Do Neko Tan?

[Ametheliana]

I mean, logic dictates they do not as they have self-healing properties and can't even get tattoos for that reason.

But one of life's simple pleasures is getting a little color after the pale of winter, so I thought I'd ask!

 

[raz]

My Neko mad scientist would volumetrically project different tan line patterns on herself every day like changing her outfit or hairstyle.

Maybe Neko can get sunburns but it’s on a much shortened timescale because the damage is healed to quickly. So then they can get genuine tans and it’s on a really shortened timetable.

Or yeah maybe they simply cannot.

 

[Soban]

Hmm, so it's one of those 50/50 things. I think they can. it's just an increase in production of melanin in response to sunlight. It isn't a injury reaction. Unlike a tattoo, it's something that is purely internal. I suppose they can fake it with volumetrics, but it feels like cheating.

What I do know is that Separa'Shan do often sun themselves in (potentially large) groups and do things like exchange social chit-chat and philosophizing. Neko who have been exposed to Separa'Shan culture might go and do something similar. Even without tanning, laying out and enjoying nature is something anyone can do.

 

[Charmaylarg Dufrain]

I mean tanning isnt really damaging in the way that might trigger hemosynth imo. It's UV rays pretty much hitting the epidermis and causing a release of melanin as a response. Neko are a designed species and do purposefully lack some little quirks a normal person might have but for an empire of a lot of attractive women with entire resort worlds and a lot of body autonomy it feels like that is a little QOL thing that would be patched into neko to be able to do even if its just a subconscious response to wanting to get tan when exposed to UV rays and is such a small thing for them to be able to do that it wouldn't weaken them or offer any detriment to have so I would vote yes if it was a vote for a feature for Neko and minkan to have.

And you do want an excuse to ask someone to apply sunscreen after all on the beach episode, don't you?

 

[Ametheliana]

Sunburns are injuries, though. Look it up, they're a first degree burn. Maybe not a light tan, but hemo would react to an injury and sunburns are injuries.

I like that you guys want to play along with my fantasy, though. I just think tans are neat and sunblock is goopy and lame, I'm not a part of the lathering train!

 

[raz]

Sunburns are injuries, though. Look it up, they're a first degree burn. Maybe not a light tan, but hemo would react to an injury and sunburns are injuries.

Indeed. I think that's why my conceptualization is the most intuitive.

The Neko gets burned. That injury gets healed very quickly. It leaves its tanning effect (if Neko even have melanin, they can always use volumetrics to shield their fair skin from UV). The length of that tan would be my primary question because it's no longer an injury at that point, but Neko bodies don't have human cells so may not tolerate a non-normal state.

Ultimately, we await Wes' answer because he's really the only one who can say for sure.