The Valley of the Pharaohs

• Role Playing in the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt
• Remastered 40th Anniversary Edition
• Written and Produced by Matt Balent
• Licensed from Palladium Books
• Original 1983 Edition available on DriveThruRPG.com

Kickstarter Project Here

The Valley of the Pharaohs, 40th Anniversary Edition, is an expansion and re-imagining of the original 1983 version published by Palladium Books.  The game consists of a fairly simple, level-less, skill based (using percentile dice) game system with D20 combat rules.  When originally published by Palladium it was their second RPG (after the Mechanoid Invasion in 1981).  

The Game

The Valley of the Pharaohs is a Role Playing Game set in the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt (ca 1450 BCE) around the reign of Thutmose III.  During this time Egypt was an Empire and was aggressively expanding her boarders south and into the Levant.

Players may choose human or non-human characters (animal forms similar to Ancient Egyptian gods) with extensive background generation based on caste, occupational specialty, and geographical origin.  The four basic castes are Nobility, Clergy, Bureaucracy, and Common.

There are eight player races including the Aasha (canine headed), Apsu (bird headed), Atu (crocodile headed), Herfau (snake headed), Kar (frog headed), and Mau (feline headed), Rem (human), and Sam (cow headed), each with a unique perspective and outlook as well as positive and negative attributes.

There are extensive background choices for either individual characters or the party as a whole.  These can affect the skills, starting items, and renown of the group.  Players choose an 'Occupational Specialty' (out of over 120) for their character based on their caste and background.  This choice determines the types of skills available to them as they start out.

Magic is an integral part of the Ancient Egyptian existence and belief system.  All characters have the capacity to learn and cast spells.  Similar to skill checks the caster must roll percentile dice under either their Magic Skill or the Spell Difficulty (whichever is lower) to successfully cast a spell.  Since magic exists within everyone and everything all characters are able to use it with enough perseverance and skill.  Over 200 spells exist and players are able to expand their magic knowledge and create more.  Even non-skilled characters can make use of the many amulets, charms, and figures to assist them and ensure their success in their endeavors.

Combat is similar to other Palladium Books games such as the Palladium RPG but somewhat simpler.  It is an 'opposing rolls' type system with attacks, parrying, dodges, and the other general combat mechanics (hit points, damage to armor, etc.).

Within the world of Valley of the Pharaohs are many dimensions including the Duat (Underworld), Field of Reeds, Land of the Gods, and others.  Many creatures and demons inhabit these realms, some helpful and friendly, some as agents of chaos. Even the gods may be interacted with, as the Egyptians had over two thousand manifestations of these powerful beings.

The Rulebook is a work in progress.