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.