Mexica Sunrise : An Aztec AAR

[_Tristan_]

THE CAST OF CHARACTERS

Let me first introduce our Lords and Governors...

MOCTEZUMA, "The Wrathful Lord", Uey-Tlatoani of the Mexica-Azteca Nation

In 1521



It is now ten years that we live under the benevolent rule of Moctezuma, true to his name only on the battlefield... Following the Hard Times, he has put great effort in reconquering the cities that had rebelled from our rule, due to the slackening of our power... now the empire stands almost as great as it once was and only a few town remain rebellious and will soon be brought back in the fold...


In 1525



Faced with the threat of the Texcalan and the incursion of the Spaniards in our lands, Moctezuma has taken some steps both towards our people and the foreigners that make him a merciless leader. His regular meetings with some disreputable members of our society do nothing to alleviate this reputation. Of late, one new advisor is always standing around our Lord, saying nothing, doing nothing but seemingly never losing a word of what is said.

In 1530



Through his developing of our quimichime network of spies, Moctezuma is sometimes called the Watcher. Not a single event on our lands and abroad happens without him knowing of it almost instantly, or at least as fast as our swift-runners can reach him.
His wrathful temper is now the stuff of legend as the Texcalan can bear witness. It is to their honor (however few as they may have) that they still stand defiant.



Prince CUITLAHUAC, "Speaker of Filth", Heir to the throne

In 1521



Brother to our Leader and ever jealous of his power, this man cannot be trusted as far as he can be seen... Many schemes to attent to Moctezuma's life should have been traced to this man, if the would-be assassins had not taken their lives before interrogation... Perhaps, he will mend his ways with time... Hopefully he is as hateful of our enemies as he is of his brother...


In 1525



Away from the court and its intrigues, and with the will to demonstrate to his brother how better than him he is, Cuitlahuac has become a fearsome warrior. It seems that the wrath that lives in him has been turned to our enemies, but he is still as jealous of Moctezuma as before.

In 1530



Cuitlahuac’s mind is still poisoned by the jealousy he feels for his brother. He has been heard to curse the Gods for having him be born two years later than Moctezuma.


War Leader CUAUHTEMOC, "Swooping Eagle"



Cuitlahuac' son, is a fine counterpoint to his father. Having been raised at court, he considers Moctezuma, more his true father than his uncle... He shows great promise for such a young man as War Leader... Only time will tell...

In 1525



True to the promise that was seen in him, Cuauhtemoc defeated the Texcalans laying siege to Tenochtitlan, gaining some scars in the battle and ingratiating himself to our Lord.

In 1530



Well aware of the tension between his father and uncle, Cuauhtemoc has seen fit to stand apart from their quarrels. Some say that he is too much reserved and should speak his mind…


War Leader CHIMALPAHIN, "Medicine Shield", adopted in 1523 by Moctezuma,



Chosen by Moctezuma to spite the Speaking Council that was looking to have him adopt one of their numbers, he proved to be an asset in organizing Tenochtitlan during the siege that hoefully didn’t last due to Cuauhtemoc’s intervention. The steps he had to take during that siege have him seen as a mean leader by the townsfolk.

In 1530



His adoption in our Emperor’s family has brought out the worse in that man, who lets his life be rules by his extravagant tastes. Sensing the change and angry with himself to have been fooled by this man, Moctezuma has banished him from Tenochtitlan and given the task of developing the backwater and border region of Tolocan, much to his regret.


War Leader AMACUI-XOLOTL, "Paper-Bird", adopted in 1524 by Cuauhtemoc



Adopted for having forced the siege of Tenochtitlan to warn his future adoptive father of that Texcalan attack, he then proved a worthy general.

In 1530



Since his adoption by Cuauhtemoc, Xolotl has always been seen around Moctezuma, playing counterpoint to our Lord harshness and being seen as someone easy to talk to. It even seems like he has begun to change our Lord’s temper, making him see the limits between being harsh and being unfair, and helping him distinguish between friends and foes.


War Leader XILOTZIN, "Lord Maize", adopted in 1525 by Moctezuma



He has proven his worth in battle fighting alongside our Prince near Cholollan. He came highly recommended by the Prince. Our Emperor was no fool in considering that he might be a spy for Cuitlahuac but thought that it would be a gesture that would please his brother and end the brotherly feud. He is known for having multiple affairs with married and unmarried women, and some say men even.

In 1530



Little by little, this man is showing his true nature. He is heard more and more grumbling about his lot in life, all the while spending the riches his ancestors struggled to make theirs, and only to afford his extravagant tastes in jewels and attire.


War Leader ITZQUEMITL, "Obsidian Cloak", adopted in 1525 by Moctezuma



The bravery and cunning this man has shown in ridding the Tochpan countryside of its bandit plague did not go unnoticed by Moctezuma who saw in him a man of valour.

In 1530



Although still young, this man has almost seen as much action as some of our cuachique veterans and bears the scars to prove it. Something tells me that should he live long, he will be one of the greatest generals to serve our Uey-Tlatoani.


War Leader TOCHTLI, “Rabbit”, adopted in 1526 by Moctezuma



Already a veteran of many campaign with our Lord before his adoption, Tochtli, giving the lie to his fluffy namesake, is not kind and gentle and is not to be fooled with, whether on a field of battle or in everyday life. His only weakness resides in the tlachtli ball game, of which he can be considered an addict, betting large sums of money on the outcome of games. Until now, luck is with him (or might it be that his fellow players know better than to have him lose ?)

[_Tristan_]

THE TALE OF THE MEXICA NATION

Turn 1 : AD 1521, year Three-House of the Aztec Calendar

From the hard times past, we Mexica have expanded far and wide from the original cities of the Triple Alliance and it is now time to consolidate our empire and restore it to its splendor.

Great works have been commissioned by our Revered Speaker, essentially to favor commerce, the lifeblood of the state... Pathways are worked into roads and marketplaces are built in most towns.

Aware of the jealous frame of mind of his brother, Moctezuma has seen fit to send him away to lay siege to the rebel city of Cholollan, to bring it once again into the fold and thus deny our Texcala enemies new territories to conquer.




Turn 2 : AD 1522, year Four-Rabbit

Our nation is the largest by far of all neighboring lands….



…and the most advanced also.



Our prince has been graced with the birth of a baby boy, but Cuitlahuac hasn't not be able to greet him to the light of the Sun, maintaining the siege of Cholollan and supervising the building of siege equipment.
Keeping his brother away from his new born son on strict orders, Moctezuma is now a bit more feared by courtiers and peasants alike who consider him as a mean leader... I know that it is not out of meanness but out of necessity that he acted so.



Our Revered Speaker is still unmarried and without child and the Elder's Council is afraid that Cuitlahuac will inherit his brother's throne. So they have presented a young noble to be adopted but without success. Our Lord has confided in me that he would better choose his heir than have him chosen by wily old men, whose intentions are unknown.



The coming of the white men is no more a mere rumor as they have been sighted. No contact has been made yet but from first sight account they seem to be men even if they seem to have strange ways of clothing and wear much hair on their faces. Some still think that they are demons from Mictlan, the Underworld, but I for myself have a theory that they might be some kind of white civilized monkeys.



The massing of Texcala forces at the northeast borders of their realm smells of an attack on our lands, so, Moctezuma, in is wisdom, to try and lure them has asked Cuauhtemoc to leave the city almost undefended and hide in the jungles east to take them in the back should they besiege the city.



We've heard that the strange white men are thought in Texcala to be the armies of Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent, returning to lead the Texcalan armies to victory. This does not bode well for us...

Our spies have invaded the neighboring city of Tolocan, in preparation for a future siege. It is the last of our old cities with Cholollan to remain renegade.

[_Tristan_]

Turn 3 : AD 1523, year Five-Reed : The coming of the white men



Contact has been made with the white men. They are neither demons nor monkeys but strange white men. They have strange ways of clothing, grow hair on their faces and stink as a Mictlan pit. Our Lord is a man of open ways and he has made sure that they were received regally, not sure yet that they might not be the Gods' own emissaries. From the account we received from our emissary, they were greatly impressed bu our riches and have offered us to open trade routes. They seem to have a lust for gold and soon after merchants have been seen entering our lands. They have paid only a token sum of gold to get our good graces and even that seemed to hurt them.



It seems that they believe in only one God, and we ache for them as that God must not be very watchful of his followers. We, at least, with the multitude of our Gods are sure that at least one of them is always watching over us.

The town of Huaxtepec has become so crowded with people that it needs to expand and Our Lord has asked his engineers to enlarge. It will now become a large town, not to rival Tenochtitlan but still...



The Elders are wary of the warmongering Texcalans and have requested of Our Lord to send some troops to reinforce the city of Tochpan. They have promised that they would offer to train new soldiers and dedicate some money to the temples. Our Lord is considering the proposition.



Worried by the plans of the Council to impose the choosing of an heir to the throne, Our Lord Moctezuma has adopted a worthy young man and asked him to take over the running of the city of Tenochtitlan as he himself will go and siege Tololan with his army. The man is called Chimalpahin, "Medecine Shield" and should prove to be a worthy addition to our Lord’s family.



In the same time, Prince Cuitlahuac assaults the walls of the city of Cholollan.

The Siege of Cholollan, rebel town

Prince Cuitlahuac positions his men and prepares to lead the assault. Most men are massed at the front gate of the city, but a third of them have been sent to the east wall to lure some of the defenders to that same wall, weakening the walls around the gates. A single unit of spearmen has been sent west with ladders to assault the walls opposite to the gates.



Ladders are sent to climb the walls...



... and support soon follows, while good timing allows the ram to reach the gates at the exact same time.



The ram starts opening the gates...



... and succeeds just before it starts burning. The men of the garrison start to pour out...



... only to be met by the charge of the Prince and his bodyguard.



The first men reach the top of the wall and start wreaking havoc...



... forcing the defenders to rout...



... and preparing to repel some reinforcements.



In the meantime and unbeknownst to the garrison, some of our men have reached the opposite wall of the city and begin to climb.



Sensing that all might be lost, the rest of the garrison abandons the walls, leaving them free for the rest of our men to assault.



The rebel commander sends his Eagle Knights to repel our first assault on the walls but they are routed when blocked in the tower stairs between our own Eagle and Jaguar Knights.



The battle is joined at the gates...



...and our prince bodyguards execute the rebel commander.



Help for him is too late, the more so when the helpers are charged in the back by the men that had climbed up the back wall.



All that remains is to mop up the plaza clear of the remaining men.



The city is ours !!!

Our men suffered few losses, taking three of the Texcalans for any of us that fell on that day.



The prisoners are sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli, our God of War, to give thanks for this victory.