I don't know that much about Egypt either, but with Playmobil's Egyptians I'm primarily trying to recreate Meroe, which was in the present day Sudan and basically took over Egyptian culture when the Greeks took over Egypt. Meroe was somewhat of an enemy of Rome in both the Republic and Empire periods, although both mostly enjoyed a peaceful trade relationship. There were, however many skirmishes and some battles between the two, although no real wars.
There are somewhat conflicting views of Meroitic armies depending on the source. On the one hand, I've read that Meroitic warriors were well organized and equipped and that the culture produced great quantities of iron. On the other hand, there is one Roman account of a battle with Meroitic warriors who were supposedly armed only with hide shields and spears and no armor and poor organization. With Playmobil's Egyptians, one could recreate both depictions or some combination.
Based on the Osprey books I have, Playmobil's Egyptians are way, way over-armored, regardless of the period. Only the wealthy charioteer archers would have worn armor and had helmets. The bulk of the Egyptian army was modestly equipped (bow, arrows, and maybe a knife for archers and a hide covered wooden shield and spear, ax, mace, or kopesh sword for the hand to hand combat infantry) and wore no armor or helmets. They might have had padded headgear and loincloths in the New Kingdom. While Playmobil's Egyptian shields, weapons, and, to a degree, armor seems fairly accurate, their infantry helmets don't seem to be based on any Egyptian helmet I've ever seen. A cloth headdress would be more accurate, but the helmets would be of great use for other armies. I may even use them for my Egyptian/Meroitic army.
Playmobil seems to be setting their Egyptian theme in the New Kingdom, although the shields seem to me more from the Middle Kingdom.
