Robert Marsh

"'Your trivial experiments are of no concern to me. All energies must be directed at completing the translation of the tablets. The work of my great-grandfather must be finished !'"- Robert Marsh to his brother Sebastian

Robert Marsh is a member of the Marsh family as well as the leader of the Esoteric Order of Dagon. As leader of the Order, he is one of the main antagonists  of the game (alongside Father Dagon and Mother Hydra). Unlike his elder brother, the businessman Sebastian Marsh, Robert is an intensely religious person - to the point of fanaticism - obsessed with the Tablets of Dagon and the message they contain. He's also a fully transformed hybrid, the High Priest of the Order and a mage well-versed in witchcraft. After being enlightened by his faith in the Old Ones, he has also become somewhat of an anti-darwinist, pointing out to Darwin's lack of vision in his journal.

Robert appears to be in some sort of feud with Sebastian concerning the way the Order should be managed. According to his journal, he's all but pleased with his brother's "meddling in the surface world" and considers him "deaf to the word of Dagon". However, he has not given up on Sebastian yet, as he hopes that, once he finishes his work, his brother will see the futility of his endeavours.

Robert's long term goal is to complete the translation of the Tablets of Dagon - this could also be the reason why the Order is so hell-bent on finding the Book of Dagon hidden by Thomas Waite. He holds absolutely no value for his brother's and Esther Marsh's experiments, going so far as to shut down their laboratory. He is feared and/or respected by all the citizens of Innsmouth.

Role in the game
"'Your race is finished. It is our time now.'"- Robert Marsh during his fight with Jack

He's first mentioned when the Order decrees that Jack Walters must be killed in the Gilman Hotel before he finds out the truth about Innsmouth. Jack escapes and later, FBI agents enter the Marsh Refinery where they arrest Jacob Marsh (son of Sebastian Marsh) and find evidence that Sebastian works with enemies of the State.

Consequently, U.S. Marines launch an attack on the city of Innsmouth. Robert gathers the last surviving members of the Order as they hold their ground in the old Masonic Hall where the headquarters of Esoteric Order of Dagon are located. Via a ritual, the Order creates a barrier on the main doors so that the Marines cannot enter the building. Jack gets in through the secret doors that are near the Manuxet river and disrupts Robert's ceremony, allowing the barrier to fade out. Robert is forced to retreat through the old smuggling tunnels leading out to Devil's Reef.

Upon the arrival to Devil's Reef, Robert Marsh summons Dagon by casting discs into the ocean and performing a human sacrifice. Dagon attacks the US Marines' ship Cutter Urania, along with several Deep Ones with Jack on board. Walters defeats Dagon using the ship's cannon, but it sinks the ship in the process. Robert then goes to the temple of Hydra in Y'ha-nthlei where he, along with other priests and Mother Hydra herself, creates a huge magical barrier around the underwater city to protect it.

The US Navy then launches a s ubmarine attack on the city, but it fails to pass the magical shield. Sebastian, returning from a business trip, stumbles upon Jack sneaking inside the tunnels. He captures the detective and throws him in a cell, taking the Book of Dagon from him in the process. Later, Walters escapes from prison through the ventilation system, and finds Sebastian arguing with Robert. The argument soon becomes a fight; with Sebastian shooting Robert, injuring his left arm in the process, after which Robert kills his brother using magic. After a ventilation shaft that held Jack above falls, Jack finds himself forced to face Robert. During the fight Jack has no weapons and must flee and hide from Robert. He eventually finds a knife on the desk and stabs Robert to death with it.

Inspiration

 * Robert Marsh was originally a character in the scenario "The Raid on Innsmouth" from the Call of Cthulhu RPG game, where he has mostly the exact same role than in the game as leader of the Order of Dagon. He was never mentioned in the novel, so he was probably created for the RPG scenario.


 * He is probably inspired by Robert Olmstead, who is the main protagonist in the H.P. Lovecraft book The Shadow over Innsmouth, which the main plot of the RPG adventure (and thus the game) follows heavily. Robert Marsh and Robert Olmstead are also both descendants of Obed Marsh (his great-grandsons).