by Erin Hunter
Ask the players what their cats are going to do about the situation. How will they go about trying to find the missing apprentices? Likely strategies include trying to follow the young cats’ trail (either by sight or scent), trying to hear faraway sounds that might hint at where they’ve gone, or simply sitting down and using the cats’ knowledge about the apprentices to puzzle out what could have happened. These activities can be represented by See, Smell, Listen, and Ponder Checks, but other possibilities exist, too. If a player’s plan seems reasonable and likely to help, figure out which Skill or Knack is appropriate, and allow the player to use that.
Since what happened to the apprentices was sudden and unplanned, getting clues is difficult. Any cat that got a total of 12 or higher on the Checks above succeeds in that action and gets a bit of an idea. However, it will take the group as a whole to puzzle this out. Add up the number of successes the players’ cats got as a group.
What Happens Next: If the players’ cats as a group got five or more successes, continue with 18.
If the total number of successes for the group was four or fewer, continue with 15.
7. Finding Your Foe
Read Aloud: “Some will say that a warrior’s most important assets are their sharp claws. But if you cannot find and follow your enemy, it doesn’t matter how sharp your claws are—you’ll never get close enough to use them.”
Narrator Tips: In this section, the players’ cats are teaching their new apprentices how to find, follow, and eventually catch a foe that is sneaking through the woods. Stalking an enemy is similar to hunting for freshkill, but other cats and wild predators are much more clever and dangerous than prey like rabbits and voles, and tracking them is a very complex task. On the other hand, clever foes can often be convinced to leave the territory simply by letting them know that their movements are being followed—a smart creature avoids unnecessary combat.
Begin by letting the apprentices refresh their chips, if they need to. Then ask the players what advice their cats would give to the apprentices. What Skills are most important when it comes to stalking? What Knacks can a cat learn to make this process easier? Are there any tricks that are useful when trying to chase down a clever foe? Lead this as a discussion among the players to get them to roleplay the things their cats might say.
When the instructional part is over, it is time for the players to take control of the apprentices again and have them try to stalk a pretend foe. In this case, it will be one of the players’ cats, though that cat will not use all of his or her sneakiness—these are just apprentices, after all. To succeed at this test, an apprentice must try all three of the following Checks and be successful at two of them: a Listen Check, a Smell Check, and a Sneak Check. These Checks must have a total of 5 or higher to succeed.
In most cases, even an apprentice that fails the overall test will succeed on at least one of the Checks. However, if any of the apprentices fail at all of the Checks in the test, it counts as a complete failure.
What Happens Next: If all of the apprentices succeed at this test, continue with 9.
If some apprentices fail but none have a complete failure, continue with 12.
If any of the apprentices had a complete failure, continue with 3.
8. Learning the Land
Read Aloud: “At first it seems like following a marked border is easy, but after a while all the trees begin to look alike and there are many places where one scent overwhelms another. Despite your best efforts, you have wandered over the border into another Clan’s territory.”
Narrator Tips: The apprentices have failed at their attempt to patrol a border. This counts as one failure for determining the next step of the adventure (as described in Scene 5).
Ask the players to discuss what they think went wrong. Why did the apprentices fail? What could they do differently to get a better result next time? What advice would their cats offer to the apprentices? Sometimes the best way to learn something is to try and fail, then try again. The apprentices have certainly learned something from this experience and now the players can allow them to make use of the advice that the players’ cats are giving them.
The Narrator should create a bonus pool of Ability Chips. This pool should consist of one chip for each of the players’ regular cat characters, and the chips should represent the Abilities in which the player’s regular cats have the highest scores. If a cat’s highest Ability score is Strength, then a Strength Chip is added to the pool. (If this is the second time the adventure has come to this scene, double the number of chips in the bonus pool.)
As the apprentices try again to patrol the border, they may use the bonus pool of Ability Chips to augment their efforts. Any apprentice may take a Chip from the bonus pool, but these Chips never refresh. Also, once the apprentices succeed in the border patrol test, this bonus pool may no longer be used—it is only useful for the test in Scene 5 and the action in Scene 2.
What Happens Next: The apprentices may now try to patrol the border again, but this time with the advantage of the Ability Chip bonus pool. Return to 5.
9. Gotcha!
Read Aloud: “It hardly seemed fair—apprentices trying to track down fully trained warriors—but with solid effort and a bit of luck, you succeeded. Well done!”
Narrator Tips: The apprentices have completed the stalking test, and they are to be congratulated. Since the players are taking the roles of the apprentices and may feel uncomfortable using the voices of their regular cat characters to basically praise themselves, it is important for the Narrator to do so. These apprentices have just proven that even when in a confrontation with a well-trained opponent, they have the ability to think, adapt, and find a path to success. Make sure that the moment is properly captured.
Once that’s done, it is up to the players’ regular cat characters to decide where to take their apprentices next—to practice border patrol skills or to practice hunting for freshkill. (Note that the apprentices can only go to each test section once.)
What Happens Next: If the players’ cats want to continue with border patrol, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 5.
If the players’ cats want to continue with hunting practice, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 10.
10. Finding Food
Read Aloud: “Hunting is not the most difficult task a warrior must perform, but it is one of the most important. The Clan counts on the warriors to bring back enough food to feed all of its members. Since the warriors eat last, there is always an incentive to make sure every empty belly has something to fill it.”
Narrator Tips: In this section, the players’ cats are teaching their new apprentices how to hunt, stalking small prey and catching it so that the Clan will have enough freshkill come day’s end. As they become more proficient, the apprentices will learn that different types of prey require different strategies, but for now they must be introduced to the basics of this important activity. Stalking prey is similar to stalking an enemy, and oftentimes easier. But it must be combined with rougher physical skills of pouncing or biting to bring the prey to ground. Altogether, the combination is trickier to master than most new apprentices realize.
Begin by letting the apprentices refresh their chips, if they need to. Then ask the players what advice their cats would give to the apprentices. What Abilities and Skills are most important for a hunt? What Knacks do the best hunters use? Is it better to try to kill a single larger bit of prey (like a rabbit) or to gather a large collection of smaller prey (like voles)? Lead this as a discussion among the players to get them to roleplay the things their cats might say.
When the instructional part is over, it is time for the players to take control of the apprentices again and have them try hunting on their own. Have each apprentice decide whether she or he is going to try to hunt rabbits or voles. Then let them try.
Hunting a rabbit
requires a Sneak Check with a total of 5, a Pounce Check with a total of 6, and a Bite Check with a total of 5. If any of these Checks fails, the rabbit gets away. However, if all the Checks succeed, the rabbit is now freshkill that the apprentice can bring back at the end of the day.
Hunting a vole requires a Sneak Check with a total of 3, a Pounce Check with a total of 4, and a Bite Check with a total of 1. If any of these Checks fails, the vole gets away. However, if all the Checks succeed, the vole is now freshkill that the apprentice can bring back at the end of the day.
Each rabbit that the apprentices bring down can feed three cats. Each vole can feed one cat. The Narrator should keep a running tally of how many cats can be fed with what the apprentices have collected. In order to succeed at this test, the cats must gather enough freshkill to feed a number of cats equal to three times the number of players (not including the Narrator). So in a group of four players and a Narrator, the apprentices would have to gather enough freshkill to feed twelve cats.
What Happens Next: If the apprentices have gathered enough freshkill to succeed at this test, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 6.
If the apprentices have not gathered enough freshkill to succeed at this test, continue with 4.
11. Walking the Line
Read Aloud: “The scents are muddled, the way twisting and ridiculous, but warriors and apprentices patrol this route every day—and now you have, too.”
Narrator Tips: Despite the difficulty of the task, the apprentices have succeeded at border patrol. They are to be congratulated. Since the players are taking the roles of the apprentices and may feel uncomfortable using the voices of their regular cat characters to praise themselves, it is important for the Narrator to do so. These apprentices have just completed a difficult task. Make sure that the moment is properly captured.
Once that’s done, it is up to the players’ regular cat characters to decide where to take their apprentices next—to practice stalking foes through the forest, or to practice hunting for freshkill. (Remember that the group should not repeat a test they have already passed.)
What Happens Next: If the players’ cats want to continue with stalking practice, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 7.
If the players’ cats want to continue with hunting practice, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 10.
12. The Cold Trail
Read Aloud: “Until now, the only sights, scents, and sounds that the apprentices have been exposed to were those in their Clan camp. Out in the woods, there are an endless series of distractions. It’s not surprising, then, that the young cats are having trouble finding and catching a skilled foe.”
Narrator Tips: The apprentices have failed in their attempt to stalk a foe through the woods. Reaching this scene counts as one failure. Keep track of the total number of failures the group amasses while attempting this test.
Ask the players to use the perspective of their regular cat characters to discuss what they think went wrong. Why did the apprentices fail at this action? What could they do differently to get a better result next time? What advice would their cats offer to the apprentices? Sometimes the best way to learn something is to try and fail, then try again. The apprentices have certainly learned something from this experience and now can make good use of the advice that the players’ cats are giving them.
The Narrator should create a bonus pool of Ability Chips. Each player whose apprentice has already succeeded at this test may add one Ability Chip of his or her choosing to the pool.
When the remaining apprentices try again to stalk a foe, they may use the bonus pool of Ability Chips to augment their efforts. Any apprentice may take a Chip from the bonus pool, but these Chips never refresh. Also, once all the apprentices succeed, this bonus pool may no longer be used—it is only useful for the stalking test in Scene 7.
What Happens Next: If the apprentices have amassed a total of four or more failures, continue with 13.
If the apprentices have not yet amassed four failures, return to scene 7 and let them try again. Note, though, that once an individual apprentice succeeds at this test, he or she does not have to perform it again.
13. Flunking Out
Read Aloud: “Not every adventure ends successfully. Sometimes cats make mistakes, and sometimes they hit a patch of bad luck. The important thing for a Clan warrior is what happens next.”
Narrator Tips: There are several reasons why the adventure may end up at this scene, but none of them are good. Either the apprentices failed one of their tests or the mentors lost their apprentices.
There isn’t any crucial need for the apprentices to succeed at these particular tests immediately. And no matter how hard the players’ cats want to work at it and be good mentors, eventually they may have to accept that the lessons are not going to be learned today.
The Clan leaders will thank the players’ cats for their hard work, and congratulate the apprentices for being part of such a grand undertaking. But as sundown approaches, they decide to bring this experiment to an unsuccessful close. Maybe in the future they will try it again.
Alternatively, if the story ended up here because the players’ cats lost their apprentices, tell them that another group of warriors (the ones they met in scene 15) managed to find the missing youngsters and bring them back to safety.
What Happens Next: Although no one did anything particularly wrong, arriving at this scene means that the apprentices did not learn quickly enough for the training experiment to count as a success—the adventure has ended badly. The players’ cats do not get any Experience rewards for this adventure. The players’ cats can, however, play the adventure again, hopefully finding ways to get better performances out of their apprentices.
14. Under the Old Oak Tree
Read Aloud: “The scent of young cats becomes overwhelmed by another, more dangerous smell—the powerful fumes of weasel musk. Dangerous creatures, weasels. If they have the apprentices, there could be real trouble.”
Narrator Tips: The players’ cats have arrived at a burrow that contains a weasel den. Unfortunately, it is the wrong weasel’s den. The missing apprentices are not here, though the players may not realize it at first.
Describe for the players a scene where the scent trail they’ve been following takes them to a burrow entrance that leads into the ground below a large oak tree. There are signs of activity in the area, but only weasel tracks can be seen.
If the players’ cats have not yet had a chance, allow them to make Ponder or Intelligence Checks to see what facts they may know about weasels. (This information can be found in scene 18.)
Have each of the players’ cats make Smell Checks. Anyone whose total is 8 or higher notices that all the scents around this burrow come from a single weasel—this is not a large family’s den. Anyone whose total is 12 or higher notices that there is a complete lack of any scents related to the missing apprentices—not even faint, lingering scents.
The players will have to make a decision about what to do next. If enough of them had very good Smell Checks, they may think that it is very likely that they are following a false trail. Of course, the only way to be one hundred percent certain would be to explore the burrow, but doing that means likely running into the weasel. If the players decide to leave the burrow unexplored skip to the last paragraph of this scene.
Going into the weasel’s den is difficult. The burrow is narrow and winding, and the cats must proceed in single file. Eventually, the lead cat will reach the burrow’s end—a small chamber where the weasel is sleeping. The lead cat must make a Stealth Check with a total of 12 or higher, and all the other cats that are in the burrow must make Stealth Checks with totals of 8 or higher. If any of these Checks fail, the weasel awakens.
The weasel will immediately attack the lead cat using its
claws and its teeth. The weasel has Strength 6, Intelligence 4, and Spirit 5. It also has 5 levels each of Jump, Pounce, and Sneak, and 3 levels each of Bite and Swat. It will fight until it has taken 10 Chips worth of damage. If the players’ cats manage to draw it out into the open, the weasel will give up the fight and run away if it sees that it is being attacked by three or more opponents.
Backing out of the burrow is also slow going. Once a fight begins, only one cat can make it out for every round. In other words, the lead cat must stay underground fighting the weasel for at least as many rounds as there are other cats currently in the burrow. Once there are no more cats behind him in the tunnel, the lead cat can back out the following round.
When the players’ cats decide to start looking elsewhere for the missing apprentices, have each of them make a Scent Check. The goal of this Check is to get a total of 10. If half of the group or more fails that Check, the players’ cats are following another false trail. Otherwise, they manage to pick up the apprentices’ trail again.
What Happens Next: If the players’ cats are following a false trail, continue with 13.
If one or more of the players’ cats were Knocked Out while fighting the weasel, continue with 17.
If the players’ cats pick up the missing apprentices’ trail, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 22.
15. The Wrong Apprentices
Read Aloud: “Your temporary apprentices have been all over this area, so it’s hard to find the most recent scent trail. But suddenly you hear a young cat call out in shocked surprise. Something’s wrong!”
Narrator Tips: The players’ cats have followed the wrong trail. Describe for them an exciting chase along a relatively short trail that ends with them bursting in on another group of warriors training a different group of apprentices. Like the players’ cats, these warriors and apprentices are from a mixed group of Clans. They are engaged in the stalking test (as described in 3), but the apprentices are doing much worse than the players’ apprentices did (if they already played through that section).