fighting techniques

[s t e a l t h]

One of the most important skills a mentor must teach an apprentice is how to fight. Warriors are often called upon to defend the border or protect the Clan from attack, whether by enemy Clans of predators like badgers and foxes. Even medicine cats must learn enough fighting techniques to be useful in battle.

Fighting Techniques

Front paw Strike
Frontal attack. Slice downward with your front paw at the body or face of your opponent. Claws unsheathed.

Front paw Blow
Frontal attack. Bring you front paw down hard on your opponents head. Claws sheathed.

Back-kick
Explosive surprise move to catch opponent from behind. Judge opponents distances from you carefully, then lash out with your back legs, taking you weight on your front paws.

Belly Rake
A fight-stopper. Slice with unsheathed claws across soft flesh of opponent’s belly. If you're pinned down, the belly-rake quickly puts you back in control.

Upright Lock
Final, crushing move on already weakened opponent. Rear up on back legs and bring full weight down on opponent. If opponent does same, wrestle and flip him under you. This move makes you vulnerable to belly-rake, so requires great strength and speed.

Leap-and-hold
Ideal for a small cat facing a large opponent. Spring onto opponents back and grip with unsheathed claws. Now you are beyond the range of your opponents paws, and in position to inflict severe body wounds. A group of apprentices can defeat a large and dangerous warriors this way. Watch for the drop-and-roll counter move, and try to jump free before you get squashed.

Teeth Grip
Target your opponents extremities--the legs, tail, scuff, or ears-- and sink your teeth and hold. This move is similar to leap-and-hold, except your claws remain free to fight.

Scruff Shake
Secure a strong teeth-grip in the scuff of your opponent neck, then shake violently until they're too rattled to fight back. Most effective against rats, which are small enough to throw. A strong throw will stun or kill them.

Play Dead
Effective in a tight situation, like when your pinned. Stop struggling and go limp. When you opponent relaxes his grip, thinking you are defeated, push yourself up explosively. This will throw off an unwary opponent, and put you in an attacking position.

Killing Bite
A death blow to the back the back of the. Quick and silent, and sometimes dishonorable. Used only as last resort.

Partner Fighting
Warriors who have trained and fought together will often instinctively fall into a pair defensive position, each protecting the others back while fending off an opponent on either side, Slashing, claws, and leaping together, battle pairs can be a whirlwind of danger for attackers.


copyright to erin hunter.