"Caribbean Monsters/Banana Wars" Topic

I am thinking of getting some of Pulp Fictions US soldiers in Montana hats for the Banana Wars. Looking for a more "pulpish" style enemy to fight. I know that Voodoo and Zombies are big but I have done that several times. Does anyone know of other monsters, creatures or things that exist in Caribbean folklore that I could use? Planning a small skirmish style game with the US Army encountering something they did not expect.
Thanks.

There's the Lusca – maybe one comes to the beach:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lusca

The S&S writer Charles Saunders had an article in a Dragon magazine circa 1987 that went over African mythological creatures, some of which could have been ported over to the Caribbean. I thought he had put it up on his blog, but I don't see it. His piece on African gods is there though, it might have some ideas too:
charlessaunderswriter.com
(sorry, no way to do a direct link)

There is also a "blues" horror RPG around, I picked it up during a sale at RPGNow but haven't looked at it. It may have some more voodoo/hoodoo-related creatures in it.

Edit: Here it is, Hoodoo Blues, the RPG: link

Looks like witches, witch doctors, and ghosts.
Mad Doctors, Isolationist cults.

Not that much with local flavor.

Un-natural nature could be good: Giant: Snakes, Ants, Piranha fish, Vampire Bats, …

Or the Lost Island with prehistoric beasts.

Or you could be chasing a chupacabra.

Perhaps some inspiration:
link

Giant crocs and gators.

Giant snapping turtles – they are mean, and dangerous.

Obvs a degenerate renegade tribe of Aztecs bent on human sacrifice and cannibalism. Maybe they developed some high tech/magic in communion with their dread gods?

Carribean always makes me think of Mysterious Island… so Giant Crab, Bee, Axebeak, Octopus/Squid, and Pirates and Skeletons.

Dagon, Fishmen, Deepones etc… could also come into play

Take a look at the Piranha Men of the Amazon by West Wind.

My approach to this is to see what's cheap in the pre-painted singles section, and then invent a back-story. I guess that makes me a Bad Person :-(

During the Banana Wars your US force would more likely involve Marines than the Army.

I did Giant Ants.

The Bermuda Triangle brings in riff raff of all kinds.

Look at animals that lived before the mass extinction roughly 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. You could have: giant slothes, terror birds, prehistoric cheetas, American lions, glyptodonts, prehistoric camels and horses, clovis man and a host of other things. Imagine hidden enclaves of xenophobic aztecs, maya, toltecs and others that have trained Columbian mammoths and mastodon to be war beasts along with Saber tooth tigers and cheetas. Packs of dire wolves could figure in too. Some of the South American critters too: Brazilian wandering spiders, bird eating spiders, fire ants, capabara, tapiers, Jesus lizards/basalisks.

A final thought to get your imagination fired up. Imagine if some of the natives learned how to breed these animals to enhance size, aggressiveness, desired traits and learned tactics with these modified animals. It won't be a cake walk for your adventurers.

Mugwump.

Peter Benchley's
The Island.

Don't forget the Amazons, for which the Amazon river is named.

Fish men for sure…..

Snakes…It always has to be _snakes_….
Army ants.
Flying piranhas
Killer Bees (yeah, I know, not in this time frame, but they are a go-to natural killer)
Ancient Astronauts searching for the last Crystal Skull?