So, I'm running a high-level temple delve in Osirion. I'm using Entombed by the Pharaohs and Pact Stone Pyramid, leveling them up for a party about 15th level.
What I'm looking for, though, is for ways to make the SETTING memorable. Does anyone have any advice for making the land, its people, and its history come alive for players?
Use real necromancy on actual ancient Egyptians.
Read in the books about Osirian daily life and get a feeling for what 24 hours in Osirion must look like. When do people get up? what times do they work at? What kind of foods do they eat? What past-times do they have, like sports and theatre? How do they greet one another?
If you write down a nice list of such things and have every NPC stick to these things, the players will ease into it and take over these things.
Pathfinder "City of the Fallen Sky" [good read, not bad chronicle]
Pages 176 - 194 describe Osiris and a trip up the Sphinx river - STEAL!!
Cool. Which AP# is that in?
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Short on time, but:
If I had to recommend any game resources besides the Osirion player's companion, it would be the Hamunaptra boxed set, which was on sale here for about five bucks before selling out. If you can find it, grab it! It's probably the most fleshed out and rich "fantasy Egypts" out there.
Personally, I'd focus on everything but the pyramids and mummies, which tend to overwhelm and overshadow most of what ancient Egypt and its fantasy analogues have to offer. You might want to consider a spiritual set of rules similar to Ma'at that Osirioni folk expect themselves to adhere to, from the Pharaoh all the way to the lowest slaves. Having a somewhat rigidly stratified caste system of sorts and having folks in each one consider this the natural order of things can lend to some cultural clashes and values dissonance for non-Osirioni characters to deal with too.
Another possibility along those lines is to play up the Osirion belief in the Pharaonic line's divinity. That could be expanded quite a bit: Not only do the gods of the Osirioni live in their midst as well as above them, but technically this blessed arrangement of their society makes them inherently more divine than non-Osirioni. Now, just because you're more divine and thus inherently better than foreigners doesn't mean you have to be a jerk to them. But they could use your help in moving closer to true divinity and there are all of those wrong-headed ideas they have that you could gently discourage. That'll get your culture clashes a-going. A particularly benign example of this outlook could be a friendly Osirioni NPC being confused by PC clerics/paladins/etc. speeaking of their gods in distant terms.
If you have Osirioni casters using summons of any sort, reflavor 'em! A cleric calling in Hound Archons? Instead of referencing the art in the Bestiary, have them all be black Anubis-like figures.
It may be somewhat lessened by its geography compared to RL Egypt, but the life of Osirion being tied to its rivers and the divine cycles they derive from them would be a huge influence as well. Life hangs in a precarious balance in such a region, and most of the rules and rituals they have are about preserving that balance.
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Also, and this may be dependent on your group:
Stress the difference in cultural taboos. If you want to play up the RL Egypt influence, Osirion likely has far less in the way of nudity taboos and far more taboos concerning cleanliness. That ties into Ma'at again(one of the reasons ancient Egyptians shaved their heads was to avoid lice, for example. Hence the wigs.).
Common folk, male or female, with no shirts on? No big. Same for the nobility. But having bad hygiene? Scandalous.
This presents the fun possibility of the devil worshipping Chelish merchant frowning at all the people exposing so much skin(OH ASMODEUS SO INAPPROPRIATE) while the Osirioni passers-by are whispering about the backwards Chelish stinking up the place with all that sweat building up in those fine clothes ill-made for the local climate and that nasty body hair which is just asking for parasites.
There's a reason why Ouat dwares shave their beards after all! ;)
edit-Now there's another thought. If any foriegn PCs have hair that would be considered exotic by Osirioni standards, have an Osirioni NPC that's particularly enamoured with it awkwardly ask if they could have/buy some of it to get treated and made into a wig.
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Also also, if the PCs pass by any public construction, instead of having haggard slaves being whipped, have it be laborers who drink beer on their break. Truth can be stranger than fiction for some players. ;)
Also also also, place a lot of emphasis on the importance of written records and names. One of the absolute worst things that could be done to people on the outs was to have their name struck from history. To the modern Osirioni trying to reclaim their past, this practice might be seen as either the ultimate punishment for the wicked or a blasphermy against the integrity and perpetuation of their culture as a whole. There might actually be some heated conflict within Osirion over the morality and ethics of such practices.
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Just remembered!
While it doesn't focus on modern Osirion, Lost Empires of Golarion does explore the histroy and legacy of Ancient Osirion. There's some good stuff in there to mine, especially since Osirion's past glory and culture is what modern Osirion is struggling to reclaim.
For rarely seen races that could easily have their own niche in Osirion and plays perfectly into that culture's prevalence of old temples and religions, the Girtablilu are well worth a look. Different tribes of that race can be played in different ways too:
Some may be accepted as fitting into a certain place in Osironi culture, likely as guardians of temples and other sacred places.
Some could live on the fringes of Osironi culture and settlements, having their own take on th emainstream faiths.
And some could be openly hostile to mainstream Osirioni culture, having claimed abandoned or lost temples as their own, having repurposed them for other faiths and outright unwilling to give them up or acknowledge that they have the facts wrong regarding their chosen sacred ground.
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Also, tying into Osirion's reverence of their past, their current attempts to reclaim it, and their respect for the dead: Adventurers who make themselves known as tomb raiders/grave robbers are going to be very unpopular with the general populace. Sure, there's going to be a black market for that sort of thing, but Osirion in general would probably frown on that sort of thing as much as if not more than most good-aligned nations.
Now if they're going into places to reclaim Osirion's culture...it likely gets a bit stickier. :)
A quick note on the assumed divinity of pharaohs too: Sometimes it's really legit. While not all pharaohs have actually been for reals god-kings/queens, there have been multiple demigods that have taken that position. Whether they were demigods before or after becoming Pharaoh, I don't know, but it does bring up the cool possibility of pharaohs having clerics/paladins/etc. of themselves serving in their court.*
This might color the perception of past pharaohs for Osirioni folk too. Some past pharaohs were tyrants(the Four Pharaohs of Ascension) and some were benevolent(the Song Pharaoh and Kahotep), but all are possibly afforded what's seen as proper respect and reverence for having been true divine scions of Osirion's throne. At least if they were competent, perhaps. ;)
*Now there's a thought: It is entirely possible that a demi-god Pharaoh actually married one of their clerics/paladins/oracles/etc. or otherwise took them on as a consort. Now that would makek for an unusual relationship.
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Also, possible folk belief/local fairy tale/maybe-an-actual-real-fey:
Sand dunes in deserts can actually frost over at night. This is exactly as strange and beautiful as you might imagine.
Who knows what local folks might assume causes such phenomenon? And in Golarion, who knows for certain that the truth is entirely scientific? Maybe some of those formations are caused by something that can only touch Osirion when the cool of night falls over it? Maybe that frost are the tracks of something playing over the sands on those rare occasions that they can touch the world? Or perhaps they're short-lived works of art upon the ever shifting canvas of Osirion's deserts?
Seeing magical beings of fire and warmth in Osirion might be unusual but hardly unexpected. Creatures of cold and ice though, catching a glimpse of one of those at work might be considered miraculous.
Also, possible folk belief/local fairy tale/maybe-an-actual-real-fey:
Sand dunes in deserts can actually frost over at night. This is exactly as strange and beautiful as you might imagine.
Who knows what local folks might assume causes such phenomenon? And in Golarion, who knows for certain that the truth is entirely scientific? Maybe some of those formations are caused by something that can only touch Osirion when the cool of night falls over it? Maybe that frost are the tracks of something playing over the sands on those rare occasions that they can touch the world? Or perhaps they're short-lived works of art upon the ever shifting canvas of Osirion's deserts?
Seeing magical beings of fire and warmth in Osirion might be unusual but hardly unexpected. Creatures of cold and ice though, catching a glimpse of one of those at work might be considered miraculous.
And that right there is why Mikaze is one of my favourite posters here :)
Agreed. This is all awesome.
While the $5 sale is sold out Hamunaptra is still available at nobleknightgames for $13,50...
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You're doing Asmodeus' work, Mikaze. Thanks a ton for your posts :)
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This focuses a bit on the Pharaoh but it could play into how common Osirioni express some things:
A lot of responsibility weighs down on the Pharaoh. S/he's supposed to shoulder a ton of burder regarding maintaining the comsic balance upon which Osirion thrives. Like how the fertility of the Nile was directly related to the fertility of the Pharaoh.
Imagine having Superman as President. Or king. Or god-king. The people would likely be incredibly dependent on him.
So while the Pharaoh is given a high station far above the common folk, the common folk have extremely high expectations of him. Sometimes those expectations might be unfairly high.
Take the common reaction of "Why would God let this happen?" whenever natural disasters happen. Now imagine those questions being aimed at a human being. No pressure, Pharaoh.
It's not exactly a low-stress job. Emperors could at least pass the buck and point at corrupt politicians. But Pharaohs... It really makes one appreciate the strength the more benign(heck, any of the non-crazy) pharaohs must have had.
It must boggle the Osirioni how little faith foreigners seem to have in their leaders. Why follow them in the first place then?
Also, nagas really ought to have a niche in Osirion society. Especially with the cobra-themed Guardian Nagas.
You're doing Asmodeus' work, Mikaze.
D:
The campaign: It's a time of crisis in the pantheon. All the demigods have to build faith share on the prime material plane or lose their spot in the pantheon. So every god with obscure, narrow, or unpopular portfolios has been picking a representative to make their case to humanity... while some of the evil avatars have been killing off the competition.
The PC in this one player game has been chosen by the demigoddess of good luck. (Not luck. Not bad luck.) She's done very well, allying with the Seelie Court of the Fae and the avatar of the aranea. She's defeated the avatars of bad luck, monstrous births (Lamashtu), the Unseelie Court, Zon Kuthon, and dwarven toil. She's met the avatar of rabbits, the avatar of worms and decay, the one of familiars, and the one of babbling brooks.
She's racing to Osirion to beat the Thrice-Damned House of Thrune's archaeological teams' attempts to uncover the Pact Stone and the mysteries of a pyramid lost to time. Queen Domina hopes to become a Herald of Asmodeus. (The Andoran revolution has just happened, sparked by Aroden's death, so Asmodeus' faith share is not secure.) The PC hopes to uncover an artifact that will spur her on to becoming a Herald, which is completed at... The Test of the Starstone.
The Chelaxians have a minor, ambitious pharaoh and permission to dig at one of the sites.
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Suddenly imagining that corrupted minor pharaoh sporting an inverted ankh. Sure the demon lord(and possible fallen daughter of Sarenrae) Shamira has already claimed that symbol, but it does play well with the Asmodean theme.
One thing that might help and hinder both the PC and her rivals is Osirion's strong lawful tendencies towards tradition. Being able to understand the culture and work within it is going to be as valuable a part of both sides' arsenals as any in that country. The cultural imperalism that Cheliax typically sports might give that PC the long-term advantage in that case, though they already have that powerful ally.
Since much of Osirion's culture hinges on respect for the dead, perhaps that's something that could be made clear in-verse to the PC to give them a hook. If she can assure some Osirioni that the Chelish intruders intend to desecrate or the otherwise exploit their ancestors, she could gain valuable allies.
The running theme of avatars of minor, obscure faiths makes the Girablilu seem like a natural fit as well, again as both potential allies or enemies. Possibly even a third faction set against both the PC and her enemies, if they believe that their gods' ascendance depends on beating the competition that just showed up.
Perhaps they can even start out that way before it becomes apparent that they follow the PC's demigoddess, exepct under a different name and face?
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Some insight on ancient Egyptian faith - it's a frustrated engineer's religion. In building a bridge to the next life, you were building a bridge you could never test, or never get test results on.
So, you keep adding struts and braces. Put the Book of the Dead in the coffin. Add it to the walls. Print it on the wrappings And, keep writing it longer. Each 'Book of the Dead' was unique AND you got what you paid for - by the page/foot.
Do a google on negative confession - you'll love it!
The gold in the tombs was the same gold constantly recycled - the same people that put it there and built the tombs also robbed them, over and over again - generations of artists - the art of the object and the art of tomb robbing. Generations of merchants who were also fences.
There is so much about this type of setting that is memorable.
Stress the environment, culture and architecture. Religion is hugely important, priests wield great power along with the pharoah. The culture was obsessed with death and the afterlife yet they lived rich lives and creates stunning, advanced civilizations for their time. Nobles would make elaborate plans and spend fortunes on constructing their tombs and amassing wealth to take with them in the afterlife. They would probably go to great lengths to keep the location of their tombs secret, and install traps, monsters or constructs in them to keep tomb robbers away. There was also, unfortunately, a lot of cruelty given that slavery existed and the common people were under the heels of the rulers. So you could use the plight of the slaves to create memorable events, illustrating how terrible life was as a slave and how many would be desperate to find a way to escape cruel masters, and how escaped slaves were probably hunted down mercilessly to discourage other slaves from running away. Perhaps there is a secret movement to abolish slavery, to assist slaves that are on the run, and to overthrow rulers who allow slavery.
Use visual aids when the PCs encounter an exotic Egyptian temple, tomb or city. Be descriptive when you talk about them. Still, even a great description doesn't really do justice to the magnificence of some of these places, so a good visual is priceless.
Stress the heat and the trials/tribulations to be found in the desert, plus don't forget all the unique monsters and bedouin culture. I don't believe platemail and similar heavy armor was not known in the real world during Egyptian times, if you had to wear it in the desert I can only imagine it would have been a heat stroke waiting to happen. An oasis in the desert would be a precious thing that the locals probably strive to control, and would be outraged by anyone who damaged or polluted them.
The people should speak exotic languages and wear exotic Eqyptian clothing and have their own unusual customs that may seem strange to Westerners. They may have been easily offended so outsiders would have to take care to learn how to behave.
Trade was also extremely important to Egypt, and their wealth was legendary, so there should be a bustling trade in the setting with lots of intrigue, politics and scheming going on. You probably also would have smugglers and tomb-raiders all over the place, doing their best to get rich quick while avoiding the heavy hand of the law and priesthood.
I'm sure there's much more that could be done to make things memorable.
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Watch the Mummy movies for ideas, and of course Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the old Egyptian movies like The Ten Commandments with Charleton Heston and Yul Brynner. There was also a pretty good animated movie called The Prince of Egypt.
When I ran an old Egyptian themed adventure of my own creation, I played the music soundtrack from The Mummy movies in the background. That, along with visual aids and good descriptions really helped set the mood.