Shifter
Shifters are the descendants of lycanthropes that learned to control their curse.
Civilization and Culture
History
Aided by the Druid Kenuij Silverpetal, himself a werewolf, a small community of lycanthropes came together to attempt to defeat the curse. Rather than try to cure it, they sought to direct and control it. By summoning spirits that took on the form of the weres' bestial side, Kenuij was able to allow their two sides to begin communicating rather than wrestling for control.
According to shifter lore, what they found was that it was the internal conflict, coupled with the aggression, fear, and jealousy of the humanoid side that made so many weres evil. Many could not handle the truths they discovered about themselves, going mad, killing themselves or simply running off into the wilderness. But those who remained gained a rapport with their spirit, and learned a new level of control.
The success of the teaching spread and the community grew. When the first children were born to lycanthropes who had gained control, they were found to have more natural control than their parents. Some claimed it was the spirits' influence, others claimed that the curse had been broken. It took centuries for the shifters to gain acceptance but the enforced separation from other communities allowed them to develop their own culture and traditions.
