#cotmm

The Typical Citizen of the Sunbird Empire The empire is made up of typically skinny and long-legged cats. Most are solid colors and short fur, however they tend to take in loners and kitty-pets running away from home, so they tend to see a fair share of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Heterochromia is considered unlucky in the empire.

Camp The empire has made their home next to a beautiful but abandoned man-made waterfall full of water lilies and kois that the empire has forbidden to be harmed. The waterfall is surrounded by clusters of bamboo, willows, and an overgrown wisteria arch. When a star-reader needs to talk to the ancestors they give an offering to the koi fish in the day, in hopes of receiving a message that night.  - The emperor sleeps in a small den at the top of the waterfall. The space is small, but large enough for a small family. This allows the emperor to live with their entire family unit and protect the next heir of the empire. The den as a stable ledge that both the emperor and star-reader use to make important announcements to the empire.  - The advisors sleep in their own private dens in two of the willow trees. Like the emperor they have the luxury of having a den large enough for their entire families. The willows are close to the main entrance of the empires camp, allowing them to be the first to reach danger and direct the rest of the soldiers.  - The herbalist and Star-reader share a den hidden behind the waterfall. It is one of the largest dens, and allows the herbalist to take care of many sick cats. The star-reader has a small mini-den inside that has small quartz crystals in the ceiling, this is where the star-reader takes other citizens of the empire for private readings.  - Soldiers, hunters, and teachers sleep together in a large burrow made by a wolverine chased away from the ancestors. The den is simple, but large enough to comfortably house all the citizens.  - Students sleep on top of the waterfall in a large rock den. While some sleep in the den itself, others have taken to sleeping in small burrows dug into the ground to create more space for when there was an overflow of students.  - Queens and elders share a den in near by and abandoned small two-leg building. The dens are only separated by a small open window that they can pass to and from easily.

Territory The empire lives close to the two-legs in a misty bamboo forest. A small portion of the forest is a small park, that most cats avoid if they can. Besides bamboo, the empires territory consists of elms and pine trees. There’s very little underbrush for a cat to hide in, leaving cats out in the open if they’re not careful.

Prey The empire typically only finds small rodents and song birds in their territory. There is rarely any large prey, but they are able to make do with the prey they have. A few empire cats have also resorted to taking what they can from the two-legs.

Dangers The empire doesn’t get a lot of dangerous predators, other than bandgers and owls, thanks to the two-legs influence. However the tw0-legs themselves can be a danger, as well as their dogs that can occatioanly get lose, but this is a rare occurrence.

Customs  - The empire believe that the stars can tell the future and determin a cat’s life. They have a set of zodiac signs that ranges similarly to the human zodiac signs. One cat is trained to read the stars and give the cats future predictions if asked. - The empire only has nine star signs: - Sunbird (Early Spring) - This is considered to be the most lucky and fortunate sign. It is believed that those born under the Sunbird sign is destined for greatness. Many cat forbid their sunbird cat to even speak to certain signs in fear it could bring bad luck. - Ram (Late Spring) - The rams are hard-headed and easily frustrated cats, but are wise and calculated. Many are expected to become excellent hunters, when possible they are encouraged to go for the role of the advisor. - Bear (Early Winter) - They are considered to be very wise and understanding, but can be very quite and shy. Many cats think they don’t make good fighters, but their hunting abilites are suberb. When looking for a new star-reader or herbalist, they are a good choice. - Snow Leopard (Late Winter) - It is believed that Snowleopards are fierce and loyal to the empire, and said to make excellent fighters. It is believed that Snowleopards will be the ones to win a war. - Crane (Early Summer) - Cranes are considered good luck, wise and almost never make mistakes. They are the first choice when looking for a new star-reader. When they can’t become star-readers they are typically fast tracked to become an advisor or encorgaged to try and win the emperor over. - Dragonfly (Late Summer) - The dragonfly sign is considered bad luck, and many cats try to avoid having a litter of dragonflies. It is said they lack direction and are easily injured or sick. They can be fair hunters when given the chance, but any of their peers try to send them off to find food from the two-legs instead. - Horse (Early Fall) - Horse signs are said to be very wild and hot tempered, and very determined. They are said to make wonderful hunters, and are typically an emperors first choice when looking for a new advisor. - Sturgeon (Late Fall) - The Sturgeon sign is considered to be a powerful one. They do not have an easy to break will, and are known to be some of the most powerful fighters of the empire.

 - The empire has similar, but noticeably different roles from their clan neighboors. - Emperor - The divine ruler of the empire, picked by the ancestors through the stars. An emperor must be born under the sunbird’s star sign to ensure the safely and prosperity of the empire. A cat may only be named an emperor if their over 18 moons old. - Advisors - Two advisors are picked to help look after the empire and the emperor. If an emperor dies before their heir is of age, the advisors will temporarily take the place and lead the empire, while also raising the new emperor to become a proper leader. It is believed that Rams, Cranes, and Horses would make the best advisors. - Herbalist - Herbalist specialize in making herbal remedies and treating wounds to ensure citizens of the empire are safe. It is believed that Bears, Sturgeons, and Sunbirds would make some of the best herbalists. Dragonflies are also encouraged to become herbalist to ensure they don’t get hurt. - Star-reader - The star-reader is considered the second most important role in the empire. They are trained to read the stars and connect with the ancestors to learn about new prophecies. It is believed that Cranes, Sunbirds, and Sturgeons would make the best star-readers. - Soldiers - Soldiers are trained to be ready to fight at a moments notice. They patrol the territory to make sure no predators can pose a threat to the empire, but they also help out with camp duties when their work is slow. There is a subcategory of soldiers called a General, generals are expert tactians. When there is a war generals work besides the advisors and emperor to lead the attacks. It is believed that Snowleopards, Rams, Sturgeons, and Horses would make good soldiers. Snowleopards and Stugeons are encoraged to seek the role of a general. - Hunters - Hunters live to their name and find food for the empire. They spend the day hunting food, and tracking down scents of other animals. They ensure that large prey that might attract predators. When predators are found in the territory, the hunters join with the soldier to hunt them down and either chase them out of kill them. If prey is low, or if a cat is unable to hunt as well as the others, they will go to the two-leg place to find scraps or steal fish from the local markets. It is believed that Cranes, Sunbirds, Bears, and Rams make the best hunters. Dragonflies are encouraged to become hunters so that they can take scraps from the two-legs and not be injured. - Teachers - Teachers are citizens who have decided to teach the students about their chosen roles. While many teachers are still active citizens who have their own duties, there are also many retired soldiers and hunters who have dedicated their lives to teaching students. Teachers will take on three or four students at a time, active citizens preferring to take only two or three, while retired teachers almost always have four students with them. - Students - Like the clans, students are young cats between the ages 6 to 12 moons old. When a cat becomes of age they may either chose a rank to follow, or allow the star-reader to do it for them.

 - All emperors must be born a Sunbird to ensure the empire will be blessed with good fortunes for another dynasty. If an emperor dies before having an heir born to the sunbird sign, the empire will vote to have one of the advisors named the new emperor, and the line will resume when they have an heir born to the sunbird. If there is a tie in the votes, the two advisors will fight for the right to before emperor.

The Typical Tribe Cat Tribe cats are typically muscular but short in stature. Many of them have muted colored pelts, but all pelt colors can be found in the tribe. The tribe is known for its unique mixture of domestic and wild cats living together in harmony. The tribe has different species of wildcat such as; Chinese Mountain Cats, Asiatic Golden Cats, Asiatic Wildcats, Rusty-Spotted Cats, Jungle Cats, Fishing Cats, and Leopard Cats.

Camp The tribe takes pride in their well-hidden camp, which lays right underneath their enemy’s noses. While many cats assume they made camp up high in the tallest and most twisted 3000-year-old ginkgo tree, they have in fact made their camp underneath it.  - The chief’s den is the furthest den from the entrance and the deepest den. It was originally a rabbits den that was dug out for a cat to fit in. There are multiple false dens that have been used to hold the healer’s herbs and hide the tribe in case of a predator. The deepest den is there the chief sleeps and receives messages from the Tribe of Endless Hunting using the roots of the ginkgo tree.  - The healer’s den is similar to the chief’s den and has multiple separate dens for the sick to sleep in. The healers also take claim to a few of the branches outside for drying herbs and letting sick cats soak in some sun. Queens and their kits take one of the largest dens found in the healer’s maze.  - All other tribe members sleep in multiple small burrows that they had to dig out themselves instead of finding from a former creature. There are three separate mazes with four inner dens that can comfortably fit 10 tribe cats.

Territory The Tribe of the Twisted Trees claims territory in a dense cloud forest on the slope of Mountainclans territory. Their territory consists mostly of juniper trees, conifers, and winterberry bushes. There is very little flat land, but the tribe has little to no problem getting around safely.

Prey The tribe has many streams and rivers that they often fish from. There is very little prey other than fish and birds, so they have focused all their energy on fishing and hunting in trees. They have little success in hunting mammals, but they do still come back from a hunting patrol with a few.

Dangers There have been rare cases of alligator attacks, but the most common dangers are hawks, badgers, and other small predators. Tribe cats aren’t good at taking down sables and try to avoid them when possible as they can cause serious damage.

The Typical Thistleclanner Thistleclan cats are small and fast, able to make their way through the thick undergrowth with relative ease. All fur lengths and colors do well in Thistleclan and there is no majority.

Camp Thistleclan camp is found in the dead center of the territory at the base of a thick Monterey cypress tree surrounded by rocks as bushes. - The leader’s den is a hollowed-out hole close to the bottom of the tree trunk, likely an old owl’s nest. - The owl's branch is just outside of the leader's den. This is where the medicine cat dries out herbs and the leader makes clan announcements. - The medicine cats sleep right under the leader’s den in a burrow hidden by two large rocks. This is a large den with multiple “rooms” that are used to keep the sick and injured cats close to the medicine cats, and the walls of the dens are also covered with herbs. - The warriors' den is a tricky subject, as some cats claim it’s too small for all the warriors. The official den is hidden in a thicket of bushes, although many cats may choose to sleep just outside of it or even on the tree branches, or really in any area, they can find. The den is small to a degree but can hold every warrior. You’ll typically only see all the warriors in the den at the same time to hide from predators. - The apprentice den is a burrow under the tree, on the opposite side of the medicine cats den, it’s very well hidden, and many new apprentices have a hard time finding it till their mentors show them where to go. - The nursery is a large burrow with an underground tunnel connected to the medicine cats den that allows the medicine cats quick and safe access during threats. In the case of a green-cough outbreak, the queens and kits are moved to the apprentice den. - The elders' den is a small, dry den hidden under large rocks that the sun hits perfectly, giving them a perfect chance to sunbathe.

Territory Thistleclan’s territory consists of a thick, foggy forest. Most of the trees in the territory are cypress, ginkgos, pines, and firs, but there are also a good amount of elms, birches, and larches, scattering the forest. Ferns, berry bushes, and other shrubbery floods the forest floor, however, while most cats use them to hide from predators, other cats prefer to climb up the trees to hide from danger. Some Thistleclanners may even choose to travel the entire territory up in the tree rather than risk danger down below. Very little light hits the forest floor due to how thick the treetops are, however, towards the Mountainclan border the trees slowly start to spread out, and the thickets on the forest floor become less abundant. The Ibisclan border sees the opposite, the trees stay thick, but the number of ginkgos and pines are replaced with more and more cherry trees, birches, and willows. The number of ferns and thickets begins to dwindle. The border between Thistleclan and Ibisclan is a broad and deep river, the apprentices who have not been taught to swim are forbidden from going towards the Ibisclan until further notice.

Prey Thistleclan has an abundance of small rodents, birds, and fish, but little to no reptiles big enough to eat. Their most commonly found prey is; squirrels, mice, jungle fowls, minnows, and perch.