Clan Life and Roles

The duties of the leader and deputy include:

• Officiating trade agreements between clans

• War declaring or peacekeeping

• Speaking at gatherings on behalf of their clan

• Organizing patrols

• Completing ceremonies and calling for clan meetings

• Allowing or disallowing visitors to stay in the clan

• Deciding what to do with threats on the territory

• Officially recruiting/exiling a gryphon in/out of the clan

• Completing tasks with other roles in the clan

• Visiting Andromeda with the moonspeaker on the new moon

• Training tyros in a field of their choice if assigned

• Assign an artisan to make their armor

The Moonspeaker

The moonspeaker is above all other gryphons in their clan. They have three lives. Thanks to the blessing of Andromeda, they have intimate knowledge of medicine that allows them to heal their fellow gryphons through nature. A unique trait of the moonspeaker is that they do not have to sleep and have a consistent energy level. While the moonspeaker has a personality of their own, moonspeakers who have been blessed by Andromeda are known to be calm, wise, and diplomatic, having the final word in most clan decisions. Moonspeakers are able to bend the code to provide for their clans and are often perceived as being divine and above their clanmates.

When moonspeakers do sleep, this allows them to visit the Starlands in their dreams. It is not a guarantee they will meet a starglider - only if they have something to say or advice for the moonspeaker will they appear.

The duties of the moonspeaker include:

• Healing the clan gryphons with medicine in their roost

• Helping roostmothers have cubs

• Training a moonspeaker tyro

• Gathering medicine and trading with other clans

• Visiting Andromeda with the leader/deputy on the new moon

• Interpreting prophecies and words from Andromeda

• Going with the new leader to Andromeda to get their lives

• Visiting the Starlands in their dreams for advice

• Having the final word in major clan decisions

• Exiling the leader if needed

• Declaring war or peace if the leader will not and the clan agrees

• Speaking at the full-moon gathering if needed

Warriors

Similarly to the warriors in the Warrior Cats novels, warriors in Noctus are responsible for protecting their clan from threats. They are usually the largest gryphons of the clan between 16 and 20 hands tall at the shoulder. They are outfitted with armor created by the artisans.

When they are assigned to hunting patrols or when they are escorting artisans on trade missions, there is a ratio of one warrior for every two hunters or artisans. If the moonspeaker needs to cross border(s), either the leader and deputy or two warriors will escort them. At least one warrior must occupy the leader when they cross the border. While all of these roles do not require warriors to escort them, it is strongly advised especially during threat hunting seasons.

The duties of warriors include:

• Patrolling the borders in groups of three daily

• Fighting threats greater than two stars

• Battling other gryphons when war is declared

• Protecting the clan, in particular leadership and roosters

• Escorting artisans, hunters, and any leadership

• Training their assigned warrior tyros

• Assigning an artisan to make their armor

• Bringing threat corpses back to camp

• Fetching armor parts or items for artisans if hunters can not

The duties of hunters include:

• Hunting in groups of two to five daily

• Fighting threats less than two stars

• Killing prey animals and bringing them back to the clan

• Preparing prey to be eaten

• Giving artisans pieces of their prey that may be useful

• Training their assigned hunter tyros

• Fighting in war if needed

• Controlling pests on clan territory

• Monitoring migration patterns for prey

• Monitoring hunting seasons for threats

• Fetching armor parts or items for artisans

The duties of artisans include:

• Creating armor for warriors, the leader, and the deputy

• Keeping track of what materials the clans have

• Trading with other clans for valued materials on trade missions

• Inventing new objects and apparel

• Training their assigned artisan tyro

• Fighting in war if needed

• Building nests and dens for clanmates

• Cleaning up branches, leaves in leaf-fall, or other natural debris

• Finding herbs, items, and plants for the moonspeaker if needed

• Sending hunters and warriors to find items for their crafting

• Keeping necessary twoleg and gryphon structures intact

The duties of cubs include:

• Scream a lot

• Eat a lot

• Annoy everyone

• Be adorable

• Learn about the clans

• Decide a path for their tyroship

Note: A cub can become a tyro at four moons only for the hunter, artisan, and moonspeaker roles. Warrior tyros must be at least six moons.

The duties of tyros include:

• Learning about their role

• Going on patrols or trade missions with their mentor

• Shadowing the moonspeaker if the moonspeaker tyro

• Doing the stuff no one wants to do (cleaning waste)

• Helping the roosters and cubsitting

• Caring for the elders

• Fighting in war if needed

The duties of roosters include:

• Feeding, cleaning, and protecting cubs

• Teaching cubs about the clans

• Making sure their nest is comfortable for cubs

• Watching the cubs full-time

• Hiding cubs in emergencies

• Teaching cubs how to fly

• Encouraging cubs to find a path for their tyroship

• Bringing cubs around the camp to meet their clanmates

• Telling others when a cub is ready to advance

The duties of elders include:

• Being pampered by tyros

• Helping the leader make important decisions

• Monitoring the camp

• Cubsitting, if they so choose

• Burying dead gryphons and praying over their grave

• Helping artisans and tyros fix or build nests if needed

• Keeping history and traditions alive