I've ran a couple of polls on bringing this species to WP but wanted to give 'em a bit of a revamp and a thread to chuck a bunch of info as I work through what I want/don't want for the species. I'll also be working on a world to put them in which is separate from my current worldbuilding project, W1.

This will have some info about the interactive aspects and some other stuff, all info is subject to change.

Comments? Yes, comments are fine. Please do not quote any large blocks of text.

To Do List:

-Official Base
-Traits list
-Subspecies

Misc:
-Terrain art
-Terrain info
-Item art
-Currency system
-Inventory system

Sub-Types


Pelagic - Migratory, ocean-crossing. Live within the open-ocean.
Reef - Reef dwelling species.
Intertidal - Living within tidal zones, well adapted for time on land.

Hadal* - The deep sea rays.
Fresh Water* - Within lakes, rivers and estuaries.
Terrestial** - Spending the majority of time out of any body of water.

* Rare
** Very Rare

Pelagic
Migratory, ocean-crossing. Live within the open-ocean.
One of the most common subtypes of ray dog, with huge amounts of variation. Some pelagic rays are huge in size, resembling whale sharks and other filterfeeders, whilst others are much smaller and prefer shoaling behaviours. The majority of pelagic ray dogs are counter shaded, meaning their underside is a light colour and their topside a darker colour. Other markings are common, as is silvering and relflective coats.

Reef
Bright and zippy, much like the shallow waters and reefs they reside in.
Another common subtype. Reef myliolupus are small, nimble and come in a huge variety of colours. Typically residing in tropical waters, but they do also inhabit cold and temperate reefs. Their bright colouration helps to confuse and dissuade larger predators, and when that doesn't work, many feature sharp spines and spurs. Reef myliolupus have a hugely varied diet, some eating exclusively other fish, whilst others graze on the algae and corals.

Intertidal
Life is a beach day.
Intertidal myliolupus have thicker skin and fur to protect them from the general wear-and-tear of land-based life and strong, tidal waters. Their mouths are a little more dog-like and sit closer to the front of the face rather than underneath to aid them in breathing oxygen. With strong jaws, intertidal rays often feast on shellfish or seaweed. Similarly to their reef cousins, they can often be quite spiny and come in a variety of bright colours, though tend to have colourful accents rather than be full-on colour bomb. Their wings and fins are also smaller, which allows them to maker tighter turns but results in them struggling in deeper water with large currents.

Hadal
Residing within the deepest zones of the ocean.
Hadal Myliolupus are scarce and rarely seen, blending in perfectly with the inky black of the deep sea. Experiencing deep-sea gigantism, hadal rays are often among the largest of stingray dogs as a large body mass helps with the low temperatures and overall efficency. They are most often ambush and opportunistic feeders and have slow metabolisms to survive in such a harsh environment. Ranging from white, to dark reds and blacks, camouflage is very important. Many hadal rays also have bioluminesence to either distract or attract predators. Due to the relative stability of the deep sea, far below the rough tides far above, these myliolupus have soft bodies and are relatively sensitive creatures, they also tend to have less fur than their coastal and epipelagic counterparts.

Fresh Water
In a river near you!
Fresh water myliolupus are relatively rare, but often move into towns and cities due to their proximity to humans. Exhibiting more similarities to dogs than marine animals, they very frequently display domisticated markings such as piebalding and spots. Their wings are smaller in size though typically instead they have larger tail fins to aid their swimming in strong, fast flowing river water. Due to their proximity to humans, they are more commonly affected by pollution and are tragically more likely to suffer from mutations and deformities.


Terrestial

What
Huh?? But it's a stingray dog! How is it terrestial? The most commonly domesticated out of the lot, terrestial myliolupus are common-place pets and are well adapted to life on land. There are two further subspecies of terrestial myliolupus, being myliolupus familiaris and myliolupus ferus. As you may have guessed, the former are the domesticated type, which frequently have long, decorative fins and tails and come in an assortment of bright colours. These are not particularly practical in the wild, but as they live within the homes of people they don't really need to be. Domesticated stingray dogs certainly are stunning, and are incredibly friendly too, having unparalelled confidence in comparison to their wild cousins.

As for myliolupus ferus, they reside within many parts of the globe. Still depedent on water, they've not quite conquered all terrains but can be found anywhere which has enough water or high humidity. They have smaller wings, shorter tails and often much thicker fur which extends over their wings and tail. Terrestial myliolupus do have large teeth and strong jaws, they can absolutely bite. Their life on land has lead to several other adaptations and all terrestial myliolupus have an extra toe and may have both sets of dew claws.

Wow :0 I'd love help designing the subs with you! (if its OK)

The Amethyst
I mostly have the sub-types cracked, but I appreciate it! :0 I'm more looking for any questions/curiosities about 'em rather than help developing them at the moment! :0

Myliolupus Origin
Check back later for more information! ;]

Explore System

Exploring with your myliolupus is done via art or writing pieces. By submitting an art or writing piece you are entering your myliolupus into explore where they can find items and gain stats. Upon submitting your piece, your stats and chance of gaining an item will be rolled and will be down to random chance.

Depending on your myliolupus's stats and subtype, they have better or worse chances of finding items, gaining stats, or potentially even getting injured.

	Advantage	Neutral	Disadvantage	Unable
Pelagic	Open Ocean	Hadal Reef	Intertidal Terrestial
Reef	Reef	Open Ocean Intertidal	Hadal Terrestial
Intertidal	Intertidal	Reef Terrestial	Open Ocean Hadal
Hadal	Hadal Opean Ocean		Reef Intertidal Terrestial
Terrestial	Intertidal Terrestial	Reef	Open Ocean	Hadal

*Italic are not available yet,
Your rolled number will be posted for you to see, as will the items and stats your stingray dog has gained.

This all sounds confusing but I'll reword this with a tutorial + better examples later LOL. Just trying to get the basics down.

Current terrains:
The open ocean [tropical, arctic]
Reef
Intertidal [Beach, rocky shores]

Terrains to come:
Terrestial zones [woodland, marsh, city]
Hadal zones