Khavari

(native ka’atal, plural ka’atawi, adj ka’ati, lang Ka’atar (Khafar))   Bauplan: Dagi-like, clouded leopard spider monkey people. Short muzzle, rounded features, large eyes, elongated triangle ears parallel with the sides of their heads, extensive facial whiskers. Sharp, slightly curved, non-retractable claws on fingers and toes (similar to our fingernails at root but thicker, harder, sharper). Small, compact, light - lean and lithe and athletic - made for trees and difficult rocky terrain.   Very acute eyesight for motion, color, fine detail, short to medium range. Good hearing, able to move their ears to pinpoint sound locations (a little better than most Aeldvari). Decent sense of smell (better than kinvari, not better than critters).   They are marsupials, though it isn’t obvious or well-known. Tree khavari have pouches, but most four-toe khavari suffer with vestigial or reduced pouches, meaning most four-toe mothers have to find a tree surrogate to carry their babies after birth. (Khavari are very communal with child-rearing, so this isn’t as much as a problem as you’d think.)   Very strong for their size (esp. tree khavari), enormous grip strength, cat-flexible spine, and swift in their preferred terrain. Big natural stealth bonus and incredibly light and deft fingers (and toes for tree khavari). Easy to underestimate their physical prowess for most kinvari. (Not stronger than dwarves, though, lol.)  

Tree Khavari

 

4-4.5’ tall (3.5’ tail)

longer, more mobile ears

muscular, fully prehensile tail that can hold their body weight easily

elongated monkey-like feet with a strong, fully-opposable foot-thumb

crouched, coiled, springy posture - almost never stand up straight - flat ground walking for long periods is uncomfortable at best

full pelt of fur, variety of fur textures and lengths across the body (usually based on biome)

very long arms for their body (nearly equal to their leg length)

always features dense and varied markings (stripes, spots, rosettes, or a combination) that may be darker or lighter than their base color; usually has significantly lighter undersides and often high contrast light/dark on their face

almost universally yellow-to-green eyes - more diurnal and more color-precise vision

almost entirely still separated into their own communities and cultures

common builds include lean, stocky, thicc, and fat

Four-Toe Khavari

 

5-5.5’ tall (3’ tail)

wider, less mobile ears (still more angle-able than Aeldvaren ears though)

slender, partially-prehensile tail (closer to cat than monkey) that cannot hold their weight

longer soles, flatter feet, greatly reduced foot-thumb angle and length

relatively normal kinvaren upright posture for longform walkies

thin and fine pelt of fur, often sparse or missing from face throat and belly, many have kinvaren-like ‘mane’ across the top and back of their skulls, shorter and finer facial whiskers

still long-armed compared to other kinvari but not nearly as much as tree khavari - legs are longer compared to torso than tree khavari

often have markings, but usually less dense and/or lower contrast than tree khavari - sometimes have zero markings - if they have lighter undersides, the contrast is normally less than seen in tree khavari

higher variety of eye colors, extending into blue and dark brown - better medium-to-long distance vision and better darkvision than tree khavari

frequently integrated into multi-kinvari society, often travelers or nomads, only sometimes permanent residents of extant treevilles

common builds include slender, lean, soft, and stocky

Khavaren Culture

living tree architecture and homes/paths built in the canopies

animal materials and plant materials for clothing/tools, flowers and simple jewelry (copper, woven, beads) for highlights

natural affinity for Nature magic (tree khavari) but sometimes Wind magic (four-toe)

highly communal, relatively few personal belongings (almost exclusively wearables)

communities are relatively tight-knit, not xenophobic, but individual khavari tend to have one primary community at a time (if two, then it’s their birthclan and their current-living clan)

sleight-of-hand games are very common and prolonged in the community

dynasty-based history, especially around legendary heroes’ diluted bloodlines in modern khavari