Moo! Err... Bovines in D&D

[Cthulhudrew]

Been doing some research on minotaurs in D&D, and I have a couple of questions for people who might be more knowledgeable than I about D&D lore (That Which Has Gone Before).

1) Have there ever been any sort of half-man/half-antelope/gazelle types of creatures before? I can't think of any offhand myself.
2) Would you include such things (if they exist) in a minotaur family tree? Seeing as bulls (minotaurs) are merely male versions of bovines, and antelopes and gazelles fall into the same sub-family taxonomically speaking.
3) Would you extend such a grouping to include the larger family of Bovidae to encompass minotaurs and related beings (such as goatmen)?

and, finally,

4) What are all the various horned half-men/bovine/minotaur types of creatures that have come before?

Off the top of my head, I can think of:

Minotaur
Bargda
Goat-Men
Yak-Men
Actaeon
Satyr/Faun

(To clarify, I'm only looking for bipeds, not quadripeds such as the bariaur or centaur. At this point, I'm not too concerned about type- the Actaeon and Satyr are Fey, for instance- but if you know offhand what type they might be, feel free to mention it).

 

[Huw]

Here's a list from previous editions. Don't know which ones are updated where:

1) Hybsil. Little deer centaurs with horns, part fey. 'Course, deer ain't technically bovines.
2) Manotaur. Big bull centaurs, also horned.
3) Rast. Rhino people from the Miniature's Handbook. Rhinos are definitely not bovines.
4) Broo. Okay, they're Runequest, not D&D, but they're still the definitive beastmen.

EDIT: Just saw your quadruped/biped note. The hybsil and manotaur are quadrupeds.

 

[Dragonbait]

2) Would you include such things (if they exist) in a minotaur family tree? Seeing as bulls (minotaurs) are merely male versions of bovines, and antelopes and gazelles fall into the same sub-family taxonomically speaking.
3) Would you extend such a grouping to include the larger family of Bovidae to encompass minotaurs and related beings (such as goatmen)?

I don't know if minotaures and something like goatment would be treated as being very close, unless you would consider something like the human and a dwarf and an orc and a hadozee (ape humanoids) along the same lines.

As for minotaurs being considered Bovidae or not - Probably not. There is a lot going on in the minotaur genetics besides for having the head of a bull and hooved feet. Of course, we *are* talking about fantasy races... But if we ignore that aspect.. They would have probably evolved from a creature that shared traits with apes and bovines, but was a unique species on its own.

This is the internet. I'm sure someone on ENWorld can argue either side to each of your question, throwing in big words. Give it time, and you'll probably get an answer.

 

[Dragonbait]

Here's a list from previous editions. Don't know which ones are updated where:

1) Hybsil. Little deer centaurs with horns, part fey. 'Course, deer ain't technically bovines.
2) Manotaur. Big bull centaurs, also horned.
3) Rast. Rhino people from the Miniature's Handbook. Rhinos are definitely not bovines.
4) Broo. Okay, they're Runequest, not D&D, but they're still the definitive beastmen.

EDIT: Just saw your quadruped/biped note. The hybsil and manotaur are quadrupeds.

If you extend the definition to cover all these - ungulate humanoids - then: loxo (MM2, I think - elephant men), equiceph (horse humanoids). I know there are more, but I can't remember what they were.

Also:
Chaos beastment - include goat men and minotaures. They are directly related in that setting.

 

[gizmo33]

An "Urisk" is a goat-man creature from Scottish myth. I think there was a Dragon Magazine write-up of him in one of the "Creature Catalogue" features that gave him the body of a human and head of a goat.

 

[Heckler]

Ibixians are basically goat-people. I thought I'd seen them statted up somewhere, though I can't think where. They do have minis, though.

And while I've never seen them in D&D, I've seen the term "bucentaur" referring to bull-centaurs. However, they are quadrupeds.

 

[DMH]

Apologies to the OP, but I have a question for the readers:

What is the name of the horse/man in Greek mythology? I know it was on pottery but not in any known text about 10 years ago.

As for the OP question, Oathbound added valco and war valco (goat men and mountain goat men) for herbivores and dovers (dog men), frey and wild frey (cat men) and trusk (walrus men) for mammals.

 

[Dykstrav]

I wouldn't include other animal-headed critters as relations to minotaurs, just because I take the mythical approach to minotaurs. I.E., minotaurs are cursed humans, and reproduce only by causing others to fall to their curse or by kidnapping and raping human women (males are minotaurs, females are humans with a major minotaur bloodline a la Unearthed Arcana).

I believe one of the critter supplements (was it Savage Species? Monster Manual II?) actually had a template for tauric and/or anthropomorphic creatures.

 

[Cthulhudrew]

What is the name of the horse/man in Greek mythology? I know it was on pottery but not in any known text about 10 years ago.

Not sure I understand the question. Both the Minotaur and Centaur are from Greek mythology. The minotaur got its name from Minos, King of Crete (who was its father).

 

[Aaron L]

Half-Fiend Minotaur = Stench Kowman!

Mooooohahahahahahaha!



(sorry)