LA Xibalba, Return of the Zotz

Xibalba is a vast realm of dark caverns beneath the forests of Mictlan. Living in the caverns were the bat people, Zotz, but that changed when the cavernous realm was struck by a great disaster. A star fell into the ocean and a great deluge flooded the caves of Xibalba. The Zotz were almost wiped out and their realm was conquered by atlantian refugees. For a long time the toad people ruled Xibalba and became powerful. Eventually the Bacabob left the caverns to conquer the sun-lit world. There they met Mictlan and the Lawgiver. The humans were more numerous and while the Xibalban Bacabob were mighty, they could not prevent the death of their kin. Slowly the Xibalbans were decimated and the Bacabob withdrew into the flooded city and fell into a centennial torpor. When the caves began to dry up the Zotz started to return in numbers. In the still waterfilled depths of Xibalba the Zotz priests found and unwittingly awoke the Bacabob. Now the Zotz once more inhabit their ancestral home, but serve the divinities of subterranean waters and the Awakening God.

"Xibalba is a nation inspired by Mayan mythological concepts as expressed in the Mayan texts Popol Vuh and Chilam Balam. The Popol Vuh describes the creation of the world and other mythological concepts. It also tells of the hero twins Hunahpú and Xbalanqué and their travels to Xibalba, the Mayan underworld, through which the sun travels during the night. Ever since high school, when I first came across the TTRPG Chill, and found a creature named Camazotz, I've been intrigued by bat-gods and Mesoamerican myth. The bat-god was actually the first god made for Mictlan, when that nation appeared in Dominions 2. When I started to work on Xibalba it was clear from the beginning that it would be a Mayan nation of bat-people.

Xibalba was also one of the first nations to get a national global spell based on its national backstory. The concept had been used when we remade the themes and carrion woods into a national spell, but we were never fond of how that worked out. The Xibalban Theft of the Sun along with the Agarthan Unleash Imprisoned Ones reintroduced the national global enchantments. …

Xibalba is a vast realm of dark caverns beneath the forests of Mictlan. According to legend, the sun and the moon passed through the labyrinthine caverns on their daily journey to the eastern horizon. On this journey they were guarded by the bat people, Zotz, that dwelled in the dark reaches of the Xibalban underworld. Being almost blind, they would not see and not covet the splendor of the sun. No one has seen the sun or moon pass through Xibalba for ages, but the Zotz keep their vigil and traditions alive. Lately, the bat people have lost purpose and the priestly rulers of Xibalba look to the surface world to once more bask in the splendor of the sun and moon. The Zotz are led by priest kings from various cities, and only the priesthood represents centralized power. They still train the sacred Sun Guides that were once tasked with guarding the celestial entities through the dark world of Xibalba. The Zotz have contact with surface dwellers, primarily those of Mictlan, and have adopted some of their technology and practices. The Zotz have an affinity for blood hunting and black magic. Despite being guides of the sun, their skill in solar magic is limited. The Zotz are numerous and live in great swarming cave colonies. Numbers—rather than strength—allow them to win battles." -Illwinter

If you are considering picking this nation to play, what should you know?

Magic Access	Alt. Access	Unit Summary	Core Abilities	Buildings
4 (Rare 5) 3 (Rare 4) 3 2 (Rare 3) 2 1 3	Heroes 2444 Summons 2423 2423 2423 2423 (req. 4) 433 4223 2423 4223 (req. 4) 21311100% (req. 4	Flying, Stealthy Light Infantry Amphibious Infantry	Flying Stealthy Blood Searcher Blind Fighter Cold Blooded Darkvision Amphibious	Very Primitive Forts

Capitol Gems: 112

Sloth Limit + 1
Heat Limit + 1

Prefers Heat Scale + 1

Blood Sacrifice: Priests can sacrifice a blood slave at a temple to help extend the dominion. This ability is not transferred to disciple nations. Disciple nations with this ability can still use it. These nations do not have dying dominion.

: Stealthy (40), Patrol Bonus (-1), Blood Searcher (+1), Blind Fighter (1), Flying, Cold Blooded, Forest Survival

Sprite	Unit Name	Special Attributes	Comments
	Batab 60 5 1 Forest Recruit Cave Recruit		Commentary here.
	Ajaw 145 2 1	1 Sacred	Commentary here.
	Ajaw Kan Ek' 240 1 2	2 Sacred Old Age (107/100)	Commentary here.
	Ah Ha' 140 1 2 Underwater Fort Recruit	1119 Sacred Darkvision (100) Amphibious Swamp Survival Swimming	Commentary here.
	Ah Itz 165 1 2	111100%11	Commentary here.
	Way 200 1 2 Forest Recruit	21010%7 Supply Bonus (20) Shapechanger (Jaguar)	Commentary here.
	Jaguar	Darkvision (50) Stealthy (40) Animal Forest Survival Shapechanger (Way)	Commentary here.
	Chilan 250 1 2 Cave Recruit	1121100%11 Sacred Fortune Teller (10%)	Commentary here.
	Camazotz 280 1 2 Capital Only	1211100%15 Old Age (103/100)	Commentary here.
	Bacab 685 1 4 Capital Only	32131100% 10%19 Sacred Cold Resistance (5) Darkvision (100) Gift of Waterbreathing (120) Resource Bonus (5) Amphibious Swamp Survival Swimming Twiceborn (Wight Mage)	Commentary here.
	Batab 55 5 1 Underwater Fort Recruit	Darkvision (50) Amphibious Swamp Survival Swimming	Commentary here.

: Patrol Bonus (-1), Blood Searcher (+1), Blind Fighter (1), Flying, Cold Blooded, Forest Survival
: Darkvision (100), Amphibious, Swamp Survival, Swimming

Sprite	Unit Name	Special Attributes	Comments
	Zotz Warrior 8 1 6 Forest Recruit Cave Recruit	Stealthy (40)	Commentary here.
	Zotz Warrior 8 2 6 Forest Recruit Cave Recruit	Stealthy (40)	Commentary here.
	Zotz Dart Thrower 8 2 6	Stealthy (40)	Commentary here.
	Zotz Guard 10 5 12		Commentary here.
	Zotz Guard 10 6 12		Commentary here.
	Sak Muuch Dart Thrower 10 4 9		Commentary here.
	Sak Muuch Warrior 10 10 9		Commentary here.
	Sak Muuch Warrior 10 11 9		Commentary here.
	Obisidian Warrior 18 19 24 Capital Only	Sacred Fire Resistance (5)	Commentary here.
	Wo' Muuch 35 34 39 Capital Only	Sacred	Commentary here.
	Lakam Ha' Warrior 10 5 9 Underwater Fort Recruit	Darkvision (50) Amphibious Swamp Survival Swimming	Commentary here.
	Lakam Ha' Warrior 10 5 9 Underwater Fort Recruit	Darkvision (50) Amphibious Swamp Survival Swimming	Commentary here.

• Break the First Soul: (Blood 2)
  1
  Commentaryy here.
• Break the Second Soul: (Thaumaturgy 2)
  1
  Commentary here.
• Break the Third Soul: (Thaumaturgy 2)
  1
  Commentary here.
• Break the Fourth Soul: (Thaumaturgy 2)
  1
  Commentary here.

• Gift of the First Soul: (Blood 3)
  1
  Commentary here.
• Gift of the Second Soul: (Thaumaturgy 3)
  1
  Commentary here.
• Gift of the Third Soul: (Thaumaturgy 3)
  1
  Commentary here.
• Gift of the Fourth Soul: (Thaumaturgy 3)
  1
  Commentary here.

See Magic Access. These guides supplement the summaries at the top.

Summon Chaac is tricky to get to, requiring three Air boosters. Really, a pretender with 4 is the only practical way. One of the four Chaacs has 2. In terms of increasing paths, that's its only benefit. With two Fire boosters and one Air booster, it can create the The Magic Lamp to summon Al Khazim - Jinn.

Summon Balam requires 4, which is doable. All Balams have 4, which is higher than what a Way has. Their 42 also makes getting the Armor of Twisting Thorns Unremovable easier. As far as path boosting, 1 of the 4 Balams has 2, 1 of the 4 has 2. The Balam of the South, with two Blood boosters, can Bind Arch Devil.

Abominable Arms
22 Way +
The Abominable Arms are especially useful for holding additional Nature or Death boosters.

The hero, Mam Lum - Grandfather Earth, has 24. Two Fire boosters allows it to make a Staff of Elemental Mastery and the Crown of the Elements Unique.

No national access except the hero, Mam Lum - Grandfather Earth who has 2.

Contact Onaqui
2 Ah Itz or Camazotz (1 in 4) +
Onaqui has a 1 in 4 chance of 1.

Contact Onaqui
2 Ah Itz or Camazotz (1 in 4) +
Onaqui has a 1 in 4 chance of 1.

Highest Starting: 1 Ah Itz or (1 in 4) and Camazotz (1 in 4)

Highest Starting: 4 Bacab (1 in 4)

Orb of Atlantis Unique
32 Bacab

Highest Starting: 3 Bacab (1 in 4)

Pebble Skin Suit Unremovable
12 Camazotz (1 in 4) +

Blood Stone
12 Camazotz (1 in 4) +

Father Illearth Can't wear boots.
12 Camazotz (1 in 4) +
21 Camazotz (1 in 4) +
Pedoseion - Father Illearth has 4

No national access.

Hidden in Sand in Wasteland
31 Bacab
Dust Priest has a 1 in 3 chance of 2.

Hidden Underneath Underneath
31 Bacab
Dust Priest has a 3 in 4 chance of at least 1.

Summon Spectre
3 Camazotz (1 in 4)
Spectral Mage has a 7 in 16 chance of at least 1.

Highest Starting: 3 Camazotz (1 in 4)

The Black Book of Secrets Unique
22 Camazotz (1 in 4)

Highest Starting: 2 Way

Contact Naiad
31 Bacab
Naiad has 3

Armor of Twisting Thorns Unremovable
21 Way +

No national access.

Troll King's Court
3 Bacab (1 in 4) +
Troll King has 1

Summon Spectre
3 Camazotz (1 in 4)
Spectral Mage has a 7 in 16 chance of at least 1.

Forest Troll Tribe
2 Way +
Troll Shaman has a 1 in 4 chance of 1.

Highest Starting: 2 Ah Itz or Camazotz (1 in 4)

The Black Book of Secrets Unique
22 Camazotz (1 in 4)

Armor of Twisting Thorns Unremovable
21 Way +

Contact Onaqui
2 Ah Itz or Camazotz (1 in 4) +
Onaqui has a 1 in 4 chance of 4.

How to win as the nation. Feel free to use the following sections, or delete them, or change them.

Different expansion options.

Early game options.

Mid game options.

Late game options.

What are the nation's weaknesses?

Add links to guides or other overviews for this nation here.

Nations
Early Ages	Arcoscephale • Ermor • Ulm • Pyrène, • Marverni • Sauromatia • T'ien Ch'i • Machaka • Mictlan • Abysia • Caelum • C'tis • Pangaea • Agartha • Tir na n'Og • Fomoria • Vanheim • Helheim • Niefelheim • Muspelheim • Rus • Kailasa • Lanka • Yomi • Hinnom • Ur • Berytos • Xibalba • Mekone • Ubar • Atlantis • R'lyeh • Pelagia • Oceania • Therodos
Middle Ages	Arcoscephale • Ermor • Sceleria • Pythium • Man • Eriu • Ulm • Pyrène • Marignon • Mictlan • T'ien Ch'i • Machaka • Agartha • Abysia • Caelum • C'tis • Pangaea • Asphodel • Vanheim • Jotunheim • Nidavangr • Vanarus • Bandar Log • Shinuyama • Ashdod • Uruk • Nazca • Xibalba • Phlegra • Phaeacia • Ind • Na'ba • Atlantis • R'lyeh • Pelagia • Oceania • Ys
Late Ages	Arcoscephale • Pythium • Lemuria • Man • Ulm • Marignon • Mictlan • T'ien Ch'i • Jomon • Agartha • Abysia • Caelum • C'tis • Pangaea • Midgård • Utgård • Bogarus • Patala • Gath • Ragha • Xibalba • Phlegra • Vaettiheim • Feminie • Piconye • Andramania • Pyrène • Atlantis • R'lyeh • Erytheia