Bites...how/when.

[lunarwolf]

Well i just got another idea came to mind well when it's a full moon out does a bit person change that night or next day or next month... and does more bites make a difference like if a person been bit once they change slowly but with a person been bit more then once makes the change faster.. anyway, thoughts.

[Berserker]

Depends on the story. But I would reckon that if you're bitten by a werewolf during the full moon, you turn into a werewolf the next full moon. It it only takes one bite, and more than one bite doesn't speed up or slow down the process.

[Terastas]

An instantaneous shift would be a hard sell, so I think if someone were bitten, say, less than a week before the next full moon, their first shift would be during the next one.

There's two transformations that need to be considered: the shift from man to wolf itself, and the literal transition between being a normal human being to being a full-fledged lycanthrope. When you think about it, the former is a product of the latter; the shift just concerns the outward appearance whereas the actual transition concerns what allows the werewolf's body to shift.

The transformation, I think, would be a lot longer and more subtle, and the first shift would not occur until after lycanthropy has adapted and adapted to the person's body as needed, IE: the next full moon after the transformation. The actual amount of time it takes to shift varies from story to story and should also vary from person to person, but I think the first shift would be the longest because it would be the only one that's involuntary. The thing about shapeshifting is that there's no possible way any of us could even know what it feels like, much less how to force or quell the urge to shift, so presumably no werewolf would know how to control it until they've been through it. Once they learn how to will themselves to shift, the amount of time it takes for them to shift should decrease significantly.

[RedEye]

You could also consider that Lycanthropy is the Physical change that starts the Mental transformation that turns one into a Were-wolf.

A bite (or whatever) on the night of a Full Moon would take most likely a Month to manifest as a Lycanthropic Transformation. Perhaps there is a sort of "Pre-Shift" period when all you know is that some wierd dog-thing bit you, while it takes a certain amount of time for the Viroid/Curse/Short straw situation to cause the cellular changes that result in a first Shift under some full moon.
This could get interesting if it was transmissable physically (as in se-ually) before it first manifested in the shift...sort of a contagious incubation period.
My guess would be that most likely, a bite less than say, ten days before a full moon would result in a shift in the next full moon after the current one, since there is a time factor there.
As in: Noob gets bit five days pre-Moon. Does not shift at full moon. Thinks its okay, and sleeps around; then shifts at the NEXT full moon.
You'd not only have to hide from the peasants, you'd have to hide from your lovers, too...

[Celestialwolf]

IMO: Once the person it bitten, it takes overnight (or at least several hours) for the virus to circulate through the entire body and make the necessary changes. After that, the recently bitten person will be forced to shift the first time. This is for several reasons: 1)To make sure that person knows what they've become, 2)To give them experience in doing it, 3)So the body completes the process of being changed. From there on out, all shifting is voluntary (the moon or anything else doesn't cause a person to shift).

This is why the werewolf who originally bit that person will generally try to stay with them at least until the first, forced shift is complete--to make sure they don't get out of control and to provide emotional support and help them get the basics down.

[Scott Gardener]

From a physiologic standpoint, if you're going with a science rather than metaphysical explanation, then I'd expect a virus to take at bare minimum a week with a good slobbery bite or closer to two weeks with a glancing "I'm not sure if he bit me or if it was just a scratch" bite. My werewolves have a seroconversion turnaround time of 10-14 days. Since mine aren't linked to the full moon, the time frame is pretty standard. One may experience partial shifts a few days before, and then the first full shift, all the way from human to wolf, over the course of an hour or so, and to remain shifted for typically eight to ten hours before shifting back. After that, one starts to learn control, but it takes awhile.

If you're going with strictly magical, then I'd say even instant-shift is conceivable. We're already tossing out conventional assumptions. Imagine getting bitten, wondering what's happening, and then realizing that not only were you just bitten by a werewolf, but now you're becoming one--all at once. Great shock value.

[punxnotdead]

I agree with the majority. I believe that it would take until the next full moon, if the moon did, in fact, have an impact on the werewolf's cycle. This is so, as it takes time for the infection (or whatever pathogen) is consuming the body.
A month seems like plenty of time for the effects to manifest themselves.

[Grey]

Yeah, cause you don't get a cold the very instant you get sneezed on. The were wolf gene's need time to work through the blood stream.

[Noir-Okami]

I think it all depends. My werewolves only produce the virus that's in their saliva when their body is flooded with adrenaline.

[twisted_angel_wolf]

I would have to say that the shift is occurring once the said person is bit. The mixture of the virus is very fast acting within the person's body - almost like venom from a snake. Through the next three days, the said bite victim goes through a period of fevers, nausea (and actual vomiting of blood), shakes, sweating, delirium, psychotic episodes, and self-mutilation.

Five days after the person is bit, the skin pales, the eyes dilate - in which the pupils almost overlap the iris creating a very thin ring. Whatever color the eye was before, it is now augmented and very bright ... brighter than normal. Some victims that have been known to have brown or blue eyes have the other eye turn the opposite color (thus, one blue and one brown).

It is actually on the 7th day when the inner bio-chemical transformation is complete. Whenever the full moon is due, that is when the lunar energy of the moon triggers (and completes) the necessary step of transformation - man to wolf (or wolf-like). It is only the first shift that is not controlled and they are hybrid (wolf/man). After a few more shifts, the human body actually adapts to the physical stresses of shifting and settles into a more true wolf form.