Congnatulationsl

You havejust purchasedyour very own Ghostbustersfranchise!Now you too

can.earnbig bucks and become a media superstarbattling spooks,spuds,and
soul-suckingdemons from beyond the grave.

Buthey!I gottatellyourtgfunowbeinga Ghostbuster

isn't all Chateau
'57
Lafite andTIMEmagazine
covefi.. .

To be a Chostbuster,you gotta have guts.

To be a Chostbuster,you gotta be suaveand debonaire.

To be a Chostbuster;
you gottaface unimaginablehorrors- horrorswhich threatenlife, sanity,happiness,the very fabric of the
untverse- and even your profit margin.

S t i l l g a m e ?C r e a t l C r a b a n o f f i c i a llD form and read on

T r a i n i n gM a n u a l , i n c l u d t n g i n t e r l o r i l l u s t r a t t o n e
s 19g6West End Cames,Inc.
CHOSTBUSTERSartwork, logo and logo design acl 19u6 Columbla Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rishts
Reserved

Chostbusters
Traini ng Manual

Becominq

AGhosttiftster
StartingUp RealQuick
lf you're in a real hurry to play,and you want to play the charactersfrom
"The Rules" in Reference
the movie, all you have to read is the two-page
"Typical Ten Minutes of Play" in ReferenceFile B.
FileA and the two-page
lf you want to createyour own ghost-zappingsuper-sleuth(or you just
"How to Play" and this swell Training
want to be real prepared), read
Manual.

VENKMAN:
Many peopleare afr
to play me because
they think they can't
do justice to my
abilities as Ghostbusterand ladv'sman.
lf that's true for you,
I suggestyou startwith
a less complex character. Designa character of Your own or play RayStantz.

DesigningYourCharacter
Firstof all, decide who you want your characterto be.
You can play the movie characters;you can make up original characters;you
can playyour fourth-gradescienceteacher;you can evenplay yourself(not recommended for potential schizophrenics).lf you want to play the charactersfrom
ChostbusterslD card with the characteryou
the movie,dig up the pre-generated
"How
to Play" in ReferenceFile A, if you want.
want to play; you can skip to
w r i t e y o u r c h a r a c t e r ' sn a m e o n i t .
g
r
a
b
l
D
a
n
d
a
b
l
a
n
k
c
a
r
d
Otherwise,

Anybodyin the worldcan be a

I mean,lookat
Ghostbuster.
mybosses...

Choosinga Picture
s a v et h e i r p i c t u r e so n t h e i r l D c a r d s .l f y o u l i k e ,
T h e s i x f a m o u sC h o s t b u s t e r h
you can put a photo or drawing of your Chostbusteron your card.The Ten-MostWanted list at your |ocal post office is a good place to find interestingphotos.

Traits

VENKMAN:
Not everyone is as Cool as I am. But
I guess you knew that.

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

Chostbustershave four Traits:Brains,Muscle, Moves, and Cool. Each Trait is

a s s i g n e da n u m e r i c a lv a l u e .T h e h i g h e rn u m b e r a T r a i ti s , t h e b e t t e ra c h a r a c t e r
does when usingit.
Traits.You mustassign
You havetwelvepointsto allot amongyour Ghostbuster's
at leastone point to each Trait,and you may not assignmore than five points
to any one Trait.
Note: Some famous Chostbustershave more than five points in a Trait.The
extrapointswere gainedthroughyearsof hardwork (or,in Egon'scase,aftereating
r i l l b e e l i g i b l et o i n c r e a s eh i s T r a i t s
v a s t q u a n t i t i e so f f i s h ) .Y o u r G h o s t b u s t ew
after he has a few adventuresunder his belt.

How Traitsare Used

W h e n y o u r C h o s t b u s t ew
r a n t st o d o s o m e t h i n gt h a t h e m i g h t f a i l a t , l i k e d r i v i n g
E c t o - .tlh r o u g ht h e L i n c o l nT u n n e la t 9 0 m p h , o r w a l k i n g a n d c h e w i n g g u m a t
the sametime, the Ghostmasterwill assigna difficulty number to that task.Then
you will have to roll dice and attempt to equal or beat the difficulty number.
l f y o u d o , y o u r c h a r a c t e irs s k i l l f u l l yz o o m i n gt h r o u g ht h e L i n c o l nT u n n e l ,l a y i n g
cool skid marksall over the place; if you fail, your characterhas swallowedhis
gum and saunteredinto the EastRiver.
W h e n a t t e m p t i n gt o e q u a l o r b e a t t h e d i f f i c u l t yn u m b e r ( w h i c h w i l l u s u a l l y
be between 5 and 30, though it can be greater),you get to roll as many dice
as you have points in the Traitwhich pertainsto the action you are attempting.
F o re x a m p l e :E g o nw a n t st o f i l l o u t h i s i n c o m et a x f o r m s o t h e G o v e r n m e nw
t ill
refund him $64,000.95in taxes.The Ghostmasterdecidesthat Egon is trying to
u s e h i s B r a i n sT r a i t ,a n d a s s i g n sa d i f f i c u l t yn u m b e ro f 4 0 . S i n c eE g o nh a s B r a i n s
o f s e v e n ,h e r o l l s s e v e nd i c e . l f h e r o l l s 4 0 o r m o r e , U n c l e S a m c o u g h su p t h e
s a m o l e o n si;f n o t , E g o ng e t sa l a r g ef i n e a n d h a s h i s t a x e sa u d i t e df o r t h e p a s t
seven years.
A l w a y sm a k et h e C h o s t D i e o n e o f t h e d i c e y o u r o l l . ( E g o nw o u l d r o l l s i x n o r m a l d i c e p l u s t h e C h o s t D i e . ) i f a n u m b e r c o m e su p o n t h e C h o s t D i e , j u s t a d d
it to all the others; if the ghost comes up, it counts as zero. (The appearance
of Mr. Spookhasother unfortunateside effectsas well, but we'll get to that later.)

I
/

Talents
Talentsare areasof specialability within each Trait.EachChostbusterhas one
Talentfor each Trait.When your characterattemptsto perform a task that he has
a Talentfor, you get to roll three extra dice.
E x a m p l e :E g o n h a s g r e a tB r a i n s w
, h i c h m e a n sh e d o e s w e l l i n a l l B r a i n relatedtasks- but he is preeminentlynifty when it comes to Physics.lf
Egon wanted to design a solar-poweredflashlight,a task relating to his
PhysicsTalent,he would get to roll ten dice, not seven.

ll

l,

Remember:the numberfollowing a particularTraitor Talenttellsyou now many

l
d i c e t o r o l l w h e n a t t e m p t i n ga t a s k w h i c h u s e st h a t T r a i to r T a l e n t .
Pick four Talentsfor your Chostbuster,one for each Trait.The Talentsare listed
below. (You can give your chostbuster a Talentnot Iisted below, such as Viral
O n c o l o g y o r B i k e R i d i n g ,i f y o u r C h o s t m a s t ear g r e e s . )

/ l

\l

I
l

lI

Br a i n s

Brainsshowshow smartyour chostbusteris.Verysmartpeople (Brains5 or more)

c a n d o c a l c u l u si n t h e i r h e a d s ,w r i t e c o m p u t e rp r o g r a m sw h i c h w o r k t h e f i r s t
time they run, and speak foreign languageslike a native. Bozos like to watch
Lost in Space reruns on TV.
In GHosrBUsrERs, unlike real life, all smart folks know lots about lots of I
things.lf your Ghostbusterhas a high BrainsTrait,he knows a lot about historv. I
b i o l o g y ,c h e m i s t r yp h y s i c sl,i n g u i s t i c st r, i v i a ,a n d t h e o c c u l t .A c h a r a c t e r 'Bs r a i n s
T a l e n ts i m p l y d e t e r m i n e sw h a t h i s p a r t i c u l a rs p e c i a l t yi s .
Here is a short list of BrainsTalents.lf you want your chostbuster to have a
B r a i n sT a l e n tn o t o n t h i s l i s t , t a l k i t o v e r w i t h y o u r c h o s t m a s t e rf i r s t .
\ ,
Accounting
E l e c t r o inc s
Medicine
Anthropology
Geology
Occult
Archaeology
Cuess
Parapsychology
Astronomy
Hair Styling
Physics
Biology
History
Psychoan
a Iysis
j o ur n a l i s m
Botany
S o a pO p e r a R o m a n c e s
Bureaucratics
L i b r a r yS c i e n c e
Sports Facts
\
Chemistry
Linguistics
Zoology
Deduce
Mathematics
E l e c t r i c aR
l e p a i r M e c h a n i c a lR e p a i r

EGON:
That is the sort of
r implausibleexample that a Liberal
Arts major like
Venkmanwould
devise.Evena
marginallyinformed individual
understandsthat a
solar-powered
flashlightis
absolutelyabsurd...
though, now that I
think about it...
Hmm. Where'smy sliderule?

VENKMAN:
I havea Cool 6, which
is very,very impressive.Roll 6
dice for me
when determiningwhether
or not l'm Cool.
But if the
difficultycallsfor
bluffing...well,
bluffing is my Talent.
When I Bluff, roll 9
dice for me. Strip poker,anyone?

\l

lf you're really smart,

you can fill out an
EPAform!

tl

Chostbusters
Training
Manual

Muscle
(Muscles
Muscletellshow strongyourChostbuster
is.StrongChostbusters
5 or
punycharacters
more)can rip phonebooksin half,intimidate
at a glance,bite
get
the capsoff beerbottles,or throw bureaucrats
into the garbage.
Weaklings
theirtonguescaughton postage
stamps.

The Stay-Puftman practicesIntimidate.

H e r e ' sa l i s t o f someMuscles
Talents.
lf you want your Chostbusterto have
a M u s c l e sT a l e n tn o t o n t h i s l i s t ,t a l k i t o v e r w i t h y o u r G h o s t m a s t efri r s t .
Brawl
B r e a kT h i n g s
Climb
Cobble Food
Crapple

lntimidate
JUmp
K i c kT h i n g sO v e r
Lift
R i pT h i n g sO p e n

Run
Swim
Wrestle

don'tget muchhelpfrom
thosecollegeboys,but when

someserious
tusslin'
goin'on, I dojustfine.
Moves
M o v e s d e t e r m i n e sh o w d e x t e r o u sa n d p h y s i c a l l ya d e p t y o u r G h o s t b u s t e ri s .
C h o s t b u s t e rw
s i t h d e c e n t M o v e s s c o r e sa r e b e t t e ra t s h o o t i n gg u n s ,c a t c h i n g
b a s e b a l l sd, o d g i n g o r t h r o w i n g r o c k s ,o b s e r v i n g ,p i c k i n g l o c k s ,j u g g l i n g ,d r i v i n g , a n d c r e e p i n ga l o n g l e d g e s T
. h e y l i k e t o f l i r t , t h e y l i k e d i s g u i s e sa, n d t h e y
l i k e t o d r e s su p . M a l a d r o i t sg e t t h i n g s c a u g h t i n t h e i r z i p p e r s .
A C h o s t b u s t ecr o u l d h a v eo n e o f t h e f o l l o w i n gM o v e sT a l e n t sl.f y o u w a n t y o u r
C h o s t b u s t e tro h a v ea M o v e sT a l e n tn o t o n t h i s l i s t , w h v n o t t a l k i t o v e r w i t h
y o u r C h o s t m a s t efri r s t ?H e ' s y o u r f r i e n d .
Attract Attention
Balance
Breakdance
Catch
Disguise
Dodge
Drive Vehicle
DANA: Playingthe cello may not
seemvery importantto Ghostbusting,
but sometimes
musichathcharmsto
soothsavagebeasts-evendeadbeasts.

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

Fire Weapon
Cossip
Hide
Listen
Make Music
Pick Pocket
Seouce

See
Sleigho
t f Hand
Sneak
S ni f f
Strut
Throw

Cool
Cool people are bold, brave,and brassy.Cool people haveaplomb - they don,t
scarethemselvesinto uselessactivity,and they know their own capacities.with
a Cool Z, you maintain your pace, even if you show up at a black+ie ball in a
c h i c k e ns u i t .o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , a c h o s t b u s t e rw i t h C o o l i c a l l st h e F B Iw h e n
h i s t o i l e t b a c k su o .
Here are some Cool-typeTalents.lf you want your Chostbusterto havea Cool
T a l e n tn o t o n t h i s I i s t ,t a l k i t o v e rw i t h y o u r G h o s t m a s t efri r s t .W e ' r es u r eh e w i l l
b e r e a s o n a b l ea b o u t i t .

Bargain
Bluff
Borrow
Browbeat

Charm
Convince
FastTalk
Orate

PlayPoker
PlayStockMarket
R a i s eC h i l d r e n
TellFibs

E x a m p l eJ: a n i n eh a sa C o o l o f 5 . S h eh a st h e C o n v i n c eT a l e n tW
. hen Janine
argueswith someone, her playergets to roll 8 dice. As you might guess,
e hen
J a n i n ec a n b e q u i t e c o n v i n c i n g- b u t s h e ' ss t il l a t a d i s a d v a n t a gw
t r y i n g t o p e r s u a d eE g o nt o s t o p w o r k i n g o n a p r o b l e m i n P h y s i c s( E g o n ' s
B r a i n sT a l e n t t)o g o o n a p i c n i c . ( S i n c eE g o nh a s B r a i n s7 , h e r o l l s l 0 d i c e
f o r H I S T a l e n t !H i g h r o l l w i n s . )
, r a p p l e( f o rM u s c l e s
Janine'o
s t h e rT a l e n t sa r e B u r e a u c r a t i c( sf o r B r a i n s )C
- u s e d t o k e e p E g o n i n l i n e ) , a n d D r i v e V e h i c l e( f o r M o v e s ) .

VENKMAN:
lf you want to fasttalk some poor
mark into doing
things your way,
you need to overcome his or her
Brainswith your
Cool. lf vou make
it, the character
goesalong with it
- signson the dotted line, lets vou into
the warehouse,loans
you his car for the weekend,etc.
This won't alwayswork. Thereare
alwayssomejerks that won't listen
to reason,no matter how Cool you
are and how stupid they are.

Brownie Points
N e w C h o s t b u s t e r(sa n dt h e o r i g i n a lC h o s t b u s t e rws h e n y o u f i r s tp l a yt h e m )e a c h
startwith 20 BrowniePointson their lD cards.Afterthat,they earn BrowniePoints
a s r e w a r d sw h e n t h e y s u c c e e da t t h e i r m i s s i o no r a c h i e v et h e i r C o a r s .

It's nice to get recognitionfor a

job welldone,you know?

?a6':
Ag^
'-=r-a'
'-!-

W h e n t h e c h o s t b u s t e r sa r e d o i n g b a d l y ,t h e y l o s e B r o w n i ep o i n t sa n d r e c e i v e
p a r k i n gt i c k e t s a
, b u s i v ec a l l sf r o m t h e i r c r e d i t o r sa, n d l o n g s t a y si n t h e h o s p i t a l .
B r o w n i eP o i n t sa r e m o r e t h a n m e a s u r e m e n tosf h o w w e l l y o u r c h a r a c t e irs d o ing, however.To some extent,Brownie Pointslet you rewritethe script- to have
y o u r c h a r a c t e r as t t e m p ti n c r e d i b l ef e a t so r b a i l t h e m s e l v e o
s u t o f t e r r i b l ei a m s .
Y o u s p e n dy o u r B r o w n i e P o i n t st o i n c r e a s ey o u r c h a r a c t e r ' cs h a n c e so f s u c ceeding at difficult tasks.For each Brolvnie Point you spend, you can roll one
a d d i t i o n a ld i e w h e n y o u r c h a r a c t e ri s a t t e m p t i n gt o u s e a T r a i to r T a l e n t .y o u
haveto decide to spendthe BrowniePointsbeforeyour roll; vou cannot usetnem
to rerollfaileddice.
Brownie Points can also be used to cut down the bad effectswnen your
c h a r a c t e ri s h u r t . F o re x a m p l e ,i f h e o r s h e h a st o g o t o a h o s p i t a l e
, achBrownie
P o i n ty o u s p e n da t t h e t i m e o f t h e a c c i d e n tr e d u c e sh o s p i t a lt i m e b y a w e e k .
l f v o u r c h a r a c t e rd o e s s o m e t h i n gt h a t i s a m a z i n g l ys t u p i d- t h a t s h o u l d ,b y
a l l r i g h t sm
, e a n h i s i m m e d i a t ea n d p e r m a n e net x t i n i t i o n- t h e c h o s t m a s t ecr a n ,
insteadof crushinghim like a grape,allow your characterto spendBrowniepoints
to avoid the fate he so richly deserves.
lf you ever find that you have 30 Brownie points you don't know what to do
w i t h , y o u c a n b u y a n a d d i t i o n a lp o i n t t o a d d t o o n e o f y o u r T r a i t s(. T h i so p t i o n
i s a v a i l a b l eo n l y i f y o u r C h o s t m a s t e a
r grees.)

ECON:
Changing
the pastis scientifically
impossible,of course,
VENKMAN:
Oh yeah?How aboutwhen you filled
out that computerdating form, and
claimedthat in highschoolyou hadECON:
Pointtaken,Venkman.Now shut up!

Chostbusters
Training
Manual

No characterever has as many Brownie Points as he or she wants - and

sometimes,not evenas manyas he needs.lf your Chostbusterdoesn'thaveenough
Brownie Pointsto avoid catastrophe,the Chostmastercan allow you to permanently subtracta point from a Trait(you pick which one) in exchangefor 20 Brownie
Points.You can then use the Brownie Pointsto saveyour Chostbusterfrom obliteration, the draft, or whatever.
N o t e t h a t i t c o s t s3 0 B r o w n i eP o i n t st o g a i n a p o i n t i n a T r a i tb u t y o u g e t o n l y
20 Brownie Points back when you trade-ina Trait point,

STANTZ:
Gosh, I know it sounds
dangerous...but doesn't
the prospectof collecting
on the AccidentalDeath
and Dismemberment
clausein vour insurance
policy giveyou a little...
thrill?

a6
qr-)
.2

E x a m p l e :E g o n t r i p s a n d i s b u r i e d u n d e r 5 f e e t o f s e m i - s e n t i e nm
t utant
M o u n d s b a r s .T h e C h o s t m a s t er u l e st h a t , w i t h h i s p u n y M u s c l e 2 , E g o n
can dig through only 2 feet of the coconut peril before he suffocates.The
Chostmastercheerfully informs Egon'splayerthat 3 more Brownie Points
are needed to get Egon free.
Since Egon has no Brownie Pointsleft (it's been a long day), he'll have
to lose a point from one of his Traits.His playerchoosesto reduce Egon's
Moves from 4 to 3. Egon gets 20 Brownie Points.His player spends3 of
t h o s et o p e r m i t h i s e s c a p e ,l e a v i n gE g o nw i t h l 7 B r o w n i eP o i n t sa, M o v e s
o f 3 , a n d h a i r f u l l o f s t i c k y ,m u r d e r o u sc h o c o l a t e .
The Chostmasteralsodecidesthat Egonhasto spend3 daysin the hospital
r e c o v e r i n gf r o m h i s o r d e a l .l f h e o r s h e t h o u g h t i t m o r e a p p r o p r i a t et,h e
C h o s t m a s t em
r i g h t c a u s eE g o nt o l o s ee q u i p m e n tw h i c h t a k e sa l o n g t i m e
to rebuild, to wait a long time for rescLre,
or to take some other penalty.
E g o n c o u l d t h e n s p e n d s o m e o f h i s 1 7 B r o w n i e P o i n t st o a v o i d t h e
o u ni s h m e n t .

Whenyou'reusingBrowniePointsto bail out yourChostbuster,

you'll have
to describe
whatactuallyhappens.
Becolorful,be imaginative,
be wacky- bring
a littlelightintoyourfellowplayers'
otherwise
shabby
existence.
lf theChostmaster
is amused,you might evenbe refundeda point or two as a bonus.
But keepit short.lt is absolutely
forbiddento refundBrowniePointsfor over- if theChostmaster
elaborate,
dull,or stupidrationales
hasto rewriteyourscript,
you shouldbe chargedmore BrowniePointsfor the effort.
Example:Chasinga playful ghost acrossthe roof of an apartmenthouse,
Winston skidsto a stop,foiled by a gap betweenthe buildingsthat the ghost
s i m p l yf l o a t sa c r o s sW
. i n s t o nd e c i d e st o j u m p i t d e s p i t et h e G h o s t m a s t e r ' s
w a r n i n gt h a t t h e g a p i s d i f f i c u l t y2 0 . T h e p l a y e rd o e s n ' ts p e n da n y B r o w n i e
Pointsto improve his chances,and so has to roll 20 or betteron five dice.
He fails, and Winston sails towards the street five stories below. The
Chostmasterdecidesit will take 5 BrowniePointsfor Winston to avoid panc a k e s v i l l e( m u l t i p l ef r a c t u r e sc, o n t u s i o n se, t c . ) .
Winston'splayermarks off the Brownie Pointsand describesthe amazing seriesof eventswhich savedWinston from destruction."Winston hits
a clotheslinewhich slowshis fall, then he managesto grabonto a fire escape
- but the railingbreaksin his hand! He'ssloweddown evenfurther,though.
Next he hits the awning of the Baskin-Robbins
store on the street-levelof
t h e b u i l d i n g . . . t haew n i n gs a g sd o w n a l m o s t o t h e g r o u n d . . . t h esnn a p sb a c k ,
hurling Winston through the window of the motel acrossthe street,where
h e l a n d si n a h e a r t - s h a p etdu b , s p i l l i n gw a t e r ,b u b b l e s ,a n d a h o n e y m o o n ing couple all over the bathroom floor."
The Ghostmasterapplaudspolitely and reducesWinston'sBrowniePoint
expenditureto 3 (becausethe player'sexplanationwas so entertaining)then assesses
Winston two weeks in the hosoital. "You survivedthe fall
a l l r i g h t , b u t t h e m a n o n t h e h o n e y m o o nw a s t h e m i d d l e l i n e b a c k e rf o r
the Ciants..."

Ghostbusters
TrainingManual

BrowniePointsFor Adventures
chostbusters
get mostof theirBrowniepointsby workingtog"tfr"r"
to .ornpl"tu
the.job"fo-r
which theyare hired.Eachjob hasthreerikeryoutcomes:
' Theyfailto getthe ghost,or otherwisebotchthe
returns
iob:Thebhostmaster
to eachchostbuster
halfthe Browniepointshe or shespentduringthe game.
o.Thechostbusters
get the ghostor otherwisesatisfactorily
.orpi"t" thl lob:
Thechostmaster
returnsto eachchostbuster
all the Browniepointshe or she
spentduringthe game,and perhapsa few more.
r lf the chostbusters
do an excellentjob (savethe day and excessivery
amuse
the Chostmaster):
The Chostmaster
awardseachChostbuster
up to half aeain
as manyBrowniePointsas he or shespentduringthe game.

PersonalCoals
Eachchostbuster
hasa coal: sex,soulless
science,Fame,ServinsHumanitv.
or Money.You pick your character's
coal when you createhim; the famous
chostbusters'
coals arewrittenon theirlD cards.Thechostmaster
awardsextra
BrowniePointswhen a character
achieves
his or her Coal.

T h e c o a l s a r e d e s c r i b e db e l o w .y o u c a n p i c k a n e w c o a l n o t o n t h i s l i s t f o r
your character,if your Chostmasteragrees.

Sex
t'-.4

,A

My personal
favorite.

r!r\

?,
/^A)
.-*-l

LikeVenkma.nl
your characterwantsto engagein brief,sordid,meaningless
momentsof bliss.
To get Brownie Pointsfor this, you need to go on a satisfying
date d.uringthe course of an adventure.you get one Chost'
)
Die of Brownie Points per success.Fabulously-attractive
dates are worth more Brownie Points,at the Chostmaster,s

discretion.
lf the ghostis rolled,you swallowed
yourtie while vou
wereslurpingup yourspaghetti,
spilledwine on her suedepants,
agreedto get married,or performedsomeother shamefuland

despicabledeed, and the date's a flop - you get no Brownie points.

But perseveranceis rewarded!Each time you rolr a ghost before success{ullydatinga specific person, add an extra Brownie point when you
f i n a l l y m a k e i t t h r o u g h t h e e v e n i n gw i t h o u t e m b a r r a s s i n ygo u r s e l f .
once you have successfullydated someone/you no ronger receive
Brownie Pointsfor subsequentdates with him or her unleis you stop dating
that person for six months or longer.

Wealth
Yourcharacterwantsbig bucks.Expensive
cars.Taxshelters.
Depending
on what kindof bookkeeping
yourcamemaster
is willingto put
up with,.you couldearnBrowniePointsfoieverythousanddollarsyou earn(or
someotherfigure),for everyfancy.geegaw
you scarfup, or for everyinsidetip
you geton the stockMarket-possibly,
you could earnbrowniepoinisfor every
monthyour franchisestaysin the black.
of course,to be fair; ev.ery
valuablepieceof Ghostbuster
equipmenryou
ruin,or everytimeyourlor
franchise
is suedfor propertydamageor finedfor ignoringgovernment
regulations,
thechostmaster
maypenalize
y6ufor a few Brownie
Points.

JANINE:
Moneycan't buy you love,but it can
buy thosedarlingdiamondearringsI
saw at Tiffany'sthe other dav.

Ghostbusters
Training
Manual

Fame
Y o u rc h a r a c t ew
r a n t sn o t h i n gm o r e t h a n t o b e c o m ea m e d i ad a r l i n g- t o a p p e a r
on JohnnyCarson,Mery and Letterman- to be invitedto the White House Easter
E g g H u n t - t o d o a n A m e r i c a n E x p r e s sc o m m e r c i a l .
Everytime your character'sface appearsin the local news media (newspapers
o r t e l e v i s i o n )y o u r C h o s t b u s t e rg e t s a C h o s t D i e o f B r o w n i e P o i n t s .l f t h e
C h o s t b u s t ear p p e a r si n t h e n a t i o n a lm e d i a ( n e w sm a g a z i n e so, r n a t i o n a li n t e r view shows)you get two dice of BrowniePoints.Forsomethingreallysensational,
l i k e a T i m e M a g a z i n ec o v e rs t o r y o r b e i n g r o m a n t i c a l l yl i n k e dw i t h J o a nC o l l i n s
i n T h e E n q u i r e ry, o u m i g h t g e t s i x o r m o r e d i c e o f B r o w n i eP o i n t s !
B u t i f y o u r o l l a g h o s t w h i l e c h e c k i n gf o r B r o w n i e P o i n t s- t h e p h o t o w a s
embarrassingor the stupid pet tricks ran too long and you got bumped off Letterm a n - y o u g e t z i p B r o w n i eP o i n t s .

Soulless
Science
T h e a d v a n c e m e not f s c i e n c ei s w h a t ' si m p o r t a n t .S o w h a t i f a f e w f o l k sa r e t e m p o r a r i l yi n c o n v e n i e n c e do,r t h e w a t e r i n t h e H u d s o n R i v e rd r i e s u p , o r l c e l a n d
m o v e sa c o u p l e o f h u n d r e dm i l e s n o r t h ?l f i t a d v a n c e sS c i e n c ei,n t h e l o n g r u n ,
M a n k i n dw i l l t h a n k y o u f o r i t !

Mankindmayloveyou,butthose

rc,3
t

(\t1

peopleon lcelandwill hateyour

guts.
T h i s i s E g o n ' st h i n g . l f i t ' s y o u r t h i n g , t o o , e v e r yn e w d i s c o v e r yt h a t a d v a n c e s
t h e s c i e n c eo f C h o s t o l o g yg e t sy o u o n e C h o s t D i e o f B r o w n i e P o i n t s A
. n extremely important discoveryis worth more if the Chostmastersaysso.
lf you roll a ghost, your experimentshaven'tyet borne fruit, so you get zip.
K e e pt r a c k o f t h e n u m b e r o f t i m e s y o u h a v e r o l l e d a G h o s t :w h e n y o u f i n a l l y
r o l l s u c c e s s f u l l yv o
, u c a n a d d o n e e x t r a B r o w n i eP o i n t f o r e a c hf a i l e d r o l l . A f t e r
that, you start over again from scratch.

ServingHumanity
B o y S c o u tt y p e s :A n d y C r i f f i t h ,M o t h e r T h e r e s aT, h e B a t m a n .Y o u ' r ei n t e r e s t e d
i n d o i n g g o o d d e e d s ,i n h e l p i n gt h e o p p r e s s e di,n S a v i n gT h e W o r l d .
E v e r yt i m e y o u s u c c e s s f u l lfyi n i s h a C h o s t b u s t i n ga d v e n t u r ey, o u g e t B r o w n i e
Points.Eachparticipantdedicatedto the serviceof humanitygetsone Chost Die
worth of BrowniePointsfor each Enemyof Mankind you vanquish.Forreal heavy
dudes, the Ghostmastermay award two or more dice worth of points.Any victory overa governmentagencyis a specialcase,and usuallyentailsbonusawards.
E a c ht i m e ( a sd e c i d e db y t h e C h o s t m a s t e rt h
) a t t h e t e a mf a i l s ,y o u g e t n o t h i n g ,
b u t a d d o n e B r o w n i eP o i n tt o t h e u l t i m a t et o t a l r e c e i v e dw h e n f i n a l l v v o u r i d
t h e w o r l d o f y o u r r e d o u b t a b l eo p p o n e n t .

Personality
Okay.Now you've got the basicelementsof a Chostbuster.
There'sjust one thing
missing...
Personality.
W h o i s t h i s C h o s t b u s t e rW
? h a t d o e s h e o r s h e l o o k l i k e ?A c t l i k e ?
Lookat your Traits,Talents,
and PersonalGoal. What is your strongpoint?Brains?
M u s c l e ?M o v e s ?C o o l ?
"Well,
this Chostbusterhasfive dice worth of Muscle,but only two dice worth
o f B r a i n s .A w e i g h r l i f t e r ?A b i g , p l e a s a n to a f ?A p r o f e s s i o n awl r e s t l e r ? "
W h a t d o h i s T a l e n t st e l l y o u a b o u t t h e c h a r a c t e rW
? h a t k i n d o f p e r s o nw o u l d
h a v ea p e r s o n a lC o a l l i k e S e r v i n gH u m a n i t y ?
Once you havesome ideas basedon your Traits,Talents,and Coals, work up
a I i n l e c h a r a c t e rd e s c r i p t i o na n d s h a r ei t w i t h y o u r C h o s t m a s t e r .

GhostbustersTrain i ng Manual

E x a m p l e :R e g i n a l dO . W a r f i e l dl l l i s a c l a s s yw
, ell-educated
g u y ( B r a i n s4 ,
C o o l 4 ) b u t h e ' s a b i t w i m p y a n d h a m - h a n d e d( M u s c l e2 a n d M o v e s 2 ) .
H i s T a l e n t -s A n t i q u eM e r c h a n d i s i nagn d C h a r m i n gS p i n s t e r-s m a k eh i m
a p o p u l a rf i g u r e i n h i g h s o c i e t y ,b u t h i s C o a l - S e r v i n gH u m a n i t y - i s
t h e l e g a c yo f h i s s o c i a l - r e f o r m emr o t h e r ,w h o d i e d w h e n h e w a s b u i a l a d ,
but who alwaysencouragedReggieto help otherslessfortunatethan himself.

Now You'rea Ghostbuster...

t'u

d"h,
lg\

e)

Yep!Thar'saboutallyouneedtoknow,
YourGhostmaster
knows
all theother
stuff,likehowthe ghosts
work,what
yourequipment
does,howfastyoucan
move,etc.Sograbsomeequipment,
throwa cnuple
of coldonesin theice
chest,makesureyou'rewearing
clean

DANA: My wonderful friends

savedme when no one e/se
could, and in the processthey
savedthe world from an unspeakableevil. How could I
ever thank them?
VENKMAN:
H m m m . . .I
have a few
suggestions,
Dana.,.

underwear(because
you
neverknow),hop into the
tomobile,and get thoseghosts!
Goodluck, trooper!

Chostbusters
Training
Manual

The
Rules
Ghostbuster
Thefollowingjunk is all game
rules.Snore.Youdon't needto
readthis sffi - unlessyou want
to reallyknowwhat'sgoingon -

\
t-"

4 l a
z
t4

l
'/

or mavbewantto bea Ghostmaster

yourself,
<.-----.....---.-

DoingThings

WINSTON:
What the man'ssayin'
is: The Ghostmaster
is boss.He can ruin
you any time he
wants.So watch your
behind!

I '

e
t
'/

WINSTON:
Sure.Uh-huh.Right.

10

F r o mt i m e t o t i m e d u r i n g a n a d v e n t u r ey, o u r Q h o s t b u s t ewr i l l w a n t t o d o s o m e s o s t o f t e n d o t h i n g sa t w h i c h t h e y c a n n o tf a i l ( l i k e
t h i n g . W h i l e C h o s t b u s t e rm
o p e n i n gb e e r c a n s ,w a t c h i n gT V , s i g n i n ga u t o g r a p h so, r s e n d i n go u t f o r p i z z a ) ,
y o u r c h a r a c t e rm a y o c c a s i o n a l l yw a n t t o d o s o m e t h i n ga l i t t l e m o r e d i f f i c u l t"tasks".
s o m e t h i n ga t w h i c h h e c o u l d f a i l . T h e s ea c t i o n sa r e c a l l e d
When your Chostbusterwantsto (or has to) perform a task,your Chostmaster
t p p l i e st o t h a tt a s k .
assigna
s d i f f i c u l t yn u m b e ra n d t e l l sy o u w h i c h T r a i to r T a l e n a
Traitor Talent.
points
appropriate
you
in
the
have
dice
as
many
You then roll as
l f y o u r o l l e q u a lt o o r h i g h e rt h a n t h e d i f f i c u l t yn u m b e r ,y o u s u c c e e d i; f n o t , y o u
fail. Rememberthat the Chost Die must be one of the dice (seebelow);remember
a l s ot h a t y o u c a n s p e n dB r o w n i eP o i n t st o i n c r e a s et h e n u m b e ro f d i c e y o u r o l l .
r a y f i n d h i m s e l fa t t e m p L i s t e db e l o w a r e s o m et a s k sw h i c h y o u r C h o s t b u s t em
t i n g t o p e r f o r m d u r i n g a n a d v e n t u r ea n d t h e d i f f i c u l t y n u m b e r s w h i c h t h e
Ghostmastem
r i g h t a s s i g nt h e m . N o t e t h a t t h e s e a r e o n l y g u i d e l i n e s- t h e
C h o s t m a s t e rc a n c h a n g e t h e d i f f i c u l t y n u m b e r o f a n y t a s k , i f h e d e e m s i t
appropriate.
of how impressiveyour Traits
Also,the Chostmastermay decidethat, regardless
o r T a l e n t sa, t a s k i s p a r t i c u l a r l yd i f f i c u l tf o r y o u r c h a r a c t e rl.n t h i s c a s e ,h e m a y
d e c r e a s et h e n u m b e ro f d i c e y o u r o l l . ( T h i si s u s u a l l ya p e n a l t yi f y o u r c h a r a c t e r
i s p o o r l y - p r e p a r e dc,a r e l e s sd, i s t r a c t e do, r o t h e r w i s en o t u p t o t h e u s u a l h i g h
standardsof competence.)
For example,Egon normally rolls sevendice for a feat of mental prowess,but
when attemptingto performfourth-ordermanipulationsof Vadervariableswhile
s t a n d i n gu n d e r a n a i r r a i d s i r e n ,t h e C h o s t m a s t esr a y st h a t E g o nc a n r o l l o n l y
3 dice.
r i l l b e a b s o l u t e l yf a i r a n d u n b i a s e di n h i s a s s e s s O f c o u r s e t, h e C h o s t m a s t ew
m e n t o f d i f f i c u l t yn u m b e r s .H i s e n j o y m e n to f t h e g a m e c o m e s f r o m w a t c h i n g
, o t f r o m m a k i n gt h e i r l i v e sa l i v i n gh e l l .
t h e C h o s t b u s t e rssu c c e e di n t h e m i s s i o n n

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n qM a n u a l

S A M P L ED I F F I C U L T I E S
no need to roll dice):
A U T O M A T I CS U C C E S S E(S
1 ) b l a s t i n ga w a l l w i t h a p r o t o n p a c k
2 ) s l e e p i n gs o u n d l yi n y o u r o w n b e d
3 ) d r i v i n ga c a r
4 ) e a t i n ga h o t d o g
5 ) g e n i n g i n t o a n a r g u m e n t( N e w Y o r k C i t y )
6 ) u s i n ga p a y p h o n e

7 ) p a y i n gs a l e st a x
B) picking up a toy poodle
E A S YI O B S ( r o l l a 5 o r m o r e ) :
'l)
p i c k i n g u p s o m e o n ei n a s i n g l e sb a r ( M o v e s )
2 ) s l e e p i n gs o u n d l y i n a s w a n k h o t e l ( C o o l )
3 ) b l a s t i n ga g h o s t w i t h a p r o t o n p a c k a t p o i n r b l a n k r a n g e( M o v e s )
4 ) p a r a l l e lp a r k i n ga b i g c a r ( M o v e s )
5 ) e a t i n gt h r e e B i g M a c s ( M u s c l e s )
6) getting into an argument (anywherebut New York City) (Cool)
7 ) r e m e m b e r i n ga f r i e n d ' sp h o n e n u m b e r ( B r a i n s )
8) figuring out Tax Form 1040E2(Brains)
9 ) p i c k i n g u p a Y o r k s h i r et e r r i e r( M u s c l e s )
NORMAL fOBS (roll 10 or more):
1) picking up an attractiveperson (Moves)
2 ) s l e e p i n gs o u n d l y o n t h e j o b ( C o o l )
3) blasting a ghost with a proton pack (Moves)
4 ) d r i v i n g i n M a n h a t t a nw i t h o u t g e t t i n gl o s t ( B r a i n s )
5 ) e a t i n ga w h o l e p i z z a b y y o u r s e l f( M u s c l e s )
6 ) w i n n i n g a n a r g u m e n t( C o o l )
7 ) c h e a t i n gt h e I R S( B r a i n s )
8) understanding
a n a n c i e n to c c u l t b o o k ( B r a i n s )
9 ) p i c k i n g u p a n l r i s h s e t t e r( M u s c l e s )

l.t

ta

o'

HARD fOBS (roll 20 or more):

.l)
picking up an off-Broadwayactor/actress
(Moves)
2 ) s l e e p i n gs o u n d l y o n a M a n h a t t a ns t r e e tc o r n e r ( C o o l )
3) blasting a ghost with a proton pack at long range (Moves)
4 ) d r i v i n ga l o n gt h e f r e e w a yd u r i n g r u s hh o u r w i t h o u t l o s i n gy o u r t e m p e r( C o o l )
5) winningan argumena
t b o u t p o l i t i c s( C o o , ,
6 ) g e n i n g a f a m o u s p e r s o nt o t a l k t o y o u o n t h e t e l e p h o n e( C o o l )
7) paying no taxes (Brains)
8 ) f i n d i n g a c h e a p r e n t a l l o c a t i o nf o r a C h o s t b u s t e frr a n c h i s e( B r a i n s )
9 ) p i c k i n g u p a S t . B e r n a r d( M u s c l e s )
IMPOSSIBLE
fOBS (roll 30 or more):
.l)
blasting a ghost with your eyes shut (Moves)
2 ) s l e e p i n gt h r o u g h a v o l c a n i ce r u p t i o n ( C o o r l
3 ) w i n n i n g t h e I n d i a n a p o l i s5 0 0 i n a H o n d a C i v i c ( M o v e s )
4 ) e a t i n ga t e l e p h o n e( M u s c l e s )
5 ) w i n n i n g a n a r g u m e n ta b o u t r e l i g i o n ( C o o r r
6 ) p i c k i n g u p a b u f f a l o( M u s c l e s )

The Chost Die

TheGhostDie mustalways
be oneof thediceyourollwhenyouareattempting
to performa task.lf a numbercomesup,simplyaddit andall theothernumbers
togetherand compare your total to the difficulty number.lf the ghost comes up,
however,SomethingBad Has Happened.
l f S o m e t h i n gB a d H a s H a p p e n e d c, o m p a r et h e o t h e r n u m b e r st o t h e d i f f i c u l t y
n u m b e r a n y w a y .l f y o u r o l l a g h o s t a n d e q u a l t o o r g r e a t e rt h a n t h e d i f f i c u l t y
n u m b e r ,y o u s u c c e e da t y o u r t a s k , t h o u g h y o u c a n l o o k f o r w a r dt o s o m e n i g g l ing annoyance.lf you roll lessthan the difficultynumber,not only does something
B a d H a p p e n ,b u t y o u f a i l a t y o u r t a s k .B i g T i m e T r o u b l e .
Let'ssay you are attemptingto eat a telephone.
o l f y o u e q u a l o r b e a t t h e d i f f i c u l t y n u m b e r a n d d o n ' t r o l l a g h o s t ,y o u d o i n
fact eat the phone and everything'sfine.
. l f y o u r o l l l e s st h a n t h e d i f f i c u l t y n u m b e r a n d d o n ' t r o l l a g h o s t ,y o u r t e e t h
a r e n ' t s t r o n ge n o u g h t o e a t t h e p l a s t i c ,b u t n o t h i n g p a r t i c u l a r l yb a d h a p p e n s
otherwise.
. l f y o u e q u a l o r b e a tt h e d i f f i c u l t yn u m b e ra n d r o l l a g h o s t ,y o u e a t t h e p h o n e ,
b u t , i n y o u r h a s t e ,f o r g o tt o u n p l u g i t f i r s t . l t r i n g s ,g i v i n g y o u a n a s t ye l e c t r i c
s h o c k a n d s o m e i n t e r e s t i n gp s y c h o l o g i c adl a m a g e .
C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

11

o lf you roll lessthan the difficultynumber and roll a ghost,you get the telephone
receivercaught in your mouth and haveto go to the hospitalfor some diificult,
expensive,and embarrassingoral surgery.

Example:RayStantzclimbs a tree to get PKEreadingsfrom a hauntedmans i o n .T h e C h o s t m a s t edr e s c r i b e st h e t r e ea s t a l l a n d r e m a r k a b l yu n d e r s u p p l i e d w i t h c o n v e n i e n tb r a n c h e s h

: e r a t e st h e c l i m b a t 1 0 . s i n c e s t a n t z ' s
M u s c l e i s 3 , t h e p l a y e rr o l l s t h r e e d i c e i n c l u d i n gt h e C h o s t D i e . H e g e t s
a 6, a 5, and a Ghost - that's 1'1,a success.Stantzarrivesin the tree too
s a f ea n d s o u n d , t h o u g h S o m e t h i n gB a d i s c e r t a i nt o f o l l o w .
After stantz has taken his readings,the chostmasterpleasantlyinforms
Stantz'splayerthat Stantzcracked all the lower brancheson his way up:
he has to roll 15 or better if Stantzattemptsto climb down.
Stantzdecidesthat discretionis the betterpart of cowardiceand bellows
f o r W i n s t o n t o f i n d a l a d d e ra n d e e t h i m d o w n l
!'.. 1
A\\''

_ - -

\ \

< J

T h e c h o s t D i e w o r k sf o r s p o o k si n s t e a do f a g a i n s t h e m . T h e v a l u eo f r o l l i n g
a c h o s t i s s t i l l z e r o ,b u t a c c i d e n t sc, o i n c i d e n c e sa, n d m i s h a p sr e b o u n dt o t h 6
spook's benefit.

Example:Blazingawaywith his proton pack, Stantzchasesa spook down

a h a l l w a yT
. h e s p o o ks u d d e n l yt u r n sa n d a t t e m p t st o s l i m e R a v T
. hechostmaster rolls the attack for the spook: the attack succeeds and the
C h o s t m a s t ea
r lso rollsa ehost!
R a yi s s l i m e d ,b u t t h a t ' si h e l " u s to f h i s w o r r i e s T
. h e c h o s t m a s t e ri n f o r m s
stantz'splayerthat the ghost'sslime coated the entire froor of the hallwav.
a n d t h a t s t a n t z i s n o w s l i d i n ga l o n g i t , h e a d i n gr i g h t f o r t h e b i g w i n d o w
at the end of the hall! ExitStantz.

Beating Someone Else

sometimes
chostbusters
come into conflictwith otherpeople- like when
winstonarm-wrestles
with Egon,or when Venkmanargueswiih an EpAofficial.
Towin theconflict,
- withwords,
theGhostbuster
mustovercome
hisbpponent
fists,Brains,ability,cash,or whatever.
ln thiscase,thechostmaster
decideswhichTraitor Talenteachantagonist
is
using,the opponents
eachroll the appropriate
numberof dice (including
the
chost Die, of course),and the high roll wins. lf the totalsare equal]the
Chostmaster
can leaveit a tie, or havethe opponentsroll again.

VENKMAN:
A statisticallvimprobableevent,I
assurevou.

12

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

Example:
Venkman
is returning
throughU.s.customs.
He actsnonchalant
so thatthe hardnosed
customs
officials
won'tinspecthis baggage
(which
is loadedwith dutiableitems).
Thecustoms
agentstudies
Venkman,
tryingto remember
wherehe,sseen
- he'ssuspicious
of
anyone
he
thinks
he's
seen.
The
chostmaster
says
li.
theagentwill matchhisBrains
against
Venkman's
Coolto seeif a ruggage
inspection
is made.
Venkman's
playersmirks,
sayingthatVenkman
will usehis BruffTarent
to getthrough.Butthe customs
official's
Talentis seeB - not thatmucn
lower.Thedice clatteracrossthe table.when the smokecrears,
Venkman
and.the
agenthaveequalscores
of 23 each.sinceVenkman's
prayer
rolled
a Ghost,too,andthe customs
agentdidn't,the chostmaster
decidesthat
the agentwins.Incredibly,
Venkmanlosesa Bluff.

T h e C h o s t m a s t erru l e st h a t t h e o f f i c i a lm e t h o d i c a l l ys e a r c h e as l l o f V e n k m a n ' s
l u g g a g ef,i n d i n g a l l k i n d s o f b o o t y .S i n c eV e n k m a nr o l l e d a C h o s t ,a s w e l l , t h e
G h o s t m a s t edr e c i d e st h a t t h e c u s t o m so f f i c i a lh o l d s h i m f o r h o u r so f q u e s t i o n i n g , i n c l u d i n ga d e t a i l e db o d y s e a r c h .

VENKMAN:
After all the indignity- the humiliation - the rat hadthe nerveto askfor
my autograph!

SomeGame Rules
Movement
The more Movespointsyou have,the fasteryou can move,and the more quickly
you reactto things.Justhow far you can go, and how fast,in any specificperiod
r i l l j u d g e s u c h t h i n g sa c o f t i m e d e p e n d so n l o t s o f t h i n g s .Y o u r C h o s t m a s t ew
c o r d i n gt o c i r c u m s t a n c e s .

Sequenceof Play
During the most action-packedpartsof an adventure,when there'slots of conf l i c t a n d p a n i c a n d s m a s h i n gt h i n g s a n d r u n n i n g a r o u n d , t h e C h o s t m a s t e r
organizeseventsin a certain order to keep things from gettingconfusedand to
m a k e s u r e e v e r y b o d yg e t s a c h a n c et o d o s o m e t h i n g .l t g o e s l i k e t h i s :
.1.
T h e C h o s t m a s t etre l l s w h a t h i s c h a r a c t e r so r s p o o k sa r e g o i n g t o d o . . .
2. The Ghostmasteraskseach playerin turn, startingwith the playerto his right,
what he or she is going to do...
3 . T h e n t h e C h o s t m a s t efri g u r e so u t w h o d o e s w h a t t o w h o m , a n d i n w h a t
o r d e r ,a s k i n gp l a y e r st o r o l l d i c e w h e n n e c e s s a r yo,r j u s t j u d g e sw h a t h a p p e n s
a c c o r d i n gt o c o m m o n s e n s ea n d d r a m a t i cj u s t i c e .
During this sequenceof play, a charactermay both move and oerform one
other action.An "action" may be firing with a proton pack,trying to find another
Ghostbusterin the dark, reading a PKE meter,and .so forth.
S o m e a c t i o n sm a y i n t e r f e r ew i t h m o v i n g s u c c e s s f u l l yS; t a n t zm i g h t b e a b l e
t o f i n d a c e r t a i nr e f e r e n c ei n T o b i n ' sS P I R I TC U I D E w h i l e t r o t t i n ga l o n g ,b u t h e
r u n st h e r i s ko f t r i p p i n go r r u n n i n gi n t o a w a l l . O t h e r a c t i o n sr e p l a c em o v e m e n t :
while you'redrivinga car;tryingto run at the sametime is ratherunusual(although
p l a u s i b l ei f y o u R E A L L Yb l e w y o u r C o o l a f t e rv i e w i n g a s p o o k ) .
judgeswhat is reasonable
In all cases,the Chostmaster
and likely.That'shis job.
D u r i n g m o s t o f t h e g a m e ,i t i s n ' tn e c e s s a rtyo u s et h e s e q u e n c eo f p l a y - j u s t
be tolerably polite, don't interrupt others without good reason, and let the
Chostmasterorganizethe talking so everybodygetsa chanceto say something,
a s k q u e s t i o n so, r d o w h a t n e e d st o b e d o n e .

Combat
There are two kinds of combat: hand-to-handand ranged weapons. Needless
to say,knives,pistols,blackjacks,and the like probably don't work on ghosts.
But there're plenty of things to battle besidesghosts in any GHOSTBUSTERS
campaign.
HAND-TGHAND: Muscle is the appropriateTraitfor hand-to-hand
fighting;Brawl
a n d G r a p p l ea r ea p p l i c a b l eT a l e n t sl.f a n a n t a g o n i sht a sa h a n d + o - h a n dw e a p o n ,
s u c ha s a c l u b ,t h e n t h e n u m b e ro f d i c e u s e dt o r e s o l v eh i s o r h e r r o l l i s i n c r e a s e d b y a s l i g h t o r c o n s i d e r a b l ea m o u n t , j u d g e d b y t h e C h o s t m a s t e r .
T h e i n c r e a s ei s t h e s a m ew h e t h e ra T r a i to r a T a l e n ti s u s e dt o d e t e r m i n et h e
n u m b e r o f d i c e w h i c h t h e a n t a g o n i srt o l l s .l f b o t h f i g h t e r sh a v ew e a p o n s ,b o t h
a d d t h e i r w e a p o n si n c r e a s e- t h e r e l e v a nM
t u s c l e ,B r a w l ,o r C r a p p l em i g h t n o t
be eoual.

fxample:Janineis attempting
old ladyarmedwith
to fendoff a possessed
janinehasMuscles2 and tfreTalentof Crapple:shegetsto
an umbrella.
roll5 dice.Theold womannormallyhasMuscles1,butthespookpossessing herhasmagically
raisedit to 3. TheChostmaster
decidesthatthe umbrellawill giveher one extradie in her attack:shegetsto roll 4 dice.

Chostbusters
Training
Manual

l3

SampleHand-to-HandWeapons
Dice Weapon
;
+1 BrassKnuckles,
LongFingernails
Blackjack,
+2 Switchblade,
Bullwhip,FryingPan
i
+3 Club,Chair,Sword
+4 BattleAxe, ChainSaw,PowerDrill
' Addthe indicated
numberof diceto thedicewhichtheowninscharacter
roll

R A N G E DW E A P O N S :a r a n g e dw e a p o n i s o n e w h i c h c a n b e u s e dt o d a m a g e
s o m e o n ef a r a w a y ,h u r l i n g a m i s s i l eo r b o l t o f e n e r g ya t a m o r e - o r - l e sdsi s t a n t
target.
Rangedweaponsare fired at "point blank," "normal," or "long distance."The
Chostmasterdeterminesthe three rangesfor the particularweapon according
t o c i r c u m s t a n c e sS.i n c eC h o s t b u s t e rdsi s d a i np r i s s yc a l c u l a t i o no f o d d s ,t a k ea s
a r u l e o f t h u m b t h a t " p o i n t - b l a n k " i s 1 0 f e e t o r l e s s ,a n d t h a t " l o n g d i s t a n c e "
is 50 feet or more for a pistol, shotgun, or proton pack, and 500 feet or more
for a rifle.
P o i n t - B l a n ka: t p o i n t - b l a n kr a n g e ,t h e d i f f i c u l t yr o l l i s u s u a l l y5 . T h e d e f e n d e r
can attemptto use his or her own weapon, or to Crapple the attackerto deflect
t h e s h o t - a n d p o s s i b l ys e i z et h e w e a p o n a s a l a t e ra c t i o n .
N o r m a l R a n g e :t h e d i f f i c u l t yr a t i n ga t n o r m a l r a n g ei s u s u a l l y1 0 .A t n o r m a l o r
l o n g d i s t a n c et,h e d e f e n d e rc a n ' tG r a p p l eh i s o p p o n e n t ;h e m u s te i t h e rf i r e b a c k
or run for cover.
Long Distance:at long distance,the attacker'splayermust normally beat a difficulty 20 to hit his target.

Eathot high-energyatomic particles,ectoplasmicscum!

Death,Damage,Hospitals,and SickTime
C h o s t b u s t e rdso n o t o r d i n a r i l yd i e - n o r d o e sa n y o t h e rc h a r a c t e irn t h i s g a m e .
( A n d t h e g h o s t sa r e a l r e a d yd e a d . )C h a r a c t e r d
s o g e t h u r t , t h o u g h ,e q u i p m e n t
gets toasted,and ghostsget gobbled-up by the ghost trap.
For instance,if Leutonianterroristswire ECTO-Ito explode,the Chostbusters
a r e l e f t s i t t i n gi n t h e v e h i c l e ' sb a r ef r a m e ,s m u d g e da n d c l o t h e di n r a g sf r o m t h e
b l a s t .T h e E c t o m o b i l eh a sg o n e t o e q u i p m e n th e a v e na, n d t h e G h o s t b u s t e resn d
u p i n t h e h o s p i t a l .I n a d d i t i o n ,t h e C h o s t m a s t ew
r i l l p r o b a b l yf i n e t h e m s e v e r a l
B r o w n i eP o i n t s- t o s a yn o t h i n go f t h e f i n e G B I w i l l l a y o n t h e m f o r d e s t r o y i n g
v a l u a b l ep r o t o n p a c k s ,e c t o - v i s o r se,t c . ( C e t t i n gh u r t i s n ' to n l y t i m e - c o n s u m i n g
a n d o a i n f u l ,i t ' s a l s o e x o e n s i v e ! )

14

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n sM a n u a l

lf a Ghostbuster
hasbeenextraordinarily
careless
or outrageously
reckless,
a
chostmaster
maydecidethathe or shehaspushedhisor her lucktoo far,and
thatthischarmedlife mustend.A touchingdyingsceneis appropriate
- the
mortallyinjuredchostbuster
gatherscolleagues
around,warnst'hemagainst
wastingtheir livesas he or she has,wishesthem luck, uttersa few bravelast
words,and shufflesoff this mortalcoil.
Thiswill not happenoften,andthe reasons
for thecharacter's
demiseshould
be clearto all the players.
Whena chostbuster
doesdie,the playermakesa new
character
for the nextsession(andtriesto be a littlemorepiud'ent).
Obviouslv.
the deceased
chostbusterbecomesa ghostrun by the chostmaster,
and haunis
formerfriends.

SampleBrowniePoint lossesFor Damage

o H i t b y B a t t l eA x e : 1 B r o w n i e P o i n t i f y o u , r e
l u s t n i c k e dt o t h e b o n e .
U p t o 1 0 B r o w n i e P o i n t si f a p a r t f e l l o f f a n d i s b o u n c i n g a r o u n d t h e
room.
(Thanksto the miracle of modern medicine, if you savethe part rn a
refrigerator,they can staple it back on you at the hospital.)
. F a l l s :1 B r o w n i e P o i n t p e r s t o r y t o a m a x i m u m o f 5 p o i n t s .T h e r e
i s n ' t t o o m u c h d i f f e r e n c eb e t w e e nf a l l i n g 5 s t o r i e so r f a l l i n g 5 0 s t o r i e s ,
after all!
o Fire, Radioactivity:'l Brownie Point for ,,ouch,, burns, getting more
s e r i o u su n t i l y o u r e a c h s c r e a m i n gp r o p o r t i o n so f a r o u n d 2 0 B r o w n r e
Points.
Radioactivityis nasty,becauseyou don't realize you,ve been expose d u n t i l p i e c e so f y o u r b o d y b e g i n f a l l i n g o f f . T o s i m u l a t et h i s , t h e
Chostmasterwill secretlymark off Brownie points from your total
w i t h o u t t e l l i n g y o u . T h e n w h e n y o u t r y t o u s e m o r e B r o w n i ep o i n r s
than you really have,your body begins to fall apart. you can cut down
o n t h e B r o w n i eP o i n t l o s si f y o u f i g u r e o u t w h a t i s g o i n g o n a n d
c h e c k y o u r s e l fi n t o a h o s p i t a l .
o D r o w n i n g ,A s p h y x i a t i o n :1 B r o w n i e P o i n t p e r m i n u t e s p e n t u n d e r
water or whatever.After 10 or so Brownie Points lost in this way, going
f i s h i n g i n y o u r l u n g s b e c o m e sa r e a l p o s s i b i l i t y .
o P o i s o n :1 B r o w n i e P o i n t i f t h e p o i s o n w i l l o n l y g i v e y o u a s t o m a c h
a c h e . M o r e s e r i o u sp o i s o n st h a t t u r n y o u r s k i n y e l i o w a n d s h r i v e l u p
y o u r t o e s m a y c a u s ea s m u c h a s ' 1 0 t o 1 5 B r o w n i e p o i n t st o b e l o s r .
l n a d d i t i o n t o B r o w n i e P o i n t l o s s ,t h e C h o s t m a s t e m
r ay often dump
you in the hospital for a couple of weeks if the damage warrantsit.

.u'

VENKMAN:
Go to hospital.
Go directly to
hospital.Do
not passGo,
Do not collect
$200.

UsingYourEquipment
Carryinglt Around
There'sa. limit to everything.Your chostbuster can carry three items of equipm e n t w i t h o u t s e r i o u s l ya f f e c t i n gh i s o r h e r a b i l i t y t o a c t . l f y o u f e e l l i k e p l a y i n g
a p a c k - m u l e y, o u r c h o s t b u s t e rc a n c a r r y a s m a n y i t e m s a s h i s o r h e r M u s c l e ,
b u t i f t h a t a d d s u p t o f o u r o r m o r e i t e m s ,h e o r s h e c a n ' t t a k e a n y a c t i o n sw h i l e
c a r r y i n ga l l t h a t j u n k - e x c e p tt o m o v e a n d g r u n t u n i n t e l l i g i b i y .
Since you can carry only three items and still be effective,you mav wish to
s e t u p a n e q u i p m e n td u m p ( o f t e nt h e E c t o m o b i l e s) o m e w h e r en " r r . f h " r . " n u
of ghostly activity,so that if you need somethingyou aren't carrying, you can
r u n b a c k a n d g e t i t . l t ' s p r o b a b l yw i s e r ,t h o u g h , t o d i v i d e u p t h e g e a r a m o n g
t h e c h o s t b u s t e r si n t e l l i g e n t l ym, a k i n gs u r en o o n e c a r r i e sm o r et h a n t h r e ei t e m s .

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

15

EquipmentCards
E x a m i n et h e E q u i p m e n tC a r d st h a t c o m e w i t h t h e g a m e .S o r tt h r o u g ht h e c a r d s
and pick out the ones that your Chostbusterwantsto tote around and load them
and any other stuffyou think you'll need in the ECTO-I(i.e.,stackthe cardsbelow
the ECTO-Icard).This permitsyou readyaccessto all the equipment your team
i s c a r r y i n gi n t h e f i e l d . l f y o u d o n ' t h a v ee n o u g hc a r d sf o r a l l t h e e q u i p m e n ty o u
want to carry (for instance,if everyonewantsto take along a set of Alpine Cear),
make up some more using3" by 5" cards.
When your Chostbusteris ready to zap some ghosts,pick up any three items
from the ECTOI's stack and put them by your Chostbustercard. Usually it's a
good idea for each Chostbusterto take a proton pack as one of his or her three
items- otherwisethe spookcan slime an unarmedchostbusterat will. someone
o u g h t t o h a v ea g h o s t t r a p a n d a P K Em e t e r h a n d y a s w e l l .
T h e c a r d sa r e s e l f - e x p l a n a t o rTyh. e p i c t u r es h o w st h e e q u i p m e n ta n d t h e l i n e s
of text tell you what the gadgetdoes. This chapter explainsthe gadgets,functions in a little more detail.

Aura Video-Analyzer

16

G h o s t b u s t e rTs r a i n i n gM a n u a l

Alpine Gear
U s i n gp r o p e ra l p i n eg e a r l e t sy o u r o l l 3 e x t r ad i c e w h e n u s i n gM u s c l eo r C l i m b
to scalethe Matterhorn,or a skyscraper,
or an elevatorshaft.Alpine gearincludes
p i t o n s ,c l i m b i n g h a m m e r s ,r o p e , c l a m p s ,a n d e v e n a p a i r o f c u t e / e d e r h o s e n .
Aura Video-Analyzer
T h i s h a n d y I a b - g a d g e t 'psu r p o s ei s t w o - f o l d :n o t o n l y d o e s i t t e l l t h e e m o t i o n a l
s t a t eo f t h e s u b j e c tw e a r i n gt h e h e l m e t( i t t e l l sw h e t h e ro r n o t a s u b j e c ti s l y i n g ,
or is in love, or is in pain, etc.), but it also revealsthe wearer'sessenceof archetype(in non-technicalterms,the subject'sself-image- hero,empress,movie
star,genius,wild beast,fertility goddess,etc.).lf the subject is possessed,
for ins t a n c e ,i t s h o w st h e o u t l i n e o f t h e e n t i t y i n p o s s e s s i o o
nf the subiect.
Beach Kit
A g r e a tp a c k a g ed e a l i n c l u d i n ga h u g e i n f l a t a b l eb e a c h b a l la, v o l l e y b a l ln e t a n d
- AM/FM radio
volleyball, sunglasses,
a sturdy beach umbrella, cassette-deck
blaster,loads of sun-tanlotion, double-sizedbeach towels, Frisbee,and other
e s s e n t i apl a r a p h e r n a l i a .
W h a t ' st h a t ,y o u a s k ?W h a t d o e st h i s h a v et o d o w i t h G h o s t b u s t i n gB
? e a t su s .
Bullhorn
T h e r e ' sn o t h i n g l i k e a b u l l h o r n f o r m a k i n g y o u r s e l fh e a r do v e r t h e h u b b u b o f
a cocktail party.Or for telling a ghost to surrenderbefore you move in on it.
CellularPhone
T h i s i s a t e l e p h o n ey o u c a n i n s t a l li n t h e E C T O - Il.t i s s o r n e w h aet x t r a v a g a n( ot n e
h u n d r e do r m o r e d o l l a r s r e n t e a c h m o n t h ) , b u t w h a t a s t a t u ss y m b o l !
ECTO.I
T h i s s t y l i s hv e h i c l es e a t st h r e e c h o s t b u s t e r si n l u x u r i o u sc o m f o r t ,o r u p t o s i x
in ratherdesperatecircumstances.lts generouscargo capacity accommodates
a f u l l l i n e o f p a r a n o r m ailn v e s t i g a t i oann d e l i m i n a t i o ne q u i p m e n t .F l a s h i n gl i g h t s
s i g n a ll e s s e vr e h i c l e st o c l e a rt h e w a y ,a n d t h e b i g p l a s t i cf i g u r eo n t h e r o o f p r o v i d e sl o a d so f f r e ea d v e r t i s i n go.n e s l i g h tf l a w i s t h a t i t ' sa b o u ta s i n c o n s p i c u o u s
as a moosehiding in your refrigerator.
Ecto-Visors
T h e s es p o o k - f i n d egr l a s s e sa l l o w a G h o s t b u s t e tro s e e i n t h e d a r k . T h e y a l s o
e l i m i n a t ea l l p e r i p h e r a vl i s i o n a n d l o o k d u m b o n e l e v a t o r s .
Geiger Counter
Radioactiveghosts?Why not? Besides,there are other usesfor geigercounters.
Y o u m i g h t r u n i n t o r a d i o a c t i v em o n s t e r so r h a v et o e x p l o r eT h r e e M i l e l s l a n d
to see what real/y went wrong there.(They'realso handy for detectingmalfunct i o n i n g u n l i c e n s e dn u c l e a ra c c e l e r a t o r s . )
Ceiger countersmake a neatcracklingnoisewhen they detectradiation.When
t h e c r a c k l i n gg e t sl o u d e r ,t h e r a d i a t i o ni s s t r o n g e rl.f i t g e t st o o l o u d , y o u s h o u l d
vacatethe premisesbefore all your hair and teeth fall out.
Ghost Trap
A s m a l l b o x w h i c h s t o r e sa n d t r a n s p o r t so n e s u b d u e dg h o s t .T h e l i d i s o p e n e d
by pressinga foot-pedalattachedto the box by a twelve-footlength of tubing.

A s i t o p e n s ,t h e g h o s t t r a p p r o d u c e sa l u m i n o u sw h i t e c o n e o f p s y c h o k i n e t i c
forcewhich channelsthe targetghost into the trap.when the footpedal is released, the trap closes.lt takesa secondor two for the field to neutralizethe ghost's
own ectoplasmicenergies,so a spook could zoom away from the trap before
it is suckedinside- unlessthe containmentbeam of a proton pack holds it there.
After capture, store the ghost within the protection grid at a chostbusters
franchise.
lnfrared Camera
such camerascan take picturesof ghostsin the dark, even when the ghostsare
normally invisible.A cameracan be remotely-operated
(difficultyi0) to savewear
and tearon chostbusters,or it can be setup to take pictureson a pre-programmeo
schedule(difficulty10).You could set up a rriqbeam (difficulV 5) to catcha ghost
in the act, and so forth. Brainsis the relevantTraitto operatethe cameraproperly, and Photographyis the relevantTalent.
Parachute
What else is there to say?Parachutesalwayswork unlessyou roll a chost and
t h e C h o s t m a s t e fre e l s r e a l l y m e a n .
PKE Meter
,"
P s y c h o k i n e t iecn e r g ym e t e r sa r e " g h o s t - f i n d e r s m
e a s u r i n gl o c a l p K Ev a r e n c e s
i n t h e v i c i n i t yt o d i s c o v e p
r a r a n o r m aal c t i v i t yW
. h e n a g h o s ii s i n t h e a r e a ,p r e t t y
l i g h t sf l a s ha n d t h e P K Em e t e r ' sa r m sr i s eu p h i g h .T h e i l o s e r a n d m o r e p o w e r f u l
t h e . g h o s t l yp r e s e n c et,h e h i g h e rt h e a r m s r i s ea n d t h e m o r e i n s i s t e n t l iyh " l i g h t t
flash.

PKEMeter

Protection Grid
A p r o t e c t i o ng r i d i s l a r g ea n d i m m o b i l e . l t c a n s a f e l ys t o r ea n e x t r e m e l yl a r g e
number of ghosts.After many adventures,it can get fu ll and th reatento collapse,
b u t a n v a c t u a lc o l l a p s ec a n o n l y o c c u r a t t h e i n s t i g a t i o n
o f t h e C h o s t m a s t el rw h o
s h o u l d g i v e t h e c h o s t b u s t e r sp l e n t yo f w a r n i n g ) .l f y o u g e t w o r r i e d ,b u i l d a s e cono one.
Proton Pack
s m a l l u n l i c e n s e dn u c l e a ra c c e l e r a t o r st h, e p r o t o n p a c k sa r e t h e c h o s t n u s t e r s ,
b a s i c w e a p o n . T h e w i g g l y b e a m e m i t t e d b y t h e p r o t o n p a c k s c o r c h e sw a l l s ,
knocksholesthroughwood paneling,destroyschandeliersand upholstery- und
o c c a s i o n a l l ys u b d u e sg h o s t s .

Proton Pack

s$iN\ s \

I:l:::lr:

N
,F

iY
iIl

'\s"i'
[
Safety Iipr NEVER cross fhe beams! Never!
Proton packs have two basic settings.The "Attack" setting is the major one.
A successfu.l
hit by a proton pack's beam set on Attack leisens a ghost's Ect o p r e s e n c eb y 1 . ( l f y o u ' r e i n t e r e s t e dy, o u r c h o s t m a s t e rw i l l g i v e y o u a l i n e o f
h o _ o i e x p l a i n i n gE c t o p r e s e n c ej u; s t n o d a g r e e a b l ya n d k e e p s h o o t i n g . )
The "Containment" settingis usedto form a proton-beamcagearound a ghost
and move it to whereverthe Ghostbustersplease.At leasttwo Chostbustersmust
cooperateto usethe Containmentsettingproperly,and the ghost'sEcropresence
must havebeen reducedto zero beforethe Containmentsettingcan work (otherw i s e t h . eg h o s tj u s t z i p s a w a y ) .U s u a l l y ,C o n t a i n m e n ti s u s e dt b m o v e a t r a p p e d
ghost directly over a ghost trap, which is then activated.

Chostbusters
Training
Manual

17

I n v i s i b l eo r i m m a t e r i a sl p o o k so r s p i r i t sc a n o n l y b e a f f e c t e db y p r o t o n b e a m
attacksif they can be accuratelytargetted(i.e.,when they havea manifestedform).
I n s o m e c a s e st e c h n o l o g i c a al i d s c a n r e v e a la g h o s t l ya u r a , r e n d e r i n gt h e e c toplasmic presencevulnerable to proton beam attacks.
Crossingtwo proton beams set on Attack resultsin a catastrophicexplosion.
T h i s e x p l o s i o ni s S O c a t a s t r o p h i ci ,n f a c t ,t h a t c r o s s i n gt h e b e a m sc a n h a p p e n
o n l y w h e n d o n e o n p u r p o s eo
, r w h e n t w o C h o s t b u s t e rfsi r e p r o t o np a c k si n t h e
s a m e r o u n d a t t h e s a m et a r g e t- a n d b o t h f a i l t h e i r r o l l , a n d b o t h r o l l C h o s t s ,
and the Chostmastersaysso.

Spates Catalogue

Scuba Gear
A wetsuit is helpful when investigatinghaunted sewers,storiesof sea monsters,
a n d s i m i l a ra q u a t i cs i t u a t i o n sA. t y p i c a lo n e - t a n kw e t s u i th o l d s e n o u g ho x y g e n
f o r 3 0 m i n u t e so f l i f e .l t t a k e sa l i t t l es k i l l t o s w i m i n a f r o g s u i t ,i f y o u d o n ' t k n o w
how. lf you want to do more than just paddle around very slowly, you'll need
t o r o l l a g a i n s ty o u r M u s c l e sT r a i to r S w i m T a l e n t .
Secret Tomes of Occult Lore
Everygood occultistshould haveaccessto one or more occult book. He might
e v e n h a v ea w h o l e l i b r a r yf u l l o f t h e m . S o m e t y p i c a l o n e s i n c l u d e :R o y l a n c e ,
CUIDE TO SECRET
SOCIETIES
AND SECTS;
Tobin,SPIR|TCUTDE;Spates,
SPATES
CATALOCUE
OF NAMELESS
H O R R O R SA N D W H A T T O D O A B O U T T H E M ;
Fredde,THE BIC BOOK OF OCCULT LORE;and, of course,Stafford,Perersen,
a n d W i l l i s ,C H O S T B U S T E RH
' SA N D B O O K .
T h e G h o s t m a s t ecr a n a l l o w t h e C h o s t b u s t e rtso f i n d c l u e s i n t h e s eb o o k s o r
look up appropriatefactsand occasionallymay route the Ghostbustersinto an
a d v e n t u r eb y m e a n so f s o m e t h i n gf o u n d i n a b o o k .
Video Camcorder
lf you've got enough money,this is definitely the way to go. Set up your video
and record the ghosts'attackfirsthand.Some ghostsdon't registeron video, so
make sureyou're going afterthe right kind beforewastingyour money.You can
also use a video camera to record advertisementsfor local TV.
Walkie-Talkies
A n a b s o l u t en e c e s s i t yi f y o u r g r o u p i s f o r c e dt o s p l i t u p w h e n h u n t i n gd o w n a
ghost.Walkie-talkieshavea rangeof a few hundred yards,pick up lots of static
and conversationsfrom passingtruckers,and may fail to work in the presence
of powerful psychokineticforces.

InventingNew Equipment
The scienceof paranormologyseesdramaticadvanceseveryday as chostbusters
a r e c o n f r o n t e dw i t h n e w a n d u n a n t i c i p a t e d
c h a l l e n g e sD. e s i g na n d f i e l d - t e s t i n g
of new research
a n d e l i m i n a t i o nd e v i c e si s c o n t i n u a l l yt a k i n gp l a c e ,b o t h a t t h e
GhostbustersInternational Research Labs and in each of the chostbuster
franchises.
From time to time you'll receivea new piece of equipmentfrom GBI Research,
f o r t e s t i n go r f o r a s p e c i a lp r o j e c t .Y o u r C h o s t m a s t ew
r i l l e x p l a i nt h e p u r p o s e
and function of the equipment when you receive it.

Of coune,thesedevices
arefully tested
beforeweassignthemtoyou. Youare
perfectlysafe.. .

18

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

Y9umayalsowork on specialresearch
projectsof your own, or you may be
calledupon to improvise
equipmentin shortand desperate
circumstances.
Wheneveryou want to do this,just tell the Gamemaster
what you want your
projectto accomplish
anddescribe
threeor fourdifferent
devices
which might
getthejob done.Describe
the bogusprinciples
you arebasingyour
of science
devices
on, andhow muchresearch,
design,labor,andmoneyyouwishto spend.
Yourchostmaster
will pickthe devicehe findsmostinteresting
or amusingof
thethreeandtellyouhowsuccessful
yourresearch
was...or how manycity blotks
wereleveledwhen yourdevicemalfunctioned
duringtesting.
Example:When ravening,slobberingbug-eyedmonstersenteredour fours p a c et r a n s - d i m e n s i o n a ltloy r a v a g es h o p p i n gm a l l sa c r o s st h e l a n d , E g o n
was forcedto designa transportdevicethat would permit the chostbusrers
to pursuethe fleeing BEMs.Egon'splayerthen presentedthe following 3
ideas to the Ghostmaster:
' 1.witches and warlockssupposedlycould createmagicalpentacleswhich
a c t . a s g a t e st o o t h e r d i m e n s i o n s .( M o s t d e m o n s , s p r i t e sa n d g i b b e r i n g
s k e l e t o n st h a t t h e w i t c h e sc o n j u r ea r e a c t u a l l yi n t e r - d i m e n s i o n akli o n a p victims,broughtto this four-spaceto work the witches'bidding.)With study
o f a n c i e n t ,f o r b i d d e nt o m e s r u m o r e dt o b e h i d d e n i n t h e b a s e m e n to f a
c e r t a i nN e w E n g l a n du n i v e r s i r yE g o nw i l l b e a b l e t o d u p l i c a t et h i s e f f e c t
a n d u s e i t t o s e n d t h e C h o s t b u s t e ra
s f t e rt h e d i s g u s t i n ga l i e n s .
r 2 . W h e n u n d e rt h e i n f l u e n c eo f c e r t a i ni l l e g a ld r u g s ,m a n ys u b j e c t sc l a i m
t o t r a v e lt o b i z a r r el a n d sf i l l e d w i t h d i s g u s t i n gi,n h u m a nc r e a t u r e sR. a t h e r
than simple hallucinationscausedby sensoryoverloadfrom disruptedbrain
synapses,
Egonspeculates,
theseerperiencesare real:the drugs in fact send
t h e i r u s e r s 'c o n s c i o u s n e stso o t h e r p l a n e s o f e x i s t e n c e p
. o s s i b l ys o m e
lysergicacid variantwill allow usersto controlthe process,follow the aliens,
and attackthe BEMsethereally.(Venkmanenthusiastically
volunteersto test
Egon'snew drugs.)
r 3. Egon knows that when proton beamsare crossed,manifold cross-rips
in the universalstructureresult.When proton packsare wielded bv clums y h u m a n s ,t h e r e s u l tc a n b e e x t r a o r d i n a r i l d
y a n g e r o u sB
. ut a computer
could control two proton packs,focusing and controlling their beams to
s e l e c tt h e n u m b e r o f d i m e n s i o n sa n d p o w e r o f t h e d i m e n s i o n a cl r o s s - r i p .
Such a device, mounted on the hood of ECTO-I, would allow the
Chostbustersto voyageinto the void.
T h e c h o s t m a s t e rd e c i d e st h a t t h e l a s td e v i c e i s t h e m o s t i n t e r e s t i n go f
the three and fits best into the adventure.He also rulesthat such a device
causes a permanent weak-spot in the fabric of the universe, so the
chostbusterscan only use it a few times before they risk destroyingLife,
T h e U n i v e r s eA, n d E v e r y t h i n g( T
. h ec h o s r m a s t e irm p o s e st h i s r i m i tt i k e e o
t h e c h o s t b u s t e r sf r o m s p e n d i n gt h e r e s to f t h e i r l i v e sz o o m i n g a r o u n dt h e
m u l t i v e r s ea n d f o r c i n g h i m t o c r e a t en e w d i m e n s i o n se v e r yi e s s i o n .s e l f i n t e r e s ti s t h e m o t h e r o f i n v e n t i o n . . . )

Chostbusters
Training Manual

19

Paranormolog
qo
z

^ : ) /
r -Fr,,. ll

Followingare someexceedingly
interestingspeculations
on the nature
of ghostsandghostology,
soonto be
publishedin the prestigiousJournal
of Unexplained
Things. I am sureyou

will find my comments

insightful,
-\--=-lucid,andextremely
heffiI
whendealingwith the unknown.

Oryoucanlookfor mymasterwork,
"Cannibal Vampires
From Hell and

OtherStrangeThingsLive in Your
Basement!",appearingin "Lurid

WeeklyGazette"- at supermarkets
nearvou,

pJJ
e

VENKMAN: Egon, why don't you tell us a little about the sclence of
paranormology?
EGON: Certainly,Peter.To begin with, you must realizethat the four-dimensional
s p a c e o u r s e n s e sp e r c e i v ei s o n l y a f r a c t i o no f t h e t o t a l u n i v e r s e Q
. uantum
c h r o m o d y n a m i ca
s n d m o d e r ns u p e r s y m m e t rtyh e o r ys h o w t h a t i n f a c tt h e r ea r e
e l e v e nd i m e n s i o n s M
. aybe twelve.
STANTZ:Wowl Eleven?
E G O N : W e l l , o r p e r h a p st w e l v e .M o s t g r a n d u n i f i c a t i o nt h e o r i s t sb e l i e v et h a t
t h e m a j o r i t yo f t h e s ed i m e n s i o n sc o l l a p s e di n t o p o c k e td i m e n s i o n sn a n o s e c o n o s
after the Big Bang. However,the difficulty of quark-scatterexperimentsmake
v e r i f i c a t i oo
n f d i m e n s i o n adl i m e n s i o n sp r o b l e m a t i c aal ,n d . . .
S T A N T Z :l t h i n k y o u l o s t m e . L e t ' sg o b a c k t o e l e v e n .
E G O N : A h , n e v e rm i n d , R a y .T h e i m p o r t a n tf a c t o r h e r e i s t h a t c e r t a i no f t h e s e
d i m e n s i o n sa r e ,I b e l i e v e i,n h a b i t e db y e c t o m a t e r i abl e i n g sw h o s ec o n s c i o u s n e s s
i m p i n g e so u r o w n i n a c o m p l e x l yr e i n f o r c i n gw a y .T h e s eb e i n g sc a n , u n d e r c e r t a i n c o n d i t i o n s ,m a n i f e s t h e m s e l v e si n o u r 4 - s p a c et h r o u g ht h e m a n i p u l a t i o n
o f q u a n t u mi n s t a b i l i t i e isn m i c r o s c a l es p a c e w
, h i c h y o u m u s t r e a l i z e i, s f o a m y . . .
S T A N T Z :Y o u m e a n , l i k e s h a v i n ec r e a m ?

20

Ghostbusters
Training
Manual

but we'regeningoff the track

Fco!: I me.anthat space,also,is quantized...
hgr9,lhe pointis thatthisabilityto manipulate
quantuminltabilities
is,in fa6,
a fifthformof energyin additionto thecommonlyaccepted
four- gravitic,
electromagnetic,
weakand strongnuclear.
you'resayingdemons,boogiemenand all
wlNSToN: Letme getthisstraight.
the otherweird stuffwe haveto deal with aie fioweredby the"samething?
EGoN: Precisely!
A form of energywe call psychokinetic
Energy,
or pKE.
VENKMAN:So we can seeghostsbecause
theyusepKE?

::@:]

Excuseme, my dear, I believeyour aura

showing.

EGoN: Right,althoughit is important

to realizethatnot all pKEmanifestations
arevisible.
AIso,theuseof PKEto create
a dimensional
permitting
aperture
visual
observation
is reflexive.
VENKMAN:Huh?
EGoN: Letme put it.in the simplestpossible
terms,peter.lf you can seeit...
it can seeyou.And if it isn'tfriendly,that may not be a goodthing.

Psychokinetic
Energy
E G o N : A l t h o u g hp r e v i o u sr e s e a r c h e rms a d et h e i r c o n t r i b u t i o n ,I t h i n k I c a n s a y ,
w i t h a l l d u e m o d e s t y ,t h a t u n t i l l d e v e l o p e d t h e p K E v a l e n c ef i e l d m o d e l o f
paranormaldisturbance,parapsychology
and relatedscienceswere at a standstill.
VENKMA_N:Egon'spretty smart, but this new theory is straight out of Thrilling
wonder StoriesA
. l l I k n o w . i s t h a t l o v e l y y o u n g c o e d s o f t e n d i s p l a ya m a z i n g
p o w e r s .T h e i r o t h e r k i n d s o f e n e r g y m a n i p u l a t i o na r e n ' tb a d e i t h e r .
E G o N : w h a t P e t e ri s s a y i n gi n h i s u n s c i e n t i f i cw a y i s c o r r e c t .A s I s a i d , p K E
worksthrough microscaledisturbancesin the foamy structureof quantizedspace
a n d , a t t h i s s c a l et h e o b s e r v e rh a s a d i r e c t i m p a c t o n t h e s y s t e m ,a f a c t l o n g
e s t a b l i s h eidn q u a n t u mp h y s i c sT. h i s b e i n gs o ,t h e h u m a nm i n d , a s a c o n s c r o u s
o b s e r v e ro f t h e w h o l e s y s t e m ,c a n i n f a c t m a n i p u l a t ep K E e n e r g y d i r e c t l y .
S c h r o d i n g e r 'gs e d a n k e n e x p e r i m e nwti t h t h e c a t i s i l l u s t r a t i v e . . .
W I N S T O N : l ' m a l l e r g i ct o c a t s .

Chostbusters
Training
Manual

21

E G O N : A h h . . . T h e p o i n t i s , t h o u g h t ,c o u p l e d w i t h e m o t i o n , c a n b r i n g a b o u t
l o r l d . T h e e x t e n to f t h e s ec h a n g e si s l i m i t e d o n l y b y
c h a n g e si n t h e p h y s i c a w
t h e a m o u n t o f e k a - d i m e n s i o n ael n e r g yt h e i n d i v i d u a l m i n d c a n t a p . . .
WINSTON: You mean I can turn someone'shair gray,win at the races,or move
a six ton safejust by thinking about it?
E G O N : W e l l , i t ' s a l i t t l e m o r e c o m p l e x t h a n t h a t , W i n s t o n . I n d e e dt h e t h e o r y
n e c e s s a r tyo p e r m i t s u c h d r a m a t i cc h a n g e si s s t i l l f a r f r o m c o m p l e t ef o r m u l a t i o n , b u t t h e f a c t i s t h a t s u c h p h e n o m e n ad o e x i s t i n n a t u r e .O f c o u r s e ,s i n c e
everyonehas this ability (to a greateror lesserextent)people also havedefenses.
Turningsomeoneelse'shair grey if they don't want you to can be very difficult.
STANTZ: Like the time we battled Gozer the Gozarian?And she asked us to
? n d l c h o s e t h e S t a y - P u fmt a n ?A n d w e a l l
c h o o s ea f o r m f o r o u r d e s t r u c t i o n A
a l m o s td i e d ?A n d w e . . . u h h h . . .

t:

ti
.,,.,,..,,..,,.:l:

What's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?

EGON: Correct,Ray,you chose the form, although the PKEnecessaryto complete the manifestationwas supplied by Cozer.
V E N K M A N :H a v e n 'o
t t h e r p e o p l eb e e n u s i n gt h i s k i n d o f e n e r g yf o r a l o n g t i m e ?
EGON: Certainly.Primitivemagic- such as the useof sacrificialvirgins,voodoo,
trance magic - is an attempt by the unsophisticatedto harnessPKE.With the
theory we can affectparanormal
tools affordedus by modern parapsychological
p h e n o m e n ai n m u c h m o r e s o p h i s t i c a t ew
d a y s .$ t i l l , i t i s i m p o r t a n t o r e m e m b e r
. o r e x a m p l e ,s i n c e i t i s
t h a t t h e r e i s a g r a i n o f t r u t h i n e v e r y s u p e r s t i t i o nF
d o c u m e n t e dt h a t o n l y s i l v e rc a n h a r m a w e r e w o l f ,l d e s i g n e d a p r o t o n p a c k
e m p l o y i n gs i l v e r i z e dm a t e r i a l st o d e f e a to n e .
seriously,but traininghastaught
Of course,I don't takemostof this hocus-pocus
"unscientific."
me not to ignore avenuesof researchthat might at first appear
V E N K M A N : A l l t h i s p s e u d o - s c i e n t i f igc o b b l e d y - g o o kd o e s n ' t a l w a y s d o i t .
S o m e t i m e sy o u c a n s m o o t h t a l k t h e s p o o k ,f i g u r e o u t i t s p r o b l e m ,a n d g e t r i d
of it that way.
WINSTON: Justlike you guystalkedto that spook in the New York Library right?
D i d n ' t d o a n y g o o d , d i d i t ? l f t a l k i n g d o e s n ' tb u d g e i t , k e e p y o u r p r o t o n p a c k
handy.

BasicGhostology
E C O N : P s y c h o k i n e t im
c a n i f e s t a t i o ntsa k e s p e c i f i cf o r m sw h i c h p o s s e s vs a r y i n g
"spud"
power,abilities,and appearance.PKEoften takesthe form of a ghost.The
f
u
l
l
r
o
a
m
i
n
g
v
a
p
o
r.
t h a t P e t e rt a l k s a b o u t s o m u c h i s a c t u a l l ya C l a s s5
V E N K M A N :l t ' s s t i l l a s o u d .
a a

zz

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r ani i n g M a n u a l

EGoN:Ghostshavebeendefined,codified,rabeiled,
andanalyzed
in my seminal
work,A Paranormal
Taxonomy:
slimes,spudsand other Mutants.
Thistextexplainstheclassification
schemausedby Chostbusters
to describe
thepnenomena
theyencounter.
[seeReferenceFileC for excerptsfrom this fascinitingb.;ki
Often, however,
ghostsare the leastof a Ghosibuster,s
worries.

Xenostudies,
Folkloreand Time Travel
E G o N : D e s p i t em y c o n t r i b u t i o nt o t h e d e v e l o p i n gs c i e n c eo f p a r a n o r m o l o g y ,
ala.rgeportion of paranormalphenomonaremain unexplained.lndeed,becarie
of the very subjectmatter,darkerforcesoften attemptto obscurefactsand make
i n v e s tgi a t i o n i n c o n c lu s i v e .
VENKMAN: What Egonmeansis that he hasn,thad time developinto his theories
these aspectsof Chostbusting.
EGoN: Ahem. Forexample,Xenostudiesis anotheraspectof chostbustingwhich
we are only beginning to understand.The collective unconsciousofteriaffects
the PKEmatrix in unexpectedways.Numerous reportsof flying saucers,dating
f r o m a n c i e n tt i m e s . . .
STANTZ:cee, that stuff is in plenty of sciencefiction movies.There was this
great movie on last night, Plan 9 From Outer Space...
EcoN: Yes,Ray,we know. Also, history recoros many accounts of corporeal
c r e a t u r e sf r o m a l t e r n a t ed i m e n s i o n so r d i f f e r e n tp l a n e so f e x i s t e n c eT. h e L o c h
N e s sm o n s t e r b, y c o n t r a s ti,s i n a l l p r o b a b i l i r yn o m o r e t h a n a s i n g l ep l e i s o s a u r
s u r v i v i n gi n t o t h e m o o e r n e r a . . .
STANTZ:or the JerseyDevil! Man, what a creepy creaturethat was...

E9.9,ftlqy,.,heJersey
Devil,who enrered
thisdimension
asa resultof a hysterical
child'sPKE.blast
openinga fifteenJold
cross-rip,
is a truly

paranormalcreature.
M a n y t h i n g sy o u w i l l b e c a l l e d o n t o i n v e s t i g a t a
er e ,
s t r i c t l ys p e a k i n g n
, o t g h o s t s .B u t d o n , t l e t t h a t d e t e r y o u
f r o m t h e r e l e n t l e s sp u r s u i to f k n o w l e d g e . . .
V E N K M A N : . . . o r t h e c o l l e c t i o no f h a n d s o m ef e e s !
EGON: In the interestsof scienceyou may be called upon
to confront enigmatic, terrifying creatures. But
perseverance
in the study of the unknown may revealin_
valuableknowledge,perhapsthe very keysto the univer_
s a l r i d d l e so f t i m e , s p a c e ,e n e r g y . . .
V T N K M A N : . . . o rh o w t o f i n d a p a r k i n gp l a c ei n N e w y o r k
City.
EGON: *Sigh*

V E N K M A N : I t h i n k w h a t E g o ni s t r y i n g t o s a y i s t h a t , a s
Chostbusters,
our job isn'talwayseasy.lt isn,talwaysrvhat
y o u e x p e c t "A n d i t i s n ' t a l w a y sg h o s t s .B u t w h e n t h e r e , s
n o o n e e l s eo u t t h e r et o h e l p i n n o c e n tp e o p l ei n d e s p e r a t e
t r o u b l e ,i t ' s u p t o u s . . .t h e n o b l e ,s e l f l e s sC h o s t b u s t e r s . . .
to Savethe World.

AII in a day's work for .., GHOSTEUSTERS.

C h o s t b u s t e rT
s r a i n i n gM a n u a l

23

lf you need more ChostbusterlD cards,duplicate this page.

Co ahead. You have our permission.
-------1-

ID CARD
GHOSTBUSTER
"Who
YaGonnaCall?"

ID CARD
GHOSTBUSTER
"Who
YaGonnaCall?"

Name

Name

TRAITS
Brains
Muscle.s
Moves
Cool

TRAITS
Brains
Muscls
Movs
Cool

Brownie
Points:60 59 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 51 50 49 48 47 46
45 U 43 42 4t 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26
25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 t6 15 14 fi n r r0 9 8 7 6 5 4

Brownie
Points:
60 59 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 5l 50 49 48 47 46
45 44 43 42 4t 4X 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 3l 30 29 28 27 26
25 24 23 22 2l 20 19 l8 17 16 15 14 13 U il 1 0 9 8 7 6 5 4
3 2 1 0

3 2 1 0
Goal

Residence

Phone

Telex

ID CARD
GHOSTBUSTER
"Who
YaGonnaCall?"

Goal

Residence
Telex

ID CARD
GHOSTBUSTER
"Who
YaGonnaCall?"

Name

Name

TRAITS
Brains
Muscles
Moves
Cool

TRdITS
Brains
il{uscles
IIoyes
Cool

Brownie
Points:
60 59 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 5l 50 19 18 47 46
45 44 43 42 4r 4[ 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 3l 30 29 28 27 26
25 24 23 22 2t 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 l3 U 11 1 0 9 8 7 6 5 1

Brownie
Poinls:60 59 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 5l 50 49 48 47 46
,{3
15 11
12 11 10 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 3l 30 29 28 27 26
25 21 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 U 11 1 0 9 8 7 6 5
3 2 1 0

3 2 r 0
Goal

Residence

Phone

Telex

ID CARD
GHOSTBUSTER
"Who
YaGonnaCall?"

Goal

ID CARD
GHOSTBUSTER
"Who
YaGonnaCall?"

Name

\ame

TRAITS
Brains
Muscles
Moves
Cool

TR{ITS

Brownie
Points:
60 59 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 5l 50 49 48 47 46
45 U 43 42 41 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 3t 30 29 28 27 26
25 24 23 22 2t 20 19 t8 t7 t6 15 14 B n I 1 0 9 8 7 6 5 4
3 2 1 0

Brownie
Points:
60 59 58 57 56 55 54 53 52 5l 50 49 48 47 46
45 14 43 12 41 10 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 3l 30 29 28 27 26
25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 ls l4 13 12 ll 1 0 9 8 7 6 5
3 2 1 0

Goal

Goal

lluscles
IIoves
Cool

Residence
Telex

24

T.{tE\TS

Brains

G h o s t b u s t e rTs r a i n i n gM a n u a l

Residence
Telex

VehicleDoors

2nd Floor
Ray Stantz's
Office

Egon Spengler's

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SleepingQuarters

Weird Science
Equipment

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