by Andy Vetromile

Art by Kurt Brugel

"Don Fedello?" Arthur Creaseman stepped into the dimly-lit lounge. He removed his
hat respectfully and waited. He knew he'd been noticed, now he was waiting to be
acknowledged. Across the room behind a sizable mahogany table and a hefty
helping of shrimp scampi, sat Ermine Fedello, the most powerful man in the city.

Fedello was at least 80 years old -- how much older, no one could say. His birth
records were a 75-year-old memory, left behind in Europe when he made the trip to
Ellis Island. He was a lean figure, a scarecrow in a dinner jacket with skin stretched
drum-tight over a fragile skull. The only features of importance left to Fedello's head
were the eyes, which now rose from his lunch to fix Creaseman to the spot. Age had
diluted neither his appetite nor the force of his personality.

"Come in, Artie, come in," Fedello bade Creaseman absently. He gestured to the
other side of the table as if to indicate Creaseman should have a seat, but there was
no chair. Arthur inhaled and stepped forward. "I understand there's a little -- how'd
you put it? -- glitch in the casino."

Creaseman's lungs would not release his breath. "Yes, Don Fedello, but my men
have assured me it's just an electrical problem. A day or two and . . . "

" . . . and I will have lost nearly a quarter of a million dollars in gambling revenue,"
Fedello finished, spearing another shrimp. "Open the doors."

"But, Don Fedello," Creaseman choked, "If the tables continue to lose anyway,
opening the casino again . . . "

Fedello sighed huskily, then spoke as if addressing his remaining shrimp. "If the
problem is not fixed in 72 hours, I will find whomever is skimming from me and
remove them. Tell that to your men. I think you'll find it to be an excellent motivator."

"Yes, Don Fedello."

Fedello waved soundlessly at the door, and Creaseman found enough composure to
bow slightly, turn quickly, and exit the building.

On the street, Creaseman tucked his hat back onto his head. His bodyguard opened
the car door for him. "How'd it go, boss?"

"Not good, Carl, not good at all," Creaseman said, sliding into the back.
Carl's face screwed up in thought for a moment. "Anything I can get you, boss?"

Creaseman thought as well. "Fall guys, Carl."

"Your Number Is Up" is a GURPS adventure for campaigns with an occult or

paranormal setting. It requires the Basic Set and GURPS Horror. It works best with 3
or 4 100-point characters, and can be easily modified for use with other systems.

The Story So Far

Mobster Arthur Creaseman runs an illegal casino in the subbasement of the Caspian
Hotel for Don Ermine Fedello. Recently, the casino began a run of bad luck. One
night, the roulette tables began to pay off big for the patrons. The next night,
blackjack paid off. Then craps. In spite of the steps he took to cheat, Creaseman
lost money every night. He tried to close the doors, but Fedello forced him to
reopen and gave him 72 hours to find the problem. After that, the godfather would
take matters into his own hands.

Arthur did what any mobster would do: started looking for patsies.

The Root of All Evil

Four years ago, the Caspian's site was nothing but a burned-out warehouse ghetto.
Creaseman cleverly ran a secret casino in an underground storage area while the
neighborhood was commercially rezoned. Jerry Penham, a student from a nearby
college doing studies in chaos theory, wanted to test some ideas in the casino. He
got invited through Lawrence Hawthorne, his roommate at school; Lawrence's father
was a councilman, which gave the junior Hawthorne some illicit connections.

Creaseman watched Jerry all night. He was sure the student was trying to cheat him,
and confronted him after the casino closed. Always the naive one, Jerry tried
excitedly to explain his theories, and the unstable mobster bludgeoned him with a
chair.

Arthur panicked. His temper always had him in the hot seat, and when he discovered
the kid was the friend of a councilman's son, he knew Fedello would go through the
roof. Creaseman and his bodyguard Carl hid the body until they could bury it in the
new hotel's cement foundation. Lawrence, fearing the mob and scandal, told the
cops he and Jerry had been drinking, after which Jerry had wandered off to the park.

The police weren't comfortable with that, but they had no hard evidence and were
eventually told to back off by the councilman. Many assumed pressures at school
made Penham leave town. The case is still open.

But Jerry is still here, haunting the place of his burial and throwing a phantasmal
wrench into the mob's moneymaking enterprise. He plans to stay until Creaseman
pays for his crimes.

Enter the Characters

It is assumed the PCs are all occult investigators of some stripe. Whether secretive
or public about their work, Creaseman will still find them and send Ari Legato, his
lawyer, to secure their services. Legato is a small, thin fellow with grey, swept-back
hair. Other than a skill of 17 in Law, he is a completely average character. He tells
the group:

"I have a client who is interested in having what he believes to be an (ahem) 'occult
occurrence' investigated, in hopes of putting a stop to it. It is disrupting his
business, and if you are discrete in your work you will be handsomely paid to end it.
We will provide your fee, expenses, and any equipment needed. Would this be of
interest to you?"

Smart PCs will question such a good offer. Legato hasn't been told much. He can
tell them the following:

?The place in question is the Caspian Hotel (he won't mention the casino).

?Their benefactor is Curtis Calhoun. This is half-true. Calhoun runs the hotel and is
on the books as the owner. He knows something isn't right, but he doesn't ask
questions.

?Legato doesn't know the details of the "problem." He's just the mouthpiece. The
reason for the runaround is no one wants the investigators to know about the mob
angle, otherwise they wouldn't take the job. If they refuse, the attorney can up their
pay. If they still won't take it and the GM wants them to accept, he can have the
mob kidnap a Dependent as enticement. Remember, Creaseman has only three
days.

Research on Legato, Calhoun and the hotel reveals little unless the party specifies
they are seeking Mafia ties, and even then they'll need the appropriate Contacts.
Calhoun is clean and loaded with business degrees. The hotel and Ari Legato can
be connected, but the money trail is a long one.

Welcome to the Caspian

If they accept, the investigators will be taken to the hotel and given rooms. The
Caspian is as fancy as any they're likely to have seen (at least on an occult
investigator's paycheck), with clean plush carpets, impeccable style and service
personnel so attentive you can't turn around without bumping into three of them.
Once settled, they will be invited to dine with "Mr. Calhoun's operations manager,
Arthur Creaseman."

The meal is served in a private lounge at the back of the hotel's restaurant. Arthur,
with Carl looking on, engages the PCs in friendly conversation, avoiding the subject
of the disturbances. He wants to know what the group does, whether his
background checks were on the money and whether they're loose-lipped about their
clientele. Then he takes them to the subbasement to see the casino.

Arthur Creaseman

Thick-necked mobster, 45, 5'10", 170 lbs., flickering

gaze, dresses impeccably, sweats when his tables lose.
ST 12 DX 12 IQ 13 HT 10
Basic Speed 5.5; Move 5
Dodge 5 Parry 3 Block 4
Damage: Thrust 1d-1; Swing 1d+2
Advantages: Patron (Don Fedello), Strong Will/1, Wealth
(Wealthy), Status/1, Acute Vision +1.
Disadvantages: Bad Temper, Bully, Duty (Mafia),
Paranoia.
Quirks: Hates Italian food; not religious; has a gun in every room of his home;
doesn't mind doing his own dirty work; enjoys public radio.
Notable Skills: Accounting 15, Administration 14, Area Knowledge (Campaign City)
14, Drive/TL7 (Car) 12, Gamble 15, Guns/TL7 (Pistols) 14, Leadership 13, Streetwise
12.
Equipment: Glock 9mm (p. B208), cash clip, cell phone.

Creaseman is a bankable moneymaker but he's also a couple sandwiches short of a

picnic. He thinks he doesn't advance in the mob's ranks because he's only half-
Italian, but the truth is the mob won't let a liability like him get too far.

Arthur rules by fear. His hopes of succeeding Fedello as don are only a pipe dream;
Fedello is the only man he's afraid of.

By day, Creaseman conducts business throughout the hotel. At night he's always in
the casino sweating over the tables.

Going Down

At the bottom of the elevator, the party is led down a hallway and through a
conspicuous metal detector and finally into the casino.

The large room is filled with gambling tables. A striking red carpet, brass fittings and
deep-hued wood complete the simple decor. Fans hang from the ceiling and smoky
bubbles hide the security cameras. There are no clocks. Along the back wall, left to
right, are a large service elevator, a storage room and another hallway. On the left
side of the hall is a private elevator. Only Creaseman has a key. On the right is
Arthur's office and the security office. If the penny hasn't dropped yet, the
adventurers should now realize they are working for The Wrong People. If they try to
back out at this point, Artie will forego upping his offer and threaten the PCs into
cooperating. He doesn't have time to negotiate.

Questioning Creaseman

Arthur will answer the group's questions. He'll tell them about the unusual activity at
the tables. He will not tell them about the 72 hour deadline or that he works for
Ermine Fedello. If they knew he answered to a higher-up, he might not be able to
leave them holding the bag.

During the interview, it should become clear that Creaseman doesn't believe in what
the investigators preach. If they discover the problem, great, but they're here to take
the blame. It's also obvious Creaseman doesn't seem concerned that the party
knows of his felonious nature.

If they're worth their paycheck, they'll ask their new boss about unusual events on
the premises: untimely or violent deaths, disasters, former residents. Creaseman's
look momentarily darkens, and he'll reply, "No. If anything like that happened, I
would know."

The party can then search the casino under the watchful eye of two goons. They'll
report back anything juicy they overhear to their boss, but they won't crowd the PCs.
The party will be allowed into all the rooms (including Arthur's office, though they'll
only get to eyeball it).

Average Mob Enforcer

Faceless mob muscle, 26, 6', 170 lbs., dark suits.

ST 12 DX 13 IQ 9 HT 11
Basic Speed 6 Move 6
Dodge 6 Parry 4 Block 4
Damage: Thrust 1d-1; Swing 1d+2
Quirk: Suspicious bulges.
Notable Skills: Area Knowledge (Campaign City) 10, Brawling 12, Drive/TL7 (Car) 12,
Gun/TL7 (Pistol) 13, Shadowing 9, Stealth 12.
Equipment: Smith & Wesson .38 revolver (p. B208).

These are the dime-a-dozen soldiers the mob sends out to break kneecaps. Any
time the GM needs average thugs to throw at the PCs, he should use these stats.

Further Investigations
Here's a quick run-down of the people and places the team is most likely to get
their information from. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but they are the most
obvious sources.

The Casino

The party has the run of the hotel, but they'll have company wherever they go. They
can check the casino during operation if they want; in fact, Creaseman will insist
(video of them in the casino could come in handy). The hotel tailor provides evening
dress if they have none. Arthur tells the PCs that, if guests ask, they should say they
are personal guests of his.

If the PCs wish to have a private conversation, nights in the casino are ideal. The
place is jumping so surveillance is tough, and their host has to put on a good show.
His muscle can't follow the party without making other guests antsy.

The investigators won't be disappointed. Once the room has a good head of steam,
Jerry will work his magic. The GM should pick a game that will make a nice dramatic
impression and let the ghost go to town making it pay off. Any devices the group
brought for measuring PK levels and such will register wildly if they can use them.
This will be an exercise in discretion. So much as a pocket calculator in a casino
smacks of high-tech cheating, and their use will infuriate the guests. The party will
get a good reading at the tables even during the day, but at night Jerry's voodoo will
bury the needle.

During all this, Creaseman begins to pace and sweat with barely-contained anger.
After the place closes, he'll demand that the party explain. Of course, he doesn't
believe in ghosts or lame excuses, so he'll chew them out regardless.

The only other evidence is casino file video confirming Arthur's story.

The Word on the Street

Pavement pounding won't reveal much that isn't already known: the casino is in
trouble, plagued by strange events, and may close. Most of the underworld believes
Creaseman murdered Jerry Penham, but no one knows what he and Carl did with the
body, so there's little reason to connect a four-year-old murder with the goings-on
at the hotel. After all, Arthur's killed a lot of people over the years . . .

Following the Money

Now that they know the mob is involved, the adventurers may try any Contacts in the
underworld or the law enforcement community. Meeting discretely with those
Contacts may prove tough with Creaseman's surveillance (see below).

Neither the authorities nor street folk can connect Penham and the Caspian. What
they can reveal is that Artie reports to Fedello, the city's premiere mobster. No one
makes a move without Ermine's okay, and the hotelier is always on thin ice with him.
Artie's not known for his stability, but he's an organizer and good at developing new
schemes, so the mob keeps him around.

Something the GM should keep in mind about the authorities: if they find the PCs are
in with the mob, however unwillingly, it may tempt them to exploit this "good fortune"
to their own ends. Unless the characters want to play both sides against the middle,
they should keep this a secret.

Straight from the Horse's Mouth

After Jerry, the next-best source of information is Carl Hanson, Arthur's bodyguard
and accomplice. He literally knows where the bodies are buried, so he's the best bet
for uncovering the cause of the phenomena. Carl's a terribly nice fellow, but he's
loyal to the wrong kind of people. To tip off the characters that he's a potential
resource, the GM should see that the big lug always has a friendly word for them
and waves gregariously from the casino bar.

Since his boss invited them, Hanson assumes the party is, in mob parlance, "okay,"
so he's open to small talk about family business. They have to ask the right
questions, though. Asked about any unusual occurrences in the hotel's history, he
lets slip, "Oh, no, not since the construction." Carl's new friends must tread lightly.
The subject of Jerry Penham is verboten, and it will take Fast Talk or Seduction rolls
made at -5 to get him to open up further. Alcohol and the lateness of the hour will
reduce this penalty, but a bribe will insult Carl and send up a warning flag even in
his addled mind.

With the security cameras following the party, Artie will notice any exchanges with
his employee, and you can bet the rent that when the boss asks him, Carl will spill
everything he remembers. It might be prudent to finish off Hanson's short-term
memory with an unrelated discussion, like asking him about his time in the ring.

Carl "Canvas" Hanson

Boxer-cum-bodyguard, 33, 6'1", 190 lbs., looks older than he is, suits always seem
too small on him, fidgets as though shadow-boxing.
ST 13 DX 14 IQ 10 HT 12
Basic Speed 6.5 Move 6
Dodge 7 Parry 4 Block 5
Damage: Thrust 1d; Swing 2d-1
Advantages: Combat Reflexes, High Pain Threshold, Reputation (+2, fight fans, 10-
).
Disadvantages: Duty (to Creaseman, 12-), Gullibility, Hard of Hearing,
Overconfidence.
Quirks: Baby-sits his sister's kids once a week; has a satellite dish but only watches
ESPN; won't use a microwave; thinks zoos are cruel; pays cash.
Martial Arts Style: Boxing.
Notable Skills: Area Knowledge (Campaign City) 10, Body Language 10, Boxing 15,
Drive/TL7 (Car) 13, Running 12, Sports (Football) 13, Swimming 14, Tournament
Law (Boxing) 11.
Maneuvers: Feint 17, Jab 15, Riposte 12, Roundhouse Punch 14, Slip 6.
Equipment: Brass knuckles, pictures of his sister's kids.

Hanson's heavyweight boxing career was cut short by deafness in his left ear and
brain damage. The pugilist took a job collecting debts for Creaseman, but became
Artie's bodyguard as paranoia set in. The two go everywhere together. At night Carl
sits and eats peanuts at the bar while the boss mingles. Carl is the only person
Creaseman trusts.

Carl comes from a fighting family; the PCs may even recognize him. He feels he let
the family down, not by working for the mob but by getting thrown out of the ring.
He's always glad to relive his glory days.

Ace in the Hole

Of course, Jerry Penham can tell the adventurers everything -- if he'll talk to them.
He knows they're working for his murderer, so they'll have to convince him of their
intentions. They may not even be able to talk to him without some psychic
assistance (it will help if one of the characters is a sensitive).

Jerry's focus is the casino, and getting a medium into the subbasement is not going
to be easy. Creaseman will want to know why the team needs a "new member," and
he'll do a background check on anyone they bring in. They can't tell Arthur about the
seance without admitting they know he's guilty of capital murder, and anyone the
group brings in will fall into the shadow of the mob. Depending on the range, the
GM may decide to allow the seance to work outside the hotel or on another floor,
but being constantly under surveillance makes a sitting on the hotel doorstep
unlikely.

If the party is able to prove their good intentions, Jerry may elect to spend some of
his precious mana to materialize for them and parley.

Jerry Penham

Dead math student, 26, 5'9", apparent weight 155 lbs., thick glasses, pleasant
smile, comfortable casual clothes.
ST 10 DX 11 IQ 15 HT 10
Basic Speed 5.25 Move 5
Dodge 5 Parry and Block NA
Damage: 0
Advantages: Lightning Calculator, Mathematical Ability.
Disadvantages: Curious.

Jerry was only a couple of credits away from his doctorate, and the experiment in
the casino was going to be the basis of his doctoral thesis. He was a retiring,
harmless young student before he was murdered; he's grown up a lot since then.
Although he appears as he looked the night Creaseman did him in, Jerry's attitude is
a great deal more antagonistic, especially toward anyone he thinks will stand
between him and his revenge. His endearing innocence may resurface if he finds
someone he can trust.

Penham mostly uses his magic to affect the roulette ball and craps dice, or to
change one card to another when drawn from a deck. He isn't a powerful ghost, but
he uses his abilities to maximum effect (see Ghostly and Demonic Magic sidebar, p.
H46).

Someone to Watch Over Me

Creaseman will keep the party on a leash during their investigations, but it's a long
leash. He needs the party as patsies, so he'll rein in his vicious personality up to a
point. If he thinks they have outlived their usefulness or stepped too far out of
bounds, he'll do away with them.

He'll keep tabs on them through Clyde Revere, his tail-man. Clyde is very good at
his job and he will report the group's activities and their lines of inquiry. If they split
up, Revere will follow the largest group and send some thugs to watch the rest.
These goons aren't as skilled as the tail-man, though, and will be easier to spot and
lose. For Clyde, use the Mob Enforcer stats (above) with the following changes:
raise Area Knowledge to 12, Shadowing to 14 and Stealth to 13.

The PCs' rooms are bugged and the phones tapped. Conversations are recorded
and their content reported to Artie. Revere also uses this information to decide who
to follow out of the building. Smart PCs will discover (or assume) this is going on,
and will take the opportunity to feed false information to their hosts.

Playing Your Hand

Once they have all the pieces of the puzzle, what does the team do with the
information?

They could tell Creaseman what they've found, but there are two things wrong with
this approach. First, he won't believe it; in his most fanciful dreams, he wouldn't
consider it possible. Second, he'll kill the party for knowing too much.

The police would be interested in what the party has found, but there's no way to
prove it (Kirlian auras notwithstanding). The PCs have nothing concrete, Carl won't
roll over on his boss, and no one's going to issue a warrant to tear up the
foundations of a four-star hotel.

The truth is, the characters are pretty much on their own. The heavy-handed
approach is to exorcise Jerry, which will entail the same problems with secrecy as
contacting him; rules for exorcism are on p. H45. If they befriend him, he can help
bring down Creaseman, though his abilities lie mostly in being able to manipulate
the tables (and even those will peter out the further he gets from his focus).

The Trump Card

Ironically, the best ally the players have against Arthur Creaseman is Ermine Fedello.
If they tell him what his puppet has been up to, he will be outraged. He already
suspects his lieutenant has been skimming money, but even if the investigators let
on about the supernatural aspect of their case, Fedello is much more imaginative
than Artie and carries more Old World superstitions. He might actually believe them.
The team will have to shake pursuit long enough to get to the don, but their tail
won't cross the boss's boss.

Discovering a link between the two men is another kettle of fish. The don takes
steps to stay out of the spotlight. Characters with a law enforcement background
may know of him; otherwise Contacts and Streetwise rolls, at -3 to skill, will be
necessary to make the connection. Or they can follow the money trail, at -5 to an
Accounting roll. As a legitimate businessman, Fedello is easy to find.

Don Ermine Fedello

Ancient mob boss, 80 (?), 5'5", 105 lbs., skeletally thin, piercing
stare, garlic on his breath, usually wears a smoking jacket or
dressing gown.
ST 8 DX 9 IQ 14 HT 8
Basic Speed 4.25 Move 4
Dodge 4 Parry NA Block NA
Damage: Thrust 1d-3; Swing 1d-2
Advantages: Alertness +1, Ally Group (his crime family), Charisma
+1, Longevity, Reputation (+3, criminals, all the time), Status/3,
Wealth (Very Wealthy).
Disadvantages: Addiction (tobacco), Addiction (pain pills), Enemies
(Opposing Mafia family and FBI tag teams, 9-), Stubbornness.
Quirks: Overly generous to his grandchildren; keeps four myna birds;
misses playing golf; doesn't use his doctor-prescribed oxygen;
sends cases of bourbon as Christmas gifts.
Notable Skills: Accounting 12, Administration 16, Area Knowledge
(Campaign City) 13, Cooking 13, Detect Lies 14, Diplomacy 14,
Economics 14, Gambling 12, Guns/TL7 (Pistols) 13, Leadership 14,
Savoir-Faire 14, Streetwise 12.
Equipment: Ruger STD, .22 (p. B208), cigarette holder, pain pills.

Fedello has been fending for himself since he came to America at

about age 5. Always sharp, he learned flawless English, which
allowed him to ingratiate himself into high society. This was his
stepping stone to the upper echelons of the mob.

Now the most influential crime figure in the city, he monitors his organization with a
tireless eye. Nothing happens without his say-so. Everyone expected him to die 15
years ago, but he continues to abuse his body, ignore his doctor and thrive.

The Wrap-Up

If the party thinks the don is too good to be true, well, let them. Fedello has nothing
against them; indeed, he is in their debt and will honor their deal with Arthur. The
PCs can tell the cops any story they like. The Feds haven't moved on the godfather
yet, and they're not going to do it on the say-so of ghost chasers. Creaseman will
disappear, and since it was his casino it can be disavowed or dismantled. If the
team is a little more reluctant to start their cars in the morning, so be it.

Jerry Penham may ask the characters to take care of some loose ends for him:
getting him a decent burial, setting his parents' and Lawrence's minds at ease,
perhaps publishing whatever findings his theories produced. Then Penham will
"move on."

Of course, it's always possible the group ran afoul of Creaseman and got waxed. If
so, they can team up with Jerry and try to bring the mobster to justice from beyond
the grave.

Other Adventures

Jerry could be an interesting NPC to keep around. The party will have to return to the
Caspian Hotel to talk to him unless the GM frees him from his focus (in which case
he might be a good replacement for any character who died during the adventure).
He may even try to secure the party's services for other ghosts in need of occult
adventurers!

Jerry lost a lot of naivete when he got murdered. Maybe he's more vengeful than the
party thought. After he deals with Creaseman, he may go after the Hawthorne family.
If Lawrence got married, the ghost could target his two year old daughter . . .

Perhaps Creaseman got wind that the party spilled their guts to Don Fedello and he
rabbited. If he's alive, the group has a new Enemy. Arthur will regroup and plot
revenge in classic fashion. If he saw evidence of the supernatural, he may change
his tune and try to amass occult power. Now he's really dangerous. And if Fedello
killed Creaseman, Artie may come back for revenge, too.

Article publication date: July 10, 1998

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