Types of Horses

About the Horses of North of North
North of North is the ancestral home of all horses. Every horse can trace its bloodline back to North of North. Naturally, the horses of North of North are the best and brightest of their kind. Every horse in North of North has been touched by magic, and even the most normal-looking of horses has at least one small magical gift of their own. Sometimes, it takes a while for the horse to discover what it is.

Although their gifts and abilities vary, all horses in North of North share some common traits that differentiate them from regular horses. Firstly, their lifespans are much longer. They live at least as long as humans do, and many live for hundreds of years or even more. They can learn, remember, wonder, imagine and figure things out much like people.

Horses in North of North are intelligent enough to understand human speech, but they don't talk themselves. Instead, they use a magical ability called horse-sharing. This ability lets horses share mental pictures with people, horses or other animals, so they can tell others what they are thinking or how they are feeling. Anyone who has a bond with a particular horse can pick up the horse's emotions from these pictures. For horses, the pictures of horse-sharing are much clearer than words.

Some horses have such strong magic that anyone can tell just by looking that they are extra special. People of North of North sometimes call them 'great horses'. Many great horses are inherently magical, like unicorns, hippocamps, or pegasi. Others look like ordinary horses but have special clothes, decorations, or glowing auras that hint at their magical gift.

Great horses' magic can express itself in a wide variety of ways. Some gifts, like Embarr's ability to walk on water, are shared by several of the great horses. Other's are unique, like Mireldis's ability to brew magical potions that heal those who are sick or hurt. Many truly great horses have more than one gift. For example, Amor can both fly and inspire love in those around him.

(From Bella Sara: The Ultimate Guide)

Air Horses (Pegasi)
Air horses, also known as Pegasi in mythology, live in the skies of North of North.

Although they all can be called pegasi, not one is alike! Each pegasus in North of North has unique wings. Some are feathered, some are scaled, others are made of pure elements or magic, or some even have insect wings! These horses can use their unique magical wings to fly high above the land, or even participate in winged races in the blue skies over Trails End.

Long ago when Feral, the demonic deity, chased the Caregivers to the edge of a cliff, she thought she had them cornered. If they tried to jump, they would plummet to their deaths. But Sara had a brilliant idea. With a sweep of her hand, all their horses grew wings! They jumped off the cliff with their new air horses, flying to safety, leaving the Dark Goddess cursing behind.

These air horses generally dominate the Windhome Skylands, home of Herd Airistos; indeed, most of them belong to this herd. Some air horses look for tall trees in which to make their homes, while others roost in crevices along the high, rocky cliffs above the ocean. Some even live in houses!

A few famous pegasi are Nike, founder of Herd Airistos, and Wings, Emma's Valkyrie steed.

Windwalker
Like pegasi, windwalkers have the ability to fly. However, the difference between the two types of horses is that windwalkers do not have wings. Instead, they have the innate magical ability to walk upon the air, without any wings at all! Those without wings usually have magic stardust or mist that follows them around as they float through the skies. They are called windrunners. Others have the power to walk on wind, as if it was an invisible strip of land.

A few well-known windwalkers are Mistral, Colour, and Soot, Emma's cousin Colm's steed.

Jump Gliders
Jump gliders are tawny in color but have stripes of gradating tone from yellow-orange to red. Many Jump Gliders form close friendships with fringed newts, who they often carry on their backs.

Though they are quite capable of running, their preferred method of travel is to bound high into the air on their powerful hind legs and spread their wings to catch the wind. Though they cannot fly by flapping their wings, they are exceptional gliders capable of soaring great distances.

A well-known jump glider is Chryso.

Unicorns
Unicorns are horses with some sort of horn on their forehead, and a regular horses body. Some may have a single straight horn, while others have curved horns, colored horns, horns made of magic, and many other various combinations.

A unicorn may have a magical ability. Some unicorns use their horns to direct magic, or have horns that glow. However, not all unicorns are "magical" in nature. Some horns are simply for show, to give the horse a distinct and beautiful look.

Unicorns are probably the second most common type of horse, after a regular horse, in North of North.

A few well-known Unicorns are Farah, the daughter of the legendary horse Fiona, and Rosebriar.

Winged Unicorns
Winged unicorns are a combination of two types of horses: pegasi and unicorns.

The two qualifications for this type of horse is they have to have a unicorn's horn, and they must have wings. Winged unicorns always have wings of some sort, whether they are feathered, magical, or otherwise.

A few famous winged unicorns are Islandar, the founder of Herd Islandar, Iceking, and Moonfairy, the founder of Herd Moonfairy.

Water Horses (Hippocampi)
Water horses, also known as hippocampi in mythology, live in the waters of North of North.

They can be horses with front legs and a fish's, or other sea creature's, tail, or have only the head of a horse and the body of sea life. Some may be able to walk on land for short periods of time before descending back into the waves (called kelpies), regular horses that can breathe underwater, or even seahorses.

One day, when young Sara was playing in a river, she saw a beautiful fish. When sunlight touched its smooth scales, they glimmered and shined. Its silky fins rippled in the water as it danced to the motion of the waves. Sara thought to herself, how wonderful would it be if a horse could possess these qualities! With one fluid motion, she turned the fish into the first water horse, a beautiful creature of the sea.

These water horses generally dominate the Celestial Deep and Equinesian Sea as Herd Islandar, a herd completely constructed of water horses, but they can be found in many other herds as long as they live close enough to a large body of water.

A few well-known water horses are Kora, Princess of Herd Islandar, Kahuna, steward of Herd Islandar, and Coral, the Lady of Herd Islandar.

Pool Divers
Pool Divers are a type of hippocamp. They spend the majority of their time lounging around pool rims of the Grass Sea. When threatened they will simply slip into the water and disappear. When night falls they retreat to underwater caves.

These horses are very timid and though they can be seen from a distance few have seen one close up. Pool divers are sky blue in color and glow softly in the dark. Instead of hooves, the horses’ legs end in delicate fins and they have gills along their long necks. Their eyes are very large and black. Pool Divers are drawn to flute music and have been known to surface quite close to a gifted musician. Sometimes a pool diver will leave a large pearl from a giant freshwater oyster as a gift by a pool’s edge to a reward a particularly good player.

A prominent Pool Diver is Obrylin.

Equine Water Elemental
This rare breed of horse is a one of a kind. Their entire body is made up of mist! This includes their mane, tail, wings (if they have them), and any other features.

A few prominent Equine Water Elementals are Prisma and Mistral.

Dew Ponies
Dew ponies are unique magical ponies. They normally are various shades of green, and are constantly dripping with dew.

These ponies travel in the early morning when dew is still on the leaves of the trees and the grass on the ground. This is because they have the unique ability to part wet vegetation wherever they go. This allows them to travel uninterrupted through even the densest of forests.

Dew ponies are also said to be some of the shyest ponies in North of North.

A few prominent dew ponies are Dewdrop from Harmony's Journey and Dewsparkle.

Root Pony
There are many types of ponies in North of North, some, like Dew Ponies have a unique magical gift. Others are simply unique in looks. A Root Pony is one such pony

Root Ponies are a kind of playful pony! They are always happy, despire their small stature. And they are very, very small! A fully grown Root Pony stands two feet at the shoulders fully-grown.

Root Ponies often live in the Grass Sea. With the help of other animals, they live in comfortable borrows but only really go there to sleep.

These horses are very playful and are known for their prancing and leaping. They can jump as high as six feet in the air. Whenever two Root Ponies who do not know each other meet, they engage in an elaborate dance of greeting, each trying to outdo the other.

A prominent Root Pony in North of North is Donnecha.

Hot Bloods
Hot blood breeds are elemental horses, often made out fire or flames. These horses are often known for their spirited temperaments. Because of their spirited nature, they make loyal friends.

A prominent hot blood horse is Flame.

Frondessence
Frondessence are a unique horse only found in North of North. These light, cinnamon-yellow horses perfectly match their environment. Their manes and tails resemble the long flowing greenish grass of the Grass Sea, where they make their homes.

Frondessence are very regal and beautiful horses, and loyal friends with their magical friends, the Royal Starbiks.

A prominent Frondessence is Greenlock.