Editing LeviathanTempest:ChapterFive (section)

== Earth's Most Mighty Tribe ==

===== Sidebar: Hunters =====
If you've read Hunter: The Vigil you're sure to be asking the obvious question: The answer is yes. Ahabs, The Marduk Society, The Irrational Economic Actors Task Force and The Season Letters are all Hunters. However the rules below can be used with nothing more than the World of Darkness core rulebook. 

Groups who own Hunter: the Vigil may wish to try the following new Professions to for that two fisted Marduk feel: Adventurer (Socialise and Survival), Sailor (Crafts and Drive), Archaeologist (think Indiana Jones: Academics and Larceny), Genealogist or Historian (Academics and Investigation). The Irrational Economic Actors Task Force has a fair crop of Civil Servants, Bureaucrats and politically or socially focused Academics (Academics and Politics).

===Atolls===

[Picture: A young Japanese woman is lying fast asleep on a handsome giant turtle' head, with her head resting on it's shell. She's using a tanning mirror. The turtle has a blissed out expression, the kind that usually requires illegal drugs. All around them the sea is calm.] 

The mirror image of the Beloved, an Atoll is an otherwise normal human being who, for whatever reason, exert a fascination on Leviathans. They are the leading lady in ''Creature of the Black Lagoon'', the relentless investigator in Cthulhu mythos stories, or the one blonde girl who survives in the surf horror movie. They serve as naturally-occuring sinkholes for the forces surrounding the Tribe. Leviathans can only watch from afar, but are unable to keep away for long. Atolls are their doom and their salvation. 

This ability - to stand unmoved and untouched by the Deep - also means that contact - social or physical - with an Atoll has an immediate calming effect on members of the Tribe. An Atoll's touch, or smile, clears churning primordial instincts that surround a Leviathan, leaving them with a deep sense of peace and security. Unsurprisingly, the Tribe are obsessed with Atolls, reacting to them in much the same way as they react to anything else they want - overwhelming desire, tinged with the implied privilege of their divine natures.

But Atolls are untouched by the supposed majesty of the Tribe; if a Leviathan wants to interact with one, they have to do so on the level of mere men. Frustrated Leviathans, desperate for the Tanquility of contact with an Atoll, go to huge lengths to attempt to secure them - resorting to kidnapping or stalking. More moderate Leviathans are no less obsessed, merely more subtle - they find themselves drawn to the places the Atoll works or resides, and attempt, with all the awkwardness that the absence of the Wake brings to their social endeavors, to find a place in the Atoll's life. 

Even if access to an Atoll can be secured, the threat to a Leviathan is not diminished. The addictive effect of an Atoll's presence is such that an Atoll, wittingly or not, can easily manipulate a member of the Tribe - the terror of losing their source of comfort can drive them to absurd lengths to please the Atoll. Unscrupulous Atolls who become aware of what power they have can enslave a Leviathan and his Cult with hardly any effort at all. 

Nobody knows what makes an Atoll so special. Leviathans, mostly those of the School of the Fog, have determined that Atolls are almost never related to Tribe families. One hypothesis holds that Marduk was the first Atoll, and he was able to approach Tiamat through the love she had for him.

In rules terms, consider that not only Atolls are immune to the Wake, but they actually exert a powerful Wake on Leviathans themselves. They benefit from the Rote Action rules on all Social Skill rolls against Leviathans, and Leviathans suffer from a penalty on their Subterfuge rolls against them equal to their own Sheol. A Leviathan in the presence of an Atoll treats her Tranquillity as though it were three dots higher for Tranquility rolls, measuring which Derangements and Afflictions are currently active, the benefits of Still Mind, and of course for behaviour purposes. This bonus has no effect on Tranquillity Disruptions, or the rolls to see if a Leviathan develops a Derangement or Affliction after degeneration. 

If a Leviathan has met and identified an Atoll and knows she is in the area, it becomes difficult for the Leviathan to think of anything else. Spending too much time away from the Atoll becomes a sin against Tranquillity. Some Leviathans have been known to finally detach from this fascination through sheer willpower, but in most cases, it will only end with the death of one or the other party.

===Ahabs===
[Picture: A window looking out onto a suburban street lit by streetlamps. A webbed hand rests on the window and a young girl around 15 is visible as a reflection, her face shows deep anxiety. Visible outside the window is a man in dirty clothes with long unkempt hair and beard. He also wears a sandwich boards that reads Isaiah 27:1 He stairs up at the girl.]

A Leviathan cannot help but affect people; smaller minds are caught in their wake. Sometimes this isn’t all that noticeable, the Leviathan’s actions simply have more impact then they should. Other times people are caught fast, trapped in the wake, their lives bound to the leviathan. These are the Beloved. And sometimes the wake ensnares with Hate. The Tribe has chosen a fitting name for these men: Ahab.

Exactly what makes an Ahab is unique for every individual. Sometimes a Beloved snaps; maybe they were ignored or treated cruelly. Perhaps their Leviathan asked for them to sacrifice the one thing they never would. Sometimes it’s not a Beloved at all, a son or daughter joins a cult and their mother gives chase. A Leviathan walking through the wrong end of town is ambushed. His attacker, bleeding in the dust, simply cannot let it go. Sometimes they’ve never met the Leviathan at all; a life is lived in the ripples caused by a Leviathan. He can feel it something dwells in his town but he can’t tell what, feelings grow into paranoia until one day he sees bulging eyes or a webbed hand and it all makes horrific sense.

There are no mechanical rules to say when exactly someone becomes an Ahab, but there are some requirements: Firstly not everyone can potentially become an Ahab, the people who can are the same group as those who may become Beloved. An Ahab’s hatred is the other side of a Beloved’s devotion. Secondly no-one with a Supernatural Advantage can become an Ahab, Hunters and Hybrids can become Ahabs and at the Storyteller’s discretion it might be possible for people with other Minor Templates. Finally during that fatal moment when a person becomes an Ahab they must be either inside the wake or some telepathic communication with the Leviathan such as the Channels: Piercing the Veil of Slumber or Besieging the Tower of Will. When all the other factors are in place it can take just an instant with a Leviathan to turn someone Ahab.

=====Powers and Advantages =====
An Ahab's madness gives them strength and abilities beyond the average man. Ahabs get the following advantages:

*When becoming an Ahab either Strength or Resolve increases to five dots, if you are creating an Ahab at character creation this may be done before spending any attribute dots.

*An Ahab can always feel the presence of the Leviathan that created them; they can reliably tell direction and have a vague sense of distance. Once the Ahab gets close, typically the same community as the Leviathan and within its Ripples their sense starts to say “right here”. The final leg of the journey requires old fashioned sleuthing.

*At short range an Ahab can sense a Leviathan’s presence; again this typically requires an Ahab to be within the Leviathan’s Ripples. Ahab’s can tell the number of leviathans present and recognise different Leviathans by their feel.

*An Ahab gets extra health boxes equal to his Resolve, these are to the right of regular health boxes. When one of these boxes is marked with damage the Ahab may add his Resolve to his next attack.

*When an Ahab’s last health box is marked with lethal or aggravated and if they were conscious before that box was marked they may make one final, reflexive attack benefiting from 8-again. All-out attack and Willpower may be used. “From hell’s heart I stab at thee”.

*An Ahab is entirely immune to all psychic abilities possessed by Leviathans.

If you own a copy of Hunter: the Vigil than you can add the Hunter Template, but this is not required.

=====Going mad and getting better again=====

An Ahab’s madness gives them strength but it is also a terrible curse. An Ahab suffers from the following compulsions and drawbacks.

*An Ahab’s madness is frequently visible in their face, body language and often in their words. When talking to other humans Ahab’s suffer a -3 penalty to social rolls, this does not apply to other Ahabs and at the storytellers discretion Allies or other long term close friendships may be exempt. This penalty dose not apply to Intimidation.

*Every scene when the Ahab is not working towards the destruction of a Leviathan they must roll Resolve + Composure - 2. On a failure they are overcome by their madness and will obsessively peruse their hunt. This rises to - 4 if they are chasing the Leviathan who made them an Ahab.

*When it comes to selecting a target an Ahab always goes for the Leviathan that created it, they will chase it across oceans if they must. Should their creator be dead then an Ahab may choose their target freely and may change targets at any time. If an Ahab's creator is dead and it gets into a fight with a Leviathan where neither die, once the fight is over roll the number of lethal/aggravated wounds taken. On a success treat that Leviathan as the Ahab's creator.

*An Ahab cannot simply keep planning forever, after a while they simply must attack; with allies or alone, with a plan or with a weapon and a prayer. An Ahab can spend up to Resolve days planning and preparing. After that upon waking up each day roll Resolve with a calculative -1 penalty per day. If they fail, ready or not today they'll make their move.

*After an Ahab successfully kills a Leviathan and if they cannot sense any Leviathans in the area an Ahab's madness may go into temporary remission: Roll the Ahab’s Resolve + Composure.<br>
**Failure or Dramatic Failure: The Ahab immediately returns to the hunt, they may scour the internet for information or just start walking until they sense something.<br>
**Success: for one week per dot of Resolve the Ahab’s madness goes into remission: The compulsion to hunt fades but the social penalty remains, this is usually enough to prevent an Ahab from creating any stability but for a brief while they can rest, earn some money and build themselves up for the next hunt. This rest period ends immediately if the Ahab senses a Leviathan.<br>
**Exceptional Success: The rest period lasts indefinitely unless the Ahab’s Leviathan sense is triggered or they make a conscious decision to return to the hunt.<br>

====== Sidebar: This seems Familiar ======
Serial murderers given supernatural powers by their obsession with killing, are Ahab's Slashers? By a purist's  definition of Slashers they are not. A Slasher might start with a dedicated goal such as protecting mankind from the depredations of the Tribe but it's in their nature that their targets gradually expand until they kill for it's own sake as much as for any higher purpose. Ahabs retain their focus on hunting the Tribe.

A more pragmatic view is to say it doesn't really matter. Whether or not they are Slashers has no effect on the story. 

But then there's the cosmological view, how do Ahabs fit into the World of Darkness? Well their power comes from madness and an obsessive need to kill so to start with we can say they're a form of Slasher. Next we have to ask what keeps them focused on the Tribe rather than murder for its own sake, looking at the origins presented for Ahabs above it's clear they're trapped by the Wake like a Beloved. So Ahabs are a combination of Slasher and Beloved. This raises some obvious questions: Could some of the other Undertakings become ensnared by the Wake and focus their perversions entirely on the tribe? Could the Ahab Undertaking appear independently of the Tribe to create unshakable trackers that follow human targets around the globe? We leave this question to you. 

Finally if you really see a need to make Ahabs fit the Slasher template note for note here are some guidelines: Rippers get the extra benefits from Resolve, including the final strike, and the compulsion to hunt. Scourges get the ability to sense Leviathans and the social penalty, in addition to the Ripper benefits. Immunity to the Wake and other Psychic abilities come from the Beloved side of the equation. Ahab Undertaking Skills (if you don't have Slasher: You choose two undertaking skills, they must have two dots and at least one speciality. There are no other effects.) are: Investigation, Occult, Drive (Drive is included on this list for sailors.), Firearms, Stealth, Survival, Weaponry, Streetwise. Scourges may also choose  Animal Ken or Crafts.

===== Chief Takutea =====

'''Attributes:''' Intelligence 2, Wits 3, Resolve 5, Strength 5, Dexterity, 3 Stamina 4, Presence 3, Manipulation 2, Composure 3<br>
'''Skills:''' Crafts 2, Investigation 2, Medicine 1, Occult 3 (Leviathans), Politics 3, Athletics 4, Brawl 2, Stealth 2, Survival 4 (Ocean), Weaponry 4 (Spear), Animal Ken 3, Empathy 1, Expression 2, Intimidation 2, Persuasion 2.<br>

'''Virtue:''' Fortitude<br>
'''Vice:''' Envy<br>
'''Defence:''' 4<br>
'''Morality:''' 4<br>
'''Health:''' 15<br>
'''Size:''' 6<br>
'''Speed:''' 13<br>
'''Initiative:''' 8<br>

'''Other Merits:''' Danger Sense 2, Direction Sense 1, Fast Reflexes 2, Giant 4, Iron Stamina 3, Quick Healer 4, Strong Lungs 3, Allies 4 (Neighbouring tribes), Contacts 1 (Traders), Fame 1, Status 5 (Chief). If you have Armoury Reloaded add the Spears Fighting style (Sojutsu/Jukendo).

'''Weapons:''' 
Spear: 3(L), roll 13 dice. +1 Defence. 

'''Background:''' Chief Takutea's tribe spent many generations worshipping a Leviathan. If they provided for it's often deplorable needs they were rewarded with fair weather, rain for the crops and prophecy. Should they displease their deity they suffered terrible storms and every family was required to personally feed their first born to their god,  just to make sure everyone knew their place. The very worst thing, by the time Takutea was born this was considered normal, even moral: Stockholm Syndrome on a communal level.

Why Takutea felt differently isn't something he can explain. Perhaps the Leviathan was a little too smug about things, maybe he recognised the Wake as feelings not of his own heart. All he can say is that a terrible righteous fury came upon him, he rose up and slew a god. If this was a story that would be the end. It wasn't the end, it was the start of creating a new way of life after everything they believed was destroyed.

'''Appearance:''' Chief Takutea is a huge man, over seven foot of muscle. Anyone who heard the story would not be disappointed to see it's protagonist, Takutea looks like a man who could defeat a god personal in combat. It's clear that chief Takutea is not quite right in the head, the Ahab condition is incurable, but unless until he sees another Leviathan it's in permanent remission. Those who know him accept this, who said a man who killed a god is normal?

'''Storytelling Hints:''' Takutea is the chief of an undefined remote tribe (for the curious he's named after an uninhabited Pacific island), the cohort might find him deep in a jungle or on some remote island. Wherever he turns up it's pretty much the same tribe: Their customs are based on generations of slavery to a Leviathan and rejection of a false god after it was killed, not any real life cultural practices.

In a story Takutea could simply be an opponent, for a weaker or non-combat focused Leviathan he's a formidable opponent and can call upon both his own warriors and allies from neighbouring tribes. Against an Ahab it's literally impossible for a Leviathan to hide their nature and as a chieftain he's socially and strategically capable.

Just as easily Takutea could be a commentary of the Tribe. After travelling to a remote part of the globe the Cohort finds evidence of the Tribe's touch. Even here it is as anywhere else: Monstrous, pointless depravity. For a Cohort seeking to escape the feuds and warring Cults of their cousins it can be quite horrific to realise they're not escaping evil. They're bringing it with them and even in the most remote parts of the world mankind knows and casts down Earth's most Wicked.

=== The Marduk Society ===

[Picture: a man with a heroic lantern jaw stands on a rock above a dark pool. He is wearing rugged outdoor clothing but it’s ripped and stained with a large bloodstain on his chest. In his left arm he hold a five year old girl who clings to him. A nine year old boy hides behind his legs. This man is clearly pained yet his face shows determination. His right hand holds a slightly cheesy ray-gun pointed at something just outside of view, only a hideous deformed claw can be seen. 

The scene takes place within a crystal ball, a old man, almost a skeleton watches dispassionately.]

==== History ====
 
The Wicked Tribe has existed since the primordial era, preying on humanity, crushing hopes and dreams as they mould people into slavish worshippers. But one group has said no more! Adventurers! Men of Science! Guardians of the weak and defenders of justice! The Marduk Society!
 
Well it’s not that simple, it never is. In actuality the Marduk Society harks back to the disciples of Marduk, he who drew upon humanities desperation, defeated Tiamat and freed mankind from the shackles of the Progenitors. Marduk taught his magic to disciples, grew old and then died. His disciples turned their backs on Marduk’s principles. To preserve their power they betrayed humanity; turned nation against nation, brother against brother, growing powerful on humanity’s despair. To preserve their youth they hunted down those of the Wicked Tribe, gorging on divine flesh, a cancer in the heart of humanity and the greatest enemy of the Tribe. 

Actually that's not it either. The real truth is that the Marduk Society are not more good or evil than other people. A loose movement of sorcerers, priests, kings and warlords who banded together in ancient Mesopotamia for mutual protection against the Tribe. The armies of man took arms against the cultists of the tribes. Priests and Magi bargained for power to oppose the Tribe's eldritch might. And they were victorious. The alliance grew and spread, sweeping the Tribe ahead of them into the mists of history. 

Or perhaps it's none of the above, or some combination of all of them. All that can be said with certainty is that the Marduk society appear in the earliest records of the Tribe. Hunting Leviathans with sky splitting sorcery. It may not even be the same society, thousands of years is a long time. The society may have been usurped or be multiple groups thorough history. Each adopting legitimacy by taking an earlier Conspiracies name or making use of  the mystically potent Sigil of Marduk. There's translation errors in the Tribe's records as well as "obvious" interpretations for phrases like "our great enemy". 

As records progress Marduk shows increasingly technological methods. According to tribal lore Marduk’s disciples discovered that without humanities oppressors the population of man grew rapidly. They alone were simply too few to either save or damn mankind but were loath to share their powers with others who might decide they were made for greater roles than servitude. The disciples turned to artifice and refined Marduk's sky sorcery into powerful tools for their servants so that they would not need to teach the secrets of true power beginning a shift that has been a constant in the society’s history. Today Marduk operatives hunt the Wicked Tribe with submarines rather than sorcery. 

The second great shift in Marduk started, according to varying sources, either as early as the 15th Century during the Age of Discovery or as late as the 19th Century. Hiding their motives behind a façade as academics, archaeologists, philanthropists and scientists the Society began to receive interest from actual scholars and charitable gentlemen. At first these idealistic members served as unwitting pawns and cats-paws for the conspirators, but their numbers grew. 

Before too long entire branches were entirely staffed by this new breed of Marduk. Worse, while conspirators by nature distrust their own the new idealists talked to each other. They shared information and watched each others backs. They may have been ignorant about their own society: the Leviathan breeding programs, the dark pacts, wicked deals and blasphemous immortality at the heart of it all. But as “gentlemen adventurers” they were second to none. The original disciples watched in horror as cults were smashed, victims rescued and Leviathans hunted down, their flesh left to rot.

In the heart of the Society sit six immortal Old Men, perhaps Marduk's original disciples, perhaps not. Once they ruled, now they are reduced to manipulating their own organisation from the shadows, but they’ve had a very long time to get good and they’re holding on, for now. Of those few Leviathans who know of them most long for the day where the Society turns upon the Old Men and dream of dancing on the graves of the Wicked Tribe’s most ancient of enemies. The others dread it, for when that day comes Marduk will still be hunting. Yet without evil at the heart of the Marduk Society the Wicked Tribe will no longer take comfort that “humans are the real monsters”. They are the monsters, alien and harmful to the world, oppressors of humanity. And the heroes are coming for them.

==== Members ====

It wouldn’t be entirely accurate to say that the new breed of Marduk are all jut jawed heroic defenders of humanity, rather this is the ideal they try to live up to. Here one falls, tempted by the conspiracy within Marduk or his own vices. Another armours her delicate idealism beneath bitterness and cynicism while a third drowns the horrors he has seen with drink. Yet here is one who manages to be everything Marduk claims of its members. 

Neither are all members are two fisted men of adventure. Marduk employs researchers and engineers to keep itself equipped; academics, genealogists and historians to uncover secrets and track the blood of the Wicked Tribe while social manipulators discredit cults and expose hideous rituals. Many of these are also trained combatants but just as many are not, working in the background as support to there more active field teams. 

And the conspiracy isn’t dead yet. As much as thirty percent may still be oppressing humanity or perusing blasphemous studies but mostly they try to pull the strings of their more idealistic peers. Entire cells of idealists may unwittingly play to the script of one or two conspirators but these days more often than not “manipulation” merely means following and waiting for an opportunity to grab some of the spoils. 

==== Committees ====

The ''Standing Committee'' is the gentleman adventurer, hot on the trail of evil in some remote jungle. The shell shocked veteran descending into another suburban temple because someone has to. And sadly, the dark suited face in a crowd with a vial of poison following some decent investigator who knows too much. Members of the standing committee are responsible whenever battle needs to be done.<br>
'''Free Specialty:''' Socialise (Well Travelled)

The ''Philanthropy Committee'' are the public face of the Marduk Society. They are the ones donating to museums, funding excavations and archaeological digs as well as the latest in scientific research and putting Marduk’s name on new schools, hospital wards and works of art. They’re also the ones who blacken the reputations of a Leviathan’s cult, send people targeted by Leviathans on all-expenses paid round the world trips and they’re the ones who provide a nigh-impenetrable smoke screen to protect both the Societies justified extra-legal actions and heinous crimes.<br>
'''Free Specialty:''' Persuasion (Public Relations)

The ''Cross Disciplinary Committee'' are the back office staff of the Society. They handle the paperwork and finance. Design the new Super Science, run the factories that build it and they’re the ones tracing bloodlines or knee deep in poisoned marshlands digging up relics from before history. Of the Committees they are the least likely to be involved in any actual combat.<br>
'''Free Specialty:''' Occult (The Wicked Tribe) or Politics (Management)

==== Status ====

The Marduk Society has two separate status tracks depending on whether a hunter is an idealist or a conspirator. One cannot have status in both. 

=====Idealist=====

Marduk Idealists gain status by showing they are worthy of it. They must show competence at their current position, potential for future roles higher up the ladder. In addition Idealists are expected to conduct themselves with honour, dignity and virtue. These are of course somewhat open to interpretation, some members value big picture thinking and taking the necessary steps. Others believe you should rescue the children, even if it means letting the Leviathan escape. Generally members who find positions where their values are respected rise faster than those who try and win respect by changing their values.

Status O: You’ve gone through the training course and are ready to serve humanity. You may purchase Super Science Endowments, as an additional benefit Leviathan's find it harder to turn you into a Beloved: Deduct your Status in Marduk from the Leviathan's Successes.<br>
Status OOO: The way you carry yourself speaks of your heroic deeds, so long as your Morality is greater than 5 you get +1 to all social roles to encourage or inspire and people trying to blacken your name get a -1. This rises to +2/-2 at Morality 7.<br>
Status OOOOO: You’re an old hand; you’ve faced things blasphemous to reality itself and have the scars to prove it. What hasn’t killed you makes you stronger, refined you to a paragon of humanity. You gain a second Virtue and may regain Willpower from your Virtues twice per chapter.

=====Conspirator=====

Conspirators rise in status in one way: They must deliver the flesh of Leviathans to the Conspiracy. It dosn't matter if you get your entire team killed, if you took the time avoid collateral damage, if you're embezzling from the conspiracy. If you're making a regular tithe of flesh then providing you don't do anything that threatens the conspiracy as a whole, either from forces within or outside the Society, you're going to get promotions. This does mean that vital work unrelated to hunting Leviathans frequently gets overlooked when the time for promotions come, many members rise early in their career then get remain stagnant after getting desk jobs. Many consider this an internal retirement and aim to be promoted into obscurity and a big pay check. 

Status O: You’ve been inducted to the secrets of the Marduk Society and are on the path to true power. You may purchase Super Science Endowments, as an additional benefit Leviathan's find it harder to turn you into a Beloved: Deduct your Status in Marduk from the Leviathan's Successes.<br>
Status OOO: You’ve been entrusted with the hidden coffers and spy networks of Marduk. You gain three dots to be placed into Allies or Resources as you please.<br>
Status OOOOO: One of the disciples has taken you on as a protégée, a rare honour. You gain a five dot Mentor.

===== Sidebar: The Sky Gods =====
How to use the Old Men themselves in your stories? It's probably not a good idea to use the Old Men as the villain of the week. Killing even one would represent a major moment in a war that according to the Tribe's admittedly shoddy records has been ongoing since before recorded history. Even if the Marduk Society isn't actually connected to the man (who might not actually exist) that killed Timat (who might not actually exist) we are still talking about the leaders, perhaps founders or perhaps usurpers, of the Tribe's most constant enemy. They're far bigger than just antagonists for a Cohort of Leviathans.

The first question to answer is why are they getting involved personally? They haven’t done so for the last thousand years. Is there a world shaking event at foot? Have the players joined or even started an all out war between the Tribe and mankind? You can't go far wrong with having the Old Men personally show up to challenge the Sheol 10 Leviathans leading the charge. After all if the very long and very profitable war is going to end they could do a lot worse than visibly picking a side. To try another angle perhaps the Marduk Idealists discovered the Conspirators forcing the Old Men to jump ship. Now have to hunt their own Leviathans. Maybe the players have dedicated themselves to hunting down the Old Men and it's time for the climax. The important thing is to make this feel historic. 

If you decide that the Old Men are Marduk's literal disciples with thousands of years of magical experience then you can do a lot worse than biblically themed magic. Not only does portraying the Old Men with the powers and trappings of a deity provide a nice foil to the Tribe's tendency to set themselves up as gods but also taps into a rich mythological vein: The ancient sky gods fought their monster: Zeus fought Typhon, Jahova defeated Leviathan and yes, Marduk slew Tiamat. Time for a rematch. 

For one final twist you could make them Atolls.

==== Endowment: Super Science. ====

The Marduk Society employs top gun researchers and engineers from all fields, and it has money, lots and lots of money. Combined these allow Marduk researchers to push the boundaries of science crafting new tools to take the fight to the primordial gods. Most Super Science resembles the “raygun” styles of classic science fiction. This is often considered outdated or even cheesy by its detractors, to the idealists in the Marduk Society old science fiction is the product of an era filled with hope for the future and they wear its trappings proudly. 

Some Endowments are renewable. At the end of each chapter the device is replaced with a fresh fully charged version. 

===== Utility =====

'''Waterproofing''' (O): This endowment is applied to normal technology to gain complete protection from water. (Super Science is waterproof by default). Many agents take a waterproof bag rather than individually protect every item they carry. <br>
''Example. Jackson of the Philanthropy Committee needs proof that a cult practices animal sacrifice and they practice their rituals on a small island in a lake. Fortunately Jackson is a very good swimmer. Using his Resources merit Jackson buys a directional microphone and a high quality telescopic video camera. He then buys the Waterproofing merit twice and marks it on his sheet:<br>
O Waterproofing (telescopic camera) <br>
O Waterproofing (directional microphone)<br>
Jackson is now all set for his swim. ''<br>
'''Marduk Wetsuit''' (OO): A Marduk wetsuit provides 1/1 armour, inbuilt radio, twelve hours of oxygen, can safely dive to 6000 feet yet see clearly. A detachable backpack provides propulsion with an acceleration of 10 mph, a safe speed of 20mph and a maximum speed of 30mph. Checks are made using the lowest of athletics and drive. <br>
'''Personal Forcefield''' (renewable OOO): Never leave home without one. This device is about the size of a mobile phone and provides 3/3 armour. The battery life lets it be used for ten scenes after which it must be sent back, the society of course will provide a fully charged replacement. <br>
'''Thumper''' (OOOO): A portable shockwave generator about the size of a man. Thumper send a massive pulse through water several times a second at a slightly irregular rhythm. The unpredictability can be very distressing to sentient beings. Leviathans, who spend their lives on edge, are especially sensitive and unless engaged in some emotionally focusing activity (such as combat) suffer an Outburst every Resolve + Composure turns. Marduk have long used Thumpers to flush out Leviathans from underwater hiding spots. <br>
'''Jetpack''' (OOOOO): Fresh out of Research and Development Marduk jetpacks are an art deco masterpiece of sleek curves and fins. This device provides both practical transportation and the ability to fight from well beyond the reach of most Leviathans. They’re not yet in mass production, but the society’s membership is just itching to get their wings. <br>
A Marduk Jetpack has an acceleration of 20 mph, a safe speed of 30mph and a maximum speed of 60mph. Checks are made using the lowest of athletics and drive.

===== Weaponry =====

'''Stun Gun''' (O): Idealists in Marduk hope to rehabilitate rather that kill cultists while conspirators frequently see the value in taking someone alive. A stun-gun is a microwave weapon, it deals zero damage (bashing) with a range of 30/60/120. However no matter how much damage is done it will not wrap around to lethal. Instead every attack that would wrap around simply forces a Stamina check to remain conscious. Supernatural beings who don't loose consciousness from bashing damage won't get knocked out by a stun gun either. Each power cell is good for 15 shots. <br>
'''Dart Gun''' (OO): Not as effective as a Tesla Pistol but functional underwater. This weapon fires small darts around the size of an arrow head, each dart contains a pressurized air casual that provides acceleration. A dart gun dose 3 lethal, has 10 shots to a clip and has a range of 50/100/200 underwater and 10/20/40 on the surface.<br>
'''Tesla Pistol''' (OOO): This sleek finned weapon is a convenient blend of power and reliability serving as the weapon of choice among Marduk Agents. It does 4 lethal (9 again, electrical) damage and for something the size of a pistol boasts shocking range: 200/400/800. Power cells have 20 shots each.<br>
'''Babel's Wall''' (OOOO): Babel's Walls are something of a mystery even to the Society. Marduk's scientists know exactly how they work, they just don't have any clue why they're effective. They don't even know who designed it or why it's called Babel's Wall. Still, never look a gift horse in the mouth as they say. Bable's Wall is one of the most effective tools Marduk ever got their hands on for it can disrupt a Leviathan's connection to the Primordial Sea. Babel's Wall is a one damage dish and backpack array with a range of 20/40/80. The agent rolls Dexterity + Firearms + Damage vs Stamina + Sheol. If the Marduk agent wins the roll every additional success prevents the Leviathan for spending Ichor for one turn. Multiple shots do not stack.<br>
'''“Plan B”''' (OOOOO): “Plan B” is the Marduk codename for their orbital death rays. Purchasing this Merit dose not mean a character owns a dedicated kill-satellite. Instead it means they have authorisation to order one strike per story. A satellite strike cannot target anything smaller than size 30, but a direct hit dose 40 automatic successes of Aggravated Damage. It also requires a satellite to be in position, which may take between one to twenty four hours. Firing at a moving target is possible but requires constant monitoring until a satellite is in position. For the purposes of the exceptional Size rules Plan B can be treated as Size 30. <br>
Access to Plan B is considered a huge responsibility by the Marduk Society. Each individual shot is extremely expensive and using it often guarantees that the death of any innocent prisoners. An agent is expected to use it as a last resort and can loose this merit and status if they don’t show appropriate restraint.

===== Information =====

'''Concealed Technology''' (O): This endowment allows any item of technology (including other Super Science) to be entirely disguised as another item. A Tesla Pistol may fold up into a laptop computer or a phone could be embedded into a shoe. Common sense still applies; a submarine can’t be disguised as a wristwatch. <br>
'''Truth Serum''' (renewable OO): A syringe with one dose of truth serum. The serum counts as a Toxicity 5 poison, "damage" reduces the target's Subterfuge score. If the target's Suberfuge is reduced into negatives all Subterfuge rolls automatically become a chance die. Effects last one scene. <br>
'''Social Analysis System''' (OOO): This computer program is designed to rapidly analyse news, publicly visible social networks and other information sources looking for signs of a Leviathan’s Wake. It cannot tell with accuracy but it can highlight suspicious events that might be related. When an agent is searching for a Leviathan with this device double the Ripple effect. <br>
'''Automated DNA Test''' (OOOO). Around the size of a human hand and possessing an appearance that can only be described as “a gizmo” this devise is nevertheless the most user friendly DNA test known to man. Simply insert a drop of blood, skin or other genetic sample and after half a minuet of beeps it will display whether someone is a Leviathan, Hybrid or human. It cannot detect whether someone might gain the template later or otherwise posses dormant progenitor DNA (or rather, it can but dormant progenitor DNA is so common it's ignored). <br>
'''Spy Drone''' (OOOOO): About the size of a tennis ball, wrapped in chameleon camouflage, flight capable, equipped with telesopic, x-ray and infra red cameras, rull run by a rudimentary AI roughly equivalent to a well trained police dog. Gentlemen behold the Marduk Spy Drone. Agents use these drones gather information and keep tabs on suspected individuals. Teams with enough clout to get several have been known to use them during raids scouting ahead for trouble. The small size and camouflage grants a +4 to Stealth checks for the Drone. The Drone has the following stats: Intelligence 1, Wits 2, Resolve 5, Strength 1, Dexterity 4, Stamina 2, Athletics 3, Stealth 3, Size 1, Structure 3, Speed 15. Though the Drone has no Skills, it ignores the unskilled penalty for Physical skills. The Drone has no Social abilities and cannot spend Willpower but treat it's Composure as 5 for the purposes of Perception rolls. The Drone's artificial mind is usually immune to the Wake and cannot receive psychic signals in general but some Leviathans have worked around this with special Adaptations.

===== Sidebar: Super science at your local hardware store? =====
What keeps super science from going public? Well who's to say it won't? Marduk has a lot of money, it has to come from somewhere; with such a large research budget selling technology makes sense. Take a look at the consumer electronics you're using, how much of it would have been “super science” ten years ago?

===The Irrational Economic Actors Task Force===

====History====

Cleansing. It's not a nice word, and it's not a nice job, but it was done. After the Second World War, countries of Western Europe had to root out the collaborators, the traitors and war profiteers, and purge them from the positions of power they had attained under German or Italian occupation. In Germany and Austria, the territory was even occupied by the Allies, who ran this denazification programme. The investigators who did this were a unique blend of policemen, accountants and spies. Several of them, in the course of their investigation, discovered a terrible truth: that the men and women who had richly profited from the chaos and tyranny of war were sometimes more than humans. They say that man is the worst monster, but they're not always right.

Several investigators tried to strike back, and were destroyed utterly. But safety was in numbers. Former resistance networks were reactivated, weapons procured, requisition orders forged. In 1946, detective Edwin van Geerts, Major Gaston Buffalat and Occupation Commissioner Harold Fellowes held the first international cooperation meeting on supernatural cleansing. Experience came from any source they found: turncoat Nazi occultists, politicians with an in on the dark sides of the Church, American friendly special forces. The meetings became regular and eventually merged smoothly into the burgeoning European Communities.

Nowadays, the Irrational Economic Actors Task Force is one of the myriad bodies gravitating around the Commission building in Brussels. It is a think tank, a quango, a semi-private reflexion group dedicated to monitoring supernatural activity. With the quelling of continent-wide fears of warfare, its focus has shifted largely to economic analysis. It is also an informal meeting group for agents of several European intelligence agencies which have maintained a presence there, co-opting colleagues with a special experience in the field of monster hunting. Maintaining such a complex system as the European economy running is an exceedingly difficult task at best, and no one wants to deal with the effects of inhuman monsters exerting an undue influence on entire cities. 

====Members====

The Task Force is found in the corridors of power, and its members are drawn from the bureaucrats and civil servants who keep the European economy running. This tends to give them an academic background, a measured approach and a focus on the big picture. Most would rather fight monsters with the stroke of a pen than the barrel of a gun. 

That said, when it's do or die, the Task Force doesn't shy away from direct action. Its members are experienced and well-connected, and the balance struck between agencies and agendas means that it's not often they can sub-contract the elimination of a supernatural threat to a mundane agency without repercussions. They tend to act very professionally, even if they aren't equipped with the skills or gear the situation would require.

====Parties====

The Task Force itself is small, but its turnover rate and extended contact network means it can rely on many more people than those just on the payroll. Over time, differences of opinion emerge.

''''Hacks'''' are devoted to keeping things running smoothly. They want what's best for Europe's citizens and markets, and nothing creates panic more than unwanted news. Many of them come from backgrounds in economics or government. They will keep the monsters down so everyone else can live, but it's just as important to be diplomatic and smooth than it is to go guns blazing.
'''Free speciality:''' Persuasion (Politicians) or Persuasion (Public Servants).

By contrast, ''''Troubleshooters'''' see themselves as consultants hired on retainer to solve particular problems. They often have previous monster-hunting experience and are called in when the Task Force encounters issues they cannot solve by activating their government or intelligence contacts.
'''Free speciality:''' Subterfuge (Vacate the area)

Finally, ''''Wonks'''' are the strategists of the group, the big thinkers with vision, or at least that's how they see themselves. They tend to come from business or academia, and compensate their lack of practical experience with a surprising breadth of knowledge. Wonks usually hold the Chairman position.
'''Free speciality:''' Academics (Economics)

====Status====

The Task Force is just as much of a backbiting, scheming place as one would expect. Still, experience and skill sometimes get noticed and rewarded.

0: You've been asked to do a presentation for the Task Force, and consulted a couple of times. You gain the Economics specialty for free in either the Investigation or Politics skill.

000: You're on retainer or on permanent assignment to the group, and have started to build a network of contacts. You've also gone in the field at least once on an investigation or an elimination job, and you've more than likely taken serious risks for your life or career. You gain two dots in the Contacts merit.

00000: You are known as not only an expert in your field, but as the guy people should turn to when they meet unexpected trouble. You're so good at noticing telltale signs that you can do it unconsciously now. You gain the benefit of the Unseen Senses merit, but it is only triggered when you put together evidence of a supernatural being's activity (i.e., it does not work at close range).

===The Season Letters===

====History====

It began with little more than a desperate hope and a postage stamp. On a dark, wild night in 1912, Dr. Rupert Season of Providence, Rhode Island, wrote to his good friend Eamon Campbell. Season was an alienist who had been treating a patient so strange, so self-possessed and so haunted, that Season himself felt he was coming close to the edge of the abyss. Campbell, a professor of mythology at Trinity College Dublin, immediately wrote in turn to several friends of his, until one day, a few weeks later, a grim former medical surgeon knocked on Season's door. It was too late: the good doctor had already succumbed to the infectious madness his patient propagated, and was turning into a mindless monster.  Season stalked his visitor throughout the night streets of Providence until he was cut short by a runaway train.

After this tragic experience, Campbell decided to look deeper. He structured his network of epistolary contacts into an intelligence-gathering information and tried to locate Season's original patient. But Campbell was not after revenge; it was curiosity that motivated him so. He finally found the man and, armed with certain precautions suggested by his friends, went to meet him. He survived the experience, and although he was plagued to the end of his life by nightmares, went on to write his most brilliant work.

Over the years, other cases have popped up of similar supernatural cases, and Campbell's group (now known formally as the Season Letters) reported them, corralled them and studied them. Originally mostly made up of academics in the fields of psychology and history, it has expanded into several other fields, including a number of military officers and businessmen. It still works mostly at a distance, with email and postage mail representing most of the work, until it is time to meet the creatures that go bump in the night.

====Members====

Unlike some groups which want to explain the supernatural, the Season Letters take its existence largely for granted. Their members come from accademic backgrounds leaning towards the humanities: History, anthropology, philosophy. They aren't interested in studying how supernatural abilities work, but to learn from the people who are touched by something beyond the norm? What insights on history can be learned from an immortal creature of the depths? What aspects of psychology can be revealed by an inhuman intellect? Can spirits of the hive teach us why humans work together as they do?

Members of the Letters tend to be a cautious sort who use their network to it's fullest extent to learn of any risks and necessary precautions before making organising a meeting with the supernatural. Few are violent, and if they kill it is usually to protect themselves from retaliation. 

====Flocks====

The network is too disorganised for structured factions to emerge. Nevertheless, for people who meet very rarely, reputation is everything, and certain tendencies have been clear for a long time.

You won't find ''''Larks'''' in the field. They're happy to serve as sounding board, to provide advice and analysis, but they never get more involved than that. Most use pseudonyms and are only know to those who have recruited them into the network. Because more proactive elements resent them somewhat, they spend their time currying favor to get feedback on fieldwork.
'''Free speciality:''' Academics (Reviewing)

''''Cuckoos'''' favor deep fieldwork, sometimes going so far undercover that their loyalties shift and they come to obey those they wanted to study. Nevertheless, much of the Letters' most important data has been gathered by them, and they inspire respect as well as fear.
'''Free speciality:''' Subterfuge (Blending In)

''''Starlings'''' are experts on meeting sessions. They routinely travel from location to location, setting up safehouses and wards to assist the local members. They generally stay during the meetings and are rewarded by information as much as money.
'''Free speciality:''' Streetwise (Safehouses)

====Status====

The Letters are a very informal network, but reputations get built and traded on.

0: You have provided information on request by a member, and have been kept appraised of the result of the investigation. You are also starting to work at a distance through contacts. You gain a free Written Word specialty in the Expression or Persuasion skill.

000: You have participated in at least one meeting session, and are well-known for your insight within the network. You have come across dozens of reports from across the world. You gain two dots in the Allies merit.

00000: You are one of the central hubs of the network, and those members that you don't know personally you can probably investigate and discover. You have survived several meetings with creatures, and not all of them have gone well. You gain the benefit of the Encyclopaedic Knowledge merit, if you have the time to ask your contacts in the network and receive their feedback.

=== The Virtuous Tribe === 

Though mankind has long known of the Wicked Tribe and sought to defend itself from the depredations of Tiamat's brood the day to day conflicts between a Leviathan and humans are more likely to be caused by his actions than what he is. A Leviathan who seeks his very own criminal empire will find himself in opposition to established criminals from street thugs to Mafia empires. A growing Cult attracts worried family members, deprogrammers, reporters or condemnation from the pulpits. 

In their own way such threats can be more dangerous than a rampaging Typhon or hunting Ahab. Not only are they far more numerous, a rampaging Typhon ends in blood and the Leviathan, should she survive, is free to get on with her life. Even Marduk has limited resources allowing a Leviathan to lie low until the heat is off. Humanity however cannot be fought, it cannot be escaped at least not if a Leviathan wishes to keep his mind intact. It can only be endured day after day while the Wake forms an impenetrable barrier to peaceful coexistence. 

====Marine====
''I'm not supposed to tell you this, but we fired depth charges on patrol last night. No one's saying why.''

'''Attributes:''' Intelligence 3, Wits 3, Resolve 3, Strength 3, Dexterity 3, Stamina 3, Presence 2, Manipulation 2, Composure 3

'''Skills:''' Academics 2, Computer 2, Crafts 2, Medicine (First Aid) 1, Athletics 3, Brawl 2, Drive 2, Firearms (Rifle) 3, Survival 2, Weaponry 2, Intimidation 2, Socialize 2

One speciality has been left free to represent specialised training. 

'''Willpower:''' 6
'''Morality:''' 7
'''Virtue:''' Hope
'''Vice:''' Wrath
'''Initiative:''' 7
'''Defense:''' 3
'''Armor:''' 2/3 (Kevlar body armor)
'''Speed:''' 11
'''Health:''' 8

'''Other Merits:''' Allies (Comrades in Arms) 3, Contacts (Military) 1, Danger Sense 2, Fast Reflexes 1. 

'''Special:''' The greatest advantage soldiers have over random brawlers is teamwork and the chain of command. Once per turn the highest ranking marine in the combat may reflexively roll Presence + Persuasion, on a Success  he can spend a point of Willpower to add +3 (or +2 for defensive purposes) dice to the entire team. This stacks with any bonus they gain for spending their own willpower. 

'''Weapons:''' <br>
Assault Rifle: Damage (4), Range 125/250/500. Roll 11 dice. <br>
Pistol: Damage (2), Range 20/40/80. Roll 9 dice. 

''' Storytelling Hints'''

Discipline, teamwork, professionalism. A modern army has tools every bit as potent as the suicidal fanaticism of the most potent Cult, and a bullet is every bit as dangerous as a loyal Lahmasu's claws. Only the oldest and most potent Leviathans can take on a naval vessel in single combat. The Tribe has long made a point not to provoke humanity, and viciously enforce these rules upon their cousins out of fear for their own lives. 

====Somalian Pirate====

''We don't consider ourselves sea bandits. We consider sea bandits [to be] those who illegally fish and dump in our seas and dump waste in our seas and carry weapons in our seas.'' - Sugule Ali, Pirate leader

'''Attributes:''' Intelligence 2, Wits 2, Resolve 3, Strength 2 Dexterity 3 Stamina 3 Presence 2 Manipulation 2 Composure 2

'''Skills:''' Computer 2, Crafts 1, Medicine 1, Athletics 2, Brawl 3, Drive 2, Firearms 2 (rifle), Survival 2, Intimidation 2 Persuasion 2 Socialise 1 Streetwise 2

Somalian Pirates operate as a team with specialised skills, to represent this two speciality slots remain free. Typical teams may see specialists in Computers (radios, navigation equipment), Drive (speedboats), Survival (Ocean), Persuasion (Negotiations) or Streetwise (Black Market)

'''Willpower:''' 5<br>
'''Morality:''' 4<br>
'''Virtue:''' Hope<br>
'''Vice:''' Greed<br>
'''Initiative:''' 5<br>
'''Defense:''' 2<br>
'''Speed:''' 10<br>
'''Health:''' 8

'''Other Merits:''' Resources 2 Contacts 2 (Fences, Suppliers) Allies 1 (Pirates) Allies 1 (Informants) Barfly 1

'''Weapons:''' <br>
AKM Assault Rifle: Damage (4), Range 125/250/500. Roll 10 dice. <br>
RPG7:  Damage -1(+5), Blast Area 10, Force 5, Range 500/1000/2000. Notes: 9again, knockdown, effective size class of 5. Roll 4 dice. 

Leviathans are drawn to the most lawless parts of the world. Without a stable government to oppose them they are free to carve their petty empires, the slow pace of news and unreliable information can help keep word away from Marduk's ears. Somalia, with it's practically non-existent government, abundant coastline and maritime piracy which can mask a Leviathan's own crimes. However doing so may bring him into conflict with the locals especially if he threatens their family, their bottom line or if a Leviathan draws in increased international policing through bloodlust or the Ripple effect. 

'''Storytelling Hints'''

Somalian pirates claim to be defending their community, they bring up illegal fishing or waste dumping as justifications. While it would be naive to consider them true paragons of morality it is known that their profits have revitalised local economies and since they began driving away foreign fishermen both local fish stocks and fish catches have increased dramatically. This could be used to give hope to young aimless Leviathans travelling for a fresh start by suggesting it might also be possible for Leviathans to turn their naturally violent natures for positive ends. Alternatively pirates could be a foil for Leviathans by showing how it was teamwork, self restraint (Somalian pirates aren’t renowned for bloodlust) and community, not violence that led to real improvements. This does run the risk of whitewashing piracy, but that's not always a bad thing if it leads to a good story. 

And of course like all armed groups in the the more lawless parts of Earth pirates can simply be the opposition to a Cohort who fancies creating their own little kingdom.