My take on unicorns! I want to show the difference between the two main species, as well as give some info on the kirin subspecies. I am subscribing to the majority of @/Lopoddity’s headcanon as well lol. They made something similar that I highly recommend checking out!

Unicorns can be split up into 3 subspecies. Modern unicorns, traditional unicorns and kirin.
Before Equestria existed, back when the 3 pony races were still split, unicorns looked like the traditional variant. Cloven hooves, long leonine tails, and curved horns. However, as barriers were broken down, upon the founding of Equestria, the union of the races meant they were being melded together. Traditional unicorns interbreeding with the other races resulted in modern unicorns, which is what the majority of the horned ponies are today. Traditional unicorns are still around, and there is some pressure that their lines are kept pure. They’re typically of royal blood, and the alicorns have traditional unicorn traits.

Modern unicorns have a single toed hoof like any other equid. Their horn is straight, and have a typical short tail. In terms of magical ability, modern and traditional unicorns don’t have much of a difference. Unicorns that possess longer horns are usually more gifted, but isn’t always the case. The colour of the magic aura is also close to the eye colour of the individual.

Kirin are more closely related to traditional unicorns, with cloven hooves and longer tails. They’re more in tune with nature, and so have magic related to growth and healing. They can also perform basic levitation spells, but they’re not capable of teleportation or barrier magic. Kirin also don’t have true horns, they’re actually antlers. Thus, they shed them yearly. The singular antler grows throughout the entire year, and once the velvet that covers them sloughs off in the late summer, the antler will fall off shortly afterwards. What this means for the kirin, is that it’ll be unable to cast any spells at all until the antler has regrown again to an adequate size. However, kirin are not without their magic entirely during this time. These shed antlers can be ground into powders, or added into drinks to make potions. These medicines have similar healing properties as the magic itself.

Unicorns are able to cast spells via the grooves in the horn. The magic is funnelled from the brain as a command, then up the horn’s spire into an aura. This can then manipulate objects in the individual’s surroundings, or be used to cast spells. Excessive use of magic, or using it for a prolonged period of time, can result in the horn having a tingling or burning sensation, as the horn is chock full of nerve endings. However, this can prove to be damaging in the short-term, and is called “magic scald”. Magic scald will heal on its own provided the owner of the horn doesn’t use magic for a period of time.

Underneath the keratin capsule of the horn lies the core. This is where the spire grows from. If the horn capsule is damaged, it will usually regrow without issue. However, any trauma to the core will permanently disfigure the horn, affecting magic output. If the core is severely damaged (like in Tempest’s case), the individual will not be able to control the flow of magic at all. Magic will be outputted in unguided waves, which can prove dangerous.

I will most likely be doing an info sheet like this for other pony races as well!
Thank you for reading!

Characters (c) Hasbro
Art (c) Nocti-Draws