Warriors Bloodlines takes place in an alternate universe of Erin Hunter's Warrior Cats series. Here, five Clans live in a forest, surrounded by a big city on one side and endless mountain ranges on the other. The forest is lush and varied, from thick canopies of leaves to spidly trees to massive clearings and lakes. The five Clans are WoodClan, LakeClan, MudClan, GrassClan and LeafClan.
WoodClan occupies a part of the first usually full of tall, spindly, bare trees, and has the largest territory. Due to the lack of canopy here, sunlight and moonlight pour down through the trees, creating beautiful sights all day and all night. They share a border with LeafClan and LakeClan. WoodClan cats usually are agile, fast, resourceful, clever cats who are passionate about their cause.
WoodClan has certain rituals for a kit to become an apprentice and an apprentice to become a warrior. For a kit to earn the title of apprentice and the suffix -paw, he or she must prove they have come of age by taking a twig from the ground before the leader and venturing out to the edge of WoodClan's vast and expansive territory. A warrior will follow behind, only to help if the kit is in serious danger. The kit must place the twig at the border, and make their way back. If the kit makes it back and the accompanying warrior verifies that they placed their twig down, the kit will officially become an apprentice, with the warrior that came with them to be their mentor.
Warrior ceremonies in WoodClan are slightly more complicated. They once again head out to the border, but this time alone, and they must spend the night patrolling the border. Whilst doing this, they must bring back a token for their mentor, whether it be a nice feather or a shiny rock, even moss bedding, as a gift to show their appreciation of their training. Since it can be very dangerous at night along the border, apprentices may go in groups.
LakeClan occupies territory around a cluster of small lakes within the forest, all of which are connected by streams. The territory is often sunny, and LakeClan cats enjoy swimming. They share a border with WoodClan and MudClan. These cats are relaxed, laidback, and adaptable, and fiercely loyal. They value family and friends above violence, but will not hesitate to defend themselves!
LakeClan also has different rituals for their apprentice and warrior ceremonies.
Once a kit has reached the age of 6 moons, they will have to swim across one of the lakes to become an apprentice. This is because the lakes and streams are the main food source to LakeClan, and it is important that they are able to swim, as this is the basis of much of their training. Most kits know how to swim from a young age in LakeClan, so their ceremony is rarely much of a hassle.
Warrior ceremonies are mostly the same as the canonical Warriors ceremonies, however, like WoodClan, they must present their mentor with a token of their appreciation, from somewhere in or around the lakes. In addition, the cat does not stand vigil all night - instead, they spend the night hunting for the Clan for the following day, so the Clan can have a large meal in the newly appointed warrior's honour.
MudClan shares a border with LakeClan and GrassClan. Their territory is always wet and muddy, due to LakeClan's streams running into parts of their territory. Their territory is the smallest of the five clans, but also the richest and most varied in prey. They are stealthy and cunning cats, usually quite small and lean.
As with all clans, MudClan has different ceremonies for apprentices and warriors. When a kit has come of age, all apprentices, kits and elders will form a outer circle around the kit. Within this circle are the warriors fit to take on an apprentice, in a smaller circle. The kit is trusted to chose their mentor from these cats. Once they do so, the clan will chant their name.
Warrior ceremonies are a similar ordeal. Once they have undergone an assessment, not unlike the ones done in the canon Warriors series, they Clan will gather around once again, this time with family and their mentor in the inner circle. The ceremony proceeds like a canon warrior ceremony, however, the parents and mentor, as well as the leader, must give the apprentice their blessing to become a warrior.
GrassClan occupies a large, grassy clearing, full of dips, hills and brambles in the forest. Their territory includes a small area of thick, leafy trees around the edges, providing good protection from attackers. They share a border with MudClan and LeafClan, as well as the Twoleg city. GrassClan warriors are fast and strong, and usually large and lean. They are usually aggressive in defending their territory, and often quite uptight and strict about their rules.
Warrior and apprentice ceremonies are largely the same as those in the canon Warriors series, apart from the fact that a kit must choose a warrior to be their own mentor. Like WoodClan and LakeClan, at the end of their apprenticeship, they must present their mentor and leader with a token of thanks.
LeafClan occupies the part of the forest that is covered in dense forest, trees, rich undergrowth and a thick, leafy canopy. Due to this, little sunlight hits the forest floor here, making it always quite dark, apart from the outskirts, which have some of WoodClan's bare trees. They share a border with GrassClan and WoodClan. They are the most peaceful cats in the forest, and are usually small but strong, and smart and powerful, highly capable of climbing to the highest of their trees. They are most likely to tolerate foreign cats in their territory if they prove a good reason, but this can make them weaker defensively.
Warrior and apprentice ceremonies in LeafClan are different from the other clans. For a kit to become an apprentice, they must scale a tree at least three foxlengths high. This is not of too much difficulty to most kits, as they are taught to climb small trees very young, in order for their survival.
Warrior ceremonies are more complex. The apprentice scales the highest tree they can climb, standing on the tallest branch. The other cats climb the tree as well, with the leader being the second-highest up on the tree, and kits being closest to the ground. The leader calls upon four cats important to the apprentice to give them their blessing, before the leader gives the warrior their own blessing and makes them a warrior. This ceremony is traditionally performed at moonhigh.
The five Clans are rivals, although they all believe in StarClan, and frequently attacking each other, although some are more aggressive than others. Allegiances may be temporarily formed, occasionally. The territory in the middle of the forest is called Fivestones. As the name suggests, it is a clearing with five large stones in the center. This is where Gatherings take place every full moon, and these proceed just as the canon Warriors gatherings do.
Leader, deputy and medicine cat ceremonies are the same between all clans, and are the same as they are in the canon Warriors series. Instead of visiting Highstones, they visit the Starriver and drink from it, a river that runs around the outskirts of the forest, closest to WoodClan and LakeClan. All cats are allowed safe passage to the Starriver.
