Xibalba is a vast realm of dark water-filled caverns beneath the forests of Mictlan. According to legend, the sun and the moon passed through the cavernous realm 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. But 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 bat people drowned or fled the caves, but other inhabitants soon emerged. The Zotz were replaced by refugees from the shattered Atlantis. The fallen star, or possibly the dark magic of Xibalba, changed the Atlantians. The Atlantians of Xibalba developed more toadlike traits and different broods emerged. They called themselves Muuch, toad people. Their kings, the Bacabs, mighty mages of the deluge, conquered the last Xibalban city and built a Muuch kingdom in the caves underneath the forests of Mictlan. After a while the Muuch began to settle the forests above their caverns and a new brood of Muuch appeared. A brittle alliance of Muuch and Zotz has formed in the forests. Meanwhile the Bacabs hunted down the remaining Zotz hiding in dried-out caves and forced them into servitude. Now Xibalba is a Muuch kingdom with a small subjugated Zotz population.

"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) 4 (Rare 5) 2 2 2 (Rare 3) 1 2	Heroes 213 2433 13133 Summons 2423 2423 2423 2423 (req. 4) 433 4223 2423 4223 (req. 4)	Flying, Stealthy Light Infantry Scorpions	Flying Stealthy Patrol Bonus (-1) Blood Searcher Blind Fighter Cold Blooded Forest Survival Theft of the Sun Awe	Standard Forts Cave forts get extra gold and resources

Capitol Gems: 311

Sloth Limit + 1
Heat Limit + 1

Prefers Heat Scale + 1

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

: amphibious, darkvision (50%), Swamp Survival, Swimming

: Stealthy (40), Blood Searcher (+2), Cause Unrest (+3 or +5 per Month), Blind Fighter (1), Flying, Need Not Eat, Demon, Forest Survival, Summon Allies (Beast Bat) x 2

Sprite	Unit Name	Special Attributes	Comments
	Chek Ahau - Halach Uinic	Sacred Inspirational (1) Theft of the Sun Awe (1)	Commentary here.
	Ahaltocob - Stabbing Demon (Multi) Earliest Arrival Turn (20)	311 Sacred Assassin	Commentary here.
	Chamiabac - Demon of the Bone Staff Earliest Arrival Turn (20)	243323 Sacred	Commentary here.
	Chamiaholom - Demon of the Skull Staff Earliest Arrival Turn (20)	243323 Sacred	Commentary here.
	Ahalpuh - Demon of Pus Earliest Arrival Turn (20)	1313321 Sacred Stealthy (40) Supply Bonus (+10) Reaper (5%)	Commentary here.
	Ahalgana - Jaundice Demon Earliest Arrival Turn (20)	1313321 Sacred Supply Bonus (+10) Reaper (5%)	Commentary here.
	Ahalmez - Sweeping Demon Earliest Arrival Turn (20)	311 Sacred Assassin	Commentary here.

: Unique, Sacred, Poison Resistance (7), Stealthy (40), Supply Bonus (+40), Forest Survival, Shapechanger
: Animal, Cold Blooded, Swamp Survival, Swimming

Summon Spell	Unit	Special Attributes	Comments
Summon Jaguar Toads (Conjuration 1) 11 and 2	Jaguar Toad x 3	Sacred Poison Resistance (15) Poison Skin (15) Undisciplined	Commentary here.
Summon Jade Serpent (Conjuration 4) 2 and 3	Jade Serpent x 2	Sacred Poison Resistance (15) Standard (1) Amphibious	Commentary here.
Summon Monster Toad (Conjuration 5) 2 and 1	Monster Toad	Sacred Poison Resistance (25) Poison Cloud (5) Poison Skin (20) Undisciplined Trample	Commentary here.
Summon Balam (Conjuration 7) 4 and 60	Balam of the North or Balam of the East or Balam of the South or Balam of the West	242321 242321 242321 242321	Commentary here.
	Changes shape into: Balam of the North Balam of the East Balam of the South Balam of the West	Blood Searcher (+2) Cause Unrest (+3 per Month) Blind Fighter (1) Flying Need Not Eat	Commentary here.
	Changes shape into: Balam of the North Balam of the East Balam of the South Balam of the West	Patrol Bonus (+1) Blood Searcher (+1) Cold Blooded	Commentary here.
Summon Chaac (Conjuration 8) 4 and 75	Chaac of the North or Chaac of the East or Chaac of the South or Chaac of the West	43319 422321 242321 422321 Common Attributes: Unique Sacred or Shock Resistances (5 to 22) Supply Bonus (+50 to +70) Flying Storm Immunity Need Not Eat	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.

Ah K'in Kan Ek' with 2 is the best option for climbing Fire, especially since its 1 allows it to forge a Skull of Fire.

4 can Summon Balam for a 1 in 4 22. With Blood boosters, the Balam can Bind Arch Devil, which has 4.

8 can Bind Demon Lord for a 2 in 6 chance of at least 4.

Both Ah Itz and Camazotz have 1 (1 in 4 chance for either). The Camazotz has an additional Death path and slightly better stats. Empowerment is the only way to climb to the key 4.

4 can Summon Balam for a 1 in 4 2.

8 can Bind Demon Lord for a 1 in 6 chance of 5.

No native access. 4 can Summon Balam for a 1 in 4 2.

4, which is very difficult to get to, can Summon Chaac, which has at least 2.

2 Ah K'in Kan Ek' (1 in 3) has the highest Earth. 11 Ah Itz (1 in 4) or 11 Camazotz (1 in 4) have Earth and Blood, which is useful for climbing Earth. Using the Ah K'in Kan Ek' in combination with one of the Mages, and an Onaqui, empowerment is not necessary. The Ah K'in Kan Ek' creates the Earth boosters, the Mage creates the Earth boosters requiring Earth and Blood, and the Onaqui creates Blood boosters for the Mage.

8 can Bind Demon Lord for a 1 in 6 chance of 4.

No native access. 3 can Summon Spectre for a 7 in 16 chance of 1.

24 can Bind Arch Devil for a 1 in 4 chance of 3.

31 can cast Hidden in Sand and Hidden Underneath which give at least 1.

3 can Summon Spectre for a 7 in 16 chance of at least 1.

8 can Bind Demon Lord for a 1 in 6 chance of 4.

4 Onaqui (1 in 4) is high enough and has the right paths to make many Death boosters without any empowerment.

EA Xibalba can make all the extra arms items, which are useful for Death boosters.

2 Onaqui (1 in 4) can make an Armor of Twisting Thorns. A Earth random with an Earth booster and a Nature booster might be able to make the unique The Tome of Gaia. Without The Tome of Gaia, a level of empowerment is necessary.

8 can Bind Demon Lord for a 1 in 6 chance of at least 4.

EA Xibalba can make all the extra arms items, which are useful for Nature boosters.

No native access. 3 can Summon Spectre for a 7 in 16 chance of 1.

3 can cast Forest Troll Tribe for a 1 in 4 chance of 1.

8 can Bind Demon Lord for a 3 in 6 chance of at least 4.

An Onaqui, even without the Blood random, can climb the Blood path without help. It can even create the unique The Black Book of Secrets.

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