rotating thoughts in my head about nomai and owlk bipedalism
because like, yeah, it's a style choice and i know that, and there's nothing wrong with it (this is literally a setting where planets are less than a kilometer across), but the more i think about it the more the specbio part of my brain keeps looking at the zigzag-bendy digitigrade (or, poor owlks, unguligrade??) legs and goes okay that can not be comfortable
and also i am an incorrigible overthinker apparently
hearthians have nice human-style plantigrade legs that can stand straight and let them rest their weight comfortably like we do, but that crouchy z-shaped stance on two legs (instead of four) is uh. not super practical, all things considered, at least for standing at rest.
this has lead to two fun trains of thought.
1) The Nomai actually have some interesting implications and/or excuses for their leg situation?
As far as balance goes, they've got these big splayed out toes, and a short but distinct tail. The concept art skeletons are kind of up on tiptoes, but looking at the in-game ones and their suits they're a bit more sturdy.
Their suits also give them these very solid, chunky boots that seem like they would add a fair bit of support and stability.
Canon also implies they prefer a lower gravity (~0.8 of Timber Hearth's, going by the gravity crystals), which would probably further reduce strain on their joints.
But also, their cultural default accessory to carry around is literally a staff! Which actually raises the very interesting implication (to me at least) that the average Nomai staff might double as a walking stick or otherwise some form of support to help them stand upright for extended periods? It probably doesn't hurt that their earliest concept art has a lot of 'ancient elder leaning on their staff' vibes to begin with.
IDK, I just think there's something kind of neat actually about the idea of a species that basically uses what we would regard as a disability aid as like, a normal default part of their day to day tool usage (maybe not entirely unlike how we adopted clothing instead of re-evolving fur for colder climates...?)
2) oh god the owlks are so fucked up. you cannot convince me this creature was meant to be a full-time biped.
horrible little hooves -- at least on the in-game model version they're more stout and sturdy, but they're still tiny proportionally
those antlers cannot be helping them in the balance department
At some point I also noticed that their scale patterns give them a lot of thick-looking scales on the backs of their hands and knuckles, specifically, which, combined with those absurdly long arms, has lead me to the cursed possible conclusion that these guys may be part-time quadrupeds/knuckle walkers who regard themselves as temporarily embarrassed bipeds. Maybe they consider it impolite? I could see that, I think. At the very least, the simulation probably abstracts away the whole issue, since -- going by the funky deloaded visuals when you ditch the lantern -- it doesn't seem to be even modeling anyone's legs anyway.
But also please consider the terrifying mental image of an Owlk on all fours chasing you at maximum speed through the woods at night. I think I would shit myself ngl
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