#tallclanlore

Moon Events:

Tawnykit has reached the age of 6 moons! He’s made a warrior apprentice with Marigoldflip as his mentor. He’s gone from Noisy to Confident!

FIRST

CLIMB DO WN|CLIMB UP

Tawnypaw’s an apprentice now 🥺! He’s growing up so fast. Also, it’s been so long since I’ve drawn Daydream and Marigoldflip! 😭 Last time we saw them was during the clan’s first fall!

Grumbling under his breath, Sapflow walked out of the leader’s den and into the cool, moonless summer night. His mind was groggy with sleep. He had that dream again… The one where he found himself standing within the heart of a dark, rotting forest. All alone. Or, well, that’s what he could see so far. He knew there were others there. He could sense them. Feel their wet, matted pelts press against him, smell their musk, and hear their muffled whispers tickle his ears with their hot breath. Yet, no matter how hard he looked, he could never find them. A sharp yowl— a bloodthirsty battle cry—- would always bring him back to the waking world.

Welcome to The Elders’ Corner!

Interested in learning about the lore that surrounds TallClan? Well, you’re at the right spot! One of the jobs of an elder includes passing down the lore of the clan to younger generations, who will then pass it down to those that will come after them, ensuring TallClan’s history never dies! The elders are more than happy to provide you with what you want to learn!

LEAD POSITIONS

SPIRITUALITY, RELIGION, & THE AFTERLIFE

CAMP + TERRITORY

GlintClan - The Cats of the Caverns

A group of cats residing in a cavern filled with crystals. Henceforth, TallClan has come to call them GlintClan. They’re their closest neighbors, but are extremely secretive and keep to themselves majority of the time.

ScrubClan -

ScrubClan’s camp and territory serve as the divide between the mountains and the wooded valley. Just like TallClan, their camp is heavily exposed with no protection from trees or caves. They used to be rivals with GlintClan till TallClan came along, taking GlintClan’s focus away from them.

LogClan + GarlicClan

LogClan and GarlicClan get their own section together, because of how close both of these two clans are with one another! They’re both located, side-by-side, in the area that makes up the wooded forest and grassy valley, all of which is rampant with human activity! LogClan’s camp and territory are located right next to a sawmill. The abundance of logs that are manufactured at the sawmill are how LogClan earned their name! Next door lies a family-owned farming business, where GarlicClan lives in one of their barns! Pretty obvious where they get their name from. Compared to their mountainous neighbors and ScrubClan, they’re extremely tight-knitted with one another!

🎭 - Most of what I had in mind was answered in CULTURE and LEAD POSITIONS, but here are some that I have thought of since then!

Leader Titles - Leaders receive special titles after their deaths, which usually pertain to their character throughout their leadership. Here’s an example from my first attempt at doing the dynasty challenge! These titles aren’t just restricted to leaders. Lead Healers and Lead Mediators receive similar titles and on rare occasions, a notable warrior will receive a title.

Celebrations of a Leader’s Life + The Clan’s Founding Anniversary - Considering how important leaders are to the clan, their lives and what they contribute are celebrated on the anniversary of their deaths underneath the stars. In Icystar’s case, by some sheer luck of coincidence, her death fell on the anniversary of the clan’s founding! So, along with her celebrating her life, the clan’s anniversary is also celebrated!

Cave paintings - While I was still brainstorming certain cultures and traditions for the clan, the original burial place was catacombs in which graves were marked with paintings to identify the cat that was buried there. Even though that isn’t the original plan anymore, I still like the idea about the paintings! Now, paintings are used to record historical events, lessons, maps, battle plans, and important figures. A leader, Lead Mediator, and Lead Healer will always leave behind their own paw print in their respective dens. Warriors and apprentices do something similar on the days of their ceremonies with warriors in particular leaving a mark on the camp entrance on the night of their vigil. These paintings are also used to keep track of family trees, but it might become a bit muddled after several generations.

Art featured under cut for second question! ⚠️CW: Depictions of blood and violence!⚠️

The Clan Territories

Stars’ Touch - The highest peak of the tallest mountain in the valley. Formerly the place where leaders would receive their 9 lives. Now, it serves its purpose as the resting place for TallClan cats.

The Moon Mountain - The spot the clans meet in for Gatherings. It’s located on a mountain that’s well known for its flat top.

Long River - A huge, long river that divides GarlicClan and LogClan from ScrubClan, GlintClan, and TallClan.

The Thunderpath Bridge - A Thunderpath that runs through TallClan’s mountain home and leads straight to the twolegplace city. It turns into a bridge once it reaches the river. It’s the only form of transportation across the Long River.

The Herbal Garden - A garden located on a family-owned farm near GarlicClan’s territory. An abundance of flowers, vegetables, and herbs are grown here. Of course, the clans only care about the herbs. The garden is considered “neutral territory”, which means that none of the clans have ownership over it and everyone is allowed to go there. It’s forbidden for a clan to try to claim ownership of the area and such an attempt will be met with physical retaliation from the other clans.

TallClan’s Territory

Majority of TallClan’s territory and landmarks are located behind the mountain.

Camp - TallClan’s camp is located on a cliff on the side of the mountain. The smaller mountains and its’ low position help obscure its’ location from the other clans.

Forbidden Tunnels - The entrance to a tight-fit, underground tunnel. Although there have been no accounts of cats traveling deep enough inside, it’s heavily rumored that the tunnel leads to an underground body of water. Apprentices are forbidden from going inside. Warriors are simply cautioned against doing so.

Moon Trail - The path TallClan and GlintClan take to go to the Moon Mountain for Gatherings.

Stars’ Trail - A trail originally used by GlintClan to travel to Stars’ Touch. Now, TallClan uses the trail when delivering their deceased clanmates to their final resting place.

Training Grounds - A small dip/ravine in the ground. It’s used for training sessions between apprentices and warriors.

TallClan’s Camp

TallClan’s camp isn’t that different from the camp I’m using in-game. However, I did make some slight changes to fit what I like better! The most notable being changing the locations of some of the dens + the inclusion of a mediators’ only den.

Camp Entrance - The entrance to the camp involves going through a small, short tunnel. Guards are positioned on both ends of the tunnel. The first dens a cat will stumble upon are the leader’s den and warriors’ den, which serve as the first lines of defense against intruders and ambushes.

Warriors’ Den - Located right underneath the camp’s entrance. No one can enter into the heart of the camp without hopping over the warriors’ den + its opening. This helps give the clan a good advantage against camp ambushes.

Leader’s Den + High Ledge - The leader’s den is located at the highest spot of the camp. This allows them to get a good view of the normal ongoings of clan life. Most leaders share the den with their mates and their kits. The High Ledge is where the leader stands when addressing the clan during a clan meeting. The High Ledge also gives them a good view of the camp entrance. One can use it to get to the camp through the camp entrance if they don’t want to jump over the warriors’ den. It still works against intruders as they will have to make their presence known to the leader.

Healers’ Den - Located right next to the Leader’s Den. Its location in camp allows healers to quickly tend to the clan’s most important patients: kits and elders.

Elders’ Den + Nursery - The nursery is a tiny cave nestled deep underneath the High Ledge. Unlike the other dens, you actually have to make a tiny jump to get inside there + to get out. The small entrance helps ward off outsiders, leading them to believe nothing important is inside + helps prevent snow from piling inside during snowstorms. The elders’ den is located a little bit downwards.

Apprentices’ Den - Located right underneath the warriors’ den. Their location helps serve as another line of defense against intruders, but aren’t put at the front due to still being in the process of warrior training. Warrior apprentices mostly reside there, but sometimes so do healer apprentices and mediator apprentices.

⚠️CONTENT WARNING: MENTIONS OF ARRANGED MARRIAGES!⚠️

TallClan’s culture is heavily inspired by GlintClan’s own. It was bound to happen considering the fact that they’re close neighbors and the clan’s leader and her first mate originated from there, thus passing down their culture to their heirs.

TallClan is very prideful in nature. More so than GlintClan used to be. They take great pride in the fact that they were chosen to live in and to guard Stars Touch. Needless to say, they take their role as guardians very seriously! They don’t take kindly to intruders or cats straying too close to the border. A sentiment that’s specifically garnered towards cats from the other clans.

Out of all the clans, TallClan is the most religious, beating GlintClan to the #1 spot! This is a trait that first appeared during the reign of the second leader. The other clans whisper amongst themselves that they must be this way due to being under the watchful eye of StarClan at all times and well, they’re not entirely wrong! Grateful for StarClan, TallClan basically has devoted their lives to them!

The final resting place for all TallClan cats is the top of Stars’ Touch, where it’s heavily believed that they will reach StarClan faster. The clan’s elders are given the task to carry the body of their deceased clanmates to their resting place due to their close connection to StarClan being at the near end of their life. Cats who’ve committed the worst crimes ever are buried deep underground with piles of large rocks set on top of the grave. This is meant to prevent the soul from traveling to StarClan.

Another aspect of the clan’s culture are betrothals. Betrothals, also commonly known as arranged marriages, are a common practice within the leading family of the clan. The leader arranges a marriage for their heir apparent after they receive their warrior name and take up the position of deputy. The practice is done as a means of ensuring heirs could be provided as soon as possible to keep the leadership in the direct bloodline, but, in some cases, it could be done for personal preferences or as favors.

These arranged marriages aren’t mandatory. If the Leader Heir has already taken up a mate or has children of their own by the time they ascend to deputy, then there’s no need for it. It also depends on the clan leader. Some are more strict on enforcing this practice, while others are lenient.

In the early days of the clans, leaders would receive their nine lives from Stars’ Touch, which was located at the top of very tallest mountain of the valley. It was a treacherous journey and it wasn’t uncommon for many cats to die along the way or lose a life or two on their way back. At the time, this was seen as a trial of sorts. Anyone who survived the journey was clearly suitable to be clan leader and was blessed by StarClan.

It wouldn’t be long before issues associated with this would cause unrest in the clans, especially in the colder months when the weather was its deadliest in the mountain. Several heirs died before reaching the top and those that were fortunate enough to commune with StarClan, were never able to wake up again. Bodies began to pile up, marking the trail.

With so many heirs perishing, lineages were cut off and tension boiled as distant relatives fought to claim the title of clan leader. It wasn’t long before blood began to be shed within the clans. Blood spilling blood. A clan fighting with itself. StarClan was appalled by what was occurring and they knew if this continued, the clans would become their own undoings.

The Bog, the divide between the mountains and grassy, forested valley, had always been the meeting place for the clans’ healers. Now, though, it would serve a new purpose— the place where new leaders would earn their lives. There was only one problem, though. Well, two, but the most important one was how to send a cat to commune to StarClan. To do so, a cat must lose their life, in turn, leaving behind their old life. The conditions in Stars’ Touch were perfect for that, but here in The Bog, where they were the most farthest from StarClan’s reach, what could they do?

Of course, where there’s a will, there’s a way. From now on, a clan’s Lead Healer would accompany the heir during their leadership ceremony and deliver a killing blow to the throat, sending the cat to StarClan.