First introduced in AD&D as an extra, filler creature, the wemic rapidly gained popularity not only as a creature encounter, but even as a PC race. As a being 2/3 lion and 2/3 man or woman, this feline centaur was a powergamer’s dream come true. They look cool and are fun to draw, spawning a wave of six-limbed furries as well as a number of character concepts both inside and outside of D&D. The pinnacle of a dream came to reality when the ecology of the Wemic was detailed in Dragon magazine; issue 157, an issue otherwise focusing heavily on a rather short-lived Buck Rogers RPG.
However, a quick Internet search of the term "wemic" revealed only a scant few sites. On Yahoo, I found only two links, both to Waller Equity Management, Inc. Through Netscape’s search I did come across an excellent piece of fluff, plus one page dedicated to our favorite cat centaurs, but overall, there was little. And so, I’ve created this site as my own contribution to a still underrepresented wemic community.
Help end Wemic slavery! For centuries, the institution of slavery has been abolished throughout most developed countries. However, for those of wemic heritage living in Zhentil Keep, life is still very much medieval. Accounts of atrocities and horror against wemic-kind have gained little attention from either the U.N. or the R.P.G.A., who look away with blind eyes. Wemic cubs have been sold on the black market for around 500 gp, and their parents have been forced to work as trackers and guides for evil NPC warlords. Here is what you can do to help:
- Send a charitable donation to:
End Wemic Slavery
C/o Jon Littlerabbit
3000 MST Boulevard
Deepinaharta, TX 77701
Funds will be greatly appreciated, though, in all honesty, probably will go towards a new stereo.
- E-mail your local Congressperson, explaining the importance of wemic equality. (Hercules lead a similar campaign in Greece on behalf of those of centaur nationality with considerable success. Or, was it Xena?)
- E-mail Wizards of the Coast, publisher of Dungeons and Dragons, with the following statement.
To Whom It May Concern: It has come to my attention that a race of beings known as the "wemic" is forced to live in slave-like conditions in a number of territories within one of your campaign settings. This is a petition to add the following paragraph to the next forthcoming Forgotten Realms supplement: "Meanwhile, following a decree from the entire pantheon of gods and goddesses, all wemics held in slavery throughout the realms were set free." Thank you for your time. Your Name Here. |
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Artistic issues:
The initial depictions of the wemic in AD&D first edition creature cards and then the Monster Manual II were rather well streamlined for an afterthought creature. The 2nd edition Monstrous Compendium vol. 3 (and Forgotten Realms appendix) was similarly fairly complimentary. However, it was all downhill from there. Even as the wemic gained acceptance as a PC race, earning a spot in the AD&D 2nd edition Book of Humanoids, the illustrations became increasingly ugly. The pinnacle, of course, would be the character illustration included with the AD&D Core Rules 2.0 CD-ROM. Yuck.
One common misconception about the wemic, popularized by certain issues of Dragon magazine and Forgotten Realms supplements is that they are primitive. The crew of the Imperial Wemic Armada Starship Simba III want it known that while their antimatter drive system may be a little behind the times, Wemic technology still can run circles around anything driven by spelljamming.
Results of our online poll, answers to the question "What is a ‘wemic’?"
- 72% answered, "I don’t know."
- 14% answered, "One of those lion-things from D&D."
- 7% answered, "I think it’s a member of a cult sect that believes in reincarnation."
- 5% answered,"It’s similar to an M.D., but one treats the whole person, and one is also trained in manipulation."
- 3% answered, "A maculopapular lesion with an erythematous core."
Above: an illustration of a sculpted figure of Elodea Gardener III, who is not technically a wemic, but instead a Xal-3000 Feline Centaur genetically engineered by Dr. Talwine Felias and the Mendel Institute. (Close enough.) Below: several anatomical sketches, figuring out a biologically plausible centaur design.
Other wemic-related links
Cayzle’s Wemic Site: Excellent, first rate, at least as far as wemic sites go. Plenty of info on all three editions of D&D / AD&D, as well as some cool links, in case my links suck. Beware the background color, however.
The Wemic Homepage: A number of PC and NPC characters, plus some additional info, some actually pertaining to wemics. It has a link to info about Wicca as well, which is, if you fudge a heck of a lot, vaguely related.
Welcome to Wemicworld: Not a theme park, but a guided tour of a text-based village. Sadly no longer a working link.
A Broken Link with a "404 Not Found": No list of links would be complete without one.
The VCL Anthropomorphic Library: A huge collection of Furry artwork (varying from doodles to professional graphics). If you’re looking for cute anthropomorphs, look no further. (Be warned, however, some are not entirely PG-rated!)
This page would be part of the Wemic web ring, if there were such a thing.
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Voted among top 5% most obscure topics Wemic pride! (Pun not entirely intended.) |
