Erin Hunter - The Fourth Apprentice

There really is no action that takes place in this scene. The cats must continue their search. You should use this scene as a reminder that the cats are starting to feel more and more worn down. As you describe the upcoming scenes, stress how tired they are and how ill they are feeling. Try to get the players to think about what it feels like to be running a high fever-the disorientation and confusion and exhaustion-and convey that their cats are feeling just that way.

What Happens Next:If more than half of the cats are still awake and active, continue with 20.

If more than half of the cats are Knocked Out, continue with 12.

18. Not the Right Pool

Read Aloud:“You’ve found a beautiful pool-calm, clear water, tall grass growing around its banks. Surely this is where the feverfew will be found.“

Narrator Tips:Let the cats search around the pond briefly, allowing them to make See or Smell or Ponder Checks, if they like. Cats with the Herb Lore Knack may use that in these efforts. Pretty quickly, though, they should realize that there is no feverfew around this pool, so they must be in the wrong place.

Let the cats make another group Ponder Check to gain an insight. This is just as described in scene 15 except that it is a little easier (since they have gained some experience from this wrong turn). This time they gain insight if the group total is equal to or higher than the number of cats x4. And, if they wind up trying this again later in the adventure, the target for the Ponder Check multiplier drops by 1 each time (so it’s cats x3 on the third Check and cats x2 on the fourth).

What Happens Next:If the cats failed to get an insight, they must retry scene 18again. Don’t tell them that they are doing the same scene a second time. Improvise a slightly different Read Aloud section and make them feel like they have certainly found the right pool this time.

If the cats have successfully gotten an insight into the problem, continue with 5.

19. Feverfew

Read Aloud:“Along the water’s edge, hidden among the roots of tall grass and reeds, you finally find it-a thick, green, overflowing patch of feverfew!“

Narrator Tips:Success! The cats have found the feverfew!

Using the instructions given to them by the medicine cats, they can gather as much of the herb as they need. And the cats who are currently suffering from the ill effects of the fever can begin taking the medicine right away. They won’t be completely healed, but they will feel a little bit better right away. (They get 1 chip of immediate bonus healing.)

The adventure is over, but let the players describe what their cats are doing and how they will get the feverfew back to the Clan territory. Then skip ahead over the two days of travel, and describe the scene when the cats return.

At first, the medicine cats will simply grab the herbs and get to work, perhaps leaving the characters to feel unappreciated. But later, the medicine cats and the Clan leaders and all the other healthy members of the Clans will come and thank them, telling them that they are real heroes. And it’s true.

What Happens Next:The adventure is over. Well done!

20. One Special Pool

Special Note:The cats may come to this scene more than once. After the first time, there is no need to reread the Read Aloud section; just get to the meat of the scene.

Read Aloud:“The other pools are certainly beautiful, there’s no doubt about it. But there is something special about this pool. And there is a fresh, hopeful scent in the air.“

Narrator Tips:The cats are absolutely certain that this is the right pool. The scent of feverfew fills the area. Unfortunately, that makes it more difficult to determine where exactly the patch is. It will take a group effort to find it.

Each cat must make either a See or a Smell Check. Add their totals together to get a group total. Write that number down; you may need to remember it later. If the group total is equal to or greater than the number of cats x6, they have succeeded in finding the feverfew. If the group total is less than that number they have failed to find the herb.

It is possible that the cats will fail to find the feverfew on their first attempt. If so, they will have to visit this scene a second and possibly a third time. Each time they do, they build on the same group total. So, for example, if there are six cats, the group total must be 36 in order for them to succeed (6 x 6 = 36). If the first group total is only 15 points, then the next time the cats try they add their new group total to the old one. So if the second group total is 12, the overall group total is now 27 (15 + 12 = 27). That’s still not enough to succeed, but it’s getting close. They’ll almost certainly succeed on the third try.

What Happens Next:No matter what the results of the search are, the cats must first face the ravages of the fever. Continue with 5, but then come back here to see the final resolution.

If the cats succeed in finding the feverfew, continue with 19.

If the cats fail to find the feverfew, continue with 17.

21. Fight!

Read Aloud:“The badger launches itself straight at you, snorting and growling and baring its teeth. But as sharp and dangerous as those teeth look, you know that the real danger is the badger’s claws!“

Narrator Tips:This is the big fight. Either the cats will win, or the adventure will end in tragedy for them and all the cats suffering through the fever back in the Clan territory.

The thing that makes the badger especially dangerous is that it’s a vicious fighter with incredible speed. In each Round of this fight, the badger may be able to attack twice. It always attacks first; then all of the cats attack. If any of the cats try to Swat or Wrestle with the badger and fail on their attack Checks, the badger gets to make a second attack at the end of the Round.

When the badger makes a Swat Check, the total is 7. If the badger hits, its Strength Check has a total of 8 when determining damage. When the cats attack, the badger’s Jump Check total is 7. Its Strength score, for determining how much damage the cats do, is 5. Once a fight starts, the badger will not quit until it is Knocked Out-it has a total of 15 chips that must be lost before this happens.

In most scenes, if one cat is Knocked Out, the whole team loses-even if they beat the enemy. Since this is the climax of the adventure, though, the group can still win even if one or two of their members are beaten. If half or more of the cats in the group are Knocked Out, though, then the whole team loses-there aren’t enough cats left to bring back sufficient amounts of feverfew. If, however, the badger is beaten and more than half the cats are still standing, the team wins.

What Happens Next:If the cats Knock Out the badger and less than half the cats are Knocked Out, continue with 20.

If half or more of the cats are Knocked Out, continue with 12.

22. Dog Fight

Read Aloud:“With a roaring bark, a large brown dog leaps from the back of one of the monsters.“

Narrator Tips:The cats have very few choices at this point. They can try to run up the hill and hope the dog doesn’t follow them, they can fight the dog, they can climb a tree, or they can retreat down the hill and hope the dog doesn’t follow them.