Mhysathar

Stop that! Stop dazzling me with your ignorance! Your shiny, half-baked head is burning through my retinas like an acid made of stupid! AAAARGH!!!

- Marneus, Ambassador to human lands.

<[This entire article is still WIP]>

The Mhysathar are a race of humanoid felines whose lineage can be traced to various breeds of domestic and wild cats that underwent accelerated and forced evolution from the energies unleashed during The Cataclysm. The Mhysathar are a comparatively young race with ambitions to leave its mark upon the world. Their societies and cultures venerates magic and those among them that have been born with it. The most powerful of their nations are based around a meritocratic hierarchy based on skill, competence, and the willingness to do what is required for the betterment of society and its people.
Mhysathar generally shun technology as crude, destructive, and inefficient in regards to resources and outcome. They prefer devoting science and industry to magic rather than the machinery of other races such as the Muscarine. Their societies are always built to reward competence and merit while demoting or punishing those who fail to meet standards, resolve crisis, or even cause problems. With dreams of empire and glory backed by the might of their magisters, the expanding dominion and influence of the Mhysathar in their push for progress are not to be underestimated.
Whenever they claim territories already inhabited by other sentient species (often humans and borkans), they either render the locals into vassals or displace them into designated reservations if they don't outright exile them out of the borders. In the past, they would often resort to more aggressive and violent means to claim territory from other nations and races. This practice has long been abandoned and outlawed, being rendered as a capital crime in modern day. Reparations to the affected groups are slowly being delivered if they haven't already. Mhysathar nations that still practice the 'submit or die' policy are considered barbaric.
In spite of this, rebels and bandits of different races (mostly humans) still harass the roadways whenever possible out of revenge. The frequency of this is, thankfully, low as most are quickly hunted down. The few who manage to survive more than a handful of robberies and remain uncaught can be considered adepts and veterans, and pass on their skills to new recruits and aspiring initiates.
The Mhysathar may have a strong grip on their territories, but their independent and ambitious nature keeps them divided just as much as it enforces cooperation. The 'chosen of the goddess' must keep their wits sharp and their gaze ever watchful; tensions between the various organizations and the rising problems among both the citizenry and minority groups. The aspiring race may yet find that it's greatest obstacle, perhaps even their gravest threat, might not be some external force or domestic problem. The Mhysathar could very well prove to be their own worst enemy.

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Basic Information

Anatomy

Bipedal Humanoids standing at mostly shorter than human height. Can have either digitigrade or plantigrade legs. Coated in fur akin to cat breeds, but those born with magic may possess unnatural fur colors such as pink, purple, blue, green, red, ect. Far less genetic variety than, say, the Borkans. They have various different ethnicities, like humans. People could mistake them to be akin to borkans for this biological diversity, but they are not as outrageously diverse and exaggerated in body types or specializations as the dog-men. Ethnicities are not as restricted to climate and environment, but is not well suited for extremes and still has species wide restrictions on habitat due to it. As a whole, the race is built towards agility and dexterity with a natural synergy with magic, similar to the elves.

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Biological Traits

Mhysathar are capable of night-vision and are more likely to be born with magical abilities than most races.Their agility and dexterity rivals, if not surpasses, the elves.
Their biology also harmonizes better with magic, allowing for greater mastery of spells and magical fields before negative effects, such as shortened lifespans, can occur.
As it is has been said in a future page, the more one masters magic, the shorter the individual's life becomes. Mastery of the correct types of magic and specific spells leads to the body harmonizing with them through the magical interactions with the DNA, leading to prolonged life. However, because every person's DNA is different, it can take entire lifetimes of study to find the correct magical synergies. Inconjunction with this knowledge is:

1. Mastering magic cuts life short, the more you master in search for extended life, the shorter your life becomes.
2. The longer you live, the more magic you'll need to sustain the spells maintaining your body.
3. The longer you live and the more magic you have pumping into you, the more your body will mutate in correspondence to the magic types in question.
4. The more you mutate, the more likely you'll need more magical masteries in order to provide secondary or tetriary magic to negate any negative effects your mutations have on your body as well as any contradictory magic that would otherwise cancel each other out.

This leads to most deliberately limiting themselves to only a single or handful of magical areas and spells throughout their lives. Mhysathar share with the elves a natural anatomical synergy with sorcery. This allows for greater mastery and variety of spells and fields before any of the above takes place.

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Genetics and Reproduction

Reproduces through copulation, unable to interbreed with different races.

Ecology and Habitats

Commonly exist in temperate, desert, forest, jungle climates. Less commonly found in colder climates.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Omnivorous, but a slight leaning towards meat and fish. More likely to be allergic to foods that are dangerous to the health of cats, but some individuals can consume them without problem.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Family

"Just because one parent is an expert in one or two fields doesn't mean that they have the final say in everything. Nor does their birthing or raising of you mean that they own you. I don't see how hard is it for others to understand this"
-Catheline Managan.

Mhysathar society and familial units do not have strict gender roles. Much like how a company has different divisions and specialists for different matters, so too do the couple have different strengths and weaknesses that determine their position for the given situation. All in all, the unit is meritocratic in nature, there are even cases of children overtaking their parents in leadership positions.
This structure was deliberately designed by the Mhysathar themselves to influence the rest of their society. Their society and hierarchy is meritocratic, people rise and fall in accordance to their skill and competence, never by bloodline or connections. Anyone who has reached any position of importance has the skills to support them and must constantly use and hone said skills in order to keep it. Perhaps even expand their horizons to maintain or advance.

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"It's true that the Round Table of Elianar doesn't have store houses that you require.
"However
"The Mokura Maritime Agency has more than enough store houses for the job, all of them exceeding your demands.
"We can easily fit your shipment and more within out spacious halls, ready for transmit and delivery whenever you need it. Just tell us the location of your goods and we will pick it right up for you.
"The paperwork, can come later.
"What's the matter Duke? Have you forgotten the location of your shipment, or was all this a fanciful lie to discredit the little lady?"

Guild System

People of any profession tend to band together into various groups for mutual security and benefit. These groups can go by many names such as union, order, league, lodge, association, cooperative, coalition, company, affiliation, clan, coterie, house, syndicate, fellowship, conclave, ect. For simplicity's sake, they shall be referred to simply as 'guilds'. These guilds form a hierarchy based on skill and experience in their respective field. A member of these guilds will be assigned occupations and rank according to their skills, experience, and achievements. Simply being a good blacksmith in a smithing guild is not enough to advance far.
Guilds are typically ruled by either it's founding members or it's most powerful members. The composition of its members tend to be based on role of the guild itself. The high council is typically made up of an equal number of representatives from the most powerful guilds.

• Combat Guild - A guild that gravitates towards professions and jobs that involve physical violence or deterrence. This includes hunting, security, bounties, up to even military endevours and mercenary work.
• Production Guild - A guild that produces either raw materials or manufactured goods. Can even provide services such as power generation and construction.
• Legalist Guild - Comprised of scribes and lawyers sponsered by the High Council or independant. They handle legal cases, represent individuals or groups that have grievances in courts, etc, etc, functioning like law firms of sorts. Unlike the other two classifications, these guilds never get a seat within the high council.

These three make up the general basis of what a guild specializes in, but are not the only kinds of guilds within the system. The Mhysathar actually possess guilds for everything; anti-corruption, managing and interpreting a constitution, social services, entertainment, welfare, military forces separate of the High Council's own forces that handle policing.
The type of guild a person is a part of does not actually determine their profession. Legalist and production guilds are known to possess security personnel outside of affiliations with Combat guilds. Likewise, combat guilds are able to have members dedicated to maintenance and production of equipment while production guilds can possess private scribes dedicated to legalese and diplomacy. The guilds' type simply dictate the primary goal, and thus the composition, of it's members as well as what it should, should be able to, and should not do.
Ultimately the guilds are a system that allows people to pursue their ambitions within reason and law. The guilds and their various members are not forced into cooperation or coordination against their will, but are demanded to adhere to a strong degree of limitations and contribution for safety and welfare of the public and society at large. Ambition and freedom can be curtailed and restrained when they endanger that of others, but so long as rules are adhered and restraint

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Government

"According to the law on guild activities and their documentation article 769 section 88 subsections f.-h. and 70 through 71, the documentation needs to clearly establish the activities of guild members of each day in order of their occurrence with accurate and according-to-protocol timestamps, with a clear 1.1 inch margin between each entry. This document is clearly in violation of these instructions and you must present the scribe responsible to the city hall by noon for a public hanging."
-Shiro-hae Masumuro

Their societies are not ruled by singular leaders. Instead they have Magister Counsels that rule their lands. Nations, provinces, prefectures, regions, and individual settlements always have counsels made of out representatives of the most powerful guilds, including a few representatives of smaller guilds, to represent the interests and needs of their respective allegiances and limit the power of the others. These various groups are made to fulfill the various needs of the society, from military and security to industry, economics, production, public health, law and judgement, ect.
 As these groups are inter-reliant on one another, debates and compromises are to be made without any one party gaining advantage over the others. Guilds that are smaller or independent from the High Council also have a Representative house among within the counsel called the House of Commons.
Many different nations of the mhysathar fashion their societies and governments in any manner they can conceive to to prevent corruption from spreading too far or too quickly before it's rooted out. Often, power is spread wide and far across the various aspects of society. This may make orderly advancement difficult, but it greatly incentives people to not only take the initiative but also to ensure a greater deal of willing cooperation amongst anyone who wishes to advance.
One effort is to have at least 3 separate but equal-ish military forces, one under the control of the High Council, one under the control of the Judicial Services (independent of the High Council's authority, and one under the Opposition, the guilds and parties that, while not diametrically opposed, are still not in agreement with the High Council's direction The idea being that no single party can overpower the others.
If the High Council's acting shady and overstepping their boundaries, the Judicial and Opposition forces can unite to overthrow them.
If the Opposition strongly disagrees, they can't just crush the Council forces as long as the Judicial troops are on their side.
And if both the Council and Opposition suspects the Judicial's corrupt, they can force an investigation and resolution

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Social Heirarchy

There exist two hierarchies among the Mhysathar, the mages and the ordinary people. The mages lead society and use their magical might and knowledge to ensure advancement and maintenance of the community's various infrastructure and needs, the masses in exchange obey their rule and labor to provide the raw materials, refined resources, and facilities for their master's projects and endeavors. The mage's hierarchy generally ranks higher than that of the ungifted. Lower level mages may find themselves on equal rank or subservient to sufficiently high ranking ungifted, but in the end it is the wizards and sorcerers that make nation wide decisions.
Abuse of power and negligence of duties and responsibilities is always case for punishment. Especially if problems and emergencies were actively overlooked, dismissed, covered up, or otherwise abandoned to grow out of refusal to expend the effort or resources for personal benefit.

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Facial characteristics

Natural cats having no way to mimic facial expressions like humans. The Mhysathar are just as capable of conveying emotions through their looks, without having a radically different skull structure from their animal ancestors. This means that their heads and faces still retain the feline appearance.

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Geographic Origin and Distribution

Can live up to 40-80 years, under the best circumstances. Those born with magic are capable living well past a hundred and in some cases longer. A small numbers of non-magic users have also managed to attain similar but not exactly longevity, often bestowed upon them by the rulers.

Average Intelligence

An inherited trait from their feline ancestors is their strong critical thinking and problem solving skills. The race was also able to rediscover much in the way of the arcane and material worlds. Various fields in science and sorcery that were thought lost in the cataclysm have reemerged from their civilization, without external aid or sometimes even prior knowledge that it already existed. The non-magical members of their species themselves have also proven inventive in the fields of lessening effort in order to achieve equal or even greater results. Due to patterning their societies from what can be gleaned from elven ruins and witnessed from survivors, the modern race has access to better education. This potentially puts them almost on par with modern day knowledge of the real world. 

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As most of their knowledge is taken from the elves, it would be easy to assume that they have completely mimicked elven culture, knowledge, and governance to the point that they have nothing of their own that is original. This is assumption has led many people to look like fools and ignorant belligerents in the eyes of the world, not just to the mhysathar. Their ability to decipher the mysteries of the past was not perfect, and so they filled in the gaps with their own research and experimentation. Their different mindsets led them to make alterations and adjustments better suited for their needs and desires. Even their language, though based on the elven tongues, are distinct enough to warrant need for long linguistic research and study from elven scholars as well.
This is not to say that they are inherently smarter than most races. In spite of the smug stereotype, as they are quite capable of making blunders themselves in spite, or even because of, their intelligence. Also, simply because knowledge is easier to access does not mean people will actively grasp for it, as the Mhysathar can live all their lives willingly ignorant of things that they believe don't concern them in the slightest.

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Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Sharper senses of hearing and smell, compared to a human. Traits that are inherited from their feline quadruped ancestors. Another trait is their night-vision that allows them to see in low-light areas with greater clarity.

Civilization and Culture

Major Organizations

Major Nations

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Major Factions

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Illicit Organizations

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Organized Religion/s

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Gender Ideals

As Mhysathar are individualistic and ambitious, to simply say that all men or women desire the same things out of the opposite sex would be akin to saying that all individual humans can have their entire character summarized by the hue of their epidermis and by positive/negative caricatures of their beliefs and affiliations. As if there was some sort of ethnic-hivemind with each individual's intellect and personality being an exact copy of those with similar physical traits, and universal solidarity between members of the same hue-group in total opposition against others of differing colors.
Now that this has been emphasized to be in the wrong, the different cultures of the mhysathar tend to have different ideals for their various genders. Even then, these ideals are not, for the most part, strictly enforced or specific.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Their languages are typically derived from various elven tongues. However, this does not mean that their current languages are simply direct copies nor are they easily decipherable if through prior knowledge of the elven language structure. Their dialects and languages are their own thing with only passing similarities to the speech of the elves. This is due to the elves keeping any translations they made in their language simple and limited to only bare bones demands and expressions. The mhysathar expanded upon these simple words with additions of their own, even altering what words that already knew. The end result are different tongues unique to the various mhysathar civilizations that are found throughout the world. Even elves need constant study and practice of the mhysathar dialect as it is just as complex and expansive as their own, while at the same time it's various differences mean that only dedicated specialists are able to speak it fluently.

Common Etiquette Rules

The same stereotypes associated with cats are often lumped onto the Mhysathar simply due to shared ancestry and appearance, often by humans. The individualistic society of the mhysathar denounces this backwards thinking as hidebound and typically belittle adherents to such notions as primitives and hidebound neanderthals.
It should be said that stereotypes exist with reason.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

"Many members of other races, including yours, deem our culture and society to be impolite, disrespectful, arrogant, debased, and pretentious.
"Those same individuals are typically exemplars of the same traits. They seem to view adherence to outdated traditions and superstitions, specifically their own, as some sort of divine mandate or law of reality that if not treated with their level and way of reverence would spell doom upon all.
"I've even heard that we will face divine retribution for supposed the negligence of our kin and ancestors by the will of their 'gods'.
"They scream and chant, over and over, about how much they hate us and how vile we are.
"The reasons they give for this constantly change, but they are always irrational, irrelevant, or strongly hypocritical either way.
"We have every right to look down on these reprobates as we do.
"Everything that each of us has, we have earned by our own labors and wisdom. They are reliant on inheritance from their predecessors to make it anywhere.
"We are free to pursue glory and wealth that we can rightly claim as our own. They vehemently chain themselves and each other with mandates and edicts to acquire benefits for someone else.
"We are recognized for our own individual strengths and achievements. While any fame and riches that they claim can only be attributed to those long gone, whenever they don't pry it from the hands of the actual workers.
"We have earned our place by our own sweat and blood, as is the way of our ancestors.
"They ride on the fame of theirs, striving to maintain and elevate positions they were born into as they seek to glorify a legacy they don't deserve a part in.
"They refuse to comprehend us being more prosperous without being similar, so they label us as evil.
"Our Goddess and culture have brought us prosperity and enlightenment. Theirs keeps them shackled in destitution, suffering, and dependent on the fickle whims of fate.
"They are filled with spiteful envy masked as righteous anger and pious arrogance. They will be left in the dust and eventually destroy themselves, with their dying breath to curse us for their own actions."

Mhysathar culture, traditions, and societal values are centered around meritocratic values. From family units to the highest seat of government, the width and depth of your skill set is what determines your place in society and hierarchy according to those respective fields. Regardless of who they are and where they come from, all Mhysathar start at the bottom and work their way upwards. While nepotism and forms of favor and disfavor based on connections, personal bias or benefit is considered simply dirty and corrupt in some cultures, among the mhysathar it is a serious crime that offenders and those connected can and will face capital punishment or worse, from death and desecration to continued existence as an agonized living energy battery to properly serve the society.

The higher up the hierarchy one goes, the greater the privileges, the resources, and the responsibilities granted to them. No form of position or affiliation can protect one from the law, even a Magister is bound to it, more so than a commoner. On the other hand, higher levels of personal liberty are also granted the higher they are. This is to reward people for their labors to society as well as permit time and energy to personal research and endeavors that may prove beneficial to the nation.

Mhysathar venerate magic and magic users among their kind as blessed by their goddess; Mhysa. A child born of magic from ungifted parents is seen as direct divine blessing and a major cause of celebration among the community. Likewise, an ungifted child born of Mages is seen as anything from an ill-omen to sheer bad luck, even worse if one of the parent dies at some point between conception or well after delivery. Although such unfortunates cannot be blamed for their own birth, it has not stopped a number of parents from neglecting, disowning, abusing, or even abandoning the child. Such behavior is seen as vile and typically punishable by law, with the child's custody being given to a more desirable figure. For the most part, many mage parents have no problem raising non-magical children.

This does not mean that a man can be as unpleasant or negligent as they desire due to rank or position. On the contrary, doing so is a quick way to get removed, replaced, and subject to 'reeducation'. Mhysathar demand proper respect for their positions, and are required to show at least some level of decency and courtesy to those beneath them. There are limits and boundaries to how a Mhysathar can behave. Keeping the snark and haughtiness within acceptable perimeters is tolerated, but cross those borders and you're quickly put in your place. The perimeters for too far in regards to attitude is more lax when it comes to other races as it wasn't really designed with them in mind. It does exist though.

History

"My mother once said that there are no mistakes, only happy accidents. If the Mhysathar's existence was by chance, then the world is better for it. If it was by design, then the being responsible is worthy respect, even veneration. We elves only desired to survive the cataclysm, cooperation with the feline race was simply a means to an end. We traded them basic knowledge for aid, and now they have established a prosperous empire in just a few centuries. If it were not for their own ambitions getting the better of them, they would have claimed the glory we have lost so long ago and still fail to restore."

Aso'Ra Sephi-me're, controversial High Elven scholar and worldwide traveler.

Mhysathar evolved due to the energies released from the Great Cataclysm so long ago, descending from the various breeds of felines that existed on the world. Their animal ancestors typically took refuge from the chaotic environment by hiding within elven ruins. As these broken structures were built to harness and utilize magical energies, the apocalyptic cascade outside still left its effects upon these felines as it infused the ruins with conflicting energies that are magical, demonic, elderitch, scientific, and divine in origin.

Gradual evolution over the course of generations occurred in both the minds and bodies of these cats. The designs and materials of the elven structures prevented too much radiation from affecting them, thus stopping any debilitating or extreme mutation from occurring. Eventually, they developed into bipeds with opposable thumbs, as well as numerous other drastic changes in their anatomy. This has caused many arguments between scholars and theologians across the world over how this was even possible, especially on such a scale so as to create an entirely new race across the world. A race whose various cultures all have striking similarities no less.

As the mhysathar grew in sapience, so to did they grow in curiosity. They began to study and learn from their surroundings; the images, runes, objects, and other living beings from their surroundings and how those things interacted with each other. They recorded their findings as best they could and used whatever they knew to gain any advantage they can for and over their communities.

Eventually, they made contact with elven survivors of the cataclysm. Whether these were refugees, scavengers, or anything else didn't matter for in the end, they were all taking shelter in the debris of their past glory. Both races kept to themselves at first, but necessity forced them to interact. Whether it was for basic necessities or for learning the secrets of the past, they needed each other's aid and gave it through a variety of different ways.

Despite the need for cooperation, both races mainly kept to themselves and forced contact to remain as minimal and distant as they could. Eventually however, the foundations of trust were eventually developed to secure mutual survival and benefit. The first endevour to this was teaching the mhysathar the basics of elven language in order to convey simple demands, requests, and explanations.

The fledgling cat-race learned as much as they could from the elves, whether by question, by observation, or by deduction. They saw that among the elves, the most important members were those that possessed magical abilities, that all contributed in accordance to their skills, and that position was based on merit. It is through these lessons that the modern Mhysathar societies were shaped. Whatever knowledge they could not obtain, they made themselves.

The elves across the world eventually left the ruins to regroup in more functional settlements. Without need for concern of their neighbors, the Mhysathar began to convert the surroundings to their liking. Over the years the feline race traveled across the plains of the recuperating landscape, through the streets and tunnels of the fallen metropolises, and delved into the forests and hinterlands within and beyond their borders. These vast exploration efforts were done to properly map the surrounding terrain and beyond for the purpose of locating any potential resources for exploitation and to scout for any pre-existing or recent settlements for their own use.

With their new social structure, rapid advances were made with exponential growth in research and population. Advancing knowledge in various fields ranging from sanitation to architecture caused rapid growth in population over the generations. This fueled further expansion of their borders and ever greater effort to exploit as much as they could from their environment to sustain themselves. As their territories rapidly increased, so too did their ambition and greed. Other races that they met were expelled from their growing realms, others of their kind were swiftly integrated by pen and blade. Diplomatic treaties on trade and commerce occurred whenever one could not absorb the other. In less than a few centuries, the Mhysathar went from ruin-dwelling tribes to rising kingdoms. The derelict rubble they lived in were eventually transformed into great city-states that formed the regional capitals of their growing kingdoms and empires.

Such great wealth and vast territories made them a prime target for raids and disasters. The first attacks and catastrophes were devastating, resulting in much loss of life and resources. The mhysathar quickly recovered however, and proved themselves highly adaptable against a myriad of external threats. Another problem they encountered was the efficiency of their governance and logistics. It had become apparent through corruption and delays that having settlements of any size be ruled by singular autarchs was a detrimental. These heads of state were primarily concerned with their own personal benefits and often appointed advisors and ruling members into position based on loyalty and sycophancy rather than actual competence or concern for the wider society.

After many a bloody revolution, they developed the current system of magister councils to manage the affairs of settlements and states.

Origin/Ancestry

Various Feline species, primarly from domesticated breeds.

Lifespan

40-80 years

Average Height

5'0

Average Physique

The Mhysathar generally built for agility and mobility. Although many are content living average lives in cities and villages, under the right regimens and diets, they can become quite dangerous.

On average, the Mhysathar are faster and stronger than humans, as well as more flexible. A primary focus for their body building isn't strength but endurance. They don't tire easily, but can run out of stamina faster than a human of the same build. Due to this, they favor clothing and equipment that are lightweight and easily carried and used.

Although there are members of their race that can carry and utilize heavier items such as hammers and plate armor, on average they prefer their natural speed and grace. With any focus on physical improvement being primarily on stamina enhancement and management so that they may maximize the usage of their agility and dexterity for extended periods of time. Endurance comes first, agility and strength (though more appealing) come afterwards.

The end result of such training is a fighter that is highly frustrating to land a hit on and is easy to get hit by, as well as having the agility and strength to strike multiple times at key locations and weakspots. This grace in combat, compounded with heightened stamina capacity and management, creates a dangerous foe and an elusive target.

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For reference to body type and appearance, look up either the Daystone series or the Prequel webcomic.

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Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Due to evolving from various species of felines, most notably the domesticated variants, the Mhysathar have exhibited fur colors and markings similar to those found among wild cats and pet breeds. However, individuals born with magic tend to exhibit unnatural fur colors and patterns.

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