"How We Do Things Downtown"

Creating your character

Character creation will be done together during our Session Zero! Everyone has a bank of points they can spend on their traits, and you'll be able to choose talents and specializations for your 'Buster, too! As the game progresses you'll accumulate "Brownie Points", which you can spend on permanently upgrading your statistics to show your character's growth. You'll also be able to research new equipment and upgrade things like your Proton Pack, Ghost Trap, and PKE Meter to catch more powerful and dangerous ghosts!

Preparing for the session

We'll meet for game sessions on my Discord server, so you'll need a profile there. I also use Fantasy Grounds for visual aids like pictures and maps, so if you'd like to download the Free/Demo version of the app I can provide login information for you. The Fantasy Grounds VTT will help streamline things like dice rolls and exploration, but is not necessary to play the game. Most maps will be pulled from official city records from the 1980s, or custom made on Inkarnate for encounters. Most pictures of the era will be pulled from 80s.nyc, which provides archived pictures from all over NYC as a visual archive. I would highly recommend visiting 80s.nyc if you would like to peruse photos from the time period! If you'd like to read the Rulebook ahead of time, please feel free! We'll be going over all the rules together during our first couple sessions, but I've provided the link to the PDF for any players who wish to read up before our sessions. https://beta.the-eye.eu/public/Books/rpg.rem.uz/Ghostbusters/Ghostbusters%20-%20Ghostbusters%20International%20%20Rulebook.pdf The following link will also provide you with a blank Character Sheet for the Ghostbusters RPG, which I would recommend you have handy for your records, either digital or physical. (I'll also have this posted to my Discord server, so you can find that there when you sign on for Session Zero, if you haven't downloaded your copy yet at that point.) https://beta.the-eye.eu/public/Books/rpg.rem.uz/Ghostbusters/Ghostbusters%20-%20Character%20Sheet.pdf

What Paul Willis brings to the table

I love to do accents and voices for NPCs, and I'll try my best to do justice to the many amazing accents of the East Coast. I enjoy embodying characters to interact with my players, and I always encourage players to do the same, as much as they're comfortable! I think you'll find a passion and excitement for this wonderful franchise that really comes through in our game sessions! Funny and memorable characters, terrifying and strange ghosts, all set against the backdrop of 1987 New York! Fans of the franchise will find a bunch of easter eggs and surprises, and even newbies will get immersed in Bustin' those ghosts!! You'll find yourselves exploring real locations from all over New York City, chasing down elusive spirits in your Ectomobile, and zapping powerful ghosts with your Proton Packs. Combat and chases will stick to the rules for most situations, but I LOVE a good Rule-of-Cool moment and always encourage my players to try unique solutions to the situations they find themselves in. Just don't cross the streams!!

Homebrew rules

During Session Zero, the party will decide as a group which of the Five Boroughs their new Ghostbusters franchise station is opening in. You may find your story begins (or even ends) differently depending on where your home-station operates in New York City. Proton Packs will be your primary weapons against the horrific apparitions you'll encounter, and will be distributed to every Ghostbuster. Other equipment, just as PKE Meters or Ghost Traps, are more rare and will only be utilized by characters who show care and proficiency with such delicate equipment. Specializations will be discussed during our Session Zero, too!

How Paul Willis creates a safe table

I'll send out a link to the RPG Consent Checklist I use when you sign on as a player. We'll go over the checklist together during Session Zero, just to make sure everyone is on the same page. But if you would like to address any issues with me in private, please do! My door is always open! I'll keep a text channel open during sessions so people can let me know discreetly if anything comes up that's making them uncomfortable. Your comfort and enjoyment are top priority! We'll take a few minutes as a break in the middle of our session, and a few minutes at the end to talk over the session. I always welcome things like "Stars and Wishes", too, to let me know if anything in particular struck you as really fun or exciting during the session!