This tome is ancient. By the stiffness of the cover, it doesn't look like anyone has opened it in centuries. It is bound in an odd-feeling leathery brown material, with a silver and black depiction of bat-headed men and women worshiping a monstrous bat with wings stretched across the cover. As you look upon the first page where the author's name would be you see only the stamp of the mysterious entity known as The Librarian. Turning more of the pages you are treated to the word “Xibalbans” in spidery silver handwriting. Below it are depictions of bat-like humanoids with tall, winged bodies and protracted arms shown in infant to elderly stages of life. The following pages illustrate cultural symbols, race variations, sexual dimorphism, anatomical references, sacrificial images, and various depictions of their homeland amidst the text.

    The Children of Camazotz, henceforth referred to as Xibalbans, were once a part of our Natural World. Their lands, collectively known as Xibalba, coexisted much as Faerie still does. The cause of their banishment so many millennia ago is unknown, though this author assumes due to their wickedness. Scholars speculate that either the Infernals in their jealousy or the Heavens in their righteous fury were behind it, possibly even both. One way or another, Xibalba was uprooted from the world and cast out into the multiverse; Doomed to some desolate corner in that great expanse so that their malign god may never again prey upon mortal souls.

The Image of Zotz

    Xibalbans are tall, lithe creatures with a form somewhere between a man and a massive bat. Their height typically ranges from eight to nine feet tall, with their weight ranging from an average of 150 to 210 pounds. Females are usually smaller and lighter than males, though there are always exceptions. Wingspans range from 14 to 18 feet in length depending on race variations. Their fur is always short and is either one solid color or two-toned from any natural variation of color among bats, with brown or black colors being the most common. Xibalbans grow hair in natural colors from their heads much like humans, though it is common for it to be dyed for religious purposes. Their features are always predatory and monstrous. Most commonly they have very large claws and fangs, with one variation reaching truly frightening sizes.



Clothing

    Xibalbans rarely wear clothing within their home lives. It is always worn outside of the home as all clothing denotes a symbol of rank, prestige, expertise, or religious practice. Style of clothing differs little between genders, with males and females adopting clothing and adornments that suit both equally well. Long tabards with thick aprons made of resilient fibers are common among the caste of laborers and crafters. Ornamentation is kept to a minimum, displaying allegiance to various working factions and their ranking within. Adornment upon the head is forbidden among laborers and restricted to protective equipment.

    Individuals of wealth and low ranking among the religious organizations dedicated to Camazotz wear tabards denoting their affluence or dedication respectively. Religious iconography and organizational affiliations are in soft textiles spun of a luxurious silk created by the massive poisonous insects called “Unapixtl”. Depictions of the dread lord are always threaded with a border for their own adornment and personal crest. Aprons are replaced by leather kilts of various design depending again by organization. Adornment upon the head is a simple headdress of native avian feathers and semi-precious metal inlays.

    Further societal rankings are represented entirely around organizations dedicated to the deity and his goals, with increasingly elaborate headdresses and kilts of magical strength. Tabards are dedicated strictly to depictions of Camazotz and religious ceremony. The adornments of the High Priest and the highest ranking Enforcer are a sight to behold, often layered with enchantments and the feathers of various avian and feathered planar creatures in the ultimate display of dominance.

Grooming

Xibalbans are a paradox of careful grooming and intentional sullying. Much attention is paid to appearance, and a well groomed Xibalban is seen as in control whereas the opposite is seen as subjugated and inferior; The laboring caste supports this by being in a state of constant disarray while carrying out the numerous tasks. It is common for family and mated pairs to groom the ears and hair as a sign of some sort of intimate allegiance. On the other side of the matter, Xibalbans habitually coat themselves in poisonous pollen, spores, or vectors for disease and then refrain from bathing to extend the effect in battle. These behaviors are always refrained from in times of religious ceremony, with bathing to remove such absolutely required.


Psychology

Within the society itself

    Xibalbans hold an usual place among evil beings for their psychology. Society functions on a strict set of laws and moral codes, or lack thereof. Wholly evil, these monsters revel in the torment and domination of others. It is encouraged among themselves whenever appropriate or deserved, but only for the sake of humiliation. Disfigurement or serious injury is frowned upon, and indeed may land the inflicter with the same or worse punishments in retribution. This can be attributed to the focus on results in their society, and a disabled Xibalban produces none.
    Similar views are held in regards to murder; The slaying of one's own kind on another plane is seen as an accomplishment and status. However murder in the native plane, resulting in true death rather than banishment, is strictly forbidden. Indeed, the lands in Xibalba echo with the anguished cries of the tormented. However these behaviors are universally repulsed in relation to children. Harm to children is strictly forbidden and is seen as a sign of weakness. To harm a child is punishable by nearly any misfortune the arbitrator sees fit as well as the outcast and stripping of all rank. To falsely accuse one of harming children is often met with flaying of the flesh.
    Thievery is looked down upon as tactics of the desperate and weak. Xibalbans value order and control and apply it wherever it seems fitting. Their culture is one of constant results and progression, thus Xibalbans almost always have a task or project at hand. Ideas are valued little and thought of as falling short. Indeed, more credit is given to the constructors of a building than to the architects behind the design. Ultimately, the most desired individual would be one who both designs and builds.
    Xibalbans place little value on personal possessions, much preferring acts and crafts to be dispersed within the culture or dedicated to their god. One's contributions to the society and Camazotz are prized, and as a result most settlements are filled with elaborate architecture and great works of art. The exception to this seems to be the affluent who collect great galleries for the best public displays. As one might expect, little care is spared for one's peers in Xibalban society outside of immediate family. Plights are ignored, and to offer help would be thought of as open derision or mockery.
    Politically, Xibalbans are always scheming and seeking ways to undermine their peers both above and below while raising the self. Open criticism or insults however is seen as a challenge for superiority and is settled through power struggles or outright violence. Intimate thoughts and emotions are always kept carefully private with more negatively attributed emotions such as anger, hatred, smugness, derision, and the like being freely expressed.
    The Children of Zotz place very strong emphasis upon the family, which is often placed just under their dread lord himself in importance. They will defend their own until bitterest of ends, and actions are always considered in how a family's status will be affected. Despite their culture of dominance males and females share equal power within a family, with children holding none until forming their own family.

On those outside

    These creatures see all beings outside of their own as automatically beneath them;  Worthy only of subjugation, food, or ritual sacrifice. Indeed, many beings overcome by a Xibalban are subject to all three. They share no sympathy for other beings and slay them without a second thought, usually after torturing and humiliating them. The laws that bind Xibalbans together are not extended to other beings, though some of the following moral codes remain in effect. Though they will happily mangle mortals in any way they see fit, they will never harm a mortal child. Humiliation through various means is never extended to rape, though it may be expressed through sexual harassment or domineering behavior. Much preference is given to hunting only the strong and dominion over them is seen in great value. To this end, they spread magical diseases from their home plane in an attempt to cull the weak from both mortals and other planes.

    Insults from outsiders are met as challenges from the unworthy, and are always swiftly met with gratuitous violence or torture. Many mortals are thought of as game, and the hunting of them is often as much a ritual as it is for pleasure. Torment in the form of obvious stalking is enjoyed by many. Our natural world is viewed as linked to Xibalba and thus inherently belonging to them. The Xibalbans and their god will stop at nothing to bend the world under their wings, and all other outsiders are seen as intruders to be given no quarter and naught but death.

Slavery

    Oppression of those below them is the highlight of Xibalban society. While slaves among their own kind are rare, beings of other planes or mortals are often considered property of the individual who subjugated them. Those brought to Xibalba are never released but may be traded. Slaves may often be beaten or forced into humiliating acts for no apparent reason other than their masters' entertainment.


Technology and Magic

    Technology in Xibalba is well-developed for the circumstance the dimension suffers, but far behind that of other cultures. Complex architecture and craftsmanship is unique and strongly developed, but machinery and advanced weaponry is non-existent. Due to the The Plague Fields, their alchemy and chemistry is advanced and potent but confined to slow means of production through relatively primitive methods.

    Magically they are incredibly developed and powerful. All Xibalbans are capable of producing magical effects at will and are capable of some degree of spellcasting. Indeed, even the martially bent Enforcers are made up of battle-priests or the rare individual that practices the Arcane; These practitioners, while valued, are never allowed in the priesthood and rarely find high rankings and instead serve as Enchanters.

    Due to the close proximity between Xibalbans and their malevolent lord, divine magic among their ranks is common and often extremely potent. The vast majority of their kind worship Camazotz very faithfully, and such faith is rewarded in favors great enough to further his malicious intent. The priesthood, most notably the High Priestess, enjoys a closeness to this deity other faiths could only dream of. The true extent of their power is unknown, likely an equal mix of raw display and boasting.

    The exception to this technological impairment among the civilization comes in the form of surprisingly well-developed surgical practices. A number of suspected factors in this are the races' predilections towards torture, magical skill, and advanced chemistry with the latter seeming more likely as anesthetics and painkillers are possibilities. Regardless of the factors, Xibalbans have impressive ability to repair wounds and rending in their wings as well as other surgical procedures. It could be thought that blood magic may have some application to the transplantation of organs or blood transfusions.

Love

    Xibalbans, despite their vile nature, are easily driven to intimacy between their own kind. Maturity is reached at a stage in their life that compares with 20 years of age in a human, though their planar traveling and banishing may distort this at times. Xibalbans seek out mates that will produce offspring with the most desirable qualities. A pair, after the pretense and inclination to hide emotions has been passed, will engage in a secretive ritual to each other that binds them together permanently. Most pairs will only ever produce one child, with much focus on rearing the child until adulthood. Pairs of higher castes rarely have a second or, for particularly long-lived couples, third offspring. In the event of the demise of one, a new mate is almost never taken.

    Informal dalliances, while not openly supported, happen often enough in a surprising display of hedonism. Mated Xibalbans rarely if ever have relations with an informal partner. In any case offspring is rarely a result of these dalliances, which likely can be attributed to medicinal practices.

    The mentality of Xibalbans towards outsiders means that rarely, if ever, do they have relationships with other races. It is not entirely unheard of for this to occur between slaves and masters, but the society's moral code would doubtless cause great suspicion and investigation. Most would not risk the danger their competitors would stand should such scandalous opportunity present itself.

Addendum: The Bonding Ritual
    The bonding ritual between two Xibalbans could be attributed to a form similar to mortal marriage, though such a comparison would be light and inaccurate in scope. The ceremony, once the male has made the advance, is planned and held largely in secret. Some pairs may choose to involve individuals with significant importance to their lives, but outside of that not even other family members are included. It is understood within Xibalban society that the pair begins a new family, and thus sheds old ties. The final individual required is a priest from the Upper Priesthood to perform the ceremony and serve as witness for the couple.

    The ceremony itself is proceeded with the anointing of a ritual sickle by the Upper Priest and the lighting of incense of an intoxicating nature that loosens the mind and senses. From there, the couple must then engage in mutual ritual bloodletting in an amount to fill a goblet for each of them. The Upper Priest then blesses the gathered blood with the blood magic of their god, and marks the foreheads of the pair. Once appropriately marked the couple must then drink half of the goblet containing the blood of their bond partner. It is said that this act brings the blood of the two in tune with each other, allowing each to feel the emotions and sensations of the other as their partner's blood joins their own in their veins permanently. Xibalbans believe blood to contain the life force, and so thus this act ties their lives together as with their blood.
    This seems to have a profound effect on the couple as their biological systems go into a brief state of shock. It is encouraged for the Upper Priest to entice them into breathing deeply of the incense to ease the effect on the body. Once the individuals have stabilized, they seem to have gained an uncanny understanding of one another; Indeed they seem to look at one another in an entirely new perspective, literally intoxicated on one another. It is said that the pair now feels the love and happiness of the moment exponentially, as the increasing emotions of one raises the other and vice versa. There are other less explainable effects between the two, such as feeling the presence of the other even over great distances.
    The Upper Priest is encouraged to rein in the pair from their intoxicated and unusual state of mind to finish the ceremony. The remaining blood must then be mixed together into a blessed bowl, which the Priest begins a ritual blessing over. While this occurs, pairs typically use special natural pigments to paint upon one another to express in images what their mind and body feels towards the new mate. The Upper Priest is required to record these symbols to present towards the couple when normal state of mind returns, which are kept as sacred expression of their bond. Once the remaining blood has been properly blessed the pair must both drink the rest of it together. This final ritual accesses the spirit through the blood and permanently binds the souls of the bonded pair together so supremely that even reincarnation cannot change this. This attunement of spirit allows the couple to further connect in a way that cannot be properly expressed for recording.
    With all matters of ritual complete the bonded pair is finally free to do as they please. The markings upon their forehead are enchanted to remain intact for the duration of the day to serve as notation for others for the strange behavior between the pair. Typically this is unnecessary as pairs often go into seclusion from others for quite some time.
Xibalbans in Combat

    By merit of their practices on mortals, these beings are almost constantly embroiled in conflict of the most violent bent. The typical tactics for Xibalbans involves swooping down to slash with their oversized claws, or casting spells from the air. In situations where flight is impractical or impossible, they will always seek the higher ground.

    Spellcasting is largely centered around those which disable the enemy or hinder in some way, along with mixed in support magic. Outright destructive spells are rarely employed, though sometimes used on targets deemed too dangerous to kill by other means. By the large they will always favor their blood magic.

    The Enforcer caste typically employs more varied tactics, often fighting on land with targets in a flurry of weapon strikes, claws, and fangs. These war-priests and assassins do not spend time savoring the kill, rather dispatching targets quickly to move on to the next target or objective. Against particularly dangerous foes more complex maneuvers are employed, often seeking to defeat the foe through attrition. This wide array of tactics makes the Enforcers truly dangerous opponents, engaging more than one of these high-ranking fiends at once should be considered suicidal.

    Regardless of caste and skill, all Xibalbans bring the weapons of disease and poison into combat. Spores, pollen, and other vectors coating their wings may be spread into combat areas by beating them vigorously in a snapping fashion. Weapons are always coated in potent poisons harvested from the River of Scorpions. While not immune to poisoning themselves by accident, Xibalbans are very resistant to such and some will also coat their claws and fangs in venom as well. Grappling with these monsters is inadvisable and a surefire way to simultaneously become poisoned and diseased.

    The bites of Xibalbans, along with sometimes being poisonous, can often carry unique dangers depending on the racial variations of the individual. Some have been cataloged as being capable of crushing the skill of creatures small enough, draining blood, and in some cases rending the flesh in particularly gruesome manner. Some individuals lacking fangs with unique combat applications may make use of magic items to cover this perceived weakness among their peers.

    Xibalbans, whether alone or in a group, are careful fighters. Preservation of the self or the group is a key focus. Indeed, those fighting in a group may appear as a chaotic swarm but in truth is a series of carefully executed attacks, feints, and distractions. A contingent carefully positions itself for opportunity rather than massing around a target. While they may be self-serving creatures socially, they are quick supports in combat and heal one another with a moment's notice.

Castes

Workers/Laborers

    This caste is made up of both common laborers as well as craftsmen and artisans. Workers are seen as having no rank and are considered the very bottom of society. Often these are individuals who lack any practical skills, but this rank of the caste is also made up of those who frequently fail or achieve lackluster results. Xibalbans that are crossbreeds between variations that turned out ineffective or too monstrous also make up this rank.

    Crafters and Artisans belong to various guilds depending on the settlement. Within these guilds exists its own system of rankings similar to our classifications of apprentices, journeymen, masters, and such represented by the quality and decoration of their aprons.

    Regardless of rank, in this caste laborers are kept extraordinarily busy. Their own tasks aside, those of higher caste may freely assign tasks to workers as they see fit and fully expect them to be performed first. Frivolous or pointless tasks may be challenged at their own risk. Laborers are given little in the way of leisure or pleasures, and are expected to find such on their own. Mated pairs in this caste have offspring less often than that of higher castes for various reasons, though usually due to simply being too busy for child rearing. Those who are exceptionally skilled or efficient at completing tasks typically have a child. This caste is referred to as “The Wings of Camazotz” in their native tongue as it bears the burdens of labor for society.

The Overseers

    This caste is made up of both those who oversee the daily lives of the labor caste as well as the Lower Priesthood responsible for the day to day, minor rituals and worship. The rankings among labor overseers depend upon the efficiency of a work-group or the prestige of a guild. The labor overseers of guilds are always at the helm as a Guildmaster. They are represented by elaborate aprons, tabards, and minor/simple headdresses.

    The Lower Priesthood ranks from those in the bottom, such as those assigned with determining the aptitude of young Xibalbans, to those nearing tasks of societal or divine importance such as those who lead day to day minor rituals and worship. These priests are often the arbiters of crime and punishment and see to keeping the lower castes in check. They may also serve under the Upper Priesthood for clerical/secretarial work. This caste wears kilts of supple leather and tabards of fine silks, along with minor to modest headdresses with feathers of avains or sacred metals depending heavily upon rank.

    A special addition to this caste are those of great affluence or medicinal prowess. These Xibalbans are overseers of merchants and doctors and are decorated in ways to symbolize such, the former wearing no headdress but instead wearing jewelry upon the head while the latter often depicts various internal organs (most prominently the heart) upon their headdresses. Medicinal overseers are typically the master surgeons within society and often have assistants from those they mended.