What's that, Furcadia?

This morning, starting at just before six-am FST, Talzhemir and I started discussing what was going to be coming out in the nearest update. Since it is a primarily graphic-based update, the talk turned to portraits. Thinking it might be a kick to give a teaser to the Furcadia populace, an idea was formed.

This little teaser is part of the conversation between Talzhemir and Myself in regards to the new portrait artwork making its way into the game along with the coolest new features that were mentioned in previous updates to What’s that, Furcadia? earlier this morning. If you’d like to see what all was said, take a peek inside. If you’d rather be surprised completely, check yourself at the door. 😉

(05:57) Talzhemir: Penguins
(05:57) Talzhemir: The non-gendered penguin portrait was inspired by the Little Penguins who were caught in oil spills. The lucky ones get washed in dish soap but then their feathers lose their insulative qualities. Knitters were asked to make sweaters for them, which saved many Little Penguin lives.
(05:58) Talzhemir: They were swamped with ten thousand of the wee outfits, referred to as “jumpers”. Those sweaters that aren’t the right size or shape are placed on penguin plushies, to help raise money for the conservation group. link
(05:58) Talzhemir: Tygard Ferians
(05:58) Talzhemir: Yes, the portraits do exhibit the same stripes/rosettes/spots as the walkabouts. The non-gendered Tygard will be a Sabre-tooth Cat. link
(05:58) Talzhemir: Leonen Ferians
(05:59) Talzhemir: These are maned big cats; they don’t have the same coat pattern as the Tygards.
(05:59) Talzhemir: The female Leonen port has alot of hair but it doesn’t go below her chin like a lion’s mane. It’s just shaggy headfur. The male port has a mane inspired by the traditional headdress worn by young Zulu men going through the manhood rites of ‘Eunoto’.
(05:59) Talzhemir: Bats
(05:59) Talzhemir: Unlike my others new portraits, which begin as digital “paintings”, all three of the Bat ports started out as photos. One of them is adapted from a photo by Merlin Tuttle who is the foremost bat photographer. (If you see an amazing shot of a bat taken in flight, chances are good Merlin took it.)
(06:00) Talzhemir: Alot of bat species are endangered. Alot of them are weird old lineages that co-evolved with some other rare species in a niche ecosystem. We’re finding them, only to realize they’re also in grave danger of extinction. For example, last year, the tube-lipped nectar bat was discovered in the cloud forests of the Andes. If changes in global temperatures don’t stop soon, there’ll be no more tube-lipped nectar bats. I was tempted to put one on a portrait but decided against it… link
(06:00) Talzhemir: The non-gendered bat portrait depicts the Mindoro Stripe-Faced Fruit Bat. This would be the tenth species of fruit bat. It was officially discovered and documented just last month (September 2007). link
(06:00) Talzhemir: Werewolves
(06:01) Talzhemir: These are a wonderfully goofy avatar, meant to look ungainly. I don’t normally make avatars this large because larger creatures tend to look jerky. Consider the distance a limb moves, in terms of pixels, and it still only gets three frames. The werewolf squeaks by because he’s intended to be awkward. He’s tall, he’s imbalanced, and he towers over everything.
(06:01) Talzhemir: Not much to say about these ports except, none of the Werewolf ports is feminine.
(06:01) Talzhemir: Bears
(06:02) Talzhemir: The bear portraits were done by another Furcadia artist, Hope. Leah and I colored ’em. They are gorgeous and so full of ursine beauty; I think all you bears out there will be delighted. I won’t say more on those.
(06:03) Talzhemir: Kiwis
(06:03) Talzhemir: Real kiwis tend to be all one color, maybe with some mottling all over. So the “hair” being a different color is entirely fanciful. I also gave them a ring around the neck; this is not authentic but many birds have such markings, like mallard ducks and killdeers.
(06:08) Talzhemir: One of the kiwis has spiral designs on him for markings. They’re actually a Maori tradition. They’re called moko and they’re more than just decoration. They speak of his clan and other aspects of his heritage. (I do hope that Maori people will understand I’m not making fun of moko, I am doing this as a tribute.) Link!
(06:09) Talzhemir: The backgrounds of the Kiwi portraits began as photos of New Zealand.
(06:09) Talzhemir: One of the kiwi portraits has the three little tail feathers. That’s not a realistic kiwi feature, it’s a Dragonlands/Furcadia trait. I modeled them on the primitive feathers of another flightless bird, the emu.
(06:09) Talzhemir: I think the Kiwis will only be available on special occasions, by the way.
(06:20) Talzhemir: There’s this tidbit. Some of the avatars are more ‘seasonal’ or ‘silly’ or that kind of thing. They’re not “canon” according to the Dragonlands and they aren’t going to be added to the Dragonlands either. Not this update, but in a-future-update-not-so-fa-down-the-line, those avatars will be tagged ‘NOVELTY’ and Dream owners will have the option to turn them off. Werewolves and Bats will be considered Novelty; the Ferians will not.