The Forgotten Warrior

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).

The other warriors can explain that the players’ cats must have followed the wrong trail, because they have been here for a while and have seen no sign of the missing apprentices. Normally, they would offer to help in the search immediately, but they have the safety of their own apprentices to worry about. They have to take the young cats back to their Clan camps before they can do anything else, particularly if there may be something dangerous lurking in the forest.

The players’ cats may begin their search again with the same rules as before.

Ask the players how their cats will go about trying to find the missing apprentices and then allow them each to make appropriate Skill Checks. If a cat gets a total of 12 or higher on the Checks above, it counts as one success. 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.