Donkey

## General

Found in just about every part of Equestria, the ever resilient donkeys are a rare exception to the typical species tension. Having lost their land to demons, most of their old traditions are long since lost but the few they still hold onto are deeply important.

## Donkey Creation Guide

The information listed below is integral to making a donkey character. We ask you prioritize our worldbuilding, these facts must be kept in mind *even when* deviating from societal norms.

### Appearance

Donkeys are a short, stocky species. Their strong builds and thick coats make for the donkey's being one of the most durable species within Equestria. Their ears are long and their tails are short, similar to that of a unicorns or zebras, tufted at the end. Their coats come in any number of greys, blacks, and browns.

#### Mules

Mules are the offspring of a donkey parent and one nondonkey parent (earth ponies, pegasi, unicorns, crystal ponies, batponies, and zebras). Mules inherit their donkey parents long ears and shorter builds. They can't inherit species specific traits like unicorn horns, crystal coats, or wings. They tend to have more muted colors than most other ponies but this isn't always the case.

### Naming Scheme

A donkey's naming scheme relies on the culture they grew up in. (Ex. Gypsum Drawpoint in the Unicorn Palatine)

### Cutiemarks and Capabilities

Donkeys do *not* receive cutiemarks. They do not have spellcasting or the ability to fly. They also have no internal magic.

## Society

The information found below is also very important to the character creation process, it is everything your OC would have been exposed to throughout their lives, it's what they know best, whether or not they fit that societal norm.

Quick Note: For the most part, donkeys take after whatever culture they live in. What's written here is true for most, if not all, donkeys but should be viewed through the lens of whatever province they grew up in and/or call home.

### Values and Demeanor

Donkey communities prioritize being reasonable. Valuing practical thinking made them mesh easy with the unicorns but often makes them look uptight in other places.

### Religion and Traditions

Old donkey religion, the worship of Celestia and Luna alongside one another, led to a majority of the donkey diaspora settling in the Unicorn Palatine. Modern donkeys tend to worship the dominant religion of an area. Knowledge of their own ancient religion is mostly gone, inaccessible, sat just outside the Equestrian border with demons blocking the way.

One tradition that's managed to stay, despite distance and lack of recorded history, are marital songs. After a pair has decided that they are getting married, they each make a song for the other. Rules and traditions of how to go about it vary wildly. In central Equestria it is common to create duets with your future spouse, working together to create something beautiful , to be preformed fully on the wedding day. Most other donkeys though tend to work on individual songs, creating them with friends and loved ones and keeping them secret from their spouse until the wedding day. Having a bad singing voice isn't shameful either, if you can't sing badly with them and have it be a good memory, you shouldn't marry them.

### Politics and History

Centuries ago a demonic siege fell upon Equestria, much was lost including the Donkey Kingdom. They fled their now demon infested homeland to the Unicorn Palatine where most of them remained.