It's a point system, I'm not sure why people are that confused or surprised by it.
The confusing aspect is not that it's a point system, it's that the system sometimes generates results that don't make much sense. For example: as I stated above, adding a human cock to a catfolk female apparently turns her into a human. From a racial score perspective:
- Any features shared by both humans and catfolk (e.g. skin, hair, arms, legs, vagina) should count equally to both human score and catfolk score, meaning both scores should be equal before accounting for features exclusive to one or the other.
- Each catfolk feature should count towards catfolk score but not human score, and vice versa for human features.
- Assuming each part adds 1 to all appropriate racial scores, that means having a catfolk's eyes, ears and tail would give +3 to catfolk score while having a human cock would give +1 to human score; since all else is equal, that would result in catfolk score = human score + 2.
- From this, the only way for this character to be classified as a human is if:
- The threshold for being considered a human is exactly two points lower than for catfolk and human takes priority, or
- That threshold is three or more points lower for humans than catfolk, or
- The system uses some other, less obvious logic meaning I got the scores wrong.
Either way, the racial score system is generating a result that doesn't make much sense.
Applying similar logic to the above to the example in the original post:
- Human face is a catfolk feature -> +1 to catfolk score.
- Scaled skin is neither lupine nor catfolk, so neither score is affected.
- Oval, reptilian eyes are neither lupine nor catfolk, but the fact that they (probably) have vertically-slit pupils would make them closer to catfolk than lupine, so I could see a +0.5 to catfolk score being justified.
- Pointed wolf ears are a lupine feature -> +1 to lupine score, but they're close enough in basic form to catfolk ears (both being triangular and on top of the head) that I could see a +0.5 to catfolk score being justified.
- Hair-type hair is common to both, so either both scores get either +0 or +1.
- Furred arms tipped with canine claws are a lupine feature; if the fur and claws are counted separately, that would give +2 to lupine score, but otherwise it'd still give +1 to lupine score.
- A scaled tail, presumably a prehensile reptilian one, is neither lupine nor catfolk, though I could see the prehensility granting +0.5 to catfolk score as their tails are also prehensile.
- Digitigrade legs with pawed, canine-clawed feet are lupine, so the increase to lupine score could be anywhere from one (if all features are counted as one) to three (if the digitigrade, pawed, and canine-clawed features are counted separately).
- The nubby catfolk, dick would give +1 to catfolk score, though the knot might give +0.5 to lupine score.
- I don't know what the vagina type is, but both lupines and catfolk have human vaginas, so that's either +0 or +1 to either score.
This results in minimum scores of 3 lupine, 1 catfolk; maximum scores of 8.5 lupine, 4.5 catfolk; and 'most equal' scores of 4 lupine, 3.5 catfolk (plus or minus 1 to both). In all cases, it still seems to me like the result should be closer to lupine than catfolk, and I thus can't really believe Balak's statement above about generalities.
If we knew what the actual racial score system was, that'd clear up a lot of confusion (but would also probably generate some more questions in the vein of "why is this counted/not counted?").
