TEZCATLIPOCA I

BIOGRAPHY

Tezcatlipoca (Mesoamerican Gods)

PERSONAL DATA

Aliases: Smoking Mirror
Identity: The general public believes Tezcatlipoca to be a figment of myth
Occupation: Toltec/Aztec god of night, confusion, betrayal, magic and destiny; patron of warriors
Status: Active
Place of Birth: Unknown
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: Mixcoatl (father); Quetzalcoatl, Huitzilopochtli, Xolotl (brothers)
Base of Operation: Mobile
Group Affiliation(s): Toltec/Aztec Gods
Gender: Male
Height: Unknown
Weight: Unknown
Eyes: Gray
Hair: Black
First Appearance: Mythos: The Final Tour #1 (December 1996)

"Well... You know how it is. Lords of night and betrayal, we change our minds a lot." - Tezcatlipoca

OVERVIEW

Tezcatlipoca is the Aztec god of night and magic, a trickster who enjoys his battles with his rival and brother Quetzalcoatl. In modern times, he took part in a scheme to end the world, but changed his mind and now travels the world with the demon Leatherette

HISTORY

Tezcatlipoca (”smoking mirror”) is the Aztec god of night and other things both dark and mystical. He has a mean, sadistic streak and enjoys ”f*cking with people on a personal level”.

Originally a sun god, Tezcatlipoca was knocked out of the sky by his brother Quetzalcoatl who took his place. Tezcatlipoca then became a shadow god and evil trickster. Ultimately, Tezcatlipoca was defeated by Quetzalcoatl, both for some reason utilizing human vessels during a legendary showdown in the town of Tula in the 10th century AD. Tezcatlipoca had then possessed one of his own priest, mutated him into a jaguar man and started a wave of human sacrifices. His vessel killed, Tezcatlipoca vowed to one day return and end the world. As a direct result, the followers of Quetzalcoatl eventually founded the organization Q-Society in order to prepare for the return of the shadow god. Grooming champions for centuries, the Society's ultimate goal was to create a vessel for Quetzalcoatl's power in the inevitable last battle against Tezcatlipoca.

Very little is known about his interaction with humans until modern times, when he was found working for Pain, (a servant of Desire of The Endless), who was tired of immortality and now attempted to end time and all of creation. Together with the demon Leatherette, Tezcatlipoca’s job was to goad rock star Adam Case into destroying the world with his dormant powers. Somewhere along the line, Tezcatlipoca changed his mind about the apocalypse and set off with Leatherette to ”wreak some havoc” upon an unsuspecting world. [Mythos: The Final Tour #1-3 December-February (1996-97)]

Since then, Aztek, the champion of the Q-Society, has given his life in battle against what he saw as the ultimate shadow god, the ancient anti-sun Mageddon, harking from the days when the universe was still young. Whether this was the enemy Aztek was meant to fight all along, and whether Mageddon had any connection to Tezcatlipoca, remains unclear. [JLA #41 (May 2000)]

Even more recently, Chama Sierra struck a deal with the demon Neron to gain the powers and the name of Tezcatlipoca (II). Sierra became a jaguar being, but any claim to godhood is most likely false. The situation of this second Tezcatlipoca is similar to that of Azure, the girl who managed usurped the power of Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec god of war, but it is not known whether the new Tezcatlipoca’s deal with Neron affected the original Tezcatlipoca in any way. [Green Arrow Vol. 2 #102 (November 1995)]

POWERS AND WEAPONS

The full extent of Tezcatlipoca’s powers have not yet been revealed, but he is known to be a shapechanger. One of his most frequent shapes is that of the jaguar. Tezcatlipoca has also been known to possess human hosts. He possesses great skills in black magic and clairvoyance.

CHRONOLOGY

For a definitive list of appearances of Tezcatlipoca in chronological order click here