Galápagos Islands: Attack of the Calibans

13) Attack of the Calibans
Volcán Wolf, June 28-29, 1845

A) Background
Ever since the Lowell Expedition entered the caldera, Quiring has been spying on the party. He immediately recognized Professor Lowell as the original inhabitant of the cave, a fact that both excites and terrifies him. Quiring is convinced he must capture Lowell and his comrades alive. While this plan may change depending on the success of the sneak attack, under no circumstances are the Calibans permitted to kill or seriously harm Montgomery St. John Lowell. Quiring has special plans for the Good Doctor, and that means Lowell must remain alive until the Jesuit has drained him of secrets.

B) The Caliban Raiding Party
Sometime late in the night, Quiring dispatches a squadron to capture the intruders. The party is commanded by Milo Bean, and includes James Peach, Jon Keokolo, Steamboat Pete, and the “zombie” Piri Pat. Along with their customary weapons, the men are armed with nets and clubs fashioned from broken oars. Bean and Peach each carry a pair of throwing darts, their steel tips greased with Sycorax. The raiders have covered their skin with soot, and they’ve removed their shoes for additional stealth. (See “NPC Profiles—The Republic of Caliban” for the raider’s individual details and stats. The effects of Sycorax are described in “Drugs, Intoxicants, and Poisons.”)

C) The Sneak Attack
As with any sneak attack, much depends on whether the assailants are detected before they launch their strike. The Calibans have a group Stealth score of 65%. This score must be opposed to a Listen roll made by the alert watchman with the highest Listen skill. (If the Keeper would like to place her thumb on the scales, she’s welcome to increase or decrease the Caliban’s Stealth score by ±10%.)

Combat Scenario 1: The Calibans Are Not Detected
If the Calibans win the roll, they strike without warning. Milo Bean and James Peach attempt to poison guards with their Sycorax-tipped darts, while Piri Pat is ready with his harpoon in case things get ugly. Jon Keokolo and Steamboat Pete fling nets over the sleepers and beat them into submission using their clubs. (See “Attacking with a Net” under “New Systems and Mechanics.”) The Caliban’s throwing darts have an effective range of 10 yards.)

Combat Scenario 2: The Calibans Are Detected
If the Quiddity watchmen win the roll, the Calibans are detected before they can strike—a kicked rock, a crunching sound, a sudden cough. The degree of success determines how far away they are, and how many rounds of action before the Calibans close the distance:

For instance, if the Calibans fail their Stealth roll and the watchman gets a Hard success on his Listen roll, that’s two degrees of success: Regular beats Failure, and Hard beats Regular. However, if both rolls were Hard successes, but the watchman’s Listen score is higher than the Caliban’s Stealth score, that’s just a “tiebreaker.” If the watchmen are alerted, a Spot Hidden roll discerns shapes moving in the gloom, with a Hard success correctly identifying the number of attackers. Any shout or loud noise allows sleeping characters to make a Listen roll each round until they awaken; a gunshot adds a bonus die.

Combat: Wild Cards
There are a few variables that may affect the outcome of this encounter.

Beefed-Up Security
If the Quids have placed a distant watchman over the camp, or rigged some kind of alarm system using rope and noisemakers, the Keeper should respond accordingly. Maybe the watchman gets a free Spot Hidden roll to catch sight of the invaders before they approach 50 yards from the camp? Or an early-warning system may add a penalty die to the Calibans’ Stealth roll?

Reinforcements
If the Keeper wants to favor of the Calibans, she may bring additional troops into play, whether increasing the size of the raiding party or holding a few men in reserve. Possible candidates include Silvio Marroquín, Silas Grant, and Noobaloo; although Howard Shell is capable of following simple instructions, and Geoffrey Turrick may be bribed with his freedom. Under no circumstance will Quiring risk Nigel Vox or Mary Roberts.

Rafael Castro
If Rafael Castro remains with the party, the Keeper must decide his actions during the attack. Castro may be netted and beaten into submission, he may unleash el monstruo and fight for his life, he may join the Calibans, or he may escape and attempt to rescue the party from captivity. Of course, Castro’s actions should remain consistent with the relationship he’s developed with the player characters—if Lowell and his shipmates have been kind to Castro, he’s less likely to betray the party. As usual with Rafael Castro, it’s useful to ask “WWGD?” (“What would Gollum do?”)

Salvator R. Tarnmoor
Salvator Tarnmoor represents another “wild card” playable by the Keeper at any time. If the Keeper wants to tilt the battle towards the players, she may declare that Tarnmoor has been observing the camp and comes to their assistance. Or he may be held in reserve as a possible rescuer; perhaps even alerting the Quiddity to the capture of their men. (See Encounter 23, “Turning the Tables.”)

Caliban Frustration
If the battle is going poorly for the Calibans, they may lose sight of Quiring’s orders. Milo Bean and Steamboat Pete are especially hot-headed, and might exchange their nets and clubs for something more lethal. Two of the Calibans are armed with pistols—Milo carries a .54 Sea-Service pistol, and Keokolo has the .69 Charleville M1777.

D) Aftermath
The attack has two likely outcomes:

Scenario 1: Caliban Success
If the Calibans have incapacitated the Quiddity sailors, they use the nets to drag them back to Lowell’s Cave and present them to Quiring. Lowell is tied up for eventual questioning, but the other prisoners are tossed into the slave pit. From now on, the Keeper should consult the “Prisoner Scenario” at the end of each encounter.

Scenario 2: Quiddity Success
If the Quiddity crew has defeated the Calibans, they must decide their next course of action. If only dead bodies remain, a search for clues finds broken equipment, improvised tools, and a few reales. However, a Spot Hidden roll notices the attacker’s legs are dampened just past the knees, and their trousers smell like sulfur. If any player character suggests this indicates they passed through water, it adds a +1D10 bonus die to subsequent Tracking rolls.

It requires a successful Tracking roll to trace the attackers back to Lowell’s cave, located a half-mile north of camp. However, if this roll is made in the nighttime, –2D10 penalty dice are applied to the roll. The trackers may eliminate this penalty by carrying lanterns, but that gives away their position. (The Keeper is free to change these conditions depending on the resourcefulness of the characters—maybe they disguise themselves as the Calibans, dragging along a few people in nets, etc.)

Interrogating Prisoners
If any Calibans survived the attack, they may be questioned. Steamboat Pete is too crazy to provide useful information, and Piri Pat simply shuts down if defeated. The other Calibans may be handled according to the “Interrogation” guidelines in “New Systems and Mechanics.” A Regular success learns about the Republic of Caliban—they’re castaways who worship a “daemon” called Ariel, and survive by scrounging the land and raiding careless sailors. A Hard success informs the interrogator about “Father Prospero,” admits to having additional numbers, and reveals the location of the cave entrance. None of the captives can explain the Mythos elements of the cave—the only Calibans not required to wear the Masque of Milan to visit the “Cloven Pine” are Nigel Vox and Mary Roberts.

Piri Pat
If Piri Pat is taken “alive,” it’s obvious that something is seriously wrong with him. He remains deathly quiet, barely moves, and doesn’t blink. A faint odor of decay emanates from his flesh, and his lips have an unhealthy bluish color. A Spot Hidden roll observes that he’s not breathing. This is confirmed by a First Aid or Medicine roll—the man has no heartbeat! Discovering this is worth a 1/1D3 Sanity roll. (Pynchon and Quakaloo are excused from this roll, as they’re familiar with such magic.) If Piri Pat is examined, a recent tattoo marks the base of his neck—a pair of raised arms joined together in a flattened U-shape. It’s quite distinct from his other Māori tattoos.

A successful Occult roll, or any roll related to Egyptology identifies this as the hieroglyph for ka, one of the seven souls of Egyptian religious belief and roughly equivalent to “spirit.” If the tattoo is defaced, Piri Pat immediately “dies.” If another Caliban is asked about Piri Pat, he becomes fearful—“Prospero is a powerful magician. This fellow, well, he attacked us a few months back. Now he serves Prospero.” None of the attackers has any idea how Quiring created his zombies, but a successful interrogation reveals there’s another “zombie” back in the cave.

White Leviathan, Chapter 4—Galápagos Islands
[Back to Encounter 12, Lowell Expedition Day 3 | White Leviathan TOC | Forward to Encounter 14, Approaching Lowell’s Cave]

Author: A. Buell Ruch
Last Modified: 21 October 2023
Email: quail (at) shipwrecklibrary (dot) com
White Leviathan PDF: [TBD]