After I finished designing my Chinese New Year Horse/Tianma character here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/64045248/ I felt like making a character for each of the zodiac animals. So here are some busts/headshots of them for now!

I kinda started this right after I finished my horsey but I took a bit of a break from it, then finished it recently. These guys do take a while to design since it requires a lot of research/reference, so I mostly wanted to get them out while they were still fresh in my mind xD Their designs are subject to change in the future, but I'm happy with them for now! Some of the characters were also inspired from all of the old CNY drawings I did over the years, which I actually managed to find and put together here lol: https://www.deviantart.com/stash/015iylcl6fha

I was surprised I was able to hit every animal at least once! But if I do anything CNY related again, I'll probably use these characters instead going forward!

I decided their sex based off each animal's yin/yang alignment, but I did swap the Tiger and Rooster's just because the Tiger usually represents "yin" in Taoism and I kinda wanted to make her an opposing parallel to the Dragon (who represents "yang"). The Rooster also just felt like a more "masculine" animal to me, its called a COCK anyway lol

Here are some quick notes on each character (still no official names, but eventually they will!) :


Rat - ♂️- Chinese pirate - Quick witted, cunning and clever - Based off of the Huo Shu (火鼠) or fire rat, known to have fireproof fur - Holds a cutlass sword

Ox - ♀️ - Mountaineer/explorer - Protective and strong - Based off Tibetan yaks and the KuiNiu (夔牛) a one-eyed blue ox associated with storms - Holds a battle axe

Tiger - ♀️- Kung-fu warrior - Energetic tomboyish vibes - Based off the Báihǔ (白虎) or the White Tiger of the West - Holds a spear

Rabbit - ♀️- Child princess character - Curious and kind - Based off of Yutu (月兔) or the Moon/Jade Rabbit - Holds a ribbon

Dragon - ♂️- Chinese general - Stoic, caring and powerful - Based off of Yinglong (应龙) a golden dragon deity of rain and thunder - Holds a sword

Snake - ♀️- Fair maiden and dancer - Demure, elegant and helpful - Based off of Bai Suzhen (白素貞) a white snake spirit who can transform into a woman - Holds a parasol or fan

Horse - ♂️- - Chinese warrior - Graceful, sensitive yet disciplined - Based off of Tianma (天馬), or flying heavenly horse - Holds a halberd

Sheep - ♀️ - Medicinal doctor - Smart but critical - Based off of Qianyang (羬羊) a sheep/goat with a long horses tail and medicinal properties - Holds a book or vial

Monkey - ♂️- Legendary hero - Brave and adventurous - Based off of Sun Wukong (孫悟空) or the Monkey King (this one is obvious lol) - Holds a staff

Rooster - ♂️- Martial artist jock - Cocky (pun intentional) yet encouraging - Based off of Chongming (重明鳥) a colorful bird with 4 pupils that chased away evil spirits - Holds brass knuckles

Dog - ♂️- Child scholar character - Playful and friendly - Based off Chow Chow dogs and the shishi (石獅) or Lion/Fu Dogs - Holds a ball

Pig - ♀️- Chef and event planner - Cheerful and generous - Based off of Dangkang (当康) a tusked pig associated with bountiful harvests - Holds a tote bag


They will all be part of my Myth Anthro series here!: https://www.furaffinity.net/gallery.....-working-title
(looking back at it, I'm surprised I still haven't done a wolf character yet LMAO)