Luther Von Brandt

{Inspired by Warren Zevon's

Werewolves of London

}

Appearance
Luther is a strong, handsome man with sparkling blue eyes, perfectly coifed blond hair, and a brilliant, charming smile; his clothing is expensive, but always tasteful and very fashionable.

On nights surrounding the full moon, he becomes a gigantic and savage, but very elegant, wolf, with smooth, silky white fur, piercing blue eyes, and pearly-white fangs.

History/Background
Luther is a high-ranking representative of a merchants' consortium in a far-off city; he's recently taken up residence in {major campaign city}, ostensibly to manage their trade agreements with the local merchants' guilds. He's already worked his way into the political and economic elite of the city, and is regarded as something of a wunderkind- under his management, his guild's interests in the city are bringing in more profits than ever before; Every society woman in the city wants to net him, every business wants to recruit him, every syncophant wants to get in his good graces- and, naturally, he has little time for any of them.
Unfortunately, his rivals have a tendency to wind up dead, and there have been a series of brutal murders of vagrants and beggars occurring on the full moons since his arrival.
* * *
Born into a lower-middle-class family, Luther was bitten by a werewolf at the age of nine and promptly disowned. He eventually found work as an errand boy for the Consortium, and began his rapid, inexorable climb- he was a dues-collector by age twenty, and had almost reached the upper echelons by age thirty, brutally trampling anyone who vied with him for position or prestige. His lycanthropy became an open secret among the upper management of the Consortium (they even covered up several murders he comitted) but when he attacked and killed a rival for a position, they decided he had gone too far.

His superiors saw his obvious talent as a businessman, but he was too dangerous, too costly, and, perhaps most importantly, too ambitious to keep around- in addition to the murder, they feared scandal if news of their employment of a dangerous lycanthrope got around, and it became obvious that he would soon try to take over the entire consortium. So, in the guise of a promotion, they banished him to a far-off city. There, he could continue to bring in profits, but they were safely distanced from any threat he might pose or scandal he might cause.

Special Equipment
None.

Roleplaying Notes
Luther is charming, handsome, successful, and completely and utterly homicidal, even in his human form. Unless he has a specific target in mind, he most often transforms in the poorer areas of town- less notice is taken of any deaths he causes there. He will most often assassinate rivals by luring them to an out-of-the-way place and attacking them in his wolf-form, although he is perfectly willing to use any means available for his killings- poisons, knives, hired assassins, even strangling his victims with his bare hands.

He is not ashamed of his lycanthropy, but keeps it a secret out of self-interest.

Despite his propensity for murder, he has yet to be caught-he is exceptionally intelligent and cunning, and has all the resources of the consortium at his disposal. Between his money, his reputation, and the consortium's lawyers, he's made himself more-or-less untouchable.

Plot Hooks
A victim has survived one of his attacks, or a political rival has discovered his secret, and he hires the PCs to take Luther down outside the law...

The PCs fall afoul of him in wolf-form and fend him off. Little do they suspect that the werewolf left limping away with its tail between its legs will come back as a rich and ruthless businessman, clamoring for the blood of the brutes who 'mugged' him...

The consortium has hired the PCs to protect a shipment of widgets. Unfortunately, their employer turns out to be more dangerous than the highwaymen they're defending against...