discussion Weird question - Biology headcanons

[rookie]

Specifically for Au ra!

 

I'm keen on rping my 'non-human' characters, well, not human-like. I know FFXIV leaves little to the imagination sometimes, but there are a good deal of artists that draw Au ra like sub-monster humanoids and I'm super into that (Please look at my favourite Au ra picture of all time, here http://nickutried.tumblr.com/post/166586137732/in-which-what-if-au-ra-looked-like-their-concept). I know a fair few people that roleplay their Miqo's and Au ra as biologically differing humanoids that are either beastly on the outside and diverse within, so I'd like to see if anyone else does it in the general populace! 

 

Examples of stuff I'd be interested in hearing out are head-canons to perhaps your own character, regardless of whether you are 'lore strict' or not. Some examples I see around are regarding enhanced hearing, running higher temperatures, pseudo-claws instead of hands, alternate tail shapes for function (IE biologically natural stubbed tails or more prehensile tails (more catlike)), crazy jaw strength, resting BPM differences, hormone differences, bent backs, far wider thighs ect, ect.

 

My reasons beyond liking these changes in peoples characters? I'm a h u g e biology nerd, and this sort of thing is insanely interesting to me!

[LiadansWhisper]

I don't play an Au Ra myself, but I don't think that the Lore itself supports any of what you've listed. I seem to recall a statement that Au Ra don't have especially "better" hearing than the other races. I want to activate the Sounsyy flag right about now..

 

Unless you're not looking for Lore explanations. But if you're only interested in head-canon, the Lore forum is an odd place for this thread.

[Arashin Kujqai]

On the matter of what's confirmed, I'll repost this thing that's from a panel/live letter I believe.

Q: Tell us about Au Ra a little more! How likely is it that their horns and tails are damaged/removed? Do they feel sensation against them, or are they a solid material? Should said tails or horns be damaged, do they grow back or are they lost forever? Just how good is Auri hearing? I'm assuming that the horns are hollow.

 

A: More info in the lore book, but also: it's hard for a tail or horn to be removed. They don't shed. They grow continuously until they reach a certain size then stop. They don't grow super long. If they're damaged, in a fall or in battle, they will slowly regrow until they reach the maximum size again. The horns themselves are hollow and the vibration of sound inside them aids their hearing. Is their hearing better than a lalafell who are supposed to have the best hearing? No their hearing is about as good as a hyur, just in a different way / hear it / process it differently. More in the lore book!

 

 

 

 

 

As for head canons though... I don't follow any particularly, I'm usually pretty strict. Though one I've been thinking about lately is while they don't "shed" like a snake or anything, I like to think that their scales can stunt in growth or fall off from stress/pressure/etc. As well as fall off naturally each day like skin and hair does. Otherwise, I'm pretty solid on the idea of them being hollow horned, not shedding, not sensitive tail, humanoid beings. I find most people try to enforce too many oddities because they see some aspects of another creature in a humanoid race, so they want for those other things to happen even if they don't. That's just my thoughts though.

[Valence]

On top of my head:

 

 

Lore answers a few things, like the scales not shedding, the horns and tails regrowing to max size, or the ratio of scales vs skin being variable depending on the au'ri individual. The image you linked is totally possible within the frame of the lore. The simple fact that a hyur-aura offspring will bear very little scales implies that they aren't fixed and can vary depending on the phenotypes involved.

 

We know that miqo'te also can purr, and that probably goes in pair with their unique way to pronounce "h" that they put everywhere and that no other race seems to be able to reproduce properly.

 

We know that miqo'te tend to have either a great stamina (Seekers), or more generally strong, wiry limbs and strength there. Keepers also have a way more accute vision in the dark than other races at the expense of their eyes being more sensitive, possibly.

 

Lalafells have powerful hearing.

 

Xaela often show a muscular strength way above any other races.

 

________________________________

 

Now then, on the speculation side that's not stricly covered in the lore...:

 

I'm also expecting a case to be made for Duskwights to have enhance vision in the dark due to many generations spent in Gelmorra, but I don't remember any mention of that in the lore, though it sounds very logical.

 

We also know that enhanced hearing isn't technically true for most races except lalafells. This doesn't mean however that some species are naturally more gifted, like miqo'te that are said to have keen senses and instincts. Those senses aren't naturally stronger by genetics, but tend to be naturally trained. Knowing that a lot of the tribes and their origins were constantly favored by their environment, requiring such skills, I think a case could be made that while the biology isn't technically superior for hearing, that a lot of individuals tend to boast better characteristics, especially tribal natives.

 

There is some debate on how a lalafell can match in strength a roegadyn or a hyur, and how their mass being way lighter makes that impossible or not... To be honest, I have no idea here. Logic would dictate that a miqo'te would be lighter than a hyur, but possibly more agile. But this is not confirmed by lore in any way I know of.

 

I generally tend to assume that something is more or less human by default (since all races are human variants), unless specified otherwise by the lore. But sometimes it's just better not to focus too much on oddities.

[AkhutaiAngura]

It's been fun reading this - I don't/didn't know how the lore answered those questions about the Au'Ra as well, and I play one.. So it's good to know HOW their hearing actually works (I assumed it was something with vibrations, but didn't know about the hollow horns). As for the tails, I generally play that like a dogs tail? Not stiff persay, but not sensitive. They have some control over it, its able to curl a bit (Scales aren't flexible afterall, but being that they're.. scales.. they have some amount of movement similar to scaled armor). 

One thing I've never been able to find in the lore, and this is only slightly related but not really because it's a more social aspect rather than biological but still none-the-less interesting - A language thing. 

 

There are some pieces I've seen cited elsewhere that suggest everyone on this world, on every continent, speak the same language due to the whole.. bad-guy army taking over everywhere, and universalizing their language. But, personally, I like to play Akhutai has speaking a very broken common, due to being from a tribe that sticks to the mountains and away from society, only coming down for trading and such, meaning only those who were traders would actually take the time to learn any amount of common while the others would speak their natural tongue. 

 

Now, wrapping that back into the biology question.. What would the natural tongue of an Au'ra sound like? Would it be comparable to English versus German vs Arabian, in how they're speakable by everyone who knows them? Or would an Au'ra speak in something more guttural and feral, something that only they can speak fluently due to the development of their throats and such, similar to how a Miqo'te pronounces those 'h' sounds so uniquely?

[Sounsyy]

You can find the actual lore behind the races here and here!

 

There are some pieces I've seen cited elsewhere that suggest everyone on this world, on every continent, speak the same language due to the whole.. bad-guy army taking over everywhere, and universalizing their language.

 

This is actually not true. The Common tongue was created by Hyuran priests during the 4th Astral Era and because the Hyur seem to travel everywhere, dialects of that Common tongue seem to show up in many places. However, there are many many languages out there in the world besides Common. The Au Ra, for example, have tons of languages unique to their tribes.

 

You can read more about some of the different languages of the world here.

 

 

Now, wrapping that back into the biology question.. What would the natural tongue of an Au'ra sound like? Would it be comparable to English versus German vs Arabian, in how they're speakable by everyone who knows them? Or would an Au'ra speak in something more guttural and feral, something that only they can speak fluently due to the development of their throats and such, similar to how a Miqo'te pronounces those 'h' sounds so uniquely?

 

Like I mentioned above, the Au Ra have several languages, though the ancient Auri tongue, which most Xaela use today for inter-tribe communication, is based on Mongolian. SE throws in a few made-up, Mongolian-sounding phrases, but it's mostly Mongolian based.

[AkhutaiAngura]

You can find the actual lore behind the races here and here!

 

There are some pieces I've seen cited elsewhere that suggest everyone on this world, on every continent, speak the same language due to the whole.. bad-guy army taking over everywhere, and universalizing their language.

 

This is actually not true. The Common tongue was created by Hyuran priests during the 4th Astral Era and because the Hyur seem to travel everywhere,  dialects of that Common tongue seem to show up in many places.  However,  there are many many languages out there in the world besides Common. The Au Ra, for example, have tons of languages unique to their tribes.

 

You can read more about some of the different languages of the world here.

 

 

Now, wrapping that back into the biology question.. What would the natural tongue of an Au'ra sound like? Would it be comparable to English versus German vs Arabian, in how they're speakable by everyone who knows them? Or would an Au'ra speak in something more guttural and feral, something that only they can speak fluently due to the development of their throats and such, similar to how a Miqo'te pronounces those 'h' sounds so uniquely?

 

Like I mentioned above,  the Au Ra have several languages,  though the ancient Auri tongue, which most Xaela use today for inter-tribe communication, is based on Mongolian. SE throws in a few made-up, Mongolian-sounding phrases, but it's mostly Mongolian based.

 

 

Well lay me sideways.. It's been entirely too long since I've looked into that, apparently! ^.^ Thank you much for the links.

[Mermaid]

I'll be honest, I hated au ra when they first came out. While I didn't care that we didn't get viera, I hated that the reason was that they'd be too similar to miqo'te but what we got were still just hyur with animal parts. I wanted them closer to the concept art or at least females that were as intimidating looking as the males. When they finally grew on me and I made one, I turned on as many of the additional scales as I could and gave her slightly weird colors because I wanted her to not look human.

 

Despite all that I still tend to go for lore accuracy myself. The fewer headcanons in an RP the easier it is for everyone to be on the same page. That doesn't mean I'm against them though. I've encountered the au ra/miqo'te have enhanced hearing headcanon and, despite being aware of the MCKF quote that's already been posted, I'm perfectly fine with it. Something like that is fun and interesting to me as long as it's not abused to let your character hear anything and everything they want.

 

The ones I can't stand, however, are the sensitive scales and prehensile tails headcanons. In the case of the former, I'm pretty sure that's not how scales work. I think the closest thing we humans have is our fingernails. The nerves are under them not in them so how can they be sensitive? I imagine all they can really feel is temperatures intense enough to be felt through them and the pressure from them being touched. Furthermore, it reminds me of that terrible anime trope where catgirls have sensitive tails and they're so sensitive that touching them arouses them. It just reeks of ERP to me for that reason.

 

The latter is also a that's not how it works situation. I've had cats for half of my life and their tails just aren't flexible enough. I do believe tails kind of act as a sort of extra half limb though. I think, for example, an au ra or miqo'te might hit someone with their tail to get their attention if their hands were occupied. In the case of my au ra, she'll swing her tail like a metronome or tap the end of it to the beat of music instead of tapping her foot.

 

Also, not a headcanon but I cannot for the life of me figure out au ra horns! Not the hearing or any of that but how the heck do they sleep with them?! The in game /doze poses don't care at all about the fact that au ra have horns sticking several inches out the sides of their heads and I'm tempted to just ignore it being an issue myself. I'm pretty sure I've flat out forgotten to mention how my character would deal with that issue at least once. It drives me nuts every time I try to think about it.

[Stormblade]

So, aside from Au Ra and miqo'te, are the other races significantly different from human/hyur biologically? For example, are lalafell basically small humans, or do they have a higher/cooler body temperature, or lay eggs instead of live births, or does their hair sense vibrations in the air?

 

Are roegadyn basically just tall hyur, or is there something different about them? They have blue or red skin, depending on whether they're from the sea or the mountains - maybe it's because they have a gradual adaption of camouflage when they live somewhere across generations, or maybe it helps regulate body temperature? Do they have a higher metabolism, to support their large size? Or do they have a lower metabolism, but need to sleep longer per day and get tired more easily, like large mammals?

 

Do lalafell mature faster than humans, becoming adult-size in fewer years? Could you mistake a 10-year old lalafell for a 50-year old one? Maybe other lalafell can tell the difference, but other races can't - cue the 60-year old claiming with a straight face to be his own 20-year old son for tax evasion purposes?

 

Can lalafell survive a fall from extremely high distances? Do roegadyn have extremely strong bones? Are roegadyn agile and fast, in spite of their size, or are they slower and ponderous compared to humans and miqo'te, and even more so to lalafell?

 

Based off nothing but assumptions, I'd say a lalafell and roegadyn can jump only slightly into the air, while a miqo'te can jump very high, elezen and hyur somewhere in the middle. Or is this wrong?

 

Do miqo'te grow fur, or do they have mostly hairless skin except for their scalp and face? Is their scalp hair like human hair, or is it coarse like animal fur? Does it continue growing out like hair, or does it grow to a certain length and then shed, like fur?

 

Hellsguard Roegadyn live in high mountains - are they accustomed to thinner air? Can they hold their breath for longer than other races, because sea level air is much thicker to them?

 

Do miqo'te use their tails for balance, like large cats? If a miqo'te lost their tail, would they become clumsy and disoriented?

[Unnamed Mercenary]

So, aside from Au Ra and miqo'te, are the other races significantly different from human/hyur biologically? For example, are lalafell basically small humans, or do they have a higher/cooler body temperature, or lay eggs instead of live births, or does their hair sense vibrations in the air?

 

Are roegadyn basically just tall hyur, or is there something different about them? They have blue or red skin, depending on whether they're from the sea or the mountains - maybe it's because they have a gradual adaption of camouflage when they live somewhere across generations, or maybe it helps regulate body temperature? Do they have a higher metabolism, to support their large size? Or do they have a lower metabolism, but need to sleep longer per day and get tired more easily, like large mammals?

 

Do lalafell mature faster than humans, becoming adult-size in fewer years? Could you mistake a 10-year old lalafell for a 50-year old one? Maybe other lalafell can tell the difference, but other races can't - cue the 60-year old claiming with a straight face to be his own 20-year old son for tax evasion purposes?

 

Can lalafell survive a fall from extremely high distances? Do roegadyn have extremely strong bones? Are roegadyn agile and fast, in spite of their size, or are they slower and ponderous compared to humans and miqo'te, and even more so to lalafell?

 

Based off nothing but assumptions, I'd say a lalafell and roegadyn can jump only slightly into the air, while a miqo'te can jump very high, elezen and hyur somewhere in the middle. Or is this wrong?

 

Do miqo'te grow fur, or do they have mostly hairless skin except for their scalp and face? Is their scalp hair like human hair, or is it coarse like animal fur? Does it continue growing out like hair, or does it grow to a certain length and then shed, like fur?

 

Hellsguard Roegadyn live in high mountains - are they accustomed to thinner air? Can they hold their breath for longer than other races, because sea level air is much thicker to them?

 

Do miqo'te use their tails for balance, like large cats? If a miqo'te lost their tail, would they become clumsy and disoriented?

 

Per the 2014 Las Vegas Fanfest Lore Panel, all the races are more or less biolegically the same. They age at the same rates and will have the same general life expectency, assuming other natural causes don't do them in faster. The only exception to this is that Elezen have a longer puberty and live -slightly- longer. Like if the mac was 100, they live to 120, but their "teen" phase would go until the low 20s.

 

All of the "races of man" have a common ancestor, although we have no idea what that ancestor looked like, or when each race diversified. They're all still considered "people" as opposed to "enlightened beasts" like the Goblins, Qiqirn, Amal'jaa, Mamool Ja, Sylphs, and other "beast tribes" who can also communicate in the common Hyuran tongue.

 

The individual quirks and strengths/weaknesses for each of the playable races is a heavily debated topic steeped in more fanon than canon when it comes to RP. Some will say that because game mechanics allow all player characters to be equal, the races are all equal in their abilities to carry out the same task. Others will use real-world physics and examples to claim otherwise. However, it is still important to note that all of the playable races, despite their differences, can theoretically spawn mixed-race children, although our only example of this so far is a Hyur/Elezen "mongrel" and likely a collection of Garlean/Hyur children who all basically look inditinguishably Hyuran (and use Hyuran models in game).

[Caspar]

Do lalafell mature faster than humans, becoming adult-size in fewer years? Could you mistake a 10-year old lalafell for a 50-year old one? Maybe other lalafell can tell the difference, but other races can't - cue the 60-year old claiming with a straight face to be his own 20-year old son for tax evasion purposes?

There is a Lalafell child arguing with a Hyur child of probably similar age, adopted by a Roegadyn father, in the Gold Saucer. She uses the same model as the adult Lalafell, so there's reason to believe it's pretty hard to judge their age based off appearances. Of course, this could just be the effects of a growth spurt, and she has only just recently jumped from miniscule to small. This is not to say they look eternally young, but the structure and physiology of their body perhaps just doesn't show age in the same way larger Spoken do.

[AkhutaiAngura]

Do lalafell mature faster than humans, becoming adult-size in fewer years? Could you mistake a 10-year old lalafell for a 50-year old one? Maybe other lalafell can tell the difference, but other races can't - cue the 60-year old claiming with a straight face to be his own 20-year old son for tax evasion purposes?

There is a Lalafell child arguing with a Hyur child of probably similar age, adopted by a Roegadyn father, in the Gold Saucer. She uses the same model as the adult Lalafell, so there's reason to believe it's pretty hard to judge their age based off appearances. Of course, this could just be the effects of a growth spurt, and she has only just recently jumped from miniscule to small. This is not to say they look eternally young, but the structure and physiology of their body perhaps just doesn't show age in the same way larger Spoken do.

 

This could also simply be a limitation of game mechanics and not actually anything indicating the appearance of age at all - Rather, SE decided not to take the time to design a specifically child-like Lalafell for the purposes of that, when they figured a regular avatar would do just fine... Which is, I think, one half of the debate Unnamed Mercenary mentions (How some people say all are equal due to the fact that all are equal in the game, whereas others say they're not equal but the game can't accurately portray that and remain balanced mechanics-wise)

[Unnamed Mercenary]

Do lalafell mature faster than humans, becoming adult-size in fewer years? Could you mistake a 10-year old lalafell for a 50-year old one? Maybe other lalafell can tell the difference, but other races can't - cue the 60-year old claiming with a straight face to be his own 20-year old son for tax evasion purposes?

There is a Lalafell child arguing with a Hyur child of probably similar age, adopted by a Roegadyn father, in the Gold Saucer. She uses the same model as the adult Lalafell, so there's reason to believe it's pretty hard to judge their age based off appearances. Of course, this could just be the effects of a growth spurt, and she has only just recently jumped from miniscule to small. This is not to say they look eternally young, but the structure and physiology of their body perhaps just doesn't show age in the same way larger Spoken do.

 

This could also simply be a limitation of game mechanics and not actually anything indicating the appearance of age at all - Rather, SE decided not to take the time to design a specifically child-like Lalafell for the purposes of that, when they figured a regular avatar would do just fine... Which is, I think, one half of the debate Unnamed Mercenary mentions (How some people say all are equal due to the fact that all are equal in the game, whereas others say they're not equal but the game can't accurately portray that and remain balanced mechanics-wise)

 

Remember though, the character creator typically includes a variety of faces that range from "young" to "slightly older" for many of the races. While we've only been given a handful of children shown in game with custom models (Hyur, Elezen, and Miqo'te), there have been a number of Lalafellin child NPCs, although many have been in their early-mid teens are likely look more like babyfaced versions of the adults. (But in a game that typically uses 4-6 faces for ALL the NPCs, this is likely just on the gameplay side of things).

 

Chances are, that like real life, differently sized people grow at different rates. Naturally, if we're talking about someone on the shorter end, there's less growing to be done, but they'd still show the same basic traits of aging and maturity, depsite their smaller height.

 

I also feel the need to point out that brute strength isn't the only indicator of strength. Just as you wouldn't give a Lalafell a broadsword sized for a Roegadyn, people of different sizes can all be "strong" in different ways. There are pros and cons to any size and in a game fueled by fantasy abilities and magic, it's not exactly a stretch to stay that people with different physical builds can all complete the same task. (Although we've yet to see any races aside from Highlander Hyr and Roegadyn have to lift all those crates.)

[Stormblade]

I also feel the need to point out that brute strength isn't the only indicator of strength. Just as you wouldn't give a Lalafell a broadsword sized for a Roegadyn, people of different sizes can all be "strong" in different ways.

 

Do you mean like how an ant is incredibly strong for its size, but a beetle would still be able to overpower it because it's simply much bigger? 

 

Or do you mean more like how a smaller person who knows karate can probably win against someone large and bulky who doesn't know how to fight at all?

[Unnamed Mercenary]

I also feel the need to point out that brute strength isn't the only indicator of strength. Just as you wouldn't give a Lalafell a broadsword sized for a Roegadyn, people of different sizes can all be "strong" in different ways.

 

Do you mean like how an ant is incredibly strong for its size, but a beetle would still be able to overpower it because it's simply much bigger? 

 

Or do you mean more like how a smaller person who knows karate can probably win against someone large and bulky who doesn't know how to fight at all?

 

Both. The concepts are not exclusive and could technically happen in the same characters. There are a handful of Xaela Au Ra in the Steppe who are shown to be just plain -awful- at battle/combat. (Like the one who cooks. And this other Dotharl. etc) Would they necessarily have more strength (brute strength or not) than my Roegadyn who trains his body? Probably not. It doesn't matter if the lore book states "on average [blah blah blah]" if you aren't talking about things in the average.

[C'kayah Polaali]

The ones I can't stand' date=' however, are the sensitive scales [...'] headcanons. ...I'm pretty sure that's not how scales work. I think the closest thing we humans have is our fingernails. The nerves are under them not in them so how can they be sensitive? I imagine all they can really feel is temperatures intense enough to be felt through them and the pressure from them being touched.

 

Reptiles are surprisingly sensitive to touch. Scales can have nerves, just like skin, and those nerves can be very sensitive. Alligators, for instance, have these little nerve clusters on the surface of their scales that are sensitive to all sorts of things: touch, vibration, pressure, friction, even sound. Fingernails aren't particularly sensitive because they don't have these things, but I imagine Au Ra might.

[Mermaid]

Reptiles are surprisingly sensitive to touch. Scales can have nerves, just like skin, and those nerves can be very sensitive. Alligators, for instance, have these little nerve clusters on the surface of their scales that are sensitive to all sorts of things: touch, vibration, pressure, friction, even sound. Fingernails aren't particularly sensitive because they don't have these things, but I imagine Au Ra might.

 

Huh, didn't know that. I guess that's fair then. My line of thinking was that since their scales match their horns so well they must be made of the same stuff. Horns are usually keratin just like our fingernails. I would also assume that despite all the lizard jokes Au Ra would still be mammals. The only scaled mammal that comes to mind, the pangolin, has keratin scales.

 

I guess that's why this thread exists though. One person's reptile is another person's pangolin. We won't know how it really is until the lore writers give us more information.

[Stormblade]

From your first post, I also assumed your pet peeve wasn't so much the scales being sensitive at all, but more "they lightly brushed my scales and I'm now writhing on the ground because of the overwhelming sensations".

[Nero]

I had a headcanon about Au Ra horns posted in an older thread.

 

I imagine Au Ra horns to function similar to narwhal tusks: innervated sensory organs with nerve endings that connect stimuli to the brain. Following this, then other than hearing (which is the detection of vibrations made in the air) an Au Ra would be able to use these organs to sense changes in humidity and temperature, to a limited extent. Being more sensitive to sound in addition to sensing fluctuations in the air would be in line with the lore blurb that described Auri horns as giving them "enhanced spacial recognition"; the more you sense, the more you're aware of, if subconsciously.

 

As far as the surface, I think it'd be...well, matching their scales in texture. Tough, rough, and somewhat chitinous. These are large and prominent appendages, in sharp contrast to human ears which are small in relation to the head and typically flat. Au Ra horns by necessity would have to be hardened and reasonably durable, perhaps encased in a layer of hollow but tough bone or something similar.

 

That said, as far as evolution is concerned I'm pretty sure all Au Ra have roughly the same level of perception. Unless a group of Au Ra managed to be totally isolated in an extreme environment (for example, complete darkness) for an extended enough period of time for natural selection to kick in, I don't particularly think it's the case for different tribes of Au Ra to have different levels of sensory perception.

[Mermaid]

From your first post, I also assumed your pet peeve wasn't so much the scales being sensitive at all, but more "they lightly brushed my scales and I'm now writhing on the ground because of the overwhelming sensations".

 

Yeah, pretty much. There's a handful of headcanons I'll side eye but generally I let people do what they want and judge after I've seen it. If you handle a headcanon well I usually have no problem with it. The example in question is not something I would consider handled well.

[hologramblue]

Regarding Au Ra:

 

1) Since they're mammals, I would put money on their horns/scales being keratinous and therefore not very sensitive.

 

2) I've spent a lot of time staring at my Au Ra's butt watching my Au Ra closely during various animations, and not only does the tail appear to not be prehensile, it has a much more restricted range of motion than the Miqo'te tail. 

 

It also doesn't seem to respond to emotion at all. Miqo'te tails act like cat tails - bristling, lashing, swaying, etc to communicate internal state. Au Ra tails, meanwhile, really only respond to motion in the rest of the body - the most dramatic motion they do is lifting during certain dance emotes and when reeling in a fish (ie when the Au Ra suddenly tenses up). Otherwise it just kind of hangs there and sways with the momentum of walking.

[C'kayah Polaali]

Reptiles are surprisingly sensitive to touch. Scales can have nerves, just like skin, and those nerves can be very sensitive. Alligators, for instance, have these little nerve clusters on the surface of their scales that are sensitive to all sorts of things: touch, vibration, pressure, friction, even sound. Fingernails aren't particularly sensitive because they don't have these things, but I imagine Au Ra might.

 

Huh, didn't know that. I guess that's fair then. My line of thinking was that since their scales match their horns so well they must be made of the same stuff. Horns are usually keratin just like our fingernails. I would also assume that despite all the lizard jokes Au Ra would still be mammals. The only scaled mammal that comes to mind, the pangolin, has keratin scales.

 

I guess that's why this thread exists though. One person's reptile is another person's pangolin. We won't know how it really is until the lore writers give us more information.

 

It's not so much the material that reptile scales are made of that makes them sensitive, though. It's the amount of sensory nerves in them. In alligators, there are these little sensory nodules on the surface of their scales that are served by nerves passing through the scales. I could see keratin-based Au Ra scales having similar things. Human skin, after all, contains a bunch of keratins in the outer layers.

[hologramblue]

There's a pretty big difference between tissue that incorporates keratin (a common structural protein) and a big ol' solid chunk of keratin. If Au Ra scales are keratinous, a better comparison than human skin would be finger/toe nails, the horns of various mammals, and cases of cutaneous horns in humans. In all cases, the keratin growth itself isn't where the sensitivity comes from - it's the nerves in the surrounding flesh reacting to whatever pressure/temperature/injury is felt through the keratin covering. Injury to fingernails hurts because of the damage to the nail bed, cutaneous horns tend to have inflammation around the base due to some underlying cause like a cancer, and rhinoceros's horns can actually be cut off without causing pain or injury because they're a solid block of keratin instead of having a live bone core like most mammal horns. (You see rangers doing this to wild rhinos to deter poachers - no point killing a rhino if it doesn't have a horn to sell, and it doesn't require a surgical procedure so it can be done relatively easily in the field.)

 

There's a couple of options for sensitive scales. One is that the scales are soft, keratin-heavy but also containing blood vessels and nerves and whatnot. I think lore specifically says they're hard, though, iirc. Another option is that they have a thin membrane growing over them, like turtles do on their shells, that contains nerve endings. This would be pretty anatomically neat - Xaela lore mentions scales shedding, and that membrane on turtle shells dries up and flakes off after the turtle is dead, so you'd get the neat detail of Au Ra scales peeling and shedding off in layers as they grow up, sensitive to touch mostly when they're new. Option three is that each one has a live core, like a tooth or a feather's quill, which again would dry up when the scale sheds.

[Valence]

Lore mentions scale shedding? I forgot about that, is it in the lorebook (being at work and so unable to check myself..) ?

[hologramblue]

Lore mentions scale shedding? I forgot about that, is it in the lorebook (being at work and so unable to check myself..) ?

 

Not the lorebook that I can recall off the top of my head, but there's a river-dwelling Xaela tribe that uses their shed scales in shipbuilding. It's on the naming conventions thread.