The Ghost Train Adventure using

Volt 3.3 Rule System

New Horizon Roleplaying Game

New Horizon Game Studios

www.newhorizonrpg.com

The Ghost Train

Berrik

News often travels slow in the Walk of Man once one gets outside the boundaries of the larger cities. Most news comes in the form of rumors brought in by train passengers and hunters returning home after expeditions on the plains. The latest rumors have taken a dark turn. Smaller settlements across the Walk have been found deserted. Most look as if the people just packed up and left. Nothing of value has been left behind, except for the larger permanent buildings. Three towns have disappeared so far with no one left dead or alive, and no one seems to have any clue as to what is going on. Smaller towns are getting scared, and the citizens are arming themselves more than usual against whatever strange events are taking place.

Story

The adventure begins just after the disappearance of a fourth small town. This time there were witnesses. A few people were on their way to the town when they caught sight of an unmarked train. The train itself was an older model, the kind that went out of commission at least fifty years ago. There are no markings on the train, and no sign of a driver. Witnesses claimed the passenger compartments were black as night, and strange smoke billowed out of the wheels. Some witnesses claim that the train wasnt even following the railway.

Alabaster

Where to Start

The most likely spot for this adventure to begin is in Trapper Town. Disappearances of this scale always find their way back to the local law enforcement. Players can hear about the disappearances in any number of ways. The rumors are spreading through the town in everyday conversation, with wildly exaggerated stories that run the gamut from attacks by the Rusty Stars to grim stalker. However they find out about the disappearances, the players should eventually make their way to Berrik the local Rail Marshall who will direct them on their way. The two most likely paths to Berrik are talking to Alabaster or Kaleb. Alternatively, the players may just decide to seek out Berrik on their own. See the NPC section for information on these three individuals.

As High Marshall of the Walk of Man, Alabaster is concerned for the safety of his people. These strange disappearances threaten to put people in a panic, something he doesnt need right now since he is already dealing with the everyday issues of enforcing such a large faction and dealing with the Rusty Stars threat. He can be found at the sheriff s office where he will give as much information as he can to anyone willing to help. His information consists mostly of population size and possible armaments in the towns that have disappeared. Alabaster doesnt know what to believe about the rumors of a ghost train and supernatural phenomena. He admits there is a possibility, but would rather see this as the work of criminals. He will eventually send the players to talk to Berrik for more information.

Kaleb

As a former outlaw himself, Kaleb has no doubt in his mind that this is the work of some very clever outlaws. Though he cant guess as to what their overall plan is, he applauds the ruse, and in fact may seem a little envious. Kaleb can be found at Captain Boozes Bar where the local color is constantly discussing the disappearances. Kaleb doesnt have much information beyond what the players can get from Alabaster, but he does mention that there are a lot of old rails out in the foothills that lead to dead towns and mines. He will eventually send the players to talk to Berrik for more information.

Berrik lives a few blocks from Captain Boozes Bar, in a house that is entirely decked out in train memorabilia. The front door has a sign taken from an old train depot and the inside is home to a massive model train set that runs through every room in the house. Berrick can be found sitting at a table in an outfit reminiscent of old train conductors back on earth. He is meticulously constructing a new train set. Berrik is a friendly, though socially awkward, individual. He is nervous around females, but can talk forever about anything related to trains. The information he has to give involves the train in question. There was a project at one time for automated trains, allowing them to be guided by transmitted signals. The project didnt meet with wide success as there were too many variables without linking the entire train network wirelessly. A few of the prototypes were bought by private collectors, and have since disappeared from most peoples knowledge. The system can be rigged to take commands from a short wave radio transmission. As they talk, the conversation should eventually turn toward the towns which have disappeared. At this point, Berrik will point out that his model set is a scale replica of the entire Walk of Man rail system, complete with every rail line that he knows. Examination of the towns that have disappeared shows that they are all within radio range of an abandoned line that leads off into the foothills of the Azuremar mountains.

On the Trail

Players can take the next train and get off a days trek from the abandoned rail line. The GM is free to change their method of transportation to whatever they wish, and possibly sprinkle in some side adventures along the way. Possible encounters include a run in with ravagers. If the GM feels like throwing in a sign the players are on the right track, the ravagers can be feeding on the remains of settlers from the towns that disappeared.

Whatever happens along the way, the players eventually find themselves at the end of the rail line, or at least the original end. It appears that sometime recently, someone has added new rails and extended the line into the hills. Following the line leads to what appears to be a mining camp. Portable buildings, probably taken from the towns, serve as shelter and living space. The mine looks new, with fresh ore and tracks out front. The Ghost Train is currently absent.

Rewards NPCs

Standard criminal bounty, plus daily wage of 100 geodites, plus a completion bonus of 1,000 geodites.

The NPCs you need for this adventure are: Alabaster, Kaleb, Berrik, Rykus, the Generic Bandit and the Generic Worker.

Alabaster
Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 7 8 9 9 8 7 8 5 8 9 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat: 7 3 3 3 5 8 5 7

At the Mine

Backgrounds & Traits

Law Enforcement Agent: 8 Mesa Trapper: 7 Aesir Wafan: 3p Ambidexterity: 1p Contact: 3p Sense of Orientation & Time: 2p Duties: -1p Enemy: -3p Silent Machinery: 1p Swiftness: 1p Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 11 4 6 11

If they can stay out of sight, the players will be able to see that the people who disappeared have apparently been chained together and forced to work in the mine. The individuals holding them hostage look like a ragtag band of paramilitary types and rabble-rousers. The GM is free to extend this scene as much as they wish. The more guards they put around the place, the harder things will be for the players. Different areas where encounters may happen include: Narrow streets between the buildings, in areas of new construction with dangerous unfinished work, the mess hall, labor barracks, guard barracks, and the mouth of the mine. There can also be multiple levels in the mine, each with guards watching the workers. Freeing the workers may result in some help for the players.

Armor
Regnant Jacket

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: -2 Power: -1 Precision: 0

0: 15

-2: 30

-5: 75

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: 6 4 8 7 Guard / Directed: 8 7 2 0 Grapple / Aimed: 9 9 12 11 11 Defense / Auto: 7 8 7 5 8

Damage
Pierce: Stun: Injury:

Ending the Mission

Ultrasound Blaster: EMP Blaster: Punch: Kick: Wrestling:

2 3

3 3

1 10 4 5 BP

28 30 25 27 27

22 24 17 19 25

When the GM wants to end the mission, they simply have the Ghost Train make its appearance. The train is back from harvesting fresh workers, and brings with it the brains of the operation. The final encounter will likely take place on the train itself, and can vary from in the cars to outside on the ladders or upper railing. The entire operation is masterminded by a vanir by the name of Rykus. If the players manage to stop him without killing him, Rykus confesses that he and his men were once Rusty Stars, but they defected when they found a rich charonium deposit and decided to go into business for themselves. If Rykus is killed, players can find out this information from a different source, such as a soldier or someones journal.

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

8 5 13 0 11 18 -3 18 23 -5 24 28 30

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

Kaleb
Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 9 8 9 9 8 7 5 7 3 5 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat: 5 5 3 5 3 8 8 8

Berrik
Backgrounds & Traits
Bounty Hunter: 7 Law Enforcement Agent: 7 Mercenary: 5 Vanir Wafan: 3p Contact: 1p Sense of Orientation & Time: 2p Dark Secret: -2p Duties: -1p Enemy: -1p Vanir Armor: 1p Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 9 18 8 6 14 8 17 13

Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 7 5 5 9 9 7 7 9 3 5 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat:

Backgrounds & Traits

7 Contact: 3 Duties: 3 3 3 3 5 7 1p -1p

Armor
Reinforced Area (hard) Heavy Vanir Armor

Armor
Thick Leather Armor

Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 16 3 6 10

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: 1 Power: 1 Precision: 1

0: 25

-2: 50

-5: 125

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: -2 Power: -1 Precision: 0

0: 15

-2: 30

-5: 75

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: Guard / Directed: 11 4 5 5 3 Grapple / Aimed: Defense / Auto:

Damage
Pierce: Stun: Injury:

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: Guard / Directed: Grapple / Aimed: Defense / Auto:

Damage
Pierce: Stun: Injury:

Silent Thunder (unique rie): 4 12 Knife (slash): 11 Knife (thrust): 11 Punch: 10 Kick: Wrestling:

13 15 16 14 13 13

10 8 8 9 7 10

10 3 6 6 7 BP

16 15 21 27 29 29

32 28 26 19 21 27

Cold Swift: Dagger (slash): Dagger (thrust): Punch: Kick: Wrestling:

4 9 10 8 7

6 2 3 2 0

7 13 14 12 11 11

5 6 6 7 5 8

4 1 5 4 5 BP

12 13 20 25 27 27

24 27 25 17 19 25

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

8 6 13 0 12 19 -3 18 24 -5 24 28 30

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

6 3 11 0 9 16 -3 15 21 -5 22 25 28

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

Generic Bandit (Olympian)

Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 7 5 8 7 7 5 5 3 3 5 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat:

Generic Bandit (Promethean)

Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 9 7 7 7 7 5 5 5 3 3 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat:

Backgrounds & Traits

3 Bounty Hunter: 3 Sense of Orientation & Time: 3 Natural Resistance: 3 3 3 7 3 3 2p 1p

Backgrounds & Traits

3 Bounty Hunter: 3 Cybernetic Limb (arm): 3 Combat Claws: 3 3 3 7 3 5 1p 1p

Armor
Synthetic Fibre Vest

Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 7 3 4 6

Armor
Ravager Vest

Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 7 3 5 7

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: 0 Power: 0 Precision: -4

0: 15

-2: 30

-5: 75

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: 0 Power: 1 Precision: -4

0: 25

-2: 50

-5: 125

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: 11 11 10 9 Guard / Directed: 4 5 4 2 Grapple / Aimed: 15 15 13 12 12 Defense / Auto: 7 7 8 6 9

Damage
Pierce: 3 6 5 6 BP Stun: 15 21 26 28 28 Injury: 28 26 18 20 26

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: 11 10 9 Guard / Directed: 5 4 2 Grapple / Aimed: 16 14 13 13 Defense / Auto: 10 9 7 10

Damage
Pierce: 9 6 7 BP Stun: 18 27 29 29 Injury: 33 19 21 27

Combat Knife (slash): Combat Knife (thrust): Punch: Kick: Wrestling:

Combat Claws: Punch: Kick: Wrestling:

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

6 4 11 -1 10 16 -4 17 22 -8 23 26 29

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

6 5 12 -1 11 17 -4 17 22 -8 23 26 29

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

Rykus
Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 8 8 7 8 5 5 7 5 5 5 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat:

Generic Worker
Backgrounds & Traits
3 Sense of Orientation & Time: 3 Vanir Armor: 3 3 3 3 8 8 2p 1p

Attributes
Strength: Constitution: Toughness: Willpower: Movement: Agility: Perception: Stealth: Acting: Speaking: 7 5 5 5 5 3 5 3 3 5 Humanities: Science: Medicine: Repair: Animal Ken: Driving: Close Combat: Ranged Combat:

Backgrounds & Traits

3 Clumsy (optional): 3 Coward (optional): 3 3 3 3 5 5 -3p -2p

Armor
Reinforced Area (hard) Medium Vanir Armor

Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 9 17 7 5 11 7 14 11

Armor
Armor Jacket

Coverage: Deect: Stop: Slow: 10 2 3 6

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: 1 Power: 1 Precision: 1

0: 25

-2: 50

-5: 125

Encumbrance Attacks
Fence: -2 Power: -1 Precision: 2

0: 15

-2: 30

-5: 75

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: 5 14 14 11 10 Guard / Directed: 8 7 7 5 3 Grapple / Aimed: 10 12 14 13 13 Defense / Auto: 8 6 7 9 7 10

Damage
Pierce: Stun: Injury:

Chance to Hit
Attacks: Range: Strike / Snap Shot: Guard / Directed: Grapple / Aimed: Defense / Auto:

Damage
Pierce: Stun: Injury:

Ophion F-30: Sword (cut): Sword (thrust): Punch: Kick: Wrestling:

4 6 7 6 7 BP

10 26 24 27 29 29

24 31 29 19 21 27

Ares Pistol: Knife (slash): Knife (thrust): Punch: Kick: Wrestling:

3 9 8 8 7

3 1 2 2 0

6 13 14 12 11 11

4 6 6 7 5 8

4 1 4 4 5 BP

10 13 19 25 27 27

24 26 24 17 19 25

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Damage thresholds
Stun Injury
Legs: Arms:

Ranges
1 2 3 4 5 10 m 20 m 50 m 100 m 200 m 6 7 8 9 500 m 1000 m 2000 m 5000 m

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

7 5 12 -1 11 17 -3 17 22 -6 23 27 29

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

Difculty: Average

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

4 3 9 -2 9 14 -5 15 20 -10 22 24 28

Negligible Minor Moderate Serious Severe

The Rusty Stars

Every culture goes through hard times, some of them are harder than others. At times the entire younger generation can be left twisting in the wind so the older established generations can manage to remain stable and provide for them and theirs. However where does that leave the young folks in their twenties and thirties, desperate to leave the nest but unable and ostracized or scorned for their lack of jobs? The Walk of Man, always an old fashioned place run by some well to do senior gentry of the blue collar variety, have always been opposed to unnecessary modernization. In the face of the Walk of Man losing business to more modernized, albeit less plentiful, resource gathering operations countless orders for resources were shifted to regions that could provide them more quickly, like Aquilons deep water mining operations. In the face of the modern leaderships stubborn refusal to modernize and expand, many young folks were beginning to question the wisdom of their elders, believing that they, in fact, may have lost perspective on whats really important, placing their generations values ahead of the well being of the current generation. To that end, an organization called The Shining Stars was founded to protest the so called Voice of the Wests system. Their many protests went unanswered, and one day after nearly a year, when their protests reached a fever pitch, as they assailed the Council of the Voices headquarters with over a thousand protesters, speaking from bullhorns, their leader personally called out Avery Savern, the current public representative of the voice. Their yelled arguments reached a fever pitch, and a line was crossed, guns were pulled, and one man was left dead. But with Saverns death, the local constables had no absolutely no choice but to clear the streets by force.

Alabaster, the towns Sheriff yelled at them through his megaphone, calling them you damned fools are nothing but rusty stars, forever changing how these young folks were viewed. They were driven from the streets, arrested by the dozens, high ranking officers tracked down and arrested. Their leader, a young Olympian named Jebedia Kamerer. stood trial, a virtual kangaroo court trial, and was convicted of the murder in less than a week. Though due process was dubious, the video evidence was absolutely irrefutable. In the wake of Jebediahs hanging, the men now called the Rusty Stars faced difficult decisions without the benefit of their level headed leadership. Many now favored direct actions and those few that still favored rational discourse were quickly shouted down by the others whod lost family and friends due to what they were calling The Purge. The change began with acts of vandalism, then theft of government property but with the governments dismissive denouncement of them as nothing more than petty criminals, it quickly spread to acts of arson and sabotage. With this change to a more violent standing, a new leader emerged. A disenchanted Vanir woman named Olga Redstream. Hailing from Cork, Olga was believed to have been the lover of Jebediah Kamerer. Her actions began leading the so called Rusty Stars down a dark and angry path. Reform was not forgotten, but revenge seemed to be a much stronger goal for many of their actions than any real sort of social justice. Spurred on by their seeming lawlessness, many gangs of bandits, and individual highwayman became far bolder and began rearing their ugly heads. Small groups of extra-national criminals were even beginning to suspect that the Walk was unable, or even unwilling to expend the resources to protect themselves. Lawlessness was running rampant in the walk. This led to the current proclamation of open war on outlaws, the s called Season of Gunshots. With the somewhat reluctant proclamation of the bounty on outlaws, the Rusty Stars only stepped up their aggression.

The typical rusty star agent wears cheap imported body armor when on mission, wearing a bandana of Red or white around their neck, pulled up over their faces on missions. Beyond that, theyve got little in the way of formal uniforms. Their weapons are primarily imported semi automatic weapons, and full autos if they can get them. A few more elite soldiers in their group will carry heavier ordnance or impressive melee weapons. The leaders of their freedom fighter groups are often simply called Leads, and their regular recruits called the padfoots. A Lead will usually be slightly better armored and armed, as well as more experienced, and may be accompanied by an especially tough body guard, the duty usually falling to quick response trained Vanirs or Medeans. They have a few especially elite units, often extremely talented mercenaries, who they utilize for quick strike raids and guards for their crucial facilities where they hide their growing stocks of weapons and vehicles. Rust Stars tend to hole up anywhere they can, sometimes even taking over industrial facilities, and continuing their output for their own purposes, sometimes even feigning to continue shipments and maintaining the illusion of their bases standard operation as long as possible. However, they often go out of their way not to hurt the occupants if at all possible, often keeping them guarded for as long as they can, before pulling out with their ill gotten goods, but a few Rust Stars take liberties with their prisoners, or even kill them outright for supporting a system that doesnt work. Few other stars condone this.

Backgrounds
4 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Character name Player name

Traits

Attributes
Strength Constitution Toughness Willpower Movement Agility Perception Stealth Presence Persuasion Humanities Science
4 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Wound thresholds
Stun Injury Arm Leg

Medicine Repair Driving Animal Ken Close combat Ranged combat

-5 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Critical +20 Severe +15 Serious +10 Moderate +5 Minor

Armor
Stop Slow None Coverage
5 5 5 5 5 5 10 10 10 10 10 10 15 15 15 15 15 15 20 20 20 20 20 20

Weapons
Chance to hit Damage modifier Grappling modifier
Snapshot Strike Directed Guard Aimed Grapple Range Defense Pierce

Ranges
Damage
Stun Injury

1 10m 2 20m 3 50m 4 100m 5 200m 6 500m 7 1000m 8 2000m 9 5000m

Unarmed