What are Clan abilities in Clans of the Forest?
The safest way to describe the system before launch is that Clan identity is one part of the game's broader combat system. Trailmark's official feature page says players use timing, tactics and specialized Clan moves to overcome rival warriors, predators and dangerous bosses. The same section says you can build your move set, exploit enemy weaknesses and unleash powerful ancestor attacks granted by StarClan.[1]
That wording confirms several important things. First, the four Clans are not purely cosmetic story choices. Second, combat is not presented as a single fixed attack list. Third, there is some form of move selection or loadout building. Fourth, Clan-related techniques coexist with other combat systems such as stances and StarClan powers.
What it does not tell us is how many moves are exclusive to each Clan, whether some moves are shared, or whether Clan identity affects base stats. Those details matter because many unofficial guides are already filling the gaps with invented systems.
The 75 combat moves are real — the Clan breakdown is not public
Steam's current listing confirms 75 unique combat moves to discover and unlock and a turn-based battle system supporting encounters of up to 3 versus 3.[2] That is the strongest public number available for the combat system right now.
However, the 75-move total should not be divided into four equal Clan pools unless the publisher says so. There is no official statement that ThunderClan has 18 moves, RiverClan has 19, or any similar breakdown. There is also no confirmed table showing which techniques are universal, Clan-exclusive, StarClan-based or tied to story progression.
For SEO purposes, that distinction is important. A page titled "all Clan abilities" should currently function as a verified system guide, not as a fabricated spreadsheet of move names.
ThunderClan abilities: what is actually confirmed?
ThunderClan has its own full story campaign, and Trailmark confirms specialized Clan moves in the combat system generally. That makes it reasonable to say ThunderClan will participate in the Clan-specific move system. It is not reasonable to publish a pre-release list of supposedly confirmed ThunderClan skills.
There is currently no official evidence for claims such as:
- ThunderClan having a fixed attack or defense bonus
- ThunderClan being the game's "tank" or "balanced" class
- a move called Thunderclap Pounce
- a move called Lion's Roar
- forest stealth or climbing being exclusive ThunderClan combat passives
- a guaranteed beginner-friendly difficulty modifier
Those concepts may sound plausible because of franchise lore or familiar RPG archetypes, but plausibility is not confirmation.
Read the dedicated ThunderClan guide for the distinction between its confirmed campaign, dense forest territory and unannounced mechanics.
RiverClan abilities: swimming lore is not a combat stat
RiverClan's identity in the books is strongly connected to water, swimming and fishing. In the game, RiverClan is also confirmed as one of the four full campaigns, and its territory is described by official storefronts as marshlands.[2]
That does not prove a water-element combat tree. At the time of this verification, official sources do not confirm:
- healing bonuses for RiverClan
- counterattack specialization
- water damage
- fishing-based combat buffs
- higher defense or sustain stats
- moves named Flowing Current or Ripple Counter
The dedicated RiverClan guide keeps franchise traits separate from game mechanics until Bamtang or Trailmark publishes actual move data.
ShadowClan abilities: no verified stealth or poison build yet
ShadowClan is associated with dark pine swamps in the game and has its own story campaign. Franchise lore also makes stealth-oriented descriptions feel natural. But there is currently no official combat sheet that turns ShadowClan into a debuff, poison or stealth class.
Unverified claims currently circulating online include names such as Shadow Veil and Venom Strike, plus supposed accuracy reductions, poison damage-over-time effects and fixed control roles. None of those details appear on the primary publisher or storefront pages reviewed for this update.
What is confirmed is broader: specialized Clan moves exist, players can build a move set, enemies have weaknesses worth exploiting, and combat stances can be experimented with.[1]
See the ShadowClan guide for its confirmed campaign and dark pine swamp setting.
WindClan abilities: speed is lore context, not a published stat table
WindClan's open moors are confirmed in the game, and speed is strongly associated with WindClan in the wider Warrior Cats franchise. That still does not prove that WindClan acts first, has higher initiative, receives extra turns or gains a dodge percentage bonus.
There is currently no primary-source confirmation for moves such as Gale Dash or Falcon Dive, nor for claims that WindClan has a formal speed/repositioning role in the game's balance model.
Until a move list, gameplay breakdown or launch build verifies those mechanics, WindClan should be described using confirmed information: its full campaign, open moor territory and participation in the game's Clan-based combat identity. See the WindClan guide for more.
Combat stances are confirmed
Trailmark separately says players can train powerful moves and experiment with combat stances.[1] This is useful because it suggests the final combat build is broader than simply selecting a Clan.
What remains unknown is how stances work mathematically. There is no public official table showing stance names, stat modifiers, switching costs, turn penalties or whether particular stances belong to particular Clans. We also do not yet know whether a stance is equipped before battle, changed during battle or unlocked through progression.
That means a correct pre-release guide can say "combat stances exist," but should not invent aggressive, defensive or stealth stance values.
StarClan ancestor attacks are a separate confirmed layer
Another confirmed part of combat is the ability to unleash powerful ancestor attacks granted by StarClan.[1] This is one of the most interesting systems because it connects the spiritual side of Warrior Cats directly to battle.
The details are still intentionally limited. Official sources do not currently confirm a Spirit meter, mana bar, favor threshold, Moonpool unlock requirement, fixed cooldown or separate StarClan skill tree. Those systems may be common in RPGs, but they cannot be treated as facts simply because they would make mechanical sense.
For more on the spiritual side of the game, see our StarClan guide.
How moves are unlocked
Steam confirms that the 75 combat moves are discovered and unlocked, while Trailmark says players train powerful moves.[2][1] Beyond that, exact progression rules are not public.
There is no verified official information yet for:
- character level requirements
- mentor-specific unlock trees
- Clan favor thresholds for abilities
- currency or resource costs
- skill points
- ability rarity tiers
- story chapter requirements
- move upgrades or ranks
- whether all 75 can be unlocked in one campaign
- whether moves carry between Clan campaigns
When those details are published or can be tested after October 23, this page can be converted into a full unlock guide.
Do the four Clans have completely different movesets?
Not enough information is public to answer that precisely. "Specialized Clan moves" establishes some Clan-linked differentiation, but it does not tell us whether every move is exclusive.
A reasonable final system could contain universal attacks plus Clan-specific techniques, or larger separate pools, or something in between. Until the developer publishes the structure, this wiki will not present one interpretation as confirmed fact.
This is also why the 75 combat moves guide should be treated separately from this Clan-focused page. The total move count is confirmed; the exact category breakdown is not.
Which Clan has the best abilities?
There is no evidence-based answer before launch. A meaningful ranking would require at least the following:
- complete move names and descriptions
- damage or healing values
- status effects
- accuracy rules
- cooldowns or costs, if those systems exist
- enemy resistance and weakness data
- unlock timing
- interaction with combat stances
- interaction with StarClan attacks
- difficulty and encounter composition
Without those data, "best Clan abilities" lists are mostly projections from book lore or generic RPG archetypes.
Players choosing a first campaign are better served by selecting the Clan whose story and territory interest them most. You can compare all four in our Clans guide.
What has not been officially confirmed
As of September 6, 2026, the following details should still be treated as unconfirmed unless a future official source adds them:
- exact Clan ability names
- exact damage, healing or status values
- stamina or Spirit resources
- ability cooldowns
- attack, defense, speed or stealth base-stat bonuses by Clan
- passive Clan traits
- elemental damage types
- initiative or extra-turn systems
- a dedicated skill tree for each Clan
- cross-Clan ability inheritance
- respec systems
- ability rarity tiers
This list is intentionally conservative because pre-release search results already contain extremely specific mechanics that cannot be traced back to the developer or publisher.
Frequently asked questions
Does each Clan have unique abilities?
Trailmark confirms specialized Clan moves, so Clan identity does affect combat. The complete Clan-by-Clan move structure has not yet been published.
How many combat moves are in Clans of the Forest?
Steam currently confirms 75 unique combat moves to discover and unlock across the game.
Does ThunderClan have the highest attack?
No official base-stat comparison has been published.
Is RiverClan the healing Clan?
No official source currently defines RiverClan as a healing or sustain class.
Does ShadowClan use poison and stealth?
Those are common speculative interpretations, but no official ShadowClan poison or stealth ability list has been published.
Is WindClan faster than the other Clans?
WindClan's speed is part of franchise identity, but no official game speed stat or initiative ranking has been released.
Are StarClan powers confirmed?
Yes. Trailmark explicitly confirms powerful ancestor attacks granted by StarClan. Exact mechanics and unlock conditions are still unknown.
Are combat stances confirmed?
Yes. Trailmark says players can experiment with combat stances, but stance names and numeric effects are not public yet.
Can you learn another Clan's moves?
Cross-Clan move access has not been explained.
When will exact ability lists be added?
This guide can be updated when the developer publishes detailed move data or when the released game provides directly verifiable names, effects and unlock conditions.
Watch the official announcement trailer
No reliable Clan-abilities-specific official YouTube video was found during this update. The broader announcement trailer remains the best verified video overview of the game currently available.
Related guides
- All four Clans
- ThunderClan
- RiverClan
- ShadowClan
- WindClan
- Combat system
- 75 combat moves
- StarClan
- Prophecy Mode
References
- Trailmark Games — official Warrior Cats: Clans of the Forest pageConfirms specialized Clan moves, move-set building, enemy weaknesses, StarClan ancestor attacks, combat stances and four distinct Clan campaigns.
- Steam — Warrior Cats: Clans of the ForestConfirms up-to-3v3 turn-based combat and 75 unique combat moves to discover and unlock.
- Nintendo — official game listingCorroborates turn-based combat, learning new combat moves and the four Clan territories.