by Erin Hunter
If the cats decide to investigate the rabbit tracks, continue with 5.
If the cats failed for a second time to follow the trail and cannot do any more hunting, tell the players that their cats have lost the scent and cannot find it again—the only option is for them to head home. This is the end of the chapter. Pass the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 12 and to note that the cats failed twice at this task.
3. Looking for Advice
Read Aloud: “It’s easy to skirt the edge of ShadowClan territory—the borders are marked quite clearly. All Clans are protective of their territory, but ShadowClan often seems to be the most firm in that protection. Hopefully one of the other Clan leaders will know how best to deal with this situation.”
Narrator Tips: Help guide the players’ cats to talk about the situation. With the danger so imminent, is it really right to walk away from ShadowClan, even if it is to seek advice? Should the group risk the anger of ShadowClan and bring them the message directly? It’s a difficult question, one with no absolute right answer. But the discussion can be interesting in itself.
After the players have had a chance to talk about the issue, have all the cats make Listen Checks. Anyone whose total is 7 or higher hears a deep, wet “schloomph” sound in the distance. Clearly at least one of the ponds has collapsed. There may be a flash flood headed down the hill right now! What Happens Next: The group has a difficult decision to make. Will they go into ShadowClan territory to help save them from the flash flood or will they continue on their original course?
If the group decides to stay on their original course, continue with 20.
If the group decides to cross the border into ShadowClan territory to try to help, continue with 11.
4. Carried Away
Read Aloud: “You’re tumbling head over tail and rolling downhill in a slosh of water and mud.”
Narrator Tips: One or more of the cats has been caught in the collapse of the pond and the resulting flash flood. Any cats in this predicament immediately take damage that causes them to lose 3 chips. Then they must make a Swim Check to get their heads above the water. If this Check has a total of 7 or higher they succeed, otherwise they lose an additional 2 chips.
Being caught in the flashflood uses a system of rounds just like fighting does (see Chapter Five of the game rules for details). In order to escape the flash flood, a cat needs to be pulled to safety by someone who is not currently in the water. To do that, a cat that is safely on land must make a Swat Check with a total of 5 or higher. Each cat on dry land can only attempt to pull one cat from the water each round. At the end of the first round, the cats who are still in the water must make another Swim Check, as described above; then a new round begins.
This continues for three rounds or until either all of the cats are rescued from the flash flood or knocked out from their ordeal. What Happens Next: If all the cats were rescued from the flash flood, continue with 13.
If any of the cats were knocked out by their ordeal, continue with 7.
5. Rabbit Ears
Read Aloud: “The rabbit’s tracks are not difficult to follow. Hopping through the mud leaves deep imprints. After scampering under some bushes and over a log, the tracks lead you to a small meadow where you don’t just see one rabbit—you see several of them!”
Narrator Tips: The cats have followed their prey to an area where all the local rabbits feed. Many of the rabbits haven’t had a decent meal in days because of the rains, so quite a few are here now, chewing contentedly on grass. There are enough rabbits that each cat can try to catch one on his or her own. The problem is, the ground is still soft and muddy.
Tell the players that the slippery conditions will make it more difficult than usual to sneak up on and catch their prey (don’t tell them the details described below; they only need to know that it will be more difficult in general). Tell them also that it will be easier for them to catch prey in these poor conditions if they hunt in pairs.
Hunting is described in Chapter Five of the game rules, and those basic rules will apply to this scene. However, because of the soggy state of the ground, things will be a little different.
Because all the cats are hunting in the same area, you should have them all hunt at the same time. If one cat attacks a rabbit, all the other rabbits in the area will flee. So you should first have all of the cats make their Sneak Checks, and then have them all make Pounce Checks at the same time.
Cats who are hunting alone must make a Sneak Check with a total of 10 or higher in order to succeed at stalking their prey. Cats who are working in pairs should each make a separate Sneak Check, then add their totals together. If their combined total is 14 or higher, they succeed as a team. For every cat or pair of cats that fails their Sneak Check, they were not sneaky enough to trick the rabbits and you’ll have to increase the difficulty of the Pounce Checks below by +2. So if one cat or team failed, the difficulty for all the cats is increased by +2; if two failed, the increase is +4; and so on.
When all the cats have finished making their Sneak Checks, it is time for them to try to nab their intended prey. Have all the cats make Pounce Checks. The difficulty of this Check is based on the rabbits’ Jump scores. All of the rabbits have a Jump score of 9, but this may be increased if any of the cats fail to be sneaky enough. Cats who are hunting alone have only one chance to catch their rabbit—if they miss, it gets away. Cats that are hunting in pairs may each make a Pounce attempt, so even if one is unlucky, the other may still succeed.
If the cats have successfully caught rabbits, they must Bite in order to finish them. The Bite Check is made against the rabbit’s strength of 3. Multiple cats can bite a single rabbit, so even if a cat failed to catch one of her own, she can still help to bring down another one. If a rabbit takes 4 chips worth of damage, it is killed.
Any rabbit that is still alive after all the cats have made their attacks will try to escape. The cat (or cats) holding it must make Wrestling Checks to keep their grip and can perform another round of Bite attacks. If the Wrestling Check is 5 or higher, the cats are successful. If not, the rabbit escapes and dashes into a nearby burrow before the cats can pounce again.
What Happens Next: If at least one rabbit was caught, continue with 10.
If all of the rabbits got away, continue with 8.
6. Talking to the Shadows
Read Aloud: “Ratscar looks at you suspiciously. ‘What have you got to say that’s so important?’”
Narrator Tips: Remember that any of the players’ cats that belong to ShadowClan get bonuses to some of their Checks (as described in scene 17). Under normal circumstances, that would mean that the ShadowClan patrol cats would automatically believe what the players’ cats said—members of the same Clan trust one another. But the presence of cats from other Clans puts the members of the patrol in a very aggressive frame of mind. The fact that a member of ShadowClan is standing with these other cats instead of his or her Clanmates has clouded the patrolling cats’ judgment and they must be convinced to listen to reason.
Let the players’ cats lead the conversation, giving them sufficient time to explain themselves. The cats of ShadowClan may be suspicious, but clearly something important must be happening if this group so brazenly crossed their border without a full war party.
The scene will center around you improvising Ratscar’s and the other ShadowClan cats’ reactions and responses to what the players’ cats say. It may also involve the players’ cats making Spirit or Intelligence Checks (aided by Orate or Clan Lore) to try to find the right words to make their opponents understand the importance and danger of this moment. Such Checks are opposed by the ShadowClan cats’ Spirit scores (and you can spend their Ability chips in the process if they are feeling particularly stubborn).
If the players’ cats do well, it will make the ShadowClan cats more likely to trust them. If they do poorly, or purposely antagonize the patrol, the ShadowClan cats may decide that fighting is the better opti
on.
After the conversation has gone on a little while, have all the cats (including the ShadowClan patrol) make Listen Checks. Any cat whose total is 7 or higher hears the deep, wet “schloomph” sound of the pools above collapsing. Any player’s cat that hears this knows there is now a flash flood coming down the hill somewhere near here.
What Happens Next: If there is a breakdown of communications and the two sides are ready to begin fighting, continue with 18.
If everyone failed the Listen Check, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 15.
If the cats know that the flash flood is coming, they can only brace themselves and continue to try to warn other members of ShadowClan of the impending danger. This is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 11.
7. Calamity!
Special Note: There is no Read Aloud text for this scene. It is a catchall scene for you to use if the cats’ adventure comes to an unhappy and untimely conclusion. Use the information below to improvise suitable details.
Narrator Tips: Something the cats did has caused the adventure to come to an unhappy end. This may have been the result of poor planning or just bad luck. This scene is about providing a sense of completion (if not success) to the story. Below are notes to help you improvise scenes based on the most likely reasons for the cats ending up here.
Fighting the Fox: If the cats fought the fox and one or more cats were knocked out, the adventure has to conclude. Helping their fallen friend takes so much time that the group misses the opportunity to take part in the other chapters of this story. By the time the players’ cats are able to get back down the hill, they find that a flash flood has swept through ShadowClan territory, injuring many cats and even killing a few. No blame is laid on the group—after all, the flood was not their fault—but let the players know that their cats have a nagging suspicion that they could have helped in some way. Perhaps next time, they will be more careful when going into battle.
Caught in a Flash Flood: The players’ cats may end up here because one or more of them was knocked out by a flash flood. The first flash flood occurs during their hunting trip, and the results are similar to those described above—taking care of the fallen cat keeps the group out of the rest of the adventure. The other possibility is that the cats were caught in the climactic flash flood, in which case they’ve seen the adventure to its conclusion, but the injuries have kept the adventure from being counted as a success.
Fighting with ShadowClan: If two or more of the cats are knocked out in the fight with the ShadowClan warriors, the group is unable to help save any other cats from the flash flood. The flood is still not their fault, but they know that if they’d been able to get past the warriors’ resistance, they could have prevented some of the injuries and death—perhaps all of it.
What Happens Next: Although they tried hard, the cats do not get any Experience rewards for this adventure. The group can, however, play the adventure again, hopefully changing some of their tactics so that they get a better result next time.
8. Empty Bellies
Read Aloud: “Blame it on the mud and muck. Blame it on the growling of your empty stomach. Blame it on bad luck. But whatever you blame it on, the rabbits got away. And, to make matters worse, it’s started raining again.”
Narrator Tips: The cats have failed to capture any rabbits, which means that they are completely failing in their mission. Although they are undoubtedly aware of it, remind the players that StarClan sent them on this mission specifically to get fresh-kill. Certainly, they will want another chance to hunt.
After failing once, the cats may wait along the meadow’s edge until the rabbits return. There will be fewer of them (only half as many as there are players in the game), so the cats will have to team up. That’s a good thing, though, because these rabbits will be even more difficult to catch than the first bunch. If this is the second time the cats have failed to capture any rabbits, then they are through hunting. The rabbits will not return for the rest of the day.
Alternatively, the cats may want to go investigate the other set of tracks they saw when they awoke this morning. Even though those tracks aren’t rabbit tracks, maybe they’ll lead to something interesting.
Finally, the cats may decide to give up. If this is the case, remind them that it will be an embarrassment to go back to their Clanmates without any fresh-kill. But if they’re firm in their desire to give up, don’t try to force them into a different course of action.
What Happens Next: If the cats get another chance to hunt, continue with 5, but make all of the target numbers 2 points higher because the rabbits know there are cats around.
If the cats decide to go investigate the other set of tracks, continue with 14.
If the cats decide to give up and go back down the hill to report their failure, this is the end of the chapter. Pass the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 12.
9. Fox Found
Read Aloud: “Hot on the trail, you burst through a final dense thicket of brush and find yourself face-to-face with a proud, russet-furred fox.”
Narrator Tips: In point of fact, this is not a fox—it’s a vixen (a female fox). As the Narrator you should know her background and motivation. This vixen has recently had a litter of pups and is out hunting so she can feed them. She saw the cats and laid this trail on purpose to lead them away from her den. Her main motivation is to either scare the cats away or to make them think her den is somewhere near here. Once one of those things is accomplished, she will sneak back to her pups to keep them warm and safe.
Of course, the cats do not have any way of knowing that. Here is what they can see and learn.
Rather than running any farther, the fox stands her ground and bares her teeth in a snarl. She seems to be daring the cats to come closer. If the players ask, their cats can learn some information by making the Skill Checks (all of which require a total of 7 or higher to succeed). An Animal Lore Check can tell them that this type of posturing is unusual for a fox—but no one really understands the behavior of foxes, so it’s difficult to draw conclusions. A Smell Check can tell them that this is a female fox (a vixen) and that her fur carries the scent of at least three other foxes, though none of those foxes are in the area. A Ponder Check will tell them that although she has struck an aggressive stance, she doesn’t seem ready to fight to the death—it may be possible to chase her away.
If the cats want to scare the vixen away by Hissing and Arching at her, have them make the appropriate Skill Checks. (Each cat may only perform one Check.) Add the results to get a group total. If this group total is 25 or higher, the vixen hisses back but then sprints into the woods. The cats can try to follow, but it soon becomes clear that she is running away from Clan territory as fast as she can and that it would likely take the cats hours to catch up with her.
If the group total is 23 or less, the cats have two choices—attack the vixen and hope to drive her off, or simply walk away and leave her alone.
If they decide to attack, their fighting will follow the standard rules (see Chapter Five of the game rules). The vixen has Ability scores of Strength 7, Intelligence 9, Spirit 11. Her Skills are Bite +4, Jump +4, Sneak +6. And she has the following Knacks: Alertness, Hide, and Dodge. She has the Ability chips and can spend them during battle just the way the players’ cats can. You may want to write down the vixen’s game stats on a piece of paper for easy reference during the fight.
The vixen will fight until she has taken 7 chips worth of damage. At that point she will run away as described above. It is possible, though not likely, that she will hurt the cats so badly that they must run away. If this happens, the vixen will let out one final hiss and then stalk proudly into the woods (and then, once she is out of sight of the cats, she will quickly dash off to the safety of her den).
When the encounter with the vixen is over, the cats have a few
choices. They can go back and hunt for rabbits (unless that action is no longer an option for them, as described in scene 8) or they can take what fresh-kill they’ve gathered and head for home.
What Happens Next: If one or more of the cats was knocked out in the fight with the vixen, continue with 7.
If the cats decide to go hunting for rabbits, continue with 5.
If the cats decide to head back down the hill toward home, this is the end of the chapter. Pass the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 12.
10. Fresh-kill!
Read Aloud: “You’re a Clan cat, and that means that even though the hunt is successful, you can’t eat until you’ve brought back food for the Clan. Still, the taste of the rabbit is sweet on your tongue and you know that, plump as it is, several cats will share this meal.”
Narrator Tips: The cats have succeeded in getting some fresh-kill, so they have been at least partially successful in their mission. On the trip home, the most they will be able to carry is one rabbit each. Until they have that many rabbits, this is not a completely successful hunt and they cannot eat anything (you may want to remind them that they are feeling hungry). The question is: What do they want to do next?
The cats may want to hunt again, to get more food for the Clans—plus a little extra for themselves. On the other hand, they may want to take what they’ve got back to the Clan camps quickly. There’s also a chance that, the hunt having been successful, they’ll want to investigate the other set of tracks they saw when they woke up this morning.
Your job is simply to make sure that the players are aware of those choices. Whatever choice they make is up to them.
What Happens Next: If the players decide they want to hunt some more, they only have to wait a short while and rabbits will return to this meadow. Let them stalk and hunt again using the details in 5.
If the players decide to investigate the other set of tracks, continue with 14.
