Catfights
Conflicts are settled through a Catfight. There are two forms, sharing the same mechanics but with very different consequences.
Depending on how the Kittens behave, an encounter can be resolved through conversation, an exchange, or simply fleeing, with no dice involved.
Fang Catfight
You hiss, puff out your chest, hurl insults, but you do not touch. The goal is to break the opponent through fear or pressure, never to hurt him.
- Ability: Strong or Cute, depending on the approach
- Typical skills: Hiss & Growl, Seduce & Charm, Sweet-talk, Shake Your Booty, Keep Calm & Carry On…
- Damage: each success deals 1 Heart point
This is the most common Catfight among animals, the first resort before a Claw Catfight is even considered.
Conceding to limit the damage
At any moment, a side can raise its paws in the air and concede: the winner shows mercy, and it becomes possible to negotiate an arrangement instead of suffering total defeat. This exit is final, there is no coming back to it later, even after rest or care: the matter is settled for good.
Two foxes argue over the same burrow. The loser concedes before dropping to zero Heart points: rather than leaving empty-handed, he negotiates keeping his belongings and walking away with dignity.
Claw Catfight
Claws, knives, swords: you mean to wound.
- Ability: Strong or Smart
- Skill: Scratch
- Re-roll: a weapon carried as a Purr-ecious item grants one
Engaging immediately costs 1 Furr-endship point from the stress. Without that point, or without the will to fight, the Kitten must flee. A Fang Catfight can tip into a Claw Catfight if one of the participants spends 1 Furr-endship point to raise the stakes.
A last resort
Animals only turn to a Claw Catfight as a last resort: most flee the moment a situation threatens to escalate, and it takes real anger, hatred, or extreme violence for one to go through with it. When that happens, the other animals present flee as fast as they can or, if there are enough of them, pile onto the enraged animal, friend and foe alike, to pin them down and calm them. Predators are a different matter: true monsters, they attack without a second thought, and against them there is no choice but to flee or fight back.
Violence has consequences and should stay the exception. Encourage players to favor wit, cunning, and strategy: most Catfights are settled with fangs, not claws.
Sequence
This initiative flow and these actions are common to both types of Catfight. The Kittens always have the initiative, unless they were caught by surprise. An aggressive action (one that directly targets an opponent) then hands the initiative to the Storyteller. A non-aggressive action (helping an ally, moving, interacting) lets you pass the turn to another player. A turn ends once everyone has acted.
Ficelle attacks a haughty skunk: the floor passes to the Storyteller. The skunk attacks back: the floor stays with the Storyteller. An ally chooses to help instead of attacking: the floor passes straight to another player.
Actions:
- Attack (aggressive): each success deals 1 Heart point of damage
- Hinder (aggressive): imposes a disadvantage on an opponent on a success
- Defend (non-aggressive): a Strong or Smart + Keep Calm & Carry On or Shake Your Booty roll. Each success cancels 1 enemy success that turn
- Help (non-aggressive): grants an advantage to an ally on his roll, with no dice rolled (the action automatically succeeds)
- Move (non-aggressive): a big movement, acrobatics, clearing an obstacle. Sometimes a Strong or Smart + Shake Your Booty roll
- Interact (non-aggressive): talking, picking a lock, healing, acting on the surroundings without threatening anyone
Handling a big Catfight
Facing a crowd or several sides fighting at once, treat the scene as a handful of small Catfights running side by side rather than one giant brawl. The Storyteller only needs to run the Catfights a Kitten is actually involved in, and can narrate the rest of the fight like a story unfolding in the background. Adjust the number of opposing extras to the number of Kittens present: several small, easy-to-run groups beat a single overpowered extra.
Extras use the same mechanics as Kittens (rolls, advantages, disadvantages, re-rolls). See the 3D6 System for the details of those modifiers.
Conceding and fleeing
Fang Catfight: at any moment, a side can raise its paws in the air and concede victory. Defeat is accepted on the subject of the quarrel, but the winner cannot press the advantage beyond it (no theft, no imprisonment).
Claw Catfight: the only way out is to flee (a Smart + Shake Your Booty roll) or surrender (a Cute + Seduce & Charm roll). If a Kitten wants to escalate a Fang Catfight into a Claw Catfight, he spends 1 Furr-endship point. His companions can pin him down by jumping on him, in which case they all lose 1 Furr-endship point.
Consequences
Zero Heart points in a Fang Catfight: the character concedes victory, with no harm beyond the subject of the dispute.
Zero Heart points in a Claw Catfight: the player rolls 1d6 on the table below.
| 1d6 | Consequence |
|---|---|
| 1 | Bruises: a few scratches and a little less fur, nothing serious |
| 2 | Minor injury: disadvantage on all rolls until the end of the next rest |
| 3 | Major injury: disadvantage on all rolls until the end of the adventure |
| 4 | Very serious injury: out of action for several days, permanently loses 1 point in an ability or 1 Heart point |
| 5 | Critical injury: out of action for several days, care required to survive, loses 1 point in an ability and 1 Heart point |
| 6 | Death |