Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=50251 Crowtooth Windclan Tunneler/Fury | He/him | 51 Moons Power Card: Cold Gust Ok so everything kept happening but Crowtooth wasnt going to allow that to hold him back any longer as he had an apprentice to train and friends to forcefully drag into his hobby. ....Ok that second part sounded less altruistic however he did mean it in a helpful way! Tunneling had been growing increasingly in focus of late and things had changed to where those above on the moor could no longer ignore the happenings of the deep and Crowtooth really needed more reliable paws. So Hawkfur no, Crowtooth wasnt taking no for an answer today! The other tom had been bothered and things had been explained to him until there was no more protests from the claustrophobic warrior and he was summarily dragged over to the apprentices den to collect the other more eager student. "Up and at 'em Rabbitpaw! We're doin' tunnelin' today kiddo lets get goin'!" Crowtooths crooked grin was a proper smile today, excited for this session and so as soon as the apprentice was in view he started. "Alright so as is obvious ya aint gonna be able to see nothin' down there so yer gonna need ta rely on other senses! Smells are gonna be different, they dont flow 'cuz theres no wind an' will linger which means trackin' a scent is great but findin' it is near impossible. Like.... If yer lookin' fer a rabbit there aint gonna be no wind ta brin' the scent to ya an' yer gonna need ta go walkin' ta find it. But when ya find a trail it'll linger fer days an' be clear an' strong ta follow. I use this a lot ta navigate. No winds gonna bring the scent o' an exit ta ya but if as yer headin' down ya scent mark yer right wall as ya go you'll never get lost an' I tell everyone ta do the same. 'cuz it means if ya have scent marks ta yer left yer on yer way ta an exit. So, scents, important but not how ya move around." It was how you navigated, but now how you 'saw'. "Yer gonna wanna use yer ears an' whiskers. Keep yer head low an whiskers brushin' against the ground, it means yer gonna feel any rocks or roots before ya stub yer toe or trip an' ya can feel the natural rise fall an' curve o' the tunnel an' not run inta a wall. Ya can also learn ta feel other creatures movin' down there from the vibrations o' the air against yer whiskers. Takes practice but is super cool. As fer hearin', as ya walk ya'll hear how the air flows different an' how it echos offa the walls. If ya chirp an' it feels 'hollow' yer headin' ta an openin' but if it feels 'muffled' yer nearin' a wall or dead end." As he rambled the tom led the tom out of camp and to the nearest entrance, lifting up the natural mat of heather that covered the hole to let the two sniff and get a look. "Any questions? Fer the most part its just practice an' Ill let ya try things out when we get down there and then we can move on ta navigation (though I touched on it here talkin' about why scent is only half reliable) an' diggin'." If you wanted more knowledge between the fits of rambling best to get it now because he'd be starting on another tangent soon. @Dolomedes @Mica |
Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
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Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
[ @Mica - Hawkfur | @Rani - Crowtooth ] https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=48957 Rabbitpaw gif made by ramen! Rabbitpaw header made by Marigoldwhisper! |
Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=50251 Crowtooth Windclan Tunneler/Fury | He/him | 51 Moons Power Card: Cold Gust Was Hawkfur panicking? Yes. Did Crowtooth notice at all? No, the dense tunnel obsessed idiot did not he was too busy chattering away about his favorite thing. Rabbitpaws questions earned a grin and a quick "Good deducing there kid! Those are just the kinda connections ta make that'll help ya learn fast!" before he reflected on the questions further for a proper answer. "Honestly? Not really. Rain an' snowmelt might be enough ta make thin's unstable but frost aint enough water ta do the same. It mainly just makes tunnelin' in early mornin' a pain an' delays the day a mite, nothin' big." A later start was not a problem for Crowtooth given what a lazy butt he could be when he wasnt working himself to death, ever prone to sleeping in. "Ya are correct kiddo! Ya can learn ta predict if a tunnel is 'bad' so lemme go over that. If a tunnel is unstable then ya'll feel it goin' in, debris will fall like dirt raining down, the ground will feel squishy an' non compacted an' tappin' the wall will result in a mini landslide. A good tunnel is a firm one. But once thin's really go bad it'll feel.... vibrate(?) no better word really. Ground shift beneath yer paws, yer whiskers feel thin's movin' when ya aint touched nothin' an' ya'll hear crackin' or rumblin' dependin' on the soil type. I'll explain more on that once were down, fer now follow the noises I make an' take yer time learnin' ta feel yer way around! Once yer feelin' confident Ill go over the diggin' side." With one final grin in the sun Crowtooth ducked into the tunnel, padding slowly with loud paws so the two could follow him and calling out which one he took when he passed side tunnels. There'd be some bumping and banging behind him for sure as the two toms figured things out, but he expected things to eventually calm as footing was found with trial and error. Still the tom waited for quiet to move on to another section. "Alright so while a lotta tunnels are already made by rabbits, other creatures, or nature itself part o' tunnelin' is diggin' the tunnels yerself. The diggin' itself is easy. Ya find a spot where the ground is firm (so not crumbly) but soft enough ta dig an' driver yer paws in. Use yer claws an' make scoopin' motions before packin' the dirt in ta the walls an' dirt around ya, this helps strengthen the passage ya dig. However, soil matters. On the moors we mainly got dirt. Its good fer diggin' an' rarely needs support but there are patches o' other types (more common on other territories) that ya need ta mind. Clay is mostly in thunderclan, it supports its weight well but doesnt compact fer some reason? Also downright impossible ta get outta fur once dried I hate it. Rocks are stable too an' usually near the pines but ya wanna tunnel above them 'cuz if they do fall yer deader then normal. Riverclan has tons o' sandy ground an' it falls if ya sneeze wrong around it I swear. Dont trust paths through sandy spots unless ya supported the roof an' walls wit' sticks an' I dont recommend tunneling there." Honestly this was making it seem a lot more dangerous then it was (at least to a tom who spent all his time down there) but it was good for the two to learn the safety stuff lest they learn it by experience. @Dolomedes @Mica |
Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
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Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
[ @Mica - Hawkfur | @Rani - Crowtooth ] https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=48957 Rabbitpaw gif made by ramen! Rabbitpaw header made by Marigoldwhisper! |
Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=50251 Crowtooth Windclan Tunneler/Fury | He/him | 51 Moons Power Card: Cold Gust The tunneler probably took a little bit too much amusement in the stumbles and bumps made as the two cats adapted to the dark but in his defense he was in their paws years ago himself and should they train tunnelers as he was not they'd probably feel the same. Plus they did really well for their first time, finding their footing with skill and quickly even with the fast breathing from Hawkfur Crowtooth could hear now that they were in an enclosed space. Not that the tom knew what got his fellow fury so scared really, it was just the tunnels! Ah well, he seemed to be calming now and Hawkfur had time to relax as Crowtooth responded to Rabbitpaw. "Im gonna be honest kiddo I aint ever thought o' tryin' that! Its a sound idea though, maybe you an' I can try it out later. Thats just the kinda thoughts that'll have ya go far in the tunnels though! Be creative an' clever as long as yer cautious about it." It was just this kinda of 'what if' thoughts that'd made the elder tom when he was first trying to find his place in the world with no training to navigate the dark. Be clever and always wary and you'd go far down here. On to the next topic though! "If yer startin' ta feel confident wit' movin' around we can start talkin' prey! As Ive told ya before Rabbitpaw the tunnels are important fer keeping the store stocked in winter, as most o' the prey we hunt spend most o' leaf bare sleepin' down here. If we only hunted above we could go hungry, especially if a storm happens an' goin' out becomes dangerous 'cuz we can always dart below as long as we 'ave tunnelers! The prey is mostly the same as above; rabbits, voles, moles, gophers, mice an' more rarely the occasional squirrel an' chipmunk, fer some reason. But we also get some critters not often found above! Groundhogs an' prairie dogs fer one but we also get these little snakes sometimes that dont even hurt when they bite, only the size o' a gopher really. But ya need ta keep in mind huntin' down here is very different then above. There aint no stalkin' prey or much stealth down here, so instead ya gotta be clever. One major example is vole/mole wallin'!" The tom finally stopped after leading the cats on a steady trek through the tunnels, occasionally stopping at a junction to feel for claw marks he used to plot routes he didnt have memorized. This particular spot was fairly shallow, not to much distance from the surface and as they walked one scent in particular grew stronger. Vole. "Alright so this is a staple of underground huntin'. Ya can smell vole? Its 'cuz theyre here, theres a burrow full o' them somewhere in these walls an' the goal is ta catch 'em." The tom shrug went unseen as he drawled "Its honestly pretty easy though. Press yer ears ta the walls when ya smell voles in the tunnels until ya hear faint scratches an' squeakin'. Then ya dig claws in an' dig voles out, grabbin' an killin' 'em when ya feel/hear one bein' dislodged. Easy an' low risk as long as yer occasionally stampin' dirt in so what yer diggin' out remains stable. Its also low reward though, voles/moles/gophers are small so ya need more ta be worth it." Common sense really, two grown cats could easily share a rabbit if not too hungry but it was impossible to split small prey like mices and the prior listed group. "Now we can give this a try or I can skip ahead an' take ya faster ta a rabbit warren ta teach ya how groundhogs an' rabbits go, catch some there an' all." Their choice really, it was a matter of how ok they were at spending a long period of time down here. @Mica @Dolomedes |
Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
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Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
[ @Rani - Crowtooth | @Mica - Hawkfur ] [ +1 Mole ] https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=48957 Rabbitpaw gif made by ramen! |
Re: Rabbits belong in warrens, not birds [p]
https://warriorcatsonline.com/forums...ictureid=50251 Crowtooth Windclan Tunneler/Fury | He/him | 50 Moons Power Card: Cold Gust Hawkfur was really loosing it wasnt it. In a way Crowtooth respected the calm he somehow managed to have, in another way he kinda wanted to be amused at him. Still the tom wanted to move on while Rabbitpaw wanted to give it a try so with an approving hum the apprentice set to work trying out the skill. At this point Crowtooth wasnt shocked Rabbitpaw had managed to get a vole, the kid was naturally skilled and so the tunneler let out a pleased rumble and answered his questions. "Nice work! But yeah they aint quick on ground but theyre faster then us in diggin' so ya need ta snag 'em while theyre stunned from bein' unearthed before they start up again. As fer gettin' all o' them its as ya thought, practice. However if ya are in a patrol ya can have a set 'catcher' so the diggin' cat can just focus on unearthin' 'em while another just focuses on grabbin', that generally works ta get them all. We'll come this way on our way out so leave the mole here fer now." With that the tom turned and set out to guide the two to the warren he'd pre scouted. "Alright so warrens an' groundhog burrow are easiest ta find on the surface actually. Just walk until ya spot one, alert it, and follow it back ta the den it hid in. Now aint much difference between huntin' groundhogs an' rabbits but a bit o' the risk. Groundhogs are basically giant gophers the size o' a large rabbit an' so they aint much threat. Their bites sting but theyre slow an' cant turn worth nothin' so just dart behind 'em an' ya can kill 'em no issue. But rabbits? Rabbits kick. So when yer in close in a warren wit' 'em ya need ta either startle 'em inta fleein' or catch 'em unawares. Stalkin' aint a thing down here so catchin' em by surprise mainly means pre scoutin' a location ahead o' time an' comin' back when its night an' they dropped guard an' are asleep. Then ya get the sleepin' ones. But startlin' em? Well ya find a den where a lotta them are at once an' go in big an' loud in the hopes o' panickin' the lot. Once they do they dont think an' are easy ta target so ya just need ta avoid the ones who are able to square up. Mainly the bucks in this case. We can do either option here, so any preferences or questions?" This would be the risky-est part of the training session as teaching tips on tunnel fighting and predators that could be found was mostly demonstration and no real threat. However a kick could always still happen, even if Crowtooth taught all he knew and there was three cats, two of which strong warriors, to execute the plan. @Dolomedes @Mica (IM SO SORRY WCO ATE THE REPLY I DID WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME THIS'D DIED T.T If you wanna cont feel free but if its been too long again I am so so sorry I didnt know it hadnt gone through) |
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