Teancum apparently had no trouble finding the king’s tent, a detail that is typical of Mesoamerican warfare. The location of the kings was protected, but not hidden. Given the highly personalized character of Mesoamerican warfare, it was important for both sides to see their leaders.
Geography: Verse 33 notes that Amalickiah is sleeping, fatigued by “the labors and the heat of the day.” The “day” is the last of the year. While we do not know precisely how the Nephite months correlate to our own, the timing of war around the planting and harvesting seasons suggest that they are roughly similar to our own calendar. Randall Spackman suggests that the twenty-sixth year of the judges began with the new moon of February 25. (See commentary accompanying Alma 10:6.) Thus, this “heat of the day” is in February, certainly a possible season of enervating heat in Mesoamerica but not, for instance, in most of North America. This detail thus suggests that the Book of Mormon’s geographic location requires either Mesoamerica or something very like it.