The Court
History
There's tell of previous Courts before the one that survives today. One long dead, mentioned to be before the time of any living cats. Another, however, was founded two years before the present Court was founded in June 2019. This was a short lived Court that was said to have fallen to illness. Some of its inhabitants still remain in the area, if you know what you're looking for.
When the present day Court first came about, fights and scraps were common. Many of the new Court members had come from gangs, rogue groups, or had been on their own all their lives. No one knew what they wanted in the way of leadership yet, especially as some were wary of mimicking the systems they had come from such as clans or city groups.
With guidance and direction from Spades, meetings were held that managed to be relatively peaceful! She encouraged politeness and communication– no idea a bad idea as long as it was discussed through. Cats began to describe what they wanted out of leadership. The Court prioritized the ability to change out leadership and the idea that no one cat was in charge. Decisions would be made by a Council where cats were voted into position. Bigger decisions would be voted on the Court as a whole with the Council to provide guidance.
The Court nowadays is a peaceful place, full of good will, charity, a passion to create, and a desire to protect what they've built. They’ve come a long way, and those who knew their early moments might gawk in disbelief at the huge difference in temperament. No one has truly forgotten their roots of ruthlessness in the Court though, and they are better armed than most would believe them to be.
This was proven to be especially true after their recent victory in the war with the city group The Order-- lifting their rein of terror and freeing the city to develop other groups without threat of death. The Court is now focused on helping others and exploring the Bright Realms.
About
The Court is a group of cats entirely formed in roleplay. The first few cats were summoned by way of mysterious dream– the origins of which varied from cat to cat. Many of the original few were summoned by the cat the Court dubbed Spades, but some where said to be called by the mysterious beast that lives beneath the Court.
Spades sought to make the Court a place of healing and growth, giving opportunities to restart to cats who desperately needed them. The Court was built on a policy of forgiveness, and some of the Court’s most influential cats have the most stained pasts. Your history makes no difference in the eyes of the Court as long as you can prove you’re willing to make a change.
The Court was built to focus on creative expression and endeavors of all kind. Crafting, building, and making art is highly encouraged! The Court’s access to cats with expansive knowledge allows them the ability to learn skills most cats have not begun to grasp… these skills may refer to the ability to make and maintain a fire, wield weapons, care for animals and plants, and more.
It has been whispered that with these gifts, there may be even further chances to learn the… metaphysical arts.
Court Rules
* Subject to change or additions as time goes on.
No singular cat is above anyone else. While others may have 'high-ranking' roles and they may be looked up to for guidance, each member of the Court has the same inherent value as one another.
Under no circumstance shall a Court cat kill another Court cat, unless in extreme circumstances where both the Council and Court agree that it was the only choice in the matter. Those that do not abide by this rule will be severely punished, with the extreme being banishment from the court land.
Killing in the means of self-defense against outsiders is only permitted if a valid case can be given and everyone can agree that it was necessary in order to keep the Court safe/oneself alive.
Death should not be the final outcome of a fight. Give mercy to the loser of the battle.
Outsiders deemed friendly/non-aggressive are allowed to seek refuge with the Court for a short amount of time if they are in need of help (starving, freezing, nursing/expecting kittens).
Kittens are not allowed to start any kind of physical training until they are six months/moons old, unless the Healers agree to waive this in order to train a Healer apprentice.
Court cats are not permitted to steal materials or items from each other or from cats outside of the Court. Those caught doing so will be appropriately punished.
When travelling to or through an area with known dangers, all cats must go with a partner or group to ensure their safety.
If a danger is found (traps, strange entities, (a) hostile cat(s)/group, predators, etc.), it must be reported to the Council immediately.
[ As an important note, the detailed proceedings and processes of new Court members are not at all required to be roleplayed out.
We leave these to be implied to reduce both strain on Council member players and stress or annoyance in new Court member players. No need to jump through hoops to play your character. Just hop in!
The same goes for 'job tasks' that might be repetitive or difficult to roleplay out a lot, such as patrols or mandatory training lessons. Although these can be fun now and then, forcing folks to do them can get a little exhausting! Leave them to be implied unless you and your partners have fun doing them. ]
Court Joining Customs
* Those that have received a dream from Spades are automatically accepted into the Court, no questions asked, as long as they can confirm and verify that they had such a dream via a description of said dream. Otherwise, they must proceed through the normal vetting system, as follows:
All newcomers to the Court must first be interviewed by the members of the Council. They will be prompted to answer the following questions:
Who are you? Tell us about yourself.
Did someone recommend that you come to us? If so, who were they? Have you had any interactions with the Court prior to now?
Do you have any connections to any cats or groups outside of the Court? If so, who are they and what did they do?
What are your motivations and intentions for wanting to join the Court?
Do you have any skill sets or abilities that may lend useful to the Court? What are they?
Will you abide by our laws and customs?
Once the newcomer answers all of these questions, the Council will discuss among themselves and make a decision whether to let them in or not.
If they come to the agreement that they will not be allowed to join the court, the newcomer will be escorted to the border.
If they come to the agreement that they will be allowed to join the court, the following steps will ensue.
Those that are approved by the court will be considered ‘Temporary Court Members’, as they have not been actually accepted into the court. Obviously, cats have the capacity to lie or twist the truth. The Council wants to make sure that all those that join the Court do so in good faith and earnesty.
Newcomers will be paired up with a Court member. The Temporary members are allowed to interact with cats outside of their pair, but the Court member will keep an eye on them and note any suspicious or negative behaviors that may prove dangerous for the Court.
If a Temporary Member is caught breaking the rules or doing something that is not acceptable for a Court cat to be doing, the Council will come together to make a decision. If they decide they are not allowed to stay, they will be dismissed from the Court and escorted to the border. If they decide they are allowed to stay, they will be let off with a warning. After three warnings, however, they will be dismissed no matter what.
The Temporary members will be given three months to prove themselves, and if they prove themselves to be a productive and friendly figure, the Council will make them a true member of the Court. *(might include a little ceremony.)
Court creations & hobbies
The freedom Court cats have to explore allows them to sample a variety of things! Here's only a few types of things Court cats get up to.
Plant & animal care
Some of the skills specific to those strange cats of the Court are the noble practices of farming and raising livestock-- or even just taming pets! The Court has a growing number of pets and a few maintained plants at this time, as well as a livestock pen. There's still much to learn, but with guidance and assurance that these things truly are possible for cats to do, the Court has been doing well.
Larksong has been growing marigolds and thyme for quite a while now, and is the Court's current most advanced gardener.
Halcyon has taken up trying to grow strawberries.
Smokestar has managed to capture and form a friendship with a Ring-Tailed Cat.
Will has tamed a pet Texas Rat Snake dubbed "Daniel."
Snarl owns a Red-eared Slider named "Glass Shard."
For detailed information and statuses of those things, feel free to take a look here!
projects & Crafting
Court cats can weave, paint, build, draw, and more. The options are essentially only limited by what supplies you're able to forage, your skills that grow over time, and your ideas! Here's some examples of undertakings by Court Cats:
A fire pit, built and maintained by Victor.
The wall around the Court's landing and its moongate were paw-built brick by brick by Snarl and Grizzlyheart.
Claw extensions built by Helsing out of a kitchen whisk.
Tea mixes and health buffs.
Accessories.
Perfect painted renditions of deceased loved ones.
Plant pots.
And naturally, part of the fun is the chance of failure. Disasters like melted cups, poorly made doodles, confusing blobs of overworked clay, and maybe a bruise or two are all part of the process in their own right!
Court Territory
BLBR is set in Austin, Texas. Specifically the Court lives around Northwest Austin, outside of the city though not by very much. The land the Court lives on is a beautiful and varied place full of unique features and the occasional unsettling structure or two. Many of these places are inspired by of real locations staff have seen or been to in the very place BLBR is based on.
The Heart of the Green Cave is the biggest central room where most Court cats tend to spend their time lounging.
It branches off into several rooms, a den space, a place for herb storage and patient care, and a strange little room with several pools of water in it and little doodles along the walls that were there before the current Court got here.
It's said that somehow, Cenzo sleeps beneath the Court. If you listen carefully at night, you can hear him rumbling through the stone floors. Sometimes if you speak, he speaks back.
Don't worry, though! He's cannot physically enter the threshold of the Court. You have Spades to thank for that.
The Green Cave
This is the home of the Court cats, the central hub where they all live, sleep, and eat. The Green Cave is a gorgeous, lush cave atop a landing on one of the many rolling hills in the area. It houses several caverns that seem as if they were crafted specifically for the cats that live there...
The interior of the Green Cave is entirely covered in moss and other foliage. The heart of the cave can be seen while stood on the landing, but the caverns mentioned are hidden beneath the earth.
Outer COurt Lands
Outside of the Green Cave are several areas that the Court calls an extension of their home. There are many small wonders stuffed into the forest and land around the Court, some mysterious, some built by Court cats, and some as simple as a pleasant strawberry patch.
General Setting
Given the Court is set in Austin, Texas... it is generally extremely hot for most of the year. The time of Spring, late Fall, and Winter are blessed relief to the obliterating heat of the Summer. There's a variety of animals in the area the Court lives in, some of which you may need to be cautious of. To list a few (with dangerous ones bolded:)
Raccoons, Opossums, Armadillos, Coyotes, Rat Snakes, Rattlesnakes, Scorpions, Snapping Turtles, Red-Eared Sliders, Anoles, Horny Toads, Skinks, Foxes, Tarantulas, Hawks, Vultures, Road Runners, Garter Snakes, Centipedes, Feral Hogs, Deer, Skunks, Bobcats, Bats, Rabbits, Turkeys, Ringtailed Cats, Wood Rats, Field Mice, and more.
Some of these are more common than you'd think. Coyotes share the land with the Court-- their cries at night are part of the symphony of strange noises ringing out in the early hours. In the warm seasons, scorpions are exceedingly common. Though their sting won't kill a cat, they sure do hurt. Some animals like the hogs and the rattlesnakes are to be avoided at all costs, an encounter with them is most certainly deadly.
Strange things happen in Court Lands... things that happen almost nowhere else in the world. Magic lives in the Court Lands still, and it shows. From being called to the Gateway to the Bright Realms, hearing strange noises, smelling odd scents, and feeling mysterious presences... the cats that live here need to be cautious.