Ngl these are probably my more detached from the original designs redesigns that ive done, even considering the past ones. But honestly? I am REALLY happy with how these have come out, and i hope you guys like them too!
(Btw, i didnt give them their knee armor things but lowkey i just didnt want to draw them LMAO, same thing for the malm tigers tail, but assume that palm cats know how to poach and use armor)
- Palm cats are an incredibly capable and incredibly intriguing species of monster, as well as every other member in its genus. Its appearance is almost perfectly split between feline and human, capable of easily switching from casually walking on two legs to an all four’s sprint in mere seconds. Their long claws are not only used for combat, though that is their main function, as they can be used to delicately pull small rodents or items from between cracks and crevices, their dexterity in these instances is second to none even when compared to lifelong seamstresses. Palm cats form small family clans (no more than 5-6 members) and prefer lightly wooded areas and rocky environments, making their homes in hand dug dens. They are also incredibly intelligent, capable of rudimentary human speech from merely overhearing and observing conversations. Depending on the local language, palm cat clans will take to it and use it, though sometimes they can end up learning more than one language which can cause confusion between clan members. Palm cats are highly territorial and will defend their homes with their lives, until a kit is old enough to defend themselves they will always be accompanied by a parent, if a kit is alone assume the worst has happened. There have been cases of a palm kit being taken in by people (often mistaken for a were-animal child) and raised like them, such cases can end up with the kit growing up with fully capable speech and fully integrated into their society, though their more base instincts can make them feel ostracized and alone.
- The malm tiger, despite its name, is more leopard in appearance. When malm tigers were first discovered the explorers had never seen a leopard before and used the only word they knew at the time. Since then the name has stuck and, although the scientific community has pushed to rename it, the larger public has become too used to it and regularly pushes back on efforts to rename it. Malm tigers live in below freezing temperatures and high altitude environments like mountains; thick and insulated fur keeps them warm and an enlarged lung capacity and heart ensures survival in the thin air. Malm tigers utilize ice magic when fighting, creating an outer layer of ice works well as not only armor, but also as a reinforcement to their claws or fangs, many foes of malm tigers have died minutes after being bitten, not from the bite itself but from the frostbite that comes with it. They often dig out caves into the mountain side and cuddle with members of its clan for warmth, in rare cases when the weather is particularly awful, clans will put their differences aside and temporarily form large cuddle piles to conserve warmth. On a sillier note, it is rumored that the fearsome yeti was merely a malm tiger who got caught in a snowstorm.
- Sechs cats are the smallest but toughest of the palm cats, surviving in less than tolerable conditions compared to every other member of its species. They live on the highest points in rocky mountain areas, capable of lunging and leaping up to 20 ft and have amazing balance. Like malm tigers, they have thick, insulated fur, and also like malm tigers they can tend to share habitats which leads to aggressive confrontations. Unlike malm tigers, however, their skin is much thicker and harder to pierce, meaning if they take an unfortunate tumble or scratch chances are its more surface level than anything serious.
- Lyplicants are considered one of the fastest monsters in the world, running up to speeds of 300 MPH and rarely seen by the naked eye. Their thin frames and long legs make them ideal for hiding in tall grasses and aerodynamic when hunting, all of this combined makes them a feared monster in the wild, where you never really know where or when they’ll pop out and hunt you. Funnily enough, they are nowhere near as intimidating as they appear to be, in fact they are frequently nervous and anxious, preferring to run away from danger than fight it head on. Since they prefer to stay far, far away from people they rarely if ever learn human speech, the few words they do learn are used incorrectly but are frequently used to indicate wanting you to stay back (even if the only word they know is “hello” or “bread”, strange indeed). Unfortunately, their numbers have dwindled quite a bit from monster poachers due to their pelts, this has lead to large scale conservation efforts where abandoned kits are either raised together or with a silver wolf pup, as their calm yet friendly demeanors puts the kit at ease.
- Leoplicant are the most aggressive and territorial of all the palm cats subspecies, claiming large swaths of land and defending it to their dying breath. They almost seem to revel in battle and intentionally seek it out typically against other leoplicants; it goes that one Leoplicant will intentionally trespass on another’s territory, the ensuing fight is violent and bloody and only ends until one falls dead or runs away, leaving the victor to take over their territory. As such, much like goblins, they collect scars with pride and show them off, monster researches believe for one reason is that the scars typically take the shape of a stripe so it could be strange form of body modification, like theyve gained a new stripe in battle. It is speculated that you can determine a leoplicants age from the number and health of their scars, which is handy as getting close to a leoplicant is far too dangerous, meaning a researcher can simply use a pair of binoculars and record their findings from a distance (unless it smells you of course).
