At a convention a few years back, I was the Gaming Guest of Honor and Jim Butcher was the Author Guest of Honor. Since I love his Dresden Files novel series, and the game based on it, I ran a game based on all the famous monster hunters in movies in television (at the time).

The Characters

I did my best to supply a balance of characters who specialize in muscle and fighting, investigating and science, and magic and supernatural. I hoped that every player would know at least one of the characters well enough to jump right in.

• Ash Williams (Evil Dead) has a missing hand that can wear a strong metal gauntlet or a chainsaw

• Johnny Blaze (Ghost Rider) is a demon-possessed stunt rider who punishes the wicked

• Peter Venkman (Ghostbusters) is a dodgy scientist with an unlicensed nuclear accelerator on his back

• Nick Burkhardt (Grimm) is a cop that unexpectedly inherited the ability to see monsters

• Buffy Summers (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) is a cheerleader with a calling to kill the undead

• John Constantine (Constantine) is part exorcist, part spellcaster, and all asshole

• Selene (Underworld) is a vampiric assassin who lives semi-exiled on the outskirts of her kind

• Hellboy (Hellboy) is a demon who was raised by a good human man, and fights monsters in secret

• Melinda Gordon (Ghost Whisperer) can see and talk to ghosts, and helps them find their final peace

• Hermione Granger (Harry Potter) is a brilliant magic student with a smug know-it-all attitude

• Mouse (The Dresden Files) is Harry Dresden’s dog, with a holy lineage and celestial powers

• Flynn Carsen (The Librarian) knows something about everything but almost nothing about living

The Plot

The are many ways to bring everyone together, varying a lot based on which characters are playing.

• rumors of an evil coming
• an ancient prophecy
• a murdered ghost (Jake, a school janitor) contacts Melinda
• a museum exhibit of ancient spiritual books, including the Necronomicon
• or whatever else will tease the character’s interests

The rest of the plot is vague and fluid, and should be played by ear. Introduce villains one by one, perhaps disguised by a glamour spell or in an alternate identity, until a battle explodes on the scene.

The all-star villains that I generally use are:

• Lo Pan (Big Trouble in Little China) is an ancient intangible black magician
• Mothman (The Mothman Prophecies) is an enigmatic interdimensional busybody
• Kurgan (Highlander) is a skilled swordsman that gains power with each kill
• Beetlejuice (Beetlejuice) is an insane trickster ghost who wants the ability to interact with the real world
• Killer Klown (Killer Klowns from Outer Space) is a shapeshifting alien bent on enslaving humanity
• Mr. Tumnus (the Narnia series) has a naughty mind control flute
• The Scorpion King (The Mummy Returns) is a homicidal demigod sponsored by Anubis

The Character Sheets

I’ve supplied the character sheets in standard Dresden Files RPG format, and in a “dossier” format that I designed.

Download

You can download the character sheets here, and character nameplates here.