pigs
Domesticated pigs are among most common domesticated beasts in all of Scarterra. Pork raised is on every major landmass being the staple meat in West Colassia and Umera and still relatively common in other lands. Bacon and other pork products frequently grace the dinner plates of peasants and princes alike.
Pigs eat almost anything and can generally handle confined spaces well. Properly salted and smoked, pork can be stored for long periods of time. Typically rural families cull their livestock during the Calendar month of Blooding to prepare for the winter. this ensures the family has less livestock to feed over the winter and more meat for the family to eat. Many Scarterrans observe a ritual holiday commemorating this (while also placating Maylar) called Winter's Eve.
Few if any Scarterrans keep anything resembling real world kosher laws though some cultures and subcultures choose to be vegetarian or vegan, but these people swear off all meat and not pork specifically. Most creatures in Scarterra have some elemental influence on their physical and psychology. Pigs are no different, but due to selective breeding, most pigs have dominant earthy traits. Earthy animals tend to be large and slow. Large and slow is usually what a farmer wants his livestock to be. Typically, the earthiest male pigs of a litter and kept as breeders and the pigs with fiery, watery, or airy traits are culled early. Fiery pigs have more efficient digestion so they don't need as much food or water as other pigs of similar size, but they also are more ornery and likely to bite and kick their farmer. Airy pigs are leaner which many say is tastier and healthier meat, but airy pigs don't like confinement and are difficult to raise if a farmer doesn't have the spare land to allow for free range pigs. Watery pigs require more water than other pigs to be healthy but their sows are more efficient milkers so watery female piglets are marked to be brood sows. Water pigs of both sexes are more intelligent and curious to other pigs which sometimes mean they figure out clever ways to escape their pens. Also, clever pigs are often clever enough to get into trouble but not clever enough to find their way out of it.
Additional Information
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Homer: "Lisa, honey, are you saying you're never going to eat any animal again? What about bacon?" Lisa: "No" Homer: "Ham?" Lisa: "No" Homer: "Pork Chops?" Lisa: "Dad, those all come from the same animal!" Homer: "(chuckles sarcastically) yeah right, Lisa. A wonderful magical animal." Excerpt from Simpson Episode "Lisa the Vegetarian"
Facial characteristics
Wild Boars
Wild boars are popular on dinner plates too, being one of the most sought after game animals in Scarterra. While the meat is tasty, wild boars are enticing to hunters for an element of machismo because wild boars are so dangerous and more than a few hunters have been gored by their would-be prey. In some lands, boar hunting is restricted to the nobility and you need permission from the owner of a demesne to hunt boars. Occasionally, you need permission to hunt anything on a lord's land but this not always the case though boars are usually the most tightly restricted nonmagical animal with regard for hunting rights.
Geographic Distribution
Comments