After eight years, the Lamanite/Gadiantons bring a massive army with “all their powers,” apparently determined to win at all costs. Mormon comments on their size separately, (“not numbered because of the greatness of their number”) so “all their powers” must be something besides numerical strength (Morm. 2:3). I speculate that the Teotihuacanos may not have been consistently present since the earliest battle when Mormon first took command but have now returned for this massive (and final) incursion. Evidence for this Teotihuacano presence does not overtly appear in the Book of Mormon, but this is the time of major Teotihuacano expansion into the Maya areas and the influence of increasing militarism. (See commentary accompanying Mormon 2:2–3.)
At this time in Maya history, the large and important cities lie along the southeast border of Guatemala and San Salvador with the majority of the population and important cities in the central lowlands, southeast of the historical Nephite lands. The Teotihuacano influence is most obvious in these more important sites, with less information from the smaller, more modest cities of the Grijalva and the Gulf Coast areas. Nevertheless, in this area in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, archaeologist Susan Toby Evans describes the influence of Teotihuacan: “Teotihuacan-style ceramics found in this region, probably dating from A.D. 375 to 450, may reflect influences toward militarism in the service of protecting long-distance trade to the Central Highlands capital.… Architecture, household pottery and ritual materials do not indicate the presence of Teotihuacan populations, yet features of elite iconography seem to borrow Teotihuacan’s style of power.”
The archaeological picture is one of Teotihuacan influence rather than presence. Although the richer trading partners were south and east of the isthmus, ground travel funneled through that area; and control of the trade routes between powerful Teotihuacan and the riches of the Maya world was an important strategy.
Chronology: The 375th year would be A.D. 365.