This pertains mostly to the Guild and I am fairly certain this might come across as a strange topic - because it is - but is it so unusual to notice that among every single supernatural, paranormal or fantasy based roleplay topic or Interest Check I have browsed through that lists werewolves as character options do not even mention the other zoanthropic strains in fiction? I admit the lycanthrope is entirely the most well known - particularly to American and European audiences - that is not even meriting question, but are the others really quite [i]so[/i] obscure? Or is it they are just not popular enough? To transition slightly, I can understand vampires being a staple of the genre, especially in our modern era given a multitude of popular media involving them, but now that it comes to mind, why are other werebeasts terribly underwhelming in terms of presence?

For reference I am, by and far, a roleplayer who caters to the feline side of things - ailuranthropes, in this particular case. Not that I hate werewolves, just that I have no real affinity for the canine nature whereas with the feline sort I do; having played weretigers previously out of that quality. The whole situation seems bizarre to me, especially given how subtly popular animals are in media and the human mind abroad, let alone paranormal fiction now where the "anything goes" mentality is pretty accepted in the face of any established lore. If anything a roleplay seems like ideal ground for this sort of thing.

Again, a highly unusual question, but is the world of paranormal fiction here just werewolves...?

What is your experience with zoanthropes of any sort in roleplays; good, bad, irrelevant? Have you even encountered any or have you ever permitted them into your story? Additionally, what is your opinion on the idea as a whole on the concept of the "many strains of zoanthropy"?