Minotaur
Minotaurs are a strong and combative race of monstrous humanoids resembling bull–human hybrids. They are rare in Ghemjana, outside of their labyrinth homes in the Underdark and the wild plains of Cumberland.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Minotaurs are large, muscular humanoids. They have the head of a bull, upper torso, hands, and the body of a human, and hooved feet. Their fur and wild hair typically ranges from brown to black. The fur often covered forearms, chest, abdomen, and legs. Males are referred to as bulls and reach up to 9 feet in height, while females – cows, are similar in appearance, with broader hips, humanoid breasts, and reach only 7 feet.
Minotaur bodies are of similar shape and build to that of an ogre. Their hands are huge and strong, ending in thick sharp yellow nails. Minotaurs are known to use claws in battle, but they are brittle and do not survive heavy use. Despite their heads being that of a bull, there are subtle differences in features between mundane beasts and minotaurs. Some are known to have cow-like tails; however, that trait is not common. Their snouts are thicker and longer than that of an animal, and bull-men have sharp carnivore teeth. Their canines are especially noticeable, and minotaurs never hesitate to bite their victims, prey, and opponents. Lastly, unlike bovines, minotaurs' eyes are positioned closer to the center of their faces, granting them good depth perception and another telltale evidence of their predatory nature.
The creatures' iconic feature – their horns – are very similar to normal bulls', slightly curving forward. Both males and females have similarly shaped huge horns. However, males' are longer and thicker on average. There are several horn coloring variations, and sometimes as many as three colors can be present. Minotaurs with dark fur often have dark yellow or brown horns. The shortest horns are around 1 foot and can reach up to three times that length.
Growth Rate & Stages
Like humans, minotaurs procreate throughout the year. However, as a society, they are guided by the need to replenish their numbers rather than emotions. A typical cow produces one calf; twins are a rare possibility and are considered a religious blessing among minotaurs (sometimes an ill omen). Minotaurs mature much faster than humans: a two-year-old calf has fully formed horns and can kill an orc in combat, a five-year-old minotaur towers over other humanoids, and by their tenth year - minotaurs are considered adults. Minotaurs are capable of procreation as early as three years old in some cases. Culturally, birthing a strong male warrior is considered the height of aspirations for a minotaur cow, while a bull aspires to father as many calves as possible.
Some sages speculate that minotaurs live 80 years on average, but determining their longevity is challenging as many of them lead violent lives and perish long before their natural expiration. A thirty-year-old minotaur is often thought to be a steeled veteran. The maximum lifespan is thought to be 200 years.
Minotaurs can procreate through mating among each other or with a human woman. Children born out of that union are almost always male minotaurs.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Minotaurs are eternally hungry man-eating carnivores. Despite their ravenousness, they can survive without food for several weeks, provided they have plenty of water and fat stores to burn.
Minotaurs require meat to survive, and only eat vegetables as a supplement or flavor enchantment to their meals.
Behaviour
Minotaurs are always ravenously hungry, a trait that only fuels their aggression. The youth show little affection towards their mothers and fathers. Older females receive no special treatment and are respected as long as they remain strong and physically superior to the youths. Overall, their society is patriarchal, and those females who are physically weaker than other members of the tribes are treated not much better than slaves. Younger minotaurs often stay out of the way of older males just to avoid conflicts and brutal assertions of dominance. Adult minotaurs consume copious amounts of alcohol and duel over most things: treasures, females, power. Polygamy is common as bulls seek to father a great number of children. In some minotaur communities, males assemble harems of six to seven cows. In some fringe cases, infanticide is practiced in cases when a calf is born with physical deformities. Slavery is not unheard of. Some males keep weaker creatures as slaves while females are put in charge and allowed to take out their frustrations on their bulls' slaves. Despite that, minotaurs dislike torture as a rule.
Despite minotaurs' general brutality, they had the capability to be kind and empathetic, given a nurturing or even less brutal upbringing.
Minotaurs are not highly intelligent but possess instinctive cunning and are adept at ambush attacks. They are particularly skilled at hunting their prey. In general, minotaurs prefer melee combat and utilize their horns for charge attacks. Sound of rending flesh, breaking bones, and the scent of blood, can send minotaurs into a blood frenzy, leading to the monstrosities charging and rending any creature they see.
They wear little to no armor, even when in combat. Their favorite weapons are two-handed poleaxes, presumably acquired through trade. Other commonly used arms include crude clubs, two-handed hammers, flails, and occasionally, short and thick spears. Ranged weapons are virtually never used.
Additional Information
Social Structure
A typical minotaur leader, also known as the elder, is the biggest and strongest bull in the tribe, which does not necessarily mean the most intelligent leader. The tribe's king leads his fellow bulls into raids. Solitary minotaurs are a common occurrence, however, a clan can have around eight to twenty members.
Minotaur youth are taught to fight and master weapons at an early age. In the minotaur society, combat education is done by parents and fellow male tribe members. Even while playing, minotaur children spend most of their time wrestling and fighting each other. Male calves develop brutal and cruel rivalries amongst each other from earliest childhood, and these feuds are encouraged by the adults.
Minotaurs are proud of their horns and often spent their free time sharpening, cleaning, and polishing them with old rags or furs. In some minotaur societies, the color of their horns determines their status within the community and attractiveness. In minotaur tribes that prefer darker-colored horns, individuals often use oils and polishes to artificially darken them. Decorations are common as well. Brass and silver tacks and spikes are used to accentuate the horns' natural appeal. Repaired severed horns are common in tribes with talented crafters or skilled allies who know how to work metals. After a duel, the winner customarily takes the left horn of their opponent, often leaving the opponent maimed and badly injured. These horns are hollowed out and turned into wind musical instruments, and stronger individuals often own several.
Apart from horn decorations, minotaurs rarely wear any other type of jewelry. The closest to what humans consider decorations among minotaurs are fanciful girdles or gauntlets. Sages speculate that minotaurs are known to easily adapt traditions and norms from other races and societies in lieu of their own culture. Of course, the cultural norms that are aimed at aggression and intimidation are highly preferred and emulated.
When interacting with other races, minotaurs get along well with ogres. They respect giants and trolls for their strength. Smaller humanoids, such as humans, elves, dwarves, and others, are considered beneath minotaurs in all senses of the word. Bulls cannot, or don't care enough to distinguish one humanoid from another. Gnolls and minotaurs hate each other and immediately attack each other on sight.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
In the ancient Empire of Netheril, minotaur tail hairs were used to make special braided brushes. These items were used in arcane magic rituals. Oil of minotaur musk is a rare commodity imported into Yynaria and often imitated and faked by some industrious individuals. Minotaur parts are used in creation of certain potions and as material components for spells that deal with physical strength, location, and misdirection, one notable use being a minotaur's heart used in creation and animation of fearsome minogon constructs. Powdered horn of a minotaur is the main component in oil of impact. The same material is the material component needed to cast the Old Empires spell – Horns of Hathor.
Facial characteristics
The most prominent and recognized feature of any minotaur are their horns that stand on their heads.
Their eyes are forward facing and their teeth are sharp, like a predator.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Minotaurs are found most commonly in the Underdark, in large, labyrinthine homes. However, above ground, nomadic tribes can be encountered in Al Folia, Cumberland and Nonny.
Minotaurs are most likely found in their underground labyrinthine homes, dungeons, or thickest of forests. Sometimes evil wizards are known to place a clan of minotaurs inside a labyrinth and feeding them interlopers and adventurers. There, minotaurs' innate sense of direction prevent them from getting lost. They often make their money by plundering and raiding passers by, but also seek employment as mercenaries, fighters and servants. Minotaurs are also often kept as slaves by Underdark inhabitants, such as mind flayers and drow.
A reasonably sized population could be found in found within the Underdark in an area known as the Labyrinth.
Outside of Toril, minotaurs inhabit numerous crystal spheres, most notably, on the world of Ghemjana, and can be found in the Domains of Dread. In the planes, numerous minotaur tribes roam the Endless Maze in the Abyss – the layer where the minotaur deity Baphomet dwells.
Average Intelligence
Minotaurs tend to have lower than average intelligence, but higher cunning.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Minotaurs possess almost uncanny tracking and navigational abilities and a superbly keen sense of smell. They can easily visualize any path they need to take to get close to the prey.
All minotaurs are immune to maze spells.
Civilization and Culture
Beauty Ideals
Minotaurs pride themselves on their horns and find beauty in a well kept set of horns. Even other races with horns or horn-like growths are considered more attractive than others.
Culture and Cultural Heritage
Many minotaurs worship the demon lord Baphomet and keep themselves, and their society, secluded. Most are inclined to evil and chaotic acts and do not work well in groups, packs, or even parties due to their solitary hunter-like nature. Levels of reverence and even religious traditions varies greatly among different minotaur communities.
Priests decorate their horns with carved pictograms. The images are filled with blood to darken the designs, and finally, the horns are stained with yellowing agents. Instead of priestly garb, minotaur priests decorate their bodies with soil, dirt, plant matter, and blood spilled in battle. Gnoll blood is the preferred decoration for a reason known to none but priests themselves. The worship is centered on sacrificial ceremonies that take place in the heart of labyrinthine minotaur homes, adorned with bones of precious victims. The most common sacrifice is a human. Minotaur clerics receive little respect apart from the respect earned through physical strength. However, horns collected from defeated bull priests are considered extremely valuable.
Death is not feared in minotaur society. On the contrary, death is considered to be a holy event. Minotaurs think a good death to be quick, clean, and in a rush of battle. Honor kills are a staple of minotaurs' cultural and religious creed.
Arcane spellcasting is extremely rare among minotaurs as most lack the curiosity to pursue the Art. Minotaurs can be easily fooled by wizardly spells. However, if the duping is discovered, the magic and its caster are treated with extreme prejudice.
Divine magics granted to clerics are seldom of healing nature, instead, being battle-focused. Magics such as bull's strength are the most used.
Magic items hold little value for most minotaurs and are traded away for other valuables or alcohol most of the time.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Minotaur language is very similar to the Ogre language, allowing those who are proficient in one tongue quickly pick up the intricacies of the other. One unique part of the Minotaur language is a number of vocalizations only known and comprehendible by their own kin, reminiscent of grunts and sounds emitted by mundane cattle bulls, by some accounts.
History
The origin of the minotaur species is unknown. However, some speculate that Geryon molded the first bull-men out of ogres. This claim is quite dubious as minotaurs never utter Geryon's name and only swear by or praise Baphomet. Another theory is that the first especially devote cultists of Baphomet the Horned King were transformed into minotaurs as this transformation is considered the highest honor in the Demon Lord's church. Yet another myth talked about the Lady of Pain, the mysterious power that rules over Sigil. These tales claim that the first minotaurs were created by her to guard the Lady's many magical planar maze prisons. Yet one more legend claims that minotaurs were created by some curse placed on a human fighter who wanted to be "as strong as a bull" for "crimes against the natural order." The same school of thought mistakingly believes that minotaurs are exclusively male. Among planar creatures and inhabitants of Sigil, a common legend stated that bulezau were created by Baphomet through crossbreeding minotaurs and tanar'ri. However, the legend remaines unconfirmed.
Apart from that, not much is known of Minotaur history, but it is said that the Labyrinth was once an empire, rather than the uncivilized lands it is known as.
Origin/Ancestry
Monstrosity
Lifespan
80 to 200 years
Average Height
Males: 9 feet
Females: 7 feet
Average Weight
Males: 700 lbs
Females: 500 lbs
Average Physique
Fierce, physically powerful, fur-covered, hooves, horns, tail
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
The fur of a minotaur is usually shades of brown or black, with thick head hair closely matching their body fur.
Geographic Distribution
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