Review: Ayar – Children of the Sun
Viracocha created Inti, the Sun God, and Mama Quilla, the Moon Goddess. They emerged from Lake Titicaca as one: husband and wife, sister and brother. But Inti looked upon Mama Quilla’s glow with jealousy and threw ash over her so she would not shine brighter than him. Together they fathered four sons and four daughters—the Ayar pairs—who would emerge from Tiwanaku, south of the great lake, alongside the ten minor clans of the first settlers. The Ayar would be tasked with finding fertile land at the center of the universe to found the Tawantinsuyu empire, while teaching the clans the necessary skills to build a civilization. As the four Ayar pairs traversed the lands northward, one by one they would meet their fate—trapped in a cave or turned to stone—until only one pair remained. The final Ayar pair would survive to receive the honor of bearing the golden staff and founding the Tawantinsuyu empire, standing at its head as the Sapa Inca and the Coya.
This is how we are presented with Ayar: Children of the Sun, a design by Mandela Fernandez-Grandon and Fabio Lopiano, responsible for Sankoré: The Pride of Mansa Musa. First published in 2025 by Osprey Games in an English edition. Illustrations are handled by Ian O’Toole (Lisboa, Railway Boom).
