Editing LeviathanTempest:ChapterFive

Of all the threats Leviathans face none are a more common presence than their own family. From bestial Typhons to the alien madness of the Deep Ones, a Leviathan who looks will have little trouble finding monsters in their own family tree. Among the Tribe it is considered a sacred duty to purge these insane creatures, both as an act of mercy and for the sake of their own security: most Typhons see other Leviathans as a threat and react appropriately, usually violently, while at any moment the Deep Ones' incomprehensible goals may turn out to involve the destruction of you and yours.  

Yet far more frequently a Leviathan will come into conflict with the more Tranquil members of their family. It's not that Leviathans don't need to be consumed by the Tempest to be monsters, though that's certainly true: Typhons are wild animals following atavistic instincts, Deep Ones have more nuanced goals but they're usually trapped in the Rift. Other Leviathans however have the same needs: Access to large bodies of water, impressionable or well placed humans to serve as Beloved, Heirlooms and other pieces of Tribal history, the attention of Atolls. A careful Leviathan can avoid conflict with a Typhon or Deep One but the only way to avoid another Leviathan is to give up on something you want.  

* Secondly, the Tyhpon gains two new Specialties to represent the development of bestial instincts. They also use the higher of Dexterity and Wits for Defense, just like a wild animal would.

==== Deep Ones ====

When a Leviathan abuses the power of the Wake and the trust of her Beloved, degeneration causes her divine aspect to grow until it eclipses both her human and bestial natures. Locked into her most glorious and terrible form she becomes a Deep One, following incomprehensible and contradictory goals that change with the Currents of the Tempest.

Without his human and bestial natures to act as an Anchor, a Deep One is overwhelmed by the Tempest. Deep Ones follow numerous goals called Currents; individual Currents bear no relation to each other or an overarching goal. Quite the opposite: Often two Currents oppose each other. A Deep One draws most strongly from the part of the Tempest which corresponds to his own Strain. This leads to somewhat standard behaviour patterns and proportionately more Currents from their Strain's Vice. Not all Currents are completed; they appear and vanish with the flow of the Rift. Normally this is a slow process – some Currents remain for decades – but on occasion a Deep One draws from the most tumultuous parts of the Tempest, gaining and losing Currents over minutes. In this state the Deep One is effectively paralysed. Some theorise that this is the usual state of a Deep One, and if it were true, then without drawing attention to themselves Deep Ones could remain unnoticed in deep seas and at the bottom of the Rift for a very, very long time.

===== Becoming a Deep One: Unity with the Storm =====

* Each Deep One gains six minor Currents, two major Currents or one major and three minor Currents. More if the Storyteller desires. Each Current is a specific objective based on a Vice and a Deep One always has at least one but usually more Currents based on their Strain's associated Vice. Completing a minor current earns a point of Willpower while a major Current refills the entire Willpower pool when completed. Even the crudest Vices such as Wrath or Gluttony rarely create Currents flowing towards cheap instant gratification. Lacking their impulsive bestial nature Deep Ones tend to achieve their objectives through careful planning at best and tangled webs of intrigue at worst.

* Deep Ones cannot regain Ichor through Havoc, it is the bestial nature of a Leviathan which seeks satisfaction through instant gratification and pointless violence.

* A Deep One's greater connection to its divine aspect makes them unparalleled in leading their Cults. Upon becoming a Deep One, increase your Cult's Zeal by one.

* Finally when a Leviathan becomes a Deep One, roll Resolve + the lower of its Cult's Numbers or Zeal. Unless the Deep One gets a number of Successes equal to its Sheol, it immediately travels to the nearest suitable source of water and enters the Rift. Few Deep Ones maintain their footing on the Shore as the Tempest floods through them but after the initial surge many seek a way to return which requires powerful Rituals.

===== Strains of Deep Ones =====

*Bahamutans seek to follow their Currents through their Cult, spending much of their time Dreaming. This occasionally reaches the point where some Deep Ones never even attempt to leave the Rift and instead rely on Cults as their sole agents on the Shore. Those that do leave the Rift still favor direct plans with little personal effort, aided in part by the fact that many of their Currents spring from Sloth and don't require them to do much at all. Despite this they can show enormous energy and proactivity to protect their future rest and when driven to intervene personally they do so with overwhelming force.

*Dagonites follow Currents that lead them to expansion. More Beloved, more territory, more worship. As Deep Ones Dagonites tend towards extraordinarily complicated plans, often of a highly political nature coupled with never-ending recruitment. The danger of opposing a Dagonite Deep One is immense, they often possess more disposable troops than other Leviathans' entire cults and should they have left the Rift their tendency towards the Vestige of Fecundity swells their ranks with large numbers of powerful Lahmasu (they rarely breed the normal way, all potential partners are too far beneath them.) Playing a Dagonite at its own game is a dangerous prospect, the best way to deal with them is cutting the metaphoric head off the snake by attacking the Deep One while they rest in the Rift, separated from the support of their cult.

*Lahamin make some of the hardest Deep Ones to oppose, while no stronger or weaker than their cousins in combat, you have to find them first and finding the Lahamin is never easy. Even if you do know where to look, it's almost certain to notice you first and move. Tracing them by their actions is no easier, though their Currents run as strong as any Strain the Lahamin are masters of achieving the maximum effect for the minimum effort. Their plots are built upon staggering amounts of observation and careful preparation, only after which will they indoctrinate their cat's paws and unleash them in a carefully choreographed sequence of events that ends with the fulfilment of the Deep One's Current, most often ruining a life out of simple spite. It is the gift of the Lahamin to create workable plans which to the outside observer look like a sequence of improbable random events. It is their curse that they are limited to such complicated and unreliable methods to further their aims.

*The Currents that Nu's Children follow lead to the most alien of the Deep Ones. Though many are dedicated and focused while trying to escape the Rift, upon the Shore most lack the inclination to have any meaningful interaction with mankind. Cults are frequently abandoned or eaten once their purpose is served. The stereotype places the Deep One far from land, invisible in the water and content to devour whatever sea-life they come across. This is true to an extent, but like all Deep Ones a Nu will follow Currents from all Vices and even Gluttony can lead to delicacies unavailable in the ocean. When the Currents bring a Nu to land it tends to show little concern for a sustainable power base, Cults are temporary and the full fury of the elements is used safe in the knowladge that the aftermath only affects other people.

*As a Deep One the Oceanids are never still. Their Currents run wide but are as shallow as the rivers their Progenitor claimed dominion over. As Deep Ones Oceanids tend to be impulsive, unsure of where the Currents will take them, they cast their nets wide. Their Beloved are often little more than a piggy bank and a source of quick gratification. Large in number but disorganised and interchangeable. As Deep Ones go the Oceanids can seem relatively harmless but theirs is the Vestige of Sanctity. When opposed, an Oceanid's first resort is to force compliance and they possess an instinct for turning friends and allies into weapons. Should the fight turn personal, Oceanids often show surprising martial powers. Though perhaps not as destructive as other Strains, the broken lives left in their wake are all the more painful for the personal touch in their destruction.

*Tanninim are driven by the Currents to amass power, not for its own sake but for practical ends. Frequently driven to punish, the Tanninim take a proactive stance to their goals and take measures to ensure that whoever their gaze falls upon they will already be in a position to pronounce sentence. Their Cults and the organisations that come under the Tanninin's grip tend to be well oiled machines ruthlessly purged of weakness and hyperfocused to the Deep One's goals but this focus ignores vital work required for long term survival, leading to an unending cycle of acquisition and decline.

*The Thalassans pursue wealth for its own sake and do so through the formation of self sustaining Cults that survive with a minimum of supervision. This is not laziness or unwillingness to get their hands dirty but simple practicality. Even a Deep One has a finite size on what they can personally control, only through delegation can they amass the hoards they desire. It would be foolish to assume that a Thalassan's Currents end at acquiring money but it's not entirely untrue to say that they mostly start with it. Their plots are as intricate as any Deep One's, but usually take an economic flavor. Sometimes a Thalassan simply buys whatever their Currents point at, but just as often other Currents prevent them from spending their wealth and elaborate plots must be formed to work around self imposed limitations on their greatest asset.

Psychologically Hybrids are human. They do have instincts that reflect their heritage – a Hybrid that's half alligator will have predatory instincts – but they have an easy time choosing not to follow their instincts much like a human and very much unlike your typical Leviathan. Mechanically Hybrids follow Morality and though Hybrids tend towards the lower ends of the intelligence curve a Hybrid with Intelligence 2 is no different from a human with Intelligence 2.  Even when a Hybrid isn't sapient they still show recognisable human traits and behaviours, many are much smarter than animals and can be trained in complex tasks. Mentally what really separates Hybrids from humanity is social factors. Most come from where the Tribe's blood runs thickest, their family environment is often a culture to itself and as a culture shaped by the Wicked Tribe it's rarely a healthy one. Even those human enough to socialise with humanity often look different enough to grow up with funny looks if not outright discrimination.  

Hybrids are considered to be a minor Template. Philosophically and mechanically they're human with a little extra. Yes some of them are physically more fish than man but man was never defined by the colour, or shape, of his skin. The Hybrid template consists of: Strain, Mutations, Depth and Ichor.  

Lemashu begin play with a single Mutation chosen by their Strain, Hybrids have four dots to spend as they wish. Additional Mutations can be brought with Merit dots, as always the fifth dot of a Mutation costs double. During play Mutations can be brought for experience points and cost new Dots x 2. There is a further restriction for Lemashu: They have a favoured Vestige as per their Leviathans' Strain. Lemashu must place a number of dots into their favoured Vestige or universal Mutations equal to Depth -1, their Strain's starting Mutation does not count towards this requirement. The Favoured Vestige doesn’t provide experience discounts on mutations.   

All Hybrids can carry the Divine Ichor within themselves. A Hybrid's Maximum Ichor pool is equal to Stamina + Depth and their per turn expenditure is limited to one. Lacking both the bestal and divine natures found within a Leviathan their methods of regaining Ichor are limited. Only Resonance and Immersion allow a Hybrid to gain additional points of Ichor.

Reflexive Evasion (OO): The Hybrid has Defence equal to Wits even if their Dexterity is lower.  

Empathetic sense of smell (OOO): The Hybrid may make Wits + Empathy rolls to smell emotions. This sent is interpreted by the brain as an Aura. Normally this roll is uncontested but supernatural abilities may provide protection as will entirely airtight clothing.

Prophecy (OOOO): The Hybrid selects a person, object or location they can see clearly, pays one point of Ichor and begins an extended Wits + Occult roll. Every roll is equivalent to thirty minuets of serene mediation or thrashing fever dreams. Prophecy provides sensations that give a hint of the most “important” event to affect the subject within a time frame governed by the number of successes: 2 successes gives seven minuets, 4 successes gives seven hours, 8 successes gives 7 days, 16 successes is the maximum and offers seven months.  

Blood is thicker than water (OO): The Hybrid has a natural instinct for working with it's own kin. They gain 9again on Teamwork actions and at the storytellers discretion on other group actions such as Stealth rolls to set up a coordinated ambush. To gain this bonus the Hybrid must have shared a working relationship for around a month, or a communal living for a weak. With blood relatives reduce this to a week and a day respectively.  

Brother to the Fishes (OOOO): The Hybrid can command non-sentient animals of Size 5 or less to do it's bidding. They use Animal Ken in place of Social Skills and the animal may resist with Resolve + Power Trait. Animals will not perform blatantly suicidal actions.  

Leap from the Depth (O - OOO): The Hybrid adds (2x dots) feet to the hight and (4x dots) feet to the length of all jumps.

Natural Evasion (OO): The Hybrid has Defence equal to Dexterity even if their Wits is lower.  

Predictors Instinct (OO): The Hybrid has Defence equal to Wits even if their Dexterity is lower.

Mind Blast (OOOO): The Hybrid pays one Ichor and rolls Presence + Intelligece – Resolve + Power Stat to inflict bashing damage with the stun property.

Unearthly Beauty (O - OO Depth 2-): The human side of the Hybrid's DNA has a stronger effect than normal. While the Hybrid dose have some tribal traits they are significantly muted blend into human features in a way that looks exotic rather than horrific. Each dot reduces the social penalty of depth by one and incurs a -1 penalty on any Noticing Transformation rolls.  

Armour (OOO – OOOOO): The Hybrid has natural armour. At three dots this is 1/0, each additional dot provides +1/+1.

Weak DNA: The Hybrid's genetic structure is exceptionally vulnerable to damage. Whenever the Hybrid rolls to resist a harmful genetic effect (such as developing cancer) deduct Depth from it's dicepool and whenever another charachter tries to influence the Hybrid's genetics (such as a Genius with biological Metaptropi or a Mage using the Life Arcana) add Depth to their Dicepool. This includes the Channel Everflowing Fetid Growth and cancels out the natural effects of being a Hybrid: Treat the Hybrid as a human for this Channel.  

'''Skills:''' Medicine 2, Occult 2 (The Tribe), Athletics 1, Brawl 1, Firearms 2, Survival 2, Weaponry 1, Expression 4 (preaching), Intimidation 2, Persuasion 2, Socialise 1, Subterfuge 2 (Doublethink).

'''Storytelling Hints:''' The assumption with Father Abdeel is that he's a blood relative of one of the players. To them he will have been a shadowy figure in their past, undoubtedly the head of the family yet distant from his more human blooded relations – including most Leviathans before they gain the Template. The relationship is not necessarily adversarial, Father Abdeel sees himself as a cross between an advisor, high priest and right hand man to his Leviathan. While his knowledge is not amazing he's far more informed about the Tribe than most starting Leviathans and can be a valuable asset, it's not unreasonable to assume he owns a heirloom or two even if he cannot benefit from them himself.

The drama with Father Abdeel comes from one simple fact: He's been imagining this moment for a long time and has some very clear ideas about what life under a Leviathan will be like. These may be harmlessly self serving: Himself as high priest with his deity's favour and followers to lead. Outright heinous: Blood cults, racial purity and crusades against humanity. Or just plain odd: Uproot the family and resettle inside the Rift. Whatever his goals expect his advice to push an agenda even as he remains convinced his only wish is to serve.

The sisters live a nomadic life in the ocean, they hide from dangerous preditors, hunt what they can. When the opportunity presents itself they'll lure people close to the water by singing before drowning and eating them. It's not luxury but they have each other, they're happy enough.

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, The Season Letters and The Tucker Street Outfit 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), Therapist (Medicine and Empathy). The Irrational Economic Actors Task Force has a fair crop of Civil Servants, Bureaucrats and politically or socially focused Academics (Academics and Politics).

Atolls are humans 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. Leviathans can only watch from afar, but are unable to keep away for long. Atolls are their doom and their salvation.

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 8-again 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.

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 Tranquility. 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.

*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 dose 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.

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

Or perhaps it's none of the above. 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 declaring allegiance to 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".  

In the heart of the Society sit six immortal Old Men, perhaps Marduk's origonal disciples, perhaps not. Once they ruled, now they are reduced to manipulating their own organisation from the shadows, but they’ve had thousands of years 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 original disciples 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.

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. One of the most potent advantages Marduk Idealists have is a genuine culture of mutual support, to represent this every dot of Marduk Status comes with one free dot of Allies (Marduk Society) to a maximum of five dots. Remember, to benefit from the Allies Merit you are expected to help others in turn. Marduk Conspirators do not have such a culture but they may worm their way into the idealists. They may buy Allies (Marduk Society) at new dots * 1, up to their current Status. Further dots are priced as normal.

'''Dart Gun''' (OO): Not quite as effective as a Ray Gun 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>

'''“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. <br>

'''Social Analysis System''' (OOO): This computer program is designed to rapidly analyse news 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 with this device double the Ripple effect, this includes determining if there even is a wake around. <br>

'''Spy Drone''' (OOOOO): About twice the size of a tennis ball, wrapped in chameleon camouflage, flight capable and containing the latest in video technology. 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. Controlling a drone takes the operators full attention.

The Task Force is found in the corridors of power, it's 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.  

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

'''Defence:''' 2<br>

AKM Assault Rifle: Damage (4), Range 125/250/500. roll 10 dice. <br>

Idols are found in the second depth; formed of a contradictory mixture of pride and self loathing Idols resemble religious images. A single wall of a church with elaborate stain glass windows, gold plated statues and crude stone idols. Naturally the images all show Leviathans, often smiting their enemies or reviving worship. Each idol however is run through with flesh filled cracks leaking puss, squirming maggots or sinuous tentacles.

A Ghost with Anchor Mastery may interact with their anchor as though they were still solid. All crew on a Ghost Ship have it and use it to sail the ship. Anchor Mastery is automatic, no Essence or roll is required.  

This was long ago, in an earlier age of the world. Marduk slew Tiamat and his order have put generations of the Tribe to the sword. The children of Bahamut and Ziz felt the fall of the Primordial Waters as deeply as any of their kin, deeper perhaps for lacking the safety of the depth they've suffered more than their aquatic cousins at the hands of the Society. The blood of Tiamat did not truly survive the hunts, what remains is diminished in some way. In each Strain one aspect of the Tribe's threefold nature dominates. Lacking the strength of all three aspects, the true Birthright is denied to the Cryptids.