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So some time ago, I did a write-up on my conversion of the Abysians/Lavaborn as well as the early age of Arcoscephale from dominions, and I had intended to do conversions for that game but quickly got distracted, I am now motivated to pick it back up and while I can make no promises to convert the whole game, I can at least provide everyone with a few new nations to slot into their world
Before we start a summary of Dominions for context, the conceit of the game is that the head god of all creation has up and vanished without a trace. Before too long every nation of the world has its pet pretender to the throne viewing for the title of head god. These pretenders range from archmages to ancient heroes, to giant monsters from before time, to old allies, generals, or lovers of the previous head god.
the game takes place over three ages, and many of the nations I will convert will have separate entries for each age.
1. the early age: In this era, the world is young and wild, the world is full of monsters, magic, and a lot fewer people. People of this era are armed largely with bronze or basic iron, and have a weak understanding of the magic that fills the world around them,
2. the middle age: People have risen to prominence in this era and begun to take control, science has advanced rapidly and understanding of magic has grown with it. The monsters of the previous era have become scarce and more fantastical races have begun to lose ground to humans.
3. 3 the late age: Humans have now become the dominant people of a world that is clearly in decline in this era the magic of the world has begun to fade and many nations have been dealing with great tragedies. a once fantastical world has been mapped and a world of mysticism has been replaced with one of steel and engineering, what magic does remain tends towards death, soul and blood magic which are the least diminished paths of magic, if also the least moral.
This of course has little bearing on any use in an actual pathfinder game, I'm more just giving it as context for the world these nations come from, so context out of the way, let's move on to Early Age Xibalba, "Vigil of the Sun" a nation based on Aztec and Mayan culture and specifically the Mayan underworld. and it's god Camaztoz.
Xibalba is a vast realm of dark caverns hidden underneath the dense forests and jungles of the surface. According to Legend the sun and moon would pass through the labyrinthine caverns of Xibalba 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 did not covet the splendor of the sun. No one has seen the sun or moon pass through Xibalba in ages, but the Zotz keep their vigil and their traditions alive. But in recent times the bat people have lost their 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 zots are led by priest-kings from various cities and only the priesthood represents any centralized power. They still train the sacred Sun guides to this day, once tasked with guarding the celestial entities through their dark world. Only recently have the zots come into regular contact with the people above and begun to adopt their technology and practices.
Ancestry
Zotz
Rare
The batlike Zotz are thought of, by those that know of them at all as primitive and childlike in their adoration of stories and legends, and while it is true that ages of isolation within caverns have left their technology and society in a less than advanced state the Zotz are not so simple as outsiders might think. Eternally curious, quick to learn, and always observant, the Zotz are quickly adopting ideas and technologies from the surface, bringing advancement to their society with remarkable speed, and they take a great deal of pride in the legends and folktales of their past, no matter how impossible the surface dwellers might say they are.
You Might
- Seek to live out the glory of your people's folk tales as a guide and ambassador to celestial objects.
- Find yourself confused when interacting with a world built around vision and how necessary other people find it.
- Find the vast openness of the outside world both intimidating and exciting.
Others Might
- Find your amazement at the commonplace technology or the surface endearing.
- Worry that you are always eavesdropping on their conversations
- Find themselves regularly startled at how you can move around so silently.
Physical Description
Zotz are a slender race that stand about half a head shorter than a human on average, not counting their large black wings. Their skin tends to be a dull grey color and portions of it are covered in fine black fur such as their batlike heads and forearms. Their eyes are universally grey and unless a source of light or movement catches their attention are always staring straight ahead, unfocused. In contrast, the large wide ears of the Zotz are constantly active flicking to focus on different sources of sounds in their surroundings.
Society
The society of the Zots is a very decentralized one of countless villages and towns and is bound together by shared culture and history rather than any actual nation or government. Settlements are led by the priesthood and are largely agrarian in nature with farmers, hunters, and simple craftsmen composing the vast majority of the population. Those Zotz that show exceptional potential are trained to be sun guides and tasked with guarding the villages against threats.
Alignment and Religion
The primary religion of the Zotz is based largely around a pantheon of minor deities known as the Teotl. These beings vary widely in terms of personality, alignment, and domain but share an underlying theme of the importance of cycles, whether those be cycles found in nature, those in personal life, or in civilization, or even those on a more cosmic scale. The idea that beginnings and ends bleed in a continuously changing pattern is deeply ingrained in Zotz society. And as such zots tend toward neutral alignments and towards “big picture” worldviews wherein they are merely small facets of a much grander whole in which all things are temporary by their very nature, and that one must always be seeking new beginnings rather than clinging to loss or trying to force what one has to last forever.
There is a secondary religion of zots that is far more unsavory. Known as the Ah Nakom or heart-seekers, these cultists instead follow beings known as the Onaqui; cruel fiends that teach that complacency and peace foster stagnation and eventually decay and it is only through fear and turmoil that societies and people ever find a reason to improve. As such members of the Ah Nakom thus seeks to spread fear and instability throughout Xibalba, kidnapping and sacrificing those with especially peaceful lives and offering the hearts of such people to their masters, hence their name. All of this is allegedly done for the betterment of all, and while most cultists do believe that, the Onaqui are simply sadistic beings who feed on fear and suffering and use the cult as a means of sustaining themselves.
Adventurers
Zotz might Leave Xibalba and venture into the wider world for any number of reasons, but curiosity almost always plays a part, For the Zots, the surface was always thought of as a semi-mythical place, and the chance to voyage through it and learn about it firsthand is remarkably enticing to many a young Zotz.
Names
Ah Chun Caa, Bitoln, Bolom, Buluc Chabta, Cabrakan, Camulatz, Cauac, Chacoch, Hozanek, Hun, Kianto, Mitnal, Oxlahuntiku, Tzacol, Tzarab, Uc Zip, Xecotcovach
Hit Points: 6
Size: Medium
Speed 25 Feet
Ability Boots: Dexterity, Wisdom, Free
Ability Flaw: Strength
Language: Undercommon, Zotz. Additional Languages equal to your intelligence mod if it's positive. Choose from Abyssal, Aklo, Common, Terran, and any other languages you have access to.
Traits: Humanoid, Zotz
Blind: The eyes of a Zotz are almost completely vestigial, and can do little more than differentiate light from darkness and identify large or sudden movements. Sight is a vague sense for zotz, they gain a +2 on any save against visual effects, and cannot read writing that is purely visual in nature.Echolocation The primary Sense of the Zots is their hearing which is incredibly precise. Hearing is a precise sense for the zotz and with a series of ultrasonic chirps and clicks they can quickly form a mental map of the surroundings detailed enough to allow them to avoid danger and target enemies.
Heritage
Fox Zotz
You are much larger than most of your kin standing half a head taller than most men with a long almost canine head compared to the flat faces of most of your kin. You have 10 base Hp and are trained in Intimidation and gain a +1 circumstance bonus to coercion, your large bulky frame easily coming off as threatening even if it is not in your nature.
Vampire Zotz
Much like your namesake you are best known for supplementing your diet with blood drawn from living creatures, usually livestock. You gain a Fang attack that deals 1d4 piercing damage, it is in the knife weapon group and has the agile finesse and unarmed weapon traits. Whenever you critically hit using your fang, you apply the weapon's critical specialization effect and gain 1 temporary hp per damage die. This temporary hp is removed after one minute.
Leaf-Nosed Zotz
You are a nimble zotz noted for their very flat face and large nose, known among your kin as the swiftest and agile as well as the most skilled fliers, You gain the Flitter Feat, are trained in acrobatics and gain a +2 circumstance on checks to maneuver in flight and tumble through.
White Tent Zotz
You barely resemble your other kin much at all with the dark fur of most zotz replaced with a dense white puffy fur that almost makes you appear spherical when you are sitting. You are small instead of medium and can fit through spaces even smaller than that, You gain quick squeeze even if you do not meet the prerequisites and are treated as tiny for the purposes of squeezing.
Level 1 Ancestory Feats
Flitter
Move Like a Whisper
Piercing Screech
Scorpion Familiar
Zotz Lore
Zotz Spell Familiarity
Level 5 Ancestory Feats
Attentive Eavesdropper
Cavern Crawler
Envenom Weapon
Fable Collector
Zotz Spell Secrecy
Level 9 Ancestory Feats
Cavern Clinger
Chthonic Echoes
Deafening Screech
Practiced Flight
Wing Step
Level 13 Ancestory Feats
Experienced Flyer
Move Like a Shadow
Zotz Spell Expertise
Level 17 Ancestory Feats
Echo Mastery
feel free to leave feedback this was very much eyeballed and at least some part of it is almost certainly badly worded and imbalanced
Sometime later this week I will put out the zotz adjacent Xibalba content including
Items
Machauitl (Level 0 martial weapon)
Obsidian Razor (Level 7 Specific weapon)
Creature
Beast Bats (Level 2 Fiend)
Jaguar (Level 4 Animal)
Onaqui (Level 13 Fiend)
Ozelotl (Level 4 Fiend)
Wooden Warrior (Level 2 Construct)
Characters
Chek Ahau (Level 13 Priest-King)
Chamiaholom and Chamiabac (Level 18 Onaqui Priests)
NPC
various zotz
Archetypes
Sun Guide
