The Egyptian gods
In ancient Egypt many gods had animal heads, and each one had a clear job: carry the sun across the sky, weigh the hearts of the dead, keep chaos at bay. Here are eight of the most important, with their myths and how they fight on the chessboard in the game.
Ra
Ra was the sun god of ancient Egypt and one of its most important deities. His main cult centre was Heliopolis. He was usually shown with the head of a falcon, crowned by a sun disc wrapped in a cobra. By day he sailed his barque across the sky, by night through the underworld, where he had to defeat the giant serpent Apep again and again. Pharaohs proudly called themselves “Son of Ra”. A famous tale tells how Ra sent his Eye as a raging lioness against rebellious humans and could only stop her with beer dyed red. In the game this becomes pure light: Ra blinds, burns and sends his Eye onto the board.
In the game: Sun Ray, Noon Blaze, Eye of Ra. All about Ra in the game
Osiris
Osiris was the god of the afterlife, fertility and rebirth. According to myth, his jealous brother Set murdered him to seize the throne. His wife Isis searched for his body, put it back together and revived him with her magic long enough to conceive their son Horus. From then on Osiris ruled the underworld as judge of the dead. Artists showed him as a mummified king with green or black skin, holding the crook and flail. Those colours stood for fresh plants and the fertile mud of the Nile, and the grain that sprouted each year was seen as his gift. So in the game Osiris brings fallen pieces back and lets mud and grain work for him.
In the game: Nile Mud, New Grain, Resurrection. All about Osiris in the game
Bastet
Bastet was a goddess of Lower Egypt whose main sanctuary stood in the city of Bubastis in the Nile Delta. Early on she was shown as a lioness, later mostly as a cat or a woman with a cat's head. She was regarded as a daughter of the sun god Ra and as a protector of homes, families, mothers and children. The Greek historian Herodotus describes her festival at Bubastis, where huge crowds arrived with music and dancing. Countless cats were mummified and buried in her temple grounds. Egyptians valued cats highly because they kept mice and snakes away from the food stores. So in the game Bastet leaps like a cat, swipes with her claws and has kittens.
In the game: Cat Leap, Claw Swap, Kittens. All about Bastet in the game
Thoth
Thoth was the god of wisdom, writing and the moon. He was shown as a man with the head of an ibis, sometimes also as a baboon. Egyptians believed he had invented hieroglyphs and honoured him as the patron of scribes. His most important sanctuary was at Hermopolis. As a moon god he measured time and kept the calendar in order. At the judgement of the dead, Thoth recorded the verdict when a person's heart was weighed against the feather of Maat. A later Greek story even claims he won five extra days for the year from the moon in a board game. In the game this becomes power over time: Thoth shortens cooldowns, rewinds moves and grants extra ones.
In the game: Moon Calendar, Scale of Hours, Book of Thoth. All about Thoth in the game
Isis
Isis was one of the most powerful goddesses of Egypt, famous for her magic. She was the sister and wife of Osiris and the mother of Horus. After Osiris was murdered she searched for his body, revived him with her spells and then hid little Horus from Set in the marshes of the Nile Delta. A well known story tells how she tricked the sun god Ra with a snake until he revealed his secret name to her. She wears the sign of a throne on her head and is often shown spreading protective wings. Her worship spread as far as Rome. So in the game Isis is a protector: she shields, heals and wraps her pieces in a veil.
In the game: Sheltering Wings, Healing Spell, Veil of Isis. All about Isis in the game
Anubis
Anubis was the jackal headed god of embalming and the guardian of cemeteries. Before Osiris became ruler of the dead, Anubis was the most important god of the underworld. Tradition says he embalmed the murdered Osiris and so became the patron of mummification. In the Book of the Dead he leads the deceased to the scales and weighs their heart against the feather of Maat. If the heart is too heavy, it is devoured by the demon Ammit. He was usually painted black, a colour that stood for the fertile mud of the Nile and for rebirth. So in the game Anubis weighs hearts, raises mummies and keeps the death watch.
In the game: Weighing of Hearts, Mummy, Death Watch. All about Anubis in the game
Ptah
Ptah was the creator god of Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt. A famous inscription, the Shabaka Stone, tells how he created the world through his heart and his tongue: he thought of things, spoke their names, and they came into being. Ptah was also the patron of craftsmen, sculptors and builders. He was shown as a man in a tight mummy wrapping with a blue skullcap, holding a sceptre that combines the signs for life, stability and power. His wife was the lioness goddess Sekhmet. The Greeks identified him with their smith god Hephaestus. So in the game Ptah is a master builder: he shapes new pieces from clay and raises walls.
In the game: Clay Figure, Wall of Ptah, Act of Creation. All about Ptah in the game
Set
Set was the god of the desert, storms, foreign lands and chaos. He was shown with the head of a mysterious animal with a long curved snout and squared ears that matches no known species. In the best known myth, Set murders his brother Osiris out of envy and then fights a long battle with Osiris' son Horus over the throne, until the gods declare Horus king. Yet Set had a useful side too: he stood at the prow of the sun barque and fought off the serpent Apep every night. Several pharaohs bore his name, such as Seti I. So in the game Set unleashes sandstorms, desert wind and sheer confusion.
In the game: Sandstorm, Desert Wind, Confusion. All about Set in the game
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