Clan warriors are never happier than when they're fighting...it is, after all, what they are bred for. Besides, Clan culture demands that in order to honourably acquire status, territory, technology (or pretty much anything else) you must fight for it. To prevent the Clans from destroying each other or inflicting grievous losses, a number of Trials were developed to determine the scope of the conflict, incorporating the Batchall process to limit the scale of the damage.

Trial of Absorption

If a Clan is deemed too weak to function effectively on its own, or has committed a serious breach of Clan law, the Grand Council may decide it must be absorbed into another Clan, lock, stock and barrel (territory, equipment, personnel, genetic materials and Bloodnames etc.). The other Clans must bid for the right to absorb the Clan. Examples of this are the Absorption of Clan Burrock by the Star Adders and Clan Mongoose by the Smoke Jaguars.

Trial of Annihilation

For the Grand Council to call for a Trial of Annihilation...the total destruction of a Clan, the Clan in question must have committed a truly grievous sin. This direst of punishments has only been handed out once in the 300-year history of the Clans...when Clan Wolverine was destroyed by Clan Wolf, after declaring their independence from the other Clans. Again, bidding is used to determine which Clan will carry out the sentence.

Trial of Grievance

This is a more formal version of the Circle of Equals, usually used to settle more serious or complicated disputes. If a warrior (or Clan) feels they have been insulted / dishonoured or had their honour brought into question (usually all the same thing for Clanners), they may request a Trial of Grievance and face their accuser in combat.

Trial of Position

This is the usual way for a warrior to advance their rank. This starts when their sibko training finishes, as their final test is a Trial of Position to determine what rank they will enter service at. Defeating a single opponent earns them the rank of Warrior, while defeating two sees them enter service as a Star Commander. The few that manage to overcome three opponents go on to become Star Captains. Future advancements are decided in a similar way, although exceptions may be made in unusual circumstances.

Trial of Possession

The name is fairly self explanatory. As mentioned earlier, the Clans typically contest ownership of territory, technology and genetic material by holding Trials of Possession. Using the Batchall ritual, both sides name the forces they will field and a bidding process begins, in which the force compositions are steadily reduced to the lowest amount each side thinks they can win with. The side bidding the smallest force may name the location of the battle. If they win, they gain a great deal of prestige within their Clan.

Trial of Refusal

Part of the Clan justice system, a Trial of Refusal allows individual warriors to fight for the right to overturn rulings against them they feel are unjust. On a larger scale, a Clan may also call a Trial of Grievance if its Khans disagree with the rulings of the Grand Council. As with other Trials, other Clans or warriors will bid against each other for the right to meet the Clan or individual in question, in combat.

Bloodname Trial

This is the Trial all warriors strive to compete in at some stage in their career. Only a certain number of warriors may hold a given Bloodname at any one time. As older Bloodnamed warriors die, vacancies open up in the Bloodline and thus opportunities for "un-named" warriors to win one of the highly coveted Bloodnames. A pre-defined number of warriors will be sponsored by their superiors to enter the Trial. These are equivalent to "seeded" sportspeople or teams. A "wildcard entry" is also permitted - the winner of a preceding Grand Melee (a free-for-all battle).

Circle of Equals

A commonly used ritual to settle disputes between individuals, whatever their rank or status. Normally the challenger will call out their opponent, who will then decide where the contest will take place. The challenger decides what weapons, if any, are to be used. If possible, a referee is appointed to ensure honourable conduct. If a combatant leaves the designated area (or Circle),whether intentionally or by accident, they automatically forfeit the contest. Sometimes these can be arranged in the space of a few minutes and bystanders will usually form a circle around the combatants, creating a temporary arena. For more formal contests, a day or two will be taken to prepare the arena and the equipment chosen.