The GROGNARD Files Briefly Discusses Ghostbusters

The GROGNARD Files podcast takes time out of an episode chiefly devoted to an interview with science fiction author Adrian Tchaikovsky to briefly discuss Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game in Episode 82. It warms my Ghostbusting heart.

Is There Anything D6 Cannot Do?

Honestly, I am beginning to believe that any genre of role-playing game can be successfully adapted to a variant of the Ghostbusters proto-D6 system, The D6 System, D6 System: Second Edition, or one of the better D6 spin-offs. And the process would be far easier than it would be for most other systems. Am I wrong?

Ghostmaster Advice: Not Everything Is the End of the World

When running Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game, you may be forgiven if you think that adventures are more interesting if it takes more to defeat a ghost than just zapping it with a proton pack and stuffing it into a ghost trap (although that can be quite challenging at times). Riddles, puzzles, incantations, quests for relics, research, and helping a ghost finish its business in the realm of mortals can all be rewarding, but if ghosts can only be busted by very specific and usually difficult methods, then that removes the quality that makes those busts extraordinary. Think about the first Ghostbusters movie. Was every encounter an arduous struggle against a malevolent godling or other supernatural superbeing? No! Most of the time, the Ghostbusters were responding to calls, arriving on the scene, and conducting otherworldly pest control. It was their profession. Confronting Zuul, on the other hand, was an epic undertaking. Now, many jobs will fall somewhere between those two extremes (quite a bit closer to the lower end most of the time), but at least some should be straightfoward go-in-and-get-it-done affairs. At least half should be simple jobs of blasting ghosts or debunking hoaxes, so that the special cases can effectively be special. It also preserves the element of surprise, which is always more fun in Ghostbusters. In any given session, especially if it's four or more hours long, include an extra job at the beginning, middle, or end of the adventure to keep the player characters on their toes, and don't tell them which is the main mission. Let them figure it out. And don't forget to mix in some non-Ghostbusting activities and concerns. It helps keep the game grounded, enriches the setting, and makes the Ghostbusting more exciting. There is something to be said for remembering the mundane concerns in a world where ghosts exist.

The Ghost Busters via Ghostbusters: Ghosts

Here are the ghosts of The Ghost Busters as they appear in order of original air date. They have been adapted for The Ghost Busters: A Clever, Courageous, and Strong Role-Playing Game (That Is Completely Unofficial), which is based on Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game.

SPOILER ALERT!

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Big Al Caesar

Power 3
Ectopresence 2
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport
Goal: To steal the Maltese Monkey.

Appearance: Episode 1, "The Maltese Monkey" (6 September 1975)

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Dr. Frankenstein

Power 4
Ectopresence 4
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To transplant the brain of the world's most gullible fool into the body of his Monster.

Appearance: Episode 2, "Dr. Whathisname" (13 September 1975)

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The Monster

Power 2
Ectopresence 5
Special Abilities: Materialize
Goal: To obey Dr. Frankenstein.

Appearance: Episode 2, "Dr. Whathisname" (13 September 1975)

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Sir Simon de Canterville

Power 3
Ectopresence 6
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Immune to the Ghost De-Materializer
Goal: To break his curse of haunting the family castle until he does a brave deed.

Appearance: Episode 3, "The Canterville Ghost" (20 September 1975)

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Harry Albert, Werewolf

Power 2
Ectopresence 4
Special Abilities: Materialize, Transform into Werewolf
Goal: To be cured of lycanthropy.

Appearance: Episode 4, "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" (27 September 1975)

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Sophia

Power 3
Ectopresence 3
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Use Crystal Ball
Goal: To cure Harry Albert of lycanthropy.

Appearance: Episode 4, "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" (27 September 1975)

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Captain Aloysius Beane

Power 5
Ectopresence 3
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To recruit a crew for his ship, the Flying Dutchman.

Appearance: Episode 5, "The Flying Dutchman" (4 October 1975)

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Scroggs

Power 4
Ectopresence 2
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To obey his captain.

Appearance: Episode 5, "The Flying Dutchman" (4 October 1975)

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The Phantom of Vaudeville (with Elmo)

Power 3
Ectopresence 7
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Immune to the Ghost De-Materializer
Special Vulnerability: Can only be sent back to the Great Beyond by being unmasked.
Goal: To settle a score with rival vaudevillians Slapsy, Maxie, and Nijinsky

Appearance: Episode 6, "The Dummy's Revenge" (11 October 1975)

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Queen Forah of the Nile

Power 5
Ectopresence 4
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object, Use Sun Disk
Goal: To find the sorcerer Simios who can lead her to Spen-Zah, keeper of the secret of immortality.

Appearance: Episode 7, "A Worthless Gauze" (18 October 1975)

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The Mummy

Power 2
Ectopresence 5
Special Abilities: Materialize, Materialize Object, Mummy's Touch (physical contact causes instant mummification)
Goal: To obey Queen Forah.

Appearance: Episode 7, "A Worthless Gauze" (18 October 1975)

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The Witch of Salem

Power 5
Ectopresence 5
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object, Transform, Illusory Disguise, Control Mind, Concoct Potion, Use Crystal Ball
Goal: To have revenge on the descendant of Edward Spencer, Spell-Dissolver of Salem.

Appearance: Episode 8, "Which Witch Is Which?" (25 October 1975)

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Gronk

Power 1
Ectopresence 1
Special Abilities: Materialize
Goal: To obey the Witch of Salem.

Appearance: Episode 8, "Which Witch Is Which?" (25 October 1975)

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Billy the Kid

Power 3
Ectopresence 1
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To round up a gang and rustle cattle so they can get victuals.

Appearance: Episode 9, "They Went Thataway" (1 November 1975)

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Belle Starr

Power 3
Ectopresence 1
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To round up a gang and rustle cattle so they can get victuals.

Appearance: Episode 9, "They Went Thataway" (1 November 1975)

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Count

Power 2
Ectopresence 3
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Transform into a Bat, Classic Vampirism
Goal: To find "donors."

Appearance: Episode 10, "The Vampire's Apprentice" (8 November 1975)

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Countess

Power 3
Ectopresence 4
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Transform into a Bat, Classic Vampirism
Goal: To find "donors."

Appearance: Episode 10, "The Vampire's Apprentice" (8 November 1975)

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Dr. Jekyll

Power 4
Ectopresence 3
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object, Concoct Potion
Goal: To find an ingredient that will eliminate Mr. Hyde.

Appearance: Episode 11, "Jekyll & Hyde: Together, for the First Time!" (15 November 1975)

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Mr. Hyde

Power 3
Ectopresence 2
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To annoy Dr Jekyll.

Appearance: Episode 11, "Jekyll & Hyde: Together, for the First Time!" (15 November 1975)

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The Red Baron

Power 3
Ectopresence 1
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To have revenge against his old enemies.

Appearance: Episode 12, "Only Ghosts Have Wings" (22 November 1975)

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Sparks

Power 3
Ectopresence 1
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To assist the Red Baron.

Appearance: Episode 12, "Only Ghosts Have Wings" (22 November 1975)

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Eric the Red

Power 3
Ectopresence 2
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To find the banner that proves the Vikings discovered the New World and plant it before Lothar the Hun can dispute their claim.

Appearance: Episode 13, "The Vikings Have Landed" (29 November 1975)

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Brunhilda

Power 3
Ectopresence 2
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To find the banner that proves the Vikings discovered the New World and plant it before Lothar the Hun can dispute their claim.

Appearance: Episode 13, "The Vikings Have Landed" (29 November 1975)

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Merlin the Magician

Power 2
Ectopresence 5
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object, Dematerialize Object Goal: To find the trick that will enable him and Gronk to return to the Great Beyond.

Appearance: Episode 14, "Merlin, the Magician" (6 December 1975)

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Gronk

Power 1
Ectopresence 1
Special Abilities: Materialize
Goal: To obey Merlin.

Appearance: Episode 14, "Merlin, the Magician" (6 December 1975)

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Morgan le Fay

Power 6
Ectopresence 5
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Teleport Involuntary Subject, Materialize Object, Dematerialize Object, Use Crystal Ball, Create Smoke
Goal: To trap Merlin and Gronk on Earth.

Appearance: Episode 14, "Merlin, the Magician" (6 December 1975)

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Dr. Centigrade

Power 4
Ectopresence 2
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object
Goal: To transplant a warm heart into the body of the Abominable Snowman.

Appearance: Episode 15, "The Abominable Snowman" (13 December 1975)

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The Abominable Snowman

Power 3
Ectopresence 3
Special Abilities: Materialize, Teleport, Materialize Object, Freezing Touch
Goal: Unknown.

Appearance: Episode 15, "The Abominable Snowman" (13 December 1975)

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The Ghost Busters via Ghostbusters: Doorways to the Great Beyond

In The Ghost Busters, the ghosts always enter the world of the living via a local cemetery. In addition, in the episode, "Dr. Whatshisname," Dr. Frankenstein explains to the Monster as they Teleport from the abandoned castle on Batwing Lane to the cemetery, "It is a bother to have to keep coming back here in order to materialize my laboratory equipment, but this is the Doorway to the Great Beyond." From these two facts, we can formulate the following rules for The Ghost Busters: A Clever, Courageous, and Strong Role-Playing Game (That Is Completely Unofficial):

Doorways to the Great Beyond

When ghosts enter the world of the living, whether by willing Teleportation or by being summoned, they must enter through a Doorway to the Great Beyond. Such Doorways are typically located in cemeteries or other sites of concentrated paranormal activity.

Certain ghosts have the special ability to Materialize Objects (usually to continue their work toward their Goal), but excessive use depletes a ghost's Ectopresence. In order to replenish their Ectopresence, they must return to a Doorway to the Great Beyond and tap into its psychokinetic energy reserves. Any materialized objects disappear when the ghosts who manifested them return to the Great Beyond or are otherwise banished, sent back, or trapped.

The Ghost Busters via Ghostbusters: Ghost-Busting

If, in an alternate universe, The Ghost Busters television show were adapted into a role-playing game similar to Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game, perhaps entitled The Ghost Busters: A Clever, Courageous, and Strong Role-Playing Game (That Is Completely Unofficial), the rules pertaining to ghosts and the busting thereof might look something like this...

Without exception, the ghosts that appear in The Ghost Busters are corporeal, having bodies that occupy physical space. They are opaque, they can touch and be touched, and they have the limitations of movement their former physical bodies had in life—they walk, use doors, and can even trip. The one ghostly Special Ability most or all of them share is Teleportation. Every ghost that appears singly (or the more powerful ghost in a duo) can Teleport itself and a ghostly companion using its Power. Short range Teleportation (line-of-sight or in the general vicinity) is a difficulty of 5. Medium range Teleportation (anywhere outside the general vicinity) is a difficulty of 10. Long range Teleportation (to and from the Great Beyond, perhaps) is a difficulty of 15 or 20. Sometimes ghosts appear of their own will; sometimes they are summoned by mortals. Regardless of the means of their manifestation, most ghosts try to avoid being sent back.

The primary tool in a Ghost Buster's Ghost Kit for dealing with supernatural entities is the Ghost De-Materializer. Looking something like a camera with an antenna and two handles jutting out horizontally on opposite sides, it can be aimed in the approximate direction of a ghost and activated, which causes the ghost to de-materialize from our natural world and re-materialize in the Spirit World, the Great Beyond, or wherever else it is supposed to spend its afterlife. In game terms, the Ghost Buster would use the Moves Trait or the Aim Ghost De-Materializer Talent once a ghost is cornered. The difficulty is the same as for ranged weapons: 5 for point-blank, 10 for normal, and 20 for long distance. If the Ghost Buster beats the difficulty, one ghost is instantly de-materialized. If the Ghost Buster rolls twice the difficulty or more, two ghosts are instantly de-materialized. If the Ghost Buster rolls three times the difficulty or more, three ghosts are instantly de-materialized. And so on. As you can see, the Ghost De-Materializer is a powerful weapon, but it is completely useless against certain ghosts that require unique methods to banish them. (Whether these de-materializerproof ghosts would be vulnerable to a proton pack is left to the Ghostbusters' experimentation and the Ghostmaster's discretion.)

The Ghost Busters via Ghostbusters: Characters

In 1975, a live-action Saturday morning television show called The Ghost Busters debuted (nine years before the unrelated movie coincidentally called Ghostbusters). Produced by Filmation, it starred Larry Storch as Spencer, Bob Burns as Tracy, and Forrest Tucker as Kong (collectively known as Spencer, Tracy & Kong, Ghost Busters). Spencer was a zoot-suiter, Tracy was a gorilla, and Kong was the one in charge.

The three of them worked in a dingy office on the tenth floor of a building that was presumably shaped like the Flatiron Building (considering three of the walls had an exterior ledge).

To receive their Ghost Buster assignments, Kong would send Spencer and Tracy to a general store across town (with Tracy at the wheel of a 1929 Whippet) to retrieve it in the form of an audio tape concealed in a random object, which, after playing a message from someone named Zero, would self-destruct in usually five seconds.

Invariably, their mission was to intercept a ghost or two and send them back to the Great Beyond. The ghosts were drawn like magnets to the same cemetery every week, and they would inevitably decide to take residence in what they called a castle (which is confusing because it resembled a castle from the inside, but its exterior appeared to be a creepy mansion).

Dispatching a ghost typically involved zapping it with the Ghost De-Materializer, but occasionally it required fulfilling other conditions specific to the ghost.

Ghosts, in general, seemed to be more substantial as they were incapable of passing through solid matter and frequently interacted with physical objects. They could, however, teleport, which they did frequently, and some could turn invisible. Some had unique powers, such as the mummy's ability to transform any mortal it touched into a mummy.

Could The Ghost Busters be adapted to a role-playing game using the rules of Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game? It can! The question ought to be, "Should it?" We'll do it anyways.

Welcome to The Ghost Busters: A Clever, Courageous, and Strong Role-Playing Game That Is Completely Unofficial. (The title makes sense if you've heard the theme song.)

And here are the titular characters...

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Spencer

Brains 2 (Ventriloquism 5)
Muscles 3 (Flee 6)
Moves 3 (Music 6)
Cool 4 (Impersonate Celebrities 7)
Goal: Fame

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Tracy the Gorilla

Brains 2 (Magic 5)
Muscles 7 (Intimidate 10)
Moves 2 (Art 5)
Cool 2 (Prop Comedy 5)
Goal: Fame

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Kong

Brains 3 (Library Science 6)
Muscles 3 (Flee 6)
Moves 3 (Aim Ghost De-Materializer 6)
Cool 3 (Boss Others 6)
Goal: Wealth

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Between the three, they have a jalopy for transportation, a Ghost Kit (including a Ghost De-Materializer), a wide assortment of hats for Tracy, a few books, many filing cabinets, an antique typewriter, an antique telephone, and various art supplies (again, for Tracy).

ZAP!

RPGaDay 2023: Day 28

28. SCARIEST RPG you've played

I can't think of a single role-playing game I have played that was consistently scary, but I can think of plenty of instances in many different games—as a player or as a GM—that were startling and/or eerie. But too much of any one thing in a game becomes a bore. In any role-playing game there ought to be humor as well as drama, action as well as horror (or suspense). What the ratios are depends on the situation, but there's no reason a comedy RPG can't have dramatic stakes, or a dramatic RPG can't have moments of slapstick. Likewise, sometimes the greatest terror happens in fantasy adventure RPGs, and sometimes the horror RPGs inspire resourcefulness and heroism. It's all based on the circumstances. And the players. And the GM.

But the role-playing game that I hope is the scariest in the best way possible is Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game (although Og and Paranoia are contenders).

[For more information on #RPGaDay (or #RPGaDay2023 specifically), read this.]

RPGaDay 2023: Day 22

22. Best SECONDHAND RPG purchase

The best secondhand role-playing game purchase I have ever made was a copy of the boxed set of Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game, complete, unpunched, and containing a Ghost Die in perfect condition. It was a miracle I found a copy, and it was reasonably priced. I had been kicking myself for not buying a copy when it was available in stores (I think because I was worried it was based more on the cartoon than the movie), and to find a complete, undamaged, affordable copy of the game after all these years was lucky indeed.

[For more information on #RPGaDay (or #RPGaDay2023 specifically), read this.]

RPGaDay 2022: Day 11

If you could live in a game setting, where would it be?

My first instinct is to say the setting of Ghostbusters, because I'd really like to be a Ghostbuster as my day job (or night job).

[I just noticed that the first six words of this answer are identical to this one, which was also about Ghostbusters, so I think it's fair to say I have the instincts of a Ghostbuster. Sign me up!]

[For more information on #RPGaDay (or #RPGaDay2022 specifically), read this.]

Balancing a Budget Makes Me Feel Good

"Sure Beats Working for a Living" in Barking Alien raises some points on monetary motivations for player characters and mentions a new way to track the resources of a Ghostbusters franchise, which may be of interest to those who play the Ghostbusters role-playing game.

Inspecting Other Methods of Busting Ghosts

Read "Paranormal Activity", an interesting alternative method of running Ghostbusters in Barking Alien.

Meet Your Calamity

To my knowledge — and I shall correct myself if I am mistaken — the first role-playing game to employ a wild die was Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game. Referred to as the "Ghost Die," it was included in every dice pool and bore the Ghostbusters insignia in place of the 6. Whenever a Ghost was rolled, something disadvantageous happened to the player character affected, regardless of whether the roll indicated success or failure and regardless of whether the roll was made by a player or the Ghostmaster. Other role-playing games would adapt this idea, referring to it as a Wild Die, Drama Die, etc. Some would assign the negative effect to the 1 instead of the 6; some would even add a positive effect to the 6. Some would include the wild die in the dice pool; others would make the wild die something to be rolled in addition to the dice pool. Many game systems have utilized the wild die in different and interesting ways, and the Awfully Cheerful Engine!, inspired as it is by Ghostbusters, has introduced its own innovations. Please meet the Calamity Die.

As with most other dice pool games, the Awfully Cheerful Engine! has assigned the negative effect (the "Calamity") to the 1 rather than the 6. Unlike Ghostbusters, the negative effect only takes effect if the roll is a failure, and it only effects the player character who rolled it. (I think this is a splendid decision.) The other difference here is that it is one's fellow players who dictate the nature of one's Calamity. Hopefully, this leads to hilarious or at least entertaining results befitting a comedy role-playing game, but if the players are reticent, I'm sure the Director (GM) can rise to the occasion.

Learn more about the Awfully Cheerful Engine! from EN Publishing.

Random Ghost Die Result Generator

According to the rules of Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game, something bad should always happen whenever a Ghost is rolled on the Ghost Die. The nature of this bad thing is left to the Ghostmaster's diabolical devices, and this is usually not difficult to do when it's the antagonist who rolls the Ghost. The Ghostmaster merely increases the effectiveness of whatever the antagonist was attempting or tosses another complication into the situation. But what happens when a Ghostbuster rolls a Ghost and the Ghostmaster can't be bothered to come up with another critical goof-up on the fly? I'm glad you asked, because there are two tables for just such an eventuality — one for successful rolls and one for failed rolls. And here they are!

If You Succeed and You Roll a Ghost...

Roll 1D6

1. You do the thing, but then you take a pratfall.
2. You do the thing, but then you drop something you need.
3. You do the thing, but then you forget what you were doing for one round.
4. You do the thing, but then make too big a deal about it, reducing your Cool to 1 until you succeed at something without rolling a Ghost.
5. You do the thing, but then you break it, jam it, weaken it, or otherwise render it useless.
6. You do the thing, but must immediately make another roll to make the success stick.

If You Fail and You Roll a Ghost...

Roll 1D6

1. You also slip and fall. Spectacularly.
2. You also somehow manage to drop everything you are carrying.
3. You wander aimlessly, talking to yourself, until someone or something snaps you out of it.
4. You apologize excessively, reducing everyone's Cool by 1 until you succeed at something without rolling a Ghost.
5. You also render it (whatever "it" is) useless. Try something else next time.
6. You very loudly curse your failure, which attracts everyone's (and everything's) attention, blowing your cover completely. Everyone in your group is stunned by this display for 1 round.

Another method of addressing the pickle that is narrating the result of the Ghost Die is described in The Discretionary Ghost Die. Use with discretion.

Ghostbusters Go Zoom

Thanks to Zoom and the interest of a surprisingly large number of players, I have run two sessions of Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game in the last two weeks (Saturday, November the 14th, and Saturday, November the 21st). At the moment, three members of the Toledo Ghostbusters have busted ghosts in 1980-something northwest Ohio:

• Carroll "Carl" Düsseldorf (played by Sarah),
• Ray Stantz, PhD [helping out while staying with relatives] (played by Mary Lou), and
• Thalia Wainwright (played by Emily).

Two other members (played by Zippy and Joe) will be joining upcoming sessions.

I won't do a session report, but I will share a few facts:

• The Toledo Ghostbusters HQ, like the original in New York City, is a former fire station.
• The primary vehicle of the Toledo Ghostbusters is a black hearse with purple and orange lights and flags bearing the Ghostbusters logo.
• The Ghostbusters acquired two mascots (Norwegian forest cats formerly "employed" at Perspective, a premier avant-garde boutique that inexplicably acquires rare occult books).
• Carroll Düsseldorf has recently starred in a workplace instructional video highlighting peaceful methods of dealing with ghosts.

Ghostbusters is a moderately prop-dependent role-playing game, so how well does it adapt to Zoom, my virtual role-playing medium of choice? Surprisingly well. The Ghost Die, of course, can be replaced with any ordinary six-sided die of a different color or size than the rest of the dice. I trust my players to roll their own actual dice, so no dice-rolling app is necessary. Equipment cards are great for in-person games, but players can discuss with the group what they want to carry and just record it on their character sheets. Character sheets fit on an index card and characters can be generated in as little as five minutes. Name, four Traits (Brains, Muscles, Moves, and Cool), four Talents, and a Personal Goal are all you really need to start playing.

Zoom has opened some great gaming opportunities to me, and I'm glad to be running Ghostbusters (and other games) again. Who knows? Maybe I'll be able to introduce players to some of my other favorite role-playing games...

Random Trait Value Generator for Ghostbusters

Sometimes you, as a Ghostmaster (and I'm assuming you're a Ghostmaster, but if you're not, let's just pretend), need to create a non-character player on the spot to interact with your players' characters. Perhaps you mentioned a bystander in passing or the player characters suddenly want to consult someone, and you had not considered generating the statistics for every living person on the planet. You fool!

Well, fear not. With one handy little table and three six-sided dice, you can easily generate the Traits of any non-player character in mere seconds. In fact, with slight modification this table could also be used by players who prefer the random generation of Traits to the standard point allocation method, so a second table is provided for starting player characters.

N.B. These tables are for use with the first edition Ghostbusters role-playing game. The author assumes no responsibility for their use in any other game, dimension, or plane of existence.

NPC Random Trait Value Generator
3d6	Trait Value
3-4	1
5-8	2
9-12	3
13-15	4
16-17	5
18	6

PC Random Trait Value Generator
3d6	Trait Value
3-4	1
5-8	2
9-12	3
13-16	4
17-18	5

Ghostbusters Survey Questionnaire Revised

This is just a quick note that I have revised the Ghostbusters Survey Questionnaire (see Questionnaire for Starting Ghostbusters) including the PDF. Redundancies were eliminated. Items were reorganized. Streams were streamlined.

The Discretionary Ghost Die

The notorious Ghost Die of the Ghostbusters role-playing game is a wondrous thing. It is, perhaps, the earliest known example of a "wild die," meaning a die that is rolled with another die or a dice pool to introduce the chance that a result may be drastically influenced in a harmful or helpful way. From the Ghostbuster's point of view, the Ghost Die is never helpful. It complicates success, it exacerbates failure, and it rewards foes.

As I've mentioned previously, coming up with entertaining consequences every time a Ghost is rolled can be taxing on one's imagination and may even slow down the game. When rolling a Ghost becomes a nuisance rather than a novelty, it's time to reassess the role of the roll, if you will.

My solution is the discretionary Ghost Die. Don't include it in every roll. Roll the Ghost Die only when a ghost or any other supernatural phenomenon is involved. When Ghostbusters are knocking on the door of the spirit realm, that's when it's time to let the Ghost Die build tension. As per the rules, when a ghost rolls a Ghost, it benefits the ghost. When a Ghostbuster rolls a Ghost, it still benefits the ghost, regardless of whether the Ghostbuster's roll is a success or failure.

Furthermore, don't treat it as a D6. The discretionary Ghost Die is only rolled when the paranormal is encountered, so treat all faces except the Ghost as blank. It's an extra die used as a special effect — it is not part of the dice pool.

The best part is that the Ghostmaster only needs to worry about the ramifications of rolling a Ghost when there's a ghost to make it easy.

RPGaDAY 2017: Day 02

2. What is an RPG [game, world, or adventure] you would like to see published?

My first instinct is to say a reprint of the original Ghostbusters role-playing game, preferably with an accompanying booklet that condenses the rules (and offers a binary randomizer option similar to that used in Prince Valiant) and higher quality equipment cards (with an emphasis on durability).

Otherwise, I would like to see a Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, or Barbarella game based on the Prince Valiant rules system.

A Fudge or Sherpa conversion of Timeship would also be welcome (especially if I am hired to convert it).

[For more information on #RPGaDAY (or #RPGaDAY2017 specifically), read this. Other installments from my own participation may be found here.]

Garrett Goes Ghostbusting

Keith Garrett of The Adventures of Keith Garrett has completed his "31 Days of Ghostbusters" (also known as July). An homage to Ghostbusters in its various incarnations (including the Ghostbusters role-playing game), it's well worth investigating.