The Warrior Code

[Alpha : ♡ Senior Year ♡]

The Warrior Code is as follows:

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1. Defend your Clan, even with your life. You may have friendships with cats from other Clans, but your loyalty must remain to your Clan, as one day you may meet them in battle.

2. Do not hunt or trespass on another Clan's territory.

3. Elders, queens, and kits must be fed before apprentices and warriors. Unless they have permission, apprentices may not eat until they have hunted to feed the elders. If any warrior or apprentice is sick or injured, they may eat while the elders, queens, and kits are eating.

4. Prey is killed only to be eaten. Give thanks to MoonClan for its life.

5. A kit must be at least six moons old to become an apprentice.

6. Newly appointed warriors will keep a silent vigil for one night after receiving their warrior name.

7. A cat cannot be made deputy without having mentored at least one apprentice.

8. The deputy will become Clan leader when the leader dies, retires or is exiled.

9. After the death or retirement of the deputy, the new deputy must be chosen before moonhigh.

10. A Gathering of all four Clans is held at the full moon during a truce that lasts for the night. There shall be no fighting among Clans at this time.

11. Boundaries must be checked and marked daily. Challenge all trespassing cats.

12. No warrior can neglect a kit in pain or danger, even if the kit is from a different Clan.

13. The word of the Clan leader is the warrior code.

14. An honorable warrior does not need to kill other cats to win their battles, unless they are outside the warrior code or if it is necessary for self-defense.

15. A warrior rejects the soft life of a kittypet.

16. Each Clan has the right to be proud and independent, but in times of trouble they must forget their boundaries and fight side by side to protect the four. Each Clan must help the others so that no Clan will fall.

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Warrior Code exceptions:

-Cats on their way to the Moonstone or Moonpool are allowed to cross other Clans' territories to get to their destination

-Cats may travel on other Clans' grounds as long as they are going to go to a Gathering.

-Cats may travel on other Clan territories if they have something to report or ask for help.

-The code is flexible about leadership challenges. Cats may challenge a weak or cruel leader if their Clan is in danger, and if their leadership threatens the Clan, the code expects a warrior to challenge their leader.

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Additional Rules:

These rules are not specifically stated in the warrior code, but they are followed by all clans nonetheless.

-Kits must stay in camp until they are apprenticed, and are not allowed to hunt.

-The safety of the Clan is more important than the safety of one cat

-Clans must not unite together to drive out another Clan

-Clans must not force another Clan to share territory

-Enemy patrols must not attack cats if they are on a mission all five Clans agree on

-Cats cannot eat when going to the Moon Hollow to speak with MoonClan.

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To help you really get into your cat roles, here are some terms they use in their world that you can use in rp:

Crow-food: rotting food

Fox dung: an insult; stronger offense than mouse-brain

Fresh-kill: recently killed prey

Gatherings: a meeting that the Clans hold in peace at every full moon

Greencough: severe chest infection, which can be fatal in elders and young kits

Greenleaf: summer

Greenleaf Twolegplace: a place where humans visit only in the summer (a campsite, resort, etc.)

Halfbridge: a dock

Horseplace: fields and stables near the lake where half-tamed cats live

Housefolk: a house cat's word for its humans

Kittypet: a house cat

Leaf-bare: winter

Leaf-fall: fall/autumn

Loner:cat that lives peacefully on its own in one place but doesn't defend its territory

Monster: usually refers to human machines such as cars and bulldozers

Moonhigh: the time of night when the moon is at its highest--often midnight

Mouse-brained: not very smart

Mouse dung: an insult; stronger than mouse-brain, but less offensive than fox dung

Newleaf: spring

Nofurs: another word for humans

One moon: one month (half-moon = two weeks, quarter-moon = one week)

Rogue: a potentially hostile cat who lives outside the Clans and never spends too long in one place

Sharing tongues: term used to describe cats grooming each other

Silverpelt: the Milky Way

Sunhigh: noon

Thunderpath: a road

Tree-eater: bulldozer

Twoleg nest: a human house

Twolegplace: a human town

Twolegs: the Clans' word for humans

Upwalkers: another word for humans

Whitecough: mild chest infection