The twist here is that the EcTerminators aren’t human, they’re weird lobster aliens masquerading as humans, and they’re here for our ghosts, and the entire ectosphere of Earth. They need it because it is an essential ingredient in their soft drinks.

I would like to pause for a moment to remind you that this adventure came out in in 1987, and further note that Hi-C Ecto Cooler, the beloved orange-tangerine-flavored beverage, hit store shelves in 1989 and remained on them until (after two name changes) it was discontinued in 2006 (and then came back again for a few months in both 2016 and 2021). I am not claiming that Ecto Cool exists because of RPGs, but I am not discounting the possibility. Also, if you are suddenly burning to taste that sweet, sweet nectar again, know that you can get the same taste experience with Juicy Juice Orange Tangerine and a bottle of green food coloring. End digression.

So, yea, the problem is that the ectosphere is just as necessary for regular life as it is for unlife, so the players need to stop the alien plan in order to prevent a worldwide extinction event. There’s also a weird Transformers parody wedged in here to create deadly coffee mugs. There’s a lot going on. I kind of love it?

It’s a little weird that the two Ghostbusters scenarios I own are about aliens. This one does have some ghosts in it, at least, but at the end of the day, it’s about aliens. There are only like, five published scenarios and two are about aliens? Weird. This one is by Bill “Star Wars Expanded Universe” Slavicsek, so maybe it’s all his fault. Damn, imagine if the same guy invented the Star Wars Expanded Universe and Ecto Cool!

The post Scared Stiffs (1987) appeared first on Vintage RPG.

This is Hot Rods of the Gods (1986), which I believe is the second scenario for the system. I have it in my head that this is an all-timer, though I am not sure why. I will say that while I am disappointed it doesn’t involve ghosts, I do enjoy the fact that it riffs on the kook theory of ancient aliens, which is very much something I believe Ray Stanz would be conversant on.

It starts with a case of levitation, during with the players find proof of intelligent life on this planet that predates humanity. Which accidentally summons the aliens back to Earth. It isn’t exactly an invasion. Rather, the four-armed aliens (the Fuggs) are greasers intent on turning Earth into a planet-wide destruction derby and it is up to the players to get some flying cars and stop them. There is a nerd alien who has been monitoring human evolution for millions of years. There are Men in Black (synthetic android things used basically exactly like the Greys are in Delta Green, interestingly enough). There are angry military guys. There’s a satirical portrayal of Erich von Daniken. I think this is good, but it is hard to tell. A lot of RPG comedies try to force humor through cheap parody and references. This doesn’t seem to be the case here; rather, it looks like the module is arranged around giving the players the fuel to make their own jokes. I can be sure without bringing it to the table, but I can say that if I ever get around to running Ghostbusters, this would be the scenario I’d go for.

Timothy Meehan does the interiors, which are good on average. Richard Johnson on the cover.

The post Hot Rods of the Gods (1986) appeared first on Vintage RPG.

Hosts Stu Horvath and John McGuire welcome you back and layout the topics for Episode 3 (00:16).

Hambone starts things off with Bill & Ted’s Excellent Board Game (01:16) and Stu drops a fascinating fact about Keanu Reeves (01:45).

The guys introduce the main topic: West End Games’ Ghostbusters RPG (05:09). Discussion starts with fond memories of the movie (05:14), the cartoon (06:09) and toys (06:21). Stu breaks down the history of the Ghostbusters RPG (08:05) its weird connection to Chaosium (08:13) and how it forms the mechanical basis of West End’s Star Wars RPG by Greg Costikyan (09:06). Stu then talks about Timothy Zahn and the fallow days of the Star Wars franchise (10:00). Hambone then takes a deep dive into the contents of the box set (10:54) and the fun player handouts and movie callbacks found inside. Conversation turns to how awkward in-character dating is for the game master (16:00). Stu ruminates on simple systems, casual tabletop gaming and the different ways different people play (17:50). Finally, Hambone talks about how the box solves the biggest mystery of the Ghostbusters franchise: the ghost classification system (19:30). They wrap up with a quick rundown of the rest of the line and the cost of collecting the game (23:47).

Finally, Hambone is excited about receiving his copy of Into the Borderlands, from Goodman Games (25:07) and Stu blows his mind with a fact about the playtesting of D&D 5E (26:13). Stu hopes that Goodman Games has success with their line of D&D reprints (27:13).

Good-bye until next time (28:31)!

* * *

Clarification: Wilford Brimley was 51 in 1985, the year Cocoon came out. Keanu Reeves will be 54 on September 2, 2018 (early happy birthday, dude).

* * *

Join us on the Vintage RPG Patreon for more roleplaying fun and surprises!

If you want to buy any of the stuff we mentioned on the show, there’s a pretty good chance our sponsors at Noble Knight Games have it in stock!

Like, Rate, Subscribe and Review the Vintage RPG Podcast! Available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, Spotify, YouTube and your favorite podcast clients.

Send questions, comments or corrections to info@vintagerpg.com.

Follow Vintage RPG on Instagram, Tumblr and Facebook. Learn more at the Vintage RPG FAQ.

Follow Stu Horvath, John McGuire, VintageRPG and Unwinnable on Twitter.

Intro music by George Collazo.

The Vintage RPG illustration is by Shafer Brown. Follow him on Twitter.

Tune in two weeks from now for the next episode. Until then, may the dice always roll in your favor!

The post Ghostbusters appeared first on Vintage RPG.

Despite my wife not believing such a thing could exist, Ghostbusters was, in 1986, West End Games’ first D6 RPG system and the first dice pool system (rolling a number of dice, determined by skill and equipment, in order to beat a difficulty number), which would go on to be the basis of Greg Costikyan’s more complicated Star Wars system and influence countless other games.

What’s weirdest for me, though, is the Chaosium dragon  alongside the West End Games logo. As you can see on the back of the box, the creators of Call of Cthulhu – Sandy Peterson, Lynn Willis and Greg Stafford – get top billing. And it feels like a Chaosium game: stripped down rules and a focus on roleplaying.

It’s got a sense of humor in line with the movie, too – Brownie Points are a key mechanic, rolling a six on a custom die indicates that Something Bad Has Happened and a Venkman caricature mocks you from the margins all the way through the rules. The game also lays out the details of the classification system hinted at in the movies. I now know exactly what a free-floating full torso vaporous apparition is, and six-year-old me can finally rest easy. There’s also more than just ghosts to fight in the game, making it a bit of a philosophical bridge between the movie and the cartoon. I can’t wait to play it.

The post Ghostbusters (1986) appeared first on Vintage RPG.