"He never seemed to get tired. Always first up and ready to move on. Never afraid of what lay ahead." |
— Mousefur to Purdy about Longtail in Fading Echoes, page 162 |
Longtail is a lean,[12] pale[2] brown[7][13] tabby tom with black stripes[2] and green eyes.[13] He has a "V"-shaped nick in his left ear,[14][13] and a long tail.[15]
Longtail was a ThunderClan elder who lived under Firestar's leadership in the forest and lake territories and previously served as a warrior under Bluestar and Firestar. He was born to Robinwing and Patchpelt as Longkit, and he was later apprenticed to Darkstripe as Longpaw. As a warrior, Longtail was one of Tigerclaw's strongest supporters, and he challenged Firepaw when he first joined ThunderClan, but was defeated by the kittypet. After Tigerclaw's betrayal, Longtail refused to join him, slowly earning Fireheart's respect. After his apprentice, Swiftpaw, was killed by Tigerstar's dogs, Longtail further turned his back on him. He gained Ferncloud as an apprentice and later became a mentor to Sootfur. Longtail was blinded by a rabbit and forced to retire early, but remained valued by the Clan. Longtail formed a close bond with his fellow elders, Mousefur and Purdy, but was killed by a falling tree. He ascended to StarClan and reunited with Mousefur during the battle against the Dark Forest. He was saddened when Mousefur was killed by a Dark Forest tom and killed him in turn.
History[]
Looking for a longer overview? Find one here!
The Prophecies Begin[]
- "Look at his collar! He's a kittypet! Once a kittypet, always a kittypet. This Clan needs wild-born warriors to defend it, not another soft mouth to feed."
- ―Longtail about Rusty Into the Wild, page 49
- When Rusty joins ThunderClan, Longtail fights him to prove his worth, and Rusty tears Longtail's ear, scarring the warrior for life, which greatly angers Longtail. Longtail tears Rusty's collar off, nearly strangling him, and Bluestar takes this as a sign that the kittypet should be accepted into ThunderClan. Longtail is made the mentor of Swiftpaw and continues to support Tigerclaw, until his betrayal and the truth about Redtail's death comes out. Longtail then declares loyalty to ThunderClan and begins to respect Fireheart. He eventually uncovers a plot by Tigerstar to try and destroy ThunderClan, and Swiftpaw is killed trying to fight the dogs, devastating the mentor. However, he receives Fernpaw as an apprentice when his own former mentor, Darkstripe, is exiled for his treason. Longtail fights against BloodClan and survives to tell the tale.
The New Prophecy[]
- "...But Longtail, I won't leave you behind. Yesterday you heard the WindClan cats coming before any other cat. You may have lost your eyes, but your ears and your sense of smell are as good as any warrior's. Please come with us."
- ―Firestar convincing Longtail to go on the Great Journey Dawn (book), page 220
Power of Three[]
- "Tigerstar was a great warrior. He was the strongest cat in the forest and the best fighter. When I was a young cat, I thought he would be the next leader of ThunderClan. I wanted to be just like him."
- ―Longtail to Foxkit and Icekit Outcast, page 28
Omen of the Stars[]
- Purdy: "I wish I'd known him longer. I heard he made the Great Journey while he was blind."
- Mousefur: "He never seemed to get tired. Always first up and ready to move on. Never afraid of what lay ahead."
- Fading Echoes, page 162
- Longtail, now a spirit of StarClan, has regained his sight and takes part in the great battle where he is reunited with Mousefur and Purdy. When Mousefur is killed by a Dark Forest cat, Longtail flies into a rage and brutally mauls Mousefur's killer, causing them to fade from existence. When the battle is over, Longtail helps guide Mousefur into StarClan, along with the others that fell in the battle.
Super Editions[]
This section summarizes Longtail's significant Super Editions appearances. If you're looking for a full list, find one here!
- In Firestar's Quest, Fernpaw becomes a warrior with the name of Ferncloud, and Longtail becomes the mentor to Sootpaw. However, Longtail is blinded while hunting a rabbit that turned on him and scratched his eyes, rendering him unable to hunt or fight properly. This causes him to fall into a depression and becomes an elder despite being relatively young, while Sootpaw is given Thornclaw as a replacement mentor. Firestar comforts Longtail and insists he will always have a place in ThunderClan.
Field Guides[]
This section summarizes Longtail's significant appearances in the Field Guides. If you're looking for a full list, find one here!
- In Code of the Clans, Longtail and Darkstripe are assigned to a hunting patrol during a harsh leaf-bare. Despite managing to catch a squirrel, Longtail breaks the warrior code by allowing Darkstripe to convince him to eat their prey, rather than saving it for the elders. Because of this, an elder named Poppydawn is unable to fight her sickness and dies. Longtail blames himself for her death, but Darkstripe refuses to let him admit his wrongdoing.
Detailed description[]
Scars and injuries gained[]
The following is a chronological list of scars and/or major injuries that Longtail has gained:
- "V" shaped nick in his left ear caused by a battle with Rusty in Into the Wild.[14]
- Blindness from scratched eyes caused by a rabbit in Firestar's Quest.[11]
Character pixels[]
Main images[]
The pixel artwork is fanart based on the canon description; undefined traits are left to the artist's interpretation. |
Alternate images[]
The pixel artwork is fanart based on the canon description; undefined traits are left to the artist's interpretation. |
Official art[]
Please do not edit this gallery |
Killed victims[]
This list shows the victims Longtail has killed:
- Unnamed Dark Forest tabby tom[16] (Spirit)
Family[]
- Main article: Longtail/Family
- Longtail's parents are Patchpelt and Robinwing. For more of Longtail's family, click here!
Appearances[]
- Bluestar's Prophecy (Comic)
- Leopardstar's Honor
- Into the Wild (First appearance)
- Fire and Ice
- Forest of Secrets
- Rising Storm
- Tigerclaw's Fury
- A Dangerous Path
- The Darkest Hour
- Blackfoot's Reckoning (Allegiance only)
- A Thief in ThunderClan
- Firestar's Quest
- Graystripe's Vow
- Mothwing's Secret (Allegiance only)
- Midnight
- Moonrise (Allegiances appearance; mentioned in text)
- Dawn
- Starlight
- Twilight
- Sunset
- Leafpool's Wish (Allegiances appearance; mentioned in text)
- The Sight
- Dark River
- Outcast
- Eclipse
- Long Shadows
- Sunrise
- Hollyleaf's Story (Allegiance only)
- The Fourth Apprentice
- Mistystar's Omen (Allegiance only)
- Fading Echoes †
- Night Whispers (Mentioned only)
- The Forgotten Warrior (Mentioned only)
- The Last Hope
- Bramblestar's Storm (Mentioned only)
- Darkest Night (Mentioned only)
- Squirrelflight's Hope
- Code of the Clans
- Battles of the Clans
- The Ultimate Guide (Mentioned only)
Merchandise[]
Toys and Plush[]
Cloudtail & Longtail - Mini Collector Figures[]
- Series 5
- These toms both struggled in certain ways to prove their loyalty to ThunderClan. The Longtail mini features him at the very beginning of his character arc, with the iconic blue collar still hanging from his jaws and a fresh nick in his ear marking the start of his rivalry with Firestar. While Cloudtail’s disregard for the rules and a worrying fondness for kittypet comforts made his Clanmates despair of him, he also rose above the uncertainty of his youth to become a true ThunderClan warrior.
- Approximate individual price is $12.99 USD, and the three-pack bundle is $38.97 USD.
Trivia[]
Author statements[]
- He was named for his tail and knew from the beginning his warrior name would be Longtail.[blog 1]
- Vicky says that Longtail did not develop any romantic feelings for Mousefur, and that they were just good friends.[17]
- Kate has described Longtail's tail as not freakishly long, just elegantly long.[blog 1]
Mistakes[]
- His name has been mistakenly spelled Longstripe in Code of the Clans.[18]
- There has been much conflict over Longtail's pelt color. Although called silver in Rising Storm,[19] he is called brown less than fifty pages later.[7] When asked about this, Kate, the author of Rising Storm, says that she sees tabbies as brown, and suspects that Cherith sees her tabbies as silver. Kate says that to her, Longtail is brown.[blog 2]
- In addition, Longtail is depicted as a brown tabby in A Thief in ThunderClan,[13] on his profile on the Warrior Cats website,[5] and on his mini,[20] though he is depicted as a silver tabby on the family tree.[21]
Quotes[]
- "Call that a crouch? I've seen better on a three-legged rabbit!"
- ―Longtail taunting Fireheart Forest of Secrets, page 155
- "Whitestorm, you've got to listen to me. Fireheart thinks I'm a traitor, and he won't have anything to do with me."
- ―Longtail starting to warn Whitestorm about the dog pack A Dangerous Path, page 272
- Longtail: "I'll show you that you can trust me."
- Fireheart: "The Clan needs you, Longtail. Far more than Tigerstar and Darkstripe need you, believe me."
- A Dangerous Path, chapter 24
- "Longtail, you are without an apprentice since Swiftpaw died. You were an excellent mentor to him, and I expect you to pass on your skills to Fernpaw for the rest of her apprenticeship."
- ―Firestar giving Longtail Fernpaw to mentor The Darkest Hour, page 119
- "Talk? We're warriors! We fight with tooth and claw, not words!"
- ―Longtail to Hollypaw about the upcoming battle Dark River, page 256
External links[]
- Longtail's profile on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Stand Together or Fall Divided on the Warriors official website (backup link) (Indirect mention only)
- Exclusive! Graystripe's Vow: Excerpt on the Warriors official website (backup link) (Allegiance only)
- Missing the old days on the Warriors official website (backup link) (Mentioned only)
- Where it all began on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Pick a Large Plush 2021 on the Warriors official website (backup link) (screenshot) (Poll option)
- Warrior Cats short story competition: Enter here! on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- When the fire burned brightest on the Warriors official website (backup link) (Mentioned only)
- New Series Five Warriors Minis! on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Firestar and Graystripe: a friendship for the ages on the Warriors official website (backup link) (Mentioned only)
Fan content[]
- Winners of the July 2022 fan challenge + new challenge announcement on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Winners of the September 2022 fan challenge + new challenge announcement on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Winners of the New Year's resolution fan challenge on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Warrior of the Week Gallery #62: Longtail on the Warriors official website (Warrior of the Week #62) (backup link)
- Our Favorite Darkstripe Artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Our favorite The Prophecies Begin scenes artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Longtail and Rusty's battle artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Into the Wild artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Our favorite Longtail artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- More of our favorite Longtail artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- Mini series 5 artwork on the Warriors official website (backup link)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Revealed in The Last Hope, page 176
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Revealed in Into the Wild, allegiances
- ↑ Revealed in The Darkest Hour, page 291
- ↑ Revealed in Fading Echoes, page 167
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Revealed on Longtail's profile on the Warriors official website (backup link)
- ↑ Revealed in Fire and Ice, page 15
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Revealed in Rising Storm, page 306
- ↑ Revealed in Midnight, allegiances
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Revealed in Fire and Ice, page 14
- ↑ Revealed in The Darkest Hour, page 119
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Revealed in Firestar's Quest, page 31
- ↑ Revealed in Into the Wild, page 36
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Revealed in A Thief in ThunderClan, page 27
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Revealed in Into the Wild, page 101
- ↑ Revealed in A Thief in ThunderClan, page 73
- ↑ Revealed in The Last Hope, page 310
- ↑ Revealed on Vicky's Facebook (screenshot)
- ↑ Revealed in Code of the Clans, page 42
- ↑ Revealed in Rising Storm, page 268
- ↑ File:Cloudtail and Longtail.minis.png
- ↑ Revealed on the Warriors website family tree (screenshot)
- ↑ Longtail's kit name, Longkit, has only ever been revealed on the Warrior Cats website.
- ↑ Longtail's apprentice name, Longpaw, has only ever been revealed on the Warrior Cats website.
Author references