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[✓] [Creature Lore] The Mimsy Cat


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The Mimsy Cat

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Purpose

The intention behind this piece is to expand on the trope of the witch’s cat. Lo! What self-respecting witch would employ such a mundane thing as a house cat? Therefore, this rendition of the idea, the Mimsy Cat, is my interpretation. 

 

I first want to acknowledge my many references, chief amongst which is Robert Jordan’s “The Wheel of Time” from which the original idea of a mystically enticed cat arose. 

 

Now, I feel it necessary to discuss the inspiration behind this lore entry.

 

Foreword: On Bestial Myths, Cats, & Culture

In the fifth century B.C.E., Greek historian Herodotus noted in the Histories[1] of the aiélouros cat, or the “waving ones.” He was of course referring to the oscillating quality of their tails, yet this seemingly mundane observation accurately characterised the mystical notion of the cat in mythos and culture[2]: Their whimsy impermanence. Darnton (1984), attributes this impermanence[3] to “an indefinable je ne sais quoi about cats, a mysterious something that has fascinated mankind.” In broader culture, there appear similar rich stories and myths pertaining to this idea of the aiélouros cat. Ancient Egypt and the Bastet. Europe and the black cat, Cat-sìth, and the witch’s cat. Islam and Muezza.

 

The cats of such stories often share a common undomestication. A ferality not subdued or in mimicary of human behaviour or action[4]. In Rudyard Kipling’s The Cat Who Walked By Itself, the reader is presented with the “independent dependence,”[4] and the uncaring character of the domestic cat. Similarly, Natsume Souseki’s I am a cat, reminds us of their pussyfooted guile - “If whiskers establish sauciness, every cat is impudent.”[5] 

 

Under the looming cast of the Christian zeitgeist, the cat took on an increasing evil element. An association with the spirit of the devil. The cat soon became a companion of the witch and bonfire and an aura of hilarious witch-hunting was the spirit of the time. Mystical consensus predicated that witches could turn into cats and cats could become witches.[6] Therefore the torture of cats sprouted as a seemingly amusing pastime in early modern Europe. Literature of the time reinforces this notion - Hogarth's depiction of the stages of cruelty and Cervantes’s Don Quixote illustrate the practice of hanging cats and burnings alongside witches. Lawrence (2003), posits this to be a difference in cultural perception.[6] The symbolism attached to an animal naturally differs from one cultural context to another. Despite this fact, some form of lingering ***** tone remains: The distrust of cats and their whimsy impermanence.

 

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Creature Lore: The Mimsy Cat

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Padfoot The Mimsy, Padfoot The Mimsy;
Coat like thistle and tail all flimsy.

 

 

Padfoot The Mimsy Cat
On Almarian Bestiary
C. E. Dantes 1766

 

Introduction

The Mimsy Cat is an animal of a puzzling quality. Were it possible to ignore the mystical nature of the creature, its character would seem indistinguishable to that of any other black-furred cat. Yet it is in that mystical nature that its puzzling quality has been observed and discerned from the domestic cat.

 

In legend, if one was to believe in such things, an agreement between a witch and the daemon Vaasek created what was to become of the first Mimsy Cat. In her dark dabblings, this particular witch of an untold origin brought upon herself the anger of a neighbouring village. As it is so common, the occupants of the neighbouring village caught wind of her mischief and forced her before the township to burn. At her time of definite peril, Vaasek offered aid in the form of  turning the witch into a black cat, whereat she hastily escaped and was forever indebted to the daemon. It is believed thereafter, that the witch and subsequent Mimsy Cats aid Vaasek as spies, lurking in all the dingy and decrepit shadows, imparting what little information they can gather to the lord of anxiety and fallacy.[9] 

 

Whether or not this legend is true, it has been observed among populations of Mimsy Cat’s that a certain fondness for the magical presides. Highest in order of this fondness is that of the Voidal and dark practitioner. Mimsy Cat’s are drawn to these characters like moths to a flame through use of their Sìth Sense, with the largest populations of Mimsy Cats having been observed about places of high Voidal and dark communion. In the case of deific magics, other than those of Vaasek’s relation who are characterised by the same magnetism of Mimsy Cats, the reaction of Mimsy Cats has been noted to have a certain despondent distrust. Among the populations of mundane people, Mimsy Cats behave like that of any other cat, if not for perhaps a slight significance in their rarity. 

 

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Appearance

While it was stated of their cat-like appearance, Mimsy Cats do not differ in variety. Black hair and yellow eyes are their only form. Further, populations of Mimsy Cats suffer from a prevailing female monomorphism[10]  and as a result, the rate in which they breed is greatly diminished. 

 

 

Mimsy Culture

Prevalent beliefs surrounding Mimsy Cats differ between cultural groups and peoples.
 

In those northern dwellings of men, namely the Kingdoms of Norland and Hanseti-Ruska, the tales of the unlucky cat or the Cait Sidhe, pass through generations of children epidemically. It is said in these frigid lands that the Cait Sidhe claims the souls of the dead, possessed by the festering spirit of Vaasek and damning all those unlucky souls to an eternity of pain and suffering. Therefore the practice of what is called 'Feill Fadalach' or ‘The Late Wake," is performed among all those lingering believers of the unlucky cat, whereat bundles of indigenous herbs are burned around the body to ward off the Cait Sidhe from claiming the deceased’s soul.

 

Among the land’s elves, whom some note a more civilised system of beliefs in regards to the Mimsy Cat, it is customary to leave out a saucer of milk for any stray black cats Mimsy or otherwise.[11]

 

Within the central kingdoms of men and dwarves, the magical intimacy of the Mimsy Cat is understood to varying degrees. If it was observed in the kingdoms of a heightened degree of black-coloured cats, the assumption of a magical lingering is more than likely to be posited. 

 

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Temperament

The Temperament of Mimsy Cats differs as a result of the characters that surround it. Regarding mundane folk, Mimsy Cats behave with a peculiar mischievous spirit. Being where they are not supposed to be. Prodding at things not meant to be prodded. Among Voidal and dark magic users this mischievous spirit does not depart, however, a Mimsy Cat would additionally act with a warmness uncharacteristic of even domestic cats. Frequent offerings of misplaced items, birds, mice, and other little creatures are often made by Mimsy Cats to these occult proponents and are typical of their behaviour. As for users of deific powers, all previous characteristics vanish and are replaced with wariness. 

 

 

Ability: The Sìth Sense

The only variance of Mimsy Cats to that of a mundane cat is the ability of the Sìth Sense. The Sìth pertains to the sensation of magic; a sensation within, i.e. the mana within a person of which the Mimsy Cat has a sensibility, and the mana suspended in the air which is used by various practitioners, e.g. Kani.[12] This ability of the Mimsy Cat requires no direct sight of the target/s as it relates to a lingering quality like smell, therefore, obstacles such as walls, trees, or any form of obstruction merely dampen the sensation without entirely erasing it. The Sìth Sense has a radial range of ten (10), blocks from the Mimsy Cat, and requires the use of two (2), emotes to be activated. The Ability once activated can last indefinitely.

 

  • A Mimsy Cat within 10 blocks of a character with an appropriate MA in a Voidal, dark, or deific magic are acutely aware of their presence. 

  • Does not require direct sight.

  • Cannot be obstructed by walls, trees, or any other objects. 

  • requires the use of 2 emotes to be activated.

  • Once activated can last for an entire encounter.

  • Mimsy Cats are untamable by ordinary players and are primarily only usable as wild, feral creatures or under the employment of Event NPCs.

 

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The Mimsy Language

The uncanny attributes of the Mimsy Cat allow for an equally uncanny apparatus of communication. The Mimsy language differs from any other form of phonemic or lexical systems, consequently, any form of replication by a creature other than a Mimsy Cat is hitherto impossible. To the ears of those not a Mimsy Cat, padding, prodding, and purring are the only decipherable symptoms of communication.[7] 

 

 

  • The Mimsy language cannot be spoken by any other playable/non-playable entities.

  • Padding, prodding, and purring are the only decipherable symptoms of communication.

 

Grammatical Outline

 

Credits to ImStuckInHell for support and the grammatical outline.

 

  • The Mimsy language is a language of lexical stress, following a basic SVO (Subject-Verb-Object) structure. Gendered nouns, adjectives, and verbs are not employed.

  • Adjectives and adverbs bind after nouns and verbs through the use of a hyphen (-). Further, articles attach themselves at the end of the previous word with a singular quotation (‘), regardless of it being a noun, verb, or adjective. If an article begins a sentence, the apostrophe should be omitted.

  • Plurality in the Mimsy Language has a single form; denoted by a tilde “~”. In the case of a conjoined adjective or article, plurality is denoted after the adjective. 

  • Diminutives and augmentatives do not appear in the Mimsy lexis.

 



 

Acknowledgements

 

@ImStuckInHell - Suggestions

@Gustando - Editing & Suggestions

@shartings - Editing & Suggestions

@Tentoa - Feedback & Additions

 

 

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References

  1. Herodotus. (n.d.). Histories. Benediction Classics.
  2. McNeill, L. S. (2007). Cats, Folklore, and the Experiential Source Hypothesis. What are the animals to us?: approaches from science, religion, folklore, literature, and art, 5.
  3. Darnton, Robert. (1984). The great cat massacre and other episodes in French cultural history. New York: Basic Books.
  4. Matthews, J., & Matthews, C. (2009). The Element encyclopedia of magical creatures: the ultimate A-Z of fantastic beings from myth and magic. Harper Element
  5. Soseki Natsume. (n.d.). I am a cat. アイビーシーパブリッシング 日本洋書販売.
  6. Lawrence, E. A. (2003). Feline Fortunes: Contrasting Views of Cats in Popular Culture. The Journal of Popular Culture, 36(3), 623–635.
  7. @TojoTime
  8. @Sporadichttps://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/19254-recovering-the-ancient-tongue-of-the-elves/
  9. @Zarsies
  10. @Gamma
  11. Deborah MacGillivray. (2012). Cait Sidhe. Web.archive.org. https://web.archive.org/web/20120821034420/https://deborahmacgillivray.co.uk/scotlore_caitsidhe.html
  12. @shartings

 

 

 

 

 


 

Edited by Spindle
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nub wae

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Off the bat good lore!

only gripe is the mention of a person making a deal with vaseek. hes way to paranoid to actually do that with his name. maybe a mysterious benefactor instead or a more magically inclined anegul of daemon/voidal creature

 

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Genuinely some of the highest quality lore I've read on the server recently is f**king cat lore. Very cute.

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THis is a really well formatted and well-inspired lore piece, the only thing I would change is that Vaasek does not ever reveal himself to mortals because he is afraid they're going to kill them. Instead I'd suggest you make it so they act as spies for Vaasek, peering into the business of mystics and ne'er-do-well witches to keep a network of spies.

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Edited 14/07/22

(Developed upon Vaseek lore) - Credit to @Tentoa for the concept bootleg.

Edited by Spindle
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