species names

[SirGeneralSir]

so ive been looking at a lot of fantasy art, WOW, D&D etc and there are a few races/species that I am planning to use in an original story of my own, i just dont know if there is an actual name for some of the species.

for example, we have Naga, sater, gorgon, harpy.

but what would cat people be called? ive seen the term "Neko" used, but is there a different term?

[BronxWench]

If you want to disclaim WotC/FR, there's Rakshasa.

Elder Scrolls has the Khajiit.

CJ Cherryh featured the hani in her Chanur novels.

Your world is largely anime-based, I suspect, and so Neko or some variant would probably work. It's also a generic enough concept that you wouldn't need to disclaim any specific fandom. Just be careful not to use uniquely identifiable content that would take your story out of Originals and put it back into a fandom.

[SirGeneralSir]

well the idea is a space age setting, there is a colony and its mostly students and scientists (talked about it in an older post)

an asteroid is heading towards the planet, the orbital defense destroys it but sends little bits all over the place.

the MC is an alien creature that survived, its goal is at the moment to feed, attacking little creatures like frogs, raccoon's, birds etc and mutates based on what it absorbs/assimilates and grows each time it "eats" something.

im not sure if i would have the creature attack the colonists or not, i was thinking of having it come after a animal that IS attacking some colonists and kills one while the rest run off, leaving it to eat both the animal and the person, gaining in size and intelligence.

a kind of "Aliens" and "Slither" with a some "Predator" and "Planet of the apes" .......... if you play starcraft 2 Heart of the swarm, also think primal zerg.

anyways, I wanted to add cat people "Neko" because im also adding more races like elves, (High elf and Dark elf) as an alien race (star trek kind of did it so can I )

im trying to come up with a list of creatures/people that could be seen in a space age setting as a space faring faction or what have you.

im also working on the idea of the creature impregnating some of the women, not sure in what ways yet, literally and if its consensual or not because its not supposed to be the "BAD GUY" just ...... different.

[BronxWench]

Argh, you lost me at space elves and pregnancy tropes...

Vulcans and Romulans were NOT space elves. They had pointed ears because it was an easy way to show that they were alien. Given the tech available at the time, it was all props and make-up, and no CGI available. If anything, Vulcan culture was based on Chinese/Japanese culture. Romulans are almost perfectly Roman. Klingons are as militant as the Mongol hordes. And so on... no elves, trolls, orcs, naga or neko there.

And what you propose as far as the varied species sounds a great deal like CJ Cherryh's Compact Space/Downbelow Station work. Except for the MC getting everyone pregnant. Geez, you'd think a spacefaring race would have reliable contraception...

[SirGeneralSir]

lol

ive heard someone refer to the vulcans and romulans as being space elves, i am a big fan of ST and agree with your statement, except with Klingon, there more like Vikings and Bikers.

i dont know CJ cherryh"s work, googled it real quick.

is there something that you didnt understand about what im working on or asking?

i know i tend to over explain ....... sometimes.

[JayDee]

See if I did a story with a Rakshasa I wouldn't disclaim those guys because it'd be a Hindu demon rather than their stuff and fall under mythology There was a lot of 'em in this Indian mystical superhero story I read a while back. He got into arguments with his previous incarnations, since it was their crimes he was atoning for. Good stories, really.

Can check out TVtropes examples of races similar to Space Elves if you want more ideas.

Also, for space cats, there were the Kilrathi from the old Wing Commander games. Could read the background and then use 'em with the proper disclaimer!

[BronxWench]

lol

ive heard someone refer to the vulcans and romulans as being space elves, i am a big fan of ST and agree with your statement, except with Klingon, there more like Vikings and Bikers.

i dont know CJ cherryh"s work, googled it real quick.

is there something that you didnt understand about what im working on or asking?

i know i tend to over explain ....... sometimes.

I'd call "space elves" a fan theory/joke and leave it there, since nothing in canon supports it. Klingon culture was far closer to Viking than biker, to be honest, since they did have a very well defined code of ethics. It might not match ours perfectly, but they understood and respected strong warriors and bravery. Like the Viking culture, females were not confined to purely domestic roles, and could fight alongside men as equals. There was a nod toward Mongol culture in the first series, however, when the "Imperial" Klingons were presented as more chaotic and almost entirely male. Being a history geek as well, the obvious cultural ties are evident.

And you didn't lose me as far as comprehension. I followed what you said just fine. I just don't much care for stories where the main job of the male protag is to impregnate all the women. I've been pregnant. I don't need to read someone else's take on it, especially when it's being done for the sexual gratification of it, and not because it's a true biological imperative, or simply a consequence of sexual activity. It's not my fetish of choice, that's all.

[SirGeneralSir]

lol only 2 of the "space elves" I didnt know.

first row 1st and 3rd one, so first 2 on the left.

in my mind i guess im thinking of a MUCH more feline version of an anime style or navie like creature, clearly an alien with cat like appearances.

its main goal isnt impregnation, its to grow and evolve.

Edited February 11, 2015 by SirGeneralSir

[JayDee]

Huh, Thundercats are out too then!

[SirGeneralSir]

lol yes, but wasnt that their team name? like Power Rangers or something?

maybe from Latin catta

humm, maybe because the MC creature consumed a humanoid, got its knowledge and memories and the enemy it faces are others of its own kind that only see the "Soft ones" in the buildings as food and breeding material

[JayDee]

Well, they were Thunderians from Thundera up until Jaga tossed a half eaten burrito into the wrong canyon and blew up the planet, then they went to live on another planet. I dunno what changes the new series made.

[SirGeneralSir]

so far i have

Neko

Catta

i heard furlings on an ep of stargate, never saw the episode

[PervOtaku]

so ive been looking at a lot of fantasy art, WOW, D&D etc and there are a few races/species that I am planning to use in an original story of my own, i just dont know if there is an actual name for some of the species.

for example, we have Naga, sater, gorgon, harpy.

but what would cat people be called? ive seen the term "Neko" used, but is there a different term?

Naga, or Lamia depending on who you ask. See also http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SnakePeople

Satyr is Greek, as are harpies and the Gorgons.

(The Gorgons are another interesting case, depending on what rendition of the Medusa myth you are reading.)

Neko is just Japanese for "cat'. Catgirls, also known as "nekomimi" (literally "cat ears"). These are fandom names, actual species names are often something else. There are two different names for the catgirl race depending on which Final Fantasy game you are playing. Lots of feline races in western sci-fi, too, but far more in Japanese works, which is why the Japanese terms are popular.

I think if you are doing alien races, they should have made-up names, though humans might be prone to using nicknames based on resemblences to creatures from their own culture. If a fantasy setting, go ahead with the traditional mythological names, as long as the setting is appropriate. A purely medieval European type setting would use "cat" over "neko", but if the catpeople are in-story native to a far east type region, they probably would go by "neko", and might be referred to with either name by people from the western type region.

[SirGeneralSir]

well the idea is that the setting takes place on an alien world where a research installation has been setup to study the planet.

at current count i have Humans, first elf like races thats more like high elf, second sub race like dark elves and then the cat race.

there is a LARGE asteroid heading for the planet, the defence network destroys it and anything that would be too big to let hit the planet, but there was something on the rock and now is all over the place.

the creatures, just like the MC, start off like slugs "slither" and attack and absorb anything that they consume and mutate to add some of its traits into their DNA and give them abilities.

at first, the creature is just looking to survive, to grow and feed becoming stronger.

now its not like the others of its own kind are friendly towards it or anything, its kind of a battle royal between them, if i'm bigger and stronger, i will eat you too .... and your little dog.

during an encounter with one of its own kind and a humanoid, maybe a soldier protecting the facility, a scientist or even one of the young aids/students, the other creature and humanoid are killed giving it 2 things to consume and evolve from.

the knowledge it gets from the humanoid is fragmented but gives it a new understanding of whats on the planet, it knows there is a lot of food, but now it knows there is more to existence than just growing.

its supposed to be a kind of horror story, lots of blood and gore, psychological and things that would make both men and women cringe in respects to our different genders etc.

its still all up in the air at the moment, im just in the planning phase.

[SirGeneralSir]

so Cat people = Catta independant race/culture very adventurous and curious about things, loves to explore and touch things they should not

High elves = Alfheimr (Norse mythology)

Dark elves = Svartalfaheim (Norse mythology)

Alfheimr are a highly advanced race, very arrogant and disrespectful towards other races and cultures, act as if they are all below them.

Svartalfaheim are genetically altered Alfheimr bred to be expendable cannon fodder in times of war or expendable lifeforms for other jobs.

(take this rock to that guy over there, watch out for the monsters looking for dinner)

very spiteful, tend to hate all other races, very sneaky and underhanded, always plotting something.

how does that sound?

[InvidiaRed]

When it comes to cats

you could name them anything to make them yours

there's plenty of cat gods that could be the name of their race as a whole. As well as giving them their characteristics and such

The children of Anhur would thus be warlike. But in keeping with the norse theme

they could easily be Frigg's or Freyja's favorites since they both have connections to cats.

Edited July 28, 2015 by InvidiaRed

[SerenUK]

In Neverwinter (a MMO) I play, which is from Dungeons & Dragons; is an elf race which are considered dark elves which are called Drow if that helps.