Post by The one, the only FEATHER! on Oct 18, 2014 21:41:32 GMT -6
Clan Life
Titles, Duties and Clan Ceremonies
Titles, Duties and Clan Ceremonies
*Thanks to Sandy for this information.*
Clan Leader
This is the cat responsible for leading the Clan. Leaders are charged with organizing the cats, the protection of the territory, and the keeping or order and punishment within that Clan. A leader's name always ends in 'star' (IE: Bluestar, Tallstar, Crookedstar), a word that is never used outside of a leader's name.
To assist them with their duties, they select a Deputy.
Leaders make announcements before the Clan and preform the ceremonies that name cats apprentices, warriors, then elders. To make announcements a leader must first call the clan below are the words that each clan leader must make to call a meeting.
Calling A Clan Meeting
ThunderClan:
Leader: Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Frigid Stone for a Clan meeting!
RiverClan
Leader: Let all cats old enough to swim the river join here beneath the Broken Stump for a Clan meeting!
ShadowClan
Leader: Let all cats old enough to hunt at night join here beneath the Mossy Rock for a Clan meeting!
WindClan
Leader: Let all cats old enough to run the grey moors join here beneath the Eminent Crag for a Clan meeting!
SkyClan
Leader: Let all cats old enough to climb the oak trees join here beneath the Twisted Tree for a Clan meeting!
The Announcements A Leader makes
APPRENTICE NAME
Leader: I call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this kit. He/she would like to become a warrior of (clan), but must first become an apprentice. (kit name), from this day forth, until you have earned your warrior name, you will be known as (apprentice name). (warrior to be mentor), you will train (apprentice name). I hope that your (trait) and (trait) will pass through you to your new apprentice.
WARRIOR NAME
Leader: I call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. He/she has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him/her to you as a warrior in his/her turn. (apprentice name) do you promise to follow the warrior code and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?
Apprentice: I do.
Leader: Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. (apprentice name), from this day forth you will be known as (warrior name). (clan) welcomes you as a full warrior.
NAME CHANGE
Leader: Spirits of StarClan, you know every cat by name. I ask you now to take away the name from the cat you see before you, for it no longer stands for what he/she is. By my authority as Clan leader, and with the approval of our warrior ancestors, I give this cat a new name. From this moment she/he will be known as (new name).
DYING APPRENTICE
Only for an apprentice who deserves the warrior name before he/she dies.
Leader: I ask my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. He/she has learned the warrior code and has given up his/her life in the service of his/her Clan. Let StarClan receive him/her as a warrior. He/she will be known as (warrior name).
WARRIOR TO ELDER
Leader: (warrior), you say that the time has come for you to join the elders. Are you sure this is what you want?
Warrior: I am.
Leader: Then you will rely on apprentices and younger warriors to bring you fresh-kill, and you are no longer able to go on patrol. We wish you many moons of peace.
Nine lives
Each leader is granted nine lives by StarClan. As soon as possible following the death and burial of the previous leader they travel to a place of religious significance (such as the Moonstone or Moonpool) and commune with StarClan. While sharing tongues with StarClan the new leader is given their new name and the nine lives.
In cases in which the Clan's previous leader is still living (such as Brokentail when Nightstar inherited his former post) the new leader will not be granted nine lives as long as StarClan still recognizes the previous leader.
Due to these extra lives every time a leader is slain, StarClan heals the wound and returns them to life. In some cases (such as Tigerstar's) StarClan is unable to heal a particularly grievous wound and will collect more than one life to restore a leader to life.
Leaders are almost always former deputies, though there are exception cases (Nightstar, Tigerstar) in which a non-deputy inherits the position from a fallen leader. Below is the ritual for a deputy to become a leader from starclan.Receiving Leader Name
StarClan Cat 1: Welcome, (name of warrior//deputy to be leader). Are you ready to receive your nine lives?
Warrior: Yes, I'm ready.
StarClan Cats 1-9: With this life I give you (trait). Use it well to (something it can be used for to benefit the Clan or cats around him/her).
The Deputy
A deputy is the Clan cat who is second in command to the leader. In the event that the leader should retire, die, or for other reasons not be able to do his or her job, the deputy takes his or her place.
In the event that a deputy dies or retires, the leader of his or her Clan must decide on a new deputy before moonhigh, and also must state the name of the new deputy before the body of the old deputy so the spirit of the old deputy will hear and approve the leader's choice. On top of all this the deputy is in charge of patrol organization. He or she will arrange cats in hunting and border patrols.
*A cat must not become deputy unless he or she has mentored at least one apprentice.*
The Medicine Cat
The Medicine Cat serves the Clan as both their spiritual leader as as the healer, making them akin to the idea of a 'Medicine Doctor' in a tribal society. In addition to their responsibilities to their Clan, they have responsibility to one another and StarClan. They carry out their responsibilities to StarClan once every quarter moon, meeting together to discuss matters privately and share dreams with StarClan.
As a Healer, they gather herbs and dispense them as an apothecary would. They handle diagnosis and treatment of both illness and injury for all the cats in the Clan.
In their role as spiritual leader, they teach the code, interpret omen and prophecy, and generally serve the Clan as a conduit between the earthly cats and their ghostly counterparts.
Receiving Medicine Cat Name
Medicine Cat: I, (medicine cat), medicine cat of (clan), call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. She/he has trained hard to learn the ways of a medicine cat, and with your help she/he will serve her/his Clan for many moons. (apprentice to receive name), do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan, and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?
Apprentice: I do.
Medicine Cat: Then by the power of StarClan I give you your true name as a medicine cat. (apprentice name) from this moment on you shall be known as (warrior name). StarClan honors your (virtue) and (virtue). May you use them to serve your Clan for endless moons.
Elders
An elder is a Clan cat that has served his or her Clan faithfully, but now has retired. An elder is usually an elderly cat, but sometimes a cat must retire early due to reasons beyond their control (IE: A crippling wound, early loss of hearing....etc). Elders do not have to catch their own food, nor do hunting patrols or fight (except to defend their dens in the case of invaders).
Apprentices must catch and take food to the elders, and may not eat before they are fed. Elders share a den all to themselves, and have no chores that they must do. Apprentices also must bring them fresh bedding, and if they are stiff or sick, or is not able to get water for other reasons, then an apprentice must bring them moss soaked in water. One of the most infamous chores is when an elder has ticks, mouse bile must be applied to knock it off.
Usually if circumstances force a cat into retirement early they will receive a new name in order to better suit their current state. Elders are often described as grumpy. Sometimes, elders will tell stories about the Clans' history to apprentices while they are doing chores.
Warriors to Elders-
If you want your warrior to become an elder you must state to the leader or site staff why the cat is now an elder i.e. old age or injury
If you want to change the cats name when they become an elder make sure to let the clan leader know
To become an Elder you MUST post in the Warriors to Elders thread in each clan, else your cat will not be judged as an elder within the clan
Warriors
Warriors are cats who have been trained in the arts of fighting and hunting in addition to the ways of the warriors code. They make up the bulk of the clan and are charged with the responsibility to feed and protect those cats who are elderly or otherwise unable to spend the required time out of camp.
Warriors are generally over 12 moons of age, and most have served 6 moons of Apprenticeship to an older, experienced warrior. Warriors provide defense and security to their clans by doing border patrols, marking borders, evicting trespassers, standing watch over the camp and raising the alarm if invaded. They protect the camp in the event of attack. They can also perform preemptive attacks against other Clans, either to eliminate a specific threat or to carry out another objective defined by the Clan Leader. Warriors battle for territory or other clan rivalries.
Warriors provide most of the food for the clan by going on hunting patrols.
Queens
A queen is a warrior she-cat that is expecting or has recently given birth to a litter of kits. Queens reside in the nursery one to two moons before giving birth and begin to have their food delivered to them by their Clanmates as they become less mobile. This continues for a few moons while they are nursing their kits to ensure proper care and education.
The queens remain in the nursery until their kit(s) are named apprentices, typically around six moons. Sometimes - although it is very rare - a queen leaves the nursery before her kit(s) become apprentices, especially if they are unable to provide milk for them. A queen may request to stay in the nursery after their kit(s) are apprenticed if they are older she cats. When a queen is unable to produce enough milk to feed her kits, another queen who has plenty of milk to spare will help her nurse until the kits are ready for fresh-kill. Many queens will also feed kits from outside of the Clan.
Though known to be overly-protective of kits, queens usually are compassionate and kind, and in many cases they have been known to convince their mates or Clan leaders to take in cats in need of help.
Apprentices
An apprentice goes to train with their mentor whenever the mentor tells them to. Apprentices also can go on hunting and border patrols with other cats of their Clan. Apprentices cannot eat unless they have special permission, or the elders have already eaten. Apprentices do chores for the Clan, too, such as changing the elders bedding when need be.
Apprentices cannot leave the camp without their mentor's permission. If an apprentice breaks a rule, they usually have to go through the elders pelts for ticks, and if the find any, they then rub foul smelling mouse bile on the ticks, making them drop off. After the apprentice has completed his or her training, usually by the time they are twelve moons old, they go through their Warrior Ceremony, and become a full fledged warrior.
The Medicine Cat also can have an apprentice to take over his or her duties once they have died or retired. They learn about herbs and travel to the Moonpool to learn to speak with and interpret signs and words from StarClan until their ceremony that the Medicine Cat will perform to make them a full fledged Medicine Cat.
Apprentices to Warriors-
When you want your apprentice to become a warrior make sure you have at least one training thread with that apprentice and have made the final assessment threads as all apprentices must do to become a warrior. else they will not be able to become a warrior
The apprentice must be the right age to become a warrior, DO NOT make an under age apprentice a warrior (unless it is a confirmed plot by site staff)
You MUST make your cat a warrior via the Apprentices to Warriors thread in each clan else they will not be judged a warrior within the clan
Mentors/Apprentices-
When being assigned a mentor or an apprentice the people who RP each cat MUST not be the same person.
They must have at least one training thread created and their final assessment threads, else the apprentice will not be able to become a warrior
Mentors must of been a warrior for at least a moon before they can receive an apprentice
If either a mentor or an apprentice falls inactive contact either the clan leader or a member of staff to get re-assigned a new mentor or apprentice
Find you cat an apprentice or mentor via the kits to apprentice thread, DO NOT seek one via another route
Kits
A kit is the term for a cat before it turns six moons old. A kit is not allowed out of the nursery for a while, until it's mother (queen) feels the time is right. After it leaves the nursery, it can go around the camp, though it is never far from its mother. A kit cannot leave the Clan camp, and it does not have to catch its own food.
Kits are usually playful, trying to get the Clan warriors to play with it. Most of them are too young to fully understand the Clan laws, or The Warrior Code, but if they break a rule, they are usually forgiven and sometimes very lightly scolded depending on the severity of the rule or law broken.
