#warrior code

A leader is the foremost and default authority a Clan looks to at all times. The leader’s word takes priority over the deputy’s, seer’s, matriarch’s or elders’ in times of crisis.

Leaders may be ousted from their position by majority vote. Reasonable cause must be present, including:

Tyrannical behavior by the leader.

Age or senility affecting the leader’s ability to make decisions.

Severe law breaking by the leader.

The leader committing a crime that is worthy of intense punishment. (This will also be decided by majority vote.)

Dangerous levels of incompetence.

When a leader retires for whatever reason, they must give up the -star suffix and return to their original warrior name. Passing on -star is much more important than any former leader’s sense of superiority.

Leaders may be of any age, but must have completed their warrior training and have trained at least one apprentice.

In a crisis, a leader or deputy may be near completion of their first apprentice’s training.

In simple terms codekeepers are the justice system of the clans, they spend majority of the time as standard warriors; hunting, patrolling, skirmishes etc. They don’t differ from regular warriors much until a possible crime- or ‘code break’- occurs, then they are instructed by the Leader/Deputy/Clerics to investigate the allegations. These crimes are basically anything that goes against the warrior code- I also have a different warrior code than canon srry. Examples can be anything from murder to treason to trespassing and more. It can be very nuanced, the code keepers (also called ‘keepers or ‘guards’ in my story) are supposed to look for evidence and witnesses to the crime, once that’s completed there’s a trial. Codekeepers are allowed to cross clan borders and question other clan’s cats to complete this task (within reason).

Depending on the crime, the evidence, and the leaders involved the time between allegations and a trial could be anywhere between a few days to a moon. A trial must be done in a timely manner but the codes are a lil loose with the definition of ‘timely’ so some leaders will prolong the investigatory period to multiple moons but this isn’t common.

During the trial there are two key code keepers, one argues against the accused cat and the other argues for the accused. Similar to American courts of law and lawyers (I’m from America I don’t really know how courts work in other countries just to clarify). These codekeepers take turn calling witnesses, presenting evidence, and making arguments. This all takes place before the leader and the clan (who must remain orderly and quiet). Once both sides have made their arguments and all the evidence is presented the leader will confer with their deputy and cleric (usually the lead cleric but not always) before they make a ruling. Punishments can be varied and are usually tied to the crime in some way, the more severe the crime the more severe the punishment. Punishment can be restriction of leaving camp, doing unwanted jobs, social exile (shunning), dishonor titles (like Burnpaw’s). Severe punishments include exile (either temporary or permanent) and even execution in the most extreme cases.

Codekeepers aren’t enforcers of the code, every clan member is expected to uphold the warrior code and hold others to that standard, keepers are just the ones who help keep it fair if an allegation is made and let the leader remain as unbiased as possible to make a decision.

Now this is where the similarities end with me and rippleclan’s use of codekeepers, I really liked the concept of this being an official role but I wanted to kinda push it a little further.

In my clangen, codekeepers are the warriors that want to be the most warriors that ever warriored. Basically these are the cats that want to not just study the code and defend it, they want to excel in every aspect of the warrior role. These cats are like Warriors Plus, y’know.

To be a codekeeper isn’t easy, you have to have a great memory, critical thinking skills, strong morals, objectivity, endurance, public speaking, and debating. A lot of cats can’t perform in this role, the leader and mentors will hold small mock trials to see if a codekeeper apprentice can graduate into a full warrior. If they fail, they may try again in a moon or, if they passed their other assessments, they can graduate as a regular warrior.

Codekeepers have a lot in common with other roles that are non combative, such as mediators and historians. While historians and mediators often hunt and patrol with regular warriors to provide for the clan, they aren’t used in fights or wars (Ashenstep being a notable exception and is an excellent fighter). Like mediators they have to maintain a level of objectivity and demonstrate emotional intelligence, these are their clan mates and loved ones they might be investigating. Though the leader will usually pick keepers who aren’t related or too close to the accused. And like historians they have to memorize and understand the code on many levels, this is without a formal writing system too.

Codekeepers are also called Guards because they are often sent with patrols made up of non combative cats/clerics as a sort of security. In Honeyclan keepers are also in charge of watching the fields while patrols are out of camp bc the land is so flat and so close to the boating place, sometimes humans go out into the fields to see the flowers or dogs get loose and can cross the territory quickly. There’s very few places to hide in the fields.

Duskclan has the most keepers, Oakclan the second most, and Honeyclan the third. Saltclan obv has none (technically Wolfstar, but she never actually took the bar exam lol)

1. Do not Trespass = "Law of the Land"

This is now rule 1, because borders were the first thing to be established at the dawn of the clans.

  2. A True Warrior Does Not Need To Kill To Win Their Battles = "Law of Honor"

Another founding principle. The first two were established at the Battle of Fourtrees.

  3. Defend your Clan = "Law of Loyalty"

The Ryewhisker/Cloudberry story is virtually unchanged. HOWEVER, Cloudberry AND Ryewhisker are willingly joining the Dark Forest in protest. They are some of the oldest spirits there.

  4. The Weak are Fed First = "Prey Priority Privilege"/"Elder's Privilege"

This story is actually being completely rewritten, it's not coming from a celebration over a RiverClan Sunningrocks victory. Still a WIP though-- but Elders are actually the ones who extend the privilege of priority to kits, queens, the weak, and injured. Just a technical thing.

  5. Respect Prey; StarClan Sent It. = "StarClan's Grace"

Now more of a commandment about piety than about respecting prey. Wasting prey is downright sacrilegious, thanking StarClan is explicitly a prayer.

This is one of my small but meaningful (to me) sociological changes. This is the sort of law that religions often create because they're important and communicate an abstract value over generations. An individual warrior may or may not have a good understanding of land stewardship or ecology, but this law exists so they don't overhunt.

  6. Apprentices must be six moons old = "Six Moon Rule"

The Code of the Clans story is unchanged; this is also known as “Daisytail’s Law”. Brokenstar actually loopholes the hell out of this law; it says nothing about making early warriors.

(personally i think his child soldiers are horrifying but ultimately stupid. Pint-sized kittens can’t fight and do not live to become experienced warriors.)

Post-Brokenstar, this loophole is patched; an apprentice needs to be 6 months, a warrior must be 1 year.

The rule is extended FURTHER after Graystripe's failure to train Brackenpaw; a warrior taking a new apprentice must be 2 years old.

  7. A Deputy Must Mentor/Deputy Becomes Clan Leader/Deputy is Appointed Before Moonhigh = "Code of the Deputy"

Combined into one huge rule. A succession crisis split ShadowClan into two factions, lead by Mossfire and Jumpfoot, who were both what modern Clan Cats would consider 'deputies.'

Redscar settled it with his famous false sign, appointing Flowerstem as leader (Mossfire's sister) and she chose her second-in-command, Robinspot (Jumpfoot's son). Deputies were established as a hard title after this-- and there would only ever be one at a time.

  8. Boundaries must be checked and marked daily = "Right of the Challenge"

Instead of just being a no-brainer law, this is the basis of 'Might Makes Right' in the Clans. Boundaries are set where they're set, and warriors and the clans they're part of are allowed to challenge them freely.

A Clan that cannot defend its borders is not worthy of keeping them. A warrior that backs down from a formal challenge is a coward, and does not respect the Code. BATTLE CULTURE!!!

  9. A Warrior Rejects the Soft Life Of a Kittypet = “Kittypet Code“

Being shuffled, no longer formed as a response to Pinestar’s choice! It was actually a SkyClan law, in response to several cats defecting as humans destroyed their forest.

This lays the foundation for several events later; Oakstar uses this law to justify ‘crusades‘ against Chelford township cats in an attempt to appease StarClan. This directly leads to BloodClan’s formation, and Pinestar’s eventual defection.

This is the last code to be formed before SkyClan’s Exile.

  10. A Medicine Cat Serves Their Clan Above All Else = “Medicine Cat’s Vow”

Now a corruption of a vow that used to just be a point of honor for medicine cats, warped to control these powerful religious figures.

Before SkyClan’s Exile, Moth Flight created it for her and her children when they were torn apart by clan violence, when each clan wanted its own medic and sought to steal the young cats from WindClan. Its original intention was for medicine cats to value medicine ABOVE their clans, by never having a mate or kittens to fight for.

With the addition of this law, it was flipped on its head completely.

  11. No Fighting at Gatherings = "Full Moon Truce"

A big change; Ripplestar wasn’t fighting for no reason. Son of a medicine cat who had to abandon him due to Rule 10, and developing a hatred for the wrongful exile of SkyClan, Ripplestar was leading skirmishes and rebellions against the other clans. His goal was to force them into dividing their land to eventually give to a returned SkyClan.

The full moon truce was only a tradition before this point, and Ripplestar was making a point. He attacked them during a time of peace, and this incurred the wrath of StarClan. They smote him on the spot, and this event lead to rules 11, 12, and 13.

  12. The Warrior’s Vigil and the Warrior’s Pilgrimage = “The First Tasks“

Another post-exile law that encouraged obedience, albeit in a much softer way. Vigils and pilgrimages to the moonstone were only tradition before this point, just like the full moon truce, but formalized to encourage piety to StarClan.

  13. The Word of a Leader is Law = “Leader’s Rights“

The big bad one. Also sometimes called Dalestar’s Commandment, or the 13th Law. The leaders had enough of arguing, and in their minds, it was a disrespect of authority that lead to Ripplestar’s shenanigans. Warriors that didn’t know their place, medicine cats getting too uppity. The law was laid down here; that their word was always the final authority.

This, of course, was a huge mistake and is eventually reckoned with in The Broken Code arc, and replaced by the “Clan’s Rights“ to challenge a bad leader instead.

14. Kittens Are Protected At All Costs = “Queen’s Rights”

Also called Darkstar’s Commandment, formed in response to StarClan’s fury at witnessing the Mapleshade incident. Every cat involved was sent to the Dark Forest in blind fury, and Darkstar and Oakstar were commanded to add this law or be damned as well.

Darkstar correctly identified that this law would mean nothing if a queen HAD to reveal who the father of her kittens was, because then the clan would be forced to punish them if they had broken the Law of Loyalty. With the establishments of the Queen’s Right (to remain silent), if she had been disloyal, it stays between her and StarClan.

Before this time, stealing kittens from other clans and outsider groups wasn’t uncommon in order to maintain genetic diversity. That practice was abolished here, though there were a few cases of it happening in modern history.

15. The Clans Must Unite in Times of Need = “Law of the Lake”

Being formally added after the arrival of SkyClan, in AVOS instead of Bramblestar’s Storm.

A law of reparation for SkyClan’s exile so many generations ago, and an agreement after the journey, the battle with the Dark Forest, and with the Kin, that the Clans would never let a threat to one clan go ignored by the others.

16. A Cat May Change Allegiance = “Bristlefrost’s Law”

I won’t elaborate too much on this one, because as of writing this, A Starless Clan is not complete and there may be more changes to this law by the end of the arc.