The Colonies

The colonies are groups of cats who live in very large, well-organised groups of 50+ cats. Their ancestors settled there over 100 years ago after splintering off from another group of cats, who called themselves 'clans'. Their ancestors left due to a mix of how large the clans were getting, as well as different belief systems and different ideas for how to run the groups. For modern colony cats, however, the clans are a distant myth - many don't even believe they existed.

The colonies live in harmony most of the time, although thats mostly because their colonies and territories are so large, which means they don't see each other too frequently. They are all like a well-oiled machine, running perfectly in tandem with one another. The colonies are very diverse, and each colony has different cultures. However, the one thing they have in common is the roles that each colony has and the way they work.

Roles Explained

The Roles in the Colonies are made to keep order in the Colonies and keep them running smoothly. Every cat helps out one another, and the roles make it so that every cat can find their place and can assist everyone in the best possible way while doing something they are good and passionate about.

There are three types of roles - major, minor, and division.

The major roles are the big, general groups of roles that most cats fit into in some way, the only exceptions are the Sovereign and Protege roles - which only one cat can fill - but are considered major as Sovereigns are the rulers and representatives of their respective Colonies, and Proteges are the future Sovereigns.

The minor roles are very few, and are small roles that generally do not have much power - this is not to say the cats in these minor roles are not important, but their roles do not do as much as the major or divisions. The minor roles consist of all Trainee roles, as well as Kittens and Retiree.

The divisions are all a part of a major role, but the divisions are specialists that focus on one particular area and are considered experts in this area. They are trained specifically for this division after reaching half-way through their trainee months (6 months). There are exceptions to this when cats don’t know what division they want to specialise in, but they always end up in a division (unless they transfer to becoming a Healer or Caretaker).

Sovereign

The Sovereign of a Colony is the main representative of the Colony, and is supposed to be the ultimate role model for younger members. Sovereigns are former Proteges who were trained by the former Sovereign specifically for this role. They have been trained to rule the Colony and be the one who has huge say in the final decisions, and have been trained to withstand immense pressure, responsibility, and power. While they do not solely make decisions for the Colony, and usually the entire Leadership of the Colony and the Colony members themselves have long discussions about every major decision, their opinions and thoughts have a huge amount of power and sway.

Sovereigns hold meetings among the Colony to promote Kittens to Trainees, promote Trainees to their respective role, announce role changes and promotions, and anything else that might need to be announced. Sovereigns are also the only cat who can decide punishments for cats who break major rules and laws.

Sovereigns also represent their Colony to other Colonies, and when judging another Colony, many look to their Sovereign for the judgement. They help maintain relations with other Colonies and announce important news to other Colonies at monthly Gatherings.

When they are not doing the above, they are usually training their Protege if they have one, or are doing regular duties like patrolling or hunting.

Protege

The Protege, despite having a slightly different title, is essentially a Sovereign Trainee. The reason why their title is slightly different is because Proteges are usually much older than Trainees are, and a Proteges training is much more intense and has much more pressure behind it.

Proteges are the future Sovereign in training, and as they are the future representative of the Colony, their training is varied and intense. Unlike normal Trainees who usually focus on one particular aspect, Proteges train in all aspects: they train in conflict resolution, in battle training and battle strategy, they train in hunting and tracking, and even in some aspects that no other Trainees train in - like how to sit and stand tall, or how to be loud when announcing things.

Proteges are the future of the Colony in many ways, so the training of one must be as equally as intense and hard as being Sovereign is, so they are prepared for the pressure and responsibility of leading an entire Colony one day.

Important note: Not all Colonies have Proteges, only those with Sovereigns who are on the older side.

Head of Role

The Head of Role is not a singular position, but is instead made up of several positions all with similar duties and the same goal: the Head of Healers, the Head of Advisers, the Head of Union, and the Head of Caretakers.

The Head of Role make up the rest of the Leadership of the Colony, and are very much leaders in their own right, but they instead lead a much smaller group of cats that all have the same or very similar jobs. They oversee the cats in these roles to a much closer degree than the Sovereign does, and manage them on a much closer level. The Head of a Role is also the one who decides which division a Trainee is placed in, as they are the ones who watch that Trainee and assess what tasks they are better and worse at.

The exact tasks and duties of each Head vary slightly depending on what they are the Head of, but in general they are responsible for: managing and assigning weekly/daily/monthly duties for the cats in their role, running final assessments for Trainees and then overseeing the assessment, deciding the final placement of a Trainee, resolving conflicts among the cats in their role or sending them to an adviser to resolve it, and assigning punishments for any cats who break minor rules.

When they are not performing specific Head of Role duties, the Heads usually do the normal tasks that the cats in their role do, like advising, patrolling, hunting, caring for kits, etc.

Healer

The Healers are the masters of herbs, plants, illnesses, diseases, and curing those illnesses and diseases in the Colonies. They are responsible for the physical well-being of the cats in their Colony, as well as keeping up to date on the latest news about other Colonies sicknesses and illnesses, keeping the herbs and plants they use to heal stocked up and making sure they are still useable, gathering more herbs and plants, maintaining a garden of herbs and plants in their territory, checking in on sick cats and caring for them, and tending to the grounds of the deceased.

Healers often have a specific area of expertise. Some Healers know more about how to treat infectious diseases while others know more about general illnesses and how to help those, and some are better at the general care of sick cats like feeding them food or water, whilst some are better at things like broken bones and amputation and how to relieve pain. However, unlike other roles, Healers don’t have divisions due to the unique nature of their position and how each Healer has to know about everything and have some skill in every area.

Healers are also tasked with the ceremony and burial of the deceased, as well as tending to the grounds where they are buried. This task is given to them due to Healer’s closeness with death and the deceased, and how - compared to every other cat in the Colony - Healers regularly deal closely with death, or near-death experiences. Many also consider Healer’s to be closer to the Colonies ancestors because of this, and many Healer’s feel closer to their ancestors too, but this is more of a personal thing and is a sentiment that is not shared among all Healers or Colony cats.

Healers must also be observant and keep a close eye on all cats in the Colony - which can be tricky as most Colonies have upwards of 60+ cats. They are trained to spot signs of sickness and/or signs that someone might be hiding or downplaying an injury.

On the rare occasions that an outbreak of an illness occurs, Healers are the ones responsible for setting up a quarantine. They may enlist the help of other divisions to assist in guarding or watching over these quarantined cats, but they are the ones ultimately responsible for the set up and finding a place to quarantine them - as well as making sure no one else falls sick too.

Healer Trainee

A Healer trainee is a future healer that is still being trained. They are usually first promoted at 6 months, and complete their training by 18 months, but there are plenty of Healer Trainees older than that as some had already completed their training in a different rank and been promoted, but then changed their mind and transferred over to become Healer - or they are a former outsider who only just joined the Colony and wished to become a Healer.

Healer Trainees are given a personal Mentor to guide and teach them, alongside the Head themself helping teach the group of Trainees they are a part of.

A Healer Trainee is exactly what it implies - a young cat who is training to become a Healer. They are still being taught the various types of herbs and plants, and still being taught about bedside manners, different illnesses and diseases, and still being taught how to navigate death.

Younger Healer Trainees who are still early in their training are very rarely left on their own with a sick, injured, or dead cat, and must always be accompanied by a Healer (or sometimes an older fellow Healer Trainee) when gathering more herbs and plants or burying a deceased cat. The older a Healer Trainee gets, the more they are left to their own devices.

Due to Healer’s having no divisions, Healer Trainee’s do not have a Division Assessment*, only a final assessment at the end of their training.

The final assessment consists of drills about both common and rare situations that Healers deal with, alongside physical tests and a verbal test. The Head watches all of this and after the final assessment is complete, they give the Trainee two weeks off while they determine how they did.

If they do well they are promoted to a full Healer. If they fail they are told which areas they need to improve in and train with their Mentor in these areas. If they fail more than 4 times, they are told to pursue a different role.

Adviser

Advisers are similar to Healers in some ways, but instead of taking care of the physical well-being of the Colony, they take care of the mental well-being. Advisers are trained in the art of observance, and are great at spotting subtle signs that someone is not doing great mentally (and sometimes physically, too). They are trained in conflict resolution and advice.

Depending on what specific division they are in, Advisers have different expertise and varying tasks and duties that are tailored specifically to what they are experts in.

There are four divisions within Advisers:

1. Major: The Major division is the smallest division of Advisers, but is equally as important as the rest of them. The Major division specialises in types of major internal conflict, such as a fight between leadership members, a tense relationship with another Colony that might lead to a battle, or two Colonies who are already considering or at war. The Major division specialises in resolving conflicts that are incredibly important and could have dangerous consequences if not resolved, they are able to handle immense pressure well and are usually very stubborn and unable to take no for an answer - which is necessary in trying your best to prevent a possible war or something that could lead to one. Due to the nature of the Major division and how it isn’t (usually) needed on a regular basis, cats who specialise in this division usually are in a different division most of the time.

2. Couple's: The Couple’s division, despite sounding like it's meant for cats who are romantically involved, is actually for any two cats or more who do not consider themselves family in any way. The Couple’s division resolves conflicts between arguing cats who have tension between them or cannot agree on something. Couple’s division focuses on de-esculating and an ‘agree to disagree’ approach, as many cats who go to or are sent to a Couple’s Adviser are usually not friends and are suffering from a personality clash more than anything else. However, Couple’s Advisors do also assist cats who are romantically involved, they are just not exclusive to this. Couple’s Advisers are also experts in romantic advice, how to communicate in a relationship, helping cats understand each other, as well as even figuring out if they are right for each other or if they should break up.

3. Family: The Family division is very similar to Couple’s, but is more so focused on family units or two cats who are family rather than unrelated cats. They do many of the same things as the Couple’s division, but are more focused on working out where each cat is coming from and helping the cats they are advising to understand that rather than ‘agree to disagree’. They help family members see each other more, and focus on love, forgiveness, and acceptance. However, though they tend to focus more on that, if they recognise certain behaviours as abusive they will pull the abused cat aside and give them advice on how to cut off their family, or how to disengage from them and/or counteract the abusive cat's abusive behaviours. Family Advisers also have the power to separate (usually young) abused cats from their abusive family and recommend the abusive cats be punished and kept away from their victim. They will still try and get the abusive cat(s) to recognise their abusive behaviours and improve, but they know that is not always possible and so the separation is a last resort.

4. Individual: The Individual division is focused on individual cats who want to improve themselves and become better - or are working through issues and need someone to talk to. Individual Advisers are experts at ‘reality-checking’ cats and telling them if/when they are out of line and what they can do to improve or stop doing something. However, Individual Advisers are also the perfect shoulder to cry on for cats who need someone to talk to. They focus on advice about improvement, but also on advice about how to move on, how to understand themselves better, healthy coping mechanisms to deal with certain issues, and many, many similar things.

Adviser Trainee

An Adviser Trainee is a future Adviser that is still being trained. Like all the other trainee’s, Adviser trainee’s are promoted at 6 months, and complete their training by 18 months (12 months of training - a year). There are exceptions to this if a cat joins the Colony and chooses to become an Adviser, or if an older Trainee in a different role or an already graduated cat decides to switch roles. Regardless of how old they are when they join, the training still takes a year/12 months.

For the first half of their training (first 6 months), Adviser Trainee’s are given a general Mentor to help train in the general skills needed for any Adviser, as well as various skills of the different divisions. They learn the art of observance, and how to spot if cats are struggling. They learn the general skills of how to be calm but firm, how to de-esculate situations, how to spot abusive behaviours, how to calm cats down, how to help every cat feel seen and heard, and many other things.

After the first half of their training, Adviser Trainees undergo a Division Assessment*. For the Adviser Trainee’s, this assessment is in the form of a series of questions the Head of Advisers asks the Trainee, as well as several performed and planned arguments and issues that the Trainee must use the skills they have learned to calm the cats down, and figure out the best way to solve the ‘argument/issue’. The performed issues and arguments are planned to replicate things that the different divisions face on a regular basis. This is watched by the Head of Adviser, who uses how the Trainee does in solving each issue and argument to assess which division would be best for them. The Trainee is also asked by the Head which division they would like best and/or think they would be best in. This answer is also heavily taken into account by the Head.

Once the Division Assessments are finished and the Head has made their decisions, a meeting is held and the Head announces which division the Trainees ended up in, and who their personal division mentors are.

The second half of their training (the next 6 months) is focused on learning the specific set of skills that their assigned division requires, and the Trainees train exclusively with their personal specialist Mentors.

The final assessment consists of similar things to the division assessment, but much more tailored for their specific division. After the assessment, the Trainees are all given two weeks off like with the division assessment so the Head can determine their answer. If they do well, they are promoted to their full role and division. If they fail, they are told which areas to improve in and train with their Mentor to improve in those areas. If they fail more than 4 times, they are told to pursue a different role.

Union

Union are the providers, protectors, and general helpers of the Colony. They usually make up the large majority of the Colony, and have the most divisions of all the major roles. The Union’s name comes from the fact that all the cats in Union have to work together in some way, and without the Union, the rest of the Colony would fall apart.

There are five divisions within Union:

1. Warrior(s): The Warriors are the ones who fight any wars, battles, or scuffles they may come across. They are the main protectors of the Colony. They are trained to be experts in attack, defence, and battle strategy - but are also taught to think for themselves and when to know if they should be fighting, and when is best to stand down or run away. They do not just fight other Colonies, but also defend against any aggressive outsiders or predators that the Colony may come across. When they are not fighting or sparring with each other, they assist the rest of the Union with the other tasks.

2. Hunter(s): The Hunters are the main providers of the Colony. They track and hunt food for the entire Colony, and are trained to be eagle-eyed and know the signs of all types of prey, even prey that is not common in their area. Hunters must not only learn how to track and take down prey, but also the right way to take down prey, without leaving too much of a mess or leaving too much blood. They also must know when to stop, so that the prey they hunt can continue the circle of life and leave more prey for them in the future. Hunters are one of the only roles that is permitted to go beyond the Colonies border, however they cannot hunt in other Colonies land, they may only cross it so they can hunt in unclaimed territory.

3. Patroller(s): The Patrollers contribute to being protectors of the Colony. However, instead of fighting, they watch. As the name implies, Patrollers patrol the territory of the Colony. They are trained like the Hunters to be eagle-eyed for anything that might endanger or be of interest to the Colony. They are taught about signs of predators, or large animals that could be of danger, and report these findings to the Head or even the Sovereign if necessary. They also interact with other Patrollers from other Colonies, and pass along information and messages shared - these messages can range from news about predators, herbs, sickness, or deaths. They also are the ones to welcome any passing outsiders, or chase them off if they are aggressive (or get a Warrior to do it).

4. Guard(s): Guards are contributors to the protectors of the Colony. They guard the base camp of their Colony, as well as the secondary camps. They also serve as bodyguards for the Sovereign and the Head of the Roles if they leave the camp to visit another Colony, as well as if other cats leave the camp if requested by the cat. They are trained in their respective Colonies ‘secret body language’, which serves as a way to relay messages if they see something suspicious without alerting anyone. They train in some attack but are mostly trained in defence specifically. Guards are usually the strongest of the Colony and are hard to take down.

5. Builder(s): The Builders of the Colony build and maintain any buildings in the Colony. They are experts at crafting, tying knots, creating structures, and breaking things apart to use in building. They are also experts at digging, too, as a lot of the building that is needed requires digging to get stakes into the ground. Builders are overlooked quite a lot, but are essential to Colony life. They dig out the sleeping areas and build the roofs that cover many of the Healers' dens. They create the nests that many cats sleep on and are responsible for expanding the camp and creating new camps if necessary, as well as helping the Healers make gardens for their herbs. They find and break down materials to use in their crafts and builds. If it weren’t for the Builders, many Colonies would find themselves exposed to rain and snow far more often than would be healthy, and many Healer’s herbs would go bad.

Union Trainee

A Union Trainee is a future Union who is still being trained. Like every other Trainee, they are promoted from Kit at 6 months and complete their training by 18 months (12 months of training). If they are an outsider or a transfer this age can be different, but the training time is still the same.

For the first half of their training, Union Trainees will be given a general Mentor and taught in all different divisions of Union. They are taught the basics of battling, the basics of tracking and hunting, the basics of patrolling, the basics of guarding, and the basics of building.

After the first half of their training, Union Trainees with undergo the Division Assessment*. For the Union Trainees, this assessment consists of 5 physical tests and 5 verbal tests that focus on the expert skills of the five different divisions, as well as being asked a series of questions by the Head of Union about what the Trainee thinks of the different divisions, what they see themselves being best at, and what division they would prefer. The Head watches the tests take place and takes the answers of the Trainee into consideration when assessing what division would be best for them.

Once the Division Assessments are finished, the Head holds a meeting and assigns each Trainee a division to train in, and gives each Trainee a new personal specialist Mentor.

The second half of their training is focused on learning the specialist skills needed for their assigned division.

Caretaker(s)

Caretakers are either cats who have recently had kits or cats who have chosen to be a permanent Caretaker to take care of kits.

There are two types of Caretakers:

1. Temporary Caretakers: Temporary Caretakers are cats who have recently had kittens. These cats are not permanent residents of the nursery and will leave once their kittens are 4 months old and can be taken care of by the permanent Caretakers.

2. Permanent Caretakers: Permanent Caretakers are cats who have chosen to permanently stay and work in the nursery and look after the kittens of the Colony. They are extremely important to the Colony and the position is one of the hardest to get in the Colony - third only to Head of Role, Protege, and Sovereign. Permanent Caretakers are the ones who protect and nurture the future of the Colony and thus is a highly respected role. Caretakers make sure kittens are healthy and well-fed, they work closely with Healers to make sure no kittens are sick, and those who are are getting the help they need. Permanent Caretakers also keep an eye on the parents and make sure they are getting plenty of rest and food, and make sure to distract their kittens so the parents can sleep. They teach the kittens the basics of life and how to take care of themselves, as well as about the Colony and help the kittens decide on what they want to be when they grow up. Permanent Caretakers are also taught a decent amount of fighting so they can protect the nursery. Caretakers are also taught basic medicine, focusing on birth, painkillers, and spotting the signs of blood loss, infection, and common kitten illnesses.

Caretaker Trainee

Unlike other Trainee roles, Caretaker Trainees are required to be adults and have graduated in a different area before transferring to this role. Cats who are outsiders and adults can become a Caretaker Trainee before graduating in a different area.

Caretaker Trainees, like every other Trainee, undergo a total of 12 months of training. Similar to Healer Trainees, because there are no divisions in the Caretakers, there is no division assessment.

They will be assigned a Mentor and trained in every aspect of Caretaking, how to take care of kittens, how to help and take care of the parents, taught how to help with birth and how to give painkillers, what NOT to do with kits, the best way to talk to kits, the basics of fighting, and many other important details about kittens.

After 12 months, the Trainees will undergo a final assessment given by the Head of Caretakers, and this assessment is both a physical test and a verbal test. It consists of drills of situations that will or might be common while being a Caretaker, many of which consist of quick decision making. There are also drills of more rare situations, including some that are of dark subject matter (losing a kitten, losing a parent, etc).

If the final assessment is not completed, the Head will tell the Trainee what areas they need to improve in and will train with their personal Mentor in these areas. They can request another assessment at any time, but if they fail 4 times, then they are sent back to their previous role or told to pursue a different role.

Kittens

Kittens are cats who are under 6 months old. They don’t do anything other than have fun and exist.

Retiree(s)

Retirees are cats who have retired from their duties. These cats are usually on the older side, and have gotten too old or too unhealthy (or both) to keep doing their roles well.

However, some cats choose to retire early. Some choose to because they became disabled, or get an illness that never seems to go away, or their vision or hearing is fading quicker than usual. Some do so early because they feel they are simply not able to perform their duties anymore for whatever reason that may be.

Cats can choose to become a Retiree at any point.

In uncommon cases, cats will become temporary Retirees after becoming disabled in some way (usually amputation or eyesight loss) or recovering from a bad sickness that takes them a long time to recover from or destroyed their immune system. However, once they are fully healed, they will resume regular duties.

Other Info

Mentors

Mentoring is a minor temporary role that any cat in the Colony can take on. The Head of each major role picks specific cats in their role to assist them in training the new Trainees.. The mentors assist the Head in teaching the new Trainees the basics of their role for the first half of their training.

After the division assessment has taken place, the previous general mentors are sent back to their previous roles and specific cats in specific divisions are picked as the new specialist mentors for the new Trainees. Sometimes some of the general mentors will be picked as the specialist mentors.

Cats can also request to become a mentor, sometimes even to a specific cat. Parents can also request their kit be given a specific general and/or specialist mentor. However, it’s discouraged for cats to mentor their own kin, for fear of the kin being too harsh or too soft on the Trainee.

Division Assessment

The Division Assessment is an assessment majority of Trainees take when they are halfway through their training - aka 6 months. The only Trainees who don't take it are Healer and Caretaker Trainees as those roles don't have divisions.

It is an assessment that the Head of their respective role does to determine which division the Trainee is best for. Due to the specific nature of each role and division, the assessment for each role is different, but the purpose of it remains the same.

The contents of each role’s assessment is in each role’s Trainee section. The assessment takes place over the course of roughly two weeks, sometimes more depending on how many Trainees there are. After the assessment is finished the Head lets all the Trainees take roughly two weeks off to give them a break and the Head goes over the results and determines which Division each Trainee is best suited for.

The Head announces the results and then gives each Trainee a specialised mentor in the respective division they were assigned. Trainees can request to switch divisions, but this request is not always honoured depending on why the Head assigned them to that division.

colony of the creeks

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colony of the alp

colony of the scree

colony of the woodland

colony of the bog

colony of the adder

colony of the wolf

colony of the jungle

loners

deceased

history

Story Event 1

story event 2

story event 3

miscellaneous facts

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