Legacy of Kain Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Werewolves were an enemy class introduced and appearing only in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. They were supernatural creatures that took on the form of an enlarged wolf similar to Kain's own Wolf Form. This was only revealed as an alternate form when they were killed as they would return to a human state upon death. They were encountered primarily in secret areas such as the Lost City and the Lightning Dungeon.

Profile[]

Werewolves were powerful wolves encountered by Kain in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. They were stronger and more powerful than normal wolves and were only revealed as werewolves when they were killed - as they returned to human form as they died. This seemed to be in a similar manner to Kain's own Wolf Form, except they were clearly not Vampires, given their 'unchanged' Human state. As with traditional Werewolves they were more powerful or more active during a full moon, as was Kain - particularly in his wolf form. How they relate to Kain and Vorador's wolf forms is unknown and they have yet to reappear in the series.[Blood Omen]

Werewolves were not encountered along the usual progression of the game and could only be encountered in areas that were associated with Secrets. The majority of the Werewolves could be found in two locations: Ten could be found patroling the main area of the Lost City and thirty-four could be found in the trails of the Lightning Dungeon. Only a single werewolf was found outside these areas, with one found in a secret area within Vorador's Mansion.[Blood Omen][Blood Omen/Miscellaneous][Blood Omen/6][Blood Omen/8]

Like most natural creatures they possessed Red blood and were fairly hardy with moderate endurance (25 points) and attack-power (30 points). Werewolves were not vulnerable to Control Mind but could be controled using Spirit Wrack. Kain did not issue any comment on them during his travels and their background is ultimately unexplained.[Blood Omen][Blood Omen/Miscellaneous][Blood Omen/6][Blood Omen/8][1]

Behind the scenes[]

With no explicit background given, the status of werewolves remains something of a mystery. Their elongated wolven appearance was identical to that of Kain's Wolf Form, suggesting some kind of supernatural explanation, but their appearance upon death seemed to be identical to those of a regular human - specifically the Brigand 'Man at arms' class - and bore none of the vampiric traits common among vampire characters.[Blood Omen]

When questioned about the class and whether they were werewolves or Wolf Form Vampires, Chris Bruno responded:

"You are wondering about a wolf-creature that appears in BO? I remember this creature, if you kill it it turns to a human form right? I remember one for sure in Vorador's mansion that I always thought was a werewolf. The only other vampires in Vorador's mansion were his Brides."

Ultimately this approach of combining preexisting assets to form a distinct class may have served to save on development-costs - both in terms of memory and design-requirements.

In alpha-versions, the werewolves can be found in different locations with some additionally appearing in the Termogent Forest.[3][4]

Notes[]

  • The Werewolves are not officially named in game and their title comes from their appearance, behavior and apparent association with Werewolves of folklore.[Blood Omen][5] They are however explicitly refered to as such in developer-interviews.[2][6] In game-files the sprites relating to Werewolves are refered to as "char0033".[Blood Omen]
  • Some fans had suggested that the locations of the werewolves in game could be significant. Given the large amount of Werewolves in Lost City, its unique architecture and similarly unexplained origin had led some to speculate that they could potentially be its creators. On the other hand The Lost City was protected by a Moon gate and would only have opened during a Full moon - a period of traditional werewolf activity - which could explain their presence. Similarly they are present in large numbers in the trail leading to the Lightning Spell, which is protected by a Moon Gate and they could only have gotten there through access during a Full Moon.[Blood Omen][5][7] Neither theory is explicitly confirmed or denied in official sources, however artist Daniel Cabuco had publicly opined that he believed that the Werewolves had taken over the abandoned Lost City:
    "I never got the full skinny on it. I believe it was the Vampire race [that created the lost city].. and it was abandoned. The Werewolves took over, but the whole time the Elder God was there, whispering and pulling it into the depths."
  • A number of other canine enemies were seen in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain including Cave Wolves, Purple Cave Wolves, Cerberi, Wolves, and Dogs - and with Kain and Vorador both able to assume a Wolf Form.[Blood Omen]. Later games would also feature canine enemies, with both Vampire hunters and Demon hunters using variants of attack-dogs - the Vampire-hunter-attack-dogs and Demon-hunter-attack-dogs respectively.[Soul Reaver 2][Soul Reaver 2 strategy guide (Prima)]

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. Icon Blood OmnicideEnemies - Undead at the Blood Omnicide site (archived)
  2. 2.0 2.1 Eidos Interactive Chris@Crystal's Greatest Hits at the Eidos Forums/Square Enix Forums (Archive) (by Unknown/Chris Bruno)
  3. Icon Blood Omen Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (Jul 12, 1996 prototype)
  4. Icon Blood Omen Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (Jul 15, 1996 prototype)
  5. 5.0 5.1 Icon Wikipedia Werewolf at Wikipedia.
  6. 6.0 6.1 Icon DCabDesign Ruins in Nosgoth at the DCabDesign (by Jake Pawloski/Daniel Cabuco)
  7. Icon Dark Chronicle The Lost City at Dark Chronicle (by Ardeth Silvereni)

Browse[]

Advertisement