BACK KICK
Explosive surprise move to catch opponent from behind. Judge opponent's distance from you carefully, then lash out with your back legs, taking all weight on your front paws.

BELLY RAKE
A fight-stopper. Slice with unsheathed claws against the soft flesh of the opponent's belly. If you're pinned down, the belly rake quickly puts you back into control.
Example: Fireheart threw her off and flipped over onto his back. Too late he realized that he'd exposed his soft belly. Leopardfur didn't waste a moment. She reared up and came down on Fireheart with all her might. Fireheart felt the wind knocked out of him before the thorn-sharp claws dug into his belly.

FRONT PAW BLOW
Frontal attack. Bring your front paw down hard on your opponent's head. Claws sheathed.
Example: The two cats leaped at each other and began rolling over and over in a play-fight. Graypaw swiped at Firepaw with a hefty paw and the young apprentice's head buzzed with stars.

FRONT PAW STRIKE/FOREPAW SLASH
Frontal attack. Slice downward with your front paw at the face or body of your opponent.
Example: Silverstream drew back a paw and he saw her long claws flash as she prepared to swipe him. As Fireheart screwed up his eyes, bracing himself for the blow, he heard an achingly familiar yowl.

KILLING BITE
A death blow to the back of the neck. Quick and silent and sometimes considered dishonorable. Used only as a last resort.
Example: Firepaw screeched in shock as Yellowfang slammed into him, knocking him sideways. Two heavy paws clamped down onto his shoulders, and iron jaws closed around the back of his neck. "Murr-oww!" he grunted, already thinking fast. If the other cat were to sink its fangs to deep, it would all be over.

LEAP-AND-HOLD
Ideal for a small cat facing a larger opponent. Spring onto opponent's back and grip with unsheathed claws. Now you are beyond the range of the opponent's paws and in position to inflict severe body wounds. A group of apprentices can defeat a large and dangerous warrior in this way. Watch for the drop-and-roll counter move, and try to jump free before you get squashed.
Example: Bone sprang backward, only to cannon into Bramblepaw and Ashpaw, who came charging across the clearing at the same moment. Firestar saw his apprentice leap onto the huge deputy's back, while Ashpaw bit down on his hindleg.

PARTNER FIGHTING
Warriors who have fought together will often fall instinctively into a defensive position, each protecting each other's back while fending off an opponent on either side. Slashing, clawing, and leaping together, battle pairs can be a whirlwind of danger for attackers.
Example: Not far away, Barley and Ravenpaw were battling side by side against a pair of identical gray tomcats, lean warriors whose collars bristled with teeth. Barley hissed at him, rearing up to swipe both forepaws at the gray warrior's ears. Ravenpaw pressed forward beside him, and the two BloodClan warriors were gradually forced back into the bushes.

PLAY DEAD
Effective in a tight situation, such as when you are pinned. Stop struggling and go limp. When your opponent relaxes his/her grip, thinking you are defeated, push yourself up explosively. This will throw off an unwary opponent and put you in attacking position.
Example: Firepaw forced himself to go limp, relaxing his muscles as if in submission, and let out a pretend howl of alarm. Yellowfang bit down. Firepaw surged upward with all the strength in his powerful young body. The she-cat gave a snarl of surprise as she was thrown clear. She tumbled backward into a gorse bush.

SCRUFF SHAKE
Secure a strong teeth grip in the scruff of your opponents neck; then shake violently until he or she is too rattled to fight back. Most effective against rats, who are small enough to throw. A strong throw will stun or kill them.
Example: Firepaw rushed over to Graypaw, who was being attacked from both sides by two smaller rats. Firepaw lunged at the nearest one, giving it a bite that left it dead. Graypaw managed to turn and pin down the other with his claws. He grabbed it with his teeth and flung it into the ditch as hard as could. It did not come back.

TAIL YANK
Grab your opponent's tail and yank it with such force your opponent is thrown off balance.

TEETH GRIP
Target your opponent's extremities- the legs, tail, scruff or ears- and sink in your teeth and hold. This move is similar to the leap-and-hold except your claws remain free to fight.
Example: Firepaw saw his chance. He threw himself forward, crouching low, and clamped his jaws tight on Yellowfang's back leg. "Mur-ugh!" The taste of the matted fur was horrible, but he chomped down hard.

UPRIGHT LOCK
Final, crushing move on already weakened opponent. Rear up on back legs and bring weight down on opponent. If opponent does the same, wrestle and flip him under you. This makes you vulnerable to the belly rake, so it takes great strength and speed.
Example: This time, as Firepaw leaped at Bluestar he stretched out his forepaws. She reared up on her hind legs and used her forepaws to twist him away. As he felt himself slipping, Firepaw scrabbled with his hind paws in the sand, but it was too late and he flopped heavily unto his side.

HALF-TURN BELLY RAKE
Turn onto your side, slip under the opponent's belly, rake it with your claws, then swiftly turn back onto all fours out from under your opponent.

BADGER DEFENSE
Leap over opponent, turn on your back legs and bite opponent's leg. Used only when fighting badgers.
Example: Ashfur reared up and leaped forward, high enough to clear a badger's back. He landed without dropping his forepaws and spun around so fast that Lionpaw marveled at how he kept his balance. Then he ducked down, back onto four paws, and twisted to his side, snapping his jaws and though clamping them into a badger's hind leg.

DUCK AND TWIST
Simple defensive move. The cat ducks then twists around, rolling over onto his/her back, and then springs to their paws.

JUMP AND PIN
Complicated move. Leap backwards, and bounce off the wall. With precise accuracy, land on the cat.

AMBUSH DROP
If it is possible to get above your opponent in a tree or higher ground, this move may prove very useful for an ambush and an advantage at the beginning of a fight. The element of surprise is priceless, and this move allows for a quick, direct attack. Climbing into a tree branch or even on the side of a tree to twist and fall onto the back of an intruder with claws unsheathed can give you a good position to give a nasty bite.

DROP-AND-ROLL
Counter move for the leap-and-hold, this move is valuable when fighting a smaller or equal sized opponent who has a strong grip. Roll over and try to smother or squash them to loosen their grip. Be prepared for a quick recovery so as not to make yourself vulnerable.

DROP-AND-KICK
Counter move to the upright lock, this move requires the knowledge that your opponent will be using the upright lock -- watch for signs that your opponent is confident in their size and strength. When the opponent moves into the upright lock position with both paws raised, quickly move under them and strike up with powerful back legs. Preformed without enough speed this move is disastrous, and should only be used with confident fighters.
Example: Firepaw raised a paw and swiped at her left ear. She ducked to avoid his strike and reared up, towering over him. Quickly Firepaw rolled onto his back, slithered beneath her body, and in one fast movement kicked both his back legs upward into her belly. Bluestar was flung backward and fell onto the sandy earth with a loud grunt.

DODGE
A common but effective strategy for a quick cat to disarm an opponent and avoid attack. Watch an opponent's eyes carefully to anticipate the target, and leap out of the way when they strike.
Example: Firepaw felt a rush of satisfaction as he leaped, but it turned to confusion as Bluestar unexpectedly sprang into the air and let him crash into the ground were she had stood just a heartbeat before.

UNBALANCE
This move is a natural one aimed at disarming an opponent by knocking them down or making them stumble. It's a straightforward attack, and it's necessary not to betray your target with your eyes. Target legs and shoulders to unbalance with a paw strike, backlegs, a muzzle, or go in with a powerful head butt.
Example: Hollypaw took a quick breath and then threw herself at Cinderpaw. Before she knew what was happening Cinderpaw and knocked one her forelegs from under her with a powerful front paws. Then tipped her over with a rolling shove from her hind legs.

BACK LEG RAKE
The back legs are less mobile then the front, but have a lot of power, which makes them useful weapons of attack. This move requires pinning the opponent down by the shoulders and clawing their back with the hind legs.
Example: With his strong hind legs Firepaw clawed at her back till she squealed and struggled away from him, running headlong into the thick undergrowth that surrounded camp.

REVERSE REARED STRIKE
This is another unusual advanced battle move using a combination of the front paw strike, upright lock, back kick and a powerful jump. Kicking behind with the back legs and leaping backward onto the front paws (which acts as an automatic dodge for the drop-and kick move) and raking down with a powerful front strike.
Example: Flicking his hind legs into the air, he spun around on his forepaws and leaped backward, then reared up and raked the air with each paw before tucking his head down and doing a neat forward roll.

DEFENSE ROLL
Below the opponent's move can strike, duck your head and roll sideways and leap up. It's not an offensive move, but a quick move with a fluid recovery can catch your opponent off guard.
Example: Leafpool dipped her head, twisted around, and rolled onto her back before spinning back on up to her paws. The whole move was over in a heartbeat.

ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES
A wise and quick-thinking warrior can use their surroundings to their own advantage, be it backing a warrior into a thick bramble bush, suffocating an opponent with a collar by pulling on it, or puncturing an enemy throat with a sharp stick -- all of which have made an appearance in the series so far.