TEXT: Ghost Ops
  Project Lucifer
  Mission File
  
  Ghost Ops by
  FeralGamersInc
  Project Lucifer designed by
  Darren Pearce
  Contributors
  Tim Loya
  J A Cummings
  Darren Pearce
  Neal Hyde
  August Hahn
  Artwork
  Tugsbayer Jamts
  Satoshi Kamanaka
  Claudio Casini
  Luigi Castellani
  Layout 
  FeralBot
  Thanks to
  The Ghost Ops Community
  Copyright 2019 FeralGamersInc Ltd. All rights reserved.
  
  Contents
  Saviours Bane - Tim Loya 
  5
  Fire - J A Cummings 
  11
  Blackhawk Lost - Darren Pearce 
  21
  Out of Africa - Neal Hyde 
  37
  Operation Prelude - August Hahn 
  43
  
  Ghost Ops
  4
  Ghost Ops
  Note on using Mission Pack 3
  Mission Pack 3 is for use with the Project Lucifer Setting for the Ghost Ops RPG. This 
  mission pack will use the FeralEngine of the game and a separate Savage Worlds 
  version will be releashed.
  
  5
  Saviours Bane
  
  Ghost Ops
  6
  “The Truth of a thing rarely survives the erosion caused by its Veneration.”
  -Sir Geoffry le Faucon, Knight Templar
  
  Saviours Bane
  7
  Overview                                                                                  
  There is no artifact as sought after by madmen, no relic as desirable to tyrants 
  as the Spear of Longinus.  Also called the Holy Lance, Holy Spear, or the Spear of 
  Destiny, the tales that recount its history and abilities are widely varied leaving one 
  to wonder as to the truth.  Likewise, so too are there a number of claims to be the 
  true spear, but are any of them real; if they were, would anyone be able to resist the 
  draw of its power?
  Madeline Cross has long sought after the Spear, and communications intercepts 
  have shown that BrightCross has a lead on its location and are En-route.  Can the 
  operatives get there in time to stop a potential catastrophe?
  Scene One: Genesis                                                             
  The ODESSA network existed to help Germans escape post-WWII prosecution to 
  Argentina, who then often refused extradition requests even for documented war 
  criminals.  However, it was not only people who escaped via this route but many 
  valuable treasures as well, including Adolph Hitlers most prized possession, the 
  Spear of Longinus.
  Intelligence assets have tracked a large movement of BrightCross personnel into the 
  Buenos Aires region, in particular to the Villa Ballester area.  Being a large, built-up, 
  urban area, the operatives will have to balance exposure with expediency in their 
  attempts to track down the BrightCross personnel and confirm their intentions.
  Eventually, the players should be led to an office block where the company owns 
  some space through various shells and subsidiaries.  Inside the operatives may 
  discover a typical looking data processing pool, but its servers and managers are 
  hiding an important secret, and how that information is obtained is up to them.
  Scene Two: Lamentations
  To the Northwest of Villa Ballester lies Campo de Mayo, the most important 
  military base is and home to its Commandos and Air Assault Regiment, as well 
  as a significant National Gendarme presence.  It is on the base’s grounds that the 
  entrance to a bunker exists, a structure that was completed on May 10th, 1945, and 
  designed to hold the German Reich’s most valuable items until they could be used 
  to restore Germany once again.  
  That day never came; the men who knew of it were captured and killed or sentenced 
  to death.  And so, the facility remained forgotten and undisturbed until now.
  
  Ghost Ops
  8
  BrightCross is ostensibly in the area to facilitate the modernization and augmentation 
  of Argentina’s special operations units, but in reality, they are using that as a guise 
  to cover their intentions to breach and loot the Nazi bunker, which they believe 
  holds, among other things, the Spear of Destiny.
  Getting on to the base will be difficult in, and of, itself, especially considering that 
  the Argentinian military only knows of BrightCross’s public doings and trying 
  to reason with them using the truth would result in being laughed at, at best, or 
  thrown into a mental institution, at worst. The operatives will have to come up with 
  a plan to avoid detection by both the local soldiers and BrightCross as they attempt 
  to enter the bunker.
  Scene Three: Revelations                                               
  Once inside the bunker, the operatives will still not be in the clear as they will 
  have to contend with the Devil’s Own presence inside.  This is a mission of utmost 
  importance to Madeline Cross herself, but balancing that against the requirement 
  to maintain stealth, the force facing the players should be no more than 10, though 
  at least one should be a Legion Commando, and separate should be an Agent of 
  Madeline, sent to be in charge.
  The battle should be intense and dramatic, but remember it is taking place inside 
  a large underground storehouse full of items of religious and cultural importance, 
  and that not just the Spear itself may contain some sort of power.  Having the Devil’s 
  Owns powers sometimes short circuit (and having them confused by it) is a viable 
  mechanic to help balance the combat if the operatives start to be overwhelmed.
  Throughout the battle, the Agent should be relatively uninvolved, focused instead 
  on finding the Spear, for that’s her mission, and the Devil’s Own, even the Legion 
  Commando, are all expendable pawns in her eyes.  As the battle draws to a close, 
  or if the players are close to defeat, the Agent should finally pry open the crate and 
  discover the Spear, lifting it with her bare hands.
  Poor strategic decisions, ignoring the advice of his senior military leadership, 
  making contradictory orders, and even bouts of outright insanity define Adolph 
  Hitler’s tenure as German Chancellor.  These things were often attributed to his 
  exposure to chemical agents during WWI, syphilis he contracted, or even the drug 
  cocktail his personal physician had him on.  None of these are the truth, it was the 
  Spear that warped his mind.
  Thought to increase one’s power, the Spear doesn’t do exactly that.  In actuality, it 
  amplifies what is already inside a person.  Being a petty, insecure little man, Hitler 
  was simply made worse.
  
  Saviours Bane
  9
  As the Agent takes the spear, she undergoes a painful transformation, as she is 
  full of nothing but hate, and that hate multiplies inside of her as she becomes the 
  equivalent of a Legion Commando herself.  Albeit, one who sees her once underlings 
  now as targets as well as the operatives.
  Scene Four: Exodus                                                           
  After the battle with the Agent, through victory or defeat, the operatives must begin 
  to plot their escape.  The noise of the battle, especially given the use of otherworldly 
  powers will draw the attention of the military and that option may not be a good 
  one, especially given their post-combat condition.
  With a bit of effort, and luck, the operatives will discover an escape tunnel that 
  will eventually submerge and see them all the way to the Rio de la Plate between 
  Argentina and Uruguay.  From there they will have to recover, reassess, and decide 
  what to do about the relic now in their (or the Agent’s) possession.
  
  Ghost Ops
  10
  Ghost Ops
  
  11
  Fire
  
  Ghost Ops
  12
  
  Fire
  13
  Summary                                                                                
  A prominent research lab has been firebombed, killing all three scientists working 
  at that location. The lab was in possession of classified data which may have 
  survived the blaze. The team is tasked with retrieving that data. Sounds easy, right? 
  Not so much. The lab is in a dangerous location, and the BrightCross Group has an 
  interest in retrieving the package, too. The team needs to get there before they do. 
  It’s Ghosts vs. mercs. Let’s get ready to rumble.
  For the Handler                                                                     
  The lab in question has been working on ways to increase the addictive properties 
  of a synthetic narcotic called Zarp.  The lab is located in Port Angela, South Africa, 
  a grungy port city whose economy collapsed when its docks were destroyed by a 
  category 4 tropical cyclone. When legitimate industry moved out, the drug gangs 
  moved in. Their imports were less dependent upon big ocean-going cargo ships, 
  so their “product” could still move in and out of the port. It was in Port Angela that 
  zarp was first developed. A derivative of bath salts, it is dangerous, addictive, and 
  profitable for those who sell it. 
  Andalus Labs was created in 1999 by Esteban Ngoro, a chemist from Angola. It was 
  located at first in Luanda, Angola, where Ngoro used his considerable intellect to 
  develop a drug useful in controlling child soldiers for the civil war. He was backing 
  the wrong side, though, and when the ceasefire came in 2002, he fled to South 
  Africa and the welcoming embrace of Jan Eckman, the son of a billionaire Afrikaans 
  shipping tycoon.  Jan was also a trained biochemist, and he saw a means of adding 
  to his family’s coffers by adding a new product line to their import portfolio. With 
  the help of a third chemist, German Angelika Geisel, they developed Zarp and have 
  been steadily working on increasing its efficacy.
  Recently, Adalus Labs picked up a contract from the North Korean government, 
  asking them to enhance Zarp’s mind control properties. They were heavily involved 
  in human trials, using unwilling humans, when their activities came to the attention 
  of the ICO. A unit of Ghost Ops was about to move on the lab, freeing the hostages 
  and taking the scientists into custody, when a group of unknowns firebombed the 
  lab. Everyone inside was killed instantly except one research assistant, with a total 
  body count of 11 (3 scientists, 4 test subjects, and 4 guards). Nobody ever took 
  responsibility for the firebomb, and to this day, the perpetrators of the attack are 
  unknown. Smart money is on a misguided animal rights group out of Johannesburg 
  who thought the lab was experimenting on monkeys.
  
  Ghost Ops
  14
  Ghost Ops
  It is believed that there was a fireproof lock box in the facility that survived the fire 
  and contains the data from the lab’s experiments, as well as samples of a newly-
  refined version of Zarp. It is this lock box that the team is sent to retrieve. 
  All of the above can be shared freely with the Operators, and some will be reiterated 
  in the question and answer section.
  The usefulness of mind control drugs cannot be overstated, at least from the point 
  of view of the unethical and evil-inclined, and BrightCross Corporation has hired 
  the Blackwood Group to retrieve the lockbox and its contents.
  Here’s where the fun starts.
  All of the scientists, guards and test subjects were killed, but two of them remain 
  locked in eternal conflict – Esteban Ngoro himself, and Kim Rhee Park, a North 
  Korean political prisoner who had been shipped to Port Angela to undergo Zarp 
  experimentation. They were in the midst of a highly-charged scene where Ngoro 
  was essentially torturing Kim to death when the firebomb hit. The two became 
  ghosts, locked in the same scene, stuck in a state of sadism (Ngoro) and pain-fueled 
  rage (Kim). Their ghosts freely roam the ruined space that once held the lab, and 
  they have very different aims. Ngoro is looking for new test subjects. Kim wants the 
  hell out and, driven mad with pain and the psychological effects of the drug, he sees 
  anyone he encounters as a threat. 
  Prologue: Another Day, Another Mission                
  Read or paraphrase the following:
  Another day, another mission. Your team has assembled for a briefing on your latest 
  assignment. Colonel Maria Moorehouse, formerly of the Canadian Special Forces, is 
  already in  
  the briefing room when you arrive. 
   
  Once everyone is in place, she activates her laptop’s powerpoint presentation, 
  which  is projected onto a screen at the front of the room. The screen shows the photo 
  of a dark-skinned man in a lab coat.  
   
  “This is the late Esteban Ngoro, founder of Andalus Labs.”
  The man’s photo is replaced with a corporate logo showing a matador fighting a bull 
  with hypodermic needles instead of horns. 
   
  “Andalus Labs created and refined a narcotic called Zarp, which was used to 
  make child soldiers in the Angolan Civil War more pliable and obedient. Unfortunately, 
  aside from being highly addictive, Zarp has serious side effects.”
  New slide. An embedded video shows a boy of approximately 12 years of age sitting 
  in a gray, windowless cell. He is staring into space blankly and rocking in his chair. 
  Slowly, without changing his expression at all, he begins to tear off his own face.
  
  Fire
  15
  “Ngoro and Andalus Labs, located in Port Angela, South Africa, were working on fixing 
  this side effect and improving the mind control properties of the drug, under contract 
  with North Korea. That was until last week.”
   
  The photo changes to show the fire-blasted ruin of what was once a scientific 
  research facility. Lab tables and chemistry equipment is broken and strewn across 
  the floor along with shattered pieces of masonry. Wires poke haphazardly out of the 
  fallen wreckage.
  “The lab was firebombed by person or persons unknown. The bomb was detonated in 
  the lab itself, likely in the fume hood, and the fire spread rapidly through the facility. 
  Those who weren’t killed by the initial explosion burned to death before they could 
  escape. Three scientists, four test subjects, and four guards were all found dead on the 
  premises when fire crews arrived.”
   
  New slide. A young woman is shown lying in a hospital burn unit. She is badly 
  burned.
   
  “This is Cristabel Kruger. She is the only survivor of the blast, currently in 
  hospital in Johannesburg. Her medical bills are being paid by this man.”
   
  New slide. A blond man is standing on a tennis court. He has sharp features 
  and small eyes, and the resemblance to a ferret is striking. 
   
  “Jan Eckman. He is the dilettante son of Janus Eckman, a shipping tycoon in 
  Johannesburg. It is believed that Jan Eckman was bankrolling Andalus Labs’ activities 
  and may have been dealing the Zarp that the lab produced. He has been missing since 
  the day after the firebombing, probably in hiding.”
   
   She backs up to the slide showing the burned woman. “According to Kruger, 
  the lab had just had a breakthrough in its research. The data and samples were stored 
  in a fireproof lock box somewhere in the facility. As of this moment, that lock box has 
  not yet been found.”
   
  Moorehouse turns to face your group. 
   
  “That’s where you come in. We want you to go to South Africa. Interview 
  Kruger and see what other intel you can gather from her. Then go to Port Angela and 
  retrieve that lock box. The samples and data cannot be allowed to fall into the wrong 
  hands.”
   
  She turns back to her presentation and flips ahead to a new slide. The logo for 
  the Blackwoods Group appears on the screen.
   
  “You are familiar with this outfit. They’ve been hired by an entity called 
  BrightCross Corporation to retrieve the lock box, as well. You need to get to that box 
  before Blackwoods. Any questions?”
  Answers to possible questions:
  Who is BrightCross?
  BrightCross Corporation is a legitimate pharmaceutical company with offices all 
  around the world. 
  
  Ghost Ops
  16
  Ghost Ops
  Why would BrightCross want this information?
  Unknown. Possibly they’re looking for research breakthroughs that they can apply 
  to their own R & D.
  Is Janus Eckman dirty/known for dealing in illegal substances?
  Thus far, his empire has been built on legitimate import/export. He has undercut 
  his competition, sent goon squads to break the backs of unionizers – sometimes 
  literally – and has seriously questionable labor practices on his docks, but he’s not 
  out-and-out illegal. Just shady.
  Is Brightcross already in Port Angela?
  We don’t know, but if they’re not, they’re en route.
  Other questions can be answered by referring to the “for the Handler” section 
  above.
  Once the team has asked all of their questions, read or paraphrase the following:
  Moorehouse hands out the floorplan of the facility at the end of the briefing.
  Part One: Sin Bin Recon                                                    
  Read or paraphrase the following:
  Johannesburg’s Saint Gabriel Hospital has the best burn unit in all of southern Africa, 
  and that’s where you find Cristabel Kruger. She’s in rough shape, with third-degree 
  burns over 40% of her body, and from the glassy shine in her eyes, you can tell she’s 
  in desperate pain. She has an IV supplying her with insufficient pain medication and 
  antibiotics for the infection she has begun to develop. 
  If any of the Operators has the Combat Medic edge, he or she can try to determine 
  how bad off Kruger actually is. A success indicates that she’s in very bad shape. A 
  success with a raise indicates that she’s not likely to survive.
  She knows she’s dying, and she wants to clear her conscience before she goes. She 
  will readily share what she knows.
  What was the breakthrough?
  Zarp could be used to make subjects completely compliant with any command, 
  including commands that would result in their own demise. It completely eliminates 
  the subject’s free will and essentially turns them into automatons waiting for 
  instructions.
  
  Fire
  17
  Was the drug being tested on people?
  Yes, the drug was in human clinical trials. 
  Who were the test subjects?
  Political prisoners from North Korea.
  Where in the facility was the lock box?
  She doesn’t know. Ngoro was paranoid and would move the box constantly so that 
  he was the only person who knew where it was.
   
  Does the lock box open with a key or with a digital code?
  It opens with a password – “Stardust”. 
  Part Two: No Angels in Port Angela                            
  Read or paraphrase the following:
   
  Port Angela is a shell of its former self. 
   
  The city used to be a busy port, with commercial shipping coming in from all around 
  the world. Since the destruction of the docks, those days are gone. Legitimate business 
  has flown, and only illicit trade that can be done via small vessels remains. 
   
  The lab was located in a small one-story building not far from where the docks used 
  to be, and it’s easy enough to find. The outer walls are covered with black soot, and 
  windows have been broken out, leaving shards of glass like teeth around an angry 
  maw.  
  There is no sign of BrightCross operatives, and any recon detects no motion in or 
  around the lab. Unless otherwise indicated, the doors are more or less intact and 
  standing open.
  The main door is no longer on its hinges, so entering the building is easy. The pattern 
  of unburned areas on the floor make it clear that three people died just inside the 
  front door. The stench of burned flesh still clings to the air.
  There is no light but what you bring with you, and footing is treacherous because of 
  the debris everywhere. Your flashlights flicker, and one goes out completely. You get 
  the extinguished flashlight to operate again and continue on your way.
  Your earpiece crackles, and you hear music. It’s just a few notes, garbled by static, and 
  you can’t identify the song.
  
  Ghost Ops
  18
  Ghost Ops
  Describe the rooms as the team enters them. When the Operators enter a room, 
  especially the rooms A, C and J, roll percentile dice to see the percentage chance of 
  Ngoro or Kim being present. If that Operator is alone, the percentage chance of the 
  ghosts being in the room is 80%.
  A: This room is dominated by a set of three dentist chairs, bolted to the floor. It looked 
  as if there might have been straps, but if they were there, they’ve burned away. The 
  chair nearest to the door bears has the outline of body like a photographic negative. 
  Another such imprint is on the floor nearby. The room is full of broken and melted 
  medical equipment and the remains of a cabinet whose glass doors shattered in the 
  heat of the inferno.
  B, D, E:  This dark room was a holding cell, and all that remains is the scorched metal 
  frame of a cot. The mattress has burned away, leaving only ashes. There is evidence 
  on the floor that the prisoner died here.
  C:  Another holding cell, but without a body imprint on the floor. The air in this room 
  feels cool, almost cold.  
  F: A fairly standard bathroom, but with a small shower in the corner. 
  G: This appears to have been a guard lounge. You see the remains of a table and 
  chairs, as well as the charred skeleton of a cot.
  H: This was clearly once an office space, with four desks that are now charred hunks 
  of wood. Fallen pieces of the ceiling lay strewn about the floor, along with the ashes of 
  papers that did not survive the inferno. You find another spot where a body prevented 
  the floor from being burned. 
  I: A standard hallway. There’s more debris, but nothing else of note.
  J: This is the laboratory. The lab benches, scientific instruments and equipment have 
  all been utterly destroyed. 
  When they enter the laboratory, have the Operators roll a Smarts check. A success 
  and a raise will tell them that the explosive was indeed in the fume hood, but that 
  when it detonated, it caused the oxygen and nitrogen tanks in the lab to explode 
  and ignite. This is why the fire was so deadly. 
  The lock box is not present in any obvious place. They’re going to have to search. 
  If they succeed at their searching, they will find the lock box under a broken floor 
  tile in the Human Trial Lab. Coincidentally, the floor tile in question is unburned 
  because someone died on top of it (Ngoro).
  The Haunting                                                                          
  No matter what order the Operators search the building, when they enter the 
  second room, the song plays over their earpieces again. It’s longer this time, and 
  they can make out the song.  It’s “Stardust”.
  
  Fire
  19
  In the fourth room they come to, their flashlights flicker again, and at the same 
  time, their earpieces play shouts and screams of dying men. The burst only lasts 
  for a second.
  When the operators are in the fifth room, they hear footsteps in the hallway. If/
  when they go to check, there’s nobody there. 
  Ngoro’s Ghost:
  When the ghost is encountered, read or paraphrase the following:
  The temperature around you drops like a stone. In front of you, a man in a lab coat 
  appears. He is grinning at you and holding a syringe in his hand. You can see through 
  right through him.
  If the Operators are together: He will appear in his lab coat, a syringe in hand, 
  and will telekinetically close the door. He will look at the Operators and say “new 
  subjects” before he disappears. 
  If the Operator is alone: The door slams, and then Ngoro appears right beside the 
  operator, syringe in hand. He says, “new subject” and tries to jab the Operator with 
  the needle, but it’s as incorporeal as he is. He disappears shortly thereafter.
  Kim’s Ghost:
  When the ghost is encountered, read or paraphrase the following:
  You feel as if someone has poured ice water down your spine, and then you see him: an 
  Asian man in tattered clothes, wild-eyed and unkempt. He screams at you in Korean, 
  then lunges toward you. He is transparent, and as he moves, debris lifts from the floor 
  and begins shooting around the room like shrapnel.
  Kim died badly, and he’s well on his way to becoming a poltergeist. He is angry, and 
  he considers everyone an enemy. He does not understand English and will shout in 
  Korean. If any of the Operators happen to speak Korean, he is shouting, “Let me go! 
  I’ll kill you! Get out of my way!”  
  If the Operators are together: Kim appears and rushes the group, screaming and 
  shouting. Debris lifts from the ground and starts flying around like a cyclone. He 
  runs out of the room, and the debris drops to the floor again.
  If the Operator is alone: As above, but he runs through the Operator, leaving the 
  Operator chilled as if he or she has been outside in sub-zero temperatures. Because 
  of the supernatural nature of this attack, the Operator is left Shaken.
  
  Ghost Ops
  20
  Ghost Ops
  If the ghosts are in the same room at the same time:
  They will ignore the Operators and attack one another. Objects will fly around, any 
  unbroken glass in the area will shatter, and pieces of wire, concrete and other debris 
  will act like shrapnel. The room is no longer a good place to be and the Operators 
  will be hit with debris if they stay for 3d6 points of damage and will be Shaken due 
  to the supernatural nature of the injury. 
  If an operator attempts to talk to the ghosts, they won’t really hear him or her. 
  They’re caught in their own drama and won’t be seeing or doing anything else, ever. 
  There is no telling them to go into the light. (Ngoro wouldn’t have a light coming for 
  him, anyway, unless it’s the red light of Hellfire.)
  Part Three: What Now?                                                           
  As soon as the Operators secure the lock box in the human trial room, agents of the 
  BrightCross Group arrive. 
  Read or paraphrase the following:
  You’ve finally got the lock box and can leave this freakish place behind. Before you 
  can exfil, a group of four armed men enter the building through the open front door. 
  The Operators are essentially trapped in the human trial room, because there are 
  no windows and the only exit doors open into the office, which is where the Tangos 
  are. This is a classic firefight, because the mercs will do anything they can to get 
  their hands on that lock box. Their tactic will be try to take down the person holding 
  the box first. If he or she falls, they will attempt to grab the box and run with it.
  If two or more agents are killed, the remaining Brightcross mercenaries will flee 
  the scene. If the Operators want to pursue and apprehend, or pursue and kill, more 
  power to them.
  Once the firefight is over, assuming that the Operators have succeeded in keeping 
  the lock box, read or paraphrase the following:
  You have had enough of Port Angela for one lifetime, but it seems perhaps Port Angela 
  is not quite done with you. As you exit the building with the lock box in hand, your 
  earpiece squeals, and the song “Stardust” follows you out into the night…
  
  21
  Blackhawk Lost
  
  Ghost Ops
  22
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  23
  When a mission to shut down a Project Lucifer operation deep into the jungles of 
  Bolivia goes awry, the operatives of Phantom Squad end up somewhere else, deep 
  in territory they’ve never seen before and fighting enemies the like of which they 
  hope never to see again.
  This adventure set in the world of Project Lucifer is designed to introduce the 
  player characters, all members of the special Phantom Squad, to the reality of 
  the supernatural and the dangerous elements that make Project Lucifer’s world 
  different from our own.
  When you see text like this in italics, read it aloud to the players and feel free to 
  embellish it with voices, accents, and even sound effects – most of all – have fun and 
  don’t be afraid to change something if it works better for you.
  What is Phantom Squad?                                                 
  If you’re familiar with the Ghosts from a certain popular video game franchise or 
  Team Rainbow from another by the same publisher, then you’ll have a head start. If 
  not, they’re an elite spec ops force which has been setup by the US to tackle threats 
  which are classified as ‘Phantom’ aka: Supernatural.
  Just because the US government creates this squad, it doesn’t mean they’re all 
  from the US. Imagine it’s a melting pot of different operators and governments all 
  throwing in their hat against a new threat (real or imagined) just because of some 
  strange things other squads have encountered recently.
  The commander of the squad, Commander Georgina Clay is an ex-member of 
  Madeline Cross’ Project Lucifer. She escaped, she’s been on the run from Cross’ hit-
  teams ever since and has crafted a new identity for herself in the US military. It’s 
  thanks to Georgina the team exists in the first place, and she brought proof to the 
  generals and majors they couldn’t deny.
  Clay is a psychic who can manipulate the flow of time, and also throw stuff around.
  Once she threw the table across the room with her mind, they believed her.
  Phantom Squad was setup fast after that and now in 2021 they operate outside of 
  the usual chain of command, going up against human and demonic threats alike. 
  The player characters might be members of the Phantom Squad, but this is their 
  first brush with the supernatural, so they may or may not believe any of this exists. 
  That’s OK. It’s more fun if they don’t…
  
  Ghost Ops
  24
  Ghost Ops
  Act 1: Phantom Jungle                                                       
  This is Phantom’s first mission as this squad, they’re being sent into the Bolivian 
  Jungle to shut down an operation that Clay believes is meddling with rift technology. 
  She’s not sure what Madeline’s planning with this base, but she wants it shut down 
  for good. This includes eliminating any supernatural threats, and blowing the place 
  sky-high if the PCs have to.
  Scene 1: Storm Warning
  The squad are aboard a Blackhawk high in the Bolivian sky, approaching the 
  target by night, and just at the edges of a ferocious storm which tears across the 
  sky. Lightning illuminates the inside of the chopper and Clay has their brief on a 
  specialised tablet, which in turn has been given to the commander of the squad. 
  Pick a PC at the start for the command role and give them the device.
  “Listen up squad, you’re fresh, you’re rookies in this squad. I don’t care if you’ve 
  fought and killed Bigfoot or seen the Invisible Man. Here, this is Phantom Squad 
  and regardless of what you might think, this shit is real, and will kill you. I’ve seen 
  some people laughing, maybe it was you, and maybe it wasn’t. I don’t care.” Clay’s 
  voice rings from the tablet as the brief plays out. “Get your game faces on, take this 
  seriously and you might be OK. Now, the pep-talk’s out of the way, here’s the mission. 
  Commander, you’re up.”
  Rather than have Clay drone on you can hand over to the player who’s been assigned 
  as the commander. Give them the handout below and let them brief the players in 
  character as the chopper flies on.
  Mission: Phantom Rift
  From: Phantom Squad Command
  Insertion: Enter Bolivian Airspace at 22:00 hours, insert team 1k north of target 
  and move through jungle to checkpoint Alpha. See map. Remain unseen at all times.
  Parameters: What we know so far commander is that a dangerous splinter-group 
  of terrorists, codenamed: Lucifer, have been operating in the Bolivian Area. Project 
  Lucifer represents one of the single-most dangerous threats to the safety of our 
  Great Nation and the rest of the world. The PMC that is attached pack a hell of a 
  punch, use supernatural elements, and have a high tech level which rivals many of 
  our own advances in the military tech field.
  Do not think this is going to be a cake-walk.
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  25
  Your mission is to enter the facility marked on the tac-map, destroy all machines 
  and technology inside, and take down any personnel. From what we know of 
  Lucifer, the staff at this facility will not be innocent bystanders. Even the scientists 
  are dangerous, take no prisoners. 
  You will be expected to extract to the safe zone once the mission is complete, and 
  the chopper will rendezvous there. 
  Do not allow a single file to remain on their servers, insert the USB key virus which 
  is attached to the tablet into their main server. I want nothing of this abomination 
  to remain, do I make myself clear?
  Commander G. Clay.
  [Note]: If the player doesn’t want to roleplay the briefing, feel free to roleplay Clay 
  communicate via the tablet and do it for them. Once the brief is concluded, pick a 
  time when the player characters are nearly at the insertion point and jump to scene 
  2.
  Scene 2: Blackhawk Down!
  When you’re ready, have fun with this.
  The lightning gets worse; there are regular strikes and high winds, then a flash of 
  light on the horizon at about 1k to the north. The pilot shields his eyes and the whole 
  chopper tips and rolls in a sudden shockwave. Warning lights come on, bad sounds 
  happen, the kind of sounds that follow a chopper which loses height rapidly and emits 
  smoke from the back of the rotor section.
  
  Ghost Ops
  26
  Ghost Ops
  There’s also fire at the front, one of the pilots is screaming.
  The chopper pitches down hard and heads towards the jungle canopy.
  If you want to add some dice to the mix, the PCs can make the [appropriate tests to 
  avoid damage or injury from the incoming crash]
  Even the strongest person blacks out when a crash like this happens, so even if 
  they make a good successful roll, they’re going to be unconscious – that way we can 
  wake them up gently.
  The Blackhawk tips downward and loses altitude in seconds, the pilot continues to 
  scream and the air rushes past the stricken chopper. It hits the canopy hard and you 
  manage to remain inside the vehicle as it careens downward. The force of the impact 
  punches the air from your lungs and sends you all into the darkness as you pass out.
  Things are about to go from bad to worse too.
  Scene 3: Whatever Possessed Him to Do That?     
  After what seems like hours, something awakens you as you lay inside the wrecked 
  helicopter. It’s the co-pilot, his neck at a strange angle, screaming in the middle of 
  the chopper and thrashing his arms about yelling in a strange tongue and shaking 
  violently.
  OK, a quick sitrep for you as GM. What’s happened?
  The Blackhawk is down, it can’t be repaired, the pilot is dead, and the co-pilot is 
  possessed by one of Cross’ demons which escaped when a rift at the Bolivian facility 
  blew. Now there’s a gaping hole into a layer of hell in the middle of it, and demons 
  are slowly seeping out like blood, into the real world. 
  When the co-pilot sees a character awaken, they’ll turn slowly toward them and it’s 
  as if something else looks out from the dead man’s eyes. He’s not a zombie, though, 
  he’s not interested in brains, but he’s very interested in souls.
  Like the downed PCs. 
  What are they going to do?
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  27
  As you come round from the crash, you see the pilot, he’s dead, co-pilot is in the middle 
  of the wrecked bird and screaming like a madman. He yells in a foreign language you 
  just plain don’t understand, beats himself with his arms, and claws his face.
  His neck is at an odd angle, the kind that indicates he should be dead.
  A wicked smile appears on his lips as he sees you, and he lunges forward only to get 
  caught in the webbing that’s strewn across the floor. He’ll be free in a few moments 
  though…
  The PCs have access to their gear from the bird, it’s in a good state, and they can 
  easily get to weapons if they haven’t already got a pistol holstered at their hip. Now, 
  shooting inside the chopper is going to be loud, and it’s going to have a chance for 
  ricochets – but better that, than a possessed co-pilot swallowing your soul because 
  of a hungry demon.
  Run the fight as normal, but don’t be too hard on the PCs, they just survived a crash.
  The chopper is going to have some good gear in it, but if you want to spoil their 
  day some, feel free to have some of it caught in the jungle canopy as it fell out of the 
  chopper as the bird smashed into the jungle.
  Act 2: Hell Jungle                                                                
  The PCs are going to need to orientate their squad quickly, but none of their 
  electronic gizmos are going to work. Hell is like that, it interferes with gadgets and 
  the like – plus – getting a cellphone and radio signal here requires some very special 
  tech they just don’t have access to.
  Scene 1: We’re not in Bolivia Any More…
  Outside the chopper you can see the jungle, it should be wrecked where you landed, 
  but the dark trees and oddly red sky aren’t touched at all. The radio crackles in the 
  chopper with static, and occasionally it emits a strange noise which is oddly disturbing.
  Nothing electronic works at all, the tablet screen is cracked and broken, and it just 
  won’t turn on.
  If they make some rolls and try to work out where they are, the sky is all wrong, 
  the stars are in the wrong place, or backwards. The trees are out of proportion and 
  there’s no sound of wildlife, just a soft breathing which is just enough to prick the 
  hairs on the back of their neck.
  
  Ghost Ops
  28
  Ghost Ops
  Welcome to Hell, inhabitants, way too many to count.
  Quick thinking players might work out that the chopper has crashed in the direction 
  they were flying in the first place, and hasn’t deviated much from that flight path. 
  Their objective might still be ahead and they have enough gear to carry on.
  If they hang about too long though, minor denizens of hell will find them and rush 
  the chopper.
  Six to ten mook-like barely human shapes should do the trick.
  Minor Demon
  Minor Demons come in various shapes and sizes and some can fly and others 
  cannot, but however they move they are both dangerous and annoying.
  Awareness: 3, Skill: 4, Unarmed: 2, Weaponry: 4.
  Weapons - Maces, Swords, Axes etc. Demons have not embraced the modern age 
  of weaponry quite yet.
  Armour: Blubber and Natural 4
  You stay by the chopper, try to regain your bearings, perhaps you’ve taken too long. 
  Now you can hear rustling, rushing, growling, and chittering. Suddenly from the 
  treeline a group of misshapen creatures emerges and with a howling giggle they rush 
  you and the wrecked bird.
  Again, this fight only happens if they don’t seem to be moving on. If they still remain, 
  then they’re going to draw more and more demons to their location.
  As a subtle hint, the broken tablet repeats the mission briefing after a while and 
  then shuts down.
  Hell’s like that.
  Scene 2: Objective Maintained                                      
  This is where the PCs get to trek through the Hell Jungle, and head toward where 
  the facility should be. It’s kind of there, but imagine it’s a mirror or reflection of its 
  real-world location. We’ll get to that bit in Scene 3.
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  29
  Minor Demon
  
  Ghost Ops
  30
  Ghost Ops
  Scene 2 is all about them moving through the jungle and encountering things on 
  the way, it can be as long or short as you want it. Also, remember, distance in Hell is 
  strange and time doesn’t flow quite the way it does back in the real world.
  You can have some fun with that. 
  This is where as GM; you can test your improv skills. You can make up details about 
  this place as you like, as long as it’s creepy and twisted. Maybe you have a favourite 
  game series, or TV show with this kind of hellscape in it. Draw from that, and 
  present it to creep the player characters out and introduce them to a supernatural 
  landscape which is totally outside of their comfort zone.
  Some ideas though:
  • 
  They come across an abandoned village, Bolivian in design, full of the 
  shadows of people who died there when a plague hit. Only the PCs can see 
  a strange figure that flits unseen amongst the people tainting their food and 
  drink.
  • 
  They witness a macabre re-play of their crash, complete with the actions 
  they undertook after the crash.
  • 
  A group of demons ambushes them, again, these are small-fry compared to 
  what’s up ahead. [Enemy: Minor demons]
  • 
  They find several strange standing stones covered with unusual symbols, 
  this is an inactive gate, and it cannot be used without the key stone.
  • 
  The wreck of a twin-seater prop plane probably has a few things they can 
  scavenge, and it’s hard to tell when it crashed. They could make a note of the 
  tail number and cross-reference it when they get back to the real world. It 
  crashed in 2010.
  Eventually they’re going to get to the mission zone, and in Hell, it’s even worse than 
  it is in the real world.
  Scene 3: Demone’d if you Do, Demone’d if you Don’t
  As you make your way through the trees you finally reach your mission zone, or at 
  least it should be the mission zone. What you see is something else, the building which 
  was described on the tac-map and shown on the tablet looks nothing like it should. 
  It’s covered in strange dark growths, and three large demonic looking dogs each the 
  size of a pony strut around outside the main door as a ruddy light pours from within.
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  31
  The PCs have just found the hell version of their facility, complete with three very 
  large and angry looking demon dogs. They can try and sneak past, or fight them, 
  and if they fight the dogs then they’re in for a tough battle.
  Demon Dogs
  Often travelling in packs Demon Dogs are relentless in their hunting of their targets, 
  not so much for food but for fun.
  Awareness: 4, Skill: 3, Unarmed:4, Weapon: -
  Weapon: Bite 3 (1), Claws x2 - 2 (1)
  Armour: Natural 1
  Regardless, their objective should be to get into the building. Inside they can make 
  their way to the rift and use it to enter the real world. That should be their goal, and 
  then they can seal the rift from the other side and job done.
  If only it was just that simple.
  Act 3: Hell’s Angles                                                             
  The architecture of Hell is really odd, the corridors inside shouldn’t make sense, and 
  the angles should seriously mess with the player character’s sense of perception. 
  Some appear longer than they are, some shorter, corridors that look like you can’t 
  walk down are perfectly fine. It’s all very Alice in Wonderland, only Wonderland as 
  imagined by Dante.
  
  Ghost Ops
  32
  Ghost Ops
  Scene 1: Infernal Inside
  Faces of people they once knew haunt them as they explore the interior, there’s no 
  fixed map, there’s only one route toward the rift. The dark magic of Hell ensures 
  they’re kept on the path, because oddly enough, Hell wants them out.
  Hell doesn’t like interlopers, and it really doesn’t want to kill you.
  If you want to spice it up, have a few demons attack them as they follow the corridors 
  and explore rooms that are twisted versions of their real-world counterparts.
  • 
  A medical bay, which contains half-dissected still-screaming corpses. 
  • 
  A barracks where soldiers are trapped in the walls, on fire, yelling for help.
  • 
  A lab where tiny pockets of energy zip back and forth, setting fire to anything 
  in their path.
  • 
  A security station where a hulking demon waits to welcome them with 
  open eyes, all six of them, that spit poison which is also on fire. [ENEMY: Big 
  security demon]
  • 
  Dead ends galore, which then turn into corridors when the PCs turn around.
  • 
  A lift which goes sideways.
  • 
  A set of stairs of impossible angles.
  • 
  A wheelchair in a corridor which then flips 180 degrees.
  Finally, after all that, they reach the centre of the building.
  Scene 2: Rifting on a Theme
  You finally make it to the inner lab, and there it is, not what you expected. A giant 
  ball of flame sits at the centre of three strange looking armatures and through it you 
  can see what appears to be the same room. Only it’s not covered in black crystals 
  and fire.
  As the PCs approach the rift they’re stopped by a massive multi-limbed monstrosity 
  which swings down from the ceiling above them. It blocks the rift, and they need 
  to get past it.
  Large Demon
  Like their smaller cousins large demons have not embraced modern weapons and 
  prefer to use their claws, teeth and horns to do the damage.
  Awareness: 4, Skill: 4, Unarmed: 5, Weapon: -
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  33
  Large Demon
  
  Weapons: Claws 4 (2), Bite 3 (1), Horns 5 (3).
  Armour: Natural: Thick skin and rigid scales 6
  Once the demon is down they’ll be able to enter the rift, and they need to do that 
  pretty quickly. There are other demons behind them, and they’re coming – they’re 
  hungry for PC souls.
  Let them set traps if they want, but the moment they enter the rift, they’re out of 
  there.
  Scene 3: Shut It Down
  You step into the rift, it’s warm, but it doesn’t burn. You find yourselves slightly 
  disorientated and dumped out in the room you saw on the other side. This is a lab, a 
  proper lab, and it’s crawling with several demons. Tendrils of energy connect them 
  to the rift on this side, and you can see one large demon standing between two 
  pillars of metal forming a connection to the rift.
  If the PCs put two and two together, they need to concentrate on the big demon, 
  take it down and sever the connection. The feedback will destroy the other demons 
  and shut the rift down. It’s not going to be easy, but they don’t need to waste their 
  time on the small fry.
  The minor ones are to distract the PCs, and the big demon is the key. As they kill 
  minor ones, new ones jump out of the rift.
  Assuming they take it down read this.
  As you take down the big creature, a feedback begins; it runs through the pillars 
  and along all the tendrils attached to the other demons. Each one pops like an ashen 
  balloon and screams into nothing. The big demon snarls, slashes at you, but eventually 
  burns up as well. The rift turns orange, and then collapses in on itself and all falls 
  silent.
  Apart from the clatter of a ceiling light as it crashes down.
  Epilogue
  The idea here of course if for you to continue on with this adventure, this is just 
  the beginning, the PCs have made it back out of Hell and they’ve discovered a truth 
  about the world according to Madeline Cross. Demons are real, and hungry. 
  
  Blackhawk Lost
  35
  The team can continue with their original mission and clear the facility. Have some 
  more demons show up as they do so, not all were destroyed when the rift closed. 
  Feel free to give them moral quandaries by putting innocents in the rooms where 
  they were going to be used as experiments and even have a surviving scientist to 
  help them, or hinder them.
  Eventually they can make it back to the extraction zone location, job done.
  This is just one mission, they’ll get debriefed, get some rest, and they’ll be out there 
  again before they know it.
  Welcome to Phantom Squad. 
  
  Ghost Ops
  36
  Ghost Ops
  
  37
  Out of Africa
  
  Ghost Ops
  38
  Ghost Ops
  
  Out of Africa
  39
  BrightCross Corp established a humanitarian assistance agency, BC Global Relief. 
  This aid group delivers food, supplies, medical services to millions of desperate 
  refugees in camps across the world. Under this guise, BrightCross has access to 
  millions of isolated test subjects and a near unlimited supply of human tissues and 
  organs.
  At Piboro refugee camp in South Sudan, BrightCross is working to find a way to 
  prepare an entire population for possession by poisoning them with Hell rock. 
  Refugees are given food laced with Hell rock and some receive injections of Hell rock 
  serum. The project has sickened thousands with symptoms similar to hemorrhagic 
  fever and hundreds have died horrific deaths.
  A month ago, a trio of World Health Organization doctors visited Piboro camp and 
  discovered the cause of the “hemorrhagic outbreak.” After they fled, BC Global Relief 
  operators, disguised as rebel soldiers, murdered everyone in the group. However, 
  one of the of the doctors was the daughter of a powerful UN diplomat and she has 
  requested that the ICO quietly investigate the doctors’ deaths.
  Getting to Piboro Refugee Camp                                   
  Piboro refugee camp is located twenty-two miles east of Malakal, South Sudan’s 
  second largest city with a population of 130,000. Malakal is occupied by rebels, 
  although there is currently a ceasefire monitored by the United Nations. The UN 
  maintains a large compound outside of Malakal, including approximately 1000 
  peacekeeping troops. 
  Malakal airport is the most likely point of entry to the area by characters. Multiple 
  NGOs, assistance, and monitoring agencies travel through here daily and operatives 
  may blend in without a problem. An ICO contact at the airport named Kazim Akol 
  can arrange vehicles and supplies for the characters. Akol can act as a guide for the 
  characters but will hide in any combat situation.
  Piboro Refugee Camp
  The Piboro refugee camp contains about twenty thousand refugees, most of whom 
  have fled the conflict in neighboring Darfur. Earthen berms topped with lights 
  and walkways surround the camp and inside are row after row of white tents 
  and shelters organized into blocks. In the center is a square containing a hospital, 
  distribution center, and headquarters buildings. In addition to aid workers, medics, 
  and doctors, there is an abundance of well-armed security personnel.
  
  Ghost Ops
  40
  Outside the camp and adjacent to a dirt airstrip is the security compound. A wall 
  of HESCO barriers topped with razor wire surrounds several buildings, including 
  several barracks, a communications shack, and a large motor pool where SUVs, 
  trucks, and MRAPs sit under shade tarps. Careful observers may notice that both 
  camps are circled by reconnaissance drones.
  The Piboro camp administrator is Josef Alesky, a thin and nervous man with a 
  Polish accent. The senior camp doctor and the head of the Hell rock trials is Dr. Yann 
  Emilien, an older man with heavy glasses and an unpleasant disposition. The head 
  of security is Sabine Riggi, a ruthless Italian woman with considerable experience 
  as an intelligence operative.
  Official visitors to the camp are welcomed by a nervous Alesky and assigned a 
  minder and a security detail that follows close behind at all times. The minder will 
  arrange for any interviews or tours of the facilities, which will be choreographed 
  to keep the characters away from any incriminating evidence. Attempts to truly 
  investigate the camp require the character to slip away from the watchers and 
  move about covertly.
  Interviews with refugees are difficult as they are suspicious and paranoid but with 
  successful persuasion, the characters may hear some of the following rumors:
  • 
  BC Global Relief is very generous and provides everything the refugees need.
  • 
  The food provided by the aid workers is nourishing but it sometimes tastes 
  bad. 
  • 
  The aid workers don’t eat the same food given to the refugees.
  • 
  Refugees are discouraged from leaving the camp, with the aid workers 
  warning that some who have left have been killed by rebels.
  • 
  The fevers started about two months ago. 
  • 
  The symptoms of the hemorrhagic fever include fever, rashes, bodily pain, 
  bleeding from the orifices, discoloration of the skin, and strange growths. 
  • 
  Anyone that shows symptoms of the fever are taken to the hospital. 
  • 
  The worst cases of the fever go to an isolation ward. Those who go in are 
  never seen again.
  • 
  The families of the dead are not allowed to see the bodies of their lost loved 
  ones because the aid workers fear contagion. The aid workers burn the 
  corpses, but no one knows where.
  • 
  A man who was delirious with the fever ran away from the hospital to be 
  with his family. He talked about strange medicines and having terrible 
  dreams. The man was taken back to the hospital where he later died.
  
  Out of Africa
  41
  Should Alesky or Riggi become suspicious of the characters, they will not hesitate to 
  convince them to leave and arrange another “rebel attack” to eliminate the heroes.
  The Hospital and the Lab
  All of BC Global Relief’s research with the Hell rock is coordinated by Dr. Emilien 
  from the hospital and a secret lab complex beneath the building. The hospital is 
  a prefabricated structure consisting of interconnected shipping containers and 
  inflatable tents. In the center of the hospital is a special isolation ward for patients 
  with the most severe reactions to the hell rock serums. Here, demonic soldiers 
  monitor the isolation ward while doctors and technicians experiment on the heavily 
  sedated individuals within. 
  An elevator within the isolation ward leads to the buried lab beneath the structure. 
  This high-tech facility contains workstations for scientists, secure and magically 
  warded cells for violent patients (treat as Fodder, but with uncontrollable psychotic 
  rages), equipment for manufacturing hell rock to mix into the food and the hell rock 
  serum. Also located in the lab is a portal to The Cradle.
  
  Ghost Ops
  42
  Ghost Ops
  
  43
  Operation Prelude
  
  Ghost Ops
  44
  Ghost Ops
  
  Operation Prelude
  45
  “I know what you are telling yourself.  Trust me, I didn’t believe it either the first 
  time, but here we are.  You asked for proof and I gave it to you.  So now it’s my turn.  I 
  jumped through your hoop.  I have one of my own, and trust me, you are not going to 
  like where you land.
  “Just promise me one thing.  When you reach the end of this, think before you shoot?  
  Some monsters exist because they stand between us and bigger ones.”
  Operation Prelude is what some players might call a ‘bug hunt’.  The majority of 
  the scenario takes place underground, both through sewage treatment tunnels and 
  a utility annex that was originally intended to support a subway expansion that 
  never happened.  The main fear is claustrophobia, the mood is paranoia, and the 
  momentum is relentless once it builds up.
  Operatives are in for a hell of a ride and even if they survive it, they may never be 
  the same again.
  Introduction                                                                          
  First, a bit of background.  To quote the Project Lucifer sourcebook:
  “There’s no way to create an unnatural stable psychic, it always results in the 
  powers of the mind going off the charts, hallucinations, paranoia, and dozens of 
  other complications that shut down the original projects in the first place.
  “There is NO way.
  “You are either born able to control these powers or not. True psychic power births 
  are very rare, so rare that there are only six people with that level of power naturally 
  on the planet.”
  This is all true.  There were several Projects, all documented in the sourcebook, 
  dedicated to finding ways to stabilize, artificially generate, or otherwise imbue 
  subjects with measurable, controllable mental abilities.  From Six to Parallel, all 
  of them failed in some way because they did not understand or accept that for the 
  overwhelmingly vast majority of our species, the human mind cannot contain the 
  kind of power they were after.  Some projects merely failed, others imploded or 
  were shut down before they could, and the lest said about Parallel’s ‘termination’ 
  in Nevada, the better.
  Project Lucifer’s success comes from the powers and insight of Madeline Cross 
  and, in part, one of the six human exceptions – Doctor Leia Dawson.  This scenario 
  focuses on Samantha Keller, another stable human psychic.
  
  Ghost Ops
  46
  Ghost Ops
  Samantha Keller and MKUltra
  "Go to Hell."
  "It's a phrase I used all my life. I never gave it a second thought. But now that the End 
  is here, demons wear the flesh of men, and evil no longer feels the wont to masquerade, 
  I realize how naive I was.
  "Go to Hell? No need. Hell was more than happy to come to us."
  Samantha was a naïve college student when she got picked by random testing to take 
  part in MKUltra. She only managed to slip under the notice of big projects like Parallel 
  and Lucifer because she was identified and trained by MKU nearly ten years before 
  those two even began.  
  MKUltra, was the code name given to a program of experiments on human subjects 
  that were designed and undertaken by the United States Central Intelligence Agency. 
  It began in 1949, officially gained sanction in 1953, was publicly shut down in 1973, 
  and remained in operation as an underground, black book para-governmental study 
  until 1990, when Project Tartarus’ expanding reach threatened to expose MKUltra 
  and either dissolve or absorb it.
  Rather than let either happen, the four person staff of MKUltra provided their test 
  subjects with new identities, resettled them, and then tried to disappear into the 
  labyrinth of US governmental bureaucracy. Only Samantha refused a new ID and 
  resettlement, preferring to leave the facility and take her chances alone.  She was 
  convinced they were all in terrible danger.
  The others had faith in their connections and ability to hide.  Their plan even worked 
  for a few years, until Duncan Bright recognized one of the researchers by pure chance 
  during a meeting in the Pentagon.  
  Like dominos, the rest of the project fell quickly after that.  Every staff member met 
  with a fatal accident, some showing signs of severe interrogation that always went 
  uninvestigated.  The living subjects of MKUltra took longer to neutralize but by 1994, 
  only Samantha Keller remained alive
  This scenario assumes that the Operatives have been involved in missions against 
  Project Lucifer for some time.  They may not know the group’s name or its leaders 
  but they are familiar with supernatural threats and enemy combatants with psychic 
  powers.  Though they have doubtless been careful to keep their missions a secret 
  and they have the protection of their agency (or agencies), they have developed 
  something of a reputation.
  
  Operation Prelude
  47
  That said, this scenario may be besty used for Operatives that have had a brush 
  with the supernatural via Project Lucifer but have not really gone ‘down the rabbit 
  hole’, so to speak.  Samantha Keller could prove to be an excellent – if erratic – 
  patroness, leading the Operatives one step at a time into a war they were going to 
  have to fight sooner or later anyway.
  In a world full of monsters, reputations spread fast and contacts can be more 
  valuable than gold. Sadly for the Operatives, their reputations have reached the 
  ever-wary leadership of the Devil’s Own…
  Scene One: Dead Drop                                                        
  “It was not supposed to go down like this.  Of all the people to be a Lucy, I never 
  expected it of him.  Just goes to show how anyone can be fooled.  Even me.  But now 
  there’s a body.  Soon it will go public. People will know, one way of the other.  My only 
  chance now is to be sure it’s my way.  
  “And that it’s the right people.”
  This scenario opens with the Operatives arriving at Dean Street in Brooklyn, New 
  York City, at midnight.  They are here to meet Nugget, a low-level street informer 
  with contacts that go very high up the chain.  Unfortunately, they went very low 
  down the chain as well – Nugget was a Fodder-rank member of the Devil’s Own.  His 
  powers of Cloud the Mind and Subjugation enabled him to function as an observer 
  and unknown liaison with many other power groups in the city.
  Unfortunately, this included the Operative’s organization.  The mission they thought 
  they were coming here to receive was just a ruse to lure them here.
  One might notice a lot of past-tense at work here.  That is because Nugget has 
  been dead ever since Samantha Keller tried to make contact with his mind and 
  accidentally obliterated the demon riding his soul.  The beast’s death throes killed 
  its host – Nugget – and Samantha was left with a quickly fading psyche and a mind 
  full of violent backlash.  
  The backlash did not do Samantha much good, but she held things together to draw 
  out the knowledge of the Operatives and that the Devil’s Own have them targeted 
  for removal.  She was coming to Nugget to hire a group for her own ends, so this 
  serendipity lead Samantha to make contact with the Operatives in his name. 
  This brings us to the present, where the Operatives arrive at the usual place for 
  meeting Nugget and find his alley empty of anything but trash:
  
  Ghost Ops
  48
  Ghost Ops
  Nugget usually sits on a pile of bins in the middle of this alley off Dean Street.  The air 
  smells a little better here but the scenery, trash-strewn and graffiti-covered as it is, is 
  as squalid as always.  The bins are empty, the alley vacant. 
  Wherever Nugget is, he surely is not out here.
  The buildings on either side of the alley can easily be investigated.  What few 
  people live in these dilapidated houses mind their own business and want nothing 
  to do with the agents.  There are large pieces of furniture in every hall and the 
  apartments extend eight floors up in both buildings.  A search will take quite awhile 
  unless of a Very Difficult skill check involving Streetwise or Criminal Knowledge 
  can be accomplished.
  Even with a successful check (or if the Operatives are pursuing some other possibility 
  and do not enter the buildings), the road to finding Nugget will take quite a while. 
  All through this time, Samantha Keller has been watching the Operative with her 
  abilities.  She will choose one of them to contact telepathically, with compassion, 
  decent behaviour, and kindness catching her attention best.
  Making Contact
  When she has picked someone to contact, she reaches out in this fashion.  As with 
  all scenario text in Operation Prelude, feel free to paraphrase or completely change 
  things to better fit the needs of your campaign.
  “Please don’t panic…  or explode.”
  It might seem an odd way to say hello, but she contacted Nugget like this and he did 
  the latter once his demonic rider tried to assault Samantha through the connection. 
  All she did was try to push the demon away and she ended up obliterating it and 
  killing Nugget.  She would rather not do that again, especially by accident.
  The contacted Operative’s next few thoughts will be heard by Samantha, but 
  assuming he or she does not explode, Samantha will continue regardless of reply.
  “I am sorry to reach out to you like this, but it is not safe on the street for me right 
  now.  I had no idea Eugene…  Nugget’s real name, by the way… had a rider, but he did.  
  His death is my fault, but the people that stuck that…  thing in him doomed his soul 
  long before I came along.”
  By now, the Operative has probably told the others about what is happening.  Once 
  one or more of the others know about the telepathic contact, Samantha widens her 
  reach to include the whole team
  
  Operation Prelude
  49
  “If it helps, I get how strange this is.  I will explain more, but can you all get inside 
  somewhere?  The grey brick building with the yellow side doors is vacant.  Nugget’s 
  handlers are probably in the area already and no offense, but you all do not exactly 
  ping as locals.  You seem more like highly trained, heavily armed military agents.  
  Funny that, right?”
  If the Operatives decide to just pack up and leave the area immediately, they avoid 
  the coming ambush and effectively leave the scenario completely.  Samantha’s 
  power is potent but its range is fairly limited.  Move the Operatives into another 
  scenario if this happens, providing some small experience reward before moving 
  on.  
  If they choose to stay, Samantha will not risk contacting them again until they 
  have gotten off the street and into a nearby building.  They do not have to pick 
  the building she suggested, but they do need to be completely concealed inside a 
  building on Dean Street.
  Keller – What She Knows and What She Wants
  First things first, Samantha Keller is a campaign character, intended for use as 
  an ally, contact, and even occasional foil if the game requires it.  She can offer a 
  desperately needed assist in tight situations, though this should be used very 
  sparingly.  The Operatives should never come to depend on her for a rescue.  They 
  are the heroes of the game, after all.  Samantha should typically need them, not the 
  other way around.
  As such, she knows all the relevant details of this scenario, including basic facts 
  about the enemies, their common tactics, and weapons.  She also knows the New 
  York tunnel systems extremely well, since she has been living in them for more than 
  forty years.  She can offer a serious amount of psychic lore and some background 
  on Project Lucifer, but only once this scenario is over and she is safe again.
  Once they are:
  “Good.  These buildings are solid, old brick and steel.  Most senses won’t be able to 
  penetrate that much hard matter.  Even I am having trouble reaching you, so that is 
  a good sign.”
  Be sure to offer the Operatives a chance to talk back or ask questions.  Field the 
  latter using the information in – Keller: What She Knows and What She Wants.
  
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  Ghost Ops
  “That’s all right.  I know you have questions.  I can feel them forming in your left 
  inferior frontal gyrus.  Let me skip ahead and tell you all you need to know right now.  
  I need assistance dealing with people who are not your biggest fans either.  I thought 
  Nugget could help, but I was literally dead wrong.  
  Now I’ve gotten the attention of the people I was trying to avoid.  If they were watching 
  Nugget’s drop spot, then you have too.  From here on in, get low and stay…”
  Before Samantha can finish her sentence, move immediately to Scene Two: Shot in 
  the Dark.
  Scene Two: Shot in the Dark                                           
  Note:  This scene may need to be run in an alley or on the street if the Operatives 
  did not follow Samantha’s advice.  Do not railroad them into an indoor scene if they 
  do not want to be there.  One way or another, there will be a fire fight.
  Use the Confrontation map for this combat, which starts with a single gunshot 
  targeting the Operative in contact with Samantha.  A four-man Sweeper Team of 
  the Devil’s Own has discovered the Operatives and determined they are potential 
  allies of the rogue actor (Samantha) they are here to neutralize.
  
  Operation Prelude
  51
  The Devil’s Own will not use any special tactics here, save to limit use of supernatural 
  abilities if they are out in the open.  Otherwise they just intend to swarm, overpower, 
  and sanction (kill) the Operatives.
  Devil’s Own Sweeper Team
  The whole four-man team of BrightCross Operatives (stats as in main book) is 
  in street clothes to avoid unwelcome attention.  They are all armed with MK-23 
  handguns; the team’s Leader also has an Mp5, but he will not use it on the street 
  unless he has to do so. This is to further distance them from the corp.
  Each BC Operative is equipped with a Party Popper; these are implanted devices 
  that trigger the ‘owner’s’ body to explode with the force of a fragmentary grenade 
  if he or she is dead for longer than one minute.
  This team has encoded comms, no body armor, no wallets, personal effects, or IDs.  
  Even if one of them could be captured and made to talk, the only thing they can 
  reveal is that they are here to kill anyone involved with or looking for Nugget.  They 
  also know the location of their check-in point – the abandoned subway depot at 
  City Hall, but Samantha Keller is about to reveal that location to the Operatives in 
  any case.
  When the Shooting Stops
  Once the last of the Sweepers is down, Samantha makes contact again.
  “I’d been hoping to avoid that, but they left us no choice.  Move quickly.  Leave the 
  bodies and their gear.  Their stuff is likely trackable and their bodies are no longer 
  safe now that they…”
  Again, she is interrupted, but this time by an explosion rather than a bullet.  The 
  body farthest from the Operatives suddenly explodes in a fiery shower of gore!  No 
  one is hurt by the explosion, but the beeping echoing up from the other corpses 
  suggests that is about to happen again.
  Time to go.
  Scene Three: Condition Terminal                                 
  In this scene, the Operatives are guided into the abandoned tunnels of New York 
  City’s subway system by Samantha.  She explains that she needs help escaping 
  Operation Lucifer’s tightening grasp.  The scene ends with a battle at the City Hall 
  depot and (hopefully) the Operatives destroying the device threatening Samantha 
  Keller’s life.
  
  Ghost Ops
  52
  Ghost Ops
  Once the Operatives are outside, Samantha offers guidance.
  “I get that you don’t owe me anything.  You’ve got every reason to doubt me, especially 
  after my accident with Nugget pulled you into a firefight.  But believe me when I tell 
  you that if the husks you just put down aren’t your problem now, they eventually will 
  be.
  “So choose.  Walk away now and I’ll understand. But if you want help me, I sure could 
  use it… and it won’t exactly go unrewarded.  There’s a hidden hatch in the basement 
  at 1990 Dean Street.  Take it and you enter my world.  My problems. 
   
  “If not…  well thanks for listening.  Good luck out there, either way.”
  The rest of the scenario assumes the Operatives are willing to help.  If not, follow 
  the Scenario End advice given before.
  Encounter One: Dean Street Entrance
  Once the Operatives find the hatch in the basement of the building Samantha 
  mentioned (a Difficult investigation), they descend into the underworld of New 
  York’s abandoned tunnels.  A map is provided with several possible encounters 
  and the scenario’s main location – City Hall Station.  
  You can run these encounters straight, mix them up, or make up your own, but be 
  sure that Encounter Two: Cache or Carry gets run next, especially if the Operatives 
  need better firepower.
  
  Operation Prelude
  53
  Two: Cache or Carry
  “To answer your main question, those things were some of the demon-ridden slaves 
  of Project Lucifer. You may have heard of them, even run into them before, but they 
  are bigger and badder than you can imagine.  To help me, you need to be able to help 
  yourselves first.  Take anything from here you like.”
  This small alcove has a false floor concealing two large crates. Samantha put them 
  here back when she was free to travel these tunnels. The crates contain gear in 
  moderate but used repair, as follows:
  (The following weapons have the standard damage with the added bonus that the 
  ammo also works on supernatural beings)
  • 
  4 pairs of ‘Ghost Goggles’. These have the word QUANTUM over the nose 
  bridge.These bulky goggles detect more than just ghosts, they can help an 
  agent see energies, such as ley-lines and even detect the presence of demonic 
  influence in someone’s aura. 
  • 
  2 G31 Ghosthunter Rifles. These have seen serious use, but should function 
  for now. The G31 is a modular bullpup rifle with all the stats of an HK G36. 
  The gun is fitted for a magazine of specialised ammo, ammo that can harm 
  supernatural enemies. The ammo can harm mundane creatures and humans 
  just as easily.  These have adjustable stocks.
  • 
  8 magazines for the G31 rifles.  When spent, these can be reloaded with any 
  5.56 round.
  • 
  1 S14 Spirit Knife.  The sheathe for this knife has the name ‘Butch’ and 
  a blood stain on it. The S14 resembles a normal combat knife, slightly 
  bulkier in design, but with one major difference – the blade exists both in 
  the mundane world and the spirit world. This makes it an effective tool for 
  fighting demons and any ethereal being. 
  Encounter Three: Devils in the Dark
  Five members of the Devil’s Own are sitting here in this crumbling disused terminal.  
  There are waiting for the go-ahead to advance to City Hall Loop to reinforce the 
  soldiers already there.  Ironically, they will encounter here in the form of the 
  Operatives first.
  Devil’s Own Assault Team
  All five are wearing black IOTV and dark purple camo-patterned jumpsuits.  They 
  are armed with M4A1s but no secondary weapons.  They are their own secondary 
  weapon.
  
  Ghost Ops
  54
  Ghost Ops
  • 
  Winter, Fodder rank. Grey hair, blue eyes, athletic build. Male. Power: Cania’s 
  Eye (like infernal eye but cold-based)
  • 
  Summer, Fodder rank. Red hair, green eyes, slight build.  Female. Power: 
  Pryo-kinesis
  • 
  Arclight, Fodder rank.  Brown hair, red eyes, strong build.  Male. Power: 
  Storm Strike (resembles phosphorus grenade that does electrical damage)
  • 
  Shriek, Fodder Rank. Black hair, brown eyes, stocky build. Male. Powers: 
  Levitation, Hellscream
  • 
  Breakdown, Soldier rank – Team lead, bald, violet eyes, muscular build.  
  Male. Powers: Telekinesis, Hex Glitch, Squeeze
  Encounter Four: Uninvited Guests
  The main group of the Devil’s Own forces in these tunnels is right here in the stained 
  glass ceilinged depot that once served hundreds every day in the early 1900s.  Now 
  it is little more than a curiosity for the people who rode the active subway line past 
  it before the main tunnel collapsed.  The Devil’s Own is using this collapse, which 
  they caused, to investigate a strange psychic anomaly in the area.
  Samantha is, of course, that anomaly.
  Project Lucifer only has a a vague idea where she is and no idea who she is yet.  
  To keep her in one place while they search for her, the subway team has brought 
  in a hellish artifact called Mammon’s Manacle.  It is a bulbous black iron column, 
  studded with alien gemstones, that writhes whenever it is close to anyone with 
  psychic potential and without a demonic soul inside them.
  With this, they have trapped Samantha and will eventually discover her location.  
  She will not last the day without the Operative’s help, as she will explain as soon as 
  they reach the City Hall Loop.
  “There we are.  Up there on the trackside landing.  See the big black pillar with all the 
  lights and the spiked tips on fire?  That’s keeping me from getting out of here.  Time 
  to come clean, I guess.  You’ve earned that much.
  “I am not like these demonic bastards but I am psychic.  Have been all my life and 
  here lately I have really come into my own with it.  Power has been flooding into the 
  world ever since Project Lucifer opened the Breach.  It makes them strong, as you’ve 
  no doubt noticed, but it’s made me even stronger.
  “Smash that pillar and I can leave this place for good.  The Lucys won’t make it easy 
  for you, but if you can drop them like a bad habit and bust up the pillar, I will make it 
  worth your while once I recover.  
  
  Operation Prelude
  55
  You may not hear from me for a while, but I promise not to be a stranger.  Trust me, 
  we have a lot to do together if you’re up for a little thing like saving the world.
  “Oh, and if there are any left once you blast that hellborne buzzkill, grab one of its 
  crystals for yourself. I hear they can be pretty damn useful.  
  “Good luck!  For all our sakes.”
  This fight may be quite rough, as it involves a BrightCross combat engineer, six 
  BrightCross Operatives in full gear, and Asmodei – a full Devil’s Own Commando.  
  The depot has plentiful cover, especially with all the crates and passenger aisles in 
  the area, but this can benefit the enemy as much as the heroes. 
  • 
  Dieter Maines, BrightCross Combat Engineer, blond hair, green eyes, fit 
  build.Equipment: All standard except only Glock 17 for armament. Field 
  Repair Kit and Tools.
  • 
  Six-Man Security Team, BrightCross Operatives, shaved hair, varying eyes, 
  athletic build. Equipment: All standard, Glock 17s and M4s  for armament. 
  • 
  Asmodei, Commando rank, night black skin, violet eyes, attractive build 
  and handsome face. Equipment: All standard Brightcross Operative gear, no 
  standard weapons.   
  • 
  Weapon: A T02 ‘Grail’ Battle Sword.  Asmodei took this weapon from a dead 
  Templar and prefers killing with it over any other sort of attack.
  • 
  T02 ‘Grail’ battle swords are elegant long swords. The main melee weapon 
  of the Templars, each one is made of composite and hard-wearing materials, 
  the Grail produces a supernatural energy field that causes damage to 
  demons and spirit beings alike (damage 6 (2))Powers: Subjugation, Phase, 
  Teleportation, Demonic Transference, Heightened Senses, Infernal Eye.
  This battle should be difficult but not unwinnable.  For example, if any Operatives 
  want to try to take out the Manacle at a distance, it can only withstand three hits 
  with any caliber of bullets or a single explosion.  If ‘destroyed’, it implodes and pulls 
  anyone (except Asmodei, who can resist) within fifteen feet of it straight into Hell.  
  This can even the odds quickly.
  Also, Asmodei is – for all his lovely physique and blazing swordsmanship – a coward 
  when facing a fair fight.  If he is the last foe standing at any time, he will teleport 
  away to fight another day, preferably from ambush.  The Operatives are now his 
  mortal enemies and he will certainly seek them out again.
  Once Mammon’s Manacle is destroyed, move to the Conclusion.
  
  Ghost Ops
  56
  Ghost Ops
  Encounter Five: Light in Shadow
  This is only an encounter if all Hell breaks loose and the Devil’s Own break through 
  her defenses of psychic energy and heavy stone.  This is the small lair where 
  Samantha normally lives.  Accessible only through hard excavation or Teleportation, 
  she has been safe here for years.
  Realistically, this room is only breached if the Operatives have failed.  It is included 
  here to show you where Samantha is located during the scenario.  
  If details are needed, create them as you wish.  As for Samantha Keller herself, she 
  will be detailed in a future scenario or sourcebook.  For now, she is just a voice in 
  the Operatives’ head and a contact eager to set them on the path of supernatural 
  enemies.  Samantha has precognitive abilities that come to her in dreams.  In them, 
  she has seen what happens if the influence of Hell continues to grow unchecked. 
  How does it end?  In fire.
  When she said she wanted to help the Operatives save the world, she was not 
  kidding at all.
  Conclusion                                                                              
  The bad guys are down, the black relic from Hell is destroyed, and the Operatives 
  have made a powerful new ally – one with a long memory and a long reach.  
  Samantha offers them one last contact before teleporting away and falling silent 
  for at least a few weeks while she recovers from the torturous grasp of Mammon’s 
  Manacle.
  “Free!  Free to finally wreak havoc and death upon the world of men!  Hah hah ha hah!
  “Heh…  no, not really, but admit it, some of you had your doubts, right?  I can blame 
  you, but I promise, I’m a white hat.  I promise.  And in the months ahead, I’ll prove it.  
  For now I need a bottle of scotch, a handful of Vicodin, and a long, long nap.
  “Thank you.  Seriously, it’s been a long road but I was staring at a dead end in every 
  sense of the word if you haven’t helped me.  I won’t forget what happened tonight, and 
  you shouldn’t either.
  “Be careful out there, boys and girls.  The world’s a’changing, and not for the better.”
  And with that, she’s gone.  End of story…  for now.
  
  Operation Prelude
  57
  
  Mission Pack 3 - Project Lucifer
  This mission pack contains five missions for use with the Project Lucifer Setting 
  for Ghost Ops - Modern Covert Operations RPG.
  Saviours Bane by Tim Loya
  Blackhawk Lost by Darren Pearce
  Fire by J A Cummings
  Out of Africa by Neal Hyde
  Operation Prelude by August Hahn
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Ghost Ops OSR (osr)/Ghost Ops - Mission Pack 3 Project Lucifer.pdf