BloodClan

BloodClan is a dangerous group of cats made up of feral cats from Twolegplace. They are highly trained fighters, whose harsh lifestyle contributes to their strength and fortitude.

Organization
BloodClan is not an official Clan, but more of a loosely organized group of alley cats who live together in Twolegplace for mutual protection. They mostly feed on Twoleg trash and live prey is scarce. Their leader is Scourge, a small black cat with one white paw, and an eerie, high-pitched voice that sounds like the splintering of ice. They don't have an "official" deputy, but the cat closest to Scourge is a muscular black and white tom with green eyes, named Bone. He does most of Scourge's dirty work, and keeps the other cats of BloodClan in line by force. They do not have a medicine cat, and the elders are never cared for; if a cat can't hunt for itself, they die.

Cats are required to live on their own and living in family groups is forbidden, given Scourge's concern that some cats will join together against him. Mothers train their kits, teaching them how to hunt, fight, and generally everything basic, and at the age of twelve moons, kits leave their mothers, so they are forced to rely on Scourge and Bone.

A loner named Barley who lives in a barn near Twolegplace used to be a member of BloodClan, but ran away. He tells the leader of ThunderClan, Firestar, that Scourge's biggest weakness is his disbelief in StarClan. At first, Firestar doesn't understand, but he understands later while battling with BloodClan.

Cat Characteristics
They do not have a belief in StarClan or the warrior code. Because of this, the leader does not have the nine lives granted to Clan leaders. Many cats of BloodClan impale their collars with teeth of cats and even dogs, wearing them like trophies and making them appear more intimidating. Some BloodClan cats who are high in rank in Scourge's guard have their claws reinforced with dogs' teeth.

Other Facts
Only two known connections exist in the Clans (or around them) to BloodClan, the ShadowClan warrior Boulder and Barley, the loner. There have been only one set of BloodClan allegiances, included in the The Darkest Hour Allegiances. Another known fact is that, amazingly, Scourge is Firestar's half brother.

Secrets of the Clans

 * A young cat named Barley defied the decree of Scourge that no cats live together in order to care for his sister, Violet. When Barley and Violet were discovered by Bone, Scourge decided that as punishment that Barley watch his own sister die at the paws of their own brothers, Snake and Ice. Afterward, Barley found that his sister had survived the attack and took her to the house of the kittypet Fuzz and his Twolegs, who had cared for Barley at an earlier time. Knowing that his presence put his sister in danger, Barley fled BloodClan to the forest, where he settled down at the barn bordering WindClan territory.

Cats of the Clans

 * Rock didn't want to scare the kits into having nightmares when explaining BloodClan. He said that BloodClan was only ever a band of stray cats roaming in Twolegplace. Scourge united them in terror. His greatest strength was the lack of a conscience. However, it was his greatest weakness too. He also didn't believe in StarClan, and as a result he only had one life to lose and Firestar took it away from him.


 * Bone died in battle as well. He was killed by a group of apprentices after he killed Whitestorm. Rock remarks that the three kits would have fought along with them, had they known the wise and gentle warrior that was Whitestorm.

The Darkest Hour

 * Tigerstar formed an alliance with BloodClan at the beginning of The Darkest Hour, in the hopes of using the combined might of TigerClan and BloodClan to convince any resistant Clans (namely LionClan, comprised of ThunderClan and WindClan) to join TigerClan. In exchange, Tigerstar agreed to give BloodClan a share of the forest to live in after all the Clans joined TigerClan (Although Tigerstar had no intention of following through on that part of the bargain). However, the plan backfired when Tigerstar found that he could not control BloodClan, and was killed by BloodClan's leader, Scourge in one terrible blow that destroyed all nine of Tigerstar's lives at once.


 * Scourge, who by then had decided to take the territory for himself, gave the Clans three days to leave. Firestar managed to convince the four Clans to form LionClan to take on BloodClan. During the three days, several cats, particularly Jaggedtooth and Darkstripe, turned traitor to their Clans and joined BloodClan. At the end of the three days, LionClan and BloodClan met in battle. The death toll was heavy, the most prominent being Whitestorm of ThunderClan. Scourge took one of Firestar's nine lives before Firestar was able to kill him, ending the battle.

Shattered Peace

 * Willie, Minty, Snapper, Tess, and Pounce arrive at Ravenpaw and Barley's barn, seeking shelter from the snow. Later on in the book, it is revealed that Willie and the other cats used to be part of BloodClan. But they left since so many cats competed to rule Twolegplace in Scourge's place. They want to start their own Clan, right in Ravenpaw and Barley's territory. Then the former BloodClan cats fight the loners, and defeat them.