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Atzlnti Toolkit
by Brent-not-Broken
Brent Not Brokens Introduction
Cosmology:
Teotl and the Art of
Motorcycle Maintenance
Total Teotl
The concept of teotl is a strange one. It is variously
translated as "god," "mystery," and "divinity," and
these various usages often generate confusion. The
Aztec gods use the word "teotl" to refer collectively
to themselves, preferring it to the term "Aztlnti,"
a label devised by the other pantheons, who
don't really get it. Much like a god of the Celestial
Bureaucracy might refer to himself as "one of the
shen," an Aztec god might call himself "one of the
teotl."
However, teotl is also a universal concept of divinity,
and each of the Atzlnti gods understands himself
to be merely one facet of a vast, cosmic teotl
larger than himself. It is a mistake to jump to the
conclusion (as some people do) that the Aztecs were
monotheistic and worshipped the one god Teotl
through many aspects. However, the Atzlnti do
refer to teotl as a universal, cosmic force of divinity,
expressed through all things. It is not uncommon to
hear an Atzlnti god use the word teotl to describe
her divine ichor, her supernatural abilities derived
from that ichor, the energy of Legend that fuels
those abilities, or the power offered and accepted
during the act of sacrifice. An Atzlnti Scion who
uses her divine powers to perform a sacrifice is one
of the teotl (gods), using teotl (divinity) in order to
transfer teotl (power)-- and she may spill some of her
own teotl (divine ichor) in the process.
Teotl is also used to refer to phenomena which
cannot be explained-- unsolvable mysteries. When
Moctezuma referred to Corts and his men as "teotl,"
he may either have been calling them gods, or
admitting he had no idea what they were.
Tezcatliposting
Huitzilopochtli
The Blue Tezcatlipoca, the Fifth (and current)
Sun, and the Hummingbird of the South,
Huitzilopochtli is a god who has understood
battle since birth. A fatherless son of Coatlicue,
Huitzilopochtli discovered a murder plot against
his mother while still in the womb. To protect his
mother from his scheming siblings, Huitzilopochtli
was born fully grown and armed, and immediately
slaughtered his four hundred treacherous siblings
before Coatlicue could be harmed, then hurled
them into the night sky where they became stars.
Now, in his role as the Fifth Sun, Huitzilopochtli
wages daily war against the bloodthirsty stars, and
his slain siblings have not forgiven him. In battle,
Huitzilopochtli carries Xiuhcoatl, the nagual form
of Xiuhtecuhtli, which functions both as a fiery
atlatl and as the turquoise scepter of the suns
authority.
By far the most direct and least subtle of the four
Tezcatlipocas, the Blue Tezcatlipoca confronts
problems with overwhelming force, battering
them relentlessly until the crumble-- when youre
a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. As a
god of war and the current sun, Huitzilopochtli has
taken a leadership role in the battle against the
Titans. His duties as the Fifth Sun occupy more of
his time than he would like; his daily battle against
Itzpapalotl and the Tzitzimime prevents him from
hunting down the newly-freed Titans directly, so
he wants to make dead certain his Scions are up to
the task. As a father, he seems stern and distant,
but thats because he knows what his children
are up against and he wants them to be ready. He
does his best to ensure his Scions are well-armed
Quetzalcoatl
Wind god and benevolent trickster, Quetzalcoatl,
the White Tezcatlipoca, transcends limitations
through clever, unpredictable behavior. A common
theme in his stories is the surpassing of limitations,
Tezcatlipoca
If the Black Tezcatlipoca has a name, he keeps
it as secret as his plans. Inscrutable and driven,
this Tezcatlipoca prefers to work indirectly when
possible, manipulating mortals and gods alike so
that they enact his will without requiring him to
dirty his hands personally. As a formidable god of
sorcery, divination, and strife, it is well within his
power to do so.
To the Black Tezcatlipoca, nothing is so important
that its no longer expendable in pursuit of his
plans. To defeat Cipactli and create the Earth,
Xipe Totec
The Red Tezcatlipoca has little patience for his
peers, and little to say to them. He is disinterested
in Huitzilopochtlis blood-soaked battlefield
machismo, Quetzalcoatls touchy-feely idealism, or
Additional Teotl
Even More Gods
That Start With An X
Chalchiuhtlicue
Among the teotl, Chalchiuhtlicue is the most
powerful water deity, and the only goddess
to have served as the sun. Like many Atzlnti
water spirits, Chalchiuhtlicue is associated with
both prosperity and serpents, but she is also the
inventor of marriage, the protector of children,
and the goddess of generosity and sincere,
powerful emotion. Her tenure as the Fourth Sun
ended when the Black Tezcatlipoca accused her
of insincerity, implying she only feigns caring in
order to be liked. Wounded by Tezcatlipocas cruel
words, Chalchiuhtlicue cried uncontrollably until
her tears flooded the entire world, and the People
of the Fourth Sun had to be changed into fish to
prevent them from drowning. Having regained
her self-control, Chalchiuhtlicue treats the People
of the Fifth Sun more gently, washing away their
misfortune and unhappiness. Newborn infants are
ritually bathed, blessing and consecrating them in
her name.
Chalchiuhtlicue (she who wears the jade skirt)
is known for her green skirt, which is sometimes
made of precious stones and sometimes made of
serpents. All the rivers of the World flow out from
beneath it. At times, she is depicted as a prickly
pear cactus rising from a stream-- the cactus
is overburdened with an enormous amount of
crowded fruits, representing both the gifts of the
goddess to humanity, and the many human hearts
sacrificed in her name. She is married both to
Tlaloc and to Xiuhtecuhtli, and helps to oversee the
paradise at Tlalocan.
In modern times, Chalchiuhtlicue has been a water
conservationist, a neonatal doctor, and an online
dating website founder. In her various incarnations,
she tries to do good in the World, trying to make up
for the harm she did to the previous human race by
misusing her power as the Fourth Sun. Similarly, her
Scions tend to be sincere and emotionally open,
Xiuhtecuhtli-Huehueteotl
Xiuhtecuhtli-Huehueteotl is the Turquoise Lord,
the Lord of Fire, a well-loved god of the hearth. As
the fire stolen from Mictln, Xiuhtechutli is a little
bit of the Underworld, brought to the World of the
living in order to sustain life. Xiuhtecuhtli embodies
duality, contradiction, and mitigated hardship in
all his aspects-- he is warmth in the cold, food in
midst of famine, and a moment of comfort and rest
to ease fatigue and pain. He is a god of power and
royalty, but also of humility and the lowly. His flames
represent the light of day, but he is also a lord of
the night, keeping watch over mortals during the
sunless hours. He is sometimes believed to be a
manifestation of the distant god of duality, Ometeotl
(two-god), and his nagual is Xiuhcoatl, the Fire
Serpent, which Huitzilopochtli wields in battle as an
atlatl.
As self-contradictory as his aspects, he sometimes
appears as Xiuhtecuhtli, the strong husband of
Chalchiuhtlicue, and a youthful god of kings and
warriors, potential and promise. At other times,
he appears as Huehueteotl, the old god, decrepit
and bent with age. Both as Huehueteotl and as
Xiuhtecuhtli, he receives the same sacrifice: whether
offering blood and hearts, the first mouthful of food
at mealtimes, or dozens of small, live animals caught
in advance of his festivals, supplicants offer sacrifice
to Xiuhtecuhtli-Huehueteotl by throwing them into
the fire. As long as a buildings hearthfire is burning,
the Turquoise Lord is present within, keeping
watch over the household from deep within the
subterranean turquoise shell where he resides.
In the World, Xiuhtecuhtli-Huehueteotl works to
counteract dangerous extremes, making undesirable
situations a little safer or more pleasant. He has been
Xochipilli
The flower prince of the Atzlnti spends much of
his time in the World, because thats where all the
fun is happening. Like his twin sister Xochiquetzal,
Xochipilli exemplifies the physical beauty of his
gender, but this well-sculpted god is also a patron
of recreation and culture. Easygoing and genial,
Xochipilli loves scholars and artists of all kinds,
especially dancers, painters, and writers. When he
is not busy fostering mortals creative projects or
exemplifying male sexual attractiveness, he finds
work as a very specialized agriculture god-- the god
of vision-inducing psychoactive plants.
In modern times, Xochipilli has been a tortured
playwright, a chartbusting pop song producer, a
porn sensation, a greenhouse pot grower, and a gay
bar proprietor. He prefers the company of mortals
to gods, and spends as much time away from Acopa
as he can, leaving the hard work of planning the
war against the Titans to other gods. He has taken
many mortal wives (and more than a few husbands),
but the flower prince finds it hard to settle down for
long.
Xochipillis Scions are similarly carefree. Life comes
easy to them, and they enjoy it to the fullest-- even
when that means leaving the difficult conflicts
for others to resolve. They inspire and uplift those
around them (and occasionally, also chemically
alter their states of mind) as laid-back musicians,
philosophers, abstract poets, recreational chemists,
and orchid cultivators, and theyre always the life
Xochiquetzal
The goddess of desire, wealth, and feminine sexual
allure, Xochiquetzal knows what she wants and
how to get it. The twin sister of equally-attractive
Xochipilli and former wife of Tlaloc, Xochiquetzal has
discovered (after being stolen from her husband and
seduced by the Black Tezcatlipoca) that shes happier
not being tied down. Xochiquetzal always goes hand
in hand with luxury; she loves living the high life,
with all that entails. She is a fierce protector of new
mothers, and a proponent of the idea that women
control the world because they control men. Clouds
of butterflies, entranced by her beauty, follow her
wherever she goes.
In modern times, Xochiquetzal enjoys making
policy indirectly, by influencing people in positions
of power. She has been a corporate consultant, a
feminist blogger, and an illicit mistress of suggestible
politicians. She also likes to enjoy mortal life as a
luxury jeweler, a glamorous model, a florist, or a
brothel madame. All her mortal guises have youth
and beauty in common, and flowers are always a
part of her fashion or her surroundings.
Like their mother, Scions of Xochiquetzal are usually
more than willing to leverage both their great
cunning and their great beauty, and are usually wellliked, as well. Some are lepidopterists, avant-garde
fashion designers, or political lobbyists, while others
attach themselves to politicians, drug lords, or Wall
Street magnates, in order to exercise a subtler power.
Abilities: Art, Craft, Empathy, Fortitude, Politics,
Presence
Epic Attributes: Manipulation, Appearance
Purviews: Itztli, Animal (Butterflies), Fertility
Xolotl
The dark twin of Quetzalcoatl, Xolotl is the god of
bad luck, the evening star to his brothers morning
star. In spite of his negative associations, Xolotl
feels a responsibility toward mortals, and does his
best to care for them. Together with his brother
Quetzalcoatl, Xolotl stole fire from Mictln and
gave it to humanity. Xolotl leads the dead on their
arduous, four-year journey to Mictln, and he
guards the sun faithfully during the night. He does
his various jobs dutifully, knowing hes unlikely ever
to get any proper respect for his hard work.
Xolotl is fearsome to behold. He appears as a
skeleton, his bright red bones scorched by fire. His
feet are on backwards (so that he can lead the way
to Mictln while keeping an eye on his charges),
and he sometimes replaces his skull with the head
of a dog, in imitation of his canine assistants. Xolotl
is usually accompanied by several large, hairless
dogs (one breed, the Xoloitzcuintle, even bears
his name). These loyal hounds assist Xolotl in his
role as a guide through the Underworld. When
Quetzalcoatl journeyed to Mictln to create the
People of the Fifth Sun out of bones, Xolotl went as
well, in order to create dogs. In exchange for people
taking care of dogs during life, Xolotl decided,
dogs would care for people in the afterlife. Many
ancient Mesoamericans were buried with dogs, to
ensure they wouldnt need to journey through the
Underworld alone.
In modern times, Xolotl has been a wilderness
guide, a seeing eye dog trainer, and an insurance
agent. Like their father, Xolotls Scions are typically
humble, long-suffering, and a little scary-- drawn to
roles where they give people important assistance
in times of need, and usually receive no thanks
whatsoever.
Abilities: Animal Ken, Athletics, Awareness,
Fortitude, Presence, Survival
Epic Attributes: Stamina, Appearance (negative)
Purviews: Itztli, Animal (Dogs), Guardian,
Psychopomp
Birthrights
Offerings to the
Atzlnti
Amaranth Seed Rations (relic o)
At the culmination of Panquetzaliztli, a month-long
festival in honor of Huitzilopochtli, a life-sized statue
of the god sculpted of amaranth seeds and honey
was cut into pieces and distributed to the people. By
eating a blessed portion of the statue, festival goers
secured the blessings of the Blue Tezcatlipoca.
These amaranth seed rations are prepared in the
same way, but instead of life-sized statues, modern
versions are shaped like high-protein energy bars
in blue foil wrappers. When passed around before a
battle, those who eat a mouthful of the rations gain
the effects of the Blessing of Bravery (War 1) boon, but
are granted temporary Courage instead of temporary
Valor. Somehow, there is always exactly enough for
every warrior present to have a taste, and a single
point of Legend will transform the empty wrapper
into a brand new ration, ready to be opened and
consumed again.
(See Scion: Hero, page 325, for full stats and description.)
The Nagual: An
Atzlnti Animal
Companion
by Griffinguy24
-----------------------------------------------------
Griffinguy24s Introduction
A large feature of Mesoamerican mythology was
a concept known as the nagual to the Aztecs and
uay to the Mayans. This was, essentially, a cross
between a totem animal, a guardian angel, and a
horoscope. The Mesoamerican soul was divided
into three parts. The first was the yollotl, the heart.
The second was the tonal, the spark of life that was,
essentially, what Westerners call the soul (According
to folklore, the tonal could be lost to a person for a
number of reasons, resulting in a culturally-specific
illness known as susto, which is similar to clinical
depression). The third was the nagual, the shadow
soul, the animal twin. The nagual was a spirit animal
existing somewhere in the world with whom a
person shared their very life.
A persons nagual was determined by a number
of factors, including a persons birthday, and their
experiences. Usually, a nagual would reveal itself
through dreams, or by having another individual
of the same species interact with the person.
Sometimes, that representative might even attack
them! Many native cultures felt that being attacked
by a powerful creature and surviving was the
animals way of testing if that person was worthy.
A person who mastered their nagual would become
a powerful magician, called a nahualli. The most
common form of magic known by a nahualli was
the ability to transform into their animal form and
wreak havoc, or to command their nagual to do
their bidding (Essentially, the Animal Form and Ride
Animal abilities). More powerful nahualli could
even claim more than one creature as their nagual,
Naguals
The Basics
Naguals gain Legend as their Scion does, their
Legend scores starting at 1 and always remaining
two dots of Legend below their Scion. The
maximum Legend a nagual may accrue is 10, at
which point, they essentially become a Typhonian
beast.
All naguals start with 15 bonus points to be spent
as bonus points are at character creation, as well as
5 dots in Aztlanti Virtues. Any Attributes the base
creature has at 0 are automatically raised to 1.
Naguals are bought as Birthright Creatures, usually
at Hero level (although many purchase it later), at
the cost of 2 dots (where the mundane animal is
a 1-dot Creature) or 3 dots (where the mundane
animal is a 2-dot Creature).
At character creation, the nagual starts at Legend 1,
Legend Points 1. Epic Attributes may be purchased
with bonus points (with 3 Epic Attributes maximum,
per Nemean animal rules), but Boons may not.
When a nagual gains a dot of Legend, it gets 10
bonus points. See the list of common nagual species
to determine which Epic Attributes and Boons are
considered Favored. All naguals can take Itztli and
Animal Boons as Favored.
When a nahualli Scion reaches Demigod and God
status, the Scion may spend a Birthright dot to gain
15 bonus points for their nagual and to add 4/3/2
dots to their naguals Attributes.
Naguals have the following unique supernatural
powers to begin with:
Shared Fate
Prerequisite: Automatic
Coordination
Prerequisite: Automatic
Since the Scion and his nagual are one soul, the two
complement each other on the battlefield. The two
act as though they have the Perfect Partner Knack
for free, though this only applies to the two of them
coordinating attacks.
Atzlnti Only
Animal Boons
Nahualli:
Note: The following Boons may ONLY
be used on a Birthright nagual
Common Nagual
Species
This is by no means an exhaustive list of all possible
naguals, merely a list of those commonly associated
with Aztlanti Scions
Jaguar
Eagle
Minor Nagual
Species
Pumas favor Epic Strength, Epic Dexterity, Epic
Perception, and Epic Wits. They can take Boons
from the Earth, Guardian, Sky, and War Purviews.
Their highest virtue is usually Courage.
and Epic Wits. They can take Boons from the Chaos,
Earth, and Illusion Purviews. Their highest virtue is
usually Conviction