Ari Posted November 17, 2012 Posted November 17, 2012 So...definitely part of the problem, myself, but one thing that hasn't been gone into much here beyond the Scarab is the pantheon of Egypt. Of course, the Voodoo Loa make more sense as a modern source of power or devotion, but as it has been a recurring gripe(in Chat at least) that the supposed focus on those two relatively dis-used pantheons didn't amount to much, I'd say it would be at least kind of constructive to give the Nile Gods more appearance and a larger role. I know Gizmo's working on his Kid Set and Sekhmet, and of course such things never work if they're forced, so I decided to ask you all, the wise and informed players of FCPBP, if this could be reasonably done, if it would be a good idea, and if so how it could be done!
Cubist Posted November 18, 2012 Posted November 18, 2012 Seems to me that one reason for the Nile Gods' comparatively low level of exposure here, could be that most players don't really know much about them. So how about using this thread to post information about the Nile Gods? Hopefully, someone will see this info, say "hey, that sounds cool", and build a character or organization or something based on said info.
Cubist Posted November 18, 2012 Posted November 18, 2012 the Ogdoad Based on data extracted from Wikipedia, here, and here. A group of eight deities which represent the 'true beginning' of all existence. The Ogdoad represent four facets of the beginning of all things: Hidden Powers (air, invisibility), Infinity (eternity, infinite space), Darkness (obscurity, unknown, chaos), and the Abyss (emptiness, primordial waters). Each such facet has a male aspect, which is associated with frogs, and a female aspect, which is associated with serpents. Only one of the pairs of the Ogdoad seems to consist of two distinct entities; the other three are androgynous and seem to present themselves as whichever gender they want to for whatever purpose. Hidden Powers: Amanuet, fertility goddess and protector of the nation, and Amon, creator god and Lord of the Sun. Infinity: Hauhet and Heh, the "god of millions of years". Darkness: Kauket and Kek, the "bringer-in of light". the Abyss: Naunet and Nun, "father of the gods".
Ari Posted November 18, 2012 Author Posted November 18, 2012 A splendid idea Cubist! The aspects of Ra Sourced from these two pages at Wikipedia, and this and this at egyptianmyths.net Ra is the god of the sun in Egyptian myth and, because of the power of the Sun, the supreme deity. He is portrayed predominantly as a royal man with a hawk's head and the Sun sitting on top of it with a snake wound around the solar disk. He was born from an egg out of the primordial water of Nun before any land existed, his infinite power resting within his hidden name, and if he gave a name to something it sprang into being. He spoke the names of each of the other gods, his creation of the universe involving the births of Nut, the sky, Geb, the earth, Shu, the air god between them that prevents their joining and throwing creation into disarray, Ma'at the spirit of order, and Hapi, the goddess of the Nile. His aspects as the sun he called Khepera, the dung scarab beetle god who rolled the sun into place in the morning, Ra, the hawk god who flies the sun across the sky(and is occasionally associated with Horus, because the people love Horus) at noon, and Atum, the human-shaped god of the evening who descends from the sky and prepares for the nightly journey into the darkness. As the sun was thought of as a giant ball of fire, and primordial waters surrounded the creation of Ra, and fire is known to not react well to submersion in water, he of course has two boats, one for the day trip across the sky, the other for his gloomy voyage through the underworld of his domain. During that period he is guided by his daughter Ma'at, and defended from such monsters as the famous serpent monster Apep by the warrior gods, including Set once upon a time. Ra has(more or less) four 'selves': Amun-Ra, his aspect as the supreme ruler of the universe and god of the sun; Atum-Ra, his face as the creator of all things within Ma'at the universal order; Khnum, his aspect as rebirth and the setting sun, and Raet-Tawy his aspect as a woman.
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