BEASTFOLK: A PLOT INFO

[powersthatbe]

Beastfolk
a Pastoral
May 15 - June 24

The Beastfolk of Home have been scratching out a living in their little corner of a highly dangerous world for over a century now, making the most of the few resources they have and relying on oral tradition and the strange visions of their seers to keep themselves going. But when a strange creature - that only one of the village elders recognises as a mythical human - stumbles into their enclave from beyond the desert and the latest group of foundling Beastfolk to arrive on Gods’ Isle is considerably larger than usual, questions about just what brought them there and how to move forward begin to arise…

World Info | Beastfolk Species | Health Issues | Community Structure | Wildlife | Casting Call/Plot Role Announcements | Infiltrator Groups/Roles | Investigator Roles | Locations | Skills | Calendar | Player Resources | Questions | Plotting

Comments

BEASTFOLK SPECIES

[powersthatbe]

General information/all kinds: Senses are comparable to human or maybe very slightly more acute. Strength is dependant on size/musculature (a centaur with a draft-horse lower half will have the expected strength of a draft-horse and so on). Colors/patterns don't have to be naturally occuring (or naturally occuring for the animal used as an inspiration), although really bright colors are less common. Feathers and scales are more likely to be bright colors than fur. Foundling Beastfolk never have defects/disabilities, and children born in Home almost always do.

Centaur-- Centaurs have a mostly human body from the waist up attached to the body of a hoofed quadruped. Horses (and close relatives) and deer are the most common. Any mammal with hooves is an option, and horned/antlered types may optionally possess those features. Ears may be normal for a human, or horse/deer/etc. ears on top of the head. Some maned centaurs have said mane/hair running down the human "back." Centaurs tend to be the largest Beastfolk to match their lower bodies, but not to ridiculous extremes. (Very small centaurs can happen as well, though.)

Sphinx-- Rather than appearing like a mythological sphinx, they share the same body plans as centaurs, but with different animals for the back half. Most often, sphinxes have the lower bodies of felines, but canines, foxes, and mustelids also happen frequently. Any mammal with paws is an option, and sphinxes can vary widely in size, with the largest being centaur-sized.

Satyr-- They have a mostly human-appearing body, although they're usually very hairy all over and possess proportionally very long limbs. From the knee down, their legs are the hind-legs of a horse or close relative (although they frequently have two additional 'hooflets' beside the main hoof), and may give the appearance of almost walking on stilts, or of being a normal human that's been stretched. They also have a horse's tail and ears (or the tail and ears that match the sub-type). Some, but not all, also have a single horn sprouting from the forehead. Rare satyrs may have hind-legs more similar to a tapir, chalicothere, or rhinoceros. Some satyrs have hoof-like, or short-claw-like fingernails, and all can switch between bipedal and quadrupedal locomotion easily. Most satyrs also have exaggerated secondary sex characteristics, and are roughly within normal-human-ranges in mass (although the long legs may make them appear much taller than average humans).

Faun-- The lower half of their body is the back half of an even-toed ungulate (most frequently goats), including a matching tail. They have either pointed human-like ears, or goat-like ears, and always possess horns - at least two, and as many as six, usually sprouting from just above the temples. Some fauns have fur running up the spine as well or goat-like eyes. Fauns are usually normal human-sized, even if the animal they resemble would be much larger.

Harpy-- They have a mostly human body, with completely birdlike legs, a pair of wings in addition to arms coming from the back, a feathered tail, and taloned fingers. They may have feathering on other parts of the body as well. Harpies usually have normal human teeth and give live birth instead of laying eggs. Harpies tend to be small, light-weight, and have slight frames. Most have hollow bones, and a barrel chest to support the flight muscles.

Dragonmen--Their body plan is much like a harpy, only with a long lizard-like tail and legs, leathery wings, and scales instead of feathers. They usually have sharp teeth, are endothermic, and give live birth. They can appear more like scaly-bats, or swing very reptile-like in appearance, depending on player preference. They tend to be similar in size/frame and weight to harpies, and also have hollow bones.

Naga-- They are mostly human from the waist up, although many have four arms, and the body of a snake from the waist down. Nagas usually have scales even on the "human" half, and have fangs alongside mostly human dentition. They lack venom, however, even if the inspiration species has it. Like dragonmen, they're endothermic and give live birth. They are the longest Beastfolk, and can rival centaurs in weight, even if their proportions appear to be smaller/more slight.

Origins:
--Foundlings: Foundlings arrive on Gods' Isle once a year and never remember their pasts. They can be anywhere from a child to late middle-aged on arrival, and arrive with no permanent defects or disabilities of any kind (so no vision or hearing loss or permanent mobility issues on arrival, although they can develop naturally later). Rarely, new Foundlings are struck by a mysterious illness that leaves them weak and nearly crippled by pain and hunger for a short while. It almost always clears up within a month, and afterward they are fully healthy.

--Born in Home: Originally, the infant mortality rate of those born in Home was 100%, but it has gotten better. Currently, about 1 in 3 infants born are reasonably "normal" or have only minor deformities that can be worked around, overcome, or are merely cosmetic. The other two-thirds, unfortunately, are severely disabled in one way or another, and many don't live long because of it. Of those that are disabled but don't die within a few months of birth, many are still given a 'live' funeral on the Day of Farewells, with the expectation of being taken by the gods, given a healed/perfect body, and returned to Home as a Foundling.