FA+
Shop
About Taurs!
7 years ago
What's so great about taurs, anyway? I like them, but it's tough to convey exactly why. For me it's that they're a mix of humanoid (with the convenience of hands) and feral/quadrupedal, with some interesting changes to adjust to and speculate about. And they're cuddly and would have some physical differences like carrying capacity and suitability for clothing to figure out. Chakats, though their setting is an obvious copy of Star Trek, still have a unique culture of their own, so that's an example of developing a taur race.
But a lot of that applies to other furry species. I have no interest in a humanoid form with two extra arms; it's just not appealing to me. I do obviously like griffins, but they're not quite as fun for me as taur forms.
There's also an interesting difference between thinking about flesh-and-blood taur characters in a realistic setting, and machine-based ones who are either robotic or in a virtual world. For instance, the question of where the internal organs go is less important for a machine; and as a virtual griffin I wouldn't be freaked out by the thought of constantly having dirt or worse on my hands.
What's the appeal, for you, if any?
But a lot of that applies to other furry species. I have no interest in a humanoid form with two extra arms; it's just not appealing to me. I do obviously like griffins, but they're not quite as fun for me as taur forms.
There's also an interesting difference between thinking about flesh-and-blood taur characters in a realistic setting, and machine-based ones who are either robotic or in a virtual world. For instance, the question of where the internal organs go is less important for a machine; and as a virtual griffin I wouldn't be freaked out by the thought of constantly having dirt or worse on my hands.
What's the appeal, for you, if any?
V.
On a big tangent though I find it interesting that of all the fantastical creatures and combinations the furry fandom (to a lesser extent sci-fi creature design) make it is taurs that have the most discussion over how their internal organs would work in a real life setting.
The spine and body proportions are another interesting thing to think about. A traditional centaur seems like it would Not Work because the centaur would have trouble even reaching back to groom themselves, and the relatively small human half seems mismatched for a big horse unless you assume it's pony-sized. (A late, centaur-fan friend, Michael Bard, proposed some kind of extra breathing slits on the human neck to provide oxygen for the big lower half.) I could see a deer-based centaur being more plausible due to the closer size match. For a taur based on something like a cat or otter, I figure there'd be a very flexible spine that makes it comfortable even to lay on your back and "sit up" like a human, meaning most of 180 degrees of bend at the upper waist.
By the way, I was rereading a novel and got reminded: I did reference chakats indirectly. "Liberation Game" mentions the Hexapod Support Group "for six-limbers and the hex-curious". It's referenced in the current edition of the first Tales book, but this book explicitly says there's "some kind of Aussie cat-centaur with gold fur".