Pathfinder Companion: Osirion, Land of Pharaohs (OGL)

My suggestion is to save your money! In this economy this is ten dollars that should be better spent on some really good beer.

This line suggests to me why it's still pretty good value, even with some parts not being what I might have wanted (and with traits missing). It's easily worth the equivalent amount of really good beer it would buy. Although I'll buy the beer as well.

As for the Prestige Class, this is 3.x, after all. I actually quite like a region-flavourful PrC and this one, although looking like the Thing, looked fine on first glance.

Masika wrote:

I was expecting something a little different.

What were you expecting?

Hey Vic. I don't know if my comments will help (I've also shared them with James Jacobs in the Tuesday chat), but here you are.

I really like the Elf-themed Companion. I felt like it just had alot more to offer players. The Osirion stuff was good (don't get me wrong), but the fluff-factor felt much higher. The cruch, however, just didn't grab me for whatever reason.

I also found the exclusion of traits hard to swallow. If you're a player, I think the traits provide a very flavorful way of setting up a character's personality. Osirion, being one of the more interesting areas of Golarion that's been explored so far, should have had a strong set of regional traits. Frankly, I was really looking forward to reading what traits you guys had come up. The fact there were none was kind of a let-down.

Overall, I enjoyed the issue, just not as much as I have the previous two.

-Skeld

On pages 16-21 is the description of the city of Sothis. I can't say anything good about it as Paizo didn't see fit to include a map of the city!

Wow. No city map? That's a tremendous flaw AFAIC. Guarantees a no-buy from me.

I am a little disappointed with some of the grammar on the first page.

1st paragraph, 1st sentence:
"A nation of prideful people who till the current century chafed under the yoke of foreign rule...." {should be until, not till}

Actually, "till" is a totally valid synonym for "until," and was the root word from which "until" sprang - reference can be found here.

To everyone else: Osirion was an experiment to see how much folks liked traits, and the answer appears to be "a lot." Therefore, going forward, the plan is for all Pathfinder Companions to contain traits. We're also looking at revising the Persona section to make it more varied and useful, and you can expect to see more maps in future volumes.

Thanks for the feedback!

The lack of traits were the only bummer for me, but it did have feats. Traits are just a "+1" bonus or one orison/cantrip type deal that can be done 1 time/ day with some story flavor as to why, and I can always craft my own, so I was getting used to lack of trait love. That traits will be addressed in the future stemming from the feedback does delight me, though.

The lack of a city map didn't phase me. From the text and the artwork shown in other supplements of the capitol are enough. I've never needed the city map for myself or players as the main crux for gaming. If an adventure is set somewhere, having a battle scene mapped out on a battle mat is my only concern.

I took the supplement as intended, as a brief visual and textual immersion of Osirion, and it was enjoyable to read. I'm not a fan of Egypt in fantasy, but the twists to make it Golarion made it interesting enough. I was surprised about the lack of feline elements, but I understand that this is not meant to be a cookie-cutter of Ancient Egypt either. . . just enough to warrant mummies and the like in the game.

The lack of traits were the only bummer for me, but it did have feats.

Agreed. For some reason, traits "feel" different to me than feats do. I'm not sure why, but I've grown quite fond of them. Since they allow another level of customization, but reflect very little real benefit, I had thought about granting traits at non-feat levels (meaning those levels when feats are granted based on character level).

The lack of a city map didn't phase me.

Honestly, until people starting talking about the lack of a Sothis map, I hadn't even noticed there wasn't one. I generally consider maps to be a GMs purview and since Companion is a player resource, I wouldn't expect to see much in the way of maps.

-Skeld

Okay, well here's by question to the powers that be: what is the "crunch" of the three new deities, Apep, Wadjet, and Khepri? As in, alignment, favored weapon, domain? I personally love Khepri, and kinda want to make an NPC cleric of the little guy for my campaign.

Khepri? Someone must be a fan of China Mieville. Does this deity have the body of a human with a giant scarab beetle for a head?

Khepri? Someone must be a fan of China Mieville. Does this deity have the body of a human with a giant scarab beetle for a head?

Yes to the latter but no to the former. As in, while I've heard of the name China Mieville, about all I know is that he/she is an author who writes creepy stuff. I pulled the name from a book about Egyptian mythology.

Yes to the latter but no to the former. As in, while I've heard of the name China Mieville, about all I know is that he/she is an author who writes creepy stuff. I pulled the name from a book about Egyptian mythology.

Ah, that's really interesting, you and he must have the same sources. Mieville is a sociologist who wrote a book called Perdido Street Station, a major theme of which was race relations between humans and several demihuman races in a steampunk/industrial revolution style city. One of his races is called the khepri, females of which have human bodies and scarab beetles for heads (the males are just large beetles lacking sentience).

I'd recommend the book heavily to anyone interested in world and culture building for an RPG, but it looks like you've already found similar sources for inspiration!

Okay, well here's by question to the powers that be: what is the "crunch" of the three new deities, Apep, Wadjet, and Khepri? As in, alignment, favored weapon, domain? I personally love Khepri, and kinda want to make an NPC cleric of the little guy for my campaign.

That was left intentionally vague, in part because the spread for "religion in Osirion" was only like 1500 words, but also because it was left open-ended whether these were even real deities or not. They were ancient mystery cults, sure, but was there actual divine magic involved? Maybe, maybe not.

If you wanted to make them deities, I would probably have made them demigods, with the following notes:

Wadjet - LG - Wisdom, knowledge, history, rulership, marshes

Domains: Knowledge, Law, Nobility, Protection, Water
Favored Weapon: punching dagger

Apep - CE - Destruction, darkness, rivers,

Domains: Chaos, Darkness, Destruction, Strength, Water
Favored Weapon: morningstar

Khepri - CG - Peasants, hard work, endurance

Domains: Animal, Chaos, Liberation, Luck, Trickery
Favored Weapon: handaxe

Hope this helps.

That was left intentionally vague, in part because the spread for "religion in Osirion" was only like 1500 words, but also because it was left open-ended whether these were even real deities or not. They were ancient mystery cults, sure, but was there actual divine magic involved? Maybe, maybe not.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, that does indeed help.

Yes to the latter but no to the former. As in, while I've heard of the name China Mieville, about all I know is that he/she is an author who writes creepy stuff. I pulled the name from a book about Egyptian mythology.

Jason. Go read Perdido Street Station now. Follow up with The Scar, and eventually read his short story collection Looking for Jake. Awesome -awesome- stuff.

You might also try the issue of Dragon that I almost completely devoted to his work.

You might also try the issue of Dragon that I almost completely devoted to his work.

If that's one of the issues lying around in those boxes in the back hallway, I'll pick one up next time I'm over there. :)

Jason Nelson wrote:

That was left intentionally vague, in part because the spread for "religion in Osirion" was only like 1500 words, but also because it was left open-ended whether these were even real deities or not. They were ancient mystery cults, sure, but was there actual divine magic involved? Maybe, maybe not.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, that does indeed help.

Happy to oblige.

One thing about Khepri as I thought on it a bit more:

I might almost do one of the two things:

1. Stipulate that Khepri's spells from the Animal domain work on vermin.

or

2. Replace Animal with Community.

True, Community is an unusual domain for a chaotic deity, but he's not into chaos = anarchy so much as chaos = freedom of the spirit and not lettin THE MAN get you down. In a way, Khepri is more about getting the "little people" in society together to make it through under the heel of oppression, and Community would probably be a better fit than an Animal domain that wouldn't include bugs.

Just a thought.

You might also try the issue of Dragon that I almost completely devoted to his work.

Issue 352, to be exact.

On the topic of the map for Sothis, while I was disappointed, it wasn't something the irked me overall. I am curious though, do you folks at Paizo intend to release a map of the city at some point? If so, I'll spend my time mapping something other than Sothis. If not, then I may begin that as my next little project.

On the topic of the map for Sothis, while I was disappointed, it wasn't something the irked me overall. I am curious though, do you folks at Paizo intend to release a map of the city at some point? If so, I'll spend my time mapping something other than Sothis. If not, then I may begin that as my next little project.

Yeah, kinda hard to drop a map you've worked all week on when someone comes to the game with an "official" one. =P

So as for the lack of a map of the city of Sothis in the book...

Going forward, including maps of cities and regions is very much going to be an important part of the Pathfinder Companion line, and I'm hoping to be able to include appropriate maps for all of them. That often someone who's a great writer can't really do a great map turnover is no excuse for us not putting a map into a product that needs a map—and so I've been doing some brainstorming and policy changes at the production end of things to ensure that in future books... we won't have "missing maps." There'll be a player's handout style map of Katapesh in the Legacy of Fire Player's Guide (and a DM style map of the same in Dark Markets and Pathfinder #21). The Taldor player's guide will have a regional map and a city map. And so on.

That obviously doesn't help Osirion or Sothis, though, since THAT product's already done and for sale.

However, we do have some products we're looking at doing for later in 2009 were, hopefully, we'll have a chance not only to produce a map of Sothis, but also a big map of Absaom even! No promises yet... but we ARE hoping to get a map of Sothis, at the very least, in print by the end of the year.

Which leads into the topic of my next post pretty well...

One thing that I'm going to be doing to help us get better city maps in the near future is to open that up to the public. Just as we sometimes do open calls for adventures, scenarios, or articles in Pathfinder, I'm considering doing an open call for map turnovers.

A "map turnover" is not a finished map. We'll still be using professional cartographers like Robert Lazzarett to do the maps you see in print in a Paizo product. But Rob isn't the one who actually MAKES those maps; he takes a "rough draft" of a map from an author and, just as we shape raw words into the final text that sees print, he shapes that rough draft map into the incredible maps you see in Pathfinder products.

But unfortunately, not everyone who's a great writer is also a great mapper.

The exact details are still being worked out, and when those details ARE worked out, I'll probably post something on the blog (very soon), but if you like drawing maps and would like to help Paizo get some great city maps in print, you'll want to pay attention to the blog in the days to come.

The exact details are still being worked out, and when those details ARE worked out, I'll probably post something on the blog (very soon), but if you like drawing maps and would like to help Paizo get some great city maps in print, you'll want to pay attention to the blog in the days to come.

So its pretty much Map Designing? I thought you needed both the designer and the Map maker. Any chance to do both? :)

James Jacobs wrote:

The exact details are still being worked out, and when those details ARE worked out, I'll probably post something on the blog (very soon), but if you like drawing maps and would like to help Paizo get some great city maps in print, you'll want to pay attention to the blog in the days to come.

So its pretty much Map Designing? I thought you needed both the designer and the Map maker. Any chance to do both? :)

We absolutely love it when a designer can do an awesome text turn over AND turn over excellent maps. But we already have a few things in place for designers to show off with (RPG Superstar and the Pathfinder Society Scenarios)... what I'm talking about would be more about just the map.

[

Actually, I found the stats of the Pharaoh to be pretty darn interesting, as a lot of his abilities/items were focused on RULING rather than just being a high-level badass. Just because PCs are unlikely to fight the guy doesn't mean they won't interact with him, and it's very helpful to have some mechanical pointers as to what preparations he has in the hamper - information that's rather uncommon in a lot of supplements, in my experience. In any event, I found the stats to be a lot more useful than "some random dude the PCs are likely to interact with in the market" or "yet another BBEG" that most DMs could build in their sleep.

What he said. Having the Pharaoh stats is proving to be very valuable in my current campaign.

We absolutely love it when a designer can do an awesome text turn over AND turn over excellent maps. But we already have a few things in place for designers to show off with (RPG Superstar and the Pathfinder Society Scenarios)... what I'm talking about would be more about just the map.

Oh! heh... then its just the map as I thought. What I meant with designer was map designer. Sorry about that! Two paizochats ago you talked about this and I thought you were looking for cartographers like Rob, I didn't knew you were looking for map designers as well (which is great!). Looking forward for that blog!

That obviously doesn't help Osirion or Sothis, though, since THAT product's already done and for sale.

There's a way around this. Have the first "map turnover" be Sothis.

But unfortunately, not everyone who's a great writer is also a great mapper.

I claim no art ability for the maps I submitted for The Great Beyond, but having seen them, I'd call out McComb's "map turnover" for the Vault of Souls module as damn sweet. Something to set the bar by for anything I do in the future (in all fairness, I didn't design any of the maps in the Osirion book). :)

One thing that I'm going to be doing to help us get better city maps in the near future is to open that up to the public. Just as we sometimes do open calls for adventures, scenarios, or articles in Pathfinder, I'm considering doing an open call for map turnovers.

A "map turnover" is not a finished map. We'll still be using professional cartographers like Robert Lazzarett to do the maps you see in print in a Paizo product. But Rob isn't the one who actually MAKES those maps; he takes a "rough draft" of a map from an author and, just as we shape raw words into the final text that sees print, he shapes that rough draft map into the incredible maps you see in Pathfinder products.

But unfortunately, not everyone who's a great writer is also a great mapper.

The exact details are still being worked out, and when those details ARE worked out, I'll probably post something on the blog (very soon), but if you like drawing maps and would like to help Paizo get some great city maps in print, you'll want to pay attention to the blog in the days to come.

Well, I think I'll definitely be submitting for this open call. I'm not a great artist, but for some reason I can draw decent maps, probably because I enjoy doing them. One thing I always look forward to with each RPG product I pick up (especially with you folks from Paizo)are the maps. It helps bring the world to life for me. I'm stoked to hear that Sothis will get a map. It sees like such a fantastic city and I can't wait to see the lay out for Sothis.

James Jacobs wrote:

That obviously doesn't help Osirion or Sothis, though, since THAT product's already done and for sale.

There's a way around this. Have the first "map turnover" be Sothis.

--Ray.

Maybe that map will get into something like the Pathfinder Chronicles Map Folio or Gazeteer? I could see a Map Folio 2.

The tomb legion spell "...functions like shambler, except that it calls into existence 1d4+2 mummies rather than shambling mounds."

Shambler "...creates 1d4+2 shambling mounds with 11 HD each."

This implies to me that the mummies created by tomb legion should have 11 HD each. Is that the intent?

I did a map of Sothis last year. If anyone wants to use it during the interim: here it is. Please tell me if this is not ok paizo dudes.

It's layered, so you can turn the labels on and off in acrobat... Well, I can. Let me know if you guys can't.

Here's a screenshot of it with the layers menu opened so you know what you're d/ling.

About the map:

I did a map of Sothis last year. If anyone wants to use it during the interim: here it is. Please tell me if this is not ok paizo dudes.

It's layered, so you can turn the labels on and off in acrobat... Well, I can. Let me know if you guys can't.

Here's a screenshot of it with the layers menu opened so you know what you're d/ling.

About the map:** spoiler omitted **

That's a sharp looking map Kruelaid. What programs do you use?

The tomb legion spell "...functions like shambler, except that it calls into existence 1d4+2 mummies rather than shambling mounds."

Shambler "...creates 1d4+2 shambling mounds with 11 HD each."

This implies to me that the mummies created by tomb legion should have 11 HD each. Is that the intent?

Good catch! Shambler is a level 9 spell and summons 11 hd monsters (+4 HD means +1 CR for plants and undead, so it would be just below being a higher CR, normal shambling mounds being 8 hd and CR 6.)

Tomb legion is level 8 and summons mummies. Standard mummies are CR 5 at 8 hd, so one spell level less equaling one CR less here. So, yes, I would see it that way that the spell summons 11 hd mummies.

It is odd anyways that a summon spell summons creatures that are a little better than average versions but not a higher CR - the design idea behind that would be interesting. Normal summoning spells summon average creatures.

Any comments from the editors?

Stefan

Kruelaid wrote:

I did a map of Sothis last year. If anyone wants to use it during the interim: here it is. Please tell me if this is not ok paizo dudes.

It's layered, so you can turn the labels on and off in acrobat... Well, I can. Let me know if you guys can't.

Here's a screenshot of it with the layers menu opened so you know what you're d/ling.

About the map:** spoiler omitted **

That's a sharp looking map Kruelaid. What programs do you use?

Illustrator to do the graphics. Photoshop to turns the vector graphics to bitmaps. Indesign to make the layered pdf.

Any comments from the editors?

The thing to remember here is that summon spells put monsters to work in entirely different ways than the game generally expects. Put another way... HD for HD, a mummy's a better creature to have on your side against monsters than a shambling mound. A shambling mound is a heavy hitter that's REALLY pretty rough against creatures it can engulf, and it's got some good defenses. It's not as good against foes who are its own size or larger since it can't grab them as well.

The mummy, on the other hand, while a weaker foe HD-wise, has a few powers that are VERY handy. It's VERY tough to damage, and its mere presence can paralyze a LOT of enemies. It can also do a pretty hideous disease attack that works against foes of any size.

Put simply, in the hands of a PC, a mummy is generally more useful in most combat situations than a shambling mound.

The mummies summoned by tomb legion have normal HD... and the spell's still pretty good and, I'd say, pretty close to power to shambler. Except, of course, against fire creatures... since mummies have a pretty commonly used weakness, that's a big reason the tomb legion spell's a level lower, even though 8 HD mummies are probably more useful than 11 HD shambling mounds.

The tomb legion spell "...functions like shambler, except that it calls into existence 1d4+2 mummies rather than shambling mounds."

Shambler "...creates 1d4+2 shambling mounds with 11 HD each."

This implies to me that the mummies created by tomb legion should have 11 HD each. Is that the intent?

Good question, and a reasonable interpretation that I wouldn't fight too hard about - after all, both SM's and mummies normally have 8 HD, so if one bumps them up to 11 HD, then it's not a far stretch to have both work the same.

If you're asking for my intent in writing the spell, though, the answer is no, it's supposed to call regular mummies. A regualr mummy is CR 5 and a regular shambling mound is CR 6, so the spell is a level lower.

HOWEVER, you bring up a good point, in that shambler doesn't call up regular SM's, but super-SMs with 3 extra hit dice (so they SHOULD be CR 7, even though technically they'd have to be 12 HD to get a CR bump).

The easiest answer, if you are trying to calibrate the spells, could be to move tomb legion down to 7th level, but then you wonder if it's not now way better than create undead, which to make a mummy requires you to be 15th level and to spend 400 gp per mummy. True, the mummy is a real monster, not temporary, but that's a pretty thin difference vs. a spell that can make mummies that last for months at a time, and create a gaggle of them instead of just one.

So, to answer your question, 1d4+2 regular mummies was the intention.

I think it's probably fine as an 8th level spell, since it is much more widely available than shambler - if you accept the idea that it's okay for rarer effects to be a little bit more powerful, then you can be okay with shambler being a bit better for its level than tomb legion, if only because the only people who can cast it are 17th level druids and Plant-domain clerics, vs. all 15th level clerics and wizards.

Stebehil wrote:

Any comments from the editors?

The thing to remember here is that summon spells put monsters to work in entirely different ways than the game generally expects. Put another way... HD for HD, a mummy's a better creature to have on your side against monsters than a shambling mound. A shambling mound is a heavy hitter that's REALLY pretty rough against creatures it can engulf, and it's got some good defenses. It's not as good against foes who are its own size or larger since it can't grab them as well.

The mummy, on the other hand, while a weaker foe HD-wise, has a few powers that are VERY handy. It's VERY tough to damage, and its mere presence can paralyze a LOT of enemies. It can also do a pretty hideous disease attack that works against foes of any size.

Put simply, in the hands of a PC, a mummy is generally more useful in most combat situations than a shambling mound.

The mummies summoned by tomb legion have normal HD... and the spell's still pretty good and, I'd say, pretty close to power to shambler. Except, of course, against fire creatures... since mummies have a pretty commonly used weakness, that's a big reason the tomb legion spell's a level lower, even though 8 HD mummies are probably more useful than 11 HD shambling mounds.

The area-effect paralysis is really a killer, because it is on ALL THE TIME.

The bigger thing, though to remember is that mummies aren't as good as SMs against PC parties because most PC parties have access to:

1. Fire
2. Turn/control undead

While the SMs don't have an exploitable weakness like that, it's irrelevant because most monsters PCs will fight don't have those tools to exploit the mummy's weaknesses.

It's like shambling mounds have bullet-proof vests and mummies don't, but only PCs (and a few NPCs) have guns. When your weapon is a club, the bullet-proof vest or lack of it doesn't matter much.

One other spell note, since you made me to look up tomb legion, is the spell right next to it, spectral saluqi. The original turnover for it was for a statted up dog with the ghost template. The spell as written is much simpler, but I wonder if it's not underpowered for level. In essence, it's a 6th level spell that works as a long-lasting summon monster IV (yeth hound only). Is the bump in duration from 1 rd/lvl to 10 min/lvl, the immunity to its bay (as an 11th level wizard, your save vs. the DC 13 fear effect is almost automatic anyway), and the ability of the dog to attack ethereals enough to warrant a 2-level increase in spell level? Maybe. I suppose if you could use it as a flying mount it might be worth it.

I like most of the simplified mechanics of the spell, but I would probably make the dog incorporeal (which means you can't ride on it, of course). After all, the spell is "Target one ghost dog" - it's a dog all right, but make it ghostly! An incorporeal yeth hound with a ghost touch bite, now that's what I'm talkin about!

But, that is why there are editors, before whose great wisdom I bow... :)

This implies to me that the mummies created by tomb legion should have 11 HD each. Is that the intent?

I think the standard mummies are fine. Summoning spells aren't based directly on the creature's HD (which is merely a measure of physical power) or CR (which measures how much of a challenge one is against a party of PCs), but on how [b]useful[/i] the creature is.

As for the spectral saluqi spell, I'm at home and don't have access to the design turnover or the printed version. But as the developer, I'm sure I had a well-though-out reason for changing it. ;)

Thank you for the review, though I'm disappointed that you didn't enjoy it more. Good or bad, I really do appreciate the feedback.

Hi Todd (and everyone else who has posted since my review),

Sorry to take so long to tell you what I was expecting. I was looking for someting like the Savage Tidings, Beyond Sasserine (Dragon #349, p74-76, 78-80) with some addition PC information (PrC, feats, new spells). None of the areas are completely fleshed out but all of them have a short paragraph that provides a description and hook. It's a great article. A good DM could keep the PCs running in circles with red herrings for many a session with that one.

As for locations on the map that aren't fully described in the text, there are two reasons for that:

1) I had a word limit....

2) I've always enjoyed when maps contain more locations than those fully fleshed out and detailed...

It's ok to have areas on the map that aren't described but make them areas that the DM would flesh out on their own (e.g. Pyramid of Doom is ok to ignore but leaving out a description of local mountain ranges, deserts, and customs is not). As for the word count, try doing more with less. It will make the player's minds go wild about what isn't said and give the DMs enough of a hook that they can make an adventure out of it themselves. Also remember that it's a product for the PCs so, if they are locals, they would know something about the local geography and customs.

Another way to say it is, if it is reasonable for the PCs to know about it, write something about it. Cut everything else to get the essential text in the product. That's really all you have to do with a companion product. :)

--Ray.

Going forward,

and lots of cool stuff.

This may mark me out as demented but... Going forward is what self-regarding businessmen/politicians with big egos and weak literacy say when they mean; "In the future," please dont' be like them James, I love Paizo too much, it'd break my heart.

On a related note, also stick with 'instinctive' and not the clumsy neologism 'instinctual'.

Wow, my first Paizo rant, may it also be the last!

Kruelaid wrote:

I did a map of Sothis last year. If anyone wants to use it during the interim: here it is. Please tell me if this is not ok paizo dudes.

It's layered, so you can turn the labels on and off in acrobat... Well, I can. Let me know if you guys can't.

Here's a screenshot of it with the layers menu opened so you know what you're d/ling.

About the map:** spoiler omitted **

That's a sharp looking map Kruelaid. What programs do you use?

QFT. I love the map Kruelaid.

I liked in the Taldor book they talked about the armies. I find that helps a lot with the country when it comes to describing the guards and for when PC's are from that country. Especially fighters and their ilk.

So while I hope all the future ones get that same treatment, is there any chance someone from paizo could give us a overall of Osirion military. Along the lines of Taldor.

I just purchased this as a PDF as well as Green Ronin's Egyptian Adventures, as I am currently running a Pathfinder campaign in a vaguely Egyptian/Mesopotamian setting.

I was sorely disappointed in OSIRION. There is a typo in the opening paragraph! Lax copy editing aside, although the art is decent, the content is BLAND and BORING.

Comparatively,the Green Ronin sourcebook is packed with imaginative ideas. It is also very well written and I've yet to find a single typo!

I was sorely disappointed in OSIRION. There is a typo in the opening paragraph!

If you're looking at the use of "till" in the first line, while it isn't the most common use of the word (as a preposition), it's distinctly not a typo, and it is in fact correct grammar. If you're not a native English speaker, I apologize for sometimes using non-standard, archaic, or obscure words.

the content is BLAND and BORING.

I'm sorry that you didn't like it! Would you mind sharing what about it didn't work for you? What content you would have wanted versus what was there? Do keep in mind that this was one of the early Companion books, and the format wasn't as defined as in future books for what topics were to be covered in the available space, content focus, etc. I'd like to hear your thoughts on the matter.

I liked in the Taldor book they talked about the armies. I find that helps a lot with the country when it comes to describing the guards and for when PC's are from that country. Especially fighters and their ilk.

So while I hope all the future ones get that same treatment, is there any chance someone from paizo could give us a overall of Osirion military. Along the lines of Taldor.

Hmm, as it'll be a little while before I can get the book covering Taldor, I'd like to know: what does it have to say about Taldoran armies> I'm guessing the whole feel is very Byzantine, with things like heavily-armored cataphract horse archers, hired mercenaries from all over, and rough at the edges akritoi border guards.

[casts thread necromancy]
I looked here and on the Wiki and I couldn't find out why Khemet III is the Ruby Prince, and not the Ruby Pharaoh. Why is this? Does he have an older brother? Is he too young to be crowned? Is his dad still alive/undead?
...weird it's taken me this long to wonder about this.

[casts thread necromancy]

I looked here and on the Wiki and I couldn't find out why Khemet III is the Ruby Prince, and not the Ruby Pharaoh. Why is this? Does he have an older brother? Is he too young to be crowned? Is his dad still alive/undead?
...weird it's taken me this long to wonder about this.

Not a native speaker here, but I think he is the Ruby "Prince" as in "= Ruler of a nation" (-> Prince of Wales), not as in "= son of a sovereign". See also: Grand Prince Stavian III, emperor (!) of Taldor.

[casts thread necromancy]

I looked here and on the Wiki and I couldn't find out why Khemet III is the Ruby Prince, and not the Ruby Pharaoh. Why is this? Does he have an older brother? Is he too young to be crowned? Is his dad still alive/undead?
...weird it's taken me this long to wonder about this.

Alright ... so ... I am not sure if this is Thread Necromancy once again, or if since it's the thread for the product itself, it's not frowned upon, but ...

Seriously. The book is called "Land of the Pharoahs". Why isn't he the Pharoah? Am I missing a detail somewhere in the book that explains it? Because I am admittedly clueless.

"Help me, Obi Wan! You're our only hope!"

But ... he is the ruling pharao, just as Grand Prince Stavian III is the ruling emperor of Taldor (and Charles is the Prince of Wales as sovereign over this county, not as son of Queen Elizabeth). "The Ruby Prince" is something like a titular name, just as his father was the Crocodile King.

Edit: I just scrolled up and saw that I just answered a post before. But it's true none the less.