The Last Hope

Looking For Newleaf

Whatever the previous adventure you played, consider that enough moons have passed that the cats have gone through all of leaf-bare and it is now nearly newleaf. If the time of year hasn’t been important in your other games, simply say that six moons have passed. Determine what age that makes all of the cat characters (including the one belonging to the person who will take the first turn as Narrator) and use the information found in the “Improving Your Cat” section in Chapter Four of the game rules to make the necessary improvements.

“Looking for Newleaf” is a very challenging adventure. If your group hasn’t played this game before, you should probably try a more typical adventure (such as “Saving the Kits,” which is available as a free download on www.warriorcats.com) first.

Unless you are the first person who will act as Narrator in this adventure, you should stop reading here. The information beginning in the next paragraph is for the Narrator only.

The Adventure Begins

Hello, Narrator! It’s time to begin playing “Looking for Newleaf.” Make sure all the players have their character sheets, the correct number of chips, a piece of paper, and a pencil. Remember that the point of the game is to have fun, so don’t be afraid to go slow, keep the players involved, and refer to the rules if you aren’t sure exactly what should happen next.

When you’re ready, begin with 1 below.

1. Lean Times

Special Note: This adventure takes place at a very specific time of year—late in the season of leaf-bare. Snow has covered the Clan territories for many moons, and the Clan cats are anxiously awaiting the coming of newleaf. Help set the proper atmosphere before you begin playing by getting the players to think about how tough things are for the cats. The days are short and cold; the nights are long and even colder. If there is a bad time to be a Clan cat, this is it.

The players can role-play their cats however they see fit, but as Narrator you should make it clear that most of the cats are hungry, a little short-tempered, and very anxious for warmer weather to arrive.

Read Aloud: “No one can remember a leaf-bare that has lasted so long. It seems like snow has covered the Clan territories forever. Fresh-kill is scarce, the medicine cats are running low on herbs, and the elders are beginning to wonder if they’ll ever see greenleaf again.”

Narrator Tips: The situation for all the Clans is pretty desperate at the beginning of this adventure. After making do with dangerously little for more than a moon, the Clan leaders have gotten together and decided to send hunting parties beyond the Clan lands in search of food and any sign they can find that newleaf is coming.

The players’ cats make up one of those hunting parties. They are being sent to the woods beyond the Moonpool. Have one of the Clan leaders speak to the players’ cats to express how important this mission is. The cats aren’t starving yet, but the kits and the elders have grown thin and dangerously weak. It won’t be long before some of them join StarClan.

The plan is for the players’ cats to catch as much fresh-kill as they can, eating enough to keep themselves going, but storing most of it under the snow as they continue to hunt. (Burying the fresh-kill will help it stay fresh for a longer period of time.) When they’ve gathered all they can carry—or all there is to find—the players’ cats are to bring the rest of it back as quickly as possible.

As a secondary assignment, the Clan leader asks the players’ cats to keep an eye out for signs that newleaf is coming. If they can bring back proof that things will change soon, it will improve everyone’s spirit.

Let the players ask any questions they like, and answer from the Clan leader’s perspective. No cat knows much—sometimes leaf-bare lasts longer than usual, and StarClan has not sent dreams to any of the medicine cats to explain the situation or offer a solution.

When that’s done, briefly describe the first two days of the trip as the cats go through familiar territory that is almost unrecognizable because of all the snow. The scenes are beautiful, but desolate—there are no birds or squirrels or rabbits—and no tracks in the snow, other than those belonging to the players’ cats.

On the morning of the third day, the players’ cats must choose whether they are going to follow a path up to the highlands or one down to the valley. Both seem equally covered in snow and equally lacking in potential prey. If the players are having a difficult time making up their minds, ask them whether they think that it’s more likely that prey animals (squirrels, rabbits, voles, etc.) would live in the valley or on the hillside. (There isn’t a right answer, but that opinion is probably the best way for them to choose a course.)

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats want to begin by looking for prey in the valley, continue with 4.

If the players’ cats want to begin by looking for prey in the highlands, continue with 7.

2. Whiteout

Read Aloud: “The wind suddenly rises, sounding like a howling dog. The air around you is thick with snow. Before long, it’s impossible to see anything but a solid wall of white blowing snow.”

Narrator Tips: This is a whiteout. There’s so much wind and snow that you can’t see more than a few inches in front of your face. It’s a real weather condition, and it’s extremely dangerous—even more so for cats.

Describe the situation for the players and ask what their cats are going to do about it. Right now they cannot even see one another. If they want to move together and gather as a group, each cat must remember EXACTLY where the others were. To do that, each cat must make a Focus Check (it is possible to use the Alertness Knack with this Check) and get a total of 8 or higher. If any of the players’ cats fail the Check, that cat has lost its way.

If all of the cats manage to gather together, they have two options: Huddle where they are and wait for the storm to end, or try to move to the shelter of the trees in the highlands.

Huddling where they are is a sure way for the group to stay together, but it means they will spend the whole time in dangerously cold weather. All of the cats suffer 2 chips’ worth of damage from the experience. But when the whiteout ends, they have kept their bearings.

Trying to move to the trees (or any other location) is risky because the cats can no longer see anything through the blowing snow. If they want to move, they must pick one member of the group to lead the way. That cat must make a Ponder Check. If the total is 10 or higher, the group keeps their bearings and arrives at the place they were headed. If not, the group has lost its way.

What Happens Next: If any of the cats lost their way in the whiteout, continue with 5.

If the cats were on the hilltop and they kept their bearings, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 8.

If the cats were in the valley and they kept their bearings, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 13.

3. Fresh Tracks

Read Aloud: “The trail seems to go cold momentarily. You can’t see the tracks at all. But just when you’re about to give up hope, you come across another collection of tracks—and they’re still fresh!”

Narrator Tips: The players’ cats have found a collection of tracks that seem to have been made today. Improvise a scene that lets the cats investigate these tracks, using Skills like Ponder, See, and Smell (and Knacks like Track, Animal Lore, and Alertness) to figure out which tracks to follow.

Tell them that there are tracks from lots of different animals, but only the rabbits are prey—the others are foxes, raccoons, and maybe even a bear (if you want to give the players a bit of a scare as they worry that their cats might have to fight such a huge animal). The problem is that the rabbits seem to have been chased out of this location and run in several directions at once. There’s no easy way to tell where they might be now. It’s also unclear which of the other animals might have been chasing them.

Have the players’ cats all make Ponder or See Checks. (The Track Knack can be used with this attempt.) Then add their totals together to get a group total, which will determine the set of tracks they actually follow.

What Happens Next: If the group total is 20 or higher, continue with 10.

If the group total is 19 or lower, continue with 13.

4. Down in the Valley

Read Aloud: “In greenleaf this valley is full of grass and small streams—just the kind of place where prey can be found. It only makes sense that they would have their burrows here, too.”

Narrator Tips: Tell the players that there are no immediate signs of prey—no tracks in the snow or obvious locations for burrows. Then ask them what their cats want to do next. How will they go about hunting for their prey? Based on their answer, decide what Skill (and perhaps an associated Knack) would be most appropriate for that activity. (It’s likely that the See Skill and the Track Knack will be helpful, or perhaps Ponder and the Animal Lore Knack.) Tell the players that only one of them may attempt the Check—too many cats fussing about will scare away potential prey.

The result of the Check will determine the next scene of this adventure.

What Happens Next: If the Check had a total of 20 or higher, the cat has found many tracks to follow—continue with 13.

If the Check had a total of between 15 and 19, the cat has found a few tracks to follow—continue with 11.

If the Check had a total of between 10 and 15, the cat found no tracks. The cats must replay this scene again.

If the Check had a total of 9 or lower, continue with 2.

5. Lost in the Snow

Read Aloud: “You wander through the blowing snow for a very long time. When the weather finally clears, you have no idea where you are.”

Narrator Tips: The players’ cats got so lost in the whiteout that they have left familiar territory entirely. The cats will have to find some kind of landmark they can use to guide their travels or they might never make it back to the Lake and their Clans.

Have each cat make a Ponder Check (adding in the Pathfinder Knack if they can and wish to) and add the results together to get a group total. If that group total is equal to 20 or less, the cats wander around for a very long time, and only find something familiar when they’re already half-starved. They have no choice but to go straight back to the Clan territories and report their mission as having been a failure.

If the group total is 21 or higher, the mission is still a failure in that they did not accomplish what they’d intended. But as Narrator, you may want to give them a small story bonus for such a great effort. If so, run the group through scene 19, saying that in their search for familiar land, the cats came across a small warren of rabbits. Instead of ending the scene as described, though, have the players’ cats suddenly see other Clan cats come into the clearing. The players’ cats wandered so far off course that they have intruded on the area that another group of warriors was supposed to search. Although they will bring some fresh-kill back for the Clans, the mission was not a success, and the players’ cats have to tell their leaders that the effort failed.

What Happens Next: The adventure is over. The players’ cats do not get any Experience rewards for this adventure. The players’ cats can, however, play the adventure again.

6. There They Are!

Read Aloud: “Look! Over there! Did you see that flash of fur? Are the foxes back?”

Narrator Tips: The players have just finished dealing with the foxes (in one way or another), so you can have some fun playing with their expectations at the beginning of this scene. You can ask them to make See Checks (even allowing the Track Knack) and if they don’t have impressive totals, you can hint that what they saw might have been a fox.

Of course, if any of them get very good results (totals of 12 or higher), you should absolutely tell them the truth of the situation. (As Narrator, you sometimes get the fun of intentionally misleading the other players, but when the cats perform a task well, you should always reward them with useful results.)

In any case, the deception should be short lived. Tell the players that their cats see a group of rabbits—scrawny, skinny rabbits, but rabbits just the same. Half the rabbits scamper up a nearby hill; the other half run deeper into the valley. Almost immediately, the rabbits are out of sight. Perhaps they’ve gone over a rise or behind a snowdrift. Perhaps they’ve reached their burrows and gone underground. Perhaps they heard the cats approaching and have gone into hiding. There’s no way for the cats to know without investigating further. But which group of rabbits will they follow?

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats decide to follow the rabbits up the hillside, continue with 7.

If the players’ cats decide to follow the rabbits in the valley, continue with 21.

7. High on the Hill

Read Aloud: “In greenleaf this hill is shaded by tall trees. Now, even with the trees bare, the snow is clearly less deep than it was in the valley. But as you step away from the trees, the wind becomes quite strong and the snow gathers in drifts.”

Narrator Tips: Tell the players that there are no immediate signs of prey—no tracks in the snow or obvious locations for burrows. Then ask them what their cats want to do next. How will they go about hunting for their prey? Based on their answer, decide what Skill (and perhaps an associated Knack) would be most appropriate for that activity. (It’s likely that the See Skill and the Track Knack will be helpful, or perhaps Ponder and the Animal Lore skill.) Let them all make Checks for their appropriate skills.

Any cat whose Check total was 13 or higher is thoroughly absorbed in the hunt. Tell their players that the cats are certain that there are no tracks or clues to be found here.

If a cat’s total was 12 or less, tell that player the cat was distracted by the howling wind and drifting snow.

Then have all the cats make a Focus Check (with which the Alertness Knack can be used) and add all the cats’ individual results together to create a group total. As a bonus to this total, add +2 for every cat that wasn’t distracted by the winds on the earlier Check. If the group total (including the bonus) is equal to 20 or higher, they notice that the wind isn’t just stronger on the hilltop, it’s increasing because bad weather is about to blow in. It would be best for the cats if they found shelter somewhere.

There really are only three options open to the cats—try to press on despite the weather (which they automatically do if they failed to notice the coming storm), seek shelter under the tall trees, or try to outrun the storm and get down into the valley.

What Happens Next: If the cats press on or head toward the valley, continue with 2.

If the cats decide not to seek shelter, continue with 8.

8. Shelter from the Wind

Read Aloud: “The sound of the wind and the bite of the blowing snow only increase as night falls. Huddling together for warmth, hopefully you can dream of a beautiful, warm newleaf.”

Narrator Tips: Briefly describe what it is like for the cats, as they lay on top of one another, like they did when they were kits. When the weather turns this bad, it’s the only thing you can do. And despite the terrible conditions, the familiarity of the situation provides a feeling of safety as they drift off to sleep.

Their dreams, however, are not of carefree days when they were kits. Instead, they each receive a message from StarClan. The details of each dream should be tailored to the individual cats—featuring cats and situations from their past (both past games, and the background story each player has created for his or her cat). This will require you, as Narrator, to improvise extensively but, since this is a dream, it also gives you the freedom to take a stronger hand in crafting the scene.

In dreams, things don’t always happen in the logical way they do in real life—you can move the players’ cats from place to place, or even time to time. You can make the situation as strange as you like, even put the cats in extremely dangerous situations since, no matter what happens, they will awake safe and sound when the dream is over.

Before beginning the dream, ask each player how many chips they have of each color. Although they may have to spend chips on actions in the dream, when they awaken they will get those chips back, plus the normal Healing a cat gets every morning. (See Chapter Five of the game rules.)

The dream should begin with a situation the cats know well, but someplace dangerous—perhaps a climactic scene from one of their previous adventures. Make them play through the scene as if it were real, except nothing they do succeeds, no matter what totals they achieve with their Checks. Things look bad for the cats, like they may actually fail or, worse, die. But just then, a bright light comes from behind them and the cats’ enemies disappear like fog in a strong wind.

When the cats turn around, they see a member of StarClan that has some personal significance to them. Different cats may see different members of StarClan, but they each receive the same basic message: The cats of StarClan know that leaf-bare has been long and difficult, but the Clan cats must see it as a test, which, if they pass, will leave them even stronger in the future. “The test,” the StarClan cat says, “is to find a green shoot in a white field and bring it back to your Clans. If you do this, newleaf will arrive before the next moon. If you fail, leaf-bare will continue for at least one moon more.”

The StarClan cat will be willing to answer a few questions from the players’ cats, but it cannot give any further instruction. (It can’t, for example, tell the cats where to find this green shoot.) It can, though, answer personal questions from the cats’ past, if you feel comfortable improvising such details.

When the dream ends, it ends abruptly—perhaps even in the middle of a sentence the StarClan cat is speaking—with all the players’ cats waking up at the exact same minute. This happens when the time feels right to you, as the Narrator. Don’t let this scene go on too long. Better to leave it with questions unanswered and mysteries still abounding.

Once the players’ cats are awake, they must decide what to do next. Will they continue to hunt for prey (and now a “green shoot”) here in the highlands, or has the dream made them think that the valley is a better place to look? Perhaps they think it’s worth climbing even higher up the hill to search for clues.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats want to keep searching where they are, continue with 16.

If the players’ cats want to go down to the valley and they have not yet encountered any foxes, continue with 4.

If the players’ cats want to go down to the valley and they have already encountered foxes during this adventure, continue with 10.

If the players’ cats want to climb higher on the hillside, continue with 15.

9. Fox Fight

Read Aloud: “Look out! Their teeth are small, but they’re sharp—and so are their claws!”

Narrator Tips: Foxes are wily opponents and this is going to be a tough fight. Make sure you’re as familiar as possible with the “Fighting” section in Chapter Five of the game rules before you begin. Remember that while you control the foxes that are fighting against the players’ cats, you are not trying to “beat” the players—your job, as Narrator, is to make your decisions based on the best interest of the story.

As you narrate this scene, do your best to make the foxes act cleverly, while being careful not to make them act like they know everything you do (because as Narrator you will hear all of the players’ cats’ plans ahead of time). A good method is to write down a list of simple actions the foxes will attempt—which cats they will focus on first, whether or not they will use teamwork, and how. Then, if you’re not sure what the foxes will do at a given moment, you can refer back to that list.

The foxes each have a Jump score of 10, a Pounce score of 7, a Swat score of 10, and a Bite score of 8. A fox has Ability chips just like the players’ cats do, and spends them in the same way. Each fox has 5 Strength chips, 8 Intelligence chips, and 7 Spirit chips. For the purposes of this fight, a fox is treated just the same as a player’s cat except that Narrator controls all its movements.

Each fox will fight until it loses half of its Health Chips. At that point, if there are more foxes in the fight than there are cats, the fox will continue fighting. Otherwise, it will flee. It is faster than the cats, so it can get away, but any cat that was fighting that fox can make one more attack before it gets away.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats run away, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 7.

If any of the players’ cats are knocked out, continue with 17.

If the players’ cats win the fight and chase away the foxes, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 6.

10. Sly Competition

Read Aloud: “Just beyond the snowdrift you catch a flash of brown fur. Peering carefully out, you see a fox. And then another!”

Narrator Tips: The cats are lucky in that they found the foxes rather than the other way around. If the foxes had snuck up on the players’ cats, the first sign of trouble would have been the beasts charging to attack.

The number of foxes present depends on the number of players in your game (not counting the Narrator). If there are between three and five players, there are two foxes. If there are six or more players, there are three foxes. If there are only one or two players, there are at first two foxes, but as the players’ cats watch, one of the pair runs off to hunt elsewhere, leaving just a single fox. Of course, one fox is nearly twice as big as a cat.

Armed with this information, the players’ cats must again make a decision about how to proceed. To make matters more interesting, tell them that the foxes are sniffing around what seem to be very fresh rabbit tracks.

If the players ask for more information about the foxes, feel free to give them any of the information that they could have gotten in scene 13. In addition, allow the group to choose one cat to make a See Check (that can make use of the Animal Lore or Alertness Knack). If the total for this Check is 7 or higher, the cat notices that the foxes look thin and hungry. The long leaf-bare has been even tougher on them than it’s been on the Clans.

In the end, the players’ cats have three choices: attack the foxes, leave the valley and go to the highlands, or try to sneak around the foxes and keep hunting in the valley.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats attack the foxes, continue with 9.

If the players’ cats go into the highlands, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 7.

If the cats try to sneak around the foxes, continue with 12.

11. Misleading Tracks

Read Aloud: “Finally! Tracks! Quick, follow them—but which ones?”

Narrator Tips: The trail the players’ cats are following intersects with a collection of tracks set in a small patch of ice. These are a mix of old and new tracks that were made on a warmer day and then frozen in place when night came and the temperature dropped again.

Mostly these appear to be rabbit tracks, but there are also squirrel, raccoon, and fox tracks. This must be a spot that different creatures pass on their way to and from different locations, because the tracks come in from various directions, mingle a bit in the center, and then head off in another wide variety of directions. Improvise a scene where the cats can investigate these tracks and try to figure out which tracks are most likely to lead them to prey animals now.

In order to figure out what set of tracks to follow, the cats should each make a Ponder Check (the Animal Lore Knack can be used with this attempt) and then add their totals together to get a group total to determine which tracks they chose.

What Happens Next: If the group total was 15 or higher, continue with 3.

If the group total was 14 or lower, continue with 5.

12. Outfoxing a Fox

Read Aloud: “Those foxes have such big ears! This isn’t going to be easy.”

Narrator Tips: Be sure to tell the players that this is a very difficult thing to do. The foxes are already on alert because they are hunting. The cats can see the foxes’ ears twitching to hear every sound and see their noses twitch as they sniff every wind for a new scent. It’s not too late for the players to choose a different course of action—heading to the highlands or attacking the foxes while they’re still unaware of the cats’ presence.

If the group wishes to attempt sneaking around the foxes, have the players’ cats make a Sneak Check (which can be aided by use of the Stalk Knack). Each cat must have a total of 9 or higher in order for this plan to work. If any of the cats has a total of 8 or lower, the foxes hear the group.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats would rather strike first and attack the foxes, continue with 9.

If the players’ cats would rather go into the highlands, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 7.

If the players’ cats successfully sneak around the foxes, continue with 6.

If the players’ cats are unsuccessful at sneaking around the foxes, continue with 9.

13. Warning Signs

Read Aloud: “As you pass through an area of deeper snow, the tracks become clearer—but that’s not necessarily a good thing.”

Narrator Tips: Deeper snow means clearer tracks, which allows the players’ cats to get a better idea who and what they’re following. Have the group choose one cat to make a See Check (which may use the Animal Lore Knack). If that Check has a total of 7 or less, the cat can’t tell what the tracks are. If the total is between 8 and 10, the cat can tell that there are rabbit tracks—and they were made today. If the total is 11 or higher, the cat can tell that there are fox tracks in the mix, too—and that the fox tracks are the freshest.

The players must now decide whether their cats are going to continue following these tracks—perhaps knowing that one or more foxes are on the trail, too—or if they are going to give up searching in the valley and instead head up to the highlands. This probably isn’t going to be an easy decision. Foxes are dangerous. Any cat with Animal Lore can inform the group that foxes are clever, fast, and tough. A single fox can sometimes defeat up to four warriors in a single fight.

On the other hand, the valley has had fairly abundant signs of life (in particular, rabbits). Going to the highlands might lead the cats away from the foxes, but it might also lead them away from the prey animals they are looking for.

Help the players through their discussion, making sure they consider their options and understand the potential consequences. When they’ve made their decision, continue below.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats decide to follow the tracks in the valley, continue with 10.

If the players’ cats decide to go into the highlands, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 7.

14. Snowbound

Read Aloud: “Cold. All you can think about is how cold it is. No matter how brave a warrior you are, you can’t fight the cold.”

Narrator Tips: If the adventure has reached this scene, it’s because one or more of the cats failed to escape a snowy danger—either an avalanche or a perilously deep snowfield. Being buried in snow is very disorienting. It’s dark, freezing, and in most cases difficult to even tell which way is up. It is hard to even move, let alone start digging yourself out of the predicament.

Improvise a very short scene based on the events as they played out in your game—let the players’ cats have that brief moment of absolute panic as they realize they are trapped and there is little or nothing they can do about it. Meanwhile, ask the other players what their cats are doing. The snow is now perfectly safe to walk on, so they would be in no additional danger if they try to dig their friends out—if they can find them!

Have the searching cats make a few rounds’ worth of appropriate Skill Checks (to dig, or hear the cries of their buried friends, or just remember where they were standing). Then, no matter what their totals, have them succeed in finding the buried cats. But these cats are no longer in any shape to continue the mission—they are cold through to the core, they may have broken bones, and they need some rest. The only real choice is to get them back to the Clan territories.

Hopefully, the other groups of warriors will be more successful. Or perhaps, once the wounded cats are healed, the group can go out and try again.

What Happens Next: The adventure is over. The players’ cats do not get any Experience rewards for this adventure. The players’ cats can, however, play the adventure again.

15. Climb Higher

Read Aloud: “The hill is steep, and the snow is lightly packed. Pretty soon you find yourself up to your nose in snow.”

Narrator Tips: Improvise a brief scene where the cats have to deal with traveling through snow that is deeper than they are tall. In order to move, they must leap out of the tiny “snow pit” they are in, and then immediately land in an identical situation.

This kind of travel is difficult. Ask each of the players how many Levels their cats have in the Jump Skill. Cats with 3 or more Levels can navigate this deep snow with no problem. Cats with 1 or 2 Levels can travel this way, but it’s exhausting—they lose 1 chip from fatigue. If any of the cats have 0 Levels in Jump, traveling like this takes them extra time and they lose 2 chips from fatigue, plus they automatically fail the Focus Check discussed below.

After two jumps, the players’ cats realize that because the snow is so lightly packed, jumping in it like this could shake the snow loose and cause it to slide down the hillside. If this possibility worries the cats, they can safely turn back and go lower on the hill (or even down to the valley). If they decide to proceed, have each cat make a Focus Check to try to jump carefully. If any of the cats have a total of 6 or lower, they have shaken the snowpack loose. If all the cats have totals of 7 or higher, they have successfully crossed the upper highlands.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats want to turn back and go to the part of the highlands they were in before, continue with 16.

If the players’ cats want to turn back and go to the valley and they have not yet encountered any foxes, continue with 4.

If the players’ cats want to turn back and go to the valley and they have already encountered foxes during this adventure, continue with 10.

If the players’ cats shake the snowpack loose, continue with 22.

If the players’ cats successfully cross the upper highlands, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 21.

16. Crossing the Deep

Read Aloud: “This is the deepest snow you’ve ever seen. You have to leap free of the snow even to move, but when you land you’re once again surrounded—and it doesn’t look well packed.”

Narrator Tips: As in scene 15, the cats have to travel through snow that is deeper than they are tall—only this time the snow is even deeper. Plus, it’s loosely packed, and threatens to collapse and bury them every time they land.

Have each cat make three Jump Checks (that can make use of the Dodge Knack) and add the three totals together. If a cat’s grand total is 14 or lower, that cat has been trapped in a collapsing snow tunnel. The cat has one last chance to escape—a single Strength Check. If the total of this check is 8 or higher, the cat escapes.

What Happens Next: If all the players’ cats get safely through or successfully escape the snowfield, this is the end of the chapter. Hand the adventure to the next Narrator and tell him or her to continue with 21.

If any of the players’ cats get trapped in the snowfield, continue with 14.

17. Outfoxed

Read Aloud: “The claws that scratch. The teeth that bite. Even a warrior has limits.”

Narrator Tips: If the adventure has reached this scene it is because one or more of the players’ cats has been knocked out while fighting with the foxes. Improvise a short scene where the other cats get their friend back to the safety of the Clan territories. Let the players decide how they will get their unconscious friend home.

It’s possible that the players may want to look for medicinal herbs and try to use those to heal their friend. With the Ponder Skill and the Herb Lore Knack, that is possible, but it’s very hard. A single cat must get a total of 20 or higher on the Check, and even that only brings the unconscious cat back to a single Health Chip. He or she still must go back home immediately to seek healing from a medicine cat.

When the cats get back, one of the Clan leaders will ask them what happened. Let the players tell their cats’ tale. The leader will be impressed by their bravery, even though their mission ended badly. The leader will tell the cats that they acted as true warriors should, and they should be proud of themselves. But the leader will look a little dejected because there still is nothing to eat and no clue as to when newleaf will come.

What Happens Next: The adventure is over. The players’ cats do not get any Experience rewards for this adventure. The players’ cats can, however, play the adventure again.

18. Follow the Hare

Read Aloud: “You round a snowbank and see the hare dashing across an open field. Suddenly it turns to the left, kicking up snow as it does and revealing a single, green shoot poking through from below.”

Narrator Tips: The cats must decide whether to follow the hare or dig up the shoot. Getting fresh-kill is important, but the Clan leaders also gave the cats a secondary mission to bring back any proof they can find that newleaf is coming soon (and cats who communicated with StarClan—from Scene 8—have an even clearer reason to do so). This shoot is the only green thing they’ve seen on the whole journey. The cats must choose which goal they will focus on, the hare or the shoot.

Ask the players what their cats want to do. If they want to follow the hare, improvise a brief chase scene with the hare getting farther and farther away each time it ducks around a snowbank. In fairly short order, it is gone entirely. If the cats then go back to the green shoot, they find only a rabbit-gnawed nub where the shoot once stood. The shoot is gone, and so is the chance to fulfill their secondary mission.

If the players want their cats to split up, with some of them following the hare and others trying to dig up the shoot, begin by following those chasing the hare. They have the same experience described above and will be gone long enough to miss the whole digging effort. By the time they get back, the situation will be resolved.

If all or some of the players’ cats ignore the hare and try to dig up the shoot, it will require a team effort to succeed. As simple as that task sounds, it is actually fairly challenging. The shoot is small, young, and fragile. Digging it up improperly could destroy it.

Have each cat make a Focus Check and add them together to get a group total. If that group total is equal to or higher than the total number of players (not including the Narrator) times four, the cats have successfully dug up the shoot. If not, they just bit (or clawed) off a small piece of the shoot. They can try again, but next time the group total must equal the total number of players (not including the Narrator) times five. The group can try a number of times equal to the number of cats making Focus Checks. So, if there are three cats adding to the group total, they may try three times. If they have not succeeded by that point, the shoot is ruined and the mission cannot be fulfilled.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats succeed at digging up the shoot, continue with 20.

If the players’ cats failed to dig up the shoot, they will find that a field full of normal rabbits is still gathered in a nearby field (though the snow hare will not be there). Continue with 19.

19. Fresh-Kill

Read Aloud: “The hunt is on!”

Narrator Tips: This scene begins as a great rabbit hunt. The players must come up with a strategy for hunting so that they can get as much fresh-kill as possible. There are a half dozen rabbits in the field digging in the snow looking for anything edible. They aren’t having much luck, and they are on high alert for predators.

Hunting a rabbit first requires a Sneak Check with a total of 7 (the Stalk Knack can be used with this Check). If that fails, the rabbit is aware of your presence. For every point that a cat’s total is below 7, another rabbit in addition to the target rabbit is aware of the cat’s presence. For example, if a player’s cat only managed a total of 4 on this Check, the target rabbit would know he or she was there, as would three other nearby rabbits (7–4 = 3). Once a rabbit knows there is a cat nearby, it immediately flees. On this snowy terrain, the rabbits are much faster than the players’ cats, so there is no hope of catching them.

If a cat successfully sneaks up on a rabbit, he or she must make a Pounce Check with a total of 6, and a Bite Check with a total of 5. If either of these Checks fails, the rabbit gets away. However, if both the Checks succeed, the rabbit is now fresh-kill that the cat can bring back at the end of the day.

Use the Hunting rules (found in Chapter Five of the game rules) to improvise a hunting scene based on the players’ cats plans. Remember that as soon as one of the cats goes on the attack, all of the rabbits will have a chance to notice and then try to escape with their lives. With such a complicated situation, including so many different cats and rabbits, it may fall on you, as Narrator, to improvise a lot more than usual. When doing so, remember that this is the end of an adventure where the players’ cats have faced great danger and come through like the heroic warriors they are. Plus, their opponents are only a group of half-starved rabbits, so it is a good rule of thumb to decide most questionable situations in the cats’ favor.

When the hunt is done, narrate a brief scene describing the players’ cats’ journey home, followed by a more detailed scene describing their reception. The fresh-kill they bring—spare as the meat is—goes to feed a great many hungry cats, and probably saves a few of them from joining StarClan.

The players’ cats are treated like heroes, and rightly so, but the truth is that they did not succeed in the task given to them by StarClan. They did not find the green shoot in a white field and bring it back to the Clans and, as the dream predicted, it is more than a moon later that leaf-bare finally loosens its grip. Don’t let this knowledge ruin their thoughts about their other success—this is, after all, a successful conclusion to the adventure. It’s just that there was an even better conclusion that could have been reached.

What Happens Next: The players’ cats have succeeded in getting fresh-kill for the hungry Clan cats. They have earned Experience but their victory is incomplete, and so are the rewards that they can collect. See the “After the Adventure” section for details.

20. Shooting the Moon

Read Aloud: “With a pop, the shoot comes loose from the frozen ground and lays on the snow in front of you.”

Narrator Tips: The players’ cats have succeeded in fulfilling this part of their mission. Nothing happens immediately, though. They simply have a green shoot to carry with them back to the Clan lands. But the cats back there are still hungry. If the players ask what happened to the field full of rabbits, tell them that their cats must go back and look. If they do, they will find that the rabbits are there (although the snow hare no longer is). Let the cats hunt the rabbits, as described in Scene 19, but give each cat 5 bonus points they can spend on any Checks they want to during the hunt. (These points can be spent the same way that Ability chips are, and they always count as the right color chip for the action being taken.)

If the players do not think to ask about the rabbits, have them stumble across the field by accident as they start their journey home. Let them hunt as described above except that they do not get the bonus points.

If the players’ cats had an earlier conversation with StarClan, on the first night of their journey home, they get another message in their dreams. In that dream, the same member of StarClan who spoke to the cat before appears and tells him or her what a good job the group has done. “When you deliver the shoot to the Clan leaders, give them this message: The warrior code is meant to bind the Clans together, but too often it is used as a reason for them to fight. As the moons pass, remember how much more you can accomplish when you work together. The Clans must all cooperate if any of them are going to survive.”

When the players’ cats return, bearing fresh-kill and the green shoot, they are treated as heroes. And when the Clan leaders hear what StarClan said, they all look a little shaken—but they promise to think about those words of wisdom and use them in the future.

If the cats come back with the shoot, but with no fresh-kill, their greeting is much less warm. Completing a mission from StarClan is certainly a good thing, but the Clan cats need food! The Clan leaders will listen to the message that StarClan sent, but will not be as receptive as described above. Their attitude will be one of disappointment that their Clanmates must suffer for such a simpleminded message.

Either way, true to StarClan’s word, signs of newleaf begin to appear everywhere. Trees bud, prey animals come out of their leaf-bare slumbers, and the snow begins to melt. Well before the end of one moon, newleaf is in full bloom and the Clan cats are all on their way to regaining their strength and returning to life as normal.

What Happens Next: The players’ cats have succeeded in getting fresh-kill for the hungry cats from all Clans, and they have fulfilled StarClan’s mission. They truly have earned the Experience rewards that await them. See the “After the Adventure” section below for details.

21. Rabbit Run

Read Aloud: “At first you think the cold must be getting to you—the snowy field ahead seems more brown than white. Then you realize it’s not brown snow, it’s brown rabbits—a field full of them!”

Narrator Tips: After a long, dangerous, and very uncomfortable hunt, the players’ cats have found just what the Clan Leaders sent them to find—a glen full of prey animals to be hunted and brought back as fresh-kill. In truth this is just a half dozen or so rabbits that have woken up from hibernation thin and hungry. But for a cat that hasn’t seen a live prey animal in nearly a moon, they would seem like a sumptuous feast.

Describe the scene in such a way that the players understand what a bounty they have found, and ask them how they are going to go about hunting the rabbits. While they are talking that over, have all of the cats make a See Check (to which the Alertness Knack may be applied). Any cat whose total is 10 or higher sees a strange sight. (This is crucial to the adventure, so if none of the cats have a total higher than 10, then the cat who got the highest total sees it instead.)

At the far end of the glen stands a single strong and healthy snow hare—its pure, white fur practically sparkling in the sunlight. Unlike the other rabbits, it does not look haggard and timid. It is strong, with lots of meat on its bones, and sits up proudly and defiantly. It stares directly at the players’ cats with a strange glint in its eyes.

Have all the cats make a See Check. Anyone who has a total of 8 or higher notices that the glint was actually the image of a plant shoot sprouting up through the snow—defying the cold leaf-bare wind in the same way the hare seems to be defying the cats themselves.

Then the snow hare suddenly spins and runs away, disappearing behind a snowdrift.

The cats must make a split-second decision—will they stay here and hunt the rabbits or chase after the snow hare and risk scaring away the rabbits as they do?

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats want to stay here and hunt rabbits, continue with 19.

If the players’ cats want to follow the snow hare, continue with 18.

22. Avalanche!

Read Aloud: “You hear a sound like a thick tree branch snapping, and suddenly the top layer of snow on the hillside begins to slide down toward the valley—taking you with it!”

Narrator Tips: The players’ cats have inadvertently caused an avalanche, and they are standing right in the middle of it. Suddenly the world around them disappears and they are tumbling down the hill completely surrounded by flowing powder. It’s dark, cold, and hard to breathe. Ask the players what their cats are going to do to try to save themselves.

The best answer is for the cats to try to swim the way they would in a river. If the players come up with that answer on their own, give all of the cats a +2 bonus on the Swim Check. If they don’t think of it, or if they seem to think a different solution is better, allow all of the cats to make a Ponder Check. If the total is 5 or higher, they know that swimming is the best solution (but they no longer get a bonus to the Check). If the Ponder Check has a total of 8 or higher, they know that no action other than swimming has any chance of success.

In the end, the cats can take any actions they prefer. If they get a total of 7 or higher on a Swim Check, they get out of the avalanche safely. Any cat that gets a total of 6 or lower, or tries any action other than swimming, is automatically buried by the avalanche.

What Happens Next: If the players’ cats all escape the avalanche, continue with 16.

If any of the players’ cats are buried by the avalanche, continue with 14.

After the Adventure

After the last scene of the adventure has been played, the game itself is not necessarily over. There still are a few things you can do if the players want to keep at it.

Play It Again

If the players’ cats made a quick path through the adventure, or if they failed in either or both of their missions, you may want to go back and play again so that the group can explore all of the options the adventure contains. Or perhaps you just want to go back and pick up the adventure again somewhere in the middle where it feels like things went wrong. In either case, your cat would be right back where he or she was and have another chance to find a more favorable outcome.

One of the great things about storytelling games is that you can always tell the story again. And, since there are many different ways to approach their goals, the story could unwind in a different way every time you play (particularly as different Narrators get to guide the storyline).

Experience

If the cats completed the adventure successfully, then they all get Experience rewards. There are two different sets of experience for this adventure, though—one for coming back with fresh-kill and the other for retrieving the green shoot. It is important to note, though, that each cat can only get each of these Experience rewards once! If you play through and successfully finish that section of the adventure several times, your cat only gains the rewards listed below after first time he or she does so.

If you use different cats each time, though, each one can get the Experience rewards. The rule is not that a player can only get experience once; it’s that a cat can.

Bringing Fresh-Kill

If the players’ cats brought fresh-kill back for the hungry Clan cats, they get the following rewards:

Age: Although all the action in this adventure happens over the course of just a few days, the presumption is that this is the most interesting and exciting thing that happens to your cat during the whole of that moon. Increase your cat’s age by 1 moon and make any appropriate improvements described in Chapter Four of the game rules.

Skill: On top of the improvements your cat gets from aging, he or she also can gain 1 level in two of the following skills: Focus, Jump, Ponder, or See.

Retrieving the Green Shoot

If the players’ cats retrieved the green shoot and brought it back to the Clan leaders, they get the following rewards:

Spirit: On top of the improvements your cat gets from aging, he or she also increases his or her Spirit Ability Score by 1.

Knack: On top of the improvements your cat gets from aging, he or she also gains 1 level of the Animal Lore or Interpret Dreams Knack.

More adventures can be found at the back of each novel in the Omen of the Stars series, and you can find extra information at www.warriorcats.com.