Minotaur

Entry: Minotaur
Conservation Status: Near Threatened (NT)
Alias(es) known by: Oxen, dumb brutes, cows
General Description:
A combination of bovid and hominid in appearance, minotaurs have the head shape, horns, and ears of Terran cattle, and the general body shape and bipedal stance of a human. Males are typically 6’3”-7’0” (average is 6'9") in height, weighing around 380lb, while females are 6’0”-6’8” (average is 6'4"), weighing 300lb*. Their bodies are almost entirely covered in coarse fur, except for the palms of their hands, and the last segment of their fingers. Their legs are formed like the hind legs of a cow, with large, cloven hooves that are wide enough to comfortably maintain the balance of such a large species. They have a medium length tail with a tassel on the end, used in expressive body language or for swatting flies, which generally ends six inches to a foot above the ground.
Minotaurs are, surprisingly, not mammals and do not have mammary glands to be self conscious about, which means both genders generally only wear skirts or pants in public, allowing them to cool off more effectively in the hot, arid climates they originate from.
Minotaurs are to some extent a magic-using species. Most possess limited telepathy. Very few show signs of more advanced magical ability.
Most minotaurs are physically very strong and have impressive endurance, and the tribes of the northern continent often select their leaders through dueling, either in violent fights, or in elaborate dance-offs that can continue for days. The industrialized lands in the south focus far less on physical strength, although there’s enough overlap between the tribal and modernized cultures that such competition is far from dead.
Minotaurs suffer from massive indigestion when consuming animal proteins, and so are a completely vegan species by requirement. They're prone to hoof rot and cracking in damp conditions. They do poorly in humid climates as well, since they need to sweat to regulate their temperatures. They never developed a complex written language, and many individuals of the species are never able to learn to read or write fluently.
Life span is approximately eighty years.

Place of Origin:
Haakon, a planet currently in the direct path of the expanding Satare Empire.
Minotaurs are native to one of the northern continents, which was poor in the metals needed to start an industrial revolution. As they moved south, they were able to get the resources to eventually use electricity and build motor vehicles (although without sufficiently advanced written language, space travel was impossible for them to develop).
The planet’s native sapient (and literate) sea life (known to off-worlders as capricorns) made contact with them, and through a symbiotic partnership, the species were able to use their strengths to develop FTL and join the outside universe.
Although many northern tribes and southern industrialized cities remain well populated on Haakon, the vast majority of the species have fled their home planet in search of safer homes, where the Satare Empire will not slaughter them all.

*These measurements are typical of most minotaurs. However there are several races of minotaurs throughout Haakon, some of which are much smaller, and others of which are significantly larger. Similarly, coat color and texture, and horn length, vary widely.

Tala's tribe, the Haroun
The people of this tribe are predominantly found on the central northeastern planes of the Northern Continent. They usually travel in groups of 20-70, migrating to different grazing grounds with the seasons. They use tents woven from a very flexible type of plains grass as their primary form of shelter. Clothes are not a traditional part of any minotaur society because fur renders clothing unnecessary, but many Haroun tribe members have lately adopted the trend of wearing pants or skirts for aesthetic reasons.

Religion
Believe that the Creator of All the Universe sleeps within Haakon, and will destroy all life in fire and rage on the day the last minotaur dies.
Cattle imported from Terra are sacred in this religion, considered to be the eyes and ears of the Creator.

Family
Are generally monogamous, and maintain a meticulously accurate oral history of the generations in order to avoid inbreeding too closely. It's not uncommon for young adult tribe members to set off on their own and join other groups within the Haroun tribe, or even to leave the tribe entirely.
Gender roles are basically nonexistent - males and females alike can become warriors, weavers, or herders of the sacred cattle.

War
Is basically a thing of the past, now that communications between tribes have improved so much with the arrival of technology. Warriors are still trained though, to guard against predators, and in case of attacks. They often enlist in the southern hemisphere's space Marines, and sometimes never return to Haakon.

Slavery
Slaves are commonly kept. In the past, most were prisoners of war, but these days the majority are born into slavery thanks to their parents' status.
Slaves who were captured as prisoners of war are considered to be unworthy of freedom, as they didn't fight hard enough to keep it. Their owners are considered to be responsible for the survival of these first-generation slaves because they are weak, and will go to great lengths to ensure that they survive famines. Being a first-generation slave is considered to be extremely shameful, and those who are captured are rarely accepted back into their tribe if they escape.
Later generation slaves are freed by their thirtieth year, allowing them the opportunity to become part of the tribe, or to leave in search of a life of their own. They're considered to be honorable and strong if they fulfilled their duty, and are generally respected greatly once they're freed. Like first-generation slaves, their survival is heavily protected by their masters, but they aren't usually considered to be helpless. To not free a slave by year thirty would be dishonorable, and those who don't follow this law usually have the ends of their horns burned off, and are driven from the tribe in disgrace.
All slaves equipped with nose rings once they reach adolescence, both to make identification easier, and to aid in controlling rebels. Usually these rings aren't used for restraining purposes, as that's considered to be excessively cruel and demeaning. Occasionally they can be very useful to physically restrain an angry slave though.

Horses
Cattle are the sacred eyes of the tribe's god, and are deeply respected and pampered, however other Terran livestock are not so well loved. Horses, goats, and other hoofed mammals from Terra are referred to as Creatures of Deception, due to the the fact that they look like imitations of cattle.
Minotaur legend (created in the last few decades since FTL was developed on Haakon, since previously cattle were unknown to the minotaurs) says that these creatures are trying to fool minotaurs into betraying their god, and that although they cannot succeed due to their stench, they shall never be trusted.

- Minotaurs are not mammals. They have no udders, obviously have completely flat chests, and don't produce milk by any other method. Their young eat grass and vegetables from day one.

- Minotaur young are born in leathery egg sacs, a bit like those of Terran snakes. The parents tear the egg sac open to free the baby.

- Minotaurs have an excellent sense of smell (to such an extent that it can almost seem to be their primary form of observation of the world), and can learn a lot about a person by their scent. Illness, most recently eaten meal, book printing quality, and biological sex, are some of the things that minotuars have been known to identify by scent.

- Minotaur normal speaking volume is louder than that of most humanoids, due to their throat structure. This can be tiring to listeners, but is unavoidable.

- The smell of chocolate is arousing to the species. They don't lose self control, but keeping chocolate away from minotaurs is strongly advised as it can make them short-tempered.


- Arabic names (in Tala's tribe at least. Naming conventions depend on region)

- Often stick rubber treads to their hooves to prevent slipping on smooth surfaces.

Minotaurs and the Satare Empire (rough draft)

The minotaur homeworld Haakon was, for most of the minotaurs’ history, located well outside Imperium space. However as the Imperium territory expanded, the minotaurs became concerned for their safety as a species.

In 2773 (Terran calendar), a minotaur outpost space station too close to Imperium space was blown up, killing everyone on board. The Haakon Southern Government saw this as a sign that the time for standing by idly was over, and began recruiting soldiers and developing or trading for advanced defensive and offensive military tech.

The minotaurs knew they were no match for the Satare in spacefaring military prowess and that they would most likely lose an all out war, so they focused on setting up space mines and military space stations to defend the planet, hoping to make themselves too inconvenient to be worth attacking. Combat was minimal during this time, and usually both sides kept to their own territory.

In 2781, the Satare Empire declared war on the minotaurs (probably for strategic reasons such as not wanting a bunch of​ cows with guns on their border, not because of any specific acts of aggression). The Haakon government tried to keep the fight defensive, hoping to draw out the war so that civilians could evacuate, since they feared that excessive aggression would result in them being wiped from the map entirely, but these orders were heavily disputed and many aggressive and usually suicidal missions have been carried out by minotaurs since the war began.

In the decade since the war began, millions of minotaurs have successfully evacuated the planet and scattered across the developed galaxy, thanks to the dedicated efforts of the Haakon government, traders, and several allied nations. Those who remain are mainly soldiers, government officials, tribe folk who have no easy access to space travel, those who are very poor and are on the long list of people who need government aid to evacuate, and people who would rather die with their home world than leave. Many cities are almost entirely deserted, citizens having fled from the planet or moved to more populated areas. Approximately twenty million minotaurs remain on Haakon, of a population recorded as four hundred million ten years ago.

Haakon in 2800

Haakon was defeated by the Imperium two years ago, when the last military facilities on planet ceased to operate vessels outside the atmosphere, and all empires were informed by Haakon government that it was no longer safe for them to attempt to send in ships to collect refugees.

Haakon still resists efforts to colonize it and eradicate the last of the population. The planet is exceptionally well-defended with a large number of armed mines and weapon systems still in orbit, making it difficult to enter the atmosphere safely, and there are automated missile systems programmed to launch at Imperium vessels.

The planet is mostly empty with only an estimated two million minotaurs and three hundred thousand capricorns remaining, although these numbers may be inaccurate due to the fact that many of this number are tribal populations with no access to communication technology.

Capricorn and minotaur populations are much larger off-planet, but having no central homeworld means they are very scattered. Minotaur refugees can be found on most planets and many have succeeded in making new lives for themselves, but capricorn refugees have been much more restricted, forced to survive in whatever living places charitable governments have offered them. Maintaining a suitable habitat for capricorns is an expensive proposition, and thus the future of the aquatic species remains uncertain.