Skip to main content
Main Content

[Grouse House Guide] Lead Wolf and Talents

[Grouse House Guide] Lead Wolf and Talents
Posted 2023-01-06 00:52:41 (edited)
Lead Wolf and Talents

Learn all about your lead wolf, leveling them up, and equipping talents!

You can navigate this post quickly by using the table of contents below.

This guide was last updated January 6, 2023.

Recommended Guide Order

Following our recommended guide order? This guide is the second guide on our recommended list.

We recommend going back to our [Getting Started] guide if you haven't already. After this one, the next guide you should read is our [Wolves, Roles, and Care] guide.

Table of Contents

1. Your Lead Wolf
2. Talents
3. Lead Wolf Levels
4. Titles
5. Retirement
Credits/Contact Us
fridaySnack 🍉 (#1729) Valentine (#2873) Madchsky (#201) Lily (#3016)

Find links to all of our other guides and resources in our directory post, linked [here].

We have a Discord!
Join us in a kind Wolvden community with hundreds of members and the fastest communication with Grouse House creators! More information can be found [here].

Grouse Nest Discord

https://discord.gg/Nxc52bCWka
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 00:53:30 (edited)
Your Lead Wolf

Your lead wolf is the main character! You can decide how you want them to act and look, and you play as them throughout the game's interactions.

Creating Your First Lead Wolf

Before registering for the game, players are tasked with designing their lead wolf.

This customiser has a limited amount of options, and only allows you to apply three markings to your lead wolf. You are only given T0 marking options and T1 base options, as well as basic eyes and accents. No one trait in this base creator is "more valuable". Just design a wolf who you love the look of, and keep in mind that you can always change it later with applicators or the Wolf Customiser!

Upon registering, you also choose your lead wolf's name, sex, and personality.

Currently, personality does not affect anything gameplay-wise for your lead wolf.

Wolf Name

Your lead wolf's name can be as unique as you'd like! However, it doesn't have to be exclusive. Multiple players can have the same lead wolf name, and you can change your lead wolf's name at any time in their Settings.

The only limit is that your wolf's name cannot be more than 25 characters long.

While you can use plain text for your name, many players also choose to use UTF-8 symbols. While these symbols do work on most player's devices, we generally recommend that you do not use them for the following reasons:

  • They often take up more than one character, limiting how many you can use in a name.
  • They do not work for all players. Many players may end up seeing your name as just blank squares, rather than the letters you intended.
  • They are very inaccessible to players using screen-readers, as the screen-reader will read the character's full name (ie. Mathematical Sans-Serif Script T) rather than combining it with the other characters to form a word.
Where possible, we strongly encourage you use plain text in your wolf/player name, rather than Unicode symbols.

Lead Wolf Sex

A very common question for new players has to do with the sex of their lead wolf.

Does one sex have any benefits over the other? Not really! Both have their pros and cons.

Female lead wolves, if pregnant, will have slower energy regeneration than normal. This means that, if you plan on breeding your female lead wolf, you'll have some periods where exploring might be a bit slower. However, you will be able to have puppies!

On the other hand, male lead wolves, if assigned the Breeding Male role, can be bred at basically no cost except for a little bit of energy. However, the only way you would be able to have pups related to your lead wolf is if you make him your breeding male or eventually pairbond him.

So, when choosing a lead wolf, consider whether you plan on breeding them and whether or not you care about slowed energy regeneration.
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 00:53:50 (edited)
Talents

Upon visiting your lead wolf's page, you'll find that it's nearly identical to that of any of your other wolves!

Besides having a crown next to their name, you'll notice another very key difference. A "Talents" button can be found underneath your lead wolf's stats table.

This button will only appear on your lead wolf's page, and takes you to your Talents page!

Talent Basics

Talents are special abilities or upgrades which you can apply to your lead wolf to affect many aspects of the game, from battling to scouting to feeding!

Talents were introduced in the 2-Year Anniversary update, and they can be found on the Talents page, accessed from your lead wolf's page.

Talent Points
Assigning talents requires Talent Points.

You earn your first talent point at lead wolf Level 5. After this, you earn one more talent point with every level, for a total 16 talent points possible. There is not currently any way to earn more than 16 talent points.

Assigning Talents
Clicking on a talent on the Talents page will allow you to assign it to your wolf. You will be able to tell that a talent is active if it has this pink border around it. Clicking on the talent again will unselect it, so don't worry about getting stuck with a talent you don't want before saving them!

On the side of the screen, you can view the selected talent's name and the effects it will have, as well as any prerequisites you may be missing to equip it.

At the bottom of the page, you can also view a list of all equipped talents and the effects they have.

After you've finished up picking the talents you want to equip, be sure to click the Save Talents button at the bottom of the menu!

Resetting Talents
If you aren't satisfied with the talents you have equipped to your lead wolf, you can reset them at any time, for a cost.

Once per week, you can reset your talents and start with a clean slate for 100 SC. Doing so returns all of your talent points to you and removes any talents you may have had equipped.

After this weekly reset, you can also continue resetting your talents for 1 GC.

The cheaper weekly talent reset refreshes on Monday.

Talents also reset when your lead wolf retires. After you've selected a lead wolf, all of your talents will be reset, and you won't have any talent points until your new lead wolf is level 5 again.

FAQ GraphicWhat if I have the territory size talents? Will those be reset? Will my wolves be removed?

A: Don't worry, if you have the territory size talents (Pack Life and Pack Leader) equipped, resetting your talents will not kick any of your wolves out. In fact, these talents cannot be reset if you have wolves occupying the extra slots.

When your lead wolf retires, if you have wolves occupying these extra territory slots, the talent(s) will carry over to your next lead wolf. This means that your next lead wolf may be in the negatives in talent points until they are high enough level to cancel out the talent points already used on the carried-over talents.

All Talents and Effects

The list below contains all available talents and their effects on gameplay.

NameEffect
ToughnessYour lead wolf gains +2 max HP.
Thick SkinYour lead wolf gains +3 max HP. Requires Toughness.

With both Toughness and Thick Skin equipped, the max HP that a level 20 lead wolf can have is 55.
HardyAutomatically regain up to 5 HP after a battle ends. Requires Toughness and Thick Skin.
GregariousEach befriending encounter has a 20% chance of starting with 1 green arrow.
SocialiserBefriending moves matching the wolf's disposition are more effective, while moves opposite the wolf's disposition are more punishing. Requires Gregarious.
RefinedBefriending moves opposite the wolf's disposition are less punishing. Requires Gregarious.
Body LanguageWolf dispositions are automatically discovered immediately upon starting a befriending encounter. Requires Gregarious, Socialiser, and Refined.
Tactical RetreatThe chance for a safe Flee from battle (no HP loss) is increased.
TirelessVictorious battles return 25% of the total energy used in the battle. Requires Tactical Retreat.
Second WindResting in battle always restores at least one point of energy and is more likely to remove the Tired modifier. Requires Tactical Retreat and Tireless.
Quick RecoveryResting in battle restores up to 3 more HP. Requires Tactical Retreat and Tireless.
RushGives your lead wolf a special opening move in battle. If you have at least 8% energy, you can use this move to guarantee a +1 increase in damage until the end of the battle. Requires Tactical Retreat, Tireless, and Second Wind.
BloodthirstyBoth you and your battle opponents suffer increased damage from Bleeding. Requires Tactical Retreat, Tireless, and Quick Recovery
AmbushGain a 50% chance to get a +1 bonus modifier on opening dice rolls in battle.
NimbleYou have a higher chance to free yourself from lock/snare in battle (when your opponent has you trapped). Requires Ambush.
CunningYou have a higher chance of evading special attacks in battle, such as opponents locking/snaring you. Requires Ambush.
EvadeGives your lead wolf a special opening move in battle. If you have at least 6% energy, you can use this move to guarantee a +1 reduction in damage taken until the end of the battle. Requires Ambush and Nimble.
TumbleGives your lead wolf a special opening move in battle. If you have at least 4% energy, you can use this move for a chance to dodge the next attack and tire, slow down, or enrage opponents. Usable once per battle. Requires Ambush and Cunning.
EnthusiasticLose half the energy when breeding.
Virile10% boost to pregnancy chance when breeding regardless of female's fertility. Requires Enthusiastic.
Pack LifeIncreases maximum pack size by 10. This talent cannot be reset if you have wolves occupying the extra slots, and would carry over to your next lead wolf if needed.
Pack LeaderIncreases maximum pack size by 10. This talent cannot be reset if you have wolves occupying the extra slots, and would carry over to your next lead wolf if needed. Requires Pack Life.
Fast MetabolismEvery time your lead wolf is fed to 100%, they gain 5% energy providing their energy is not already full.
Strong BondsPack members lose 5% less mood per day, meaning they lose only 5% mood (or 15% if they are ill).
LatcherIncreased chance to Latch in battle, with a decreased chance to cause bleeding from Shearing or Crushing.
BiterGain +1 damage with Bite in battle, and a decreased chance to cause bleeding with Bite.
DauntlessDeal extra damage in battles against powerful enemies. Requires Biter.
GathererReduce the time it takes to forage by 10%.
PhysicianReduce the time it takes to mix known medicines by 10%. This does not apply to learning researching medicines. Requires Gatherer.
Speedy ScoutReduces the time it takes to finish scouting by 10%.
Natural HunterAdds 5% success chance to all hunting attempts.
Den ParentEvery pups has an extra 5% survival chance when born.
Neverending FunGain a 2% chance to not consume an item's use when using amusement items.
ScavengerGain an additional 5% chance to get a trophy from battles against enemies level 5+.
Wolfy OdourGain an 5% higher chance of attracting special (rated) and chased NBWs in explore.
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 00:54:04
Lead Wolf Levels

The level of your lead wolf affects a lot of gameplay elements! If you want to be sure to unlock everything, you will want to level your lead wolf up as quickly as you can.

Level 5

Once your lead wolf reaches Level 5, you earn your first talent point. You can use this to assign a talent on the Talents page.

Level 10

Level 10 is when a lot of different mechanics will unlock for you.

Raffle Studs

You will be able to view and enter the Raffle Stud raffle every week on the News page. This will give you a chance to win one breeding to a special stud with raffle-exclusive attributes.

You can read more about raffle studs in our Raffle Studs guide.

Battle Trophies

Once your lead wolf is level 10, you can start earning Trophies from victorious battles. This is a small chance that increases with your lead wolf's level.

A battle trophy is a special item unique to the opponent, such as a skull or pelt. Some trophies are used in crafting recipes, some are food or amusement items, and some serve no purpose yet. However, many players seek to collect them all!

You can view which opponents drop which trophies is our Battle Opponent Masterlist.

Chased Wolves

Starting from level 10 onwards, befriend-able wolves you encounter while exploring will have a very small chance of being a wolf chased from another player's pack.

Chased wolves will be evident by the purple star in the top left corner of the befriending menu. Since the wolf was chased from another pack, and could have been bred or customised, these wolves have the potential to have any base, marking, or other attribute, if you're lucky! Chased wolves often go for high prices if they have desirable traits like high-tier bases or rare eyes.

You can read more about chased wolves in our [Befriending guide].

Level 15

Starting from level 10 onwards, befriend-able wolves you encounter while exploring will have a small chance of carrying a "Rating".

This will be evident by one to five starts in the top left corner of the befriending menu, visually distinct from the chased wolf star. Hovering over these stars will tell your the wolf's rating.

Rated wolves have NBW-exclusive traits corresponding to how many stars they have. If they have two stars, they will have two exclusive traits. NBW-exclusive traits include Tier 2 bases, unique markings, and Glass eyes.

You can read more about rated wolves in our [Befriending guide].

Leveling Up Quickly

The only way to level up your lead wolf quickly is through battling.

It's generally recommended to stick to battling involving opponents higher level than you, or challenging opponent such as Charged lunar animals, which will grant more EXP.

Battling these tougher opponents can be difficult, so keep a stash of Healing Salves and Lucky Feet to use while battling to help better ensure a victory.

Completing Daily Quests from the Questing page also gives your lead wolf EXP, but this is a very small amount compared to how much you can earn from battling.
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 00:54:18
Lead Wolf Title

Your lead wolf's title is a purely cosmetic change you can make to how your lead wolf is displayed on your Den page.

It will appear in front of your lead wolf's name.

Your title is very easy to change! Just scroll down to the bottom of your Den page, to the Options section. Here, you can select your Pack Leader Title from the dropdown menu, as well as your Featured Wolf Title beside it.

There are currently seven Lead Wolf titles to choose from: Pack Leader, Lead Wolf, King, Queen, Alpha, Lead, and Leader.

FAQ GraphicI found someone who has a different title than the available options... how did they do that?

A: Through the use of CSS coding, players can apply their own custom titles to their lead and featured wolves! We discuss CSS a bit more in our [Pack, Den, and Territory] guide. You can find players offering CSS in the forums, in the Layout and CSS Sales section!
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 01:12:34 (edited)
Lead Wolf Retirement

After some time, it's likely that you'll grow tired of your current lead wolf. Maybe you happened across another wolf who you like a lot more, or maybe you want to start fresh for a new project!

Luckily, your lead wolf is not permanent and there are a couple methods you can use to remove them from their position.

Old Age

All wolves get old, but of all of your pack members, your lead wolves will usually live the longest.

Lead wolves always live until they are exactly 8 years old.

Upon rolling over when your lead wolf is 7 years 11 1/2 months old, you will be prompted with the lead replacement screen and you will not be able to continue playing until you select a new lead wolf.

You will be presented with two options: either select a wolf from your pack to become your new lead, or create a new wolf to take over instead.

You can select any wolf to become your new lead wolf. If they are younger than 1 year old, they will automatically be aged up. If they are older than 1 year old, they will retain their current age.

When made a lead wolf, wolves will keep their current level and stats. Nothing will be reset.

If you choose to create a new lead wolf instead, you will be able to use the basic customiser that you started with at the beginning of the game to create a basic new wolf with a maximum of three markings. Lead wolves can never be retired early for free, and the only way to remove them without paying is to wait until they die naturally at 8 years old.

After death, they will be moved to your Dynasty, where you can store their records so you'll be able to look back at them forever!

Early Retirement

If you have some GC to spare, you may choose the early retirement route.

If you choose to retire your lead wolf before they are 8 years old, you must pay a 25 GC fee.

Immortalizing Your Lead Wolf

Players are also presented with the opportunity to immortalize (or "freeze") their lead wolf upon their retirement.

If you want your lead wolf to die of old age at 8 years old, you must apply a Jellyfish to them preemptively from your Hoard. If you do not have an open immortal slot when your lead wolf retires, they will not be immortalized. It is unknown whether or not the Jellyfish would then be returned to you.

If you are retiring your lead wolf early, you can choose to Immortalize them directly from the retirement menu.

Immortalizing your lead wolf does not keep them in the lead wolf position. They will become a generic pack member with no role. Immortal wolves cannot serve any function in the pack, and essentially act as decorations.

Biome Map Reset

Every time your lead wolf is retired, regardless of whether they are immortalized or not, your biome map will reset.

You will lose scouting progress on all biomes except for your home biome, where your pack is located, and two bordering biomes. If you do not have two bordering biomes unlocked, only your home biome will remain. For example, if you live in the Taiga and have all biomes unlocked, you will keep the Tundra, Taiga, and Coniferous Forest. If you live in the Grasslands and have all biomes unlocked, the biomes kept will be randomized between the Mountains, Coniferous Forest, Deciduous Forest, and Prairie.

All other biomes will become "Undiscovered again", and any scouting progress completely lost.

The biome map is not reset when a scout dies or is switched out -- it only resets when a lead wolf dies.

Below is a list of the biomes that will remain when your lead wolf retires, based on your current home biome and assuming you have every biome unlocked.

Glacier: Tundra and Taiga
Tundra: Taiga and Glacier
Taiga: Tundra and Coniferous Forest
Coniferous Forest: Random two of the following - Taiga, Mountains, Grasslands, Deciduous Forest, or Riparian Woodland
Mountains: Random two of the following - Coniferous Forest, Grasslands, Prairie
Grasslands: Random two of the following - Mountains, Coniferous Forest, Deciduous Forest, Prairie
Deciduous Forest: Random two of the following - Coniferous Forest, Grasslands, Prairie, Riparian Woodland
Riparian Woodland: Random two of the following - Coniferous Forest, Deciduous Forest, Prairie
Prairie: Random two of the following - Mountains, Grasslands, Deciduous Forest, Riparian Woodland, Desert
Desert: Prairie and Swamp
Swamp: Desert and Rainforest
Rainforest: Swamp and Desert
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 01:12:49
[ Reserved for future content ]
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 01:12:59
[ Reserved for future content ]
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 01:13:12
[ Reserved for future content ]
Mel 🏜️
#201

Posted 2023-01-06 01:13:19
[ Reserved for future content ]
Mel 🏜️
#201

Search Topic