A WIP Warriors rewrite focused on anthropological aspects of the modern Forest Colonies. War, ancient stories, cultural differences and all.
Planned to be a mix of the genres; Alternative History, Bildungsroman, Folklore, Military Fiction, Political Drama, and Religious. At least, for the first arc.
It seems Rusty has stumbled onto a history-rich group of forest cats that are in desperate need of more helping paws around their camp. However, when the neighboring monarchy, feudal democracy, and democratic-republic threaten change to his newfound family's view on life he must sharpen his claws and his mind. Even, if he doesn't want to. Now Firepaw, he and the friends he makes in his new colony must learn about the blood that's been shed throughout these colonies' war-torn history to make sure this generation of soldiers and warriors doesn't repeat atrocities already committed and destroy all that the settlements have known for generations...
What happens when Firepaw realizes when cats he thought were his friends aren't who they say they are? What happens when he has to watch cats younger than him die for a cause that doesn't make sense to him? What about the social gap clearly between the Nurses and Soldiers, where colony loyalties are greyed and frayed? Littlepaw, a Shadow's Colony apprentice, speaks of the stars and their sins committed against their "god-king". Shadepaw, a River's Colony apprentice, seems to have it out for him. Why is Thunder's Colony fighting over a rubble so far from their territory anyway? When it only produces young to kill each other, and old to watch their sons and daughters die? Why are there no Wind's Colony apprentices when the annual peacetime treaty comes around for information trading and alliance building? Why is there so many wars when they all are coated in the same fur and breathe the same air?
STILL A WORK IN PROGRESS!!
An alternative universe Warriors world set in Northern America where Rusty, a farm cat who's soon to be headed for the vet and possibly adopted out of the farm, comes to realize the wildcats he heard all about from his father are falling into a stagnant rut of repeating their bleeding history again, and again, and again. Littlepaw, Shadepaw, and a nameless Wind's Colony kitten all strive just like Rusty does to uphold their and their colonies belief's, even if death is their reward. With all the past and current mysteries surrounding these colonies, will Rusty be eaten up by a mob mentality that Shadepaw's being corroded by and follow all orders in war no matter the cost? Or, will he break free of the traditions set by centuries of leaders fighting for all the wrong battles like Littlepaw, who finds the beauty in a life deadset on his death? What's life in Wind's Colony to him, if not to live for his Commander and sharpen his tongue to use against any cat threatening his way of life? He will sharpen his claws. They all will. Even against their own.
Stories may be warped due to time or which colony tells it... Be cautious of what is taken at face value or truth. Remember, winners write history, while the losers take the downfall.
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This section is under construction, and will include a list of tags regarding eras or characters.
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This AU has been in the works officially since the Fall season of 2024. It was inspired by the unknown knowledge of the time between the Dawn of The Clans to StormClan's Folly in canon Warriors and my college studies for an Anthropology degree. Not everything is set and stone and things are subject to change as it is explored.
Prefixes used will be mainly based off of North-American-Warrior's mastersheet, however some may come from redux-iterum's list.
Suffixes used are primarily based off of redux-iterum's list, however more suffixes will be featured regarding specific talents, personalities, and cultural differences within the colonies.
I am doing this alone and I'm not able to give my full attention to these stories (nor do I really want to). I will do this in my free time when I feel like adding to it, as if I force anything, things will become sloppy. Expect jumps in time where this page is silent on extended lore, but I will do my best to answer every ask sent in! (Unless it's something I either don't have much knowledge in yet OR it relates to something of a spoiler...)
Something something, subtle genius in displacing the Dawn of the Clans cast to North America aligning eerily well with the Native American's and their prefix-suffix story naming system (Gray Wing or Clear Sky) not being all that alien from Spotted Eagle and Black Crow (translated names from a real story from the White River Sioux).
What if the events of the DoTC cast occurred... Alongside Rock and Jay's Wing's era... And, better yet, it was during... The 1600's... When, you know, the British, French and Spanish were GUNNING for the Americas?
Something something, fur pelt traders, oh no meow meow drama... Homes being destroyed and needing to move because of these clothed humans...
Can you blame me? There's just so many variations and just enough leeway with the canon timeline of who could be whose child/parents and while I hate that Mapleshade's Vengeance has like 7 viable cats that's the thread of the already crumbling bridge between StormClan's Folly and Pinestar's Choice, it just tickles my brain a little.
Even stepping away from the tree for a moment, this point in time with like, what 5 warriors or whatever, could be interpreted as a few moons after StormClan and whoopdeedo, a bunch of cats left (cough, Fernwhisper and Huntheart), so we're kinda in a small decreasing population, we're dying out and- oh! Let's just invite in rogues and kittens we don't know the history of yada yada. Now we have Rockpaw, Littlepaw, Flashpaw and Daisypaw and just a missing generation of cats.
The correct answer is that the Hunter team only put in the cats Mapleshade interacted with, and I'm choosing this option because StormClan is getting a different translation where either Stripestink or Galefart is not leader and yada yada spoilers that are second arc important.
I yearn to make Lionheart and Speckletail siblings, but Frostfur is a Snow-Thistle kit so the age gap would be too wide. Even if Frostfur were a Storm-Dapple kit (which I have debated. A lot. A bunch. I salivate at the idea... Hm.)
Darkstripe continues to be a pain in the rear, I might just neuter this screwball (I can't, I need his genes) and kick him to a crazy cat ladies house (I can't, I need his genes).
The only thing messier than this family business is the political drama. I swear, it'll be juicy. To tie you over, Thunder's Colony will be getting a Thanksgiving equivalent holiday to celebrate the peace treaty made with some pampas cats that they've since intermarried with and hey, Thunder's Colony is a heap of Pampas-Domestic hybrids, isn't that cool? Right American Government? Isn't that...? What are you doing? DON'T SEND THE POOCHES-
The Redsiblings demanded to be designed and given thought to their stories! Redtail, while an amazing second-in-command (or a Headchaser, in Thunder’s Colony terms), is also an amazing father! Depsite the hardships of being a single father, having lost his mate, Dotterelcloud AND his youngest Sprucekit, he’s raised his kits pretty darn well! They get along too! Mostly… But hey, they keep out of enough trouble that Redtail knows Dotterelcloud is proud.
I had a lot of fun thinking up designs for these quadruplets, but I think Sprucekit (who is Chestnutkit in canon) is my favorite. I hate doing stripes of any kind (especially mackerel…), but I think the three with stripes all turned out okay for test designs.
First, Ravenpaw, the older and tallest of the Clouds (Thunder’s Colony apprentices) is a solid black cat with the tiniest bits of white. He’s on the shy side, more emulating his mother while he is built more like Redtail. He never really was the same noisy kit after his mother and brothers death, but he’s trying, and Redtail appreciates his effort. A perfect mix of both, and an even perfect-er son!
Sandpaw, the second oldest, and second tallest of the Clouds is a cream-and-fawn tortie, with underlying broken mackerel stripes and a little bit of white. She often has begun to lash out, and Redtail hopes that isn’t because of losing her mother and brother at such a young age. She’s… Out there, Redtail would say, but he loves her all the same. She’s loyal and proud to be of Thunder’s Colony. The great makings of a Stormchaser (a Thunder’s Colony warrior), and maybe even a commander if Redtail had to wonder.
Cherrypaw, the third of the litter, and fourth tallest Cloud, is a bicolor red-and-white tabby with classic stripes. She’s the mediator between Ravenpaw and Sandpaw, or pretty much any cat in the colony and Sandpaw. She’s slow-going and joyful, always willing to sit and listen to others’ issues. Redtail loves her to death, but can’t help but worry over whether or not she fully took the time to grieve her mother and brothers deaths.
Sprucekit, the youngest, was also the smallest kit in the nursery (Dotterelcloud joked that he almost broke Darkstripe’s tiny record, Darkstripe didn’t appreciate the joke), is a dull, red classic tabby. He and Ravenkit always got along best, but sometimes he could be a bit rough during play time. Redtail wonders what kind of cat he would have been, had he survived the sickness that took his mother just before him… He misses Sprucekit dearly.
and yes, there is a little Firepaw and Graykit. They don’t have official designs yet, despite them having their genetic code done. They’re the colors recognizable to them, so enjoy the sillies!
The modern Colonies moodboards I made on the fly while I was making their pinterest boards to keep in line with my AU colonies' vibes. I wonder which is which. All photo's (and more of 'em) can be found here.
Some changes have been made to their territories and specific known landmarks compared to the original series (besides the switch I made of settling them in Northern America).
Thunder's Colony lives in a mountain range, definitely not as big as the Appalachians, but to little ol' kitties it may as well be. A dense forest of old, moss-covered trees surrounds them, blocking out any sound from the neighboring thunderpath. They often find themselves in their free time strolling their mountain caverns that connect them not just to their ancestors stories, but also to a strange glowing stone that seems like it's been blessed by The Great Lion Himself... They still have the Great Sycamore to teach their young to climb, and the Owl Tree that also borders Shadow's Colony as a warning to the young to be on their bestest behavior, lest the creature swoops down and takes their most prized possession away. Snakerocks, also along the border of Shadow's Colony, is dared by only the unruliest of apprentices or the bravest of soldiers for prey. Especially following the harsher leafbares.
Shadow's Colony lives in what used to also be a plentiful forest, although their trees much more skinnier than Thunder's Colony. After a strange fire ravaged through their once shaded and deep green swamp a couple of generations ago, prey has been scarce. Trees are now petrified, ghostly grey bark scaling up the leftover wood and forever looming over these cats with their dangling branches that seem like they'd fall any moment to impale a cat. Some Shadow's Colony cats would say it's a good omen from their previous Commanders, blessing them with a forest to match the Lightning Tree that represents Shadow's Colony at the Gathering Trees. Other's are opposed to this interpretation, as the suspected reason the Lightning Tree was stuck was due to insubordination of one of their high ranking families against the Shadow family. The Stargazer's have kept silent on the ordeal, but still continue to visit a star-filled pool deep within the territory to read the stars for what their ancestors may foretell. A twoleg campsite lives not too far from the colony's territory, and reluctantly, cats are fed from kind twoleg kits during Greenleaf.
River's Colony is known for being the most friendliest towards outsiders out of all the colonies. It helps that they're neighbors to the barn, which houses a plethora of barn cats. They are also the most separated from the other colonies, being on a peninsula on the other side of the afore mentioned thunderpath. River's Colony, despite all the rumors you may hear from the other three colonies, do not live with the kittypets and loners at the barn. While it is common for she-cats to get sire's for their kittens there, or for disabled elders to retire there and live the rest of their life without having to worry about another battle (although, it is awfully loud when one does wake up from a night terror), they live in a man-made forest of willows, each and every one scratched into with stories of the cats below, feeding the tree to keep the colony sheltered from storms. While River's Colony cats don't have a specific belief system, they do take the time to visit an isle on the other side of the farm they neighbor, which they believe their Commander and Nurse communicate with higher forces. They often train their young either in the Sandy Hollow, a sandy hollow closer to the Wind's Colony cats, or the Rocky Shores, which neighbors Sunningrocks. They currently own Sunningrocks, however Thunder's Colony has been real antsy as of late.
Wind's Colony is, of course, a field with random patches of wildflowers, burrows for prey like mice, rabbits or the odd groundhog, and some rocks. Two of which are specially named and are reminders to young soldiers to refrain from inciting a war over loving cats not of their own colony. The name's for the rocks often change throughout the generations, depending on the specific cat that undermined orders. Recently, however, the rock over looking Shadow's Colony has been named "Dandelion's Sorrow", and the rock overlooking River's Colony has been dubbed "Buzzard's Reach". The colony's territory has many old trenches from previous wars with the other colonies, but due Shadow's Colony cats falling into them and perishing during the fire that ate away their territory's vegetation generations ago, they were forced to fill them. No worries, they have their tunnel network underneath the lands, connecting them curiously close to each of their neighbors... Their campsite is in a dried up riverbed, and they live to the left of a gorge that slowly levels out as it gets to a thunderpath crossing over from the three connected territories over to the barn and farmland. Elderly cats often get the choice of living in the gorge or in the barn, and most that either were consistent tunnelers in life or have an aversion to twolegs, outsiders, or even River's Colony often choose to live out the rest of their days in the gorge.
I would like to preface not everything map-wise is thought out yet (especially in WindClan territory, I'd like to give them more landmarks above ground), but for right now, it's enough info to set the themes for the colonies. I do have a map and a specific real-life place I've set these little buggers in (with many changes to either landscape or the additions of caves or human settlements) but it's more like canon's "based by Stonehill Farm in New Forest UK and oh hey there's a lake with a little island in the middle!! But no mountains!!" kinda deal. Anyway, I'm hoping by December I'll have most of the colonies different cultures and some stories between all of them down (and at least 1/3 or even half of the history of different leaders down, there's many I have to add to fill in at least 200 years of history...) Maybe I'll do something regarding Rusty and the other apprentices we'll get to know throughout Brokentail Shadow's tyranny. Or, perhaps on the different fighting/warfare styles the colonies have to win battles. Who knows.
Ok then what about Tigerclaw? Is he now an only child?
As of this moment, yes! I don't see any reasons for him not to be, and I think it'd be even more melancholic for Pinestar (who would be Pine Thunder, now that I think about it) to leave his one and only child.
Could it change in the future where he does have siblings? Maybe, I can't see them going past apprenticehood, but unless the story calls for them, he'll be a lone kit. For now, the only important thing is for him being alive and Pine Thunder being his father.
Yay another au/rewrite I am collecting them like Pokémon!
So who’s Tigerclaw’s family? Are him and Darkstripe now brothers?
I imagine my au's typing would be dark/fighting, although I've never personally gotten into either the digital nor traditional card games. I did watch the earlier animes though.
Tigerclaw and Darkstripe are not brothers in this au, I've simply switched Darkstripe into his place pretty much in terms of family minus Pinestar being Tigerstar's dad still. Darkstripe's dad however is a sore subject, especially to Frostfur and Bluestar, but the whole clan saw him and his siblings as... far from The Great Lion's blessing. If you were to ask any cat, they'd probably say something akin to it being a lucky thing Snowfall was already hit by a van early into motherhood lest she be hit by heartbreak in it's place. You could guess which would do more damage.
Leopardpaw and Snowpaw had very similar interests as apprentices and when they became warriors, they may have been a very good soldier duo, despite their competitive nature against always one-uping each other.
