Warriors, also known as Warrior Cats, is a children's and young adult fantasy novel series about feral cats living in a forest. It is published by HarperCollins and written under the collective pen name Erin Hunter. Its nine subseries ("arcs") chronicle the survival and adventures of five organized groups of feral cats, called Clans, as they interact with each other and outsiders.
The concept and original storyline of Warriors were created by Victoria Holmes, and the novels were written by Kate Cary and Cherith Baldry, although the Erin Hunter team has changed and expanded since Holmes' retirement in 2017. Alongside novel arcs, the series' list of works includes original English-language manga, longer standalone novels, and novellas. A film was planned, but later canceled; an animated series began development in 2026, and is set to air in 2028. An official Roblox game exists, and an official video game is set to release in October 2026.
The novels have received mixed reviews from critics. Many praised the action in the storylines, and some compared it to Brian Jacques' Redwall series. However, the large cast of characters in Warriors and the inaccessibility of the series to new readers has been a source of criticism. The novels explore some aspects of human society through the viewpoint of cats, such as politics, friendship, and religion. A major theme is the dangers of life in the wild, which includes inter- and intra-Clan conflict, natural hazards, and threats from human construction. Warriors has been translated into 38 languages and has sold over 90 million copies worldwide.
Setting and universe
The Warriors universe centers around groups of feral cats who initially reside in a forest and later around a lake. The cats are split into four groups called Clans: ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan, and ShadowClan. There also exists a lost fifth Clan named SkyClan. Each Clan has adapted to their own terrain, and some Clans are named after their specialized abilities. The Clans follow a warrior code of honor.
Each Clan has a hierarchy that determines the name of each cat in the Clan. A cat's name consists of a prefix and a suffix; as the cat moves up in the hierarchy, the suffix changes. Young cats have the suffixes kit or paw, then receive a unique suffix when they become a warrior, and adopt the suffix star if they become a leader. Prefixes are often inspired by colors and the natural environment. The Clans have medicine cats, who are expert healers. The spirits of dead cats go to the afterlife, called StarClan, which is located in the night sky.
The cats use invented slang words. Their seasons are called newleaf, greenleaf, leaf-fall, and leaf-bare; months are called moons; and distances are measured in animal lengths. Cars are known as monsters. Humans are known as twolegs, and are generally a threat; their housecats are called kittypets by Clan cats.
Synopses
Warriors: The Prophecies Begin (2003–2004)
A housecat joins ThunderClan and is named Fireheart. He rises through the ranks of his Clan, proving that the warrior Tigerclaw is a traitor and a murderer. Tigerclaw is exiled, joins ShadowClan and is made its leader, Tigerstar. He brings a city cat named Scourge to the forest, who betrays and kills him. Firestar, now leader of ThunderClan, temporarily unites all the Clans, who defeat Scourge's gang.
Warriors: The New Prophecy (2005–2006) The Clans' territories are under threat from human construction. A group of cats is sent to find a new home beyond the mountains, meeting and helping another group called the Tribe on the way. The Clans make their way to a lake, which becomes their new home.
Warriors: Power of Three (2007–2009) A prophecy indicates that three cats will have mysterious powers. Two of the three sibling protagonists, Jayfeather and Lionblaze, have powers, but Hollyleaf does not. As they grow up, they investigate the history of cats around the lake and family secrets, while an outsider named Sol manipulates the Clans.
Warriors: Omen of the Stars (2009–2012) The third cat in the prophecy, Dovewing, is born. Evil spirit cats, including Tigerstar's spirit, train Clan cats for battle in their dreams. Eventually, both the living Clans and StarClan have to fight together to defeat the evil deceased cats and their living acolytes. Firestar dies while permanently destroying Tigerstar's spirit, and joins StarClan.
Warriors: Dawn of the Clans (2013–2015) Dawn of the Clans is set in the past, before the events of The Prophecies Begin. A group of cats from the Tribe in the mountains leave in search of a better home. They arrive in the forest territories from The Prophecies Begin, and eventually establish themselves, forming the Clans.
Warriors: A Vision of Shadows (2016–2018) A Vision of Shadows follows from Omen of the Stars. SkyClan, the lost fifth Clan, tries to settle into a territory by the lake. Additionally, the Clans face constant attacks from a group of stray cats led by Darktail, who almost succeeds in destroying ShadowClan.
Warriors: The Broken Code (2019–2021) Ashfur, a StarClan cat, severs the connection between StarClan and the living Clans, and possesses ThunderClan's leader Bramblestar. The protagonists Bristlefrost, Shadowsight, and Rootspring defeat him, restore the connection with StarClan, save Bramblestar's spirit, and change their code of honor, the warrior code, to prevent more tragedy from occurring in the future. The arc concludes with Bristlefrost sacrificing her life to kill Ashfur.
Warriors: A Starless Clan (2022–2024) RiverClan's leader and deputy die in short succession, and StarClan does not show RiverClan who is to be the next leader, placing heavy responsibility on the apprentice and protagonist Frostdawn to choose one. There is growing unrest among the Clans regarding the changes made to the warrior code in The Broken Code, which allowed the protagonists Nightheart and Sunbeam to be mates despite having been born in different Clans. Eventually, Frostdawn chooses a new RiverClan leader and peace is restored.
Warriors: Changing Skies (2025–) The Clans struggle with human construction around the lake and threatening voices in an apprentice's head. Meanwhile, there is unrest in SkyClan as several cats wish for Leafstar to step down from the position of leader.
Development
Warriors is published by American and British company HarperCollins. HarperCollins originally asked editor Victoria Holmes to write a storyline for a single novel about a housecat who joins a Clan and becomes its leader by the end. Holmes initially found this difficult but wrote storylines and sent them to HarperCollins. After reading Holmes' ideas, a HarperCollins editor decided that she had drafted enough content to increase the target from the originally planned single novel to a six-book series. Holmes then utilized the storyline of the single novel as the overall story arc for the six novels. When she finished writing a novel's storyline, it was sent to Tui T. Sutherland for editing, who discussed it with Holmes, then sent it to Kate Cary and Cherith Baldry, who took turns writing the first draft. The finished novels are published under the pen name Erin Hunter. Holmes was responsible for the ideation of the fictional Clan territories, inspired by the varied environments of the New Forest in England. There are two maps of the territories at the beginning of each book, one showing the cats' points of view and the other a human point of view.
HarperCollins requested three novels for the second arc, so Holmes wrote the storylines of Midnight, Moonrise and Dawn to form a trilogy, finishing with the Clans finding a new home by the lake. She described the plot as a "relocation under pressure" story comparable to Watership Down. However, since the novels were selling well, HarperCollins once again increased the target to six books. For subsequent arcs, Holmes planned six-book storylines from the outset, each with a clear beginning and end. The series later expanded to include standalone novels known as Super Editions, field guides that provide extra information about the series' universe, original English-language manga, and novellas, some of which were written by Holmes and Sutherland. The manga, published by HarperCollins and Tokyopop, were intended to be side stories, shorter than regular manga due to publishing schedule restrictions. The manga are written by Dan Jolley, using storylines by the Erin Hunter team, and illustrated by James L. Barry, among other illustrators. Shorter manga comics have been included in the last pages of some Warriors novels, including Super Editions.
Sutherland stopped editing after the fifteenth novel and went on to write a children's fantasy novel series about dragons titled Wings of Fire. Holmes stepped away from creating books after the fourth arc, and retired from the writing team in 2017 due to medical reasons. Since Holmes left, the team of writers and editors has expanded, and graphic novel adaptations of the main series have been created.
Themes Religion The cats believe in StarClan, an ancestor-based religion. Spirit cats in StarClan act as guides to the living Clans, by communicating through prophecies, cryptic dreams and visions, and communion. StarClan resides in the night sky; Holmes decided on this because she felt that the cats' religious beliefs needed to "chime with their natural environment". Religion is important to such an extent that the cats' political system has been compared to a theocracy, and some cats who do not believe in StarClan are considered heretical by others. The cats' world structure also includes mythology, which involves stories about other felines such as leopards.
A Dangerous Path presents disillusionment when ThunderClan leader Bluestar loses her faith in StarClan and declares war on her ancestors, while her Clanmates are disturbed and unable to help her. Some cats go on spiritual quests to fulfill their perceived destinies. Several plotlines involve confusion about the source of visions.
Loyalty, treachery, and friendship The Prophecies Begin often features themes of friendship, loyalty, and treachery. Firestar's friends help his Clan accept him by the end of Into the Wild. However, in Fire and Ice, Firestar feels torn between loyalty to his family and his Clan. Meanwhile, he must face dangers arising from treachery inside the Clan: fellow warrior Tigerstar assassinated the Clan's second-in-command and Firestar is the only one who knows. Firestar has to discern who can be trusted in his Clan. Eventually, he proves Tigerstar's treachery which leads to Tigerstar's banishment from ThunderClan. Tigerstar's actions fragmented the integrity of the Clan, their trust in each other, and their leader's faith in StarClan.
Despite normally being rivals, the Clans may temporarily unite when under a shared threat. The New Prophecy features a group of cats from different Clans working together to accomplish a common goal and becoming friends in the process. In A Starless Clan, a group of cats from each Clan is sent to collect healing herbs to cure a dangerous disease. According to a School Library Journal reviewer, the ending of SkyClan's Destiny proves that loyalty and compassion are desirable traits. Furthermore, Kirkus Reviews wrote that Winds of Change shows "the dangers of political isolationism and how easily the seeds of mistrust are sowed".
The cats' personal relationships sometimes collide with their loyalty to the Clan. ThunderClan warrior Graystripe falls in love with a RiverClan cat in Forest of Secrets, which his Clanmates consider treacherous, as loving a cat from another Clan is banned in the code of honor they live by. However, many generations later, switching Clans to be with a mate is officially authorized, which forces the main characters of A Starless Clan to decide whether their loyalties belong to their Clans or their mates.
Violence and animal survival