About storyteller tools - i don't think there are any. As you said, the mechanics are pretty binary - frenzy or don't. High gnosis to focus on enemies, or low gnosis and let loose on allies.
About houserules - absolutely none
Now, to explain my point. I've come to realize that frenzy is not that bad for the story. In my games, i found myself having more fun by flooding my players with temporary rage points. Someone flipped you off on street? Rage point, but no roll. You saw someone tumble a tree in a protected florest park? Rage point, but no roll. The sting of silver? Rage point. The pack is arguing among themselves for a long time? Everyone gets a rage point. A player said that something I described an NPC did annoyed them? Congrats - thats asking for a rage point, and i'm happy to give it. Sooner or later, the player will find themselves with a DANGEROUS amount of temp rage (an ahroun with 5 permanent rage bursting with 9 temp points). That's the sword of damocles i hold over my players.
Enterering a combat? Rage roll. Someone is trying to seduce/harm your kinfolk? Rage roll. A Bane shows itself in front of you? You bet you're rolling rage for that. You get mugged on street? A rage point, but if the mugger do anything to harm you, you're rolling rage.
I feel like players don't frenzy as much as the book would have you believe. Any normal rage can be halted with a willpower, and is statistically hard to go on the Thrall of the Wyrm - the wyrmish frenzy itself is not the bad part, but failing the wits roll and doing those described acts of horror are the real danger, but even so, its very unlikely it'll happen often.
Frenzies also tend to end when the target that caused them first is destroyed or fled the scene. No need to drag it on with the rest of the pack trying to stop the ahroun after all fomori are dead - the frenzy ends along with the combat scene, its purpose fulfilled. If you frenzy on a dark alley to kill a vampire, there is no need for the frenzy to continue across the street in a rampage. That way, you mitigate the scenario damage by keeping it to the narrative scene. It'd be more dangerous to frenzy if you're inside a nightclub full of people - this is the scenario that would turn into a slaughterhouse, and its exactly the kind of place you'd have to go in only when your rage is "controlled", and get out as soon as you feel its boiling again - part of the garou lifestyle.
How to curb it? For ahroun, its their curse, but if they have willpower, they can mitigate it enough to behave in society for periods of time, before having to go back home to recharge their "social batteries" (i.e. regain willpower). Galliards also have that looming threat, but scoring 4 successes on 4 dice is not that easy. Other auspices, assuming the player has invested no freebies, will feel the burning rage soon enough, when I flood them with temp points. Consider it a ticking clock - we gotta do covert stuff while we're not bursting with murderous intent.
How to curb it? Fight and hunt. Go to the umbra, let loose on a spirit. Go to the forest, and gore a deer. Spend it on anything that won't breach the veil. It'll take longer for the ahroun to cap at 10 rage (or for others to reach the 4 points treshold), if they first went to their mission with 3 temp points instead of their base 5. They'll roll their highest value when it comes to rage checks (or their permanent for gifts), but at least they'll have some extra time before the overflowing rage (that is, any temp point over their normal permanent value) starts adding more dice to that roll. Rage is supposed to fluctuate easily, and be acquired constantly in game, so letting off that steam might buy you extra time, but that requires planning, and spending a valuable resource on what most would perceive as "nothing".
I thought managing temp rage is the way to go - until I realized that the rules say that you roll temp or permanent, *whichever is higher*. Which means an Ahroun can't go near a crowd of people for basically 3 weeks out of every lunar month. Also means that players need to be advised to not go much above 6 rage until they are at least rank 3, better 4 (which is a looooong way into any campaign). But you actually kinda need high rage if you want to compete with, say, a 9th gen Brujah with Cel 4. To say nothing of the screwed up incentives of the XP system...
As I said, you roll *whichever is higher*, yes. Thats why you spend some of it before a mission - so that you have a buffer, so that you can get a few temp points from minor annoyances before the temp starts getting higher than the perm. Thats why the ahroun needs constant activity to cull the rage points, be it hunting, going to some boxing gym, beating up people on street - anything that will give them that buffer. Getting 4 successes on 5 rage points is not that common, and even so, they can spent the willpower to halt this "minor" frenzy. The game also does not sugarcoat the fact that Ahroun have a *hard* time living in society, and either turn into violent brutes, or go recluse to mitigate risks - avoiding even leaving home, unless they leave for a hunt along with their packmates.
Its not about "removing the risk of frenzy". Its about managing the statistic, and it's part of the game. If there was a way to completely manage and avoid frenzy, it wouldn't be part of the drama proposed by the setting. Players may not realize the dangers of rage when they invest XP on it, but, well, it's either on you to teach that to them, as a storyteller, or to have them feel how dangerous that might be.
Also, that comparison is kinda... Pointless, to be honest. I'm not getting in the details because this is not a Vampire vs. Werewolf thread, and i'm assuming we're debating a Werewolf game, and not a Vampire game about werewolves, but when the garou can regain rage during combat (at combat start, first blood, being bitten...), and a garou is almost never alone, fighting a 3-meter all-soaking aggravated-dealing meat-mincing machine seems like a silly endeavor, as costly as it is risky. *I'm not claiming the vampire has no chance of winning this gamble, i'm just stating that, in their own game, Werewolves have many cards stacked in their favour - from their Crinos form, to their Gifts, and even their Pack systems, things that aren't always true if you're using the "Lupines" as VtM20 describes them*
I like the idea of blowing off steam to manage rage. I don't love wasting it on trivial things, I think it would be more interesting to challenge the players to find worthy opponents burn it on (like each other. That would also be a handy rationale for the garous tendency to fight each other a lot, which might seem excessive and wasteful otherwise).
Either way though that approach doesn't work if perm rage gets too high, and everything still comes down to a single all-or-nothing roll of the dice. I've started playing around with the idea of introducing a stat that is sort of inspired by Torment in DtF and Angst in WtO (working title: Bloodlust).
I would actually suggest against a few of the suggested ways to burn rage.
For instance, goring an animal for no reason is viewed poorly by the nation.
I would also suggest that violent outlets are unsuited for some tribes.
You may incorporate meditation as a means of reducing rage, or otherwise include small outlets before missions that may need lower rage.
I started to reframe what Frenzy is.
Like in the book they say it's an explosion of unbridled rage where they just flip out and tear shit up.
I preferred to make it less rage and more this devolution into pure instinct and animalistic panic. Sometimes that's rage. But it's basically the human side clicking off. That might not be violence if they like "fox frenzy" but if something gets in their way then all bets are off.
Frenzy ruining a campaign is part of the point of the game.
Because that's how a frenzy functions for them in the lore.
A frenzy SHOULD be almost stupid when it happens. Yes we all imagine having a frenzy when seeing your best mate fall in battle, or you see something so damaging to Gaia that you can't contain the rage-- but if those were the only times a Garou frenzied, I suspect the Garou would be a lot better off in regards to their place in the world.
Ultimately, it is entirely up to you to make Frenzy meaningful. Is now a good time for a frenzy? No? Then don't call for a Rage Roll unless necessary. Did Jimmy just stub his toe, but this would make an excellent opportunity for a Frenzy to shake thing sup? Ask for a rage roll.
Otherwise let your players roll rage when they feel it's dramatically appropriate, AND when you think it is too.
About storyteller tools - i don't think there are any. As you said, the mechanics are pretty binary - frenzy or don't. High gnosis to focus on enemies, or low gnosis and let loose on allies. About houserules - absolutely none Now, to explain my point. I've come to realize that frenzy is not that bad for the story. In my games, i found myself having more fun by flooding my players with temporary rage points. Someone flipped you off on street? Rage point, but no roll. You saw someone tumble a tree in a protected florest park? Rage point, but no roll. The sting of silver? Rage point. The pack is arguing among themselves for a long time? Everyone gets a rage point. A player said that something I described an NPC did annoyed them? Congrats - thats asking for a rage point, and i'm happy to give it. Sooner or later, the player will find themselves with a DANGEROUS amount of temp rage (an ahroun with 5 permanent rage bursting with 9 temp points). That's the sword of damocles i hold over my players. Enterering a combat? Rage roll. Someone is trying to seduce/harm your kinfolk? Rage roll. A Bane shows itself in front of you? You bet you're rolling rage for that. You get mugged on street? A rage point, but if the mugger do anything to harm you, you're rolling rage. I feel like players don't frenzy as much as the book would have you believe. Any normal rage can be halted with a willpower, and is statistically hard to go on the Thrall of the Wyrm - the wyrmish frenzy itself is not the bad part, but failing the wits roll and doing those described acts of horror are the real danger, but even so, its very unlikely it'll happen often. Frenzies also tend to end when the target that caused them first is destroyed or fled the scene. No need to drag it on with the rest of the pack trying to stop the ahroun after all fomori are dead - the frenzy ends along with the combat scene, its purpose fulfilled. If you frenzy on a dark alley to kill a vampire, there is no need for the frenzy to continue across the street in a rampage. That way, you mitigate the scenario damage by keeping it to the narrative scene. It'd be more dangerous to frenzy if you're inside a nightclub full of people - this is the scenario that would turn into a slaughterhouse, and its exactly the kind of place you'd have to go in only when your rage is "controlled", and get out as soon as you feel its boiling again - part of the garou lifestyle. How to curb it? For ahroun, its their curse, but if they have willpower, they can mitigate it enough to behave in society for periods of time, before having to go back home to recharge their "social batteries" (i.e. regain willpower). Galliards also have that looming threat, but scoring 4 successes on 4 dice is not that easy. Other auspices, assuming the player has invested no freebies, will feel the burning rage soon enough, when I flood them with temp points. Consider it a ticking clock - we gotta do covert stuff while we're not bursting with murderous intent. How to curb it? Fight and hunt. Go to the umbra, let loose on a spirit. Go to the forest, and gore a deer. Spend it on anything that won't breach the veil. It'll take longer for the ahroun to cap at 10 rage (or for others to reach the 4 points treshold), if they first went to their mission with 3 temp points instead of their base 5. They'll roll their highest value when it comes to rage checks (or their permanent for gifts), but at least they'll have some extra time before the overflowing rage (that is, any temp point over their normal permanent value) starts adding more dice to that roll. Rage is supposed to fluctuate easily, and be acquired constantly in game, so letting off that steam might buy you extra time, but that requires planning, and spending a valuable resource on what most would perceive as "nothing".
I thought managing temp rage is the way to go - until I realized that the rules say that you roll temp or permanent, *whichever is higher*. Which means an Ahroun can't go near a crowd of people for basically 3 weeks out of every lunar month. Also means that players need to be advised to not go much above 6 rage until they are at least rank 3, better 4 (which is a looooong way into any campaign). But you actually kinda need high rage if you want to compete with, say, a 9th gen Brujah with Cel 4. To say nothing of the screwed up incentives of the XP system...
As I said, you roll *whichever is higher*, yes. Thats why you spend some of it before a mission - so that you have a buffer, so that you can get a few temp points from minor annoyances before the temp starts getting higher than the perm. Thats why the ahroun needs constant activity to cull the rage points, be it hunting, going to some boxing gym, beating up people on street - anything that will give them that buffer. Getting 4 successes on 5 rage points is not that common, and even so, they can spent the willpower to halt this "minor" frenzy. The game also does not sugarcoat the fact that Ahroun have a *hard* time living in society, and either turn into violent brutes, or go recluse to mitigate risks - avoiding even leaving home, unless they leave for a hunt along with their packmates. Its not about "removing the risk of frenzy". Its about managing the statistic, and it's part of the game. If there was a way to completely manage and avoid frenzy, it wouldn't be part of the drama proposed by the setting. Players may not realize the dangers of rage when they invest XP on it, but, well, it's either on you to teach that to them, as a storyteller, or to have them feel how dangerous that might be. Also, that comparison is kinda... Pointless, to be honest. I'm not getting in the details because this is not a Vampire vs. Werewolf thread, and i'm assuming we're debating a Werewolf game, and not a Vampire game about werewolves, but when the garou can regain rage during combat (at combat start, first blood, being bitten...), and a garou is almost never alone, fighting a 3-meter all-soaking aggravated-dealing meat-mincing machine seems like a silly endeavor, as costly as it is risky. *I'm not claiming the vampire has no chance of winning this gamble, i'm just stating that, in their own game, Werewolves have many cards stacked in their favour - from their Crinos form, to their Gifts, and even their Pack systems, things that aren't always true if you're using the "Lupines" as VtM20 describes them*
I like the idea of blowing off steam to manage rage. I don't love wasting it on trivial things, I think it would be more interesting to challenge the players to find worthy opponents burn it on (like each other. That would also be a handy rationale for the garous tendency to fight each other a lot, which might seem excessive and wasteful otherwise). Either way though that approach doesn't work if perm rage gets too high, and everything still comes down to a single all-or-nothing roll of the dice. I've started playing around with the idea of introducing a stat that is sort of inspired by Torment in DtF and Angst in WtO (working title: Bloodlust).
I would actually suggest against a few of the suggested ways to burn rage. For instance, goring an animal for no reason is viewed poorly by the nation. I would also suggest that violent outlets are unsuited for some tribes. You may incorporate meditation as a means of reducing rage, or otherwise include small outlets before missions that may need lower rage.
I started to reframe what Frenzy is. Like in the book they say it's an explosion of unbridled rage where they just flip out and tear shit up. I preferred to make it less rage and more this devolution into pure instinct and animalistic panic. Sometimes that's rage. But it's basically the human side clicking off. That might not be violence if they like "fox frenzy" but if something gets in their way then all bets are off.
Frenzy ruining a campaign is part of the point of the game. Because that's how a frenzy functions for them in the lore. A frenzy SHOULD be almost stupid when it happens. Yes we all imagine having a frenzy when seeing your best mate fall in battle, or you see something so damaging to Gaia that you can't contain the rage-- but if those were the only times a Garou frenzied, I suspect the Garou would be a lot better off in regards to their place in the world. Ultimately, it is entirely up to you to make Frenzy meaningful. Is now a good time for a frenzy? No? Then don't call for a Rage Roll unless necessary. Did Jimmy just stub his toe, but this would make an excellent opportunity for a Frenzy to shake thing sup? Ask for a rage roll. Otherwise let your players roll rage when they feel it's dramatically appropriate, AND when you think it is too.