The Mexica modeled themselves after the Toltecs and claimed descent from Teotihuacan. Although they often left conquered states free to govern themselves, they demanded heavy tributes and military support like a protocolonial ruler to maintain their own civilizational supremacy. Their Toltec-inspired rituals required extensive human sacrificeresulting in constant . warfare. In 1487 foilowing an enlargement of the main temples, more than 20,000 prisoners of war were reportedly sacrificed in
Tenochtitlan.