Modifier: Grey

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Occurs as: __ nG | __ GG

 ​ ​Grey is a natural modifier gene in Nordanner. A modifier is a gene which 'modifies' the appearance of a horse, but have different effects than dilutes. Modifiers usually don't change the base coat color, or affect it very little -- instead, they add a different appearance to the underlying base. 
Grey is a modifier gene that creates a complete desaturation of the base coat color over time -- it turns the entire base, including the mane and tail, into grey tones. A grey horse's coat color changes throughout its life. They are born with their normal, fully saturated coat color, and as the horse ages it gradually loses pigment and lightens in color, eventually reaching near-white. 
Grey is a dominant gene, meaning that it only needs one copy, or allele, in order for it to be present. Grey also cannot be carried, and will be present in the phenotype of the horse if it has at least one copy of the gene. 
This gene does drastically change the horse's base coat color. 

Horses with this gene CAN:

• Show any amount of "greying out" on the horse's design -- from no greying, to minimal greying, showing only portions of the coat desaturating, to fully greyed out, including being near-white. 
• Have grey tones which are roughly equal to or lighter than the shade of base coat color underneath the grey dilution. Grey will never darken the base coat, only desaturate what is already there. For example, a palomino horse cannot become a dark dappled grey with a black mane and tail, as that is much darker than the underlying base. 
• Optionally show dappling, flea-bites (small points of base coat color hairs which occur on the coat), chubari spots (light to near-white spots on the base), and/or bloody shoulder (patches of base coat).
• Optionally show uneven greying, with some areas of the base more greyed out than others. 
• Appear under natural and genetic white. 

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Horses with this gene CANNOT:

• Be a darker shade of grey than the underlying base underneath the grey dilution.
• If not fully desaturated, displaying flea bites, or if displaying a bloody shoulder, cannot show a color saturation that is different from their underlying base coat color.
• Appear over mutations, breedable potions, or anomalies as it is a base coat modifier. 
• Have eye color changes as a result of grey. 

The examples below show only a few of the accepted presentations, for you to get an idea of the range of presentations possible with grey. 

Please note: Nordanner genes may simplify certain genes from real life. Genes may not present in Nordanner the way they do in real life or in other ARPG breeds, and are as close to being realistic as possible while still maintaining standards within the breed. ​