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Walk Like An Egyptian Pt II
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<blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7345457" data-attributes="member: 20323"><p>Sounds like we have some parallels in our gaming at the moment <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> Since fantasy Egypt is on my mind, I have a couple ideas...</p><p></p><p>In addition to the sources you mention – Southlands is really great – I am drawing upon <em>Gary Gygax's Necropolis</em> (Swords & Sorcery) and <em>Egyptian Adventures: Hamunaptra</em> (Green Ronin); both are d20 system so quite a bit of work converting the crunch, but lots of good flavor/setting info.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>A few others you may wish to consider....</p><p></p><p>Bread-and-circuses (arena games)</p><p>Charioteering</p><p>The Afterlife / Duat</p><p>Social Castes & Slavery</p><p>Temple Politics</p><p>Nomadic Tribes</p><p>Upper/Lower Kingdom Feuds</p><p>Egyptian Magic</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Races are always an area I'm hesitant to comment on, as it really is up to each GM and his/her group's preferences. With gnolls, I've made them more jackal-like rather than hyena-like, which leads to correlation with Anubis, guardian/judge of the dead. Similarly, I've interpreted lizardfolk as more crocodilian, correlating them with the god Sobekh. <em>Egyptian Adventures: Hamunaptra</em> really runs with this idea.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Are you modeling your game after a particular era in Egypt's history? I've really been enjoying the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fX1CFsaCcW8&list=PLkOo_Hy3liEJNCnNFMMyaeBMtJk_FQX4k" target="_blank">Invicta series on "Moments in History"</a>; actually decent historical coverage and they keep it interesting to listen/watch.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>On one hand, going with classics that the players will expect (mummies, undead of various types) is a great way to give the players what they want & evoke the theme. However, you may want to include a couple surprise twists to keep things fresh, <em>especially</em> if you're including hexcrawling exploration. A few I've done or have been contemplating doing...</p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">A group has been stealing dead corpses...suspicions go to a necromancer or mummy lord...but it's just cultists trying to deny their rivals the afterlife.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Opening the sarcophagus, torches at the ready, the PCs find...a swarm of scarab beetles which devoured the body once held within, but not its golden ornamentation!</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">A tyrannical nomarch or city ruler is said to demand sacrifices for her "sin eater", and locals are haunted by dreams of their dead loved ones. It's actually a fallen sphinx, whose frightening presence helps keep tribal raiders at bay.</li> </ul><p></p><p></p><p>On <a href="https://www.adventurelookup.com/adventures/" target="_blank">Adventure Lookup</a> I've had some success searching for 5e adventures by environment (e.g. desert). Looks like not many underwater adventures, however.</p><p></p><p></p><p>The "dragons" of Egyptian myth tend to be really big snakes, maybe with vestigial wings, entities like Apep or Ankh-neteru. Most had cosmological roles, and seemed to have a connection to what I call - for lack of a better name - cult of snake wisdom. Serpents had a dual role in Egyptian culture as both life-takers and wisdom-granters. For example, you might have the party face a "blue dracolich" but describe it as an enormous skeletal king cobra watching over the tomb of the line of kings which brought it low, making sure no one ever resurrects those kings & stealing any funerary offerings for its own hoard.</p><p></p><p></p><p>YMMV, but my group really hates exhaustion and avoid it like the plague. But as long as you foreshadow that undead do that, and don't spring it on them unaware, should be ok.</p><p></p><p></p><p>One thing you might consider is giving them some more "high adventure" like escaping pursuers on horseback or chariot, or rooftop battles to prevent an archer from assassinating a high priest. Good at low levels, when they're squishy. </p><p></p><p>If you want to run a low-level tomb, consider something more puzzle-centric. Also, I try to introduce a twist whenever I run a tomb-exploration session: enemies block the entrance, lurk outside to ambush the PCs, or arrive as rivals; during a fight the floor collapses introducing an entirely new area within its own mysteries; hints in scrolls/murals about a treasure chamber that no passage seems to lead to; etc.</p><p></p><p></p><p>The Nile was absolutely a life-giver but it was also considered dangerous, with crocodiles, flesh-eating fish, and legends of El Naddaha (a siren-like creature). You could differentiate its two sides according to a day/night cycle, or according to certain stretches between the cataracts, or even with some kind of an event tracker if you have "an evil rises along the Nile" theme.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Ah! Very fun! <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> You might do some more foreshadowing with discoveries of dragon fossils at a construction site, tomb, or old cave turned hide-out.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Quickleaf, post: 7345457, member: 20323"] Sounds like we have some parallels in our gaming at the moment :) Since fantasy Egypt is on my mind, I have a couple ideas... In addition to the sources you mention – Southlands is really great – I am drawing upon [I]Gary Gygax's Necropolis[/I] (Swords & Sorcery) and [I]Egyptian Adventures: Hamunaptra[/I] (Green Ronin); both are d20 system so quite a bit of work converting the crunch, but lots of good flavor/setting info. A few others you may wish to consider.... Bread-and-circuses (arena games) Charioteering The Afterlife / Duat Social Castes & Slavery Temple Politics Nomadic Tribes Upper/Lower Kingdom Feuds Egyptian Magic Races are always an area I'm hesitant to comment on, as it really is up to each GM and his/her group's preferences. With gnolls, I've made them more jackal-like rather than hyena-like, which leads to correlation with Anubis, guardian/judge of the dead. Similarly, I've interpreted lizardfolk as more crocodilian, correlating them with the god Sobekh. [I]Egyptian Adventures: Hamunaptra[/I] really runs with this idea. Are you modeling your game after a particular era in Egypt's history? I've really been enjoying the [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fX1CFsaCcW8&list=PLkOo_Hy3liEJNCnNFMMyaeBMtJk_FQX4k]Invicta series on "Moments in History"[/url]; actually decent historical coverage and they keep it interesting to listen/watch. On one hand, going with classics that the players will expect (mummies, undead of various types) is a great way to give the players what they want & evoke the theme. However, you may want to include a couple surprise twists to keep things fresh, [I]especially[/I] if you're including hexcrawling exploration. A few I've done or have been contemplating doing... [list][*]A group has been stealing dead corpses...suspicions go to a necromancer or mummy lord...but it's just cultists trying to deny their rivals the afterlife. [*]Opening the sarcophagus, torches at the ready, the PCs find...a swarm of scarab beetles which devoured the body once held within, but not its golden ornamentation! [*]A tyrannical nomarch or city ruler is said to demand sacrifices for her "sin eater", and locals are haunted by dreams of their dead loved ones. It's actually a fallen sphinx, whose frightening presence helps keep tribal raiders at bay.[/list] On [url=https://www.adventurelookup.com/adventures/]Adventure Lookup[/url] I've had some success searching for 5e adventures by environment (e.g. desert). Looks like not many underwater adventures, however. The "dragons" of Egyptian myth tend to be really big snakes, maybe with vestigial wings, entities like Apep or Ankh-neteru. Most had cosmological roles, and seemed to have a connection to what I call - for lack of a better name - cult of snake wisdom. Serpents had a dual role in Egyptian culture as both life-takers and wisdom-granters. For example, you might have the party face a "blue dracolich" but describe it as an enormous skeletal king cobra watching over the tomb of the line of kings which brought it low, making sure no one ever resurrects those kings & stealing any funerary offerings for its own hoard. YMMV, but my group really hates exhaustion and avoid it like the plague. But as long as you foreshadow that undead do that, and don't spring it on them unaware, should be ok. One thing you might consider is giving them some more "high adventure" like escaping pursuers on horseback or chariot, or rooftop battles to prevent an archer from assassinating a high priest. Good at low levels, when they're squishy. If you want to run a low-level tomb, consider something more puzzle-centric. Also, I try to introduce a twist whenever I run a tomb-exploration session: enemies block the entrance, lurk outside to ambush the PCs, or arrive as rivals; during a fight the floor collapses introducing an entirely new area within its own mysteries; hints in scrolls/murals about a treasure chamber that no passage seems to lead to; etc. The Nile was absolutely a life-giver but it was also considered dangerous, with crocodiles, flesh-eating fish, and legends of El Naddaha (a siren-like creature). You could differentiate its two sides according to a day/night cycle, or according to certain stretches between the cataracts, or even with some kind of an event tracker if you have "an evil rises along the Nile" theme. Ah! Very fun! :) You might do some more foreshadowing with discoveries of dragon fossils at a construction site, tomb, or old cave turned hide-out. [/QUOTE]
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