of them, so there’s something here for everyone. Plus, you get to say you’re a werewolf!

The Pack Outcast and the Uthgardt Barbarian are going to get along like a house on fire, and having both in the same party will let you “speedrun” the first couple of milestones of the barbarian investigation plotline. And just like that other theme, this one can also be used for multiple PCs without any convoluted explanations. An all-Pack Outcast game is a Werewolf: The Forsaken campaign using 4e rules.