Bullets & Bootleggers: Chicago Blues
Prohibition Chicago. Gangsters, grifters & occultists fight for power in a city of smoke, jazz, and dark magic. Boardwalk Empire meets American Gods
TYPE
SYSTEM
LANGUAGE
EXPERIENCE
AGE
$20.00
/ Session
Details
Weekly / Sunday - 12:00 AM UTC
Session Duration / 1–3 hours
0 / 5 Seats Filled
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About the adventure
LIVE: Bullets & Bootleggers — Crime, Power, and the Occult in 1929 Chicago Step into the smoke and jazz of 1929 Chicago — a city caught between bootleg whiskey, backroom politics, and something darker moving beneath it all. Gangsters rule the streets. Federal agents lurk in the alleys. And behind the headlines, old gods and new money fight for control of America’s soul. You play the ones who make history happen — the enforcers, fixers, grifters, and mystics carving their names into the city’s bones. Maybe you’re chasing fortune. Maybe redemption. Maybe both. At this table you’ll get: Easy-to-learn rules powered by the Ghost Ape System (GAS) — fast, cinematic, and story-focused. Player-driven choices — build rackets, cut deals, or play the mobs against each other. Immersive noir storytelling — trench coats, tommy guns, jazz clubs, and speakeasies under the El. Supernatural intrigue — spirits in back rooms, cursed money, whispered miracles. A living Chicago (and NYC) campaign that remembers your actions — allies, rivals, and opportunities grow with you. This is a campaign about ambition, loyalty, and power — where every deal matters and every choice shapes your legend. You won’t just survive Chicago. You’ll own your corner of it.
Game style
Theater of the Mind
Sandbox / Open World
Combat Heavy
Game themes
Meet the Game Master
Less than a year on StartPlaying
About me
When I was 8 years old the older kids invited me to play D&D. The Blue Book. It changed my life. Me and so many other kids of the same era. D&D let your imagination run wild and for a shy kid with plenty of energy but not a lot of confidence it gave me focus. I developed a love of history from my love of the game. I still carry that to all my games as a player and as a DM. A sense of history, and a sense of gonzo because anything can happen. If my world building has done its job I'm crafting experiences, not just games.
View Profile →Character creation
Creating your character
Character generation and learning the system will happen during Session Zero. A Players Guide will be provided for download.
What to expect
Preparing for the session
We'll be using discord. I'll provide a players guide prior to play.
What Tim brings to the table
I run a full sandbox built on my own Ghost Ape System — the same rules behind Lich Won, Lich Too, and the Bullets & Bootleggers line. This isn’t a “monster-of-the-week” thing. You’re stepping into 1929 Chicago: smoke, steel, politics, gangsters, cops on the take, and things in the dark that shouldn’t exist. Every neighborhood, every speakeasy, every NPC has weight. If you push the world, it pushes back. You can expect: • A real sandbox. Not a railroad. You make the plan, you deal with the fallout. Jobs go right, go wrong, or go sideways. Heat rises, reputations matter, and people remember what you did. • Tactical, dangerous combat. GAS is lethal. Guns hit hard, blades explode on damage, and a bad roll can put you on the floor. But it’s fair. Smart players survive. Reckless ones feed the morgue. • Noir tone with historical accuracy. I keep the period tight: slang, politics, cars, weapons, streets, newspapers — all grounded. When the supernatural shows up, it feels like it crawled out of a crime scene, not a superhero movie. • Roleplay with teeth. You’ll deal with fixers, bootleggers, Irish and Italian crews, crooked cops, corrupt Feds. Every conversation is a chance to gain an ally or make an enemy. I run NPCs like real people, not cardboard quest-dispensers. • Player agency first. If you want to climb from street muscle to Outfit heavy — possible. If you want to rob Schultz, blackmail Capone, or start your own crew — possible. If you want to hunt occult threats under the Loop, chase Prohibition weirdness, or stay strictly mortal — also possible. • Zero judgment, zero pressure. You don’t need voices, props, or improv training. I meet players where they’re at. If you just want to scheme in the corner booth with a cigarette and a plan? Perfect. • A GM who writes the damn setting. You’re not getting a guy who skimmed a module. I built this world. If you take a weird angle — great. I can follow you anywhere because I know every alley. What you’ll get from me: Clear stakes. Real consequences. Style without fluff. A table that feels like stepping into a black-and-white crime photo where you might actually leave fingerprints. If you want a polished, immersive Chicago noir sandbox with room to build your own legend — seat’s open.
Homebrew rules
My entire ruleset is homebrew, but old school 1E or 2E players will feel right at home. It can be downloaded for free at: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/535545/gas-ghost-ape-system
Equipment needed to play
Internet
Computer
Microphone
Pen & Paper
Physical Dice
Platforms used
Safety
How Tim creates a safe table
Session Zero will not only cover character generation and introduction to the game system and the world, but player expectations as well. I run a mellow table, you can take a break if you need to.
Content warnings
Safety tools used