Life as a Wolf.

Relic Lore is based in a fictional location in northern Canada, so climate and topography wise you should expect similar attributes to the real-life area. The flora and fauna that your character would expect to find will be realistically found in the northern Canada area. For now the wolves of Relic Lore have explored a few regions which vary in size and terrain, however more adventurous wolves may wish to delve deeper into the seemingly never ending Forest.

Like any place in real life, Relic Lore goes through seasonal cycles throughout the year—from Winter to Spring, from Spring to Summer, Summer to Autumn and then from Autumn back to Winter again. Each of these seasons changes Relic Lore as you would expect, but this guide also gives you some insight to how they effect the wolves.

Annual cycle of a wolf.

A wolf's activities and behaviour changes with the seasons of the year—as much as the land changes from warm to cold climates, so does a wolf change to match. Like any wild animal, the seasons dictate how they live and below is a typical annual cycle of the Grey Wolf (Canis lupus).

Winter, December—February.

In winter a wolf's coat is their lifeline—it will keep them warm and there is almost no heat loss (snow doesn't melt on a wolf's fur) through it. Hunting is difficult in the winter, even more energy expensive than normal, so pack's often have periods of inactivity and rely on stored up fat, from increased hunting in Autumn, and their food cache's heavily during this season. Pack's tend to travel in single file following their leader and use old game trails and frozen lakes to avoid deep snow. Winter is a time of rest and conserving as they wait for Spring.

Spring, March—May.

In Spring (March) it is breeding season and it is here the lead male and female mate. The pack devotes it time to digging or remodelling their den, it is only used in birthing as wolves sleep outside all year long. Denning sites are normally chosen within close proximity of water and often on a elevated hill or beneath a tree, they are designed to be deep, narrow tunnels that end in a chamber where the cubs can safely rest. In May the cubs are born, but it isn't until June that they are big enough to leave the den and meet the rest of the pack.

Summer, June—August.

Summer is a time of growth—the winter coat is long gone and is instead replaced by a shorter, lighter summer coat. The cubs, now out of the den, begin to grow rapidly as they are protected and raised by the entire pack and kept fat and happy while they develop. Summer is a time of careless play and fun for the cubs as they are watched over by the Yearlings of the pack. Towards the end of Summer the cubs place in the pack begins to be discovered as dominance battles become more serious. Most activities take place at night to avoid the heat of the day.

Autumn, September—November.

Wolves rapidly begin their winter preparations—their coat becomes deep, dense and downy offering them maximum warmth. While the cubs have been on pack hunts now they are not yet experienced and they begin to increase their skill as quick as they are able. The fall is a natural dispersal time for most wild animals. Some wolves (those at two and half years) may leave and find mates and to start their own pack. Most importantly, all wolves use this time to hunt as often as possible to build up their body mass and fill the pack caches in preparation.

Living as a lone wolf.

When your character first joins RoW and is accepted they start as a lone wolf and then, from there, you can decide how their life in Relic Lore progresses. Remaining as a lone wolf for a long period of time is unnatural to wolves, they are social creatures and they instinctively crave to be part of a pack—whether that means joining one of the many already existing in RoW or trying to form their own. It is highly recommended that your wolf seek out a pack as soon as they can, and below are some reasons why.

Pro's and Con's of a lone wolf.

As you would expect, there are both some pro's and con's to being a Lone Wolf. While it is unnatural for a wolf to remain alone there are reasons and benefits for them doing so for a short period of time, however as the period get's longer the consequences begin to far outweigh the benefits.

Benefits — By not being a part of a pack your wolf isn't beholden to anyone, meaning that they can go wherever they want, whenever they want with no consequences. They have no rules to live under, no wolf more dominant than them and are generally free spirits.

Consequences — Wolves are social creatures and not being in a pack gets very lonely. It goes against their natural instinct, to socialize and bond, and they would feel very uncomfortable for them while they were not part of a pack. Without a pack's support lone wolves are also forced to stick to small prey—such as rabbits and mice—which need to be caught far more often than a bigger kill and therefore consumes a lot of time and energy, meaning lone wolves are almost always underweight. Only upon joining a pack and returning to regular eating habits will an emaciated wolf regain the weight they have lost (at roughly 2 lbs./0.9 kg. a week). Canines in the wild are capable of surviving 5-12 days without food or water. With that in mind, a lone wolf also suffers a far higher mortality risk, they have no defense and support and no loyal pack to help them if they get wounded or sick. Simply put, they are alone!

As you can see, the consequences of being a lone wolf far outweigh the benefits and in RoW, we'd recommend finding your wolf as pack as soon as you can.

Health.

In your profile, there is an option to set your character's current health. Lone wolves have a lower maximum health than a pack wolf, to realistically portray that lone wolves tend to be weaker and more unhealthy than pack wolves.