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This article is written with “Spooktacular: A Cheerfully Spooky Role-Playing Game” in mind, but the scenario should work for any game about investigating the paranormal, like Monster of the Week or InSpectres.

The Town of Gesner

Welcome to the small town of Gesner! It’s pronounced “Jenner” by the local residents, and it’s like any small town in North America: Surrounded by farms, just small enough for kids to bike around but otherwise car dependant, and home to exactly one notable event every summer.

Gesner is built on the southern shore of Lake Gesner, a cold freshwater lake with a well-maintained bass population. The eastern side of the lake is a sheer cliff, which the highway follows closely. This provides a beautiful view, but does result in one local annoyance: The Dogleg, a place where the highway swerves right and then left. Nowadays, it’s clearly marked with guard rails and reflective signage, but that wasn’t always the case.

The Metzir Farm

The Metzir Farm sits east of Gesner. It has been home to the Metzir clan for generations, and the main farmhouse has been added to at least a dozen times. A garage added to the farmhouse holds repair tools, a few dirtbikes, and an old, orange pickup truck. A large barn on the property holds a combine, tractors, and other farm equipment. An orange cat named Jerry lives in the barn, and a Saint Bernard named Maury roams the property, barking at any unfamiliar person who steps on his turf.

The Metzirs have lived in this area since the 1800s, on land bought by Rolf Metzir after the end of the American Civil War. They have a reputation for being a bit rambunctious. The siblings, Luke and Lana, are often referred to as just “the Metzirs” by the locals, especially when they’re being blamed for mischief.

One of their family, Miles Metzir (uncle of Archie), went missing in 1951 after crashing his motorcycle into the lake. More on him in the Ghost of Gesner section.

Archie Metzir, patriarch. Archie is a 50-year-old man with dark hair and brown eyes. He still works in the fields with his kids in the summer, no matter how often they tell him they’ve got it under control. He won’t admit it in front of Luke and Leia, but he was just as much of a hell-raiser at their age as they are. The kids’ names were chosen by his late wife, Carol.

Luke “Lukey” Metzir, farmboy. Luke is a young man with short, blond hair and crooked teeth. Luke’s a bit of a troublemaker. He drives a one-ton pickup, the kind with four tires on the back, but to be fair to him, he does actually use it to haul farm equipment. Sometimes.

Leia “Lana” Metzir, farmgirl. Lana is Luke’s older sister, and she absolutely hates being called “Leia.” She wears her blonde hair in a braid. On the weekends, she can be found at the race track, either fixing dirt bikes or riding them. During the week, she works at Harvesters.

Harvester(‘)s

Harvesters is your standard small town bar: The tables and chairs are mismatched, the ID check policy is not enforced as much as it should be, and the wings are on cheap every Wednesday. There are a few rooms for rent upstairs, perfect for wedding parties, family reunions, or visiting paranormal exterminators. The drink selection is limited, and if one of the party has a favourite brand of beer or cider, Harvesters doesn’t have it.

The sign outside says the bar is “Harvester’s,” but every sign inside says “Harvesters.”

Bar fights are common here.

Hunter Moore, big guy. Described as “a mountain of a man” by anyone who’s met him, Hunter is a big brute who wears a cowboy hat at all times. He has a tattoo reading “BORN TO KILL” on his left shoulder. He has some long-running issues with Luke Metzir and the two have come to blows more than once. He works behind the bar at Harvesters.

The Gesner Heritage Museum

The Museum is a former general goods store on Gesner’s Main Street, located right across from City Hall. The museum has exhibits on the various eras of the region’s history, plus a section dedicated to the contributions of Gesnerites in the nation’s various wars. There are a few uniforms on display, including a kevlar helmet with a bullet clearly lodged in the left side. More importantly, however, there is a wall with pictures of every Gesnerite who has enlisted in the military, which includes a picture of Miles Metzer. There is a small cafe inside, frequented by the local old seniors.

Jenny Mince, museum head. Jenny is a tall woman with long, brown hair. She is the museum’s only full-time employee, and is very familiar with all of the exhibits. She did not grow up around here and does not put much stock into the rumors about the Ghost of Gesner. She is, however, very practiced at biting her tongue about her skepticism.

Tow-Tal Towing

The local towing company is run by Dave Danvers, older brother of Deputy Dirk Danvers. They have a small impound lot near the police station, which is about half full of various wrecked vehicles. The yard has a “BEWARE OF DOG” sign on the gate and a doghouse clearly visible (it even has its own mailbox!) but there’s no actual dog in the yard right now. Their tow trucks are painted a highly visible combination of white and lime green.

Dave Danvers, tow boss. Dave is a muscular, broad-shouldered man with blonde hair. He used to be a quarterback in high school and has kept himself in shape. He speaks with a slow drawl, even more pronounced than most of the residents of Gesner.

City Hall

Located conveniently across the street from the museum, City Hall is home to the city archives, council chambers and the mayor’s office. The mayor’s office has a very large painting behind his chair, depicting a military seaplane coming in for a landing on Lake Gesner, from the vantage point of The Dogleg. There is very clearly no guardrail at the edge of the cliff.

Mayor Tom Levenberg, mayor. Mayor Levenberg is a tall, bald man with dark skin and no time for rumors of “ghosts” or “specters.” He does not appreciate the protagonists’ presence, and will drag them into his office after they’ve spent a day or two in town to make this known to them.

Mak’s

Mak’s is a locally-owned gas station at the east end of Main Street, right near the highway. Filipino immigrants Mayella and Tadeo Makaliano own it, and their older son often works the till when he’s not at college.

It sells the standard fare: Junk food, energy drinks, paperback novels of dubious quality, and so on. In addition to that, Mak’s has a small section of Filipino snack foods and products, and a locked cabinet full of Bluetooth speakers, headphones, and other minor electronics.

Mayella Makaliano, store owner. Mayella is a tall woman with light brown skin and long, black hair. She is a savvy businesswoman and tries to keep trendy products in stock. She spends a lot of time in the back office of Mak’s, tracking expenses and badgering suppliers into giving her better deals.

Tadeo Makaliano, maintenance man. Tadeo is a short, muscular man with deep brown skin. He is in charge of repairing everything around Mak’s, from the till to the pumps to the automatic car wash. His current pet project is fixing the ice cream cooler, which hasn’t worked in a week.

Eugene “Gene” Makliano, convenience store worker. Gene is a teenager who works at his parents’ convenience store, Mak’s. He can usually be found behind the counter, watching anime on his phone, or working on schoolwork. He claims that he saw the Ghost drive past the store last year.

The Police

Sheriff Billy “Buck” Waltherson, cop. Sheriff Waltherson is an old man, nearing retirement. He has gone completely bald. Rumors of the Ghost of Gesner have persisted ever since he was young, but he’s never seen it himself. People used to call him “Buck” because he was the youngest on the force, now they call him it ironically.

Deputy Dirk Danvers, cop. Deputy Danvers is a brown-haired man with one gold front tooth. He went to school with Hunter, Luke and Lana. He grew up hearing rumors about the Ghost of Gesner and firmly believes that it’s something genuinely supernatural.

Officer Harvey Brandt, highway patrol. Officer Brandt is a member of the state’s highway patrol and has been assigned to Gesner to catch this year’s crop of joyriders and put the “Ghost of Gesner” rumors to rest. He wears the classic cop mirror shades and drives a white Dodge Charger with the standard cop lights and markings, plus the word “INTERCEPTOR” on the side and rear.

The Kids

A small group of local children has grown up hearing about the Ghost of Gesner, and they have decided that they’re going to prove it’s real. Naturally, they intend to do this by riding around town on their bikes and shining flashlights at things.

Lewis Makaliano, child. Lewis is the youngest child of the Makliano family. He’s more athletically inclined than his older brother and likes playing soccer. He believes the Ghost of Gesner is, well, a ghost. Everyone says it is, and nothing else makes sense, so it’s a ghost, right?

Hannah Levenberg, child. Hannah is a young girl fascinated by The Witchy Aesthetic. She carries a small bag of herbs with her at all times, and she believes that the Ghost is some kind of fairy. She’s not sure which. Her backpack has a little black cat plushie sewn on one shoulder strap.

Percy Moore, child. Percy is a small boy with brown hair and pale skin. He has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and will eagerly show off his hypermobility to any adult he talks to. His parents would rather that he did not do that. He doesn’t believe the ghost is real at all, but is glad to be out riding his bike with his friends.

The Ghost of Gesner - Additional Banner 2

Investigation: The Gesner Case.

This investigation starts four days before either July 1st or July 4th, depending on whether your game is set in Canada or America. Ideally, the finale should happen during the fireworks.

The party has been called in by Lana Metzir. Her brother, Luke, is currently sitting in jail after being accused of stealing Hunter Moore’s prized 1989 Pontiac Trans Am Firebird, which was found crashed in the ditch near the Metzir Farm. Luke claims he was working on his pickup truck while listening to very loud country music at the time, but no one else was home who could verify that.

Lana explains that her brother and Hunter Moore have a long-running feud stemming back to a girl they both dared in high school, who has long since left town. Despite that, she doesn’t think Luke is responsible for stealing the Firebird.

The Firebird is currently being stored at the Tow-Tal Towing impound yard. Dave is reluctant to let the party take a look at the vehicle, since it’s evidence in a criminal case, but he can probably be convinced to let them see it as long as they don’t touch anything. If not, well, the yard isn’t very well guarded at night.

The front of the Firebird is pretty damaged from going into the ditch, of course, but that’s not what the party is likely to care about. The car is not currently haunted but still gives off a minor paranormal energy reading, and a UV light will reveal handprints at the 10 and 2 positions on the steering wheel.

The first night the party spends in town, the Ghost doesn’t appear. If the party decides to spend the night searching for the Ghost, have them run into the kids instead.

On the party’s second day in Gesner, Sheriff Waltherson approaches them and tells them that the mayor wants to see them. Legally, they’re free to refuse, of course. Waltherson is a firm believer in the Ghost’s existence, and claims to have pursued it a few times over the years in his cop car.

Mayor Levenberg gives them the standard “You’re causing a panic, I want you out of my town, there are no ghosts or specters or ghouls here,” speech while sitting in his office, in front of the picture of the seaplane described in the City Hall section.

On the second night, the Ghost returns, stealing a car and ripping down Main Street, up the highway, etc. If the party comes up with a clever plan (getting one of the cops to spike the car’s tires, using some jerry-rigged ghost-trapping device mounted on their vehicle, etc.) they can capture the Ghost. Otherwise, if they manage to keep up, they’ll be able to confirm that it is indeed a ghost, and if they’re really lucky they’ll be able to realize it looks an awful lot like Luke, despite Luke being in jail. See the Ghost of Gesner section for some guidance on running this chase with Spooktacular.

Day Three is either July 1st or July 4th, again, depending on what country you’re setting this in. Maybe it’s Cinco de Mayo, if you want. Anyway, it’s the day of big festivities that end with fireworks. There are many deep-fried foods for sale at a park by the lake, there are races at a track just outside of town, and the museum is giving guided tours.

After nightfall, just as the fireworks are about to start, a vehicle takes off from near wherever the Party is. If they’re really unlucky, it’s their car, otherwise it’s a nice motorbike. Another chase scene ensues, with fireworks going off over the lake. If this chase takes more than five rounds, the Ghost will come to a stop at the Dogleg, and light a spectral cigarette. He can’t talk to the party, but he will allow them to capture him at this point.

The Ghost of Gesner

A.K.A. THE GHOULIGAN, THE SPECTRAL SPEEDSTER, THE PHAST PHANTOM

The Ghost is, more or less, the remaining spirit of Miles Metzir, great uncle to the Metzir siblings. As far as anyone knows, he went missing in 1951 after heading out on his motorcycle late at night, and he left town without telling anyone. Miles Metzir served in the Second World War and came home with the usual psychological trauma, so this wouldn’t have been unthinkable. In truth, though, while riding back to town he went over the cliff at the Dogleg, crashing into the water below with his hands still firmly on the handlebars.

The years of vehicular hooliganism in the region, be it joyriding, mudding, racing, or whatever else, have made his spirit stronger, allowing him to manifest near the date of his death to wreak some havoc and drive whatever vehicle he can get his ectoplasm on.

Trapping him is possible, of course, but recovering his bike from the water will also disperse him. Or at least stop him from terrorizing the region every year. Side note, the bike is in remarkably good condition for having spent most of a century in a lake. The bike is a Harley WLA (or, if you’re running this in Canada, a WLC. Very nearly the same.)

Power: 6
Presence: 12
Ability: Inhabit. The Ghost of Gesner is only really capable of taking over vehicles.

The vast majority of what the Ghost of Gesner does is steal vehicles and drive them at high speeds around the area. If the vehicle he’s possessing is unable to move (tires destroyed, drove into a ditch, boxed in by other vehicles, etc), the Ghost will leave it and attempt to possess another vehicle. Rinse and repeat until he’s satisfied for the night, which usually takes about two hours of high-thrill driving.

While behind the wheel (or at the handle bars or what have you), he appears to be mostly human, save for a slight glow. When outside of a vehicle, however, he appears bloated and covered in ribbons of seaweed, which he throws at people. In either form, he has a distinct Elvis-like hairstyle.

Chasing Ghosts

Chasing the Ghost of Gesner is handled as a series of opposed rolls (Action vs. Power) between the driver and the Ghost, plus whatever ranged attacks the party can manage. Ranged attacks use one fewer die than normal due to the difficulty if firing a ray thrower out the window of a vehicle. If they’ve got some clever solution to this problem, ignore the penalty.

The first chase ends after three rounds if they haven’t managed to catch the Ghost, due to Officer Brandt pulling the party’s vehicle over. They can confirm it’s a ghost if they get its Presence under 10 before this happens, and will recognize that it looks an awful lot like Luke if they get its Presence below 5.

The second chase ends after five rounds or when the Ghost’s presence reaches zero. As noted above, if the chase “times out,” the Ghost comes to a stop at the Dogleg and lets the party capture (or exorcise, if you’re in to that.) him while he smokes one last cigarette.

If you’re using some kind of 5E hack for this I don’t have very much advice for you, but I believe The Spy Game has some chase rules in it.

Afterword

This article’s genesis was a conversation with Karu, who you may know as the one who answers a lot of the questions in our comment sections. I was playing Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed while we spoke, and Karu jokingly brought up “Crush + Color: Country Music Heartthrobs” after seeing it on an e-commerce website. I spent the rest of that night playing Ghostbusters and listening to Various Bro Country Musicians, and then hammered out this article over the following few days.

One last thing: The first person to slide over a vehicle’s hood in this adventure gets a free reroll.

-Garm

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About the author

Garmbreak1

Former esports wannabe, current TTRPG streamer and TTRPG creator interviewer. I like science fiction and I have a soft spot for licensed tabletop RPGs. You can find all the campaigns I'm in and interviews I've done over on YouTube.

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