Notes for Mayan Old School games

 

"There was heaven and earth, but the light of the Sun and the Moon were murky.

One by the name of Wukub K'aquix enhaughtened himself because of his riches.

Wukub K'aquix had two sons: Zipacná and Cab Rakán. The oldest took ownership of the hills, for he would create them in one night and his brother Cab Rakán would make them shiver and quake. All three brandished their great arrogance.

This appeared wrong in the eyes of the two young men called Junajpú and Xbalamqué, and so they decided to kill them."

System:

Any Old School game will do but Empire of the Petal Throne fit like a glove. Once the setting was adapted the only homebrew I used was a Lore stat (average of Strength, Intelligence, Dexterity and Comeliness), used when characters were liable to be fed obscure cultural knowledge. Most setting details though should be given out without a roll so that players can easily drop in.

Setting:

Main groups of non-Yucatec Mayans: Quiché/K'iché/Kawek (confederation of three tribes: K'iché, Tamub and Ilocab), Cakchiquel/Kaqchikel

Widely used materials: wood, cotton, resin, corn/pumpkin/other plant fibers, bone/feather/fur/other animal materials, flint, jade, precious stones, gold and silver, obsidian (used to make weapons and mirrors)

Armor: cotton armor (similar to a buffcoat), decorative headgear and other decorative/symbolic armor (feathers, fur, bone, bodypaint, jewels), shield. I had decorative armor convey an AC bonus as well because of the fear/awe factor.

Other body decoration: body painting (clay, mineral powder etc). Nose rings are a sign of nobility/kingship/authority. Kaqchikeles do not pierce their ears or elbows (but Quichés do). There are records of jade-studded teeth but this was probably exceptional.

Weapons: daggers, axes, maces, macahuitl, bows, blowguns, slings, spears/javelins, atlatl

Pom (copal tree resin) is often burned in everyday ceremonies.

The owl is a harbinger of death. When the black vulture spreads his wings at night, the sun will soon rise.

The Kaqchikel

Your tribal totem: zotz (the bat), therefore your people are also known as the zotzil. Your lord/king is known as Ajpop-zotzil (lord of the zotzil)

Your legendary tribal ancestors: Gagawitz, "fire mountain" (=Quiché Jacawitz) and Zactecauj, "snowy mountain"

Appendix N:

Popol Wuj, Annals of the Kaqchikels, The Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel, Ritual of the Bacabs

A list of Quiché names

"With the great rains and hail the fire of the other peoples had gone out, and they all came, shivering with cold, teeth hitting teeth, to ask for fire from Balam Quitzé, Balam Ak'ab, Majucutaj and Iquí Balam. They gave it, under the condition of joining them, and all the peoples accepted.

But there was a people who did not want to ask for the fire, the Cakchiqueles, who stole it under cover of the smoke instead."