Horse Breeds of Elysium

Horse and man have long been partners in survival, and this remains true in this strange world. Similar to like on earth, Horses can be found in many parts of Elysium and are a staple animal species and one of the most reliable forms of transportation. Tending to grow more quickly than most mounts found on Elysium and being more easily trained than Elysium beasts of burden, they rapidly became a common sight in most cultures, although most military applications still standardize more convoluted mounts.
Often used by village folk for transportation and farming, only families who can afford a transportation cart can tend to afford to keep one. Most are often captured from the wild, but they can be traded for currency from nearby towns if one has the cash. Larger breeds are often favored by farmers and warriors for their bulk, and thousands of years of breeding and importing from other countries has allowed for the cross breeding of some fantastical animals, so much so that many are now labeled as their own breeding.

Horses Found In the World

Elysium Drafts

Elysium Drafts, as the name implies, are a large class of horse bred to be a working animal doing hard tasks such as plowing and other farm labor. There are a number of breeds of this type, with varying characteristics, but all share common traits of strength, patience, and a docile temperament which made them indispensable to generations of pre-industrial farmers. Draft horses are recognizable by their tall stature, large heads and extremely muscular build. In general, these horses tend to have a more upright shoulder, producing more upright movement and conformation that is well suited for pulling. They tend to have broad, short backs with powerful hindquarters, again best suited for the purpose of pulling.
Draft horses and draft crossbreds are versatile breeds used for a multitude of purposes, including farming, draft horse showing, logging, recreation, and other uses.

The Arkaelean Burcan are classed as draft horses. They can be identified by their heavyset frame, lower leg feathering and convex head profile. They are the largest and strongest breed of horses bred on the continent of Arkael, which makes them perfect for hauling heavy carts, though their size and weight can make them more difficult to handle. Their immense size has made Burcan's a well loved favorite throughout the ages, when they were first introduced to the continent by colonizing Ner back when Arkael was first founded by settlers.
Despite this, not much has changed of this breed at all since then. They are calm with an even temperament, a characteristic that is required for an animal pulling a cart full of valuable goods. They have a slightly Roman nose, well-muscled hindquarters and a long neck that is set high, and are a great replacement for oxen on farms. With a sturdy and strong nature, they are the healthiest.

Extremely similar to the The Arkaelean Burcan, the The Dragonscorne Brulla are a horse breed that have been selectively bred for Dragon hunting and Battle. They typically feature muscular, crested necks, roman noses, thick manes and tails, defined seats, and high stepped movement. They are usually in the height ranges of 16.2 and 17.3 hands (66 and 71 inches, 168 and 180 cm), with a range of 15–19 hands (60–76 inches, 152–193 cm) amongst some stock. It is also notable that there is variety in how each feature expresses. A fearless beast, packed to the bone with muscle, this bulky, heavyset breed is a interesting horse indeed, having the stamina of a workhorse, enough speed and turn control to compete with a racehorse despite bulk and the health and quality of a Warhorse, these creatures have been bred solely for their ability to laugh in the face of danger, rather then flick tail and run.
These animals thrive in the battlegrounds, with the chaos of war fueling this horses innate desire to finish the task at hand, either trampling enemies or using their sheer bulk as a battering ram in order to protect their riders.

Elysium Lessers

Elysium Lessers, is a term given to any horse who is bred to be smaller than the popular drafts. These horses are the Elysium equivalent to the wide range of Warmbloods and Hotbloods on earth and are generally used the same way, often as entertainment or hunting.

A Graceful horse that comes from the south, the Satar'Looth is a bold horse known for its slender body and high endurance. The small hooves are suitable for traveling on hard and rocky ground. That, alongside their high speed, makes for a great battle horse. A hearty, healthy breed unrivaled in this line, this is one of the most sought after horses for many looking for a lighter more "Easy Keeping Horse"

The Carci'Duata are warm-blooded equines, though they exhibit the quickness and agility of many hot-blooded animals. They have a neck and back that is thick with muscle, prominent withers, known for their thick winter coat and a low set tail. Fast, playful and observant, The Duata are prized endurance and trail horses with a unique bloodline worthy of attention. Often used as guard-mounts by mounted cavalry and police.

One of the most well beloved race-horses in the world, the Lalarian is most popular in the racing circuit. The thoroughbred of Elysium, they are known for their mastery of racing and jumping. Their gait is powerful, exhibiting a strong possession of agility and speed. The withers are high, the back short, the body lean and the chest deep. Identifiable by their lean legs, athletic build and deep chest, this breed is famous for speed and agility, though can be clumsy if pushed too far too quickly. If trained well, these animals will carry out maximum exertion for long periods, if the rider requests it. Their good stamina and acceleration make them perfect for racing short distances.

Other Equines of the World

Equus poeciloaglao Tridactylia (Greek: poecilo: variegated, many-colored; varied/aglao - splendor, beauty; splendid, brilliant), also commonly known as a Dorse, is a genus of small equid perissodactyl, native to the western part of Arkael, and are one of the few native species of equins found on the continent but have since been regularly introduced to many parts of the world through the pet and work trade. A genuinely small animal, it's appearance greatly resembles that of the Earth Mesohippus, an extinct genus of early horse, which lived some 40 to 30 million years ago from the Middle Eocene all the way to the Early Oligocene.
Sharing many traits with its Earthen Counterpart, the Dorse truly does appear as a creature out of prehistory. Sharings traits of both horse and pre-horse ancestors, it stands roughly 34 inches (86 cm) at the withers at around 4 feet long and weighs anywhere between 75-80 pounds, while larger individuals can weight roughly 100-200. With wide-set eyes that sit high atop its long, horse-like skull, the Dorse is also equipped with slightly longer legs than its predecessors, and is endowed with what is a relatively large brain, about the same size, proportionate to its bulk, as that of modern horses.
However something interesting to note about the dorse, that sets it apart from it's more "evolutionarily advanced cousins", is the arrangement of its teeth, which allows the Dorse to have a wide-ranging diet, best suitable for life in the harsh deserts of the west, where food is scarce and you must eat anything you can get, with the arrangement of the teeth suggesting a diet akin almost too that of a bear, making them opportunistic omnivores who tend to consume more plant than animal matter allowing them to eat anything from leaves, roots, and berries to insects, carrion, fresh meat, and fish, while also having the digestive systems and teeth adapted to such a diet.
Another interesting biological adaptation is that this equid stands in, as a fully tridactyl horse in the evolutionary record, with the third digit of it's foot being longer and larger than its second and fourth digits; completely ridding itself of the typical hoof of modern-day equids.
Because they are so small, Dorses are prey animals with a strong fight-or-flight response. Their first reaction to a threat is to startle and usually flee, although they will stand their ground and defend themselves when flight is impossible or if their young are threatened. Despite this, they also tend to be very curious; to the point that, when startled, they will often hesitate an instant to ascertain the cause of their fright, and may not always flee from something that they perceive as non-threatening. However this can be deadly to the little equid, as they can fall victim to many predators. While young are often highly preyed upon by a variety of animals, adults are usually preyed upon by terror birds, small-medium sized dinosaurs, wolves, coyotes, wild dogs, small-medium sized dragon/dragonoids.
As a result of high predation, Dorses exhibit a significantly shorter gestation period compared to their ancestor, with Horses often having a 340 day gestation period with an average range of 320–370 days, while Dorses themselves often exhibit a gestation period lasting 100-125 days, and much like horses, they are a precocial species, and foals are capable of standing and running within a short time following birth, allowing them a chance to survive against predators who may be lurking around a birthing sight.
Because of their small size, many Dorse's are not typically used for hard-labor. Instead they are often used as hobby-animals. Bred often for looks, they are more often used as show-animals or small racing-animals.
However with the discovery of a larger variant of the Dorse, known as The four toed mountain Dorse Equus poeciloaglao ingens found more further North-west from the smaller 3-toed Plain's Dorse, mix breeding between the two has allowed for the creation of slightly larger variants of Dorse, following similar to dogs, a small-medium-large size range varying between individual's.
While smaller ones tend to be more pets than work animals, large domesticated Dorses, while still not large enough for heavy pulling, are instead trained to be mail-carriers, pulling, not ginormous plow, but instead medium sized shipping carts. They've also been used in wars for years, with many having different jobs, but one of the most common was bringing ammo to troops in the battlefield.
An equally more common job was the job of Comfort Pony. A comfort Pony, was a Dorse that served in a paramedical role in the military. These Dorse were often sent out after large battles, where they would seek out wounded soldiers; and trench warfare suited their use. They carried first-aid supplies that could then be used by wounded soldiers, and comforted dying soldiers who were mortally wounded. They were also trained to guide combat medics to soldiers who required extensive care.

Trivia

• There are a multitude of wild horses throughout Elysium that have been domesticated over the years. However, domestication of any horse on Elysium is not easy, as many have spent almost a million years on grasslands and prairies dominated by dinosaurs and a whole plethora of dangerous predators, which has fostered extremes of aggression and panic that make many such as the Elysium Wild Ass unsuitable for domestication. In fact, attempts by nomads to domesticate them usually end in the death of the rider. However despite this, many claim to have horses whose lineage can be tied directly to these more dangerous creatures. In fact many War Horses are said to have some ancestry of these creatures to account for their aggression and combat prowess.

• When not being used for pulling carts or animals of war, Dorse can actually be quite efficient guard animals. Their overall paranoid nature, perfected hearing and great-eyesight make them very attentive animals, known to let out a particularly shrill bray when predators are spotted, alerting the larger and fiercer guard-dog, or in the case of much larger Dorse, fighting or drawing them away from the females and young of their herd. In addition, females are attentive mothers, allowing them to be used as nanny animals to orphaned young or even adoptive mothers to others.

• As far as coat color goes, Horses on Elysium are generally natural coated horses. However in recent years, more and more mutations have began to show around, many believed to be due to the run off of excessive magic use digging deep into the animals to the point it alters DNA.

• Not all horses on Elysium are horses. While oftened termed as "Horses", Freeliners are actually part of the Rhino family and not the Equine family. Despite their similarity to horses, Freeliners, and their wild ancestors, the unicorn, are in fact an ancient lineage of rhino. Unlike the lumbering beasts with horn on snout and thick skin known today, these Unicorns exhibit equine-liked features such as long legs and neck, thin body and less compacted feet, suitable for cursorial lifestyle. The single horn atop their forehead is independently evolved from other clades of rhino, possessing a stubby, bony horn core to support the base of its extended keratinous part, which is like a mix between the horn of bovid and rhino. Sadly where as Rhino suffer on earth, Unicorns often suffer on Elysium, and it is only thankful that the Freeliners made do with domestication, other wise they risked following in their wild ancestors fate to near extinction.

Terminologies

Draft: A large horse bred to be a working animal doing hard tasks such as plowing and other farm labor.
Cold Blood: Term used to describe the Temperment of a horse that is bred not only for strength, but also to have the calm, patient temperament needed to pull a plow or a heavy carriage full of people. Often used to describe large muscular horses like Drafts
Warm Blood: Term used to describe the Temperment of a horse that is a cross between Cold and Hot Blooded horses; often a riding horse with more refinement than a draft horse, but greater size and milder temperament than a lighter breed.
Hot Blood: Term used to describe the Temperment of a horse that tend to be spirited, bold, and learn quickly. They are bred for agility and speed. They tend to be physically refined—thin-skinned, slim, and long-legged.
Easy-Keeper: An easy keeper – also known colloquially as a good doer or thrifty horse – is a horse or pony that does not require many calories to remain in optimum body condition. These horses are often hardy, native breeds that have the ability too thrive in sparse landscapes where food is scarce with out the risk of loosing too much weight.
Hands: The hand is a non-SI unit of measurement of length standardized to 4 in (101.6 mm). It is used to measure the height of horses and has been around since 3,000 B.C.
Perissodactyl: Odd-toed ungulate
Tetradactyly: (from Greek τετρα tetra "four") is the condition of having four digits on a limb, as in many birds, amphibians, and theropod dinosaurs.
Tridactyly: (from Greek τρία tría "three") is the condition of having three digits on a limb, as in the rhinoceros and ancestors of the horse such as Protohippus and Hipparion. These all belong to the Perissodactyla. Some birds also have three toes, including emus, bustards, and quail.