Aztlan

Lore & Background

Aztlan, written by Nigel Findley, details the nation of Aztlan for the Shadowrun setting. Aztlan features a mix of Aztec mythology, cybertech and corporate crime, with chapters on corporate security, religion, fashion, and history. In the December 1995 edition of Dragon (Issue #224), Rick Swan thought the blend of Aztec and cyberpunk culture was deft. He found the chapter on religion was 'especially good'. Swan concluded that this book was 'One of the late Nigel Findley's best.'

In Their Own Story

Rain slicked the obsidian streets of Tenochtitlan as Kestrel, a street samurai with chrome-tipped fingers, pressed against the flank of a pyramid-shaped tower. Her target: a data chip hidden in the temple of Huitzilopochtli. The air was thick with ozone and the cloying sweetness of copal incense. Inside, Jaguar Warriors—men whose eyes glowed with cybernetic augments—stood like statues. A priest chanted in Nahuatl, his voice a low hum that vibrated through the stone floor. Kestrel slipped past, her cybereyes flickering to low-light mode. She grabbed the chip from an altar slick with fresh blood. A tripwire clicked. Alarms howled. The Jaguar Warriors turned in unison, their implants flaring red. Kestrel had seconds to reach the roof, or join the sacrifices whose hearts still steamed in the offering bowl below.

Reader's Guide

Aztlan isn't a single character—it's a megacorporation and nation that serves as a major antagonist faction. It represents the ultimate fusion of corporate greed and mystical tyranny. Players encounter Aztlan through its agents: Jaguar Warriors with chrome-plated bones, Aztechnology security mages who siphon life force to fuel devastating spells, and cold-eyed executives who treat human sacrifice as a line item. The faction's blood magic makes its mages exceptionally lethal; they can drain essence from living victims to power spells or heal wounds. Aztlan also fields heavily cybered soldiers and elite Eagle Warrior units equipped with monofilament weapons and spirit-bound armor. In gameplay, Aztlan is a source of high-risk, high-reward runs. Its facilities bristle with magical wards, motion sensors, and fanatical guards. But the paydata—corporate secrets, prototype cyberware, and rare magical artifacts—can set a runner team up for life. The faction's presence in any campaign should feel like walking into a temple where the floor is sticky with old blood and the air hums with stolen power.

Did You Know?

• Aztlan was published by FASA in 1995.
• The supplement was written by Nigel Findley.
• Rick Swan reviewed Aztlan in the December 1995 edition of Dragon (Issue #224).
• Swan called the chapter on religion 'especially good'.
• Swan concluded that Aztlan was 'One of the late Nigel Findley's best.'