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Elquider Breed Sheet Vers 1

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Here it finally is, with :iconthowra:'s go-ahead I've done the first official refsheet for the Elquider breed. (Warning to those on slow connections, full view is Big)

:bulletblue: *New/Update* ~ =SilverBrumby has posted an updated summary of the breed here: [link] , including more information on their social life, history with humans and other facts as well as the snow Elquider sub-breed :)


About The Elquider: :iconthe-elquider-club: #The-Elquider-Club

Elquiders are an original fantasy equine breed (c) their creators :iconsilverbrumby: and AllissaD ( by =SilverBrumby's permission =Thowra is the current manager of the breed ) .

Breed: Elquider (El-qui-der)

Pelt: Red. All Elquiders have a pelt that is any shade of red (this can include red chestnut, strawberry roan, mahogany/blood red, burgundy, scarlet, vermillion, pinks etc). NO other color is possible. Red only!

Eyes: range in tone according to mood, from -

:bulletblue: Black: Angry or anything else
:bulletblue: White: Calm, peaceful (always glowing when in this mood)
:bulletblue: Grey: Uncertain, afraid, and such

Horns: Both genders grow horns, and they can range from stubs to tree branch looking horns. Horn colours can range from blacks/greys to white/cream, and can be plain or marked, banded or tipped in a different colour to the main one. Red is also possible as a horn/horn marking colour. Horns don't appear in foals until around the age of 5 years (The mares have smaller, weaker horns than the stallions). They also shed these horns every three years.

Mane and Tail: Either solid black or solid white, or a mixture of both. Nothing else. Manes can be flowing or upright, straight or wavy-haired.

Markings: Every Elquider has a white dorsal stripe and white and/or black zebra stripes on their legs. They can have any markings (including paint and/or tribal/other 'unnatural' markings) in black and/or white and/or a different shade of red, just the main pelt colour MUST be red and they *must* have the zebra/dorsal stripes.

Build: Elquiders range in build from light (Like that of a Thoroughbred, Arabian or Teke horse) to heavy/draft. Draft-like leg 'feathering' can occur in some Elquiders of any buld type; if it does the colour of the leg fur is always either white and/or black and/or a shade of red.

Tattoos: Every Elquider has a tattoo. However, how 'defined' (i.e, detailed and complex) the tattoo is depends on the bloodlines. The more 'royal' the bloodlines, the more 'defined' the tattoo is. Also, the tattoos are neon green and are either on the face, neck, or flank.

Some examples of the kind of tattoos that mark an Elquider as royal here, here and here . Examples of Elquiders with tattoos marking them of a lower-ranking bloodline here and
here .

Beards: Present in both genders, and goes from their throat down to their chest. Only on the front part of the neck, no where else. Stallions can have small beards underneath the chins, but they only get those when they are old, like 100 years or more. It is a way of showing the stallion's age and 'wisdom'.

Hooves: Three Toed. Hoof colours, like horn colours, can range from greys/blacks to cream/white or reds.

Hearing Sense: Deaf (All Elquiders have no ears)

Smell Sense: Excellent

Sight Sense: Very Good

Personality: Varies. Even though their personalities may vary, they all have a 'dark' serious side to them. Elquiders are very serious and proud and will not mate with any other creature beside their own kind. They see these others as 'lesser' animals. They are not sociable equines at all.

Height: 14.3-15.3 hh for mares; 16.3-17.3 hh for stallions (hh = Hands, about four inches or 11 cm). When fully grown, the stallions are always taller than the mares by at least one hand.

Terrain: Mountains. Elquiders are found nearly world-wide and can live in just about any climate, but they prefer a mountainous habitat.

Life Cycle: During the breeding season, the stallion will begin to call with a deep bellow, a combination of a stag's and a horse's voice. This is to ward off any predators (including humans), and to proclaim his herd and his territory. Vibrations from these calls are carried through the earth, and any Elquider within several miles will be able to sense them. These vibrations repel other stallions, but attract wandering mares (Humans fear this sound).

Elquider mares live alone until they are claimed by a stallion, then they run in the stallion's herd. Elquider herds are small, averaging up to four-five adult mares as well as their foals and the stallion. You will, on occasion, find a rogue mare, but it's reare, and young stallions usually roam alone. The stallions fight more like stags than equines, and they will only use their hooves when absolutely necessary. Elquider mares are pregnant for 8 months, then will usually wander away from the herd to give birth, preferrably at night.

The Elquider age limit is 800 years, and they come into maturity at 85 years.

Communication: Elquiders communicate via their mind/thoughts and their body language. Except for the stallion's breeding call, Elquiders do not emit any other sounds to each other, for they cannot hear.

History: Humans see them as demon-like horses and fear them greatly. They know them as more myth than fact right now.

Anthros: Elquider can be drawn as anthros and Elquider characters can have (or be in) an anthro form, but all the remaining rules about colour, personality etc will still apply (for example being deaf, preferring solitude, three-hooved feet even if the hands might be human-like etc).

New: Elquider faqs:

(My questions in italics, answers are bulleted. Many thanks to =SilverBrumby for these answers)

How does an Elquider obtain his/her tattoo? (and at what age?)

:bulletred: Each elquider is born with a tattoo.

When an Elquider mare is claimed by a stallion, does her tattoo change?

:bulletred: No.

Does an Elquider foal inherit it's mother's or it's father's tattoo? / What are the circumstances that would cause a new line (and a new tattoo) to be founded?

There are four major bloodlines (the names of these are unknown at the moment), in the case of founding a new 'bloodline' & tattoo, it would go like this: one with a skull-like tattoo bred with one that had a flames tattoo, those two lines would mix to create a new and unqiue tattoo in the foal. How defined to the flame or to the skull shape the tattoo is, is based on which bloodline is more dominant. If you mix two bloodlines together, it forms a unique tattoo and in a sense, a new bloodline. If a foal is completely from one bloodline, it will have the same tattoo as the bloodline (for example skull). If you mix two different bloodlines, it creates a new tattoo and so forth. The further you get away from the royal bloodline, the more diverse the tattoo becomes.

Is the tattoo luminescent?

:bulletred: Yes.

At what age is an Elquider foal old enough to leave the herd and go alone?

:bulletred: They become mature at 85 and their lifespan is 800

Beside the mother, how much does the stallion & the other mares have to do with a foal's protection & teaching?

:bulletred: If the mare is a rouge then she will raise the foal alone, but within a herd (many elquiders only come together to breed... but a stallion can have a herd of up to 5 mares if he's lucky) the stallion will play the role of protector but nothing else. The foal will playfight with other foals (especially colts) but mares will not take in an orphan foal or care for it in any way unless it is their own. Even in a herd they are a solitary animal. Otherwise would be extremely rare.

When an Elquider foal matures enough to leave his/her family herd, does he/she leave of his/her own choice, or is he/she driven from the herd (by the stallion or another herd member)?

:bulletred: The mares usually drive the foal away. The mother especially can be vicious particuarly if she is in breeding condition (and by the time a foal matures the mare is ready to mate again). The mother is usually the cause of their own foals leaving the herd.

Do Elquider herd stallions spend most of their time near their herd, or are they 'away on business' a lot?

:bulletred: Stallions very rarely stay with their herds at night. Mares and their foals are often hidden in forest while the stallions can roam and patrol their territories. Many stallions choose hidden gullies for their mares to rest in while they are away.

Do Elquider herds keep sentries when grazing?

:bulletred: Yes.

Do Elquider stallions (bachelor or herd) often try to steal mares claimed by another stallion?

:bulletred: Yes, but any foals they find will be killed.

Does an Elquider herd have a lead mare, and is she dominant to, equal to or subordinate to the stallion?

:bulletred: Yes, there is usually a 'favourite' mare and she is equal to the stallion, but only when he is absent from the herd.

Is there a strong ranking system among a herd's mares?

:bulletred: Not usually. The favourite mare will be granted more freedom than the other mares, but that is all. If she mates with another stallion and bears his foal, the lead stallion will not only kill the foal but also kill her for her disloyalty. This is particularly common with royal elquiders.

How big (generally) is an Elquider herd's territory?

:bulletred: Usually enough land for the herd to graze, hide and roam comfortably. As much as hundreds of kilometres wide, depending on the area.

Do lone Elquiders have a territory?

:bulletred: No.

Can Elquiders see the same colour range most humans can, or are they fully or partly colour-blind?

:bulletred: They are partly color blind. That’s why their tattoos are a vibrant neon green. Other colours are washed out, there is colour but none as vibrant as the tattoos

Do Elquiders have any special immunities, resistances or vulnerabilities?

:bulletred: They are resistant to colds since they live in the mountains. For vulnerabilities, males are rather vulnerable during antler shedding season since they'll be losing their major defense. Also heavily pregnant mares, they’d be more vulnerable since they'd be naturally be slower.

Can an Elquider with full-body paint markings or zebra striping have more than 50% of its pelt the other (non-red) colour?

:bulletred: They can have extreme white markings, but no more than 50% of their body. There must be an equal amount of red as there is white. But this coloration is rare. Only 10% of the Elquiders have this type of markings. Normally red is dominate with some white markings.

Can Elquider body markings be in any tone or colour other than black and/or white?

:bulletred: No

Are features like markings, horn type etc as genetically passable as in most mammals, or are there any special rules for this? (like being more prone to throwbacks or random variations)

:bulletred: It’s random. There will be some genetic influence, but there's also the chance of the horns being totally unrelated. Same with the markings and etc.

What time of the year is their breeding season usually?

:bulletred: Late fall/early winter. Mares would come into season late fall and the stallions start their bellowing and competing just before then.

Do Elquiders grey on the face (or other parts) as they age?

:bulletred: Some grey hair on the beards older stallions, but that's it.

Are Elquiders more nocturnal or diurnal?

:bulletred: They are gifted with excellent night vision, they can see as easily during the night as they can in the day. However, how strong their vision is depends on the Elquider. Each Elquider is different. Some have extreme vision, while others have extreme smell or telepathy.

Are Elquiders mostly grazers like horses, or do they eat a wider range of forage? (eg browsing from trees etc)

:bulletred: Both. During the winter they depend on trees and such. But during the other months, they eat both.

How far can Elquiders mentally understand human (or other creature's) thoughts, & how much are they able to communicate back with them if they chose to?

:bulletred: With Elquiders, they communicate as easily as we do. For humans and other animals, they can, but not as easily. They also have a small degree of blocking, but never 100% blockage. For other animals, they commutate with them frequently, to find information and such. However, communication with humans is shunned upon and if an Elquider is found to have made contact with a human, he or she is kicked out of the herd and is disgraced.

If two herds of rival/enemy clans meet, and a fight is likely, do the whole herds go to 'war', or is it fought out individually (i.e. by the stallions, or by the head mares if no stallion is present).

:bulletred: This one is two way. The herd doesn’t fight, but the two lead stallions fight, and the two lead mares fight. So if their lead stallion dies/defeated, they fight to determine who is lead mare. The original or the new one.

Are Elquider herds autonomous, or part of a larger clan/bloodline network? Do clans/bloodlines have traditional enemies & Allies, and how easily can such loyalties or rivalries change?

:bulletred: Alliances and rivalries are pretty fragile. I see no reason for there to be any united clan unless there was a great threat. Otherwise, each herd would do what was best for them.

:bulletblue: Elquiders can be RP'd, and you can find rp links in the club. They are also approved for the :iconhorseart-rpg: game, please repsect the breed's rules (the two main ones of which are, for harpg purposes: (1) Only breed Elquiders to other Elquiders. No exceptions! and (2) Elquiders are *wild*, and humans fear them. Therefore, unless =SilverBrumby states exeptions otherwise, Elquiders cannot be used in any disciplines involving human or other species control of any kind - assume that an Elquider will only take orders from other Elquiders, and take it from there.


Text in notes & refsheet image by the breed's creators ( :iconsilverbrumby: and AllissaD ) and myself. The above breed information obtained from #The-Elquider-Club breed information journal here as well as a search of Elquider deviations submitted and/or approved by breed creator =SilverBrumby

Mixed media used for reference image: Sharpies, fineliner pen, lead & coloured pencils, acryllic paint, Photoshop Essentials 2 & Artrage 2 (Font used in the title is "Badmann")
Image size
1714x868px 1.38 MB
© 2010 - 2024 ghost-eye
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Anougk's avatar
beautiful!
Can I create One?