Mesoamericans in 40k - How would you?

[Minigiant]

Over a week ago I shared images of Dia de Los Muertos and how to bring that into 40k

 

This week I want to talk about Mesoamerica. I was inspired by these conversion parts (The conversation does not have to be about loyalists or space marines)

 

 

 

How would you incorporate mesoamerican influences into 40k (There is of course already the Rainbow Warriors)?

 

I think I would make a Cursed Founding Blood Angels chapter that succumbs to Khorne, after their curse is an even greater Red Thirst, they start drinking eachothers blood, and the blood of all those that they killed, and sacrificing those who did not die in battle upon giant altars of bones

Edited August 26, 2021 by Brother Tyler
link edited

[Brother Tyler]

As with any concept based on real world cultures, whether current or historical, planets of the Imperium (and their PDF/Astra Militarum regiments) are always a great way to incorporate some influences. More importantly, however, a key element of any of these discussions will be identifying various aspects of the cultures. A WH40K organization inspired by history doesn't have to be (and in my opinion, shouldn't be) a simple porting of X into WH40K. Rather, incorporating subtle elements here and there can also be done so that the end result is a bit more sophisticated and less of a cartoon.

 

The link you posted went to some Aeldari terrain/buildings, yet you brought up an Adeptus Astartes idea. Was there some other page that you meant to link?

 

If we focus on the death cult of the various Mesoamerican periods, it would be very easy to see Adeptus Astartes (many are known to sacrifice captured enemies), Astra Militarum, Heretic Astartes, Imperium (so many death cults), Drukhari, Lost and the Damned, Orks, etc. That's a bit too easy for my tastes. I would look at other aspects like Poc-A-Toc, astronomy, etc. for a world of the Imperium. This would allow for development of a variation on the Imperial Cult as well as PDF/Astra Militarum regiments. I would probably take it further to a Rogue Trader from this world, a noble (so that he/she gets to wear a nifty headdress) who conquers the worlds he/she visits and sacrifices his/her victims to the Emperor. So I would still include the death cult bit, but it would be a small part (rather than a focus) of one portion of the development.

[Minigiant]

 

The link you posted went to some Aeldari terrain/buildings, yet you brought up an Adeptus Astartes idea. Was there some other page that you meant to link?

 

 

I wasn't able to link directly to the items it seems

 

[Gamiel]

I will possibly post a longer and more thoughtout post later but right now my answear to how I would do it is to steal from other. I would look into what I have in RPG/similar* material that already have done something with Mesoamerican cultures and take from that all that works for a Chapter and then mess around a bit more.

 

* Which in this case means my Mummy The Resurrection - Players Guide book (have four different South American mummies representing different culture groups), Breedbook: Bastet, to Werewolf: The Apocalypse, (the werejaguars are very pre-colonial), and The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Ixalan ((not mine but my library have it) the Sun Empire is mesoamerican inspiered).

 

Also there exist at least two fanmade mesoamerican-ish BA successors (Blood Jaguars and Brotherhood of the Midnight Sun ) and one lost legion one Dawn Lords legion (can only link to the art, the thread where lore was posted seems to have disapered)

[Bjorn Firewalker]

How about an Iron Hands successor that believes a C'tan shard is an incarnation of the Emperor in His guise as the Omnissiah, and worships it for that reason? A bloodless sacrifice, via Necron transcendence, will be an interesting contrast to the bloody sacrifice expected of an Aztec-inspired culture. After all, the Ancient Egyptians (spelled "Aegyptians" in M40), the Necrons they inspired, and the Aztecs were all famous for building pyramids. Edited September 4, 2021 by Bjorn Firewalker

[Minigiant]

How about an Iron Hamds successor that believes a C'tan shard is an incarnation of the Emperor in His guise as the Omnissiah, and worships it for that reason? A bloodless sacrifice, via Necron transcendence, will be an interesting contrast to the bloody sacrifice expected of an Aztec-inspired culture. After all, the Ancient Egyptians (spelled "Aegyptians" in M40), the Necrons they inspired, and the Aztecs were all famous for building pyramids.

The more I ponder the concept of 40k Mesoamericans I too move away from the idea of Blood Angels and Khorne. I like the idea of Iron Hands.

 

I'm toying with the idea of Libator successors succumbing to Tzeentch at the moment

[Gamiel]

Also there exist at least two fanmade mesoamerican-ish BA successors (Blood Jaguars and Brotherhood of the Midnight Sun ) and one lost legion one Dawn Lords legion (can only link to the art, the thread where lore was posted seems to have disapered)

We also have Philverse's re-imageing of the The Rainbow Warriors, and many others seems to use the Rainbow Warriors for mesoamerican-ish marines (often using Lizardmen/Seraphon parts); the Successors as Legions fan-project also have the Rainbow Warriors as mesoamerican-ish

Edited September 4, 2021 by Gamiel

[Gamiel]

We also have Smoke Frog's take on the Blood Drinkers:

Right on the coattails of Brother Xbal being complete are my last four marines for my first deathwatch team!

From left to right: Brotherhood of the Midnight Sun, Blood Drinkers, Minotaurs, Salamanders, Red Templars.

Got a bunch of pictures to show today, starting with Brother Ek Chak of the Blood Drinkers:

The planet San Guisaga, known as Azca to the locals, is a pre-industrial Feudal world known for its blood-red skies and dense jungles which cover the majority of the planet’s single massive continent. The many ruined cities the pierce the jungle canopies are now battlegrounds for the tribal kingdoms that call the planet home, who fight amongst each other for resources, farmland, and captives for human sacrifice. The Blood Drinkers chapter are seen as the gods made flesh to the native Guisagans, who both offer sacrifices to them in their own temples, as well as tithing a portion of their population to the marines themselves once every cycle of 52 years. The living offerings are taken across the Inland Sea in watercraft to the Temple of Blood, the massive fortress-monastery of the Blood Drinkers. Those deemed fit for service are inducted into the ranks of the marines themselves, those that are not are never seen again…

Marine Name: Brother Ek Chak

Duty Position: Intercessor armed with assault bolt rifle

Chapter Name: Blood Drinkers

Successor of: Blood Angels (Second Founding)

Homeworld: San Guisaga (in high Gothic), Azca (in native language)

Chapter symbol:

As you have already figured out, I am a big fan of Mayan history (hence why WHF Lizardmen are always going to be my true favorites) and was excited to include some Mayan and other Mesoamerican influences in some of my deathwatch marines. The Blood Drinkers seemed like a perfect candidate to put some of this influence into a more established, higher-profile chapter. I had plans to make an army of these red power-armored warriors with a Mesoamerican flavor, but that never materialized, so for now they will be included in my deathwatch force.

I was very much inspired by this marine I saw a while back on coolminiornot:

In turn, this marine looks like he is inspired by Aztec war costumes, as depicted in manuscripts dating back to the Spanish conquests of Mexico.

I used this inspiration when tweaking the Blood Drinkers chapter symbol, which also harkens back to the Rogue Trader version of the olden days:

It goes without saying that none of the lore or backstory for this particular model is in any “official” wiki. In my head-cannon, the Blood Drinkers and all the names used in official 40K documents are what is recorded in the “Gothic” language used in universe, but in reality they have a whole separate language used for day-to-day activities inspired by the culture of their homeworld, hence San Guisaga/Azca.

A fun project, would make a great 40K force all its own!

[Gamiel]

Over a week ago I shared images of Dia de Los Muertos and how to bring that into 40k

 

This week I want to talk about Mesoamerica. I was inspired by these conversion parts (The conversation does not have to be about loyalists or space marines)

 

 

 

How would you incorporate mesoamerican influences into 40k 

 

Night Drinkers

A chapter that recruits from a Feudal/Agri World, unlike most other chapters do they not recruit from the best fighters, or the hardiest survivors, instead at certain intervals the natives of their homeworld have a grand celebration where they thank the astates (who they see as both protectors and bringers of bountiful harvest) and sacrifice to them all the youth that are sickly, misshapen (by birth, sickness, or badly healed physical damage), or just outcasts. They are during the ceremony treated as kings for ones in their life until the secund to last day of the celebration when they are marched in to the Night Drinkers waiting sky chariots. The natives teach that the youth will be taken to the Night Drinkers’ cloud-fortress where they will be skinned and emerge in new, golden forms without any of the blemishes of their old life. And there is some truth in that tale, the Night Drinkers uses a system of medic-caskets, similar to the Blood Angels, in which all the males they have been given are placed (the females are given to the chapter serfs, known as tlacotin in the local low gothic, for healing and training). The medic-caskets heals and repair the youths placed inside, implant the first organs, and do the first part of mental evaluation. This process is painful and physically stressful, and while they are sedated during it do many youths die or mentally break before it’s finished, their bodies turned into servitors. Those that physically and mentally survive the process come out as whole and physically capable and are passed on to the 10th Company where their real training begins.

 

The Chapter is known for its hatred toward those that threaten agri worlds and usually fight in such way that agriculture (or similar) is not damaged more than need to be. They are also known for flaying captured enemies alive, this have also been done to imperial subjects they think have failed in their duty, something that have happened to many imperial officers whose laxness invited the enemy. Surprisingly to many do the Chapter believe in secund chances and that people that have done wrong can improve themselves, as long as they admit that they did wrong and try to change. This makes them seem strange to outsider, killing and flaying enemies and imperials one moment, while allowing others that have done the seemingly same mistakes to live and continue, and even sparing human rebels. To the Night Drinkers this is simply a question of people showing that they know they have done wrong and wanting to amend, if they do they are speared, if not they are killed and preferably ritually flayed.

 

The Night Drinkers armour is fully gold coloured and they don’t use colours to show Company. Many of them have loincloths, kilts or capes, which are always black in colour, black feathers as decorations or signs of office are also common. Scouts armour is black, and their Chaplains' armour is not Codex standard black but blood red.

Their symbol is a broad bladed knife without any guard - the blade red, the handle white.

Many of them have gold earplugs.

[use Aztec numbers for squad numbers, don’t know if company should be shown with numbers or Aztec hieroglyphs. Use red and black as the colour. Raid the Seraphons for weapons and bling, mainly use gold as the main colour and black as the secondary (or the other way around since it’s stuff they carry so it could follow a slightly other pattern form themself)]

 

Inspired by the illustration and description of Xipe Totec in Dragon #358, with some elements from wikipedia. Use Aztec names.

 

If you use the conversation parts from Sean Harrison Do I think that the helmets and the backpacks fit best with this idea, not the sholderpads, and not the first backpack with the skulls.

 

The crests on the helmets (not just the feathers) should be in black

Edited September 28, 2021 by Gamiel

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Excellent idea for the Night Drinkers Chapter, Gamiel.

[Gamiel]

Excellent idea for the Night Drinkers Chapter, Gamiel.

Thanks you

 

 

Another one:

 

Winged Jaguars [name pending, anybody have a better suggestion?]

Symbol is a winged jaguar rampant [preferably in done in a similar style to pre-colonial Mesoamerican art but don’t need to be]. Their armour is mainly orange, with white faceplate and imperialis, they show their company belonging by the colour of their pauldron, the pauldron trim is always black. Many of them have black spots painted on their armour, but not all and some only cover parts of their armour in spots.

Most of the Jaguars apply warpaint to their faces when on duty.

 

Recruit from a feral/feudal world of mostly jungle, rainforest and deltas. A scout has to find and capture (without lasting damage) four youths that are found to be acceptable to become aspirants before being allowed into the ranks as full astartes.

 

Seldom send larger war parties, instead they send lone marines or squads, and it’s not unusual for groups of them to split up and work separately for a common goal instead of doing it as a united group. Prefer to stalk their enemy before attacking them, and, if possible, to pick them off one-by-one.

 

The Winged Jaguars like to capture enemies when possible, the higher rank the better, and then ritually sacrifice them to the Emperor by cutting out their hearths and burn them – higher Chaplains have special made fire gauntlets that makes it possible to burn the freshly ripped out hearts in their hand. They see the capturing of an enemy as a something that more show of a warrior’s skill than barely killing since any half-fit can kill an enemy. This have made them useful for the Inquisition and the Deathwatch when it comes to capture missions.

 

They smoke mummify the heads of their fallen and all over their fortress-monastery are alcoves where the mummified heads of the noble dead rest, such alcoves can also be found on important places on their ships.

 

[Raid the Seraphons for weapons and bling. Decorative feathers are not uncommon, they and any helmet crests/simlar should be colourful. Fang, claw and similar bling is common. Heroes and officers with jump packs should be given the winged ones used by the BA Sanguinary Guard. Use Mayan numbers for squad numbers, if you want to be hard on yourself use Mayan face glyph numbers.

 

Inspired by the Aztec Jaguar warriors and World of Darkness’ Balam.]

Edited September 28, 2021 by Gamiel

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Winged Jaguars [name pending, anybody have a better suggestion?]

I thought of "Storm Jaguars", using the winged jaguar symbol you proposed, but justifying the name with a myth the Chapter planet's inhabitants believe, of thunder being the storm jaguars' roars, and lightning a flash from the mythical beast's fangs as it lunges at its prey; the myth is based on Aztec myths of how jaguars, hurricanes, "fiery rain," and flooding destroyed the four preexisting suns in earlier creation cycles (ours is the fifth to exist).

 

A search of Wikipedia, also shows "Nagual"- a witch that can transform into a jaguar, and use this power to do good or evil, according to his nature- as a possible Chapter name, or a Chapter-specific title for Librarians.

Their armour is mainly orange, with white faceplate and imperialis, they show their company belonging by the colour of their pauldron, the pauldron trim is always black. Many of them have black spots painted on their armour, but not all and some only cover parts of their armour in spots.

Absence of spots will make the resulting figure difficult to recognize as a "jaguar," just as a lack of stripes will make it difficult to recognize a big cat as a "tiger."

Most of the Jaguars apply warpaint to their faces when on duty.

Interesting idea, one which helps differentiate the Chapter from generic Greco-Roman Ultramarines successors.

Recruit from a feral/feudal world of mostly jungle, rainforest and deltas. A scout has to find and capture (without lasting damage) four youths that are found to be acceptable to become aspirants before being allowed into the ranks as full astartes.

 

Seldom send larger war parties, instead they send lone marines or squads, and it’s not unusual for groups of them to split up and work separately for a common goal instead of doing it as a united group. Prefer to stalk their enemy before attacking them, and, if possible, to pick them off one-by-one.

 

The Winged Jaguars like to capture enemies when possible, the higher rank the better, and then ritually sacrifice them to the Emperor by cutting out their hearths and burn them... They see the capturing of an enemy as a something that more show of a warrior’s skill than barely killing since any half-fit can kill an enemy. This have made them useful for the Inquisition and the Deathwatch when it comes to capture missions.

 

They smoke mummify the heads of their fallen and all over their fortress-monastery are alcoves where the mummified heads of the noble dead rest, such alcoves can also be found on important places on their ships.

All excellent and unique ideas.

– higher Chaplains have special made fire gauntlets that makes it possible to burn the freshly ripped out hearts in their hand

Do you see these "fire gauntlets" as lightning claws, power fists or even chainfists, maybe with integral flamers? My inner Iron Hand is giddy at the thought of this special weapon's in-game stats and Special Rules.

[Gamiel]

Absence of spots will make the resulting figure difficult to recognize as a "jaguar," just as a lack of stripes will make it difficult to recognize a big cat as a "tiger."

The spots will on the jaguar they have as symbol, just as the Red Scorpions are only red on their symbol. I'm partly thinking about if people would like to paint them (that's a big if I admit), they don't they need to be Golden Demon good, but if they are they can ad spots if they want to.

 

All excellent and unique ideas.

Thanks I admit that most of it is just about taking what others have already done (both RL and fiction), mixing it all togheter and reinterpretating it to fit Wh40k and/or Space Marine conditions

 

My inner Iron Hand is giddy at the thought of this special weapon's in-game stats and Special Rules.

Most likley it would be a "count as a power fist"

Edited September 26, 2021 by Gamiel

[Gamiel]

The Fists of Lagus IG regiment looks inspiered by the Aztec Eagle warrior

[Gamiel]

Snake Eaters

Symbol: an eagle in flight with a snake in it’s beak, simpler symbol is an eagle with it’s wing spread (or if anybody want to do them but can’s do that, just use the raptor head symbol of the Raptors, Mentors, and many more).

Colours: Light-blue head, backpack, belt, crotch and upper legs, the rest split green and yellow

 

Great leaders and tacticians, but also arrogant and unwilling to work in any kind of subservient role. Favours long range precision attacks, air bourn assaults, and fast attacks – preferably with air support by their own flyers. Have a larger than normal amount of snipers and flyers.

See no problem taking command of any imperial tropes in a warzone since they believe (many times justified) that they have a better understanding of what’s going on than any normal officer and everything will go faster if they coordinate the attacks.

 

Homeworld is an Imperial world, recently reclassified from it’s previous Feudal status. The native give tribute to the Snake Eaters, who they see as the Emperor’s divine angels, in the form of colourful flowers and feathers, gold and jade jewellery, spirits (mostly balché , xtabentún, and tequila), cacao beans and children. It’s from those children the stock of the chapter’s serfs and battle-brothers come from, but sometime a child disappears when out or even his own bed and a small offering of jade, gold and flowers are left at the door of the child’s home.

 

[Decorative feathers are common, they and any helmet crests/simlar should be colourful. Backbanners should also be common. Tattos are not uncommon on naked faces but not something all have.]

 

------------------

 

Inspiered by a combination of the Nahual RPG's Águila "class", the illustration of a Maya warrior, and some bits and pieces of Mexican culture / pre-modern culture that I know of. 

 

----------------

 

Think I should try to get an idea for a Mesoamerican-ish Knight House, Forge World, IG regiment, or similar next. Just Space Marines feels a bit uninspiered. 

[Gamiel]

This week I want to talk about Mesoamerica. I was inspired by these conversion parts (The conversation does not have to be about loyalists or space marines)

Wargames Atlantic's Aztec Warriors could also be used for converting stuff, and unlike Wulf's Heade Miniatures can they be used for others than Space Marines/CSM

[Gamiel]

Also there exist at least two fanmade mesoamerican-ish BA successors (Blood Jaguars and Brotherhood of the Midnight Sun ) and one lost legion one Dawn Lords legion (can only link to the art, the thread where lore was posted seems to have disapered)

We also have the Sun Serpents

[Gamiel]

 

Also there exist at least two fanmade mesoamerican-ish BA successors (Blood Jaguars and Brotherhood of the Midnight Sun ) and one lost legion one Dawn Lords legion (can only link to the art, the thread where lore was posted seems to have disapered)

We also have the Sun Serpents

And on the SoB side do have Order of the Martyred Heart 

[Gamiel]

On 8/26/2021 at 3:59 PM, Minigiant said:

This week I want to talk about Mesoamerica. I was inspired by these conversion parts (The conversation does not have to be about loyalists or space marines)

Seems there have been some new parts added:

Meso-American Set #2 - Tabards, Macuahuitl, and Daggers (gumroad.com)

Meso-American Power Armor Warpriest Components (gumroad.com)

Meso-American Marine Heads (gumroad.com)

 

Meso-American Marine Pauldrons_Expanded_Set (gumroad.com)

Meso-American Set #3 - Chain Macuahuitl, Torsos, Backpacks with Feathered Capes (gumroad.com)

Meso-American Conversion Bits - Combined Set (gumroad.com)

 

[Gamiel]

To creat a Camazotz (a Mayan bat spirit that served the lords of the underworld) themed chapter I suggest the use of Night Lords heads (the old CSM ones and the HH ones all work), and maybe shoulderpads, togheter with Maya/Aztec bits (like any of the ones mentioned or linked to earlier in this thread). For a more bat feeling do AoS' Soulblight Gravelords have lots of batwing shaped shileds and helmet wings (which can be cut off to make tiliting shields).

[Gamiel]

Lel-Za-Bol – Night Lords warband, decorate with colourful feathers, Mesoamerican-ish bling in jade, obsidian or saturated gold, and (if possible) jaguar pelts (or other animals that seems fitting). The core of the warband were all from the Mesmerika (Terra) hive Lel-Za-Bol, thereby their name. Give some of them Seraphon’s macuahuitl instead of power/chain-swords. Standard Night Lords tactics of terrorising the prey for some time before attacking, they like that their targets know how powerless they are against what’s coming.

[Inspired by the spirit Lel-Za-Bol from the D&D3e supplement Skull & Bones: Swashbuckling Horror in the Golden Age of Piracy, where she is presented as one of the Aztec Night Lords (ergo my inspiration), a goddess now turned into something lesser by the lose of constant sacrifices. According to Wikipedia do there exist a group of gods called the Lords of the Night in Mesoamerican mythology but non of them have a name similar to Lel-Za-Bol and I have not found anything Aztec related when oogling her name, so either she was created for the game or it’s a very obscure alternative name/spelling for one of the Lords of Night.]

[Gamiel]

from Le Blog dé Kouzes: Aztec Warriors & Sons of Psyche (leskouzes.blogspot.com)

Quote

Primogenitor: White Scars
Couleurs: Charadon Granite et Scorpion Green
Doctrines de combat: Les Aztec Warriors sont des spécialistes des assauts violents et des attaques surprise. Duellistes de renom, ces guerriers maîtrisent tous les aspects du combat à l'épée, les rendant extrêmement dangereux en combat rapproché. Ils emploient de nombreuses escouades d'assaut et d'assaut terminator, privilégiant les compagnies composées d'infanterie à pied plutôt que les assauts mécanisés ou les frappes chirurgicales en module d'atterrissage.

and my 'oogle translation of the main text "Combat Doctrines: Aztec Warriors are specialists in violent assaults and surprise attacks. Renowned duelists, these warriors have mastered all aspects of sword fighting, making them extremely dangerous in close combat. They employ numerous assault and terminator assault squads, favoring companies made up of dismounted infantry rather than mechanized assaults or surgical landing pod strikes."

Edited April 16, 2023 by Gamiel

[Gamiel]

Concept: a mesoamerican-ish Knight World / larger Knight House that play a variant of the Mesoamerican ballgame with their Knights(the game is resized for the Knights' scale) with the winners given the right to be the ones answering any call for aid by the Imperium, or allied forces.