Hm hm. Granted but I'm not sure there's a better option without worse problems, is the thing. Making the weight category a separate vote leaves "what to take" as presumably still a plan vote but just counting the plans which fit in the selected weight category, yeah? So that still runs the same risk of splitting over other issues (e.g. "small shield" and "large shield" could split and lose to "no shield, more weapons" even if all their voters would rather prioritize having any shield at all) while also giving less voice to the voters for losing categories unless they preemptively vote for gear plans for a category they don't support.
If you come up with something clever I won't complain, mind. It's just a bit thorny.
Hmm, I may need to structure equipment votes differently in future, but I'm not sure how best to do it. Might want to make Load a separate point so you vote for Light/Med/Heavy Load & then for preferred gear separately?
In the future, you can always take a page from Blades in the Dark: the overall load is determined at the start of a "mission" and cannot be changed, but individual pieces of gear are pulled out only when it becomes relevant.
So, we vote for light/medium/heavy before embarking to the temple. Then we get into a fight and vote to cast an Invocation. A part of the vote would be pulling out a staff or a spear. From that point on, points of burden are "spent" and we have the staff/spear with us at all times until the end of the mission. If all burden points are spent, we can't pull out any more equipment that costs burden.
It does require clearly defined missions that aren't too long, and it can cause some immersion issues with loot found in the field unless you add some kind of magical Elsewhere backpack, but it is a way to solve the voting issue.
Ok, so; nobody's resolved the vote tangle so I'm going to do something controversial.
On the basis that 5 people voted for 'add a shield', of which 3 voted 'and also some other stuff', and then 4 people voted for 'take nothing', I'm going to go with 'add a shield'. It's easier to shed some Burden later than to double back to get stuff if folks aren't happy with it.
[x] Plan: Travelling Light (Take a shield and the amulet. See above post for context on this result.)
After an interminable hesitation, you pick up one of the shields. The light wicker crescent is no heavier than the bow case you're wearing, and you can always shed some weight later if it slows you down.
Semat also carries a shield, and a bundle of javelins. As you ascend to the temple, you fall to discussing tactics.
Semat is versed in three Invocations for battle; the Serpent's Kiss, which inflicts a powerful poison on a nearby foe; the Gift of Strength, a blessing of Might that lasts a few minutes; and the healing Waters of Life, though the drought seems to have diminished its power considerably. She is, as her wargear suggests, a skirmisher, preferring to stay at Short range.
She divined you were Dead on first sight, but as you are learning, it's a more complex state than many know, so better to lay some things out now. "If I fall, I will return; the only life at stake is yours, please don't take undue risks with it."
Again, the seeking look. "I know it takes great strength of will, or a consuming need, for the Dead to return. I have been called upon to put the Parched Dead to rest before. What drives you, Benerib? How swiftly can you return, and at what spiritual cost?"
"Justice." You hesitate. "…and devotion. As for time… a few hours? When I fell during the night, I returned with the dawn. Should I perish, retreat to the jetty, and expect me there."
She nods slowly. "It sounds like you have Banut's favour. But you bear a token of the powers beyond the sea, and wear the trappings of the moon. You are an enigma, Benerib, but perhaps that is to be expected of a priest of the Hidden One."
[x] Introspection: As you delve into the affairs of gods, perhaps you should take more careful stock of the powers in play, their interests, and who else you might look to for aid?
{Culture: Partial, +1XP}
You consider the gods and their favour as you climb the processional. There are many small gods, with minor domains and limited power, but only a handful have dedicated clergy and universal influence:
Banut, God of the Sun, is patron of light, fire, forging and craftsmanship. He is portrayed as a heron, carrying the sun across the sky. It is said that it was Banut, in ancient days, who taught Man to work bronze. Every day he dies in the West with the sun, and is carried on the river of the underworld into the East, where he is reborn in the peaks of the Firemounts to forge a new sun and begin the cycle anew. In some regions, he is also worshipped as the God of Rebirth, invoked to carry the souls of the dead into the sky until they are reborn to a new life in this world, rather than passing on to the next.
Satat-Mehet, God of the Waters of Life, the River and War, is the patron of agriculture, hunting, rulership, the southern mountains, healing, new birth and violent death. She is portrayed as a woman crowned with antelope horns, or in her war aspect as half-woman, half-lion. From her sacred mountains all life flows. Preeminent god in her favoured Lands of the River, and propitiated by Outlanders lest her wrath make oases run dry.
Suteshet, God of the Desert Winds, is patron of outcasts, nomads, the wastelands, scavengers, vengeance and chaos. She is portrayed as either a vulture, or as half-jackal, half-woman. Propitiated in the Lands of the River, and preeminent in the Unwatered Lands, she is said to be the oldest of the gods. It is said that once there was no River, and all the lands were her domain; ever since Satat-Mehet brought the River into being and laid claim to its lands, Suteshet has born her a deep and fierce enmity.
Imunhekau, God of the Moon, is patron of secrets, curiosity, prophecy, change, the night, and the lost. They are portrayed as an androgynous figure crowned with a half moon, or occasionally as more feminine or masculine and crowned with a new or full moon respectively. Most people make offerings to them at times of change and uncertainty in their lives, and they are petitioned by those seeking knowledge or to bring about change, and propitiated by those craving stability. Their priesthood is small, but influential, and attracts many who do not fit society's expectations of gender.
Neferbet, God of Love, is patron of family, community, textiles, beauty, art and music. Portrayed as a beautiful man crowned with water-lilies, or a handsome woman with the horns of a cow. He is considered to be both male and female simultaneously, and worshippers address and portray her according to their own gender; men and women tend to keep separate shrines accordingly. Honoured by all, he is nevertheless often overlooked, her priesthood having little political or overt magical power.
The gods of the afterworld are mostly known only to initiates of the mysteries of the insular mortuary priests, and exert little influence on the living world, but all know of the court of Ma'at, God of Justice, who presides over the judgement of souls in the hereafter. There the ib is weighed against her Feather of Truth, a token of which you now wear.
Then there are the minor gods, whose domains and worship are less widespread. Even as a priest, you cannot name them all, but there are some better-known ones:
Khapret, God of the Earth, is the patron of caves, mining, precious metals, and earthquakes. She is portrayed as a diminutive black-skinned woman with silver hair, or as a giant scarab with a silver crown. She is said to steer the barque that carries Banut through the chthonic river of the underworld, and to provide him with the gold to forge the new sun every morning. She is revered in the Upper Kingdom and the East, and by miners and whitesmiths, but most know her only by her association with Banut.
Shasmu, God of Wine, is the patron of freedom, madness, intoxication, perfume, and incense. He is depicted as a man with the head of a baboon. He has no permanent temples, and is worshipped in secret by the consumption or inhalation of intoxicating substances in enthusiastic1 rites. His cult is frowned upon by civil authorities, but popular with the poor and marginalised.
Urnatet, God of the Harvest, is the patron of provisioning, cooking and logistics. She is portrayed as half-woman, half-cobra. A minor deity whose domain is secondary to Satat-Mehet, she has no priests, but she is worshipped by cooks and civil servants, and occasionally by warriors. There was a small shrine to her in the granary compound.
Shud, God of Luck, is a minor apotropaic deity often featured on amulets. He is portrayed as a young man warding off various dangers, usually unarmed and by unlikely means, or turning threats against each other.
Sarkut, God of Scorpions, is the patron of stealth, subterfuge, poison, and assassination. She is portrayed as half-woman, half scorpion. She has no known priests or temples, but is widely propitiated by those seeking protection from crime or venomous creatures, and secretly worshipped by fugitives, criminals, and politicians.
1 From the Ancient Greek enthousiasmós; "inspired or possessed by [a] god".
{Insufficient Akh: You feel vaguely as if there is something important you're missing, but you can't put your finger on it.}
{Introspection Complete! +1 Invocation for collating your knowledge of the gods.}
Your mind turns fruitlessly.
[ ] Introspection: Where did that armoury on the barque come from? A bow like the one you picked up was at your side when you woke, but the chest held many more things you did not take.
[ ] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[ ] Introspection: The Tax Collector was grand, monstrous, inhuman, with limbs stretched to grasp the heavens with the strength of ten men. Could you do the same? Could you change your visage to be grander? Could you get more arms? You deserve more arms. (Insufficient Sah & Ba)
[ ] Introspection: Write in.
Semat walks stoically beside you up the avenue of columns, until you emerge from your contemplations with a question; "Who was Tjanefer, before all this?"
Eyes fixed on the temple ahead, she replies without looking at you; "He was the high inundation priest of the Delta. Theoretically the most prestigious post in the clergy, though with less political influence out here, away from the city. I think he resented that a little."
You have reached the entrance; towering limestone statues of Satat-Mehet, holding the crooks and flails of rulership and crowned with antelope horns, loom over you on either side. Fountains burble fitfully, water brought up from the delta below by unknown mechanisms.
{Discovery: Success!}
You notice something untoward just before you step past the statues; in the shadows behind them, among the pillars supporting the pediment, are four longer, deeper shadows where more crocodiles lie in wait. A few strides more and you might have walked into an ambush.
What do you do?
[ ] Write in.
Please comment and speculate! I had a lot of fun fleshing out the pantheon and yes, there will be a test later some of this is important to plots.
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
Assuming you can cover all of the crocodiles:
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Walk in close range with the crocodiles and cut them with the Moonlight Blade, then retreat back.
If not:
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
(Summoning the hounds first is another option, but they could get in the way of AoE spells, and in any case would likely spook the crocodiles into advancing, so I'd wait for the next turn for that.)
On more general comments, I like how a lot of darker gods are appeased more than worshipped. A lot of fantasy settings don't really get that when people made offerings to "evil" gods, they mostly asked such gods to avert their gaze and please go do horrible stuff somewhere else.
Likewise, it's nice to see differing opinions on gods based on people's material circumstances. That was, IIRC, an interesting feature of Seth: nomadic people had a more positive view of him since they kinda had to live with the guy. Same for Dionysus, whose cult was suppressed from above and supported from below. That does a lot to ground the gods in their relationship to people, making them a part of a living world.
Also, I recommend Mask of the Sorcerer book by Darrell Schweitzer for its worldbuilding, which is similarly based on ancient Egypt and has its own extensive pantheon. The most prominent god is Surat-Kemad, the crocodile god of death whose teeth are stars in the sky. They slowly descend.
"Honoured by all, he is nevertheless often overlooked, her priesthood having little political or overt magical power."
The Furtive Cowgirl/Flowerboy, so easily forgotten…
Love the god descriptions. Very fun and more real-feeling than the usual depictions, and clarifications about propitiation when you *don't* want them to do things. Wonder if there's an important god there that's been actually forgotten. No one called out as covering the hearth, which might be concerning, but not massively so given that Neferbet is halfway there?
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
The distance seems more beneficial here. If we can retreat after attacking, we could retreat further if we start further, and can use moonlight blade when they converge more on us.
The distance seems more beneficial here. If we can retreat after attacking, we could retreat further if we start further, and can use moonlight blade when they converge more on us.
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
New goal: look for a temple of Neferbet so Benerib can be inspired to write the world's thirstiest love poem for Rekhet.
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
Love the god descriptions. Very fun and more real-feeling than the usual depictions, and clarifications about propitiation when you *don't* want them to do things. Wonder if there's an important god there that's been actually forgotten. No one called out as covering the hearth, which might be concerning, but not massively so given that Neferbet is halfway there?
This list is not intended to be totally exhaustive, but also not all possible domains are actually covered. (There are reasons for this, which you may discover.)
No-one holds a domain of the hearth specifically; in some regions there are hearth-shrines dedicated to Neferbet where the hearth is the centre of family life, in others to Banut as the god of fire and light.
Right, sorry; the crocodiles are in pairs, two either side of the entrance. You could hit at most 2 (the left or right pair) with either of the spells proposed.
Right, sorry; the crocodiles are in pairs, two either side of the entrance. You could hit at most 2 (the left or right pair) with either of the spells proposed.
[x] Introspection: Where did that armoury on the barque come from? A bow like the one you picked up was at your side when you woke, but the chest held many more things you did not take.
[x] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
[X] Introspection: How did the Fall of the Old Kingdom play out? What lessons might you take from the ending of that world, if you can discern them through the mists of time?
[X] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
Loving the worldbuilding in this! You've really constructed a fascinating pantheon here, and you've done it in a way that mirrors real-world polytheism quite nicely! Excited to learn more, but first, combat encounter!
[x] Quietly point out the crocodiles to Semat. Get to the medium range of the crocodiles and strike as many as you can with Rain of Stars.
You hold out your hand to halt and point to the lurking shapes. With gestures and low voices, the two of you withdraw quietly down the steps, confer a moment, and circle right; from the low ground you cannot see the lurking crocodiles, but you mark the space between the statue and the pillar where you saw them, and speak the words of power that will call down the stars upon that point. Beside you, Semat also begins to chant a prayer, but you block out her words to focus on your own.
Blue-white shards rain down, angled under the pediment, bursting upon the stone in showers of sparks. A moment later, two crocodiles come lumbering into view with all the deceptive speed they display on land. As they reach the steps of the temple platform, Semat raps her spear butt against the ground and lunges at midair; a giant, ghostly asp springs from the haft across the intervening space and sinks phantom fangs into one of the crocodiles as it slides down the steps, before fading away. They keep coming, jaws opening to lunge as they surge forwards.
Semat braces for the lunge, shield held out ahead, spear raised for an overhand strike. What do you do?
[ ] Write in an Action (cast spell, weapon attack, full defence, sprint, etc.), a Reaction (block, dodge, parry/counterattack), and any movement you want to make. The temple steps and the first pair of approaching crocodiles are at Short range. Up the steps, below your sightline over the edge of the raised platform, you can hear the second pair lumbering along at Medium range.
There is broken ground at Short Range behind you and to your right, where the flat hilltop gives way to a rocky slope. To your left is the colonnade at Medium range. Character Sheet
The little snake status effect on the second crocodile indicates it's going to take poison damage again at the end of the next round. Serpent's Kiss does a good amount of AP poison damage, but half of it is delayed a round. Where possible I'll denote ongoing effects with a little icon this way, like the moon I used for Silver Aten; I hope these display properly for everyone, let me know if they're not readable enough!
Semat is also benefiting from some experience here; she's fought these recently and has a good sense for their moves and health. She's rolled well and looks confident of stopping the one she's squaring up for.
Also, some info about defence modes, now that you have more options; different enemy attacks have different full/partial/miss results for different defence reactions. The biggest differences tend to be on the partials; shields are particularly good at stopping projectiles for example, and tend to take less glancing hit damage, but are more likely to take Stagger blocking heavy hits (though high Poise can in turn mitigate this). Parrying is a high-risk, high-reward melee move, which is more likely to take full damage on partials and glancing hits on full success, but may deal counterattack damage.
Basically, I've put a lot of work into designing fights so that sometimes you can benefit from switching up your defensive tactics even if the Skill numbers look like one is strictly-better. You'll have to learn from intuition and experience what works better where, but unless you become a lot more specialised, developing a sense for this will reward you. These sacred crocodiles specifically won't have particularly dramatic differences, but there's still some nuance.
You're not, but temple water features like the fountain you passed do count. The hounds will get their enmity rerolls against most anything here but if you run into more fountains and things they're gonna have problems.
