Wererat Lycanthropy

Wererats are cunning lycanthropes with sly, avaricious personalities. They are wiry and twitchy in humanoid form, with thin hair and darting eyes. In their humanoid and hybrid forms, wererats prefer light weapons and use ambush tactics rather than fighting as a pack. Although a wererat can deliver a nasty bite in its rat form, it favors that form for stealthy infiltration and escape rather than combat.
A wererat clan (typically 100-500 members) operates much like a thieves' guild, with wererats transmitting their curse only to creatures they want to induct into the clan. Wererats that are accidentally cursed or break loose from the clan's control are quickly hunted down and killed.
Wererats are often amenable to cooperation and will readily negotiate a mutually beneficial agreement with non-lycanthropes. They prefer to have non-lycanthrope elves around as obfuscation, and will defend them from other types of lycanthropes on occasion.
Wererat clans are found throughout urban civilization in the Lawless Coast, often dwelling in cellars and catacombs. These creatures are common in the sewers beneath major cities, viewing those subterranean areas as their hunting grounds. Rats and giant rats are commonly found living among wererats.

Type

Magical

Parent

Lycanthropy

Origin

Divine

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired & Congenital

Rarity

Common

Affected Species

• Desert Elves
• High elves

Wererat Lycanthropy

Bitten by a Wererat.

A character who becomes a lycanthrope retains his or her statistics except as specified by lycanthrope type. The character gains the lycanthrope's speeds in nonhumanoid form, damage immunities, traits, and actions that don't involve equipment. The character is proficient with the lycanthrope's natural attacks, such as its bite or claws, which deal damage as shown in the lycanthrope's statistics. The character can't speak while in animal form.
A humanoid hit by an attack that carries the curse of lycanthropy must succeed on a Constitution saving throw (DC 8 + the lycanthrope's proficiency bonus + the lycanthrope's Constitution modifier) or be cursed. If the character embraces the curse, their alignment becomes the one defined for the lycanthrope.
Wererat. (Lawful Evil.) The character gains a Dexterity of 15 if their score isn't already higher. Attack and damage rolls for the bite are based on whichever is higher of the character's Strength and Dexterity.
Speed. 30ft in rat or hybrid form
Darkvision 60 Ft. (Rat Form Only)
Damage Resistances. Bludgeoning, Piercing, And Slashing Damage From Nonmagical Weapons That Aren't Silvered
Shapechanger. The wererat can use its action to polymorph into a rat-humanoid hybrid or into a giant rat, or back into its true form, which is humanoid. Its statistics, other than its size, are the same in each form. Any equipment it is wearing or carrying isn't transformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.
Keen Smell. The wererat has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.
Multiattack (Humanoid or Hybrid Form Only). The wererat makes two attacks, only one of which can be a bite.
Bite (Rat or Hybrid Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: Str or Dex + proficiency to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: (1d4 + Str or Dex) piercing damage. If the target is a humanoid, it must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be cursed with wererat lycanthropy.