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Okay, so not so serious question, but I have perfected this Shabti character, and still one question is debated around the table over and over again... Does she have a belly button?
The only reason why this is even a relevant question at all is that my character is a dancer, and can be caught in clothes where she has a bare midriff. The debate:
1) Shabti's are created, not born, so she shouldn't have one.
2) Shabti's look like perfected humanoids, humanoids have bellybuttons. Shabti therefore have bellybuttons.
3) But they're not humanoids.
4) But they look like it.
5) ...Is it really that big of a deal this late in the game? No one is looking at her belly button with a figure like that and a charisma score of 20+...
So now I formulate the question to the Pathfinder population, and also, while on the subject... Can Shabti reproduce? and if so, are their children mortal and take after the other parent?
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The process by which they are created might involve an umbilical cord---you grow a Shabti, you don't *poof* one into existence, right? So that makes them created humanoids with navels. Paradox resolved :-)
I would guess they can't reproduce, but <shrug> as you like it, really.
But they are "Created" and "built" from shards of mortal souls, in the form of the mortal who created them. And they are gold statues in the material world.
Also, for people obsessed with anatomy, the Egyptians didn't give Shabti belly buttons.
I like the debate though.
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I'd say it varies from shabti to shabti based on the preferences of their creator. Obviously the bit that fools divine judgement isn't their physical resemblance to the creator, as they're described as "idealized humans", so I think it depends if the creator thought a bellybutton was a feature worth including.
I'd say it varies from shabti to shabti based on the preferences of their creator. Obviously the bit that fools divine judgement isn't their physical resemblance to the creator, as they're described as "idealized humans", so I think it depends if the creator thought a bellybutton was a feature worth including.
This is also my view on things, with the addendum that its up to whether or not the creator thought that bellybuttons were cool. If someone really hates belly buttons, they probably won't add one to their facsimile.
The shabti's model doesn't have to know exactly how the pancreas or the liver work in order to create them, so there must be some part of making them into living beings which is automatic, filling in details which the death-obsessed noble doesn't have any idea about. This should include functioning reproductive organs IMO and probably a belly button too if it works by copying the original.
"Shabti typically look like idealized humans with perfect physiques and flawless features." The way the human mind works regarding abnormality, to (presumably) most people, missing belly buttons look weird (as our brain says "there's something wrong here"). That means a "perfect physiques" should definitely feature one.
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I'm not even sure what a tengu/dragon/mutant weredragonfly wereankylosaurus merfolk would look like... so...
*Back at Shabti Builder headquarters...*
"We have a custom order coming in! It's a doozy!"
"Is it supposed to catch on fire like that?"
"Boss! I don't think we have a mold that can handle this!"
*Boss reads order* "Ah, give up. Just use the human model, carve some scales and wings on it, call it good."
"...Don't you think Pharasma will notice?"
"Not my problem."
~~
My character's creator was an elf, presumably, but the only thing different between humans and elves are their size (which shabti have their own) and those gosh darned ears! ...Which my character has, but hides beneath her hair. But we went with the creator being very vain, so my shabti looks almost exactly like her, plus the shabti-ness.
The shabti's model doesn't have to know exactly how the pancreas or the liver work in order to create them, so there must be some part of making them into living beings which is automatic, filling in details which the death-obsessed noble doesn't have any idea about. This should include functioning reproductive organs IMO and probably a belly button too if it works by copying the original.
Not necessarily. I would imagine that the key to a shabti is that is SOUL looks identical- the body is just a medium that houses that soul.
it is possible that the body is just the bare minimum needed to make a soul that looks similar. So it could, potentially, just be a mass of nonspecific flesh on a skeleton- no organs or particularized parts- just generic 'meat'. It is made to be a sacrifice, not an actualized, fully functional creature.
This 'cut corners' method might be particularly true if the shabti was made in a hurry- a dying noble that was in a rush not to meet the loan collection agents of hell. So I could see shabti that had the face and basic muscles right... but he was actually more of a 'ken doll' that is completely smooth outside of the places that could be spotted while clothed (this would fit in with the monster description which lists them as sterile).
I won't say that a shabti 'should' be played with these assumptions... but I find that this would be a valid interpretation of the race. This could be a strain born from "Honest Joes' Discount Afterlife Insurance Emporium!"
They are not even depicted as having irises/pupils, so not having a belly-button is pretty easy to accept.
Pyramids of the Sky Pharaoh adds more information :
Most shabti have golden skin that feels cool but not metallic, which is regularly accented by gemstone veins, nails, or other embellishments. Some have skin tones more similar to jade, ivory, or ebony. Apart from their distinctive colorations, shabti have anatomies similar to humans. However, all shabti are sterile, preventing the race from propagating naturally. As such, childlike shabti are exceedingly rare.
They are noticeably similar to their copied masters but are definitely not the same as them. Whether they have a belly-button is, as said before, up to you. I would note that Shabtis look similar like humans even if the master was not, so exact copies really are out of the window ...
Based on this new information, I am more inclined to believe that pathfinder intended to stay as close to the Egyptian lore as possible, So here is my final conclusion:
The Shabti statue/figurine is basically the Shabti's future body. So the details and effects and likeness of the figurine, that is what defines the Shabti's look. So agreeing with if it was made in haste, it may not have any likeness physically to the creator. It may also not have as many decorative gemstones.
However, there can be much detail put into these figures, as Egyptians are known for, so this can vary. Depending on how meticulous or vain or artistic a creator was.
Sure, they have belly buttons. How many depends on how many they collect from their kills.
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On a more serious note, a belly button is a scar left over from birth. Having a "perfect" body means they would have no scars, and thus no belly button.
/cevah
If shabti didn't have belly buttons, how would you do body shots off them? This is important in the afterlife!
If shabti didn't have belly buttons, how would you do body shots off them? This is important in the afterlife!
Well, shabti are made by people who are afraid of what afterlife they will be sent to- so for the most part, they are sent to the parts of the afterlife that are devoid of body shots. Truly, a fate worse than death.