Muska Felo

Muska Felos are cat-like creatures inspired by Oriental Shorthairs. They can be found in the cupboard or purchased from the Genome Splicer. They can also breed with Avka Felos, but they do not produce hybrid offspring.

Lore-wise, they were discovered by Joyce Toller, as documented in BULLETIN #101.

## Growth

### Capsule

"A wide, flat base supports this deep green capsule."

### Young

"Although this sightless juvenile spends much of its time sleeping, it has periods of hyperactivity during which it will dash about in a chaotic manner. Somehow, it never collides with obstacles in its path, instead leaping over or dashing around anything that gets in its way. It always seems hungry and will often beg for food even if it’s just been fed. In a laboratory setting, where they may have less room to exercise, care must be taken to not overfeed them."

### Adult

"Despite being blind, Muska Felo are powerful hunters, using their sensitive crystalline whiskers, sharp hearing, and strong sense of smell to stalk their prey through the dark caverns they call home. They feed mainly on rodents but will eat insects or fish if the opportunity presents itself. Although they normally hunt alone or in pairs, prides will sometimes work together to bring down larger prey that venture into the caves. Due to the scarcity of food in their natural habitat, their metabolism has developed to support large, infrequent meals. It is not uncommon to find a pride of Muska Felos snuggled together to nap off their latest suppers. Females choose their mates by approaching a male and touching his flank with her twin-tipped tail. The male will either show interest by returning the gesture or draw away in indifference. Juveniles are raised by the pride as a whole, and adults will go hungry if necessary to ensure both their offspring and any nursing mothers have enough to eat.

The creatures that dwell in this rather desolate world still display some diversity in appearance, eating habits, and social behavior. Whether they have fur or feathers, skin or scales, their unique genetic makeup allows for a variety of colors and markings within each species. Despite limitations in food sources, herbivores, omnivores, and carnivores are all present in the food chain, and each species requires specialized care within a laboratory. Although the artificial setting of housing units and breeding pods precludes most opportunities to study true interspecific behavior, the interactions within and between species has been studied extensively in the wilderness by scientists daring enough to venture beyond the outpost’s walls."

## Extra Info

The information below is included in Muska Felo's creature notes on site.

### Curious Nature

Muska Felos are very curious by nature and will investigate new areas and new objects within their territory thoroughly with all available senses. When we first installed night vision cameras in a section of the caves in order to better observe a pride, many of them inspected the cameras—up to and including licking them—for a few days before determining that they were not edible and of no further interest.

### Population Control

These quiet and elusive cavern dwellers have no natural predators. Their population is kept in check by the limitations imposed by the scarce resources of their habitat. Prides will claim territory by marking it. It is rare for two prides to fight over space; the larger pride is usually the victor in standoffs, behavior that likely developed from the need to conserve energy.

### Twin-Tipped Tail

The crystals on a Muska Felo’s tail have the same sensitivity as their remarkable crystalline whiskers and help them better sense their surroundings. It is possible the twin tips evolved to improve their range of perception.

### Shared Territories

Muska Felos are closely related to Avka Felos and can interbreed with them. Prides and herds that share territory within the caves will sometimes exchange fresh kills. It has been hypothesized that this is their way of demonstrating respect for their sister species. Mating behaviors between the two species are similar: a female will approach a male and touch his flank with her tail.

## Variations

### Body

Green
Green

(Red Brown)
Brown

### Variation A

The trait affects a Muska Felo's whisker color.

### Variation B

The trait affects a Muska Felo's tail detail color.

### Marking A

This trait impacts the stripes on a Muska's coat. The stripes are always black regardless of a Muska's body color.

### Marking B

Patches
Patches

This trait refers to white patches on the sides of a Muska's body. These patches cover everything underneath them, so anywhere with white patches will not have stripes or spots. (Other markings will still be visible in the center of a Muska's body, where the white patches don't reach). Regardless of body color, these patches are always white.

### Marking C

This trait refers to spotted patterns on a Muska's coat. The spots are always orange and tabby regardless of a Muska's body color.

### Length

This trait refers to the ear length of a Muska Felo.

## Trivia

TFO uses Esperanto as a basis for creature names (although it's not always exact—accents are ignored and spellings occasionally shift). “Muska Felo” means “Moss Fur.”

Muska Felos, along with Avka Felos, have a special action associated with them called "pet". This action can be accessed by typing "https://finaloutpost.net/action/XXXXX/pet" into your browser's search bar and replacing XXXXX with a creature's code.

## Acknowledgments

Art by: Corteo, Malcorium, schenanigans. Descriptions by: Shark.