TEXT: XOCHITLCOZAMALOTL 
  Flower Rainbow, An Aztec Soap Opera by Jason Morningstar 
   
  COPYLEFT AND ATTRIBUTION 
  Copyright (c)  2005 Jason Morningstar. 
  Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free 
  Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; 
  with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license can be 
  found here: 
   
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_GNU_Free_Documentation_License 
   
  Xochitlcozamalotl uses material from the Wikipedia category Aztec Mythology, which can be found here:  
   
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Aztec_mythology 
  RONNIES NOTE 
  This game was designed for entry in the October 2005 Ronnies contest.  To that end, Xochitlcozamalotl 
  uses "cosmos" and "sphere" and does not include "fight" or "pain".  Sphere refers to the overlapping 
  influence and authority of the four player character gods - each represents an elemental sphere.  Cosmos 
  refers to cosmos bipinnatus, Mexican aster, a daisy-like flower that grows in absurd abundance in the 
  Valley of Mexico.   
  INTRODUCTION 
  Centzontotochtin, the Four Hundred Rabbits, are having a party, and many of the gods will attend and 
  become drunk on pulque.  It is a time for celebration and subterfuge in equal parts.  The four principal gods 
  - fiery Smoking Shield, kind Feathered Snake, celestial Hummingbird of the South, and terrible Tlaloc, will 
  seek new wives and new alliances.  It is the time of temicxoch, the Flowery Dream, when gods and men 
  mingle and the spheres of influence are nudged, shaken, and re-aligned.  One will emerge supreme by 
  assembling the largest number of followers in his sphere.   
  FLOWERS 
  You will need flowers to play Xochitlcozamalotl.  The very best choice for repeated play are loose 
  synthetic petals, which can be purchased at a craft store.  Oriental Trading Company 
  (http://www.orientaltrading.com) offers 250 for three dollars; the item number is IN-34/927.  If you can't or 
  won't buy flowers, I suppose you could use coins or poker chips.  But flowers are prettier.   
  PREPARING FOR PLAY 
  Choose a pleasant place to play - ideally out of doors or sprawled on comfortable furniture, with a bowl of 
  loose flowers forming a common pile.  There should be a central table or tray upon which you can drop 
  flowers as you announce your bids.  Never pick these up - let the area become covered in flowers.  Have a 
  few beers or some hot chocolate.   
  
   
  You need four players.  Each of these four chooses one of the principal gods to portray, and divides sixteen 
  flowers between Majesty and Beauty.  Make a pile for each - Majesty on the left and Beauty on the right.  
  Decide who you want to be your bride and write your choice down. 
  MAJESTY AND BEAUTY 
  Majesty and Beauty are paired concepts that drive interaction.  Every character in the game has a score in 
  each, and these numbers represent flowers that you gain when they enter the sphere of your player 
  character god.  Thus, if you were to win Flower Feather (Majesty 2, Beauty 6), you would immediately add 
  two flowers to your Majesty pile and six to your Beauty pile.   
   
  Majesty includes raw power, the mysteries of conception, childbirth, and renewal, feats of arms, skill, 
  religious zeal, nobility in lineage and purpose, the strength of heritage and tradition, great deeds of every 
  sort, and the triumph of righteousness.  It also includes the dreadful and awesome spectacle of death in all 
  its forms, including the epic sacrifices made by the people to appease you. 
   
  Beauty includes the arts, including painting, feather-working., and music, as well as the sensual arts of 
  love-making and dance.  It encompasses the broad streets of the Imperial capitol, gleaming white in ordered 
  perfection, and the savage beauty of temple steps stained deep red with the sacred blood of joyful victims.  
  Beauty can be as simple as a cloud of butterflies or as magnificent as the lifeless body of a royal child in a 
  still pond, drowned to keep you sated.     
  SEQUENCE OF PLAY 
  Each of the four players, in turn, gets to be the middle-man (tlahcoyan).  The middle-man sets the scene for 
  some role-playing.   
   
  There is bidding then between the players to determine who will compete for the middle man’s non-player 
  character, with the fourth player assuming the role of watcher.  The scene is enacted for the pleasure of the 
  watcher, with players narrating the arguments and actions of their god, as well as any noteworthy members 
  of his sphere that may join in the struggle over the non-player character’s allegiance.  The non-player 
  character is awarded to the sphere of one god or the other.  If the winner wants to claim his bride, this is the 
  time.   
   
  Finally, the watcher awards a flower to one of his three peers.  The role of middle-man then passes to the 
  next player in sequence, rotating clockwise.   
   
  The goal is to bring as many gods, people, and peoples into your sphere as possible.  Supplementary goals 
  include securing the proper bride and, for Tlaloc and Hummingbird of the South, getting aspects of your 
  rivals into your sphere.   
  CHOOSING A BRIDE 
  Each player character must choose a bride.  Do this secretly, before the game begins, and write down your 
  choice.  Bringing your chosen bride into your sphere is a victory condition - if other players realize which 
  goddess you are angling for, they will certainly try to prevent you from having her.   
   
  Any unrelated female that you win for your sphere can become your bride - you must announce your 
  decision once you have won her and it takes effect instantly.  You do not need to marry the goddess you 
  initially chose, if it makes tactical sense to choose someone else in play - but you won't get rewarded for it.  
  You may only marry once during the game.   
  
  THE MIDDLE MAN 
  The middle-man arranges a conflict between two other players.  He chooses which non-player character the 
  conflict will be about (which god, goddess, person, or region), and he secretly chooses whether the conflict 
  will be about Majesty or Beauty.   
   
  Then other players may bid to enter into the conflict.   
   
  Once the participants are established, the middle-man then sets the scene, taking the role of the non-player 
  character in dispute, and the three of them role-play a scene in which both participants attempt to persuade 
  the non-player character to join their sphere of influence.  This interaction should present a clear indication 
  of whether the conflict is about Majesty or Beauty, but a clever middle-man can muddle the issue in good 
  conscience. 
  BIDDING  
  BIDDING TO ENTER A CONFLICT 
  The key game mechanic in Xochitlcozamalotl is bidding.  There are two types of bidding - bidding to enter 
  a conflict and bidding to win a conflict.   
   
  The three players may bid for the privilege of competing to bring the current non-player character into their 
  sphere of influence. 
   
  Each potential competitor conceals flowers from either or both of their piles in their hands.  On a signal 
  from the middle man, everyone displays their flowers and lets them fall.  The player with the lowest bid sits 
  out the conflict as the watcher.  If there are ties, the middle man decides who competes.   
   
  If no one wishes to bid for the chosen non-player character, the middle man automatically wins them for his 
  own sphere.  Play then passes to his left, just as if there had been a conflict.   
  BIDDING TO WIN A CONFLICT 
  A player can bid flowers from his Majesty and/or Beauty piles against other players in an attempt to secure 
  an alliance with the non-player character who has been chosen by the middle man to be at stake.   
   
  In addition to the four principal gods that serve as player characters, there are six major gods and sixteen 
  minor gods, nobles, and peoples.  Most of these have connections to others - lovers, patrons, ex-wives, 
  siblings, and so forth. In any conflict in which you - or anyone in your sphere - has a connection, you gain 
  an extra flower with which to bid from the common pile.  Multiple connections means multiple bonus 
  flowers. If you have connections, narrate them into the scene and pick up the appropriate number of flowers 
  from the common pile.  They can be used to augment either Majesty or Beauty bids.   
   
  Bidding is secret.  Choose how many flowers you will bid from your Majesty and Beauty piles and place 
  them in your closed right and left fists.  Hold these fists over the central table along with your rival.  When 
  you are ready, the middle-man announces the nature of the conflict - Majesty or Beauty - and you each 
  open the appropriate hand, letting the flowers fall.  The player with the highest bid wins the non-player 
  character.   
   
  Finally, let the "off" hand bid fall as well - these flowers are lost and useless.   
  
  ALLIES 
  When you win a conflict and an ally enters your sphere, you gain flowers based on their attitude and 
  responsibilities.  Each will have a score in Majesty and Beauty - you immediately add these flowers to the 
  appropriate pile before you.   
   
  Allies have connections of their own - if you narrate them into a conflict, they can use their connections to 
  add flowers to your bid. 
   
  Two of the gods - Smoking Mirror and Feathered Snake - have aspects.  These are lesser gods that are 
  semi-independent facets of their personalities, but they are capricious and can be drawn into the spheres of 
  their rivals.  Possessing an aspect is worth a game-end bonus for the players of Tlaloc and Hummingbird of 
  the South, who suffer a slight disadvantage in play through lack of connections. 
  THE WATCHER 
  The fourth player is the watcher (niquiniitztoz, literally "I will be watching them").  When the matter has 
  been resolved and the non-player character has entered the sphere of one of the contestants, the watcher 
  must give a flower from his piles as a gift to one of the three participants.  This should ideally be the one 
  who was most entertaining, but it is up to the watcher to decide what the criteria truly are.   
   
  Once the watcher has awarded his flower, the role of middle man passes to the left, and the cycle begins 
  again. 
  ENDGAME 
  Temicxoch, the Flowery Dream, ends when the last non-player character has been selected - and thus, so 
  ends the game.  At this point, count up the gods, nobles, and peoples within your sphere.  Add these 
  together for your score.  Add three if you managed to secure your bride as well.  The players of Tlaloc and 
  Hummingbird of the South gain an extra point for each aspect of Smoking Mirror and Feathered Serpent in 
  their sphere at game end.   
   
  Hopefully, your play area is awash in beautiful flowers. 
   
  The player with the highest score wins Xochitlcozamalotl!  His god is the chief god, until the Four Hundred 
  Rabbits throw another party.   
  
  THE FOUR PRINCIPAL GODS AND PLAYER CHARACTERS 
  SMOKING MIRROR, GOD OF FIRE 
  Player character; divide sixteen points between Beauty and Majesty 
   
  Smoking Mirror (Tezcatlipoca) is the god of the night, the north, fire and temptation. He owns a mirror that 
  gives off smoke, killing his enemies. He is the antithesis and rival of Feathered Snake. He is a god of 
  beauty and war.  In one of the people's accounts of the creation of the world, Feathered Snake and Smoking 
  Mirror joined forces to create the world. There was only the sea, and the monster of earth Cipactli. To 
  attract her, Tezcatlipoca used his foot as bait, and Cipactli ate it. The two gods then captured her, and 
  distorted her to make the land from her body. After that, they created the people, and people must offer 
  sacrifices to ease Cipactli's sufferings. Because of this, Smoking Mirror has a missing foot, and the bone of 
  his leg exposed.  
   
  � Seven Serpent was once my wife 
  � Cloud Serpent is my aspect 
  � I Lust after Flower Feather 
  � I am Patron of the people of Malinalco 
  � Water Bird is my disciple 
   
  FEATHERED SNAKE, GOD OF EARTH 
  Player character; divide sixteen points between Beauty and Majesty 
   
  Feathered Snake (Quetzalcoatl) is a powerful god of civilization, in opposition to the cruelty of Smoking 
  Mirror. He is the god of the morning star.  He is known as the inventor of books and the calendar, the giver 
  of corn to mankind, and sometims as a symbol of death and resurrection. One story claims Feathered Snake 
  was seduced by Smoking Mirror into becoming drunk and sleeping with a celibate priestess, and then 
  burned himself to death out of remorse. His heart became the morning star.  His aspects are the Lord of the 
  Star of Dawn and Lord Wind. 
   
  � Flower Feather is my mother 
  � Cloud Serpent is my father 
  � Lord of the Star of Dawn is my aspect 
  � Lord Wind is my aspect 
  � I am patron of the people of Tenochtitlan 
  � Reed Hare is my disciple 
   
  HUMMINGBIRD OF THE SOUTH, GOD OF AIR 
  Player character; divide sixteen points between Beauty and Majesty 
   
  Hummingbird of the South (Huitzilopochtli) is a Powerful god of war and sun god, and a much-loved god 
  among the common people. He is also a god of death, young men, and storms. His mother is Skirt of 
  Serpents, his father Cloud Serpent.  All things celestial fall under his sway. 
   
  � Skirt of Serpents is my mother 
  � Cloud Serpent is my father 
  � I lust after Mayahuel 
  � I am patron of the people of Xochimilco 
  � Knife Cape is my disciple 
   
  TLALOC, GOD OF WATER 
  Player character; divide sixteen points between Beauty and Majesty 
   
  
  Tlaloc is the god of rain and fertility. He is greatly feared among the people, who drown children to 
  appease him. Tlaloc is responsible for both flood and drought. Tlaloc was first married to Flower Feather.   
  He later married the goddess Jade Skirt but they parted ways as well.  Tlaloc's underworld includes those 
  killed by lightning, drowning and disease.   
   
  �  Jade Skirt was once my wife 
  � Flower Feather was once my wife 
  � Five Flowers is my dear friend 
  � I am patron of the people of Tlaxcala 
  � Obsidian Snake is my disciple 
  MAJOR GODS AND GODDESSES 
  CLOUD SERPENT, Aspect of Smoking Mirror 
  Majesty 8, Beauty 0 
   
  Cloud Serpent (Mixcoatl) is a god of the hunt, the north star and war. He invented fire using the heavens, 
  revolving around their axes, as a drill.  By Flower Feather, he is the father of Feathered Snake.  
   
  � I am an aspect of Smoking Mirror 
  � Flower Feather is my lover 
  � Skirt of Serpents is my former lover 
  � Feathered Snake is my son 
  � Hummingbird of the South is my son 
   
  FLOWER FEATHER, Goddess of art and beauty 
  Majesty 0, Beauty 8 
   
  In Aztec mythology, Flower Feather (Xochiquetzal) is a goddess of flowers, fertility, games, dancing and 
  agriculture, as well as craftsmen, prostitutes and pregnant women. She is a moon goddess as well. She is 
  followed by a retinue consisting of birds and butterflies. Worshippers wear animal and flower masks at a 
  festival, held in her honor every eight years. Her twin is Five Flowers, and her husband is Centeotl. By 
  Cloud Serpent, she is the mother of Feathered Snake. 
   
  � Five Flowers is my twin brother 
  � Centeotl is my husband 
  � Tlaloc was once my husband 
  � Cloud Serpent is my lover 
  � Feathered Snake is my son 
   
  FIVE FLOWERS, God of agriculture and the harvest 
  Majesty 6, Beauty 2 
   
  Five Flowers (Macuilxochitl) is the god of love, games, beauty, dance, flowers, corn, and song.  
  His wife is Mayahuel and his twin sister is Flower Feather. As one of the gods responsible for fertility and 
  agricultural produce, he is associated with Tlaloc, god of rains, and Centeotl, god of corn.  Five Flowers is 
  worshipped through the use of plants that admit devotees into temicxoch, the Flowery Dream, an ecstatic 
  state of hallucination.  
   
  � Flower Feather is my twin sister 
  � Mayahuel is my wife 
  � Tlaloc is my dear friend 
   
  MAYAHUEL, Goddess of alcohol 
  
  Majesty 2, Beauty 6 
   
  Mayahuel is a human girl whom Lord Wind fell in love with. He gave humanity the gift of love so that she 
  could return his favor. She later married Five Flowers and with Patecatl, she was the mother of the Four 
  Hundred Rabbits. Mayahuel is now the goddess of alcohol. 
   
  � Five Flowers is my husband 
  � Patecatl is my lover 
  � Lord Wind was once my lover 
  � The Four Hundred Rabbits are my children 
   
  THE FLAYED ONE, God of renewal and the seasons 
  Majesty 4, Beauty 4 
   
  The Flayed One (Xipe Totec) is a life-death-rebirth deity, god of agriculture, the west, disease, spring, 
  goldsmiths and the seasons. He flayed himself to give food to humanity, symbolic of the maize seed losing 
  the outer layer of the seed before germination. Without his skin, he is golden and beautiful.  Annually, 
  people are selected as sacrifices to the Flayed One. These people are carefully flayed to produce a nearly 
  whole skin which is then worn by the priests during the fertility rituals that followed the sacrifice.  
   
  � The Flayed One has no connections. 
   
  SKIRT OF SERPENTS, Goddess of the moon, stars, and maternity 
  Majesty 4, Beauty 4 
   
  Skirt of Serpents (Coatlicue) gave birth to the moon, southern stars and the Hummingbird of the South. She 
  is also known as Grandmother, the patron of women who die in childbirth.  A fearsome maternal goddess, 
  Skirt of Serpents indeed wears a skirt of writhing snakes and a necklace made of human hearts, hands and 
  skulls. Her feet and hands are adorned with claws (for digging graves) and her breasts hang flaccid from 
  nursing.  
   
  � Hummingbird of the South is my son 
  � Cloud Serpent was once my lover 
  MINOR GODS AND GODDESSES 
  LORD OF THE STAR OF DAWN, Aspect of Feathered Snake 
  Majesty 0, Beauty 4 
   
  The Lord of the Star of the Dawn (Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli) is the majestic personification of the planet 
  Venus. 
   
  � I am an aspect of Feathered Snake 
   
  LORD WIND, Aspect of Feathered Snake 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Lord Wind (Ehecatl) is the god of wind, an aspect of Feathered Snake. His breath moves the sun and 
  pushes away rain. He fell in love with Mayahuel, and gave mankind the ability to love so that she could 
  return his passion.  
   
  � I am an aspect of Feathered Snake 
  � Mayahuel was once my lover 
   
  
  PATECATL, God of healing 
  Majesty 0, Beauty 4 
   
  Patecatl is a god of healing and fertility, and the discoverer of peyote. With Mayahuel, he is the father of 
  the Four Hundred Rabbits. 
   
  � Mayahuel is my lover 
  � The Four Hundred Rabbits are my children 
   
  THE FOUR HUNDRED RABBITS, Gods of drunkenness 
  Majesty 4, Beauty 0 
   
  The Four Hundred Rabbits (Centzontotochtin) are a group of deities who meet for frequent parties; they are 
  divine rabbits, and the gods of drunkenness. Some of their named members include Texcatzonatl, 
  Colhuatzincatl and Ometochtli.  
   
  � Patecatl is our father 
  � Mayahuel is our mother 
   
  CENTEOTL, God of Corn 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Centeotl is a god of corn, brother of Seven Serpent, and the husband of Flower Feather. 
   
  � Flower Feather is my wife 
  � Seven Serpent is my sister 
   
  JADE SKIRT, Goddess of oceans and streams 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Jade Skirt (Chalchiuhtlicue) is the goddess of oceans, streams, and any other running water. She is the wife 
  of Old God.  
   
  � I was once married to Tlaloc 
  � Old God is my husband 
   
  OLD GOD, God of hope 
  Majesty 4, Beauty 0 
   
  Old God (Xiuhtecuhtli) is the personification of life after death, warmth in cold, light in darkness and food 
  during famine. Every 52 years, the gods are able to end their covenant with the people. Feasts are held in 
  honor of Old God to keep his favors, and human sacrifices are burned after removing their heart. 
   
  � Jade Skirt is my wife 
   
  SEVEN SERPENT, Goddess of fertility 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Seven Serpent (Chicomecoatl) is a goddess of food and produce, especially corn and, by extension, a 
  goddess of fertility.  Every September, she receives the sacrifice of young girl, decapitated. The sacrifice's 
  blood is poured on a statue of Seven Serpent and her skin is worn by a priest. She is the sister of Centeotl 
  and wife of Smoking Mirror.   
   
  � Smoking Mirror was once my husband 
  � Centeotl is my brother 
  
  THE NOBLES 
  By consuming psilocybin, morning glory, and cacahuaxochitl, these stalwarts among the people have 
  entered temicxoch, the Flowery Dream, where they can freely interact with the gods.   
   
  OBSIDIAN SNAKE, Ruler of all the people 
  Majesty 4, Beauty 0 
   
  Obsidian snake (Itzcoatl) is the emperor of all of civilization. 
   
  � Tlaloc is my patron 
   
  KNIFE CAPE, Shorn One and Hero  
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Knife Cape (Itzquemitl) is a valiant warrior-priest in the service of the empire.  He has taken 200 prisoners 
  in battle with his left hand. 
   
  � Hummingbird of the South is my patron 
   
  WATER BIRD, Princess and sorceress 
  Majesty 0, Beauty 4 
   
  Water-Bird (atototl) is a beautiful but evil princess. 
   
  � Smoking Mirror is my patron 
   
  REED HARE, High Priest of the people 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Presiding over the great temple complex at Tenochtitlan, Reed Hare (Acacitli) personally attends to the 
  crucial yearly sacrifice to Feathered Snake. 
   
  � Feathered Snake is my patron 
  THE PEOPLES OF ANAHUAC, THE WORLD  
  These peoples, along with their armies, priestly retinues, and rulers, are minor pawns in the games of the 
  gods.   
   
  TENOCHTITLAN, Capitol of the empire 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  A floating paradise, no other city in the world compares to Tenochtitlan.   
   
  � Feathered Snake is our patron 
   
  XOCHIMILCO, Region of the empire 
  Majesty 0, Beauty 4 
   
  Xochimilco's floating gardens are a splendid wonder. 
   
  � Hummingbird of the South is our patron 
  
   
  TLAXCALA, Enemies of the empire 
  Majesty 4, Beauty 0 
   
  The fierce Tlaxcalans provide a steady stream of courageous sacrifices to the empire.   
   
  � Tlaloc is our patron 
   
  MALINALCO, Region of the empire 
  Majesty 2, Beauty 2 
   
  Malinalco is a bustling city of merchants and warriors. 
   
  � Smoking Mirror is our patron 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Collections/Collaborative & Peer & Gm-less & Shifting GM/Xochitlcozamalotl.pdf