[Eggyboi]

Hi! Never really posted in here before. BUT, now I've gone and said that I'd do something, so here I am doing it!

MONSTROUS HOMUNCULI!

Homunculi that look inhuman. Multiple limbs. Furry bodies. Goblin aesthetics. Et cetera et cetera.
Other names include "Weird Homunculi", "Special Babies", & "Every Other Toffee Character"
(I can make that joke, we're buddies, we're pals, two peas in a pod. Please. Don't cancel me. ;-; )

I just want to know all of your thoughts on them!

Are they good?

Are they bad?

In what specific ways are they either of those things?

How have you felt when interacting with them?

Would you want to see more?

Are you at your limit and don't want to see any more?

At what point is a monstrous homunculi too monstrous?

What even classifies as a monstrous homunculi?

You don't have to answer all or any of these questions specifcally, they're mainly just starters to get you thinking about the subject as a whole, and hopefully to get you writing about it in the replies.

[Poruku]

I think the fact every sl2 race is humanlike is a huge waste. I think the game would be a lot more fun if we had actual monster races. Monstrous homonculi are cool, I see nothing wrong with them. They add complexity to the world. They add new and unique elements to characters. There's a lot of potential there being held back by the setting in my opinion.

I also have to add something. A big complaint you hear about more unique races, i.e. vamp lich dully is that they are not being played well in some way. I think that we need a simple whitelist system that allows more wild races and concepts to exist. Just a way to confirm that someone is actually going to play them properly, at least with fidelity to the lore. Add a whitelist system, make it very quick and simple and let EMs do the approval so GMs dont need to do more work.

Then add actual monster races to the game. I'm talkin goblins, undead, ghosts, shaitan's fully cooked version. Boom, suddenly the rp environment is way more diverse and interesting. Make a race of frickin ice giants that can't understand human language. Minotaurs.

Give me one reason this wouldn't be baller as hell

[K Peculier]

As someone who is free from any semblance of corruption. I don't mind either way as long as we get it in black and white as a big fat "Anything goes" from Dev.

In my experience in other RP settings or really anywhere on the internet - A large majority of people love them and are even willing to pay large amounts of real money to even get to play as one.

As ganking people outright is not allowed as per the latest conflict rules; most people are very hesitant or don't really care for displaying any fantasy racism to such creatures which includes any real hostility verbal or physical, which is why I've directed OP to bring attention to this because I'm sure there are ALOT of players who would love to play with a very monstrous appearance.

[Poruku]

The reason we don't display racism is unironically cause you'll just get cancelled IC. If you don't accept amd tolerate the fluffy murder creature you are the real monster. You will probably be charged with crimes if you attack them too. Being racist in this game is hard and doesn't pay

[Pyro]

I find them hard to take seriously if they're not presented in a way that is interesting. Characters that are monstrous simply to be monstrous without emphasizing those traits or including them as a primary factor in RP are just someone wanting to look special.

I think whitelists for races would be interesting but I'm not sure it fits this sort of game environment. If it's done on the introduction of the race, it'd be a lot easier to fit in.

[Anhita]

As somone with an Entoma playby I love the idea of monstrous homunculi or even monstrous PCs in general.

Which is why I think we should bring liches and vampires back.

[Dezark]

I for one and a big fan of monster-isque appearance characters and the idea of what something can bring especially with the factor of having a race whom entire RISK is over eating monsters and risking becoming some sort of horrible abomination themselves in the process..

Obvious regards aside of the few examples given to why it might be bad specifically (goblins with the community, you got the "heehoo embrace goblin slayer" meme groups here, or that one guy who saw Tonk character profile, and leapt instantly into "I must make a goblin to wife them" type mindset.) I'd like to hope for consideration that Dev would allow for people to have some freedom even if they're still on a leash with keeping things where they need to be. Obviously still enforce the ruling on that, alright cool; make the monster characters closer to home still something to need a application and let them wait on however much time must pass for GMs to have a free moment in the schedule to discuss the matter, and give a response. That's fine, but allowing a more open diverse mindset without something needing to be limited on how far it can go would be a good step forward, even if it making the obvious stated of "Hey you can choose how to interact with x and y, but obviously don't go hating on them for their first reaction to x and y being 'oh boy a monster' and drawing the weapons out." I get that what happened when even Tonk first appeared and people had that 50/50 gauged reaction, but I feel like a set of obvious standards can be set here even if it made clear to the community on that.

Some obvious can be..
1. Are they actively trying to maul your face? No? Probably don't go guns blazing. (Zora is like the one exception cause people dealt with Toffee characters enough to know what to expect)

2. Are they able to speak sentences? Yes? Than they're probably not an actual monster unless vorpal rabbits, scarebears and even the Alarune suddenly know how to say more than "Grrgh?!"

3. ??? I don't know a third here to be honest but this list can be honestly expanded on by the community and set a general guidelines with dev, GMs and the other community to make a sort of "how to monster humonculi" guide, for those wishing to exist as a spooky lizard boy or goblin girl, to those actively seeing to play antag or semi-antag monsters that aren't just custom mobs or whatever else ran by a GM/Eventmin and honestly give more freedom in creativity to the playerbase.

Especially with Korvara development and more honestly coming out of it as time passes, I feel like with new race plans and ideas, humonculi whom either smidge off the trail of fully human but with monster bits taking form with just smaller things such as coloration to the skin, or the more massive steps with GM approved means such as literal maw on the chest, four armed fuzzy princess of bananas, literal yeti crab, etc. (many of which are monster-isque characters a specific member approved and shown that the community can see "monster character" who skimming the lines of the human standard, and have gotten fine reactions despite this on more than one occasion.)

At least, this is my thoughts and opinions on it, set the guide lines, make it clear "This is fine, this isn't." and if it something that feels like it needs approval, make it clear to speak on a GM to get the finer bits cleared, cause it'll be one thing to have a mutant lizard doing his thing shouting his name to the world when he escapes whatever hell he in, vs having a previous app come back suddenly under the same thing, because someone took "well it got approved so I should be able to do it now" without much consideration on that front, and honestly folk don't wanna lose out on something cause others can't play nice in the process.

[WaifuApple]

My personal opinion on this is that we've already begun to go down the slippery slope of what is and isn't possible through Chimera, with things less and less 'human' being accepted by GMs or left unquestioned by players as is - and one thing that I'd be alarmed about is not that there are players that wouldn't do the characters justice (because there are plenty who would) but the fact that displaying any actual hate or malice towards these kinds of characters on the slope has been more of a 'token' thing where everyone wants to befriend the quirky monster looking thing, and only rarely do you get someone who treats them any different.

By all means, let the gates open, let there be more monstrous races - I'm almost certain they'll be treated by most with kindness and integrated into society within moments, which would render a whole bunch of the potential that these opportunities SHOULD enable moot.

[Shujin]

To me it's simple.

If monsters are considered in the world as bad? then playing a Monster Character should come with exactly those downsides and no handholding. Give them however a place where they can live more or less in peace. A Sanctuary of sorts.

If they are considered fine? It's fine. But then let people go all out.

If they are considered bad, however, but somehow because they are players and people suddenly decide to defend them for literally no IC reason and even the Law gets behind defending them?
Please erase everything but human. I hate it. With passion. But that's not because I hate those races, but because I hate the Handholding cuddle mentality that was promised to be less defined in Korvara that PREVENTS actually dark and interesting storylines. Plenty of people do want those stories to happen, but they can not happen outside of private groups cause the mere semblance of something antagonistic happening in someone's eyesight, makes them feel personally attacked, even if they are not involved. Cause we are all heroes. Its SO boring, uncreative and makes things super stale.

But thats just how SL2 is, everyone is protected in a safety bubble that negates any consequences or realism and makes the game very very unimmersive having no stake in anything unless the person that ICly stands directly infront of your goals decides to show you mercy of "I consent to consequences!" and if not, well fuck your own storyline, Woe you if you for some reason your IC is to hunt Dullahans or Vampires, or Monster XY. Races when they come with such stereotypes should ICyl feel them and not be just a different flavour of ERP race, with no downside.

TL;DR
I love Monster races, if they are handled with respect, which they are not in SL2. So kill it with fire. Its very hard to take them serious, and "Wild" owner-less chimera are just an excuse to play a monster.

But if we already allow that, just give the general "everything goes" and open the floodgates.

[Ray2064]

There was a recent example of it ICly where people were very much trying to protect a wild monster-like Chimera who'd just commonly go around and maul people which imo illustrates Shujin's example pretty well. Not to throw shade to the character's player, pretty great RPer, but this is moreso a good way to illustrate how that unarguably silly kind of white-knightey behavior tends to manifest around those types of characters.