The Springfield Ghostbusters

My son's rendition of Homer and Bart as Ghostbusters

If you’re like me, you’ve probably spent the week watching Simpsons Halloween episodes with the Ghostbusters Roleplaying Game within reach. Obviously you’d want to put those together, so guess what? I’ve saved you the trouble!

Your Own Simpsons Halloween Special

Let’s use the Ghostbusters rules to bring a Simpsons Halloween episode to the gaming table. The first thing we need is some Simpsons.

Homer

Brains	1	Weasel Out of Things
Muscles	2	Eat Anything
Moves	2	Bowl
Cool	2	Borrow From Flanders

Goal: Eat, Sleep, and Cuddle With Marge

NOTE: If Homer is a player character, you might want to give him 5 more points in Traits, enough to give him the standard total of 12. The other Simpsons already have 12 Traits points. (Yep, even Maggie.)

Marge

Brains	3	Springfield Facts
Muscles	3	Carry Things
Moves	3	Clean
Cool	3	Raise Children

Goal: Keep Family Safe

Bart

Brains	2	Make Mischief
Muscles	2	Fire Slingshot
Moves	3	Ride Skateboard
Cool	5	Fast Talk

Goal: Have Fun

Lisa

Brains	5	Library Science
Muscles	2	Run
Moves	3	Play Saxophone
Cool	2	Debate

Goal: Save the World

Maggie

Brains	4	Escape
Muscles	2	Climb
Moves	2	Pacifier
Cool	4	Attract Attention

Goal: Defeat Her Enemies

Ghostbusters in Springfield?

Sure, why not? Here are a few ways we could bring professional paranormal investigation and elimination to the entertainment capital of this state.

Option 1: The PCs could be the players’ own Ghostbusters, visiting Springfield to take care of some spectral business.

Option 2: The players take the roles of the Simpsons family, who have (in the manner of a Simpsons Halloween special) somehow gotten into the Ghostbusting business. Professor Frink could believably invent ghostbusting equipment (such as his patented De-ghostifier), which the Simpsons could then acquire (along with a power source from Homer’s workplace).

Option 3: Who needs grownups? Bart and Lisa and their friends can get the job done, operating out of their Treehouse of Terror. They’ll need equipment, of course, but Frink could provide it (as above) or Lisa could develop it herself.

What Do Springfield Ghostbusters Do?

Here are a few story seeds for Ghostbusters operating in Simpsons territory.

• Haunted Milhouse. Bart’s friend Milhouse has died, and his ghost is inhabiting his house. The PCs can trap the poor dead kid, but he reappears in his room the next night—Milhouse is a repeater! If the team wants him to stay gone (so they can get paid), they’ll need to satisfy his Goal: he wants his parents to remarry!
• Krusty Kult. Springfield sees a spike in its clown population, as numerous clowns arrive to worship Krusty. The object of the clowns’ reverence has been broadcasting a mind-control signal as part of his show, and now he controls a clown army which he intends to use for some nefarious purpose. Will the Ghostbusters make a deal with the devil when they learn that the incarcerated Sideshow Bob knows a way to break Krusty’s kontrol over his kreepy kult?
• Comic Book Die. Comic book characters are coming to life and causing chaos at the Android’s Dungeon! Luckily, all the animated comic characters are still comic book sized. Less luckily, even the “good guys” in the comics are behaving badly, thanks to a comics crossover event in which Radioactive Man and friends have been replaced by twisted mirror versions (bizarre, eh?). Can the Ghostbusters stop their heroes from wrecking the comic store without doing it themselves with their proton packs? (Pardon me…De-ghostifiers. Glavin!)

Politician Archetype for All Flesh Must Be Eaten

I wrote this years ago for a website that isn't around anymore (and I'm sorry to say I don't remember its name). It's a politician character archetype for All Flesh Must Be Eaten. Last night during the Democratic debate it popped in my head again, so I thought I'd share it.

Image: NBC

Politician

Norm

Str 2 Dex 2 Con 2
Int 3 Per 2 Wil 3
LPs 26
EPs 26
Spd 8
Essence 14

Qualities/Drawbacks
Attractiveness 2 (2)
Charisma 2 (2)
Contacts (Governmental) (2)
Humorless (-1)
Obsession (Political Power) (-2)
Resources (Well-off) (2)
Showoff (-2)
Status 3 (2)

Skills
Acting 3
Bureaucracy 3
Cheating 2
Dodge 1
Guns (Pistol) 2
Haggling 3
Humanities (Political Science) 3
Humanities (Psychology) 3
Notice 3
Seduction 2
Smooth Talking 4
Sport (Golf) 1

Gear
Government I.D. badge, briefcase, smartphone, campaign buttons

Personality
I was on my way to the top--the White House was surely only a few years away. All those years of kissing babies and telling the stupid public what they wanted to hear was finally paying off. I had a house in the ‘burbs, a wife and kids who looked great in the campaign ads, and a chauffeured ride to work every day in a government car.

Then this zombie thing started. At first I didn’t believe the crazy stories that people were telling. I mean, come on! People rising from their graves to eat living flesh? But when I came home to find a rotting corpse munching on what was left of the wife and kids, I realized the truth: my bid for the presidency was going to be delayed.

Now my very survival is a full-time campaign. I’ve managed to form an alliance with a few surviving citizens. It’s strange how something like the dead returning to life can make people from such different backgrounds work together--even those damn liberals. But the world has turned into a new two-party system: the Living and the Dead--and the Dead don’t vote.

Quote
“Put me in charge, my fellow survivors, and I will lead my party to victory!”