Clan Life
Common Attributes
- Large pupils
- Small bodies
- Dark fur colours
- Long, highly sensitive whiskers
- Varying degrees of light sensitivity
- A fondness for flowers and their scents
- Short fur (particularly fine at paws and lower legs)
Clan strengths: Speed & Night Vision
Overview
Mudclan is best known as the clan of the night; its cats viewed by all as masters of darkness. Their territory is perhaps the most treacherous of them all, for it is riddled with a myriad of ever changing dangers and often cloaked in such gloom that it is impossible for a Daylighter to see what lies at their paws. The vegetation in their part of the valley is so thick that full sunlight can only be accessed in a few scant parts of their home, and as a consequence they have been forced to adapt to a shadowy lifestyle.
On the surface these adaptations are amongst the most subtle in the Valley, for they appear to be little more than a lengthening of whiskers, a darkening of pelts and a shortening of fur. However, when a Mudclan cat is seen alongside an outsider it swiftly becomes clear that the changes are more extreme than they appear. The most obvious difference between a Mudclanner and other Valley cats lies in their size; Mudclan felines are smaller, their adult’s head-and-shoulders shorter than other clan cats, and their apprentices typically bearing the sizing’s of kits half their age. Moreover, they are the only Valley Cats that appear to be totally unaffected by darkness, for many of their number have developed acute night vision.
These traits are ideal for the conditions under which they live, but they come with inbuilt disadvantages. For one thing, a Mudclan warrior can rarely hope to match their enemies in brute strength, and will typically find themselves in serious trouble should they be pinned by an outsider. This has forced them to abandon tactics that rely on power, and led to the development of a fighting style that focuses on speed and use of the local gloom; they must be as shadows: impossible to touch, but always in the right place to
strike.
To most Valley Cats, a Mudclanner’s small size is their only issue, but in Mudclan itself every cat – including the kits – are well aware that it is the least of their problems. The truth is that their reputation as masters of the night is born not from choice but
necessity, for the development of their night vision has coincided with an increasing incidence of light sensitivity. For the ‘lucky’ Mudclan cats – those seen at the borders during the day – this is a minor or even non-existent problem, though one that comes alongside a distinct lack of the night vision for which the clan is known. For many others – those seen only on the dullest of days - the pain caused by light makes it difficult to tolerate the sun found in thinner areas of the territory, and necessitates their confinement to the deepest parts of the swamp. But even they have it easy compared to the final group of their clanmates, for there are those who see perfectly at night but are blinded during the day, their eyes easily ruined even by the scant light found in the deepest regions of their territory. It is from these that Mudclan’s night-faring reputation arises, for these felines are
nocturnal; seen only beneath the light of the moon.
Branches
Daylighters:
These cats are the closest in visual abilities to the felines of other clans. Their eyes are much the same as any other member of their species, but notable for being slightly shorter sighted; no doubt the result of their densely vegetated home. Although some amongst them may suffer from mild cases of light sensitivity, they are all capable of seeing in natural sunlight with little to no hindrance. This makes them ideal as border guards, and hunters of clearer areas, and it is with these jobs that they are saddled. As a consequence of this, and the rules governing the activities of their more sensitive peers, Daylighters are the only Mudclan cats that other clans will see during the day, meaning that few beyond their number are aware of the problems that have been produced by their clans adaptations.
Ranges: Salt Plains, Clearings and lighter areas of Mudclan territory
Primary Functions: Border Patrol & Salt Hunting
Shadowers:
Shadowers are cats that suffer from higher degrees of light sensitivity, but maintain some tolerance for sunlight. This branch is the most variable of the three, with some members intolerant only to bright light – such as that reigning during Greenleaf – and others intolerant to everything but the dullest of light – such as that reigning during Leafbare. As a consequence some of their number are capable of hunting in the lighter areas of Mudclan territory, but all are banned from patrolling the Mudclan-Treeclan border.
Ranges: Alder Spots, AshGrounds, OakGrounds & Willow Spots
Primary Functions: Hunting & Guarding the camp
Moonlighters:
These warriors are intolerant to all, or almost all, levels of sunlight and are consequently forced to live a nocturnal lifestyle. Unlike the other branches, Moonlighters are permitted to use all parts of their territory throughout the night, and primarily function as guardians of their clan. These are the cats that make up the largest proportion of Gathering Patrols, and the ones who are responsible for Mudclan’s night vision reputation, but they are almost never seen outside the Founders Hollow. More importantly, the very existence of their branch is a fiercely guarded secret, for it suits Mudclan far better to have their neighbours think that their warriors can in both light and dark, than it does to have them know that their cats are limited to one or the other.
Range: All parts of Mudclan Territory
Primary Functions: Patrol, Overnight guarding of camp & some hunting
Customs
Leader & Deputy Roles
- The Mudclan leader is the clan’s defender, and is discouraged from leading at the head of an attack unless reacting to an attack on its own territory or cats. Ordinarily it should avoid the front of charges and battles, instead being the last to fight, and focusing its attentions on aiding struggling clan mates, or else seeing off rival leaders.
- Mudclan deputies are charged with keeping Moonlighters informed of any important developments from the day, including meetings that could not be postponed. They are also charged with collecting the news of the night from senior Moonlighters and relaying it to the clan leader, meaning that they are usually the first cats to wake, and last to sleep.
The Nocturnal-Diurnal Divide
- As a general rule, Moonlighters cannot become Leaders or Deputies, because their eyes and lifestyles prevent them from being active when the clan needs its leaders most. This tradition has only been broken a handful of time in Mudclan history, often with disastrous results.
- Unless ill, injured or obviously exhausted, Daylighters and Shadowers are expected to remain within camp until the sun has set, and all Moonlighters have begun to settle into their nightly duties. The cats use this intermediary time to share tongues and thus cement the bonds between the diurnal and nocturnal members of the clan, ensuring that there are no true strangers amongst their number.
- So as to ensure that Moonlighters remain up-to-date with clan affairs, all ceremonies – from apprenticeships to a new leaders oaths - are held after the sun has set. In a similar manner, reigning leaders usually try to delay clan meetings until Moonlighters wake.
- Mudclan is the only clan that maintains round-the-clock surveillance of its territory. This has involved the introduction of several night patrols, but only one, a Moon High Patrol, is a fixed part of clan life.
Kits & Apprentices
- Mudclan kits are forbidden from leaving the nursery until they are three moons old. At this point they are introduced to the outside world under the Medicine Cats supervision, and tested for light sensitivity. This test determines whether they will be classed as a Daylighter, Shadower or Moonlighter, and inform their leaders choice of mentors.
- Moonlighter kits are eased into a nocturnal lifestyle from about five moons of age, to ensure that they will be active at the correct times once they are apprenticed.
- Cats are always apprenticed to mentors from the same branch of the clan, so as to ensure that they can be properly prepared for their adult roles / to limit the damage done to their eyes and their clan.
Problematic Traits & their Control
- Blindness is a semi-common trait in Mudclan, but is also one that the clan looks down on. Although they generally take good care of blind cats, these felines are usually hidden from the outside world and banned from taking a blind mate. This, combined with the fact that sighted cats rarely choose blind mates, ensures that the trait is both kept in check and largely hidden from the outside world.
- As a general rule, Moonlighters are expected only to breed with each other and more sensitive Shadowers. Kits born to DaylighterXMoonlighter pairs are frowned upon, because they are widely thought to ‘spoil’ both lines and increase the incidence of blindness.
- Long whiskers are a prized trait, and cats who have them are popular choices of mate. Toms in particular will often have several queens vying for their attention, and frequently mate with them all.)
Hunting
Mudclan uses four hunting methods, namely;
Plant Hunting: By far the most common hunting speciality within the clan, with most cats having some ability to apply themselves to it. Plant Hunting is largely focused on small mammals, particularly rodents, living within the marshes foliage, and depends heavily upon skills such as stalking and pouncing.
Mud Hunting: Focuses on the collection of amphibians and other mud-dwelling creatures. It is by far the messiest form of hunting, with cats required to dig into soft earth and root around in shallow muddy floodplains, and is consequentially an unpopular speciality. However, the clan is well aware that a frog or two could mean the difference between life and death, and ensures that all of its apprentices know
how to Mud Hunt, even if they decline to make it their speciality.
Salt Hunting: Salt Hunters are Mudclan cats who have learnt to find and collect the various crustaceans that live within the salt plains. It is a relatively uncommon speciality within the clan, perhaps because it is limited to Daylighters, but masters of the art are nevertheless numerous (usually outnumbering Waterclans Salt Hunting Masters); probably because Mudclan is no stranger to hard times, and has long been determined to make proper use of
all available resources.
Fishing: This is a speciality that once belonged to just two Mudclan bloodlines; the only two that could be traced back to Riverclan survivors. For several generations cats not of this bloodline largely avoided the art, their fear of water so ingrained that the ability to fish was very nearly lost altogether. However, it was saved when a particularly bad year of hunting proved the value of all hunting methods, and has since been on the rise.
Prey:
Rodents
Some fish
Crustaceans
Some wading birds / waterfowl
Amphibians – mostly small frogs