Ammit
EgyptianAfterlifeJudge
Lore
Ammit is a Deity — a composite judge-beast of the Egyptian afterlife, part crocodile, part lion, part hippopotamus, described with the precise eye of a field naturalist. Smell: a river-silt tang mixed with sun-warmed leather and a faint metallic note like old bronze. Sound: a low, deliberate breath and the soft scrape of talons on stone; when she is near even insects fall silent. Temperature: the air around her holds an iron-warm stillness, as if river stones baked by desert sun have been gathered into a living shape. In the Hall of Two Truths she moves without hurry, an authority that makes the scales themselves seem fragile by comparison.
Origin: Ancient Egyptian • Duat / Nile Valley
Classification: Deity
Field Notes
Observations
- A single tell-tale sign is the feather of Maat failing to float on the scale — the pan tilts and the hall falls into an unnerving hush.
Encounter Advice
- taboo: Never offer false testimony, never attempt to bribe or trick the scales, and do not try to hide or alter the heart; deliberate deception in matters of truth invites her notice.
- reverence: Honor the principle of Maat: purification rites, the recitation of the negative confessions (truth declarations), and offerings made to the balance rather than to her directly. Respectful silence and acceptance of judgment are the customary means to avert her notice.
- offering: Offerings meant to uphold balance — purified water, lotus incense, and recitations of truth. Amulets that symbolize a clear heart (e.g., scarabs, inscriptions of Maat) are traditional safeguards.
Abilities
- Devourer of HeartsConsumes the hearts of the dead judged heavier than Ma'at's feather, erasing those souls from the afterlife and preventing any form of continuation or remembrance.
- Duat-Bound HungerHer hunger siphons life-essence within the Hall of Two Truths, nullifying rites of resurrection or rebirth for any soul she consumes.
- Composite MawWielding a crocodile's bite, a hippopotamus' bulk and a lion's tearing jaws, she rends both flesh and spirit in a single crushing strike.
Weaknesses
- Bound to the Judgment HallCannot act beyond the Duat and is confined to the Hall of Two Truths unless summoned through formal funerary ritual overseen by Anubis and Ma'at.
- Judgment-ConditionalShe can only consume hearts judged heavier than Ma'at's feather, rendering righteous souls immune to her hunger and nullifying her effect if the weighing favors the deceased.