Fox-person

Fox-people (called zorra-personas in the Lamadien region) are one of a multiple species of beast-people in the world of Edyleine. Physically, a fox-person (zorra-persona) appears as a digitigrade humanoid with fox-like features, including ears, muzzle, fur, short blunt claws on hands and feet, and a long fluffy tail. Their eyes have vertical irises.
They are usually 155 to 180 cm tall and weigh 48 to 74 kg, being a little smaller than humans on average. There's no perceptible size difference between male and female individuals.
Their fur, which covers all of their body except for nose, palms and bottoms of the feet on which they walk, comes in any shade of any natural colors: white, gray, black, brown, ginger and sandy. Some may have patterns, like stripes or marks of different color on their fur. Their skin may be of any natural color from albino to black, and some fox-people may have differently colored skin on different parts of their body too.
Fox-people generally have slightly longer hair-like fur on their head.
Possible eye colors include gray, blue, red, yellow, green, brown or blue, or any shade inbetween those. Heterochromy (two eyes of different color) is also possible, and most often has no effect on vision.
Fox-people are actually omnivore, but many prefer eating meat-based products when possible, and their teeth is indeed more suitable for a carnivore diet.
The two known subspecies are fennec fox, inhabiting hot and dry places like deserts, and polar fox, inhabiting places with cold climates. Fennec foxes have larger ears than common fox-people and their fur is thinner and almost always mainly of sandy color. Polar foxes have a much thicker and warmer fur, which is almost always white. All subspecies can interbreed with each other.
Fox-people don't interbreed with other species.
Fox-people generally live a little bit longer than humans on average, mostly because of their slightly above-average endurance and natural health.
Biologically, fox-people are mammals similar to those of the Vulpes genus of the Canidae family, except that fox-people are bipedal.
== Positive sides ==
Fox-people have a great sense of smell, on par with dogs. Their vision, hearing and tactile sense are also better than those of average humans.
They are covered in fur, which protects them from sunburn.
Their fingers and toes have short blunt claws on end of them, so they are a bit better at defending themself unarmed.
Their teeth are much sharper than human teeth, and so can somewhat effectively be used in combat.
On average, fox-people have a little better coordination and endurance than humans. Reaction speed and running speed are more noticeably better for fox-people.
Fox-people can hear ultrasounds.
Fox-people are able to communicate with normal animals, at a basic level, about as good as one animal could understand another.
== Negative sides ==
Being a bit smaller than humans on average, fox-people on average are a little physically weaker as well.
Fox-people on average are less smart than humans, because a large part of their brain is dedicated to the sense of smell. Exceptions to this are not unknown, though.
Fox-people are bad at lying and bluffing because their ear and tail movements pretty obviously give away their intentions. This can be fixed by lots of training, though.
As is true for most canines, chocolate, coffee and some other foods consumed by humans are toxic for fox-people. The same foods that are toxic to a domestic dog are toxic to fox-people.
Under stress, most fox-people will temporarily revert to a mental state much more similar to that of a wild animal than a sapient being. This varies wildly between individuals, and can be anywhere from having slight trouble when speaking, to full-on instinctive "wild animal" behavior with little, if any, signs of sapience. This can be partially or completely mitigated by training.
== Subspecies differences ==
The thicker fur of polar foxes provides them some protection from attacks, about equivalent to light leather armor, and a higher tolerance to cold. Their typical white fur color also allows them to blend in better with the snow.
Fennec foxes need much less water to survive than similarly-sized beings, and their large ears and lighter fur allows them to better tolerate hot climates. Their typical sandy fur color also allows them to blend in better with the sand.
Some fox people of any subspecies may have a color pattern that allows them to easily camouflage themself in some specific environment.
== GURPS templates ==
Fox-Person [25]:
Attributes [25]:
SM 0, 9 ST[-10], 11 DX[20], 9 IQ[-20], 11 HT[10], 9 Will[0], 12 Per[15], 6 BS[10], 6 BM[0], 9 HP[0], 11 FP[0].
Advantages [30]:
Teeth, Sharp [1], Fur [1], Claws, Blunt (all limbs) [3], Discriminatory Smell [15], Ultrahearing [5], Animal Empathy [5].
Disadvantages [-30]:
Easy to Read [-10], Susceptible (Food that is toxic for dogs) 5 [-5] (Chocolate, coffee, etc.), Stress Atavism (Moderate, CR 12) [-15].
Features: Ordinary Tail, Digitigrade Posture, Born Biter 1.
Lenses:
Arctic [6]: add Temperature Tolerance 3 (Cold) [3] and Damage Resistance 1 (Tough Skin, -40 %) [3].
Fennec [5]: add Temperature Tolerance 3 (Heat) [3] and Reduced Consumption 2 (Water Only, -50 %) [2].
White Fur [1]: add Limited Camouflage (Snow) [1].
Sandy Fur [1]: add Limited Camouflage (Sand) [1].
== Occurrence ==
Fox-people are occasionally seen in Trynser City. They can be found in Millisymph, especially in El barrio de la uva (the "grape neighborhood") of the city of Fulmando.
Category:Races