A ClanGen blog following the plight of LutumClan. Death and sadness in MY local clan? Surely not, now let's get silly! Though, watch out for horror of the bodily and psychological variety! And remember, there's something underneath the ground.
Hello! I am Mourningsbane, and this blog follows the plight of LutumClan from a horror-themed ClanGen game! I'm making this a tad late, but here it is now! :D
To see LutumClan moons, go to #clanmoons
To see ANY lore posts, including moons and asks, go to #LutumLore or here!
To see JUST asks, go to #ask
To see fanart, go to #fanart or here!
To see references for the main cats of LutumClan, go here! For Honeyspring in particular, go here!
To see allegiances, go here!
To see ALL the posts on this blog in chronological order, go here!
literally came back to Tumblr after over a decade because I discovered @mourningsbane and wanted to share this funky drawing I did of Honeyspring :D I had a lot of fun drawing this because horror art makes me happy
also here's the sketches that led up to this in chronological order
also also I read the entire blog the night before classes started so all of the sketches were done during syllabus overviews LMAO
WOAHH!! This is absolutely phenomenal work! The "As Above, So Below" is a nice touch, and I especially love the dichotomy between Pre-Death and Post-Death Honeyspring! Your depiction is deliciously tragic, and seeing Honeyspring claw for her kits is heartbreaking.
You've also done a stunning job drawing both Honeyspring and her kits! Honeyspring is a character not often viewed from the side (it's typically not her most flattering angle), but you've managed to nail it! Excellent work, and thank you very much! <3
@mourningsbane ‘s Honeyspring from their clangen inspired comic! I reread it today to catch up so figured I’d give the main lady herself a shot! Lowkey always wanted to draw her ever since discovering the comic but only got to it now haha! Tried to make her neck look more twisted and her back more broken but idk if it looks good haha
This looks absolutely gorgeous, and I love all the detail you put into her face and fur! I am especially charmed by the way you drew her ears and neck; very crooked and spooky! Your line-art is also very clean and sharp. It's very lovely to look at! You did an excellent job with them, thank you very much!
This is so cute!! Honeyspring with her bow; she's always wanted one! The green looks very lovely with her palette, and I love that you kept her spooky, stretched out mouth and face! She's just a silly stray, nothing wrong here!
In seriousness, thank you so much! Your line-art is particularly striking to me, I always enjoy a pixelated pen, and seeing Honeyspring loaf is adorable! <3
Sweetkit slowly stirs awake, dried grass and moss crinkling as she moves. Tanglefern looms over her, eyes wide and twinkling.
"What were you and Bearface thinking, being out so long?" He scolds, tail lashing with worry. "You're lucky the patrol found you when they did, or you both could have roasted."
"Ain't 'er fault, Tanglefern." Another voice huffs. "I led 'er out there."
Tanglefern's head tilts to the occupied nest across the burrow, and Sweetkit idly follows his gaze. When her eyes land on Bearface—a thin strip of moss wrapped around his paws, but alive, indisputably alive—she can't quite suppress the excited squeak that escapes her. She quickly hops to her feet, but Tanglefern pushes her back to her bedding with a deft paw.
"I can't let you go quite yet, Sweetkit." Tanglefern tells her, readjusting her messy bedding into something more presentable and sanitary. "Cougargleam and Coniferstripe found you both out cold at the border, and I can't let either of you wander off unless I'm certain you're in good health. No mistakes."
Sweetkit lets out a pitiful sputter, and flops back onto the moss bed.
Well, it could be worse. It looks like Miss Molly was at least nice enough to bring them back to camp!
i just wanted to say i'm glad to see you back and i'm so excited to see you continue The Adventures of Honeyspring !!! you were one of (if not the first, actually) clangen/wc comics i actually got into after discovering the game itself :) (also your artstyle is genuinely one of my favorites ever)
(also, do you have a favorite cat breed/coat pattern in game or irl?)
You're very sweet! Thank you kindly! <3
It's very flattering that LutumClan was one of the first ClanGen comics you got into, especially given the sheer amount of gobsmacking, amazing ClanGen comics out there! I can only hope that LutumClan manages to be half as cool! I'm very happy that you find my art appealing. I'm not the greatest at drawing cats, so it's nice to know I haven't fumbled with my felines! :D
As for cats, it's difficult to say my favorite coat pattern, but I am fond of tortoiseshell cats!
theory theory theory theory theory (more like observations, really) theory:
Firstly, we know Honeyspring was very desperate to have kits, not just because of her desire to become a mother but also due to their bloodline having trouble with conceiving and futility, plus possible expectations and pressures to have children caused by the declining birth rates of Lutumclan. iirc, Honeyspring is a cat that would do anything to achieve their goals.
Then, there's this post about how Honeyspring figured out Tanglefern poisoned them. Honeyspring claims Starclan told her about it, but the quotation marks in the tags are definitely sus as hell (pun intended), adding on the fact that sc cannot see Lutumclan, Honeyspring had been interacting with an entity that probably isn't Starclan. (interesting enough, Honeyspring refers to Starclan without the quotation marks. Perhaps it's to deceive or maybe a sign of ignorance)
Finally, there's the fact that Honeyspring's kits lack a father/sire (presumably a biological one, and not in reference to her sapphic relationship).
In conclusion, in order to get the family she always wanted, Honeyspring tried everything to have kits, but nothing sticks. Perhaps she seeked them out herself, or perhaps they were drawn to her desperation, an entity that isn't Starclan (probably the Dark Forest) made a deal with her, and granted Honeyspring their kits, but due to this Honeyspring was barred from stepping foot into Starclan, and in a kinda monkey's paw-ish way, the kits all had some type of birth defects (even without the mourningsbane poison).
tldr: Honeyspring made a deal with demon for babies.
That’s a very interesting theory you’ve crafted! Color me very impressed!
I can’t say too much due to Spoilers™, but I’d say you’re on track to something! How desperate do you think Honeyspring was? I think they would have done anything.
I scared myself by going through this blog for the first time at 1am TT praying I don’t have any nightmares!
Did we ever learn how Honeyspring got their leg injury? It’s fascinating to me how it all seems so avoidable, just bad luck, and yet… how would she have been if she had lived to birth her kits? I can’t even imagine the grief.
What was her relationship like with Tanglefern before the whole ordeal? Their hatred for him seems so simple and clear. Was it enough to fully uproot any positive feelings she may have had about him, or do memories of the past still linger?
Lastly, are the kits meant to be a ‘see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil’ kind of thing? Smallkit with cyclopia, Flailkit with the constant wailing, and Palekit with the mouth?
I absolutely adore this comic already and I’m so excited to see what happens next!!!
With gentle paws, Tanglefern crushes the Clottingroot into a fine powder, dusting it onto a soft pad of moss before wrapping it around his clanmate's injured leg.
"There!" He exclaims softly, eyes narrowing as he quickly reviews his work. "You're practically good as new! Give it a few days, and you'll be fitter than a newleaf mouse."
Talk about an absolute masterpiece; I am immensely impressed! There's so much attention and detail that I can't help but gush at it! The Mourningsbane framing the center, the censor over the faces, the smear of blood leading to Honeyspring and their kits, Sweetkit looming at the top, chef's kiss! The color palette is also very lovely! You have an excellent understanding of color theory! <3
What inspired you to/why did you go the "analog horror stretchy face" route for Honeyspring?
Part of the reason was because I am a big fan of analog horror-type expressions! They straddle the line of being off-putting and goofy, which I find very fun!
Another reason is because, when I was first beginning to make this comic, I quickly realized that the designs would need to be somewhat simple (since I’d have to redraw them very often)!
But, I wanted Honeyspring to still outwardly stand out. I did originally plan a more zombie-like design for Honeyspring, but it would’ve added more complexity to their design, and given them a mindless, feral-looking appearance, which wasn’t my intention. I think the drooping, stretched face still gives them a fish-eyed, dead appearance while maintaining a level of intelligence! <3
Thinking of the alternate reality where Tangle goes to Stagnum clan and gets the cure. Oh how lovely it would've been. But we must wake up. Things are not good, not even okay. But it's reality and we must make it our own.
It certainly is interesting to think about! Things really could’ve been different if only things had gone slightly better, but choices made cannot be undone, only lived with.
Though, if people are genuinely interested in seeing snippets of what could’ve been, if only in passing dreams, then I’ll happily oblige! One must imagine Honeyspring happy </3
waowie waow!!! itsa spooky!!! I love the horror community for Clangen and how much a bit of spooky material seems to blend so well with Clangen webcomics. There’s a lotta creativity and inspiration in a wide variety of blogs you can find for this fandom, and I’m always excited to see what people are cooking up, so here’s a little dedication/tribute to that and all the Clangen creators out there that use a little gotta spooks or mystery in their comics <3
We have, in order:
Rootgrove from @forestclan-clangen
Honeyspring from @mourningsbane
Wishpaw from @abstraction-clangen (note: I have no idea if the creator of abstraction Clangen considers their work to be like,,a spooky or a horror comic but. it is at least an arg and has a cool funky mystery going on, and I’ll be honest I did just want an excuse to draw Wishpaw lmao. I was mainly just very excited to get to draw the funky feller in any context, so they’re here anyway regardless lol)
Thank you kindly!! Your artwork is absolutely lovely! I, too, love seeing all the spooky ClanGen blogs out there! It feeds my insatiable need for horror, and it's an honor to see Honeyspring counted as among the spooky gang <3
i need you to know that for the last 30 minutes of the poll I kept nervously refreshing it every 5 minutes that shit was nerve-wracking I am STILL scared actually
I was very surprised to see how close the results were! There's usually a clear answer, but this one had me on the edge of my seat! It was especially nerve-wracking given that one of the offered options had a not-so-pleasant outcome.
Either way, once again the gears have shifted! Let's see what happens next!
Hiiii I just stumbled onto your page today and immediately consumed everything you’ve posted so far. I’m invested already and I especially Honeyspring and the contrast between her horrifying appearance and her sad story which makes you feel sympathy for her. I have some (read: a fair amount of) questions!! Feel free to answer. Any of them you want to. Or don’t lol I don’t know /lh
Does Honeyspring hate Tanglefern? Does she hate him for his mistake, or for not owning up to it? Does she hate him for burying her kits so far away? I know you mentioned that all of her kits were born with birth defects. Was this because of a genetic thing, like how one of her parents (I think) was infertile? Like the gene that caused it expressing itself differently, maybe. Or was it due to the way she got pregnant? (referring to the Secrets post) Or maybe because of the Morningsbane poisoning causing the kits to not develop properly? Why can’t Honeyspring speak? Is it because of the degradation of her body/the bone rot? Also, are any of the other clans cut off from Starclan like Lutumclan is? If so, have they noticed? Are the non-Lutumclan cats in Starclan concerned about how Lutumclan is cut off? Are they worried the other clans will become cut off too? Why are they so few cats in Lutumclan? I know you said the birth rate was decreasing, but is there a specific reason why? At gatherings, do the other clans notice something is off? Have any of the other clans had a cat travel to Lutumclan’s land and notice something’s off, (like to ask for herbs, to negotiate with the leader, etc) or does Rootstar usually insist on the other clans’ territory rather than Lutumclan’s? Are there any loners/rogues/kittypets that have seen Honeyspring or the weird prey, or do they typically steer clear of Lutumclan’s territory because they know it’s weird? Okay I think I’ve run out of questions thank youuuu have a good day/night/evening!!!
Thank you very much! I am glad that Honeyspring can still invoke sympathy, even if her appearance is...less than conventional! I think there's a certain tragedy to them.
And I do not mind long asks or questions, I like to receive them! I will put my answers under the cut so that they do not take up too much space. <3
Does Honeyspring hate Tanglefern? Does she hate him for his mistake, or for not owning up to it? Does she hate him for burying her kits so far away?
Honeyspring hates Tanglefern for taking away everything that was supposed to be theirs. So much going for them, and suddenly it was gone through no fault of hers. To make matters worse, he's a coward.
While Tanglefern agreed to bury Honeyspring's kits far away, it was ultimately Rootstar's decision.
I know you mentioned that all of her kits were born with birth defects. Was this because of a genetic thing, like how one of her parents (I think) was infertile? Like the gene that caused it expressing itself differently, maybe. Or was it due to the way she got pregnant? (referring to the Secrets post) Or maybe because of the Morningsbane poisoning causing the kits to not develop properly?
████.
Why can’t Honeyspring speak? Is it because of the degradation of her body/the bone rot?
Honeyspring can speak, it's just a little difficult to understand them! It takes a very special ear.
Also, are any of the other clans cut off from Starclan like Lutumclan is? If so, have they noticed? Are the non-Lutumclan cats in Starclan concerned about how Lutumclan is cut off? Are they worried the other clans will become cut off too?
The other clans have noticed LutumClan's sudden isolation from them, but they do not know the reason! To them, LutumClan just closed themselves off out of nowhere. The other clan's connections to StarClan seem to be just fine.
Why are there so few cats in Lutumclan? I know you said the birth rate was decreasing, but is there a specific reason why?
LutumClan is a relatively new clan that sprung up only a few generations ago! Their numbers were already small, but when first settling in the plains and building burrows, they failed to account for heavy rain; many of the burrows flooded, and most of LutumClan's original population drowned. LutumClan refers to it as The Flood.
At gatherings, do the other clans notice something is off? Have any of the other clans had a cat travel to Lutumclan’s land and notice something’s off, (like to ask for herbs, to negotiate with the leader, etc), or does Rootstar usually insist on the other clans’ territory rather than Lutumclan’s?
The clans have not had a gathering since Honeyspring's death. It's the longest the clans have gone without one, and many are getting antsy. Rootstar cannot put them off for much longer.
TonitrumClan, a close neighbor of LutumClan, has noticed their sudden isolation and is sending a warrior to check on them.
Are there any loners/rogues/kittypets that have seen Honeyspring or the weird prey, or do they typically steer clear of Lutumclan’s territory because they know it’s weird?
LutumClan's territory smells sour and cloying, like damp earth and wet flower petals. It's noticeable to anyone not accustomed to the smell. Strangers wandering the territory think it best to go around now; the prey is diseased, and something is wrong.
