Skin Wolves

"Long before any of you were born, there was a warrior in the tribe named Ulfrik with a great mane of red hair and eyes that pierced like daggers. Foraging, hunting, fighting, they all came easy to Ulfrik, but he was never satisfied. He threw himself against every challenge with reckless abandon, but nothing could satisfy his ambition. He became the chieftain of the tribe, but even then, there was a hunger in his heart. Finally, he left the village one day without a word, with only a bone dagger and a few thin furs to ward off the frost.
He returned covered in mud, bites, and gouges, his eyes bloodshot and his nails and teeth dark with congealed blood. Across his frame was draped a bloody wolf pelt the size of a bear.
The next summer, a neighboring tribe attacked our camp. Those maimed few enemies who survived told tales of a monster of fur and claw, an abomination. But we knew that monster as Ulfrik - as the skin wolf."
- Torygg the Skald
Overview
Skin wolves are legendary shapeshifters of the Lupercal tribe of Old Holmgardians. Said to be blessed by Tyr, they are monstrous werewolf-like creatures that lope into battle on four legs, tearing through enemies with reckless abandon. Among the Lupercal, great warriors occasionally disappear into the dark woods to hunt special dire wolves marked by Tyr. Those few who survive and kill their quarry are granted the gift of the skin wolf.
These individuals are not feared by their brethren; they are revered. Those with the gift of the skin wolf are holy, touched by the mark of the Three-Faced God. Warbands gifted with skin wolves are truly terrifying in battle, materializing out of the dark forests of the Empire and striking savagely to leave dismembered bodies and bloody entrails in their wake.

Werewolves, or Skin Wolves?
Skin wolves have a few differences from werewolves. They tend to be larger, faster, and are granted superior strength to a lycanthrope. Also, they are not vulnerable to silver. On the other hand, transforming into a skin wolf is a draining process that leaves the shapeshifter unconscious and nearly useless afterwards.