- 13
- #1
(soon to be filled in with a map and layout of the colony)
- 951
- #2
Camp: The camp is positioned to one side of a massive abandoned Twoleg garden. An overgrown willow tree dips down and shades about a quarter of the garden, its branches sweeping against the ground. Beneath the willow tree, the branches are thick and overlapping, reaching deep underground for the massive and old tree. Dens are dug out beneath these roots, with tunnels and deeper dens for things like nurseries, of which they have had multiple in the past. Cats can either share dens or have their own den entirely. The colony has a medicine cat, of sorts, typically with several other cats working under them. As such, they do have a den that they store many of their herbs and poultices in. It is based beneath a stump of a tree just inside of the willows sweeping branches, where another tree once grew, before being cut down by the Twolegs who lived there before.
Territory Features: The garden is overgrown with bushes along the edges of a crumbling stone wall, and the rest if filled with flowers. Several flower beds have merged into one massive flower field since the Twolegs abandoned it. There are small tracks through the fields from the cats moving back and forth between them. A small creek runs through one side of the garden, allowing the cats a cool and refreshing drink whenever they want without having to leave the garden.
Primary Prey Types: Mice, rabbits and lizards, with a sprinkling of insects where wanted. Insects are primarily hard shelled chitinous things such as cockroaches, mealworms, grasshoppers, crickets and beetles. Bugs are not, and should not be, a primary staple of their diet due to the indigestion it can cause from too much. However, they do like to snack on them occasionally because the garden is full of them.
Primary Hunting Types and Techniques: Heavy on stealth, since their prey is very quick and easy to startle. Silent but swift paws. Also, herding. The cats will fan out in a circle around their prey, with one or two cats going after it, and pushing it back and forth until it jumps straight into an unexpected cat's claws.
Primary Predators: Foxes. They prey on the animals that are attracted to the flowers and berries, but won't hesitate to take an unsuspecting kit. Rarely do they attack adults, but it has happened.
Attitude: They were very much a "stick to their own" kind of group until the newest leader. With his urging, they are opening up more, though a majority are likely still hesitant. They have helped cats in the past, but they won't go out of their way to do it, as they also generally don't leave the massive garden and it's protective walls.
Practices: As a whole, the clan gardens. Literally. They feed the flowers and tend to them with reverence. The flowers surrounding them are seen as the lifeblood of the colony, and to have flowers wilt is a horrible omen. Aside from the change of seasons. If a bush seems particularly wilty, they will go out of their way to ensure it is watered and fed properly. They even use their own scat to make a manure to use on the flowers. In secret, however, the leader and the head of each role in the colony will make regular sacrifices. Every new moon under the new leader, which is far less than the old leaders would do, the small group of inner circle cats will look for a new outsider to use. They will ambush them and kill them, before bringing them back to their colony flower beds and bury them. This ritual is believed to increase fertility of the soil and cats alike, as it is bringing in new lifeblood to the colony.
Beliefs: The colony believes that everyone is birthed from the earth, and as such, returns to it after death. They bury their dead beneath the flower beds, so their body may nourish and enrich the soil. The flowers then attract bugs, which attracts prey, which in turn feeds the colony. The flowers are held in the highest regard because of this, and it is believed that their dead reside within them, watching over the colony forever.
View on Others: Typically, they are not very friendly towards outsiders. However, with the newest leader, their views are starting to change. The newest leader believes that their colony is dwindling and needs to branch out to bring new lifeblood into the colony. (He believes the sacrifices aren't doing enough to help enrich his colony, so he has taken it upon himself to fix it, instead of relying on the old rituals entirely). As such, the colony is still very wary of outsiders, but braver cats are looking outside of the colony for mates. A cat wishing to join on their own is scrutinized heavily, but one who is wishing to join alongside a colony member isn't as heavily guarded.
Strengths: Teamwork: The colony is used to working as a whole in regards to everything. As such, they are similar to lions (though they don't know this) when it comes to pretty much everything. They work as a group to take down prey, since a majority of their pray is really fast and quick to startle, corralling it into another cats paws for the kill.
Weaknesses: Closed off: their colony has been closed off to the outside world for a long time, as previous leaders practically outlawed the colony cats from interacting with outside cats. They had everything they needed in the garden, why go anywhere else? This also helped when it came to sacrifices, as cats couldn't build bonds with those outside the colony.
Territory Features: The garden is overgrown with bushes along the edges of a crumbling stone wall, and the rest if filled with flowers. Several flower beds have merged into one massive flower field since the Twolegs abandoned it. There are small tracks through the fields from the cats moving back and forth between them. A small creek runs through one side of the garden, allowing the cats a cool and refreshing drink whenever they want without having to leave the garden.
Primary Prey Types: Mice, rabbits and lizards, with a sprinkling of insects where wanted. Insects are primarily hard shelled chitinous things such as cockroaches, mealworms, grasshoppers, crickets and beetles. Bugs are not, and should not be, a primary staple of their diet due to the indigestion it can cause from too much. However, they do like to snack on them occasionally because the garden is full of them.
Primary Hunting Types and Techniques: Heavy on stealth, since their prey is very quick and easy to startle. Silent but swift paws. Also, herding. The cats will fan out in a circle around their prey, with one or two cats going after it, and pushing it back and forth until it jumps straight into an unexpected cat's claws.
Primary Predators: Foxes. They prey on the animals that are attracted to the flowers and berries, but won't hesitate to take an unsuspecting kit. Rarely do they attack adults, but it has happened.
Attitude: They were very much a "stick to their own" kind of group until the newest leader. With his urging, they are opening up more, though a majority are likely still hesitant. They have helped cats in the past, but they won't go out of their way to do it, as they also generally don't leave the massive garden and it's protective walls.
Practices: As a whole, the clan gardens. Literally. They feed the flowers and tend to them with reverence. The flowers surrounding them are seen as the lifeblood of the colony, and to have flowers wilt is a horrible omen. Aside from the change of seasons. If a bush seems particularly wilty, they will go out of their way to ensure it is watered and fed properly. They even use their own scat to make a manure to use on the flowers. In secret, however, the leader and the head of each role in the colony will make regular sacrifices. Every new moon under the new leader, which is far less than the old leaders would do, the small group of inner circle cats will look for a new outsider to use. They will ambush them and kill them, before bringing them back to their colony flower beds and bury them. This ritual is believed to increase fertility of the soil and cats alike, as it is bringing in new lifeblood to the colony.
Beliefs: The colony believes that everyone is birthed from the earth, and as such, returns to it after death. They bury their dead beneath the flower beds, so their body may nourish and enrich the soil. The flowers then attract bugs, which attracts prey, which in turn feeds the colony. The flowers are held in the highest regard because of this, and it is believed that their dead reside within them, watching over the colony forever.
View on Others: Typically, they are not very friendly towards outsiders. However, with the newest leader, their views are starting to change. The newest leader believes that their colony is dwindling and needs to branch out to bring new lifeblood into the colony. (He believes the sacrifices aren't doing enough to help enrich his colony, so he has taken it upon himself to fix it, instead of relying on the old rituals entirely). As such, the colony is still very wary of outsiders, but braver cats are looking outside of the colony for mates. A cat wishing to join on their own is scrutinized heavily, but one who is wishing to join alongside a colony member isn't as heavily guarded.
Strengths: Teamwork: The colony is used to working as a whole in regards to everything. As such, they are similar to lions (though they don't know this) when it comes to pretty much everything. They work as a group to take down prey, since a majority of their pray is really fast and quick to startle, corralling it into another cats paws for the kill.
Weaknesses: Closed off: their colony has been closed off to the outside world for a long time, as previous leaders practically outlawed the colony cats from interacting with outside cats. They had everything they needed in the garden, why go anywhere else? This also helped when it came to sacrifices, as cats couldn't build bonds with those outside the colony.
- 266
- #3
Roles
There are various roles within the colony. The head of each role is the one who doles out duties to the others beneath them. Typically, a cat can only have one role within the colony. Very, very rarely has an exception ever been made. The head roles are in an inner circle with the leader, and all know about the sacrifices.
Leader: Straight forward, this is the cat who leads the clan.
Caretakers: These are the cats that specifically tend to the flowers within the colony's grounds. A majority of the time, they are elders who are not quite fit for other roles within the colony. However, if a cat chooses specifically to help tend to the flowers, they can also fit into this role.
Nurses: Nurses are those who tend to the younger cats in the colony. When the colony was big, there were many nurses to help with the constant flow of young kits. With dwindling numbers, there are considerably less, but it is still an important role. Nurses allow queens to return to their full duties once the kittens are too old for milk, but are still too young for much training.
Hunters: Cats who specialize in group hunting. One of the largest groups of cats, these cats will go out in groups of four or more to hunt. They take turns flushing prey into each others claws, and will bring back big hauls together.
Farmers: The cats who tend to the herbs and berries used for poultices. They double as what the clans would call Medicine Cats because of this duty.
There are various roles within the colony. The head of each role is the one who doles out duties to the others beneath them. Typically, a cat can only have one role within the colony. Very, very rarely has an exception ever been made. The head roles are in an inner circle with the leader, and all know about the sacrifices.
Leader: Straight forward, this is the cat who leads the clan.
Caretakers: These are the cats that specifically tend to the flowers within the colony's grounds. A majority of the time, they are elders who are not quite fit for other roles within the colony. However, if a cat chooses specifically to help tend to the flowers, they can also fit into this role.
Nurses: Nurses are those who tend to the younger cats in the colony. When the colony was big, there were many nurses to help with the constant flow of young kits. With dwindling numbers, there are considerably less, but it is still an important role. Nurses allow queens to return to their full duties once the kittens are too old for milk, but are still too young for much training.
Hunters: Cats who specialize in group hunting. One of the largest groups of cats, these cats will go out in groups of four or more to hunt. They take turns flushing prey into each others claws, and will bring back big hauls together.
Farmers: The cats who tend to the herbs and berries used for poultices. They double as what the clans would call Medicine Cats because of this duty.