Ghost Ops

Second Strike
 Disclaimer

Ghost Ops Second Strike is not designed to be an actual depiction of war or real operations. The tools are there to
make the game as accurate or as cinematic as you like. Ghost Ops uses real military, law enforcement, and intelli-
gence agencies as part of the game’s fiction but has no affiliation with any Military, Law Enforcement, or Intelli-
gence Agency.

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 Credits Photography

Written and Designed All images licensed through Shutterstock.com

J Lasarde
Dr Project
Layout Specnaz
J Lasarde Gorodenkoff
Tinnakorn Jorruang
Maps AlexLMX
Philip Bate Getmilitaryphotos
Vudhikrai
Editing Militarist
J Lasarde Nesterenko Maxym
Ghost Ops Community Xbrchx
Kozlik
Logo Andy Gin
Josiel Souza Frame Stock Footage
PRESSLAB
Character Sheet Design Zieusin
J Lasarde Martin Hibberd

Playtesters
Ian F. White, Philip Bate, Christopher Addison, Social Media
Rasmus Kollund
Discord
Thanks to https://discord.gg/qyYg8atwqy
The Backers, The Discord Community, The Ghost
Ops FB Group. Patreon
Only $3 per month nets free stuff and discounts
Special Thanks https://www.patreon.com/Ghostops
Niki who fuels me with coffee and hugs
The Cats who distract me Dedicated
and the Patrons To the Veterans
and my Mum

Ghost Ops, Ghost Ops Second Strike and all logos are Copyright 2021 FeralGamersInc Ltd, all rights reserved. No
unauthorised copying or reproduction without strict permission from FeralGamersInc Ltd. The Fate Core font is ©
Evil Hat Productions, LLC and is used with permission.

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 Contents Firearms: Rifles 54
Firearms: Sniper Rifles 55
Introduction 6 Firearms: Launchers 55
Changes in 2nd Edition. 6 Firearms: Attachments 56
What you will Need 8 Hand Weapons, Ranged, and Unarmed57
Ghost Ops as a Miniatures Game 8 Explosives: Grenades, Mines and IEDs58
Basic Rules 8 UAVs and UGVs 59
Abbreviations10 Vehicles60
Vehicle Locations 60
Operator Recruitment 11 Vehicle Mounted Weapons 61
Steps to Recruitment 11 Active Operations 62
Styles of Play 12 The Basics 62
Attributes14 Challenges63
Specialisations15 The Battlefield 67
Careers and Backgrounds 17 Battle Breakdown 68
African Union 18 Basic Combat 70
Australian 19 Close Combat 75
Brazil 20 Explosives75
Canadian 21 Advanced Combat Rules 78
Europe 22 Vehicles82
India 26 Injury and Death 86
Israel 27
Japan 28 Safe-houses & Supply Drops 89
Mexican 29 Safe-Houses 89
New Zealand 30 Supply Drops 92
Russian Federation 31 Drop Boxes 92
United Kingdom 32
USA 34 Command Centre 93
Choosing your Role 36 Play Styles 93
Derived Stats 37 1-on-1 Play 97
Other Benefits 38 Blueprint Play 97
K9 Operators 39 Stealth Play 98
Character Examples 40 Varied Environments 99
Character Sheet Breakdown 46 Flashback Mechanic 99
Secondary Objectives 100
The Quartermaster 48 Rewarding Success 100
Starting Gear for Operators 49 Using and Rewarding Reputation 101
Starting Gear for K9 Operators 49 Random Mission Generator 102
Non-Standard Gear 50 The Pre-Mission Briefing 102
Agent Gear 50 Random Mission Generator 103
Armour51 Tangos and HVTs 106
Operator Weapons 52 Rogue Operators 108
Weapon Ranges 52 Spotting Snipers 108
Firearms: Handguns and SMGs 53 TPK & Capture 109

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D6 Mechanic 110
Why Alternate Mechanics? 110
How to Play 110
Challenges 110
Combat111
Handlers Section 112

D100 Mechanic 113

How to Play 113
Handler Section 115

Introductory Mission 116

A Mission in Three Parts 116
Part 1: The Mansion Party 117
Part 2: Operation Keyside 120
Part 3: Operation Wayward Delta 124
Mission Success 132
Mission Failure 132
Tangos and Pre-Generated Operators 132

Appendix A 140
Maps 141
Character Sheets 147
Acronyms 149
Jargon 150
Hand Signals 151
Tactical Movement 151
Laws of War 152

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The Ghost Ops Second Strike Roleplaying Game is a
game of covert operations in the modern world. You,
as a player, choose and create a character from one
of five different specialist military, law enforcement,
or private-sector forces in which to take on missions
across the world.
Ghost Ops was initially inspired by Tom Clancy’s
books and the games produced by Ubisoft, but having
knowledge of either of these influences is not needed
to play. However, an understanding of how Special
forces and Special Law Enforcement agencies operate
will be beneficial.
For Handlers, we live in a world of inspiration for
missions to tax your players. Turn on the news or read
a newspaper to discover a myriad of objectives, plots,
and ideas for exciting and dangerous adventures. Be
they taking down Mexican Drug Cartels to facing the
threat of Rogue Nations and Highly funded Terrorist
organisations.
For those who do not like using special dice, such as
Fudge dice, other systems are included at the back,
allowing you to play the game using either D6 or
D100 percentile rules. Whatever your preference,
there is no excuse not to play Ghost Ops Second
Strike.
6
Introduction
Changes in 2nd Edition.
The original Ghost Ops RPG was published back in
2017, and since then, a lot of feedback, comments and
new approaches have been made regarding the origi-
nal rules. Some of these changes can be found in the
Expanded books or source books such as Joint Task
Force. These changes and suggestions have created
this new edition of the game, intending to make the
system faster and more streamlined whilst also offer-
ing more choice.
Ghost Ops has never claimed to be realistic and has
embraced the more cinematic side of military fiction.
This cinematic approach has always been by design.
There are already many realistic military games avail-
able, and, contrary to what the movies and novels tell
us, some military actions are not as exciting as they
seem.
Ghost Ops is first and foremost a roleplaying game
designed to place the player in situations they see
in movies, read about in novels or experience in
computer games. Ghost Ops was never designed to
be a re-enactment, as that would be difficult for many
who have never experienced military service.
 Skills and the Trouble they Bring.
One of the significant changes players will notice,
especially if they are familiar with the original Ghost
Ops RPG, is the lack of skills in this new edition. Of
course, the Savage Worlds and 5th edition versions
will continue to have skills due to the systems on
which they are based. But this version of Ghost Ops
will not.
Skill lists come with many issues; the first and most
obvious one is knowing what is too many or too few
skills. Back in the old days of Roleplaying, it was not
unheard of to have hundreds of skills to choose from.
Some games still have columns of skills, some of which
are probably redundant. You can have too few skills on
the flip side, leaving players asking their GM, ‘What
do I use to do this?’ With the GM often just falling
back upon an attribute. The recent rise of the OSR
style of roleplaying has shown that fewer skills allow
for a more accessible form of gaming and be liberating
by removing the need for more rules.
Ghost Ops Second Strike will now be attribute-based
with abilities adding to the chance of success. With a
game where the characters are all considered the top
of their field, creating a skill list could end up either
too long or too short, and it is felt that it is better to
go for speed and narrative than fumble to get a balance
which may be impossible.
Quicker and more Narrative.
Many roleplaying games have become more narrative,
relying on decision making rather than constant dice
throwing. This narrative direction can allow players to
feel more in control, and there will be an element of
this in Ghost Ops Second Strike. The one thing that
has always been stated is that Ghost Ops is not just
about shooting bad guys, though that is a big part of
the game. The new version will encourage planning,
communication with NPCs, info gathering, and tools
such as drones to determine how to move forward.
The game will also be quicker by removing elements
that may cause slow down during moments when
you do not want the game to become sluggish such as
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combat, chases, and on-edge moments. There will be
realism in those areas where realism is needed, damage,
various tools and how enemies and NPCs react to the
characters.
Ways to Play.
In the original game, you had only one choice: to play
as members of a fictional Covert Operations unit
built from an international team of Special Forces
members. Though many people were happy with this,
some feedback suggested that having more choice
would be good, and this was in some way tested in the
Expanded books with rules for creating special agents
built from law enforcement agencies from around the
world. Ghost Ops Second Strike will expand upon
this, offering players and Handlers five different ways
to play the game, with these offering unique mission
ideas.
Below are listed the five options to choose from; these
will be gone into more detail in the Operator Recruit-
ment chapter starting on pg. 11.
ICO – The International Covert Operation unit
returns as an option.
Special Forces – This will allow players to play as a
country-specific Spec Ops force.
PMC – Private Military Contractors will be an
option, allowing players to act outside military laws of
engagement if they choose.
SWAT – Specially trained law enforcement will be
available, again country-specific, this will lead to more
organised crime, drug cartel type missions.
Special Agents – Players will choose characters from
some of the best Agencies worldwide and hunt serial
killers, international terrorist, and criminals.
With each of the released settings for the game, the
ways to play will be increased to encompass resistance
fighters, Planetary Defence Forces and so on.
 What you will Need
To play Ghost Ops Second Strike, you will need a
copy of these rules, character sheets for each of the
players, and either a set of Fudge Dice, up to 10
six-sided dice or a few ten-sided dice; all the listed
dice should be available to buy online or at your
FLGS.
Ghost Ops as a Miniatures Game
In the original Ghost Ops RPG, there were rules
to convert characters to be used for miniature skir-
mish battles and a set of skirmish miniature rules.
These skirmish rules were rudimentary compared to
many of the more popular rules out there. In Ghost
Ops Second Strike, there will be no skirmish rules
included, but in the future, skirmish rules may be
developed to allow Ghost Ops characters to be used
along with miniatures on the tabletop.
Basic Rules
The following basic rule breakdown is for the stand-
ard Fudge Dice based version of the game. Rule
examples will be included in the other system
mechanic options at the back of the book.
8
When a character wishes to attempt a task, they
choose the attribute that best fits what they are
attempting and then roll their four Fudge Dice. The
dice roll result is added to the attribute total and the
whole amount compared to the Handler’s difficulty
number. Specialisations can add bonuses and other
effects to the dice result.
Using Fudge Dice
A Fudge Dice is a six-sided dice; two sides are marked
with a -, two sides are marked with a +, and the
final two sides are blank. A –- is a minus result and
means that the amount is subtracted from the total,
whereas a + adds the number to the total. A blank
is nothing. A minus result cancels out a plus result, as
shown below.
+ + 0 0 = +2 The two blanks add nothing
+ + 0 - = +1 The minus cancels out one of the
pluses
+ + - - = 0 The two minuses cancel out the two
pluses
+ + + + = +4 All pluses adds four to the attribute
- - - - = -4 All minuses subtracts 4 from the
attribute.
0 0 0 0 = 0 All blanks adds or subtracts nothing
from the attribute.
The rule above covers everything an operator does in
the game with specific actions like combat, adding a
few nuances to reflect the opposed aspect of a conflict.
Example of Play
The Operators are facing Somali Pirates that have
taken over a Tanker of the Cape of Good Hope. After
being dropped onto the deck of the tanker by Chop-
per, the team make their way through the containers
towards the bridge.
The Operators are Hawkeye, played by Chris; Ronin,
played by Phil; Mooseman, played by Ian; and finally,
Hunter, played by Niki. Ronin, an ex-Navy SEAL, has
been designated leader for the mission.
Handler: You hit the deck of the cargo ship at the
forecastle; ahead are rows of containers stacked five
high, between them are two alleys that run to the stern
of the ship and the bridge.
Ronin (Phil): We should split into two teams; Hawk-
eye and Hunter take the port side alley, myself and
Mooseman will take starboard.
Everyone gives a thumbs up and splits into their desig-
nated teams.
Handler: The alleyway between the huge stacks are
filled with shadows, and you notice small narrow corri-
dors splitting off deeper into the vast field of contain-
ers. You check your corners as you slowly make your
way forward. I need Focus rolls from everyone.
Ronin (Phil): my Focus is 3.
Phil rolls the dice and gets a + + 0 -
That’s a four total from me.
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Hunter (Niki): I also have 3 in Focus.
Niki rolls the dice and gets + + + 0.
That’s a six.
Mooseman (Ian): I have only a 2
Ian rolls the dice and gets + - 0 +
That is just three for me.
Hawkeye (Chris): I have a 3.
Chris rolls + - - 0
That’s a two, Hawkeye by name but not by nature, it
seems.
Handler: Ok, Hunter, you hear something ahead
amongst the containers.
Hunter (Niki): I will stop and send the command over
the comms, then slowly back up, readying my weapon.
Ronin (Phil): I will hunker down and be ready.
Hawkeye (Chris): I have my pistol out.
Mooseman (Ian): Same here, pistol ready.
Handler: As you wait, you all begin to hear voices. Can
anyone speak Somali?
The players check, and none of them can.
Handler: After a short while, Ronin and Mooseman
see shadows, and then one of the pirates steps out of a
side corridor; he has an AK47 hanging by his side on
a sling. Behind him appears another pirate. He also
carries an AK47, and this rests on his shoulder.
Ronin (Phil): I will inform the others quietly over the
comms and indicate to Mooseman to ready for a synch
shot as we have the drop on the Pirates.
Mooseman (Ian): I will raise my pistol, going to go for
a head shot.
Handler: Ok Mooseman that increases the DN to 5
Ronin (Phil): I suggest we synchronise our attack, I
will take the guy on the left.
Mooseman (Ian): I agree, I’m right.
Hunter (Niki): If you have clear shots take them,
myself and Hawkeye will move up to your position as
back up.
Handler: Ok, take your shots, DN is 4, as they have
no defence, and you have advantage as they are
unawares reducing this to DN 3, but the head shot is
a 5 rather than a 6.
Ronin (Phil): My coordination is 3.
Phil rolls the dice and gets + + 0 -
I got four; that’s a hit with +1 damage
Mooseman (Ian): I also have four coordination, but I
have Pistol specialisation at +1 which makes it 5.
Ian rolls the dice and gets + + 00
Yes, that’s a 7. That’s a head shot with +2 damage
Handler: Ok so the tango on the left takes 7 damage
from Ronin and the tango on the right is hit in the
head for 4 damage. Two perfect kills.
Ronin (Phil): I will check the bodies.
Handler: Both Hunter and Hawkeye arrive at the
scene.
Hunter (Niki): If they are both dead, we should
continue moving towards the stern and the bridge.
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Abbreviations
Roleplaying games tend to use abbreviations to
shorten often used words or concepts, and Ghost Ops
Second Strike is no different. Some of the game’s
abbreviations will be different from other roleplaying
games, so below, the abbreviations that can be found
in the game are listed.
Handler – This represents the games Master,
also referred to as a Dungeon Master.
Operator – This represents the Player Charac-
ters.
Dice – Indicates Fudge Dice
ATR – Attribute
ATT – Attack
DEF – Defence.
PEN – Penetration
RNG – Range
NPC – Non-Player Character, everyone else,
normally civilians or bystanders
Tango – Enemy or Threat
VIP – Very Important Person
HVT - High Value Target
DN – Difficulty Number
MOD – Modifier
DMG - Damage
There are also several military abbreviations, and these
will be explained in the relative chapters.
Important Note
At the beginning of every mission the players need to
decide a mission lead, this decision should be based
on experience related to the missions’ parameters.
At the beginning of every session the players should
each roll their operators initiative, this will be their
initiative for that session. This speeds up combat. The
Handler should also roll initiative for any potential
enemy combatants.
These rules will be gone into more detail in the Battle
field section on pg 67

Creating operators is a simple process, but the play-
ers and the Handler must have a clear idea of the type
of Operators they need to create, and which forces are
applicable. Knowing the type of operator and the force
they are attached to will help decide backgrounds and
other factors.
Steps to Recruitment
There are several steps that must be taken to create
an operator. These steps are in the order that makes
the most sense. The game does not send you to differ-
ent pages for you to find what you need to do next
or find out relevance or meaning but is set out to do
everything in the order they need to be done.
Each player must have a character sheet to fill in the
details; these can be printed or be fillable PDFs.
Step 1. Decide upon Operator Type (pg 12): Which of
the five-play styles will the players need to make oper-
ators for? This information will determine which back-
grounds the players can choose as well as starting gear
and abilities.
Each style of play is linked with a background selec-
tion within the continent of origin section. Some of
these styles of play will cross over.
11
Operator
Recruitment
• ICO and PMC – Special Forces Backgrounds
• Special Forces and Agency – Military and Law
Enforcement Backgrounds
• Tactical Police – Law Enforcement Backgrounds
This simplifies the process for the player, and the
choices of background are in no means exhaustive that
would involve a separate book entirely, but instead
only includes the most common or well-known Intel-
ligence, Law Enforcement or Special Forces units.
Handlers or Players who wish to add any units not
listed in the Background tables can easily do so by
seeing how similar units are graded.
Step 2. Choose Country of Origin and Background (pg
14 - 32): Once the style of play has been established,
the player must then decide the country of origin and
choose their operators’ background; this varies based
on the style of play:
• ICO and PMC – Players can come from any
country.
• Special Forces and Agency – Players must be
from the same country.
• ICI – Players can come from any country.
• Police Tactical – Players must come from the
same country.
Step 3. Attributes and Specialities: Fill the results
from the background choice and the specialities that
the background offers onto the character sheet, along
with country and unit. Also, spend free points and
choose extra abilities to finish the operators training.
Step 4. Derived Stats (pg 37): With the attributes
filled in, you can now work out the operator’s derived
stats.
Styles of Play
There are five ways to play Ghost Ops Second Strike;
each is designed to create a unique and exciting expe-
rience for the Handler and the operator. The type of
mission will determine the type of operators the play-
ers will need to create, so it is essential to have this
worked out before operator creation begins.
Players are encouraged to make an operator for each
type of game so that they can be ready to spring into
action when the Handler states the mission perime-
ters rather than create characters then and there.
The Five Ways to Play are:
International Covert Operations
(ICO)
The ICO are a fictional Special Forces unit manned
by many different nationalities and military forces. It
was created in response to worldwide terrorist threats
and attacks and was designed to enter any country
and act with impunity. The idea was taken from novels
like Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy.
An ICO team could be made up of various special
forces units worldwide, allowing players to play their
countries military and represent them, rather than just
come from the USA or the UK.
The ICO would be involved in missions ranging from
Hostage Retrieval, dismantling terrorist cells, and
dealing with Cartels and organised crime families. The
ICO is a flexible and exciting way to play. It allows for
many exciting twists as alphabet agencies such as the
CIA, could add side missions or change parameters of
a mission, which the players could accept or ignore.
12
Special Forces
This option is similar to the ICO, but instead of being
international, the players will all be members of the
same countries Special Forces unit. All being of the
same countries’ military, operators will narrow the
focus and have them working in that country’s best
interest. It is recommended that the Special Forces
used are the more autonomous ones, such as Delta
Force, Authority, SAS etc..
Creating operators will also differ from the ICO as
operators will all come from military units rather
than Special Forces units like the ICO. This change
in creating an operator will be shown in the number
of Advancement points operators begin with, making
missions harder for them.
Private Military Contractors (PMC)
Private Military Contractors are similar to the ICO;
they can be made up of different nationalities of
special forces trained personnel. The main differences
are the types of missions they are offered and the
legality of what they do.
PMCs are often offered jobs as security or body-
guards; they rarely are sent on hostage rescue of mili-
tary-based operations. But a PMC can be hired by
both a government and a private entity, meaning that
their duties can be more varied and sometimes not
always legal by international law.
PMCs in Ghost Ops are very much like the movie
version, meaning they can play both hero and villain
depending on how the Handler wishes to have them
involved. In game terms, you can have PMCs act as
either the security of a corporate executive, rescuing
a wealthy family from terrorists, or even death squads
for tyrants and billionaire villains. Government agen-
cies can also hire PMCs when they want to deny
involvement or do not want to use military forces
because of grey moral areas.
Missions involving PMCs should ensure that the
players understand that they either need to follow
military conventions and international laws, or they
do not, meaning that their actions could lead to arrest
as an unlawful combatant.
Police Tactical Units
Missions using Tactical units will always be of a single
nationality, but the unit members can come from
different Law Enforcement units. Tactical units work
similarly to Special Forces in game terms but have a
shorter reach. Where Special Forces units will train
to face many different countries environments and
cultures, tactical units operate only within their coun-
tries borders or even within a particular city.
In Ghost Ops Second Strike, it is felt that a tactical
unit should be allowed to act countrywide rather than
just in a particular state or region; this will open up the
game for much more exciting missions.
Tactical units can be involved in missions from hostage
rescue, counter-terrorism and dealing with organised
crime.
Agents
In Ghost Ops Second Strike, you have two options
when deciding to run games involving agents; you
can travel down the standard path with players creat-
ing agents from the alphabet agencies like the FBI,
13
CIA, MI5, MI6 etc.. or go the other path and use the
fictional International Covert Investigations (ICI).
Alphabet Agencies.
Playing as agents will allow missions such as crim-
inal investigations, serial killer hunts, infiltration of
suspected terror groups and many more. Most agencies
operate in their country of origin, except agencies such
as the CIA and MI6, which are more international.
Playing an agent could be more about the investigation
than shoot-outs and watching any number of great TV
shows could allow you to run thrilling missions.
The ICI
The ICI are a fictional agency and are designed to
work alongside the ICO. Agents will investigate and
infiltrate terror cells, cartels and crime families and
investigate illegal arms dealers and other villains.
Agents would pass the information on to ICO teams
to aid them in completing operations. The ICI would
be created in the same way as the ICO, with members
being recruited from agencies from across the world,
allowing them to act internationally.
Ghost Ops Second Strike can be utilised in many
ways, and Handlers should adapt the rules and back-
ground to fit what they wish to do. For example, creat-
ing a new Agency or Special Forces unit is easy once
you know the rules for Operator recruitment.
 Attributes
Each operator has six Attributes; these attributes are
used when performing tasks and engaging in combat. .
Coordination (C) – Used when Aiming, Throwing,
hip Shooting.
Reflexes (R) – Used for Initiative, and to Dodge.
Focus (F)– Used for Awareness, Concentration, and
Marksmanship.
Fitness (FI) – Used with Strength, Health, and
Stamina.
Agility (A) – Used with Stealth, Climbing, and
Jumping.
Intellect (I) – Used for Education, Knowledge, and
Languages.
Attributes start at 0 and can reach a maximum of
seven with no attribute being higher than three
during operator creation, except the forces prime
attribute which can be four
Choosing your Points
The play style of the game will determine the type of
Operator you are creating and in turn also dictate the
points you choose and the minimum attribute.
If you are playing as PMC, ICO or Special Forces
Operator then you would choose the Special Forces
attribute bonus.
If you are playing as ICI or an Intelligence Agent,
then you would choose the Intelligence Agencies
attribute bonus.
FORCE ATT* ATTRIBUTE BONUS
Special Forces C Coordination, Fitness & Reflexes 1
Intelligence Agencies I Focus, Reflexes and Intellect 1
Tactical Police F Coordination, Focus and Agility 1
*Attribute should be a minimum of 3 to qualify for acceptance
**All free Specialisations start at +1.
14
If you are playing as a Law Enforcement member
such as SWAT, FBI or Police Counter-Terrorism unit
then choose the Tactical Police attribute bonus.
Each force has a attribute listed next to them, this
is the required attribute of that force and must be a
minimum of 3 to become a member of that force. The
operators receive 10 points to distribute amongst their
attributes.
Specialisation Attributes
Coordination
Breaching, CQB, Heavy Weapons, Pistol, Rifles,
Sniper Training, Sub-machine Guns.
Focus
Airborne Assault, Demolitions, Drone Operator,
Forward Air Control, Gunsmith, K9 Training, Pilot,
Recon, Scout, Tracked Vehicles.
Fitness
Ballistic Shields, CQC, Fitness Training, Hand-to-
Hand Combat, Marine Training,
Agility
Driving, Infiltration, Stealth. Trade-craft, Booby
Traps,
Intellect
Camouflage, CBRNE Training, Criminology, Combat
Engineer, Computers, Forensics, HUMINT, Inves-
tigation, Leadership, Linguistics, Medical, Missile
Systems, Narcotics, Psyops, Sabotage, SERE Training,
SIGINT, Survival,
The above attributes are suggestions and may change
based on how the specialisation is being used.
SPECIALISATIONS**
Choose any 3 Specialisations
Choose any 3 Specialisations
Choose any 3 Specialisations
 Specialisations
Specialisations do not represent special abilities unique
to the operator but areas they have trained to become
more proficient at. For example, any operator can
Breach a door, but some have become more specialised
in it. A specialisation adds a bonus to any attempt to
perform that ability, with the bonus being either a +1,
+2 or +3 depending on the level of training.
Players can choose any specialisation for their opera-
tors.
Airborne Assault - Ranges from HALO and Para-
chute drops to rappelling from roofs and aircraft.
Ballistic Shields - How to use both small and large
ballistic shields in both indoor and outdoor areas.
Booby Traps - The ability to spot, build, and disman-
tle booby traps.
Breaching - Used to force open doors or gain access
through walls using a variety of tools.
Camouflage - Knowing how to use camouflage to
break up your profile and make you hard to spot.
CBRNE Training - Detection, handling and disposal
of radioactive, biological, chemical, and nuclear mate-
rials and explosives.
Criminology - Understanding criminal psychology,
hierarchies, and organisations.
Combat Engineer - Knowledge of maintenance and
field repairs.
Computers - The use of computers from using your
Google Fu to low level Hacking.
CQB - Close Quarter Battle training allows conduct-
ing fire missions in confined and tight spaces.
CQC - Close Quarter Combat is the use of weapons
such as knives, batons, even tools to subdue or kill an
enemy.
15
Demolitions - The identification, disarming and
setting off explosive devices, EOD training.
Driving - The ability to use both offensive and defen-
sive driving skills.
Drone Operator - The use of drones from small Black
Hornets to larger UAVs, UGV and UCAV’s.
Fitness Training - Mountaineering, swimming,
endurance.
First Aid - Knowledge of basic first aid and the use of
first aid packs.
Forensics - The ability to collect, preserve and analyse
scientific data such as DNA, includes fingerprints.
Forward Air Control - The ability to call in aviation
and indirect fire support to a location.
Gunsmith - Trained to repair, upgrade, and improve
weaponry of all kinds.
Hand-to-Hand Combat - The ability to fight using
martial arts or brawling techniques to subdue or injure
the target.
Heavy Weapons - The use of heavy machine-guns,
vehicle-mounted weapons, and self-propelled guns.
HUMINT - Gathering intelligence from human
sources through research, interrogation, psychology,
and covert means.
Infiltration - Using disguises, knowledge, and contacts
to enter an enemy camp or organisation. Gaining trust
and info in order to exploit and gain Intel.
Investigation - Discovering through research, exami-
nation and searching hidden or complex clues in order
to find a motive or solve a crime.
K9 Training - You have trained with a canine
companion. See Pg 39 for more info.
Leadership - Trained in command and tactics, to act
under fire and assess the current situation. When used
successfully will give advantage to the next challenge
roll of those under your command.
Linguistics - Knowledge of other languages, for each
+1 you have in this speciality you know one extra
language of your choice.
Marine Training - From diving and frogman training
to boat launched assaults.
Medical - The use of field medicine and surgery as
well as knowledge of trauma care.
Missile Systems - Recognising, repairing, and using
various types of mobile and fixed missile systems.
Narcotics - Knowledge of Narcotics, the use, cost
manufacture, and effects of drugs.
Pilot - The ability to fly aircraft from fighter jets to
helicopters.
Pistol - Extensive pistol training, includes both
revolvers and automatics.
Psyops - Changing the perceptions of others through
propaganda and deception.
Recon - Surveillance of an area to determine threats
such as ambushes, and plot travel and resources.
Rifles - Extensive training with assault rifles, battle
rifles and hunting rifles.
Sabotage - The ability to destroy, damage or obstruct
enemy technology and equipment.
Scout - Spotting traps, avoiding ambushes and spot-
ting enemies and other threats.
SERE Training - Survival, Evasion, Resistance and
Escape. The ability to resist interrogation and torture,
escape bonds and evading capture.
16
SIGINT - Intelligence gathering from enemy comms
also includes cryptography and hacking.
Sniper Training - Used to target enemies and ignore
penalties for aiming at extreme targets. For stalking,
counter-sniper, and over-watch.
Sub machine Guns - Extensive training with sub
machine guns.
Stealth - The ability to move silently and use the
environment to avoid detection. This includes the
ability to stealth kill.
Survival - Understanding tracks and being able to
navigate, find food and survive in various environ-
ments.
Tracked Vehicles - The ability to drive tracked vehi-
cles such as tanks.
Trade-craft - Using skills such as lock picking and
pickpocketing, along with shadowing and using drops.
Careers and Backgrounds
The following pages will offer the operator a number
of forces to either take as a career or as a background.
Career
If you have chosen to play the game as either an
Agent, Tactical Police unit or Special Forces unit then
you can choose from the options offered. The opera-
tors or Agents must all come from the same country
of origin.
After the career has been chosen you can then follow
on with the rest of character creation and spend the
50 advancement points awarded to you.
Background
If the operators are playing as ICO, ICI or PMC then
the choice they make is their background, indicating
what they were before they joined the new unit.
If you are playing as ICO you can choose both Special
Forces or Law Enforcement backgrounds.
If you are playing as ICI you can choose Agency or a
Law Enforcement background.
If you are playing as PMC you can choose a Special
Forces or Law Enforcement background.
Operators can come from different countries when
choosing a background.
Those operators choosing a background will then
receive 100 advancement points to spend on improve-
ments.
Changing Careers into Backgrounds
Any operator that has chosen a career can at a later
date move from that career into becoming a member
of the ICO, ICI or as a PMC.
17
If the player has a number of operators created with
careers from different countries changing their career
into a background by moving that operator into the
private sector is a good way to not only experience
missions around the world but also to build a character
with a history.
For an operator to move from a career into the ICO,
ICI or PMC path they must have accrued 50 advance-
ment points or more. Also an operator cannot be a
member of a Tactical Police unit for example and a
member of the ICO, they have to leave their current
career.
This rule opens up the ability for players to bring exist-
ing operators into new games involving the ICO, ICI
or PMC play styles without having to make new oper-
ators. Also this allows new players joining an existing
game to bring career operators into different play style
games.
 African Union
Special Forces Intelligence Agencies

The best trained and most established SOF and Law The largest intelligence service in Africa is the
Enforcement units are centred around Kenya, with National Intelligence Service (NIS). They deal with
the Special Operations Regiment (SOR), which is both internal and foreign intelligence as well as gath-
comprised of the 40th Ranger Strike Force Battal- ering and performing counter-intelligence operations.
ion and the 30th Special Forces Battalion, each of
which is trained by both UKSF and Royal Marines as Weapons
well as Navy SEALs. Other units also fall under the
SOF banner, such as the Kenyan Special Boat Service The SOF are offered a selection of sidearms:
(KSBU) and the Long Range Surveillance Unit 9mm M9
(LRS). These SOF units have worked on missions .40 Browning Hi-Power
alongside most other nations such as Canada, Israel, .45ACP Glock 30
and Belgium.
With small arms the selection is:
Law Enforcement 5.56 M4 carbine
7.62 Mk17 SCAR
The best known Police Service is the General Service 5.56 M16
Unit (GSU). This is a paramilitary wing of the Police
service. The GSU’s duties include dealing with inter- Sniper Rifles:
nal security matters, civil disorder, anti-poaching and 7.62 SR25
counterterrorism, and security for the President.

Specialisation by Force

Force
Special Operations Regiment (SOR)
Kenyan Special Boat Service (KSBU)
Long Range Surveillance Unit (LRS)
National Intelligence Service (NIS)
General Service Unit (GSU)
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, Demolitions, Infiltration, Survival, Medical
Marine Training, Survival, Hand-to-Hand Combat, Recon, Infiltration
Recon, Survival, Sniper Training, Fitness Training, SIGINT
Intelligence Agencies
SIGINT, Trade Craft, HUMINT, Driving, Investigation
Law Enforcement
Criminology, Investigation, HUMINT, Driving, Breaching

18
 Australia
Special Forces
The Australians have three main special forces units,
the first being the 2nd Commando Regiment. which
started off as a raid unit with similar training to the
US Rangers.
Working closely with 2 Commando are the Special
Operations Engineer Regiment (SOER); these offer
counter-chemical, biological, and nuclear support.
threat, whether medium or high risk. The unit covers
everything from bomb disposal, disaster response and
negotiations.
Intelligence Agencies
Australia has a number of intelligence agencies that
operate internally and internationally. Counterter-
rorism and foreign intelligence gathering are the key
components.

Finally, the most famous of the three is the Special Air Weapons
Service Regiment (SASR). The unit deals in coun-
ter-terrorism and have a Guerrilla Warfare Cell which The Australian special forces standard sidearm:
conducts low recon missions and ‘Grey Roles’. 9mm HK USP
9mm Glock 19
Law Enforcement
With small arms the selection is:
The Australian Specialist Protective Services still 7.62 MOD M14s
holds the an-acronym of SRG after its original title of
Specialist Response Group. Sniper Rifles:
7.62 HK417
The SRG is a Tactical Police Group that can be .338 Lapua Tactical 2
deployed domestically and offshore to deal with any
Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
2nd Commando Regiment Recon, Airborne Assault, Survival, Medical, Hand-to-Hand Combat
Special Operations Engineer Regiment Combat Engineer, Drone Operator, Demolitions, Sabotage, Breaching
Special Air Service Regiment Airborne Assault, Fitness Training, K9 Training, Sniper Training, Recon
Intelligence Agencies
Australian Federal Police Investigation, HUMINT, SIGINT, Driving, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Specialist Protective Services (SRG) Breaching, Demolitions, Medical, Sniper Training, Drone Operator

19
 Special Forces
Brazil Weapons

The Brazilian Comando de Operacoes Especiais Brazilian Special Forces commonly used Sidearm:
comprises several special forces units, the 1st Special 9mm Glock 17
Forces Brigade, the 1st Commando Actions Battalion, 9mm Taurus PT-92
Special Forces Support Battalion, 3rd Special Forces
Company, the 1st Chemical, Biological and Nuclear With small arms the selection is:
Defence Platoon and the 6th Army Police Platoon. 5.56 Colt M4 Carbines
5.56 G36 Variant
Law Enforcement 9mm MP5SD
9mm Mini UZI
The Special Police Operations Battalion or BOPE
are a well trained and equipped police unit designed Sniper Rifles:
to deal with crimes in the favelas. They are experts in 7.62 Remington M24
both urban warfare and combat in confined spaces. .50 Barrett M82A1

Intelligence Agency

The Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN) has had a

fascinating history in a country transitioning from a
military government to a civilian one. The agency has
been set up to look for threats to Brazilian society and
defend the law rule.

Specialisation by Force

Force
Special Operations Command
Brazilian Intelligence Agency
Special Police Operations Battalion
Specialisations
Special Forces
Demolitions, Marine Training, Sniper Training, Recon, Airborne Assault
Intelligence Agencies
HUMINT, Trade-craft, Investigation, Driving, SIGINT
Law Enforcement
Breaching, Criminology, Forensics, Medical, K9 Training

20
 Special Forces
Canada
Canada has two special forces units, the Canadian
Special Operations Regiment (CSOR) and the Joint
Task Force 2 ( JTF2). The CSOR are very much a
support unit for the JTF2 but can act independently as
a battalion-strength unit. The JTF2 is Canada’s direct
action and counter-terrorist intervention unit; they
also have a maritime tactical operations unit.
Law Enforcement
against Canadian national security. The CSIS analyse
domestic and foreign intelligence information advising
the Canadian government of matters of security. CSIS
is also part of the Five Eyes and works closely with
the US, UK, Australian and New Zealand Intelligence
communities.
Weapons
Canadian SOF use this sidearm
9mm SIG-Saur P226

The Emergency Response Team (ERT) is the elite Small Arms:

Police tactical unit of the Royal Canadian Mounted 5.56 C8A3 Carbine
Police. They are highly trained in specialised weapons
and tactics. The ERT is involved in Protection, covert Sniper Rifle
surveillance, hostage rescue and marine intervention .338 Lapua Magnum C14 Timberwolf
with their dedicated marine unit.

Intelligence Agencies

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS)

is responsible for discovering and analysing threats

Specialisation by Force

Force
Canadian Special Operations
Joint Task Force 2
Canadian Security Intelligence Service
Emergency Response Team
Specialisations
Special Forces
Recon, Fitness Training, Marine Training, Survival, HUMINT
Sniper Training, Fitness Training, Airborne Assault, Recon, Medical
Intelligence Agencies
SIGINT, Investigation, Trade-craft, Forensics, HUMINT
Law Enforcement
Breaching, K9 Training, Forensics, Criminology, Infiltration

21
 Europe
There are 27 countries in the European Union, and
that is a lot of units to cover, so we will only be cover-
ing the more elite units and agencies for the game.
If your country does not appear, it should be easy to
include them with a small amount of research and
following the formula shown within these back-
grounds.
Special Forces
Intelligence Agencies
Intelligence sharing has grown over the last few
decades, with agencies decrypting and analysing data
from across the globe. There are vital agencies listed
as relevant to the players and the game under their
countries. Still, some countries agencies are either too
small or overshadowed by the more advanced and
funded agencies.

Many European Special Forces units train together Crime agencies such as Interpol are still the primary
or engage in joint operations; this has been seen more European criminal information and detection agency
and more over the last few decades as the global of Europe, with agents operating in many countries
terrorist threat has instilled a sense of communion throughout the union.
amongst special operation commands.
Weapons
Training has crossed over in all areas. This has led to
improved tactics, communications and gear, and pres- Below are listed the most common weapons used by
tige and recognition for special forces units previously European Forces.
unrecognised.
Sidearms:
Law Enforcement 9mm Glock 17
.45 HK USP
Like special forces, the Law Enforcement Agencies
have also seen an increase in sharing information and Small Arms:
training exercises with other countries, increasing 5.56 HK416
their reach and awareness of threats domestically and 5.56 SCAR L
how they deal with those threats. In addition, many 5.56 G36
tactical units have seen an improvement in weapons 9mm MP5
and gear and a more focused aim towards terrorism 4.46mm MP7
and organised crime.
Sniper Rifles:
Some tactical units are almost equal to special forces .338 Accuracy International Sniper Platform
units in their gear and training. Many have become
international, helping stem terrorist cells in adjoining
countries or aiding countries track down threats.

22
 Austrian Forces

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
JagdKommando Fitness training, Recon, Survival, Airborne Assault, Medical
Intelligence Agencies
General Directorate for Public Safety SIGINT, Trade-craft, Driving, Investigation, Forensics
Law Enforcement
Einsatzkommando Cobra Breaching, Airborne Assault, Sniper Training, Investigation, K9 Training

Belgian Forces

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Directorate of Special Units Marine Training, Recon, CQB, HUMINT, Medical
Special Forces Group Sniper Training, Recon, Airborne Assault, Demolitions, HUMINT
Intelligence Agencies
State Security Service Driving, Investigate, Leadership, Narcotics, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Federal Police Ballistic Shields, Breaching, K9 Training, Medical, Stealth

Danish Forces

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Jaeger Corp Camouflage, Fitness Training, Recon, Sniper Training, Scout
Intelligence Agencies
Danish Defence Intelligence Service Driving, Investigate, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Special Intervention Unit Airborne Assault, Breaching, Forensics, Narcotics, Sniper Training

Dutch Forces

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Unit Interventie Mariniers Airborne Assault, Fitness Training, Marine Training, Recon, Survival
Army Commando Corps Breaching, CQB, Drone Operator, Recon, Sniper Training
Intelligence Agencies
General Intelligence and Security Driving, Infiltration, Leadership, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Service
Law Enforcement
Special Brigade Breaching, Demolitions, Investigation, Recon, Sniper Training

23
 French Forces

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Special Operations Command Airborne Assault, CBRNE Training, CQB, Recon, Survival
Intelligence Agencies
Directorate-General for External Security HUMINT, Leadership, Sabotage, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
National Police Intervention Force Breaching, Ballistic Shields, K9 Training, Medical, Sniper Training

German Forces

Force
Special Forces Command
Federal Intelligence Service
Grenzschutzgruppe 9
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, CBRNE Training, CQB, Marine Training, Recon
Intelligence Agencies
Driving, HUMINT, Investigate, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Ballistic Shields, Criminology, Demolitions, Narcotics, Stealth

Italian Forces

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Joint Special Operations Command Airborne Assault, CQB, Drone Operator, Medical, Sniper Training
Intelligence Agencies
External Intelligence & Security Agency Driving, Investigate, Pistol, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Central Security Operations Unit Airborne Assault, Ballistic Shields, CQB, K9 Training, Stealth

Norwegian Forces

Force
Special Operations Force
Hunter Troop ( Jegertroppen)
Norwegian Intelligence Service
Norwegion Police Service (Delta)
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, CQB, CQC, Demolitions, Recon
Camouflage, Fitness Training, Recon, Sniper Training, Survival
Intelligence Agencies
Driving, Forensics, Pistols, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Ballistic Shields, Breaching, Demolitions, K9 Training, Recon

24
 Polish Forces

Force
Operational Mobile Reaction Group
Foreign Intelligence Agency
Central Investigation Bureau
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, Marine Training, Recon, Sniper Training, Survival
Intelligence Agencies
HUMINT, Investigate, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Criminology, Forensics, Investigate, Medical, Sniper Training

Spanish Forces

Force
Special Operations Group
National Intelligence Centre
Special Intervention Unit
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, CBRNE Training, CQB, Medical, Recon
Intelligence Agencies
Forensics, Investigate, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Breaching, CQB, Drone Operator, Investigate, Sniper Training

Swedish Forces

Force
Special Operations Task Force
Swedish Security Service
Reinforced Regional Task Force
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, Demolitions, Fitness Training, Recon, Survival
Intelligence Agencies
Driving, HUMINT, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Breaching, CQB, Driving, Recon, Sniper Training

25
 Special Forces
India
The National Guard (NSG) was created with the
help of the German GSG9 to become India’s primary
counter-terrorism force. The NSG employs both
police and army personnel, which is unique for a
special forces unit—trained in counter-hijack, Recon-
naissance and VIP protection. Though sometimes
poorly equipped, the NSG has shown its professional-
ism and ability to respond to many situations quickly.
to gather intelligence from countries that have a direct
bearing on India, perform covert operations to protect
India’s interests, influencing foreign governments and
dealing with terror threats. The agency also acts as
security for India’s nuclear program and diplomats.
Weapons
Indian SOF use this sidearm
9mm Glock 17

Law Enforcement Small Arms:

5.56 SIG 553
The National Security Guard encompasses many 9mm MP5
specialist units, ranging from administration to
counter-terrorist action groups to electronic and Sniper Rifle
cyber-warfare specialists. The National Security 7.62 PSG1
Guard will generally deal with internal threats against
Indian states. The personnel of the National Security
Guard are often referred to as the Black Cats.

Intelligence Agencies

The Research and Analysis Wing is India’s foreign

intelligence agency. The agency’s primary function is
Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
National Security Guard CQB, Driving, Marine Training, Recon, Sniper Training
Intelligence Agencies
Research and Analysis Wing HUMINT, Infiltration, Linguistics, Sabotage, SIGINT
Law Enforcement
National Security Guard Criminology, CQB, Investigate, Recon, SIGINT

26
 Special Forces
Israel
Sayeret Matkal, or the General Staff Reconnais-
sance Unit of the Israeli army, is Israel’s longest-serv-
ing Special Operations Force. It deals in direct action
and counterterrorism along with covert surveillance.
There is also a marine unit called Shayetet 13, equiva-
lent to the US Navy SEALs, which deals with mari-
time operations. Has been known to work alongside
Mossad units as well as operators of other countries.
Law Enforcement
Yamam, or the Centralised Special Unit, is Israel’s
counter-terrorism unit. They are trained to deal with
hostage rescue and conducting raids in civilian areas as
well as police investigations and SWAT-style activ-
ity. Yamam mainly operates within Israel’s borders but
have been known to conduct undercover missions in
the Gaza Strip and will adopt Arab dress to blend in.
Prime Minister of Israel, and because of this, many
consider Mossad a deep state. Mossad was well known
for its Nazi-hunting activity in the ’60s, where they
captured several known Nazi members hiding out in
Argentina.
Mossad has conducted operations in many different
countries and uses counter-terrorism units such as
Metsada and civilian supporters to achieve its goals.
These operations often involve destroying terrorist cells
money networks.
Weapons
Israeli SOF use this sidearm
9mm Glock 19
Small Arms:
5.56 Tavor X-95
5.56 CTAR-21

Intelligence Agencies Sniper Rifle

7.62 PSG1
Mossad is Israel National Intelligence Agency and is
responsible for covert operations, counterterrorism and
intelligence collection. The agency only answers to the

Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Sayeret Matkal (Unit 269) Airborne Assault, CQB, Hand-to-Hand Combat, Recon, Sniper Training
Intelligence Agencies
Mossad Infiltration, Investigate, Sabotage, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Yamam Breaching, Criminology, CQB, Investigate, Recon

27
 Special Forces
Japan
Established in 2003, the Special Forces Group has
been trained by former Delta Force members to act
as protection units for diplomats and counter-terror-
ist actions. The Special Boarding Unit is the maritime
arm and was established by the SBS and US SOF
trainers. Operators in the JSFG wear masks similar to
SAS members, which they are influenced by.
country against terrorism and internal threats. Most
of the agency’s operations are conducted within the
country, but it has also been known to conduct opera-
tions on foreign soil, namely China and North Korea.
The PSIA has a foreign intelligence branch and works
with many other intelligence agencies worldwide to
keep Japan safe.
Weapons

Law Enforcement Japanese SOF use this sidearm

.45 HK USP
The Special Assault Teams are tactical Police units
trained in hostage rescue, counterterrorism and Small Arms:
close-quarters combat. The units are assigned to both 5.56 HK 416
metropolitan and prefectural police departments. The 9mm MP5SD3
Special Firearms Squads are assigned to Riot Police
Units and sometimes nuclear power plants acting as Sniper Rifle
snipers. 7.62 HK 417

Intelligence Agencies

The Public Security Intelligence Agency is Japan’s

national security agency tasked with protecting the

Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Japanese Special Forces Group Driving, Demolitions, Marine Training, Recon Sniper Training
Intelligence Agencies
Public Security Intelligence Agency Forensics, Investigate, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Special Assault Team Aerial Assault, Breaching, CQC, Recon, Sniper Training
Anti-Firearms Squad Ballistic Shields, CQB, Demolition, Medical, Sniper Training

28
 Special Forces
Mexico the countries borders but has been known to work
alongside Mexico’s military intelligence agencies and
The Special Reaction Force is the Mexican counter- agencies of other countries.
terrorism and direct action unit. The SRF has trained
with Delta, the GIGN and the Israeli Sayeret Matkal. Weapons
Mexican special forces have a long history of train-
ing alongside US special forces units and even its own Mexican SOF use this sidearm
version of SOCOM called the Special Forces Corp. 9mm SIG-Saur P2022

Law Enforcement Small Arms:

5.56 FX-05 Xiuhcoatl
Mexican Federal Police Tactical unit GOPES, or 5.56 SIG 716
Special Operations Group, deals with organised
crime, Cartels, and domestic terrorist threats. They Sniper Rifle
have trained alongside the Spanish special forces and 7.62 Accuracy International Sniper Platform
RAID. The unit was disbanded in 2018 and has since
been replaced by the National Guard.

Intelligence Agencies

The National Intelligence Centre or CNI is Mexico’s

primary intelligence agency and is tasked with investi-
gation and intelligence gathering to preserve the state’s
integrity and stability. The CNI works mainly within
Specialisation by Force

Force
Special Reaction Force
National Intelligence Centre
Special Operations Group (GOPES)
National Guard
Specialisations
Special Forces
Airborne Assault, CQB, Marine Training, Recon, Sniper Training
Intelligence Agencies
Investigation, Narcotics, Pistol, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Booby Traps, Breaching, CQB, Investigate, Narcotics
Aerial Assault, CQB, Investigate, Narcotics, Sniper Training

29
 New Zealand
Special Forces Intelligence Agencies

The 1st New Zealand Special Air Service, also called The Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) is respon-
The Unit, is modelled after the British Special Air sible for counterterrorism, counter-intelligence,
Service, and has trained with the SAS. The NZSAS foreign intelligence, and national security. The NZSIS
conducts counterterrorism, special reconnaissance, has also recently expanded its reach into combating
direct action and CBRNE disposal operations world- organised crime and working closely with other coun-
wide, working alongside other special forces units tries’ crime agencies.
from across the world. The Unit is broken down into
specific squadrons that specialise in ordnance disposal, Weapons
tactical assault and amphibious, air and mountains
operations. New Zealand SOF use this sidearm
9mm Glock 17
Law Enforcement
Small Arms:
The Special Tactics Group (STG) is a full-time Police 5.56 LMT MARS-L Carbine
tactical unit established to deal with high-risk situa- 9mm MP5
tions such as sieges, counterterrorism, hostage rescue,
intelligence gathering and negotiation. They train Sniper Rifle
alongside New Zealand’s Special Operations units .50 Barrett M107A1 Anti-material
NZSAS, for VIP protection and Canine Unit opera- 7.62/.338 Barrett MRAD
tions.

Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
1st New Zealand Special Air Service Aerial Assault, CBRNE Training, CQB, Marine Training, Recon
Intelligence Agencies
Security Intelligence Service Criminology, Investigate, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Special Tactics Group Breaching, CQB, HUMINT, Medical, Sniper Training

30
Russian Federation
Special Forces Intelligence Agencies

The Special Operations Force (SOF) are a highly
trained group of units trained in sabotage, counter-
terrorism, sedition, counter-intelligence and recon-
naissance. They are adept at guerrilla warfare and
ambushes. They have been known to act within Russia
and worldwide, with many covert operations in Syria
against enemy infrastructure and high valued targets.
Law Enforcement
The Spetsgruppa A or Alpha Group is part of the
Federal Security Services (FSB) and bridges both the
special forces and police tactical unit definitions. Alpha
group has been used to deal with internal hostage
rescue and terrorist threats and has also been used on
foreign soil in covert operations.
As a police unit, Alpha will engage in law enforcement
investigations and actions against organised crime of
drug cartels. The Alpha Group is known for a no-non-
sense approach and often being heavy-handed when
engaged in operations.
The Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR RF) is the
successor to the KGB and deals with intelligence gath-
ering and espionage outside of the Russian Federation.
The SVR works closely with the military intelligence
agency (GRU) who gathers intelligence through spies
and government attaches. The SVR is authorised to
conduct electronic surveillance within foreign coun-
tries and to protect Russian citizens working overseas.
Weapons
Russian SOF use this sidearm
9mm Glock 19
Small Arms:
5.45 AK12
9mm MP5
Sniper Rifle
7.62 HK MR762

Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
Special Operations Force Aerial Assault, CQB, HUMINT, Recon, Sabotage
Intelligence Agencies
Foreign Intelligence Service HUMINT, Investigation, Linguistics, Sabotage, SIGINT
Law Enforcement
Spetsgruppa A (Alpha) Breaching, CQB, Investigate, Sabotage, Sniper Training

31
 United Kingdom
Special Forces
The United Kingdom’s special forces are the most
renowned and respected units in the world. They have
played a part in most conflicts and are responsible for
saving countless lives in military and hostage situa-
tions.
The most famous of UK special forces are the SAS;
the Special Air Service came into the public eye
during the Iranian Embassy Siege of 1980; this was
the first time many UK residents saw the SAS in
action or even knew such a unit existed since then the
SAS has become a flagship special forces unit.
The UK’s special forces help train other units world-
wide and have been innovative and influential in
several ways. The SAS were the first special forces unit
formed back in 1941 in the deserts of Africa, and the
SRR is the first unit to recruit women.
The SAS and SBS are considered the UK equiva-
lent of Tier 1 units, whereas the SRR, SFSG and 18
Signals are Tier 2. All the UK special forces are highly
trained and often work together and train with SOF
units worldwide.
Intelligence Agencies
The UK has three main Intelligence Agencies which
are well known worldwide due mostly to James Bond
movies.
MI5 (Military Intelligence, Section 5) is a counter-in-
telligence and security agency. The agency’s prime
objective is to collect data, utilise surveillance and
32
investigate terrorist organisations. More recently, they
have also been directed to work with law enforcement
on serious crime issues. MI5 agents are legally allowed
to commit a crime in the UK as long as it was to
protect national security.
MI6, otherwise known as the Secret Intelligence
Service (SIS), works exclusively overseas, gathering
foreign intelligence regarding counterterrorism and
counter-proliferation. MI6 can only carry out oper-
ations against persons outside the UK, leading to
claims of torture and extraordinary rendition.
GCHQ, Government Communications Headquar-
ters, is responsible for Signal Intelligence (SIGINT)
for the armed forces and government of the UK. It
was initially established during the first world war as
a cypher school, and during the second world war, it is
best known for breaking the German Enigma code.
GCHQ has two main components, the CSO, which
is responsible for information gathering and the
National Cyber Security Centre, where it secures
the UK’s communications networks. The GCHQ is
known to work closely with the NSA and is part of
the Five Eyes surveillance program.
Law Enforcement
There are many different branches of UK Law
Enforcement, but only two fit the current list. Due to
firearm laws, the UK does not have the same inci-
dence of gun crime and sieges, mass shootings etc.., as
in countries like the USA, there is less need for a full
Tactical Police force.
 Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
22nd Special Air Service Airborne Assault, CQB, SERE Training, Sniper Training, Trade-craft
Special Boat Service CQB, Infiltration, Marine Training, Sabotage, Survival,
Special Reconnaissance Regiment Airborne Assault, CQB, Medical, Recon, Survival
18 Signals Regiment CQB, Medical, SIGINT, Sniper Training, Survival
Special Forces Support Group Airborne Assault, CBRNE Training, Demolitions, Recon, Sniper
Training
Intelligence Agencies
Security Service (MI5) HUMINT, Leadership, Linguistics, Sabotage, SIGINT
Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) CQB, Infiltration, Investigate, Linguistics, SERE Training
Government Communication (GCHQ) Drone Operator, Investigate, Linguistics, SIGINT, Trade-craft
Law Enforcement
Special Branch Criminology, Driving, HUMINT, Pistol, SERE Training, Trade-craft
Specialist Crime & Operations 19 Airborne Assault, Breaching, CQB, Medical, Sniper Training

Special Branch works closely with MI5 on dealing Small Arms

with and gathering intelligence on terrorism and seri- 5.56 Colt Canada L119A2
ous crimes on British soil and protection for VIPs. 7.62 SIG-Saur MCX .300 Blackout
In recent years a new department called the Counter 5.56 LWRC M6A2
Terrorism Command has been set up with the Metro-
politan Police Special Branch, which now handles Sniper Rifles
threats of terrorism in the UK. 7.62 HK417
.338 Accuracy International Sniper Platform
The Specialist Firearms Command (SCO19) is the
closest the UK has to a SWAT team, called the blue
berets the SCO19 deal with ambushes, hostage situ-
ations and armed robberies; they also add support to
Armed Response Vehicles (ARVs). A second branch
of the SCO19 is the Counter-Terrorist Specialist
Firearms Officers. They are trained to deal specifically
with terrorist incidents and are trained to storm boats,
planes and other vehicles; in fact, both the SCO19 and
the CTSFO train with the SAS.

Weapons

The most common weapons used by UK special forces

and Tactical Police units

Sidearm
9mm Glock 19

33
 Special Forces
USA
In Ghost Ops Second Strike only the current five
top Tier One units are used for operator background,
these five units are all under the command of the Joint
Special Operations Command ( JSOC). There are a
number of Tier 2 units, and these may be offered as
an option in later Ghost Ops publications, otherwise
please check out the Joint Task Force source book
available on DriveThruRPG.
US special forces have played a part in most conflicts
worldwide and are some of the best-known special
forces units, made more so by important missions
such as the hunt for Bin Laden.
Like UK special forces, the US units also train with
other countries forces, and many countries have fash-
ioned their own SOF around units like the Navy
SEALs and Delta.
Intelligence Agencies
There are three prominent and famous intelligence
agencies in the USA; these are as follows.
The National Security Agency’s primary responsibility
is to monitor and process information and data from
domestic and foreign intelligence and counter-intel-
ligence. They also protect the USA communications
and information systems. Most of what the NSA
does is clandestine, and they are part of the Five Eyes
global surveillance community.
The NSA does not use human intelligence gathering
as they mainly specialise in SIGINT and rarely field
agents; of course, this can make the NSA challeng-
34
ing to run in a game, but exceptions can be made for
specific missions, and it is suggested that the NSA is
used as a background rather than a career.
The Central Intelligence Agency was formed from
the OSS after the second world war. Since then, it has
been instrumental in the USA’s foreign interests and
other missions outside the USA. The CIA often uses
field agents in an undercover capacity. They also have
their own special operations units that engage in black
ops or highly secret actions against the USA’s enemies
or other threats.
The CIA are famous for many things, from causing
coups to assassinating high-profile targets; they are
often seen as the bad guys for the way they are merci-
less in their endeavours and because of their involve-
ment in often illegal actions. Ex-CIA agents make
good, bad guys and can be a real challenge for a team
hunting them down.
The Department of Homeland Security is a recent
creation responsible for protecting the USA’s borders
and dealing with anti-terrorism, immigration, and
disaster management. The DHS field agents across
America too deal with domestic terrorism and investi-
gate domestic threats; this includes white supremacist
groups and suspected terrorist or violent protest cells.
The DHS works mainly in the civilian sphere and
cybersecurity, recently monitoring online hate groups
and social media. Their field agents work closely with
law enforcement and having DHS agents working
alongside FBI or tactical police units is not unheard
of.
 Specialisation by Force

Force Specialisations
Special Forces
SEAL Team 6 (DEVGRU) Airborne Assault, CQB, Marine Training, Recon, Sniper Training
Delta Force Airborne Assault, CQB, Driving, Linguistics, SERE Training
Regimental Reconnaissance Company Airborne Assault, Booby Traps, HUMINT, Recon, Sniper Training
24th Special Tactics Squadron Airborne Assault, Combat Engineer, HUMINT, Medical, Survival
Intelligence Support Activity Airborne Assault, CQB, Infiltration, Sabotage, Trade-craft
Intelligence Agencies
National Security Agency (NSA) Drone Operator, Investigate, Linguistics, Sabotage, SIGINT
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Demolitions, Driving, HUMINT, Linguistics, Trade-craft
Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) CBRNE Training, HUMINT, Investigate, Medical, Pistol
Law Enforcement
Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Ballistic Shields, Breaching, CQB, Investigate, Medical
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Criminology, Forensics, HUMINT, Investigate, Pistol
US Marshals Service (USMS) Criminology, Forensics, Investigate, Narcotics, Pistol
US Secret Service Driving, Hand-to-Hand Combat, HUMINT, Pistol, Trade-craft
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
Breaching, Demolitions, HUMINT, Investigate, Narcotics
and Explosives (ATF)
Law Enforcement 9mm Glock 19
9mm SIG Saur M17 (Military)
Most people will know something about American 9mm M9
law enforcement from movies, documentaries, and TV
shows. The list in Ghost Ops Second Strike includes Small Arms
mostly plains clothes officers or agents with only the 5.56 MK SCAR L
Special Weapons and Tactics having a uniform that in 5.56 MK18 CQB-R
any way resembles the Police force. 7.62 MK14
9mm MP5S
Many law enforcement agencies will work closely with
one another and usually deal with gang crime, cartels, Sniper Rifles
and organised crime threats. None of the listed Law 7.62 M110
Enforcement units or agencies will work outside the .338 TAC
USA. .338 Accuracy International AXMC (SWAT)

Weapons

The following weapons will show the more common

weapons used by American agents and law enforce-
ment.

Pistols
.45 Kimber Custom II (SWAT)
9mm Glock 17 (Agents)

35
 Choosing your Role Attribute Advance Cost
1>2 10
Operators train the same, no matter what country
they come from, but this does not mean you all have 2>3 20
to be the same. Instead of choosing a class or position 3>4 30
in a squad, you will create one by specialising in abili- 4>5 40
ties, making you the squads specialist. 5>6 50
6>7 75
In Ghost Ops Second Strike, there is no leader.
Instead, at the start of each mission, a leader is chosen Specialisation Advancement Table
based on their specialisations and their relation to the Similar to attributes, you must have bought the
mission ahead; this is the same with roles; for each specialisation at +1 before advancing it to +2 and so
mission, the operators will be given their position forth. The table below shows the cost of buying and
based on what is needed to succeed. improving specialisations.

For example, one mission may call for a sniper in Specialisation Advance Cost
Over-watch; another mission may need a demolitions
Specialisation at +1 15
specialist, some missions may be a straight assault, and
no specialisations will be needed, every mission will +1 > +2 30
be different and based on the objective, operators will +2 > +3 60
need to decide their roles in the squad.
Other Advancements
Creating a role is simple and follows the same
mechanics used to improve your operator as you hit Once you have begun completing missions, your
milestones during the game. Once you have chosen choices for advancement will grow, allowing you
your background and your starting specialisations, to improve other elements of your operator. These
you then receive a number of points to spend. These advancements cannot be chosen during operator
points are the same as advancement points (AVP). recruitment but become available afterwards.
These points can be spent to either improve your
attributes or buy and improve specialisations. Attrib- Increase Boosts
utes cannot be improved above 3, but specialisations You can increase the number of Boosts your opera-
can be improved to a maximum of +3 during operator tor starts with. Each operator starts with three boosts
recruitment. and increasing that number by 1 will cost 25 AVP; the
maximum number of boosts an operator can have is
Spending Your Points five.

Each operator that has taken a career receives 50 Buy an Advantage

points and each operator choosing a background
receives 100 points to spend using the tables below.
The Attribute Advancement Table.
Your operator will have received their attributes
points (see pg 14). You can now spend your free AVP
on improving those attributes and specialisations or
obtaining new specialisations using the tables below.
You must have the previous level in order to buy the
next.
You can spend 5 AVP and start a mission with one
advantage; this advantage can be used at any time but
will not carry over to the next mission; if you do not
use it, you lose it.
Use a Contact
You can spend 10 AVP at the start of a mission to
gain extra information about that mission from a
contact. Operators are presumed to have contacts they
can approach.

36
 Derived Stats
Each operator has six derived statistics, which are
linked in various ways to the attributes.
Damage Bonus
The damage bonus is added to any damage done from
Hand-to-Hand combat or CQC, which includes hand
weapons such as knives, batons etc..
To find the operator’s damage bonus add the Fitness
to the Agility attribute and divide by three rounding
up.
Hunter has a Fitness of 3 and an Agility of 4, adding
these together for a total of 7, Hunter divides the total
by three and rounds up the result to give her a Damage
Bonus of 3.
Defence
Everyone naturally defends themselves against attacks,
and as a trained operator, you have honed this natural
ability to a fine art.
Your defence is the base difficulty number to hit, that
an attacker must equal or beat in order to be successful
with a melee attack. The operator’s defence is equal to
their Reflexes + Agility divided by two
Hunters Reflexes is 3 and her Agility is 4, she adds
these together for a total of 7 and then divides by two
giving her a defence of 4 (rounded up). When some-
one attacks Hunter with a melee attack, they need to
get 4 or above to succeed.
Encumbrance
Every operator will train with heavy packs meaning
they start with the ability to act with a weight on their
back. Encumbrance is done via a slot system, and this
will include all the pockets, pouches, and packs the
operator has at their disposal. A slot indicates both the
weight and bulk of an object, with small objects taking
up a half or full slot and more oversized items such as
rifles taking up two slots.
37
Every operator starts with an encumbrance of 10, and
to this, they add their fitness.
10 + Fitness = Encumbrance
Initiative and Actions
The initiative determines who goes when during
combat; in the Battlefield section of the Active Oper-
ations Chapter (Pg 67), there are more in-depth rules
on how the initiative is used in the game. Here we will
determine how the initiative is calculated.
The operator’s initiative is determined by adding their
Focus attribute to their Reflex attribute and then
divide the total by two, rounding up; the result is the
initiative total. When Initiative is called, the player
rolls the dice and adds the initiative total to the result.
Focus + Reflex /2 = Initiative.
Hunter has a Focus of 2 and a Reflex of 3, adding
these together comes to 5 and then dividing the result
by two gives a result of 3 (rounded up).
Action points are also determined by the Focus and
Reflex attribute. Operators receive 2 actions per turn,
but this can increase the higher the attributes.
Focus + Reflex Action Points
1-6 +0
7-10 +1
11-12 +2
Perception
The operative’s ability to notice or sense danger and
threats. Perception in Ghost Ops Second Strike is a
passive ability rather than an active one. Threats must
equal or beat the operator’s perception to launch a
surprise attack or avoid discovery; we will discuss
more about perception in the Battlefield section of the
Active Operations chapter (Pg 74).
The operator’s perception is equal to the Focus attrib-
ute.
 Other Benefits
Each operator receives 3 Boosts these act similar to
luck points in that they allow the player to change or
effect results in the game. The use of a Boost passes
a Bust to the Handler. Busts act like Boosts that the
Handler can use to enhance NPCs or effect results.
Boost Options
Re-Roll - The player can use a Boost to re-roll a fail
on a challenge; they will have to accept the new roll.
Advantage - The player can use a Boost to give them
an advantage (See Challenges Chapter for more on
Advantages).
Aid - The player can use a Boost to aid another player;
by spending a Boost, the player receives a +2.
Narrative - The player can affect the narrative by
using a Boost, this can be done to make sure a door is
unlocked, or a room is empty, the guard is asleep, or
they have a flashback etc.. The Handler has the final
say on how much of a change the player can make.
Disadvantage - A Boost can be used to give a Tango
or even another Operator a Disadvantage (see chal-
lenges section for more on Disadvantages).
38
Busts
The Handler receives a Bust each time a player uses a
Boost, and with this, the Handler has all the options
the players have for Boosts, but for the Handler, it
affects the Tangos and Aces.
Handlers can also use the Busts to give Disadvantages
to the Operators, cause them to lose or break equip-
ment and make life more difficult. We stress restraint,
and the Handler should never use a Bust to break the
game or make a challenge impossible. Instead, use
them to throw curve balls and to keep the Operators
on their toes.
Reputation
The squad will receive several reputation points for
every successful mission based on how well they
did and if any side missions were completed. These
Reputation points can be used to requisition items
that would not often be handed out to the opera-
tors. Requisition points can also be used in the field
for supply drops or for obtaining relative information
from contacts.
Certain items will have an RQ number which indi-
cates how many Reputation points they cost to obtain
for that mission. Once reputation points have been
used, they are lost and need to be earned again.
 K9 Operators
Those Operators that have a K9 training specialisa-
tion can choose to have a canine secondary character.
Creating a K9 is simple and follows standard operator
recruitment steps, as shown below.
K9’s are considered one of the team members and are
treated no different from the other team members;
they are not used as fodder or left behind. It is well
documented for a rescue mission to be organised for
captured K9’s, and K9’s receive full military honours
for their role if killed.
Creating your K9 Operator
There are four steps to creating a K9, which is listed
below. In Appendix A, you will find a character sheet
for K9’s as well as pre-gens.
Step 1. Information
A K9 trains and lives with his handler and can only
be used by the handler they are connected with. The
handler can decide the dog’s name and breed, but K9
do not have a background like human operators. The
breeds that can be chosen are:
German Shepherd
Labrador Retriever
Belgian Malinois
Step 2. Attributes
K9’s have five attributes that also act as their speciali-
sations; each attribute starts at 3.
Track
The track attribute is used for tracking suspects,
tangos, missing persons and even vehicles.
Combat
The combat attribute is used to attack enemies; the
dog’s handler can decide whether the attack is lethal or
non-lethal.
Detect
The detection of bombs, guns, and drugs can also
detect ambushes and doubles as a passive perception.
39
Stealth
The dog will lower its profile and move slower when
either commanded or when the Handler does so.
Spotting a dog that is using stealth has a -2 penalty.
Fitness
The dog’s ability to jump, climb, swim and so forth
Step 3. Points
You receive 10 points to spend on the K9’s attrib-
utes; these can reach as high as 9, but during operator
recruitment can only be as high as 6.
Step 4. Derived Stats
K9’s have many of the same derived stats as human
operators but are worked out differently. K9’s do not
need encumbrance, and all results below are rounded
up.
Damage Bonus
The K9’s damage bonus is equal to half their Fitness
and Combat attribute added together and then halved.
Defence
The K9’s defence is their Combat and Detect attrib-
utes added together and then divided by 2 with +1
added to the result.
Encumbrance
K9 operators do not have an encumbrance amount as
they generally only ever carry their starting gear.
Initiative
The K9’s initiative is their Fitness and Detect attrib-
utes added together and then divided by 2; all K9’s
have three actions and that cannot be increased.
Perception
The K9’s Perception is equal to their Detect attribute.
Wounds
All K9’s have nine wounds
Boosts
Each K9 receives three boosts; these work the same
way as standard boosts.
 Advancement Character Examples

K9’s gain experience like their human counterparts On the following five pages, character examples will
and can use their AVP in the same way but for a be shown to highlight the different types of opera-
slightly different cost, as shown below. tor the players can field. This is but a small selection
of the options available and will show the attributes
Attribute Advance Cost increased, the specialisations chosen and how that
1>2 10 affects the rest of the character.
2>3 15
The following examples are just that and are not what
3>4 20
a player should do. Many other combinations can be
4>5 25 created based on what the player wants to play or how
5>6 30 they envision their operator to look and feel.
6>7 35
7>8 40 All the examples are fully playable though and for a
8>9 50 quick game these could be used as templates. some
pre-generated operators can be found at the back of
Starting Gear the book after the mission in the Appendix.

Each K9 starts with all the gear listed in the Quarter-

master section on Pg 49. They do not need to requi-
sition items and can swap out their gear for each
mission.

40
 Example Agent

Agent Mike Daniels

Nationality: USA
Career: CIA Agent

Attributes

Coordination 3, Reflexes 3, Focus 3 Fitness 2, Agility

2, Intellect 3

Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 12,

Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3,

Boosts: 3

Specialisations

Demolitions +1
Driving +1
HUMINT +2
Investigation +2
Linguistics +2
Pistol +1
Stealth +1
Trade-craft +1

Gear

Kevlar Vest
Glock 17
Comms
Laptop

41
 Example Special Forces

Call-sign: Pharaoh
Nationality: Danish
Career: Jaeger Corp

Attributes

Coordination 3, Reflexes 2, Focus 3, Fitness 3, Agility

3, Intellect 2

Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 13,

Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3,

Boosts: 3

Specialisations

Camouflage +1
CQB +1
Fitness Training +1
Recon +2
Scout +1
Sniper Training +2
Survival

Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice

Starting Gear as listed on Pg 49
IOTV MK3
Knee Pads
Tactical Boots
MICH

42
 Example Tactical Police

Call-sign: Omega
Nationality: USA
Career: SWAT

Attributes

Coordination 4, Reflexes 2, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility

3, Intellect 2.

Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 12,

Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3.

Boosts: 3

Specialisations

Ballistic Shields +1
Breaching +2
CQB +1
Driving +1
Investigation +2
Medical +1
Pistol +1
Stealth +1

Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice

Starting Gear as listed on Pg 49
Plate Carrier X-SAPI
Knee Pads
Elbow Pads
Tactical Boots
MICH

43
 Example ICO

Call-sign: Trick
Nationality: UK
Background: SAS
Career: ICO

Attributes

Coordination 4, Reflexes 3, Focus 2, Fitness 4, Agility

2, Intellect 2

Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 14,

Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 2

Boosts: 3

Specialisations

Airborne Assault +1
CQB +2
Pistol +1
Recon +2
SERE Training +1
Sniper Training +1
Stealth +1
Survival +1
Trade-craft +1

Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice

Starting Gear as listed on Pg 49
IOTV MK3
Knee Pads
Tactical Boots
MICH

44
 Example PMC

Call-sign: Walker
Nationality: Australian
Background: Specialist Protective Services
Career: PMC

Attributes

Coordination 4, Reflexes 3, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility

3, Intellect 2

Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 12,

Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3.

Boosts: 3

Specialisations

Breaching +2
CQB +1
Demolitions +1
Driving +1
Drone Operator +1
Investigation +1
Demolitions +1
Medical +1
Recon +1
Sniper Training +2
Survival +1

Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice

Starting Gear as listed on Pg 49
IOTV MK3
Knee Pads
Tactical Boots
MICH

45
 Character Sheet Breakdown

1. Operator Background
The operators name, age, looks and country of origin are totally optional and decided by the player. The Career is
what your operator is now, and if playing a ICO or PMC operator then a background is also included. There is also
space for the earned AVP, earned Advantages and the operators Boosts.

2. Call-sign
Space for the operators call-sign, what they are called over radio communications to keep their identity hidden,.
Also space to keep track of the units earned Reputation.

3. Attributes
Each of the operators attributes are placed here.

4. Specialisations
The operators chosen specialisations are listed here along with the level at which it is at.

5. Wounds and Derived Stats

The operators wounds are listed with the modifier the operator receives when they have taken that number of
wounds. All operators have 12 wounds total. The boxes cover the 6 derived stats available to the operator.

6. Weapons
This section is to list the operators primary and secondary weapon, plus any hand weapons and optional weapons
they may have. The operator can choose which weapons they wish to use and are expected to have 1 rifle, 1 pistol, 1
hand weapon and 1 optional weapon, along with several grenades. There is a section for listing any attachments the
operator has for the weapon.

7. Ammo
This section allows the player to mark off any ammo used when firing short or long bursts and well as double taps.
Once each square is filled in the weapons MAG is empty. Other is for any extra weapons such as Sniper Rifles and
Shotguns which are not normal issue for everyday operations.

The Flip-side

The reverse of the character sheet holds the operators gear. Also includes a location armour chart along with an
wound column for use with the optional hit location rules.

The lower half of the flip-side is a K9 operator sheet for your furry friend.

46
 1
2

47

Quartermaster
Ghost Ops Second Strike has changed in a few ways
from the original game, making it more streamlined
with a more open character creation, and this is also
true of the gear, armour and weapons.
Many of the original Ghost Ops rules involving gear
and acquiring gear have changed due to player feed-
back and making the game faster. It will be a simple
task to exchange these for those of you who preferred
the original gear and rules.
ICO and PMCs can choose their gear, weapons and
armour freely.
Requisition
The requisition rules were first seen in the Joint Task
Force source book by Timothe Loya for Ghost Ops
and were a big hit, so this has been integrated into
Second Strike.
Certain items are only available via requisition; these
will be unique or specialised pieces of gear that would
not usually be handed out to operators. If an item
has a number in the RQ column that means they will
need to be requisitioned and the number indicates
how many requisition points it will cost to do so per
each item.
48
The
This has changed from the original Ghost Ops, where
operators would buy gear with money earned from
missions; this is no longer an option.
Encumbrance
Military and Tactical Polices are trained to carry
heavy loads over long distances and different terrain
types. In Ghost Ops Second Strike, this is represented
by each operator beginning with a base 10 encum-
brance; for more on how to calculate your operator’s
encumbrance go to pg 37.
Encumbrance (ENC) is measured in slots, with differ-
ent items taking up more slots than other items. The
game does not take into account whether the gear
is carried in what pouch or location as that will be
a management system far too complicated for how
much that matters, and players can, if they like, do
that for themselves.
A slot represents both the size and weight of an item,
with small items taking up no slots; for example, if an
item has a blank spot under ENC, it takes up no slots.
Carried items still take up slots until they are dropped.
For every three extra slots taken above the operators
encumbrance the operator is at -1 to all actions.
 Starting Gear for Operators

Below is the starting gear operators will have available to them, they would not carry everything on this list all the
time but take what they need for the mission ahead. Agents would carry most of the starting gear in their car rather
than carry it on their person.

Item Description ENC

Batteries (6) Standard batteries -
Binoculars Standard Binoculars 1
Blood Chit Small document offering money for safety
Chem-sticks Plastic rods, shake and break -
Glow Standard
Grease Pencil Will write anywhere
Survival Radio Large radio with built in GPS 1
Throat Comms Standard comms unit -
CamalBak Water reservoir with drinking tube
Compass Advantage to Navigating -
Entrenching Tool Can be used as a weapon 2
Flashlight Advantage to searching at night 1
Gas mask Gives Advantage to resisting gas 1
IFAK Standard First Aid Kit 1
Multi-Tool Standard Multi-Tool -
Night Vision Goggles give Advantage in darkness 1
QB Sleeve Holds maps -
MREs Standard ration packs -
Seabag Large bag used as sse dump bag -
Tourniquet Standard tourniquet -
Para-chord To tie things together
Poncho Standard all weather poncho 1
Watch Reliable time piece
Zip Ties (10) Pack of 10 zip ties -

Starting Gear for K9 Operators

Item Description
Doggles Goggles for the dog to protect against flying debris and glass
Radio Stored on the dogs vest so they stay in contact with human operator
Muzzle Only used when the dog is Parachuting
Kevlar body armour and Harness, covers dogs body leaving only the legs and head
Body Armour + Harness
exposed. Can be equipped with packs and a lead.
Packs Used to carry the dogs rations and their specific first aid kit
Flotation Device Used when in water.

49
 Non-Standard Gear
The following gear is available but is not considered standard gear

Item ENC Description RQ

Biometric Scanner 1 Used to scan fingerprints and identify or store them 3
Breaching Kit 2 Used for breaching doors and barricades 1
Canteen 0/1 Water carrier (belt) ENC 0 when empty 1 when filled 1
Carabiners 0 +1 Climbing 1
Designator 3 Forward Air Control 3
ENVG 2 Enhanced Night Vision Goggles, 2 Advantage at night 5
Ghillie Suit 0/1 Advantage to camouflage, ENC 0 when worn, 1 when carried 1
Grapple 1 +1 Climbing 1
GPS Nav 0 +1 Navigation 1
HardTab 1 Military grade hardened tablet computer 2
Hazmat Suit 0/2 Protection against hazards, ENC 0 when worn, 1 when carried 2
Laser Pointer 0 Standard laser pointer 1
Lock picks 0 Advantage Trade Craft 2
Lock pick Gun 0 A tool that brute forces locks 2
Mine Detector 2 Advantage mine detection 3
Range Finder 0 A monocular that uses a laser to provide accurate distance 2
Scuba Gear 5 Snorkel, air tank, fins and wet suit 4
Snake Cam 0 Bendable fibre optic tube with a camera linked to display,. 1
SSE Kit 1 A kit for gathering forensic and computer evidence 3
A bright orange tarp can be spotted with IR, designed to indi-
Tac-Flag 1 1
cate friendly position
Tool Kit 1 Selection of tools 2
UAV/UGV Terminal 1 Terminal used to operate drones and linked to drone cameras 2

Agent Gear

Item ENC Description

Hacking Software - Added to Laptop for cybersecurity and intrusion purposes
Key Logger - Will log keystrokes, comes as a program or thumb-drive
Radio- Wrist - Wrist mounted communications
Radio - Ear - In ear communications often linked to either wrist or throat radio
Bug - Small bug that can be placed unseen in areas of devices
Camera - Small concealed camera, with wireless capability
Directional Microphone 1 Microphone that can pick up sound from distance or through windows

Agents also have access to all gear listed in this chapter, if needed.
The Handler can, if they choose, ignore the Requisition cost for items if the item is important in completing the
mission.

50
 Armour

Armour ENC AR Description

Body Armour (Chest, Back, Stomach)
Kevlar Vest* 2 3 Vest that can be fitted under clothing, normally worn by agents
IOTV MK3** 3 5 Tactical vest allowing steel armour plates to be added
Plate Carrier X-SAPI 3 4 Lighter tactical vest with space for armour plates
Arm Armour
Elbow Pads** - 1 Durable pads that cover the elbows
Tactical Gloves** - 1 Protects against blades and burning.
Leg Armour
Knee Pads** - 1 Durable pads that cover the knees
Tactical Boots** - 1 Strong versatile boots
Helmets
Ballistic - 2 Standard helmet allows the fitting of NGVs, lights and goggles etc..
MICH** - 2 Ballistic helmet with built in comms
ECH - 3 Lighter version of the ballistic helmet
Shields
Held** 4 6 Shield can be carried comes with view port and attachments for lights
Mobile 7 6 Large wheeled shield, comes with attachments for lights and view port
* Standard gear for Agents
** Standard Gear for Special Forces, Tactical Police and PMCs

51
 Operator Weapons Ranges

Each weapon section has both the weapon and an
ammo list. In the Ghost Ops Second Strike RPG we
work on ammo damage rather than weapon damage,
which allows each weapon to take a variety of ammo
with varying effects. The Operator sheet allows you to
mark down a both different damage types so that the
Operator can carry Mags of each available types of
ammo for each weapon.
All weapons have five ranges: CQB, S-Short, M-Me-
dium, L-Long and E-Extreme. The table below will
indicate whether the weapon can hit at that range and
whether it would receives any modifiers.
The weapon table will indicate whether the weapon
will gain any Advantage or Disadvantage when used
to hit a target at that range.

Weapon Ranges

Weapon CQB Short Medium Long Extreme

Assault Rifles DAV1 ADV 2 None DAV 1 DAV 2
Battle Rifles DAV2 DAV1 None ADV1 DAV 1
Carbines ADV2 ADV2 None DAV1 DAV2
Handguns ADV2 ADV 1 None DAV 1
LMGs DAV2 ADV 2 ADV 1 None DAV 2
Shotguns ADV2 ADV 2 ADV 1 DAV 1
SMGs ADV2 ADV 1 None DAV 1
Sniper Rifles DAV2 None None ADV 1 ADV 1
ADV - Advantage
None - No Advantage or Disadvantage
DAV - Disadvantage
Blank - Out of Range

Ranges are described below and all ranges are in Ammunition

metres.
CQB - Use in confined spaces such as inside houses,
alleys, vehicles. Ranges are usually short or point
blank, 1 - 5 metres.
Short - The target is 15 - 30 metres away.
In Ghost Ops Second Strike damage is based on the
calibre of the weapon and the type of round being
used. There is a multitude of ammo types available in
the real world and often the differences are minimal,
so for the game we will only be focusing on standard
rounds and armour piercing (AP).

Medium - The target is 31 - 70 metres away. The armours rating is deducted from the damage done
by the bullet, if the armour rating reduces damage to 0
Long - The target is 71 - 150 metres away. then no damage is taken by the target.

Extreme - 151 to 300+ metres away. Armour piercing bullet damage is still reduced by the
armour rating and will damage a target but not as
Assault rifles, carbines and LMGs bullets will begin much as an unarmoured target.
to drop off at the 300 metre range, whereas many
sniper rifles will go far beyond the 300 metre range
and can reach up to 1 mile in range.

52
 Type 4.6 6.8* 9mm .40 .45 4.46 5.45 5.56 7.62 .300 .338 .50 12g
Standard 2 6 3 4 4 4 5 5 6 7 8 10 7
AP 3 7 4 5 5 5 6 6 7 8 9 12 5
*Next generation Squad Weapon Ammo not available at release of Ghost Ops Second Strike

Carried Ammo Firearm Tables

Typical ammo load-outs for Standard mission are The following tables list the firearms found in the
listed below. For longer duration missions the load-out Operator Recruitment chapter listed under the various
will change and the player should decide how much backgrounds available.
extra ammo they need.
Some operators may wish to use other firearms rather
Rifle Mags x 7 than the ones listed and that is fine as long as they
Pistol Mags x 4 know the calibre of the weapon and can match it to
Sniper Mags x 9 the ammo listed.

Only snipers will carry sniper ammo. The suggested Firearms have Rail Points (RP) these indicate the
load-out above can be adjusted. number and type (T) of attachments the weapon can
accept.
Firearms: Handguns and Sub machine Guns

Weapon Calibre ENC RP/T

Handguns
Browning HI Power .40 2 2
Glock 17/19 9mm 1 3
Glock 30 .45 1 3
HK USP .45 1 2
HK USP9 9mm 1 2
Kimber Custom .45 1 3
M9 9mm 1 3
Sig Sauer P226 9mm 1 3
Sig Sauer M17 9mm 1 3
Sub machine Guns
MP5 9mm 3 3
MP7 4.46 3 3

53
 Firearms: Carbines, Assault Rifles and Battle Rifles

Weapon Calibre ENC RP/T

Carbines
CQB MK18 5.56 3 3
FX-05 Xiuhcoatl 5.56 3 3
LMT MARS-L 5.56 3 3
LWRC M6A2 5.56 3 3
MCX .300/7.62 3 3
M4 5.56 3 3
Tavor SAR 5.56 3 3
Assault Rifles
AK12 5.45 4 3
Colt Canada L119A1 5.56 4 3
C8A3 5.56 4 3
HK416 5.56 4 3
G36 5.56 4 3
M16 5.56 4 3
SCAR-L 5.56 4 3
SIG 553 5.56 4 3
MCX Spear* 6.8 3 4
Battle Rifles
HK417 7.62 5 3
MK14 7.62 5 3
MK17 7.62 5 3
*NGSW not currently available until 2022
What’s the Difference? Specialised Firearms

So what is the difference between Carbines, Assault
Rifles and Battle Rifles? Not much.
Carbines tend to have shorter barrels and stocks
allowing them to be used in tight spaces and are
perfect for CQB operations.
Assault rifles are the standard rifle of most forces, they
are not great for tight locations and often do not have
the range of battle rifles.
Most specialised weapons are only available for
certain missions and if a specialised weapon is
requested the Handler must decide if the operator
receives the weapon or if they need to use Requisition
to obtain it.
If there is a dedicated sniper in the group then they
will always have access to a sniper rifle and this will
become standard gear. Likewise Tactical Police units
can request Shotguns to be standard load out.

Battle rifles skirt the difference between assault rifles LMGs always need to be requisitioned because of
and marksman or sniper rifles. Longer barrels and a their bulky nature and other factors, such as ammo,
better range than the assault rifles, and can be used as ease of use and overkill.
a sniper rifles with the right attachments.

54
 Firearms: Sniper Rifles, LMGs and Shotguns

Weapon Calibre ENC RP/T

Sniper Rifles
Accuracy International .338 5 4
Barrett M82A1 .50 6 4
Barrett M107A1 .50 6 4
Barrett MRAD 7.62 5 4
Blaser R93 Tactical .338 5 4
C14 Timberwolf .338 5 4
PSG1 7.62 5 4
Remington M24 7.62 5 4
SIG 716 7.62 5 4
SR25 7.62 5 4
M110 7.62 5 4
LMGs
PKM 7.62 6 2
M240 7.62 6 2
Shotguns
Benelli M4 12g 3 2
Beretta 1301 12g 3 2
Remington M870 12g 3 2

Firearms: Rocket and Grenade Launchers

Weapon Calibre ENC Location

Grenade Launchers
M32 MGL 40mm +1 Weapon Mounted
M203/M320 40mm +1 Weapon Mounted
M79 40mm 3 Carried

Weapon Damage AoE Range* RQ

Rocket Launchers
M136/AT4 16 5 metres 500 metres 4
MK 153 SMAW 20 7 metres 500 metres 5
M3 MAAWS 10 5 metres 500 metres 4
*Effective range against vehicles, for objects of around 2 metres the range is halved

55
 Firearms: Attachments

Attachment ENC RQ Description

Standard
Adjustable Stock - 1 Removes CQB DAV from Assault Rifles
Flashlight - - Removes DAV from darkness
Fore-grip - 1 +1 to hit for assault rifles, carbines and battle rifles
Bipod +1 - +1 to hit for LMGs and sniper rifles
Bipod Grip - 1 +1 to hit for LMGs and sniper rifles
Suppressor - - - 1 to hit, ADV for stealth attacks, all firearms
Fast Draw Holster - 2 +1 Initiative for Pistols
Sights
Red Dot - - Removes DAV for CQB
Reflex/Holo Sight +1 - +1 for attacks using CQB
Telescopic Sight +1 1 +1 for long range shots with sniper rifles
Laser Sight - - +1 to hit medium range for pistols, assault and carbine rifles
IR Sight +1 2 Gives ADV to night shooting whilst wearing NVGs
Combat Sight +1 - +1 to hit for medium range only assault, carbine and battle rifles
Fire Control System* +2 - +2 to hit for medium range and +1 for long range.
Gunsmith
Extended Barrel +1 5 +1 to hit at long range for assault and sniper rifles
Match Grade Barrel - 6 +1 to hit
Match Trigger - 6 +1 to hit using CQB
Flash Hider - 7 ADV to stealth attacks assault, carbine and battle rifles
Recoil Spring - 7 +1 to hit
Compensator - 6 +1 to hit
* Next Generation Squad Weapon gear, not yet available upon release of Ghost Ops Second Strike

Advantage or Bonus It is advised that the operators keep a note of any

Attachments can improve aspects of firearm use, these
improvements can come as an Advantage reducing
the difficulty or as a bonus which will add +1 etc. to
the attribute used.
The difference really between the two types of modi-
fier is that one lowers the difficulty of a shot or
challenge whereas the other improves the chance
to make the shot or succeed at the challenge. Items
that offer advantage only do so under certain condi-
tions whereas items that give bonuses to the attribute
always give a bonus no matter the conditions.
bonuses or advantages they receive, in order to make
sure they are used.
Encumbrance and RQ
Attachments add to the ENC of the weapon rather
than take up a separate slot.
Some attachments that change the standard design of
the weapon will be harder to requisition and will also
need the Gunsmithing specialisation to successfully
install.

56
 Hand Weapons, Ranged, and Unarmed

Weapon ENC DMG Description

Unarmed*
Punch - Dmg bonus Closed fist
Kick - Dmg bonus Kick wearing boots or shoes
Elbow - Dmg bonus Either thrown out or bashed downward
Knee - Dmg bonus Includes padded knee
Head-butt - Dmg bonus + stun Attack stuns 1 rnd even if it does not injure
Grapple - Special This will be an opposed roll versus targets unarmed
Martial Arts*
Punch - Dmg bonus +1
Kick - Dmg bonus +1
Elbow - Dmg bonus +1
Knee - Dmg bonus +1
Head-butt - Dmg bonus +1 + stun Attack still stuns 2 rnds target even if it does not injure
Hand Held Weapons
Blade 1 Dmg bonus +2 Dagger, hunting knife, combat knife, tent peg etc..
Club* 1 Dmg bonus +2 Baton, chair leg, baseball bat etc..
Improvised 1 Dmg bonus +1 Lump of wood, nail, rock etc..
Ranged
Bow 2 Dmg bonus + 2 Range is 50 metres
Arrows 4 - Comes in quarrels of 20
Crossbow 3 Dmg bonus + 3 Range is 75 metres
Bolts 3 - Comes in quarrel’s of 20
Thrown Knife 1 Dmg bonus +1 Range is Fitness x 2 in metres
* Causes damage against the targets Toughness

Hand Weapons, Ranged and Unarmed Martial Arts

The following are optional weapons and way to attack,. Unarmed attacks using martial arts to do extra damage
Most operators will carry a knife and also know some but all other affects are the same.
form of martial art, the following table covers both
normal unarmed and trained unarmed. Ranged Weapons

Unarmed Attacks
All unarmed attacks are against the Defence of the
target. Attacks can also stun, this is often done with
a critical success unless it is a head butt or a aimed
attack against the head or the sternum.
Weapons such as bows and crossbows are rarely used
as they are impractical and bulky. The handler should
decide whether to make these types of weapons avail-
able to the operator, and if so it is advised that only
ICO and PMCs have that option.

Using an unarmed attack against a solid object such as

a wall will result in the attacker taking the damage.

57
 Explosives: Grenades, Mines and IEDs

Type Damage Effect RQ Description

Explosives
C4 8 7-10m 6 Putty type substance moulded into shape with detonator
Det Cord 6 - 2 Tube filled with explosive, placed around door frames etc.
Dynamite 7 7-10m 7 Sticks of explosive, used by construction workers
Breaching Charge Stun 1 rnd 0-5m 2 Used by tactical police to bring down barriers
Mines & IEDs
M18 Claymore 9 50m - Placed on the ground, triggered by pressure or movement
IED 7 40m - Home made mine, not available to operators
XM7 Spider 9 50m 4 Multi firing remote mine, fires in 6 directions.
Grenades
Fragmentation 9 4-6m - Standard grenade can be thrown Fitness x 3 in metres
Smoke Conceal 10m - Can shaped grenade used to obscure
Stun* Stun d4 rnds 0-6m 4 Flash-bang grenade will disorientate anyone nearby
Riot Control* Stun d6 rnds 0-12m 4 Pepper, tear gas or other irritant, use by Police
Multi-purpose - - 5 Can be switched to either Fragmentation or Stun
Explosives Drones

Breaching charges are available for tactical police
units without the need for Requisition. Requests for
C4 and Dynamite will be questioned as they are rare
and the Handler must make sure the operators have a
good reason for requesting it.
Det cord can be requested as it is designed for entry
through doors and walls. Unlike breaching charges
tactical police will need to requisition det cord.
Mines
There are a number of different mines but the clay-
more is the most prevalent. Operators cannot request
IEDs as they are often the tools of terrorists.
Grenades
Grenades are activated and then thrown, with the
Stun and Riot Control grenades tactical police units
do not need to requisition these.
Multi-purpose grenades can be made into a fragmen-
tation or stun by twisting the centre ring.
Drones come in two types the UAV or unmanned
aerial vehicle and the UGV the unmanned ground
vehicle. Ghost Ops Second Strike will only focus on
the smaller versions of these drones rather than the
larger missile and long range versions such as Preda-
tor etc.
Drones are generally used for surveillance and recon,
though some are equipped with weaponry. By using
drones operators will get unique insights on the
battlefield and be able to plan their actions using
drone footage to spot guards, cameras, hostages and
the position of enemy tangos.
Drones can be spotted (DN 6) as long as they are
lower than 20 metres and shot down (DN 6) by the
enemy which will also alert the enemy to the opera-
tors presence.
Handlers can offer the operators advantage to chal-
lenges and in combat due to their use of drones.
Drone use can also lead to blueprint actions which are
described in the Handler section on Pg 97.

58
 UAVs and UGVs

Name Range ENC REQ Description

UAVs
Recon, Enhanced Optics, 2 slot payload able to drop smoke, med kits
Novadem 1-5 km 2 4
etc.
Anafi 4 km 2 4 Recon, Enhanced Optics. Used mainly for surveillance.
Recon, Enhanced Optics.. When used as a weapon acts like a Clay-
Spike Firefly 3 km 1-5* 6
more. Often referred to as the kamikaze drone.
Recon, Enhanced Optics. Drone is fitted with a machine-gun firing
Songar 5 km 4 6
5.56 rounds.
Black Hornet 1 km 1 2 Recon, Enhanced Optics. Stealth. Popular amongst Special Forces
UGVs
Recon, Enhanced Optics, Stealth. Can travel over most terrain and
Throwbot 30-90m 3 5
can be fitted for mine detection.
Recon indicates cameras linked wirelessly to operators terminal
Enhanced Optics - Infra red, NV, thermal and Target acquisition
Weapons - Drones use operators ranged attack abilities
Stealth - Drone is quiet and hard to detect (DN 7)
* Based in payload

59
 Vehicles

Name Speed Weapons* AR Description

Ground
GMV Fast Turret mounted 10 Purpose built Humvee
Light Strike Fast Turret Mounted 8 All-terrain vehicle
Cougar MRAP Normal Turret Mounted 12 Transport Vehicle
ATV Quad Fast - 3 Military designed quad bike
JLTV Fast Turret Mounted 12 Spec Ops Humvee
Motorcycle V. Fast - - Rugged Trails Bike
Mountain Bike Normal - - All-terrain pedal bike
Aviation
Numerous Hard Gunship, built with multiple weapon systems
AC 130 Fast 5
Points
CV-22 Osprey Fast - 5 Tilt rotor transport aircraft
MH-6 Little Bird Fast 2 Hard Points 3 Small and fast helicopter used by Spec Ops
MH-60 Blackhawk Fast 2 pintle mounts 5 A tactical medium lift helicopter
MH-47 Chinook Fast 3 pintle mounts 5 Tandem rotor heavy transport helicopter
Maritime
RHIB Normal - 2 Light weight and reliable boat
MK V Spec Ops V. Fast 5 gun mounts 5 Security craft with multi weapon capabilities
Light and mobile craft with a low profile,
Spec Ops Riverine Fast 5 gun mounts 5
Disadvantage to spot.
A submersible able to carry up to eight men,
SDV MK 8 Normal - 4
used by the Navy SEALs
Turret Mounted - Often on the top of the vehicle
Hard Points - Pods, missile launchers and automated weapon systems
Pintle - Mounts often at doors that are manned and have a firing arc.

Vehicle Locations

Unaimed shots will always hit the main body of the vehicle with aimed and called shots able to target specific loca-
tions.

DN
Location Ground Maritime Aviation
Engine 6 8 7
Chassis 4 4 4
Wheels 6 - 8
Windows 5 7 8

60
 Vehicle Mounted Weapons

Name Calibre Effect Damage RQ Description

Heavy Weapons
M134 7.62 - +5* 7 Six-barrel rotary MG
M2 .50 - +3* 6 Hvy Machine Gun
MK 19 40mm 10m - 8 Grenade Launcher
MK 47 40mm 10m - 8 Auto Grenade Launcher
Missile Launchers
Stinger - 5-7m 25 10 Heat-seeking missile
Javelin - 7-12m 35 10 Targeted Anti-Tank
BGM-71 TOW - 7-12m 25 11 Anti-armour
Aircraft Missiles
AIM-9 Sidewinder - 5-7m 25 14 Heat-seeking air-to-air
AGM-65 Maverick - 7-12m 35 14 Air-to-ground missile
Gunslinger - 7-12m 25 16 Rear facing launchers
*Does extra damage due to high velocity or high volume of rounds

61
 Active
Operations

Learning how to play Ghost Ops Second Strike is
split into three sections; if you have played the origi-
nal Ghost Ops, some of the rules will feel familiar and
learning these new streamlined rules will be easier for
those that have played that earlier edition.
The three sections are broken down as:
The Basics
Challenges
Combat
These sections should be read in order as that will
help you understand the rules much quicker.
The Basics
Dice roll + attribute + specialisations +/- modifiers
Vs difficulty number.
If the result from the above formula is equal to or
above the difficulty number given by the Handler,
then the operator has been successful.
Difficulties
Every task, whether it be challenge or combat-based,
has a difficulty number. In combat, the difficulty
number is often a location on the target along with
other factors. A base difficulty number for a standard
action is 4, with external factors often increasing or
decreasing this number, as explained in the modifier
sections found on pgs 66 and 73.

The following are the basic steps to playing the game; The following table lists suggested difficulties the
this is a slimmed-down version of what was explained Handler can choose to use or as a baseline to use
in the Introduction chapter found on Pg 8. when deciding upon a difficulty number for a chal-
lenge.
The Dice Roll
Difficulty No. Difficulty No.
Whether dealing with a challenge or in a combat Easy 2 Very Hard 8
situation, how you roll the dice and the steps taken
Standard 4 Near Impossible 10
are the same. The following is a basic example of a
Hard 6 Heroic 12
roll, and this can change due to modifiers related to
what the operator is attempting and the environment
around them.

62
 Challenges
There are three types of challenges that the Operators
will encounter as they take on missions. These are:
Static
Static challenges will stay the same and are not
affected by weather, day/night cycles or guard changes.
Static challenges can receive modifiers, but generally,
they will stay at the same difficulty.
Fluid
Fluid challenges can change based on the environ-
ment and other factors; climbing a cliff face in sunny
weather will be easier than in stormy or wet weather.
Fluid challenges are the most common type of chal-
lenge that the operator will face.
The operator comes to a locked door; the Handler
declares that the lock is a difficulty of 6, the opera-
tor has a Focus of 4 and a Trade-craft of 1. Rolling
the dice, they roll two - –and two +, which cancel
each other out, so because their ability is only five and
the lock is a six, they fail. The operator comes back to
the lock six months later, the difficulty is still six, but
now the operator has a higher Focus and Trade-craft,
meaning that they have a better chance to succeed.
This is a Static Challenge.
The Operator comes to a wall they need to climb over
to infiltrate a building, it is daylight, and the weather
has been mild; the Handler declares that to climb the
wall, they would need to be a 4. Returning to the wall
the next day, it is raining and dark; this makes climb-
ing the wall more challenging than the day before, and
the Handler decides a difficulty of 6. This is a Fluid
Challenge
Opposed
Opposed challenges are used when the operator uses
their ability versus the ability of an NPC, Tango or
another Operator. These opposed challenges work in
two different ways.
63
Opposed Vs Result - When the Operator attempts
to out-skill an NPC or Tango, the challenge diffi-
culty is based upon the opposed roll. It can be either
the Tango’s or the Operator’s roll that determines the
difficulty.
The operator is being chased by a car full of gun-toting
gangsters; as the operator is the one being chased, they
must drive faster than the gangsters, so whatever the
operator’s attribute + dice total is, needs to be either
equalled or beaten by the gangsters for them to draw
level or overtake the operator’s vehicle.
Highest Wins - When an operator faces an adversary
or another operator in an opposed challenge, it is often
better to determine the outcome by both players or
player and Handler to roll for their Operators and the
highest result winning the challenge.
Two operators decide to have an arm wrestle, this
involves both players rolling the dice and adding their
strength attributes with the highest of the two rolls
winning the contest. If they roll the same result, the
arm wrestling continues until someone rolls higher
and wins.
In these instances, any accumulated advantage or
disadvantage is added or subtracted from the roll of
those involved; this includes any advantage or disad-
vantage earned from the current situation, i.e. trav-
elling very fast in a car and attempting to shoot the
vehicle’s wheels in front.
To Roll or Not to Roll
Challenges should be precisely that, a challenge.
Suppose Operators are attempting activities that
should be relatively simple, such as hopping over a
small wall, driving a vehicle in regular traffic or operat-
ing a computer to access public files or the internet. In
that case, they should not be expected to roll the dice.
The Handler should only ask players to roll when the
failure of the activity will have consequences or possi-
bly result in injury.
 Other Challenge Rules
Various factors can affect how a challenge progresses
or fails. Most will be down to Handler discretion, but
we have included a few rules to help determine what
may or may not make what appears to be a simple
task much harder.
Tension
Many situations within missions will have a certain
level of tension, and Handlers can, if they choose, take
into account levels of tension during missions. Each
level of tension will add disadvantages to what the
operators are trying to do.
Troublesome - You need to place the C4 charge
before the searchlight swings around and illuminates
where you are. +1 Disadvantage.
Risky - The guard patrol is due any moment, and the
door is locked. You will need to pick that lock before
the guards appear and spot you. +2 Disadvantage
Dangerous - You are being chased, and you come to a
dead end. The only way forward is over a 10ft tall wall.
+3 disadvantage.
64
Challenges & Injury
The operators having injuries can also cause prob-
lems when dealing with challenges. Wound levels 3, 6
and 9 will give Disadvantage to the operator, making
routine tasks much harder. Injuries can also give
Advantage to Tangos. Maybe blood from the opera-
tor is helping them track the unit, or the operator is
moving much slower. Handlers could also utilise the
optional tension rules in these situations.
Challenges & Encumbrance
All operators can carry their standard Load out and
weapons without any difficulty, but problems can arise
as they start adding to this. We go into more detail
regarding Encumbrance in the Quartermaster chapter
pg 48
The operator’s ability to take on specific challenges
will be at a disadvantage when carrying specific extra
gear. Agility and movement can be hindered, and it is
often recommended that the operator drops the extra
gear before attempting the challenge.
Using Drones
Drones can allow operators to plan their next moves
by knowing the placement of Tango’s, spotting essen-
tial infrastructure, planning routes to a target location,
etc.. The use of a Drone will give an advantage.
Using Specialisations
Specific specialisations such as Recon, HUMINT, and Roll Result Effect
SIGINT can give the operators an advantage through Operator succeeded in the
knowledge of the area and even the threats they face; task beyond expectations.
successful use of these specialisations can be invaluable +4 Critical Success They gain -2 Advantage
in planning an op. and earn valuable knowl-
edge.
K9 Operator
Operator succeeded and
A K9 fitted with a camera will allow a unique vision
+2 Good Success gained extra information.
on the path ahead or from unique advantage points.
-1 Advantage.
It is always a risk sending a K9 companion ahead into
enemy territory, and the operator must be confident Operator succeeded at the
DN Success
and alert to any threats to the K9. task.
The operator failed the
Levels of Success and Failure task and received false
-2 Bad Fail
information. +1 Disadvan-
The operator’s challenge roll can give various levels of tage.
success or failure. Degrees of Success can give advan- The task was a disaster.
tages, extra benefits or rewards, even positive twists to The Operator has tripped
the fiction. Likewise, degrees of failure can have the -4 Critical Fail an alarm, seriously injured
opposite effect, with disadvantages, consequences or themselves or others, etc..
penalties applied. +2 Disadvantage.

The degrees of success or failure is measured in 2’s,
so if the challenge roll is 2 points above or below the
Difficulty Number, this gives either a good or bad
result. If the result is 4 points above or below the DN,
this gives either a critical success or a critical fail result.
The table below shows these results and the effects of
each.
Advantage can be banked by the operator to be used
when attempting a similar task to the one that earned
the advantage; banked advantage can be kept until the
end of a session, at which point any unused advantage
is lost. Disadvantage cannot be banked and is used
the next time the player attempts a challenge of any
kind other than combat. Once a disadvantage has been
used, it is gone.

The Narrative on good successes, bad fails, criti-
cal successes and critical fails should move the story
forward. Information should be relative if good and
not too damaging if wrong.
Combat has its unique benefits or penalties for
successes or failures.
Using Advantage and Disadvantage
Every Challenge will have a Difficulty Number which
indicates that challenges difficulty. This number is
taken from a scale going from 1 to 12. When a chal-
lenge is modified, this is done by adding a disadvan-
tage or subtracting an advantage.

The operators will face combat situations, and when
that happens, the situations are resolved through
combat rounds. Operators can avoid combat if they
choose by retreating, and this will be covered in the
combat section of this chapter.
As shown above Advantage can be earned by succeed-
ing with Great Successes, and can be banked. Whereas
Disadvantage is earned by getting a result of Bad Fail-
ure and must be used on the next challenge.

65
 Used as Modifiers
Advantages and disadvantages are also used to deter-
mine Difficulty Numbers. A locked door with diffi-
culty 3 lock may become harder with the disadvantage
of darkness hindering the operator. Still, if that same
operator has Night Vision Goggles, then the advan-
tage earned from those will cancel the disadvantage
out.
This will happen a lot as operators face challenges
under various conditions or situations, with Handler’s
adding Disadvantage and the operators cancelling it
out by using gear or earned advantage. Players must
know what their operators can do and what gear they
carry, or this could make life harder for themselves.
A disadvantage always increases a Difficulty Number
by +1 to +3, whereas an Advantage will decrease a
Difficulty Number by -1 to -3. This keeps the whole
negotiation simple and easy to remember. Both the
advantage and disadvantages can be used as often as
either the Handler or player can justify it or in the
case of advantages, that they are available to use.
Examples of Disadvantage
Guards using Flashlights
Heavy Rain (slippery surfaces or low visibility)
Motion Sensors
Guard Dogs
Darkness (low visibility)
Injury (See Challenges and Injuries)
Suppressive Fire
Tension (Tense Scenes)
Examples of Advantage
Boost Points
Aid
Previous Success
Certain Items can give a bonus to the attribute used,
these do not lower the difficulty but instead give aid
as a +1 etc.. to attempting the challenges, the diffi-
culty stays the same. This is different to an advantage
as an item bonus is always there whereas an advantage
is dependent on factors, for example NGVs only give
advantage at night, whereas a lock pick always works.
66
Aid and Hindrance
Operators can both aid and hinder each other. This
can be done using stored advantage. The operator
must declare their intent and why they are attempt-
ing to hinder a fellow operator if that is their stated
action. The advantage they offer then becomes a
Disadvantage and is added to the DN of the chal-
lenge.
In-game terms, hindering another operator could
be knocking away the gun before the operator fires
into a crowd, cutting the rope as the operator rappels
down the building, or distracting the operator as she
attempts to defuse the bomb.
Using advantage to aid a fellow operator needs no
explanation, but the player must declare they are
doing so. More than one operator can aid another,
as long as there is room to do so and common sense
prevails. Each advantage offered will reduce the DN
by 1.
Opposed challenges will cause the Disadvantage to be
deducted from the roll or the advantage to be added
to the roll, creating either an easier or more difficult
DN for the attacker or causing the attacker to fail
with their disadvantages being deducted.
Re-rolling Fails
Challenges can often be retried if the operator has
failed; this is not always the case as circumstances
may force the operator to try a different solution or
move on. Team members offering aid is one way the
failed task could be made easier on a second try, and
it is up to the Handler if they feel giving the opera-
tor an advantage based on what they may have learnt
on the first try. It is recommended that players are not
allowed to keep trying indefinitely and to come up
with another solution instead.
 The Battlespace
Action Cost
The operators will inevitably engage in direct action
Move to Cover 1
with the enemy, whether that enemy is a terrorist
Shout a Command 1
cell, drug cartel, or even rogue operators. Combat in
Ghost Ops Second Strike follows a number of steps. Drop Prone 1
These steps are covered below in the Battle Breakdown Jump a Small Wall 1
section. Drop an Item 1
Throw an Item 1
Combat Rounds Draw Weapon 1
Reload a Weapon 1
A combat round is a period of time when everyone,
both operators and tango’s, engages in battle. The Run 3 Metres 1
round lasts for as long as it takes in-game time for all Walk 1 Metre 1
the combatants to perform their actions. Shoot 1
Melee Attack 1
What is a Combat Round? Unjam Weapon 2
A Combat Round is the name for the time it takes for
Perform a non-combat Action 2
all combatants to perform their actions. A battle can
Perform Medical 2
be made up of several combat rounds, and a combat
round can be made up of several turns. Call in An Air-strike 1
Start a Vehicle 1
What is a Turn? Take Aim 1
A turn is an operator’s or tango’s chance to act. During Throw Grenade 2
their turn, the combatant can spend their action points Double Tap 2
A combat round is made up of these turns, and each
Breach Door 2
round can differ in how many turns it contains, based
Prime/Disarm Explosive 2
on the number of combatants in the battle.
Change Weapon 2
What are Action Points? Launch Drone 2
Actions are really how you measure a round, and this Crawl 1 Metre 1
is mainly measured by the operator’s actions, as they
are the stars of the piece. Each operator starts with two Actions points cannot be carried over rounds, if you
actions points per turn, this can increase to up to four fail to use all your action points in a turn they are lost
actions points per turn. The actions that can be made and then refresh at the start of the next round.
cost points as shown below
The Handler can choose to increase the point cost of
The Handler controls the tangos’ actions and basic an action rather than modify the difficulty. Actions like
tango’s all have two action points. For dramatic license, performing medical aid on a injured operator can cost
and to make the Handler’s job less complicated, the a varied amount of actions, depending on the injury
Handler can decide how the tangos react based upon and the current situation or environment.
the operators’ decisions.
Players can split or hold their actions, if this is done
The operators can choose not to take any actions or to then they must use them at the end of the round after
take a single action during their turn, but they must all other players and NPCs have acted.
state this when it is their turn to act.

67
 Battle Breakdown
The first round of a battle is broken down into three
steps. The first step only happens once; each round
after that, the combatants can ignore the first step and
continue with the following each of the others until
all combatants have retreated, surrendered or been
neutralised.
Step 1: Initiative
As stated on Pg 10, all players should have rolled their
operators initiative at the start of the session, and each
operator will know where they fit within the order.
This initiative order is not carved in stone, as elements
such as surprise can change it.
The Mission leader can also change initiative order
to fit what they feel is the best setup for combat; for
example, the sniper could be the slowest in the initi-
ative order for that session, but the mission leader
can have them act first by commanding them to use
their actions to get to a over-watch position before
any other operator acts. This command position is
designed to emulate an actual situation where the
leader determines the group’s actions in the first
round, directing individuals for the best combat solu-
tion.
68
Enemy combatants will always react after the players
unless they surprise the operators (see Surprise pg 74),
in which case they get to act before the team in the
first round. Enemy combatants also have initiative but
are controlled by the Handler reacting to the actions
of the operators. This means that even though it is the
enemies turn to act, they may not be able to or may
prefer to stay in cover because they are pinned down
by suppressive fire or over-watch (that pesky sniper
finding their nest).
Operators can also spend action points to change
their initiative order, it will cost 2 action points to
move your operator to the front of the order, allowing
them to react faster then everyone else.
The initiative is found by rolling the dice and adding
the Initiative number to the result. This total is then
written on the space found on the character sheet.
The highest result will go first, followed by the second
highest and so forth. Initiative can go into nega-
tive numbers, which has no bearing on the operators’
actions other than they will act later than other opera-
tors in the round.
Step 2: Actions
Once initiative order has been set, the Operators then
decide what actions they will take. As stated before,
the Operators start with two actions, but can have up
to four.
The player must declare the actions they are taking and
roll any dice that is called for if the action involves a
challenge of some kind. The player can hold an action
until the end of the round, but if the action is not used,
it is lost, actions do not carry over.
Step 3. Resolve Combat
Once combat has ended, one of three options are
offered.
• If the enemy or operators are all dead or no longer
able to act, combat ends and maybe even the
mission.
• If enemy combatants have taken casualties, then
the Handler rolls the enemies morale and the
combatants either continue to fight, retreat or give
themselves up.
• If both sides can continue the combat, a new
round starts where the previous round ends.

Combat Round Example

The operators are approaching an enemy patrol. Unfortunately both groups spot each other and take up defen-
sive positions. Initiatives were rolled at the start of the session, the groups sniper is the third to act, but the current
mission lead instructs them to move to an over-watch position, meaning they have acted first.

Sniper takes one action to move to over-watch and states they are holding their second action till the end of the
round.
Operator 1 declares they will use suppressive fire on the enemy, they roll the dice and succeed.
Operator 2, who is also the mission lead, states they will keep over-watch on the ground level and uses an action to
aim, holding their second action till the end.
Operator 3 decides to launch their drone to get a better view of the enemy position

The Handler now decides the enemies actions. There are three members of the patrol, two of which are held down
from suppressive fire so will not act, the third decides to prime a grenade and throw it. The Handler rolls the tango’s
skill but it fails, so they roll the location where the grenade landed and it is just 1ft short of the target. The operators
are all in cover but the concussive blast of the grenade disorientates them meaning that any held actions are lost.

The sniper who is in over-watch is not affected by the blast, and will take his second action which will involve shoot-
ing the grenade thrower. The player rolls their attack and it hits with a good success, this means that the extra 2
rolled is added to the rifles damage of 7, making 9 damage. The enemy are wearing ballistic vests which protect for
3, reducing the damage done to 6. But as none of these enemies are commanders or bosses they only have 6 wounds
and the grenade thrower is killed.

With the first combat round over the Handler checks the morale of the enemy patrol which is 3, they have lost a
third of their force meaning they need to roll 6 or higher to stay in the fight. The Handler rolls and gets a 5, rolling
again the Handler sees that the patrol flee into the forest. This is a mixed response as now the operators can move on
but also it means that the enemy knows they are there.

69
 Basic Combat
The following section covers the basics of combat.
Most of this will be obvious, but it will give some
insight into the nuances of the battlefield.
Ranged Combat
Shooting
To shoot a weapon be it a pistol, rifle or heavy
machine gun the player will use the operators Coor-
dination attribute with any bonuses added for special-
isations etc.. The dice result is added or subtracted
from the total and the final result is compared to the
DN of the shot.
The operator is shooting with their pistol, the Handler
has given the DN as 5. The operators Coordination is
3 and they have the pistol specialisation at +1 giving
them a total of 4. The player rolls the dice and gets the
following result
+ + 0 0 which is a 2 which gives a total of a 6
which is a success.
Modifiers can affect the roll and the DN.
Aiming
With each action point used to aim, the operator
gains one advantage to the roll, the aim must conclude
with a shot by the end of the same round, or any
earned advantage is lost.
The operator declares they are aiming at a guard on
a tower, this would be a head shot (DN 6), but the
guard also has a half cover, increasing the DN to 8
and is moving around slowly (DN 9). The opera-
tor has 3 actions and uses two of these to aim, which
gives the operator two advantages. These two advan-
tages reduce the Difficulty Number to 7, which is still
high but a slightly simpler shot.
Called Shots
Operators can also declare called shots. These can be
done immediately by adding 1 disadvantage to the
Difficulty Number. A called shot will allow the opera-
tor to choose a location or target to attempt to hit.
70
Only handguns, SMGs, assault rifles and shotguns
can be used to make a called shot.
Instant Kills (optional)
Head shots against Tangos, can be seen as instant kills
if the Handler feels this will speed up combat and
allow them to field more bad guys. Only head shots
from sniper rifles should kill HVTs and Bosses.
Locations and Objects
Each location on the body has a built-in DN. These
are used for both called shots and aiming. Standard
attacks will always hit the body, and the base DN for
those shots is 4.
The table below shows the base difficulty number of
each location used in called or aimed shots. The body
DN is the base DN of all regular ranged attacks.
The Location DN will always be the base difficulty to
hit. Handlers will then add any modifiers to this DN.
A base DN can be reduced using advantage.
Location DNs:
Location DN K9
Head 6 8
Body 4 6
Arms 6 -
Legs 5 7
Objects have a DN based on size:
Huge (Car and above) - DN 0
Large (TV, Fridge etc..) - DN 2
Medium (Laptop, Alarm Box) - DN 4
Small (Handgun, block of C4) - DN 6
Armour
Operators will use various types of ballistic armour to
negate damage taken from ranged combat. Armour
is available for each location of the body. If a location
has no armour marked, it is considered unarmoured
for determining damage.
The operator is hit by a 9mm round which causes 3
pts of damage; because the attack was neither aimed
nor called by the attacker, the hit is to the body. The
operator is wearing a Kevlar vest which has a rating
of 3. The armours rating of 3 reduces the damage of
the 9mm to 0, meaning that the operator has taken
no damage and the armour did precisely what it was
supposed to.
When a target is struck with damage, it is consid-
ered to be a body hit; this may differ if the attack was
a called or aimed one. If the area that was hit has
armour, then the armours rating is subtracted from the
damage inflicted by the shot.
Armour piercing ammo does more damage but this is
still negated by the armour rating, so even though the
AP 9mm round does 4 damage, some of that damage
will be negated by the armour rating.
Extra Damage
When a roll to attack is made the result can often be
above the DN that is needed to hit. The DN may be
5 but the result after everything is added together and
rolled may come to 7. When a number is rolled above
the DN the extra is added to the damage, to represent
a good or even critical hit.
The shooter needs a 5 to hit the guard, the player adds
together all the numbers and then rolls the dice. The
final result is an 8, they have hit the target and have
done an extra 3 points of damage (8-5=3).
Armour and Knock-backs
Any damage negated by armour on the body or head
will still lead to minor injuries even though the armour
may have absorbed all the bullet’s damage. For every 3
points of damage that the armour absorbs, the target is
stunned for 1 round as they are knocked off their feet.
This damage is not long-lasting and needs no medical
attention.
Cover
Using cover increases the ranged attack’s DN, and the
type of cover could increase the armour rating of the
target.
71
Hitting someone in Cover
The size of the cover will often determine how much
harder it would be to hit the target. The cover comes in
3 sizes, each one adding disadvantages to the DN.
Quarter Cover - This would be a thin wall, post or
pillars holding up a roof. Quarter cover will allow the
shooter to aim at any exposed locations and decrease
the DN. +1 Disadvantage to non-aimed shots.
Half Cover - A waist-high wall, doorway, corner of a
corridor, etc.. Half cover will also allow for aiming to
reduce the DN. +2 Disadvantage to non-aimed shots.
Full Cover - A building or wall. The full cover does
not allow for aiming to hit exposed locations. No
target.
Cover as Armour
The cover is not always a guaranteed way to avoid
being targeted. Various ammo types are designed to
shoot through armour, and this can also include cover.
Shooting someone through full cover is impossible, as
this would involve either knowing the target’s position
(though the use of a drone could help with this) or just
guessing. The use of the drone to highlight a Tango’s
position will make the shot possible but with a Disad-
vantage.
Like armour, the cover also has an armour rating, the
armour rating of cover will stack with any armour
worn by the person using the cover, so for example, if
you are behind cover which has an armour rating (AR)
of 4, and you are wearing a ballistic vest with an AR of
3, your overall AR would be 7.
Armour-piercing rounds will pass through some cover
as long as the bullets penetration level is higher than
the covers AR; this is similar to shooting at armour.
With cover, the AR of the target will increase as it will
stack with the armour worn.
Shooting someone as they move from cover or lean
out means they no longer receive the cover bonus for
any body location not behind the cover.
 Cover Chart
Cover Type AR
Wooden Door/ Fence 1
Cavity Wall 2
Car Door 3 Double Tap - 1 Square Marked
Fire Door 3 3 Shot Burst - 3 Squares Marked
Brick Wall 4 Full Auto - 5 Squares Marked.
Bulletproof Glass 6
Engine Block 7 Operators rarely fire in full auto mode, and it is much
The above are examples, and the Handler should use
the chart to determine the covers AR for different
situations.
Rate of Fire
During a fire fight, the operators have various firing
modes available to them, and which firing mode they
choose will deplete their mags faster.
Operators can only carry so much ammo, so holding
back on full auto firing is essential to ensuring you
have enough bullets for the mission. Standard firing
modes are single-shot or short three-round bursts
with rifles and single shot or double taps with pistols.
The paperwork in keeping track of every bullet can be
both disruptive and laborious, so Ghost Ops Second
Strike offers two solutions.
1. The Dice – Place two six-sided dice in front of
you, make them different colours and have one
represent the rifle the other the pistol. The dice
should have the 6 facing up. Each time you shoot,
check the table below and reduce the dice by that
amount
2. Squares – On the character sheet are two sets of
6 squares; as you shoot, check the table below and
mark off the relevant number of squares.
For both options above, once you can no longer mark
off squares or turn the dice, the MAG is empty, and
you need to reload.
72
You may wonder why a single shot does not turn the
dice or mark off a square; this is because firing a single
shot allows the shooter to keep track of ammo much
easier.
Single Shot - No Squares Marked.
more common for single shot and 3 round bursts.
Bursts and Full Auto
Firing in a 3 round burst applies an Advantage to the
chance to hit, whereas firing in full auto applies two
advantages but depletes the ammo quicker. A double
Tap gives no Advantage but doing so allows the
Operator to roll damage twice.
Suppressive Fire
Suppressive fire is used to keep an enemy pinned, and
when used, is considered full auto for ammo purposes.
The Handler decides the effect from the two below:
• Targets under suppressive fire are at a disadvan-
tage to all actions.
• Targets under suppressive fire cannot act that
round
Using Suppressive fire with personal weapons will eat
up your ammo and is not encouraged.
Reloading
To reload a weapon takes 1 action. Soldiers are trained
to eject and reload mags very quickly. Larger weap-
ons such as Light Machine Guns or Belt-fed weapons
will take 2 actions to reload. Switching to a sidearm
can be slightly faster than reloading in real life but in
game terms takes the same amount of actions
Range Modifiers
Environmental, distance and other factors can modify
your chance to hit a target effectively, and all of these
modifiers come as disadvantages or advantages. Modi-
fiers will directly affect the difficulty number by either
increasing or decreasing it.
 Modifier to Targeting Upwards - Targeting an enemy that is
Situation Difficulty above you or elevated.
Darkness +2
Targeting Downward - Targeting an enemy below
Semi-Darkness +1 you at a lower elevation.
High Winds +1
Smoke +2 Loose Crowd - Target is amongst a loose group of
Fog +1 civilians who are moving around.
Targeting Upwards +1
Dense Crowd - Target is amongst a large number of
Targeting Down -1
civilians, like a market or bust train station.
Bright Light +1
Distracted +1 Unfamiliar Weapon - Grabbing a weapon from the
Loose Crowd +1 battlefield because your out of ammo or any other
Dense Crowd +2 reason can lead to a disadvantage, this disadvantage
Extreme Range +2 will only last for the 1st round of use after which the
Unfamiliar Weapon +1 disadvantage is no longer in affect.

The above are examples of modifiers that the opera-

tors may experience. It is advised that the Handler uses
these as examples.

73
 Surprise
Getting the drop on your enemies can often turn the
tables and even end a battle before it begins, but how
is it done? There are various types of surprise attacks.
There are three ways for a surprise to play out. These
are:
Movement or Close Combat Actions
Moving up to or past an enemy will involve using
either the Skill (Tango’s) or the Agility attribute plus
any modifiers, boosts etc.. The lowest skill or agility
total needs to be equal to or higher than the highest
Perception of the enemy to be successful.
Surprise using Ranged Weapons
As long as the target is not aware of your presence,
any ranged attack will surprise them. This ends as
soon as one of the targets hears the shot or notices
one of their comrades drop, in the case of a suppressor.
Once the first shot is fired and hits a target or misses,
each enemy combatant nearby becomes aware of the
attack, and the surprise ends.
Synchronised Shots
A unit of operators can choose to attempt a synchro-
nised shot. This involves each team member making
an aimed or called shot on a target and then firing
together to take out a group of Tango’s at once. These
shots are risky, but as long as the Handler agrees that
all those involved have clear shots, it can be done.
Each shot’s modifiers should be worked out and
applied.
Camouflage
Using camouflage will add to the roll as it is a special-
isation that an operator can choose. Using camouflage
to disguise a vehicle, immobile unit and so forth will
mean disadvantage to anyone attempting to find or
spot it; the disadvantage modifier will be equal to the
operator’s camouflage specialisation rank.
74
Morale
The enemy has morale, whereas operator’s do not; this
is because you will face mostly untrained, or at least
not as well trained enemies compared to the highly
trained operators, no matter what play style you
choose.
If an enemy unit takes a casualty during combat, a
morale test is rolled; this starts at a base DN of 4 and
goes up in difficulty with each casualty the unit takes.
If the enemy unit has a Commander or Boss, then
their morale is used; if the unit is working without a
leader of any kind, then the standard morale of 2 is
added to the roll.
The enemy patrol takes a casualty, and at the end of
the round, the Handler rolls their morale; as they have
no leaders, the base morale of 2 is added to the dice
roll. The enemy needs to beat a DN of 5 (base 4 + 1
casualty =5) to stay and fight. The Handler rolls a total
of 3, and the enemy loses their morale test.
Losing the morale test will indicate one of three reac-
tions has occurred, and because of the unpredictable
nature of enemies, this involves another dice roll. The
handler rolls a single dice and checks the following
chart
+ Enemy surrenders, dropping their weapons and
volunteering information.
0 Enemy bunkers down, pinned to their location,
another morale test is needed at the end of the next
round, or operators can attempt negotiation/intimi-
dation.
- Enemy retreats, operators get free ranged attack
with disadvantage.
This can make fire-fights very short and over quickly,
so if Handlers do not wish to use these rules to make
fire-fights drawn out and more dangerous, that is
their choice.
 Close Combat Explosives

Operators will also get into close combat with Tango’s. Operators will come across and get to use many types
This is often in unarmed combat using martial arts or of explosive devices. These will range from types of
brawling and melee combat using hand-held weapons grenades to planted explosives like C4 and mines. All
such as knives, batons, or even entrenching tools. explosives do set damage, so no dice are rolled.

Close combat is a secondary combat option, meaning Grenades

that it is only used when there are no other options. An Operator can carry several specialist grenades, and
Sometimes an operator will need to take down an most Operators will load up on grenades to meet the
enemy quietly, subdue an unarmed attacker or disarm mission parameters. The Quartermaster chapter lists
an assailant. various types, their damage, and their area of effect
(AoE).
Close combat is an opposed roll. Each combatant can
use advantages, boosts, busts and even aid with two Grenades are thrown using the Fitness Attribute, and
attackers flanking a defender. Both parties roll with the range that an Operator can throw a grenade accu-
the highest roll winning the round. Actions for close rately is equal to their Fitness in metres multiplied
combat are listed below with any modifiers. by 3. For example, an operator with Fitness of 3 can
throw a grenade 9 metres and hit their target.
Action Modifier
Attack None After you release the lever, a grenade has a 3-4 second
fuse until they detonate. You can also attempt to cook
Attack unaware target Advantage
a grenade. This means releasing the lever and counting
Defend None down 2 seconds before throwing, which is very risky.
Defend against unaware attack Disadvantage Any operator that cooks a grenade and then rolls a fail
Disarm hand-held None on throwing it has the grenade explode in their hand.
Disarm firearm None
Subdue None Grenades, like all explosives, have two Areas of Effect,
one which determines the physical damage of the
Grapple None
grenade and one that determines the shock wave.
Flank Advantage
Throwing a grenade can have various effects based
The operators Defence acts as a modifier to the
upon the result.
attacker
Stealth Kills
Success – Grenade lands and will bounce 1m.
Good Success – Grenade lands and will bounce 1/2m.
Operators can attempt to stealth kill enemies; stealth
Critical Success – Grenade lands and detonates.
kills involve approaching the enemy often from behind
Failure – Grenade lands and bounces 2m.
and removing them as a threat; this is done using the
Bad Failure – Grenade lands and fails to detonate.
Agility attribute with any modifiers from specialisa-
Critical Failure – Grenade lands, and Tango picks it
tions, boosts, etc.. The attacker must equal or beat the
up and throws it back.
targets Awareness or Perception to succeed. If success-
ful, the stealth kill will ignore any armour worn as it is
Success does not add to the damage of the grenade.
presumed the attacker will go for an exposed location.
The shock wave causes anyone caught within it to be
Successful attacks numbers above what is needed to
stunned for 2 rounds, those in cover within the shock
succeed will be added to the weapon’s damage. Stealth
wave will become disorientated and act with disadvan-
attacks cannot be called or aimed. It is just presumed
tage for 1 round.
that the attacker hits what they are going for.

75
A grenade bouncing will do so in a random direction.
A dice roll determines this.
+ = Forward
- = Left
0 = Right
Mines
Like grenades, mines come in various types and styles,
and all of these are covered in the Quartermaster
chapter. In our experience, operators will be dealing
with these as possible targets rather than placing them
as defenders or attackers.
There are a few differences between a mine and a
grenade. One is the Area of Effect. Mines tend to be
more directional rather than have a blast radius like
grenades.
How mines are used and defused also differs. The use
of mines requires the Focus attribute and Demolitions
Specialisation. An operator can place a mine using
just Focus, but they will find it easier to defuse by also
having demolitions.
Mines do not have detonation times, and most are
activated by proximity or booby traps, but some are
detonated by sound, vibration and magnetism. Mines
are also difficult to spot. When an operator spots a
mine, the Handler should start with the Demolition
Specialisation Rank x2 of the operator or Skill of the
tango that placed the device as a base for the DN and
then add any Disadvantages on top of that for the
time of day, weather, etc.. The Handler can also take
into consideration Anti-Tamper Devices placed in
mines for extra disadvantage.
A mine’s Area of Effect is often a Direct Blast Effect
(DBE) but can send out shrapnel affecting a larger
area. Most of a DBE will be directed toward the front
of the mine or directly above it, and those are consid-
ered the epicentre of the blast.
76
Timed & Remote Bombs
Explosives such as C4 and Dynamite can be set with
timers or can be activated remotely. This uses the
Focus attribute of the operator and would also need
the Demolition specialisation. The base DN to set a
timed or remote charge would be 4.
Failed attempts will result in either the explosive
detonating too soon or not at all. Like mines, defusing
these types of explosives will begin with a base DN
equal to the Demolition specialisation x2 of the oper-
ator or skill of the Tango that set it.
These types of ordnance include Improvised Explosive
Devices (IED), but these start with a base DN of 4.
Booby Traps
Operators and tango’s can place booby traps. Traps do
not always have to be explosive, but they do have to be
hidden. Building a booby trap takes the Focus attrib-
ute to build and the Stealth specialisation to hide. If
the operator has the Camouflage specialisation, they
can use this alongside the Focus attribute to cancel
out the need to use stealth. Tango’s would use their
skill. To set a booby trap has a base DN of 4.
To spot a booby trap, the operator’s Stealth or
Camouflage + Focus, or tango’s skill, is used for the
base DN. Damage from a booby trap is determined
by the device used and will damage equivalent to that
device, be it a knife or grenade.
Explosives and Damage
All explosives, from grenades to mines to C4, do a set
amount of damage. The explosive is thrown, tripped
or detonated, and the damage is the same. Everyone
within the AoE receives the chance to roll for defence,
which is the base DN of 4 plus any attempts to dodge
or deflect the blast back using the Reflexes, Fitness or
Agility attributes. They also get their armour protec-
tion.
Successful throwing of a grenade or detonation of a
remote bomb does not lead to extra points added to
the explosives damage total.
 Mortars and Portable Launchers
Some explosives are propelled either by fixed weapon
placements or launchers; these can also differ as direct
targeted fire or indirect fire.
Mortars
These are indirect placed launcher weapons. Mortars
are carried to a location, placed on the ground and
secured, and then a 60mm round is dropped into the
barrel where a firing pin launches it in the direction
the mortar is pointed.
When using a launcher, the operator would use their
Coordination with the Heavy Weapon specialisation if
they have it. The first shot with a Mortar is done with
a +2 Disadvantage; the second shot is made with a +1
Disadvantage. The third shot and all following shots
are done with no disadvantage; this disadvantage will
stack with any other modifiers applied.
Missed shots with a mortar can still do massive
amounts of damage, and a missed shot can be up to
100 metres off-target, use the grenade bouncing rule
found on pg 76 to determine the location where the
mortar landed.
77
Man-Portable Missile
These come in various types, from RPGs and bazooka’s
to Stinger Missiles used to take down aircraft. These
devices are easier to direct and do not come with a
fixed disadvantage like mortars. Man-portable missiles
still use Coordination to operate with the Heavy
Weapon specialisation if available.
Grenade Launchers
Under-barrel grenade launchers are considered
directed fire. They are activated by pumping the
launcher and pulling the trigger and so use the same
rules as firearms.
Fixed Missile Systems.
Large launcher placements are used principally as air
defence; they are static in that they cannot be removed
from their location and use computerised targeting.
Most missile systems will automatically activate when
a target is detected, but some of them, often vehi-
cle-mounted, need to be operated by a controller. To
operate a missile system, the Intellect attribute is used
along with the Missile Systems specialisation.
 Advanced Combat Rules
The following rules are considered advanced as they
will not be constantly used, and in that, the Handler
can choose to ignore them to speed up a section of a
mission or make the mission easier.
HALO and Parachuting
Used to insert operators behind enemy lines unde-
tected, both HALO and Parachute jumps can be
risky; weather, landscape and detection systems
can cause jumps to go very wrong. When making
any kind of jump from an aircraft, the player would
use the operator’s Agility attribute along with the
Airborne Assault specialisation. If the weather is bad
or the area is patrolled or uses radar or other detection
devices, the jump should be made with a disadvantage.
A failure when jumping will often mean that the
operator has drifted off course or has poorly landed.
Being off course on a jump will indicate that the oper-
ator has landed away from the drop zone and possibly
into enemy territory.
78
• Critical Success – Hit the DZ, gain 2 advan-
tages.
• Good Success – Hit the DZ, gain an advantage.
• Success – Landed within 10 metres of DZ
• Failure - Landed within 20 metres of DZ and
receive 1 wound
• Bad Fail – Landed 100 metres away from DZ.
Or receives 2 wounds
• Critical Fail – Landed within sight of the enemy
or receives 4 wounds
Rappelling
Either down the side of a building or cliff or from
a chopper, the operator will use their Agility attrib-
ute with the Airborne Assault specialisation if avail-
able. Operators can be shot whilst rappelling as well
as have the line cut. If shot, the player must roll the
operators Reflexes attribute Vs a DN of 4 or let go of
the rappel line, they then must make an Agility test
against a DN of 6 to grab hold of the line and right
themselves. If the line is cut, the operator will fall,
taking falling damage.
 Shields
Shields come in two types, carried and wheeled.
Carried shields act as full cover for the wielder and add
to their armour rating for the upper half of the body.
Anyone behind the shield carrier also receives half
cover and will gain extra armour for the part of the
body behind the shield.
Operators using a carried shield will still be able to use
pistols to fire at enemies, and those behind the shield
carrier can use weapons as normal.
Carried shields will eventually become damaged and
useless; shields are designed to absorb small arms fire;
any weapon that does more damage than the shields
armour rating will reduce the armour rating by 2
permanently and penetrate the shield.
Larger wheeled shields also exist; these are full-body
shields pushed by the operator and give full coverage
to the whole body. There is a slot that the operator can
fire through, and operators that are behind the shield
wielder receive full-body half cover and can use weap-
ons as usual. Like their smaller counterparts, these
shields have an armour rating but can be damaged
when hit by rounds with a higher penetration than the
shield’s armour.
79
Specialisation in Ballistic Shield adds to the operators
armour Rating when shields are in use.
Breaching
Breaching is the ability to break through walls and
doors using specialised tools and explosives. Breaching
uses the Intellect attribute and the Breaching Speciali-
sation; an operator can attempt to use the Demolitions
specialisation but will be at a disadvantage to do so.
Explosive breaching differs from demolitions due to
the breacher learning to use the least amount of explo-
sives to gain the highest penetration; this includes
shaped chargers and knowing the best position to
place the explosive.
The operator must have the right gear for the job,
with standard doors and walls being breachable by
tools such as door rams, Hallagan tools, breaching
sledge etc.. Hydraulic doors using spreaders and heav-
ier doors and walls needing shaped explosives using
breacher tape.
Tactical Police who wish to obtain Breaching tools
does not require spending reputation points.
 Interrogations
Interrogation comes in two forms; law enforcement
often uses the standard interrogation techniques to
get the target to divulge information or admit to a
crime. This type of interrogation uses an opposed roll.
The interrogator uses their Intellect Attribute plus
any specialisations to question the target. The Handler
can also offer an advantage for information already
known to the interrogator they can then use. The
target attempts to keep their secrets or involvement
by using their Skill or Focus attribute plus any relative
specialisations or knowledge (operators can use SERE
Training).
The second type of interrogation is enhanced and
is often used by agencies and the military to obtain
information on enemy positions, high-value targets
and plans for future attacks. This sort of interroga-
tion may start as standard and eventually evolve into
torture and stress techniques to wear down the target.
Once torture begins, the target then starts to use their
Wound level as the opposed attribute, with each fail-
ure reducing their wound level by 1.
The operators have captured a known associate of a
terrorist cell; it is believed that the terrorists are plan-
ning an attack and that the captive has information
regarding this. The standard interrogation is not work-
ing, so the operator turns to enhanced techniques. The
operator has an intellect of 4 and has the HUMINT
specialisation at +1. The captive has six wounds.
The player rolls the dice and gets + + 0 0,
which is a 2, plus their Intellect of 4 and HUMINT
of +1 gives a total of 7. The Handler rolls for the
target and gets 0 - - +, which is -1, which
means their Wounds of 6 gives a total of 5 (6-1=5).
The target fails and loses a wound reducing them to 5,
which means the new wound total will be used.
The Handler rolls morale for the target, and they give
up the information.
80
Making a morale roll for tangos (see pg 74 for more
on morale) will determine if the target decides to
either tell them everything they know (+ Enemy
surrenders), Decides to keep quiet (0 Enemy
bunkers down), or they divulge only a key element
(- Enemy retreats). Operators being tortured will
never give up information and will hold on until
rescued or dead.
Allies and Enemies
Operators will discover both enemies and allies as
they deal with missions, travel to countries and inves-
tigate crimes. Allies can come from rebel groups that
will aid them against a corrupt government, citizens
tired of cartel rule, or informants wishing to make a
deal to stay out of prison. Allies can change allegiance
or only offer the hand of friendship against a common
foe.
Enemies could be the people of a country wronged
by the west, civilians that are protected and fed by
cartels or organised crime and rebels who wish to oust
a government and replace it with their own type of
dictatorship.
Operators are sometimes given aid such as money,
medicines, food and even guns and drugs to offer as
a way to win over local resistance fighters or citi-
zens to aid them in beating a common enemy. Gain-
ing temporary allies are done using negotiation with
HUMINT versus the potential allies Skill as an
opposed roll with higher successes equalling more aid
or less payment. Everything you offer as an incentive
will add Advantage to the roll.
Aid could be information, rebel attacks or even an
inside person willing to open a door or even assas-
sinate a target. Be careful what you offer as a well
armed rebel force may oust a government, but may
themselves become your next target.
Failures with negotiation could lead to false info,
being drawn into a trap or with that rebel support
never appearing, leaving you high and dry facing
unbeatable odds.
 Human Shields
It is possible to grab someone and use them as a
shield; to do so would involve a Fitness Vs Skill roll.
An operator success means they have managed to grab
the target in such a way as to use them as a shield
either to stop someone shooting you or escaping or, as
the name suggests, a shield.
Using someone as a shield to negotiate will give the
operator the advantage, as long as the person they are
negotiating with cares enough about the captive. Using
someone as a shield will give the operator +2 armour
and place the operator into half cover.
Extreme Sniping (optional)
Shooting targets at extreme and beyond would gener-
ally offer a disadvantage on the shot. Still, it is also
possible to encourage the operator to act close to
an actual sniper and consider wind, bullet drop, and
distance aspects. This could be the operator stating
that they were checking their range card and sight to
adjust. It could also involve a DN 4 Focus or Coordi-
nation roll with the Sniper Specialisation if available.
Extreme sniping can be an excellent start to a mission
or even at a distance over-watch with the teams sniper
81
Positioned 1000 metres away, taking out guards or
eliminating the HVT. Whole missions can be based
around a lone sniper, using their unique skills to elim-
inate guarded locations as they make their way to the
target.
If you are in a fast action scene, it is advised not to stop
everything to allow the sniper who is in over-watch
to adjust their sights or check their card to hit the
bad guy; this would slow down the game and lose the
immersion. But having the sniper have their day and
lining up the perfect shot can be a satisfying feeling for
the players.
Stealth Movement
You can make Stealth more advanced by giving modi-
fiers for operators that stick to shadows or move from
cover to cover. It is advised that the Handler either
draws a plan of the area or describes everything the
operators can use to make their route from one loca-
tion to the next as much undercover as possible.
Guards should not instantly find operators on a fail
but instead, investigate the noise or what they ‘thought’
they saw. This should allow the operator time to try
stealth again to move to another position.
 K9 Commands
K9 units are trained to understand commands sent
through radios which each dog has equipped; with
this remote connection, the controller can instruct the
dog to search, go into stealth, attack and return to the
squad or wait, among other commands. Sending the
K9 unit ahead of the operators could save lives as the
dog will alert its controller about ambushes or other
threats.
If the operator has a K9 companion, they can send
the dog ahead, at which point the player then takes
control of the dog as a second character, and all
actions are presumed to be commands sent via radio.
So the player controls the dog and all their actions
and can return to the unit at any point.
If the dog leaves the controllers sight, they must either
wait or return as it would be hard to control a dog
when it is no longer in sight. The only time a dog can
leave the sight range of the controller is when they
are entering buildings, tunnels etc.. and are seeking
booby traps, items or ambushes. The dog will make
the controller aware of their find and then wait at the
location, indicating the booby trap, item and so forth.
The K9 can either attack or suppress; an attack is
designed to disable or kill an opponent, whereas a
suppress is designed to take down or disarm an oppo-
nent.
Suppress – The K9 will attempt to disarm or take
down a target. The player must declare which; once
done, they will stand over the target until the control-
ler arrives. The target must make a Skill or Fitness
opposed roll versus the K9s Combat roll total. The K9
will always roll first due to their speed and agility.
Attack – An attack roll is designed to either disable
or kill; the player must declare which. The player rolls
first with the target attempting to equal or beat the
roll with a Melee or Fitness + Unarmed roll. K9’s will
always go for exposed areas such as throats.
82
Vehicles
Operators can all drive most wheeled vehicles from
civilian cars and trucks to military transports and
humvee’s and do not need to roll any dice to do so.
Tracked vehicles such as tanks and aircraft or jets and
Helicopters will need to be driven by someone with
the Tracked Vehicle or for aircraft the Pilot specialisa-
tions; this will also not need any dice rolls, just having
the specialisation is enough.
This rule changes when the operator attempts to drive
the vehicle defensively or offensively.
Defensive Driving
In the Ghost Ops RPG Second Strike, defensive
driving includes any use of any vehicle or aircraft in
a defensive way, including avoiding damage, avoiding
detection, losing pursuers, and even moving out of the
way of guided missiles and fixed SAM launchers.
The use of defensive driving involves challenge rolls
and difficulty numbers. The challenges involved will
be mainly active and opposed, with changing land-
scapes, avoiding objects and Tangos attempting to
either shoot out your tires, slam you off the road or hit
fuel tanks and engines.
Each vehicle has an Armour Rate, which will protect
the vehicle against damage and is treated the same
way as operator armour. Vehicles also have locations
and DNs associated with those locations used to make
called or aimed shots (See the Vehicle Section in the
Quartermaster Chapter pg 60).
To hit a vehicle moving in normal conditions with a
ranged weapon has a base DN of 4 and always hits
the main chassis or body of the vehicle. In other
conditions, refer to the ramming and being rammed
section.
Offensive Driving
Offensive driving involves using the vehicle to either
attack with or to attack from. This includes pilot-op-
erated weaponry, ramming or pursuing target vehicles.
Using a vehicle offensively involves modifiers to the Ramming and Being Rammed
driver’s specialisation and any attributes and specialisa-
tions used by passengers in shooting at enemy vehi- Attempting to ram a vehicle from behind involves
cles with either personal weapons or vehicle-mounted going faster than the target vehicle and then attempt-
weapons. ing to ram that vehicle. These both can create Disad-
vantages to the driver attempting the ram. Avoiding
Vehicle Modifiers a ram will involve swerving away from the attacker
and attempting to travel faster, which again will create
Below are the modifier tables set out for both defen- modifiers. As these are opposed actions, the roll of the
sive and offensive driving. Each modifier is a Disad- target and attacker become the DN.
vantage subtracted from the drivers total.
Shooting at a target will also create modifiers for the
Defensive Driving Modifiers shooters as they deal with the vehicle’s movement and
attempt to get a bead on the target vehicle.
Action DAV
Ramming and being Rammed will involve the opera-
Speed
tors Reflexes attributes and their Driving Specialisa-
Normal 0
tion.
Fast 1
Very Fast 2 The operators are chasing a Cartel boss, the bosses skill
Rough Terrain 1 is 6, the Handler rolls the dice and gets + + + -
Ice 2 which is a result of 2, this is added to the 6 to make a
Sand or Snow 1 total of 8. The boss is travelling fast which is a 2 disad-
vantage, reducing the Cartel bosses skill to a 6 and
Blown out Tire 1 per tire
giving the operators a DN of 6 to equal or beat.
Swerving 1 The player rolls for their operator who is driving the
Rammed 1 ramming vehicle, the operator has an Reflexes of 4
Low Visibility 1 plus a Drive specialisation of 2, the dice roll result is
Engine Hit 2 0 + + + which is a 3, giving the operator a total
of 9, they are also travelling fast which reduces their 9
Offensive Driving Modifiers to a 7, this means they catch up with the boss and can
attempt to ram their vehicle off the road.
Action DAV
Another Example, for Shooting.
Speed
Normal 0 The operators are being chased by a bunch of mili-
Fast 1 tia in a Technical. The operators are driving fast (-2)
Very Fast 2 and swerving to avoid the gunfire (-1). The driver has
Rough Terrain 1 Reflexes of 4 and Drive specialisation of 2. The player
Ice 2 rolls + + + 0, which is 3, giving a total of 6
Sand or Snow 1 (4+2+3-2-1=6). The militia will need to beat six if they
want to shoot the operators’ vehicle. The militia are
Ramming 1
also driving fast (2), and the target is swerving (1). The
Shooting 1 best weaponry skill is 3. The Handler rolls + + -
Side Swiping 1 0, which is 1, giving a total of 1 (3+1-2-1=1), which
Target Swerving 1 is a miss.
Engine Hit 2

83
 Vehicles as Cover Successful Hit Effects

Vehicles can be used as cover, but contrary to what
Hollywood may lead you to believe, a lot of ammo
will pass through a vehicle. Using a vehicle as cover
uses the same rules as standard cover, the difference
being the armour of the vehicles and which part you
are using as cover.
When attacking vehicles, your attack success type
will affect the vehicle; unlike regular targets, vehi-
cles do not have wounds and hence cannot be killed
in the usual manner, though they can be stopped and
damaged. The table below will give the effect of the
successful attack.

Each vehicle has locations, and each of those locations Location Result
has an armour rating. Every vehicle’s locations are the Standard Success
same, except for some aircraft and boats. The primary
Body The bullet passes through
locations are listed below with the base DN needed to
hit those areas. Engine Bullet stuck in engine block
Fuel Fuel leak vehicle will stall in 10 rnds
Location Vehicle DN Wheel 1 Disadvantage to driver
Main Body All Vehicles 4 Good Success
Engine Cars/Bikes 4 Body Bullet hits passenger
Boats/ Aircraft 5 Engine Vehicles top speed one lower
Fuel Tank Car/Bikes 5 Fuel Fuel leak vehicle will stall in 5 rnds
Boats/Aircraft 5 Wheel 1 disadvantage to driver
Wheels All Vehicles 6 Critical Success
Driver/Pilot All Vehicles 6 Body Bullet hits driver
Mounted Gun Wheeled 5 Engine starts to smoke, vehicles speed
Engine
2 lower
Passenger Cars/Boats 6
Vehicle explodes, AoE 2 metres, 10
Fuel
Targeting a Vehicle damage
Wheel comes off, vehicle slowed and
Wheel
Targeting a moving vehicle location with either a driver at 2 disadvantage
called shot or aimed shot whilst not in a vehicle has
different modifiers than a standard called shot against Targeting of passengers or driver within vehicle
a human target. Use the modifiers below. will act as an attack against a human opponent and
follows the rules of wounds and armour for human
Situation Modifier targets.
Vehicle moving away +2
Crashing
Vehicle moving towards +1
Vehicle moving above +1 Crashing a vehicle differs depending on the vehicle.
Vehicle moving below +1
Vehicle moving fast +1 Wheeled Vehicles
Vehicle moving very fast +2 Crashing a wheeled vehicle stops that vehicle imme-
diately. If the crash resulted from a bad fail, then
The modifier is added to the DN or Opposed DN. the engine or vehicle is damaged and will be at a
+1 Disadvantage to drive. If the crash resulted from
a critical fail, the engine will begin to smoke and
explode within 1 round, and the fuel tank exploding.

84
Aircraft
Crashing in an aircraft will leave the aircraft either
inoperable (bad fail) or exploding (critical fail) imme-
diately as it impacts. A standard fail would indicate the
aircraft has clipped an obstacle or the pilot lost control,
leading to regaining control with a DN 6.
Boats
Crashing in a boat will cause the boat to be inoper-
able (bad fail) or begin sinking (critical fail). Sinking
will take ten rounds. A standard crash will stop the
boat, and the pilot will need to make a DN 5 Focus +
Marine Training specialisation roll to get the boat back
on its course.
Firing and Moving on Vehicles
Whether using mounted weapons or firing their squad
weapons operators will be at a disadvantage to hit
targets even when making called or aimed shots.
85
A moving vehicle will never drive smooth and the
tiniest bump can feel huge when attempting to take
aim or stabilise a held weapon, bracing a weapon can
improve and remove a disadvantage but whilst in a
vehicle an operator can never earn an advantage when
firing.
Moving from one vehicle to another or even jumping/
landing on a moving vehicle should always have a base
DN of 6 with disadvantage added for every speed level
above normal that the vehicle is moving.
Falling from a moving vehicle does +1 wounds to the
normal falling damage rules due to the momentum of
the vehicle.
Only handguns can be used when travelling on motor-
cycles and mountain bikes and jumping from either a
motorbike or bike will result in the vehicle stopping.
 Injury and Death
Operators will get injured, and some, unfortunately,
will possibly die. These are the facts of modern
warfare.
Natural Injuries
Operators will face many dangers. These will usually
come in the form of bullets, but other threats do exist,
and in this section, we will cover the more common
ones.
Damage from falling, fire and crushing is rolled like
average damage, and the operators armour can reduce
the damage
Fire
Damage from fire happens over time. This is from the
target being either set alight with flame-throwers or
engulfed in flame from explosives or flash fires.
Every turn or 10 seconds that the operator is on fire
will take two wounds. They can attempt to put out the
flames by rolling on the floor or diving into nearby
water. To do this while on fire is a Fitness roll DN of
6. Others can also attempt to douse the flames with a
DN of 4.
Drowning
An operator can hold their breath for a number of
rounds equal to their Fitness attribute x 2. Once
time is up, they will begin to drown. Each round
of drowning causes one wound. The Operator can
attempt to hold their breath and halt this by rolling
under a Difficulty Number of 5 + Wounds taken,
using their Fitness. If they fail to hold their breath,
they are considered dead unless rescued.
Falling
Falling is different from jumping or dropping. Fall-
ing is uncontrolled and will cause damage. For every
3 metres that the operator falls, they will receive one
wound. A fitness roll can break the fall with a DN
of 4 +1 for every 3 metres. All measurements are
rounded down.
86
The operator attempts to jump across two roofs but
fails and ends up falling between them. The drop is
17 metres. The Handler states that the operator can
attempt to limit the damage by controlling the fall.
Seventeen metres would add a +5 (+1 for every 3
metres rounded down) to the Difficulty Number of
4. The operator will need to roll 9 (4+5=7) or more to
control the fall.
By successfully controlling the fall, all damage is
halved.
Crushing
Explosions can often destabilise buildings or weaken
structures, meaning that the threat of having a house
fall on you is possible in urban environments. This can
also be the case with rolling vehicles or falling aircraft.
Being crushed causes wound damage.
Crushing damage is determined by the following
table:
Object Damage
Brick wall 2
Ceiling 2
Family Car 4
Military Humvee 6
Helicopter 8
Building 10
These are examples, and the Handler has the final
say on all damage. All dangers can be avoided using
Reflexes at a DN of 4 +1 for slow, +2 fast and +3 very
fast-moving threats.
Poisoning
The chance that the operators will be poisoned is rare,
and this will come mainly from reptile or insect bites
while on missions in specific locales.
Each type of poison will have an effective level that
acts as a DN to resist using the operator’s Fitness. If
the Operator fails to resist, they take the effects of
that poison until they manage to get serious medical
care or find an antidote.
 Poison Lvl Effect The operator will be out of action until a number of
rounds equal to the operator’s Fitness attribute. Once
Ricin 8 Attacks proteins, instant
the number of rounds has passed, the operator is
Tetradotoxin 6 Paralyses, treatable considered dead.
Batrachotoxin 8 Neurotoxin, instant
Amatoxin 6 Organ failure, coma, death Medical Aid Vs Wounds
Cyanide 7 Blood cells, Instant
Nerve Gas 6 Neurological, treatable Applying first aid to a wound will help stabilise blood
loss and even cancel out any disadvantages. A stand-
Brodificoum 6 Internal bleeding, treatable
ard wound without a disadvantage has a Difficulty
Strychnine 8 Neurotoxin. Treatable
Number of 2 + the Wound amount. This means that if
Polonium 10 Radioactive. Instant the operator has 2 Wounds, it is 2+2, giving a Diffi-
culty Number of 4.
Wounds

Each operator has 12 wounds. These are marked out
like the face of a clock as the operator takes damage;
the clock ticks down to 0. At specific points on the
clock, the operator’s ability to succeed at tasks will be
modified. This is designed to replicate injuries causing
debilitations.
3 o’clock: Operator receives Disadvantage to tasks
6 o’clock: Operator receives 2 disadvantages to tasks
9 o’clock: Operator receives 3 disadvantages to tasks
Wounds with disadvantage applied (3,6, and 9)
increase the DN by one step. So a wound of 4 will add
+4 and then a further +1 for the disadvantage meaning
a DN of 7 (2+4+1=7).
Wounds must be dealt with quickly so that they do not
become untreatable. Medics can opt to reduce wounds
by only healing a portion of the damage. This is most
effective in getting the operator ‘back on their feet by
removing wound disadvantages.

Once the Operator reaches 0 on the clock, they will be

no longer active and considered out of action.

87
An operator has been hit and has taken 5 wounds;
this means they are at a disadvantage for all rolls; the
units medic attempts a quick patch up to reduce the
damage by 3 wounds and remove the disadvantage;
this would be easier and quicker than removing all
the wounds and will remove the -1 disadvantage the
injured operator currently has.
Operators can attempt to heal themselves, but this
increases the base DN to a 4.
Healing Injuries
Injuries are taken from blunt force trauma such as
unarmed attacks, bludgeoning and so forth. Often an
injury will just bruise, stun or debilitate a target but
unlike wounds injuries will heal on their own over
time.
Your operator can take injuries up to their Fitness
score, once an injury either equals or is higher than
their Fitness the injury becomes a wound.
Optional Rule: Hit Locations
When aiming or making call shots, the operator will
be able to declare a location they wish to hit, and in
the standard rules, any damage caused will come off
the target’s wounds. But as an option, the game will
allow for a more immersive result of hitting a particu-
lar body part.
In these optional rules, we will consider that each
body part has its individual wound total. By reduc-
ing the wounds in that area, the target begins to lose
functionality and rendered unconscious or even unable
to act. This optional rule replaces the standard wound
rules and instead uses location wounds.
How does it Work
Wounds for the operator start at 10 and includes their
Fitness Attribute total, so if the operator has a Fitness
of 4, their wound total will be 14. This wound total is
never used but instead allows the player to calculate
their operator’s locations wounds.
88
The rules for combat in relation to body locations are
still in effect, with ranged attacks that are not aimed
or called still hitting the body (it’s why body armour
exists after all). Once the player has calculated their
operator’s wounds, they check the table below to find
the locations wounds.
Wounds Head Body Arms Legs
11 1 3 1 1
12 2 4 2 2
13 3 5 3 3
14 4 6 4 4
15 5 7 5 5
16+ 6 8 6 6
Armour still reduces damage, and anything left over
is removed from the locations wounds. If the wounds
for a location reaches zero, that location is no longer
available to use until healed; if the wounds go below
zero on a location, the area is no longer available until
the operator has medical treatment and recovery,
which can take months.
Location Damage Rules
Below are rules for individual locations
Head Damage – Wounds reduced to 0 indicates
unconsciousness until healed. Wounds reduced below
0 targets is dead.
Body Damage – Wounds reduced to 0 target is
stunned and all actions at -2. Wounds below 0 target
are down and bleeding and will die within d4 rnds
unless stabilised. Once stabilised target must be evac-
uated for medical aid.
Arm Damage – Wounds reduced to 0 target is at -2
to all actions using arms. Wounds below 0 the arm is
useless, and all actions are halved until hospital care
and recovery.
Legs Damage – Wounds reduced to zero all move-
ment halved and -2 to all actions. Wounds below
0, the target needs help to move, and all actions are
halved until hospital care and recovery.

Certain operators will have access to locations or be
able to call on supplies depending on their current
situation. In this chapter, we will go over what is avail-
able to the different types of operators and how they
are obtained or earned.
Safe-houses
Safe-houses are locations where operators can hold up,
find medical aid, resupply or contact control directly.
Often, a safe-house has a ‘caretaker’ someone who
maintains the location and is there to greet the opera-
tors, give them a situation report, and reiterate proto-
col.
Types of Safe-house
Safe-houses can be found worldwide, and they will
range from apartments in blocks to actual houses on
civilian streets. The country in which the safe-house is
located will often dictate the type of safe house found
there.
Apartments – Many western and Middle Eastern
countries will have apartments, often in rundown areas
of a city where people coming and going will not be
questioned.
89
Safe-houses &
Supply Drops
Houses – Most western and first-world countries will
have houses in suburban neighbourhoods; these are
often used for witness protection. Houses are generally
for long term stay-overs.
Fronts – These locations appear to be a normal busi-
ness but are actually a safe house; the person who runs
the business also doubles as the ‘caretaker’. These types
of property are found in Middle Eastern and Asian
countries mainly.
Bunkers – These are locations used as places to heal
and regroup, often just a hole in the ground or a
disused, abandoned building with hidden caches and
camouflage. Bunkers are often found in jungles, rural
locations and even war zones.
Agents and some operators will have access to safe
houses, especially when acting in foreign countries
and on extended missions. If an operator or agent is in
trouble or needs to stow an HVT or person of interest,
a safe house will be provided for them until such times
as an evac plan can be formulated and activated.
Tactical police units that do not operate outside
the city they are based or tend not to be involved in
extended missions do not generally have access to a
safe house, except for witness protection or surveil-
lance purposes.
 Safe house Supplies
Each safe-house is different; some are better supplied
or set up than others. Whereas one safe house may
have security cameras and a complete surgery suite,
others may just have a first aid kit and a window. If
you are at a location and in need of medical care or to
lie low, then you will not have the luxury of picking or
choosing your safe house, and this is what the follow-
ing tables are for.
When a call comes into control from the operators
who urgently need a safe location, control will send
them to the closest place, which is not always the
best stocked or most modern. A safe house needs to
blend in, not stand out and the more you add to the
safe house, the more power, antennas, cables and other
basic amenities it will need.
When the operators reach a safe house, roll a d6 or a
fudge dice and check the chart below.
D6 Fudge Level
1-2 - 1
3-4 0 2
5-6 + 3
Each type of safe house will have three supply levels;
the Handler should decide the type of safe house,
and rolling on the table above should determine the
supply level.
Supply Levels
Apartments
Level 1: Small apartment in a block in a rundown
area of the city. Sparse furnishings, a box of dried food
with a camping stove, a first aid kit in a cupboard,
selection of ammo mags under the floorboards. There
is no caretaker, but there is a small hidden secu-
rity camera; when the doorbell is pushed, this alerts
control, unlocking the door and giving access.
90
Level 2: Medium-sized apartment in a complex
behind a gate. The door is unlocked by control via a
security camera. First aid kit, blood transfusion and
sterilisation equipment working kitchen with a selec-
tion of food, four single beds and a weapons locker
holding rifles, pistols, ammo and body armour. Short
wave radio and internet connection. A caretaker will
visit every three days.
Level 3: Large apartment in a building with a door-
man (agency hired caretaker), keypad, and thumb
scanner locks with high security. Five rooms, one
of which is a complete surgery and recovery area, a
full kitchen with enough food for two weeks, secu-
rity cameras, reinforced doors and bulletproof glass.
Comms room with an internet connection, satellite
access and hacking suite. Armoury with a selection of
weapons and gear.
House
Level 1: A repurposed crack house on an inner-city
street, boarded up windows and covered in graffiti,
looks abandoned from the outside. One floor with five
rooms, first aid kit, food, secure line telephone, lock-
box with ammo and a few handguns hidden under
floorboards. Army cots stacked in one corner for
sleeping on and a change of clothes in a duffel bag.
Level 2: One storey house on a suburban street, five
rooms and a garage. A caretaker is a live in and has
been there acting out everyday life for several years:
comms room, weapons locker and medical area.
House looks like any suburban home. Car in the
garage available to operators if needed.
Level 3: Semi-detached two storey house. Two care-
takers live in the house permanently and maintain it
for the agency. The basement is a complete medical
suite and has two cells for prisoners. Comms room
with surveillance cameras, satellite feeds and internet.
Full armoury and interrogation room. Three bedrooms
and three bathrooms.
Front
Level 1: A small store crammed into a bustling market
street, the safe house is at the back of the store, with a
first aid box, a lockbox of ammo and a radio linked to
control. Not designed for overnight or long term stays.
The back door leads to an alley that may have an old
vehicle parked with keys in the ignition.
Level 2: An old bookstore or antique store on a side
street. The owner is also a caretaker, and the safe house
is at the back. The caretaker is a trained medic with
basic medical facility, comms rooms, small weapons
locker and cots for overnight stay.
Level 3: Store on a busy street, has several staff
(agency funded and trained as security), and the owner
is the caretaker. The safe house is above the store and
is fitted with a medical area, secure room for prisoners,
armoury, sleeping area, comms room with radio, inter-
net, and satellite feeds.
91
Bunker
Level 1: A hide with a GPS beacon hidden in a forest,
enough room for one person to sleep, a first aid kit,
food and wood for a fire.
Level 2: A wooden shack, camouflaged from above.
Surveillance cameras allow control to give access to the
interior. Inside is a paramedic kit for severe medical
conditions, comms centre, and weapons locker. Secu-
rity systems around the area alert those inside to tres-
passers.
Level 3: Actual bunker, access gained from hatch
hidden under rocks. The bunker is fully furnished has a
working kitchen, two bedrooms, armoury and medi-
cal bay. It is also equipped with two cells for prisoners,
a comms room, and a security centre for surveillance
cameras. The bunker can withstand a nuclear strike
and has provisions enough for six months.
If the operators are nowhere near a safe house, then a
supply drop or a dropbox is the next best thing.
 Supply Drops
Operators from Special forces, ICO and some PMCs
have access to supply drops. A supply drop can be
called upon at most locations as long as a clearing can
be marked by chem sticks or Tac Flags. It is impossi-
ble to make a supply drop in water or areas where the
supplies could be damaged or destroyed.
A supply drop should only be called if a squad needs
it. If a member has forgotten a piece of gear or has
not brought enough ammo, they should not call in a
supply drop. Supply drops are often called for long
term missions when the operators have been out
in the field for an extended period of time and are
running short of supplies, and there is no nearby safe
house. Supply drops can also take time to reach oper-
ators, so calling one just before they run out of food
could be a mistake, especially if the nearest airbase is
two or three days away.
Operators can also request supply drops for civil-
ians, especially those helping the operators with
either information or shelter, having food, tools etc..,
dropped as payment or incentive to help the operators
change a failing mission to a successful one.
Supply Drops and Reputation
The operator’s reputation can determine what kind of
supply drops they can call upon, and below, we list the
reputation cost of different types of supply drops.
Rep Supply Type
2 Basic
5 Standard
8 Advanced
10 Vehicles
2 Supplies
Basic - Small drop of rations, ammo and batteries.
Standard – Ammo, rations, first aid kit, weapon parts,
radios.
Advanced – Weapons, Ammo, First Aid, Rations,
Money in local currency, weapon parts, explosives,
radios.
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Vehicle - Small boats, Quad bikes or motorbikes,
Humvee
Supplies - Food, tools, money, medical supplies (often
used to bargain with locals).
A supply drop can take from a few hours to a couple
of days to arrive at the operator’s location based on
where in the world they are. Also, if a safe house is
nearby, then a supply drop will not be an option.
Drop Boxes
It is common for agents out in the field to have access
to drop boxes to collect and drop off items or Intel. A
drop box can be a postal box, a hole in a wall, a train
station locker or even a table in a café where the item
is taped underneath. The items are delivered by locals
friendly or in the employ of the agency if they are
nearby, or they can be caches of supplies hidden in
locations that the agent can utilise only taking what is
needed.
A drop box can contain several items to help an agent,
some unique to the agent. Blueprints, Money, Contact
info, Cell phones, Passports, ID cards, weapons, and
trade-craft tools such as lock-picks and bugs.
An agents reputation will grant them access to differ-
ent types of drop boxes.
Rep Drop Box
2 Money, cell phone, ID card
5 As above with passports and weapons
8 As above with Blueprints, contact info
10 As above with trade-craft tools
Drop Box Location
D6 Location
1 Postal box
2-3 Locker
4-5 Hole in a wall
6 Cafe Table

Welcome to your command centre; as a Handler,
you will be running ops, directing the operators and
controlling the Tango’s and HVTs that will populate
the missions. As the Handler, you have the final say on
rules, determining the difficulties of challenges, hand-
ing out the advantage points, playing all the NPCs,
and deciding on the enemies’ actions. It is a lot of
responsibility, but the command centre is here to help.
Ghost Ops Second Strike is unlike other roleplay-
ing games in a few ways. Ghost Ops operators have a
single goal; there are no ulterior motives or allegiances
to a god or group other than the unit. There is no
treasure to be found other than info or HVTs. Split-
ting the group is often encouraged as they will stay in
touch via radio. Operators are never left behind, with
injured operators being carried out of situations and
captured operators being rescued, including any K9
units. There must be a bond amongst the members and
total trust in each other’s abilities; the unit is family.
Ghost Ops Second Strike lends itself to action-packed
one-shot missions and longer drawn out investigations
leading to many fire-fights across continents and cities.
Players can take on the role of Tactical Police raiding a
cartel house in South America where they find shock-
ing Intel; that Intel is then passed on to agents who
investigate leads, infiltrate gangs and engage in car
chases with crime bosses. Capture and interrogation
93
Command
Centre
lead to international connections. These connections
call for specialist units of Navy SEALs or SAS to hunt
down and take over a terrorist cell. All of this can be
done using multiple operators from different agencies,
all controlled by the players.
The first step to taking on the role of a Handler for a
specialist unit is to understand the play-styles and how
to run a mission using them.
Play Styles
There are several ways to play Ghost Ops Second
Strike, and these each revolve around the backgrounds
and careers that the mission calls for. Unlike many
other RPGs, Ghost Ops Second Strike bases the
careers the players can choose on the type of mission
being organised by the Handler. This building the
operator to meet the mission is an essential aspect of
the game.
Different missions will call for different operators, for
example:
Authorities are alerted to a Domestic terrorist threat a
Tactical Police Unit is called in.
A drug cartel has set up a drug factory in the jungles
of South America; the situation could call for a Tacti-
cal Police unit or a Special Forces team.
A lone gunman has sent a warning to a newspaper.
Federal Agents are called in to investigate and hunt
down the assassin. Once found, this could then be
turned over to a Tactical Police unit.
A VIP of a corporation is needed to flee a country
suddenly plunged into civil war a PMC force is hired
to get them out.
An international group of terrorists threatens to bomb
a capital city, an ICO or Special Forces unit are sent
in to stop them.
We will now detail how to run a mission using each of
the units available as either a career or background.
Tactical Police
Tactical Police units operate in the country of origin,
and often each city within that country has their units.
Tactical Police are used for raids on drug dens, terror-
ist cells and locations where firearms and force are
94
expected. Tactical units are also used to set up defen-
sive parameters and to deal with hostages situations.
Missions involving Tactical Police will always be
one-shots; these missions will also follow specific
guidelines.
Hostage rescue is a priority, as is the lives of innocents
• Arrest unless impossible to do so
• Shoot to wound rather than kill
• Never shoot first
Tactical units will always have location maps, Intel
on suspects and the number of civilians being held
or in the area before entering the danger zone. The
players must discuss how to enter a situation and
have the relative equipment to carry out the planned
approach. If a plan involves the team taking different
routes to the main area, radio comms should coor-
dinate everything. When acting in a coordinated
way to enter an area from different entry points, it
is presumed that this happens all at once, and all
suspects will be surprised unless they are expecting the
attack.
A coordinated attack will often involve breaching
charges at entrances and stun grenades. The tacti-
cal unit will then demand the suspects stand down. If
this happens, they are arrested, but the operators can
respond if the suspects fire at the unit.
The main goal is to arrest and rescue, not kill
everything, as vital Intel could be lost.
Agents
Running missions for agents can fall into several types,
from criminal investigations, infiltrations, and even
special operations against drug cartels and organised
crime. Agents can wear suits one minute and body
armour the next.
Missions can begin with surveillance of a suspect or
interviewing an informant. Agents are trained to blend
in and use trade-craft, hacking and other techniques to
get what they need. The difference between running an
agent mission and another type of unit is that agents
work in smaller groups. Having only one or two agents
for a mission is totally fine and makes missions more
personal and exciting.
Playing characters that are part of agencies can dictate
a mission type; FBI agents will only be active within
the USA, whereas CIA or DEA can cross borders and
be active in other countries. Playing as members of
the ICI will allow players to have agents that oper-
ate worldwide on several different cases, from tracking
down a serial killer to taking down an organised crime
family or cartel.
Agents also have a lot more human interactions and
rely upon informants, witness statements and having
someone on the inside; they must be trained in nego-
tiation, interrogation and body language. This is also
true of hacking computers, tapping communications
and deciphering codes. Agent missions will often be a
lot of researching and Intel gathering before going in
guns blazing.
95
Special Forces
All special forces units will operate in their own coun-
tries and others, often to protect their countries’ inter-
ests or stop attacks. In Ghost Ops Second Strike, it is
advised to keep missions for special op units to behind
enemy line missions, hostage or prisoner rescues, raids,
and the capture or assassination of HVTs. Missions
for special operators can range from jungle locations,
deserts, Arctic tundras and even in the middle of an
ocean.
Special forces operators fall under international law
regarding how prisoners are treated and the rules
of conflict and have to recognise a sovereign coun-
try’s rights (though in recent years, operators have
been known to act in countries without that country’s
knowledge).
Operators have a certain amount of autonomy regard-
ing how they best conduct the mission they are sent
on, like tactical units. Special forces will have access to
maps, Intel and whatever equipment they need to fulfil
that mission. Before each mission, players are advised
to look over what they have, be they satellite images
or information on the tangos they will encounter and
plan their actions.
PMCs
Private Military Contractors often have either special
forces or tactical police backgrounds, with a few
ex-agents. PMCs can come from any country. You will
often have different nationalities working together,
with the majority coming from the country where the
current mission is based; this helps with language and
understanding cultural norms.
Often PMCs have had a bad rep, mainly from crimi-
nal activity or incidents on the battlefield, but this does
not mean they are all bad. Many PMCs are used as
security for VIPs or corporations; some have been sent
to rescue people from war zones or disaster areas, but
PMCs can legally fall into a grey area.
PMCs are often depicted as bad guys or mercs in
movies, books, and video games. The mercs are hired
by arms dealers, evil corporations, or wealthy dictators
to suppress a population, hunt down supposed traitors,
or act as a personal army. These PMCs work great as
a significant threat against the operators as they are
ex-special forces, so just as well trained, there may
even be animosity between an operator and a PMC
for past indiscretions.
PMCs are great for those players that wish to take the
fight against the bad guys but do not want to worry
about international laws or the Geneva Convention.
Also, PMCs can have more criminal leaning if they
wish, which will not break the immersion.
ICO (Ghost Ops)
The International Covert Operations Unit was the
main force available in the original Ghost Ops RPG.
This was expanded in source materials to include the
ICI or International Covert Investigations Unit. The
ICO was based around Rainbow Six, created by Tom
Clancy; a special forces unit made up of international
operators, the best in their field.
96
The ICO, unlike many special forces units, were not
designed to be of a single nationality. This allowed
players from different countries to support and play
as operators from their own countries military, rather
than always from the same one. The other reason the
ICO existed was to spotlight special forces units other
than the SAS, Navy SEALs and Delta, which are the
more common forces seen in movies and TV shows.
Running games with the ICO allows the operators to
act as PMCs with the laws governing war followed
by special forces, meaning that missions can happen
anywhere. However, the unit is still taking orders and
must respect the country they are in. Ghost Op units
will get kill orders and may be asked to do some-
thing that may counter laws or rights, but often this
is to stop a more significant crime or atrocity from
happening.
In the fiction, ICO members do not officially exist but
are funded by many countries worldwide; they engage
in deniable ops, and even though they will rescue
captured members, no country will come to their
rescue with ransoms or political help but instead deny
all knowledge of them.
 1-on-1 Play
Ghost Ops Second Strike was designed with four-per-
son squads in mind, but it does not need to be played
in this way, and some may want to do solo ops with
just a single operator and a Handler. It is advised that
any one-to-one ops are either stealth-based or agent
missions. We offer a few examples of these types of
missions below.
The operator infiltrates an enemy base to gather Intel and
kill or capture the HVT; the base is swarming with tangos,
too many to take on single-handed. The operator must
stealth and silently kill their way through the base. This
type of mission would be a mix of avoiding guards,
killing silently, and hacking security systems.
The operator is sent to guide a VIP through a city torn
apart by civil unrest; the VIP is wanted by the rebel faction
who now control the streets. Moving through streets
controlled by militia and scared citizens, locations like
Asia and South America, known for their winding
streets and large populations, work great.
The agent is sent to infiltrate a cartel or organised crime
boss; they receive an invite to a party, charity event or
something similar hosted at the HVTs mansion. The agent
must find the Intel they seek and get out alive. Movies
like True Lies, James Bond etc., have great examples of
these situations.
Watching movies, TV shows, and even video games
like Splinter Cell by Ubisoft will give great examples
of single operators engaging with thrilling and danger-
ous situations. See the Stealth section below for more
ideas or rules for running stealth missions.
Blueprint Play
Operators will often attempt to make coordinated
attacks on a location, which is easier using Blueprint
Play, but what is Blueprint Play?
Missions for Ghost Ops Second Strike will come with
blueprints of some locations; these can be given to the
players to coordinate a planned attack. Often coordi-
nated attacks will involve operators entering a loca-
97
tion at different access points, doors, windows, even
through thin walls. The operators will also each have
designated targets or actions they must engage with or
take for the whole plan to be successful. The operators
cannot deviate from the plan, or other operators could
get injured or killed.
A Blueprint Play will always give the operators
surprise on their targets and advantage, the team will
work in initiative order with each other, and the plan
must be arranged in that way; an example of a Blue-
print plan is given below.
The team had decided on a plan for taking out the
office of an organised crime gang. The gang had been
working through a legitimate cover business with
offices in a high rise. The team have been informed
that top members of the gang will be meeting in the
office, which seems to be an excellent opportunity to
cut the head from the snake.
Checking the blueprints, the team decide that two of
them will rappel down the outside of the building and
enter through the windows. The other two operators
will enter through the side doors to the office.
Mooseman and Ronin make it to the roof and rappel
down the outside of the building, positioning them-
selves just above the windows. Hawkeye sets a breach-
ing charge on the door while Hunter prepares a
flash-bang at their door. On the mark, the breaching
charge goes off. Hunter opens the door tossing in the
flash-bang; the charge and the stun grenade disori-
entate everyone. Immediately Ronin and Mooseman
come through the windows, guns up and firing (DN
2), getting the drop on those inside; this is quickly
followed by Hunter and Hawkeye entering the room.
In the above example, all the operators are working
with an advantage, and the bad guys lose their defence.
Having access to blueprints allows the operators to act
in this way, but of course, there are no blueprints for
every situation, and those will need to be planned on
the go.
 Example blueprint showing
organised assault
Stealth Play
Ghost Ops Second Strike can be played totally in
stealth mode, with operators attempting to infiltrate
areas with minimal footprint, avoiding or silently
dispatching guards and other threats, hacking obsta-
cles and using the environment to bypass locations.
The Active Operations chapter already covers rules
for stealth kills, so we will cover the other essential
aspects, covering your tracks and avoiding being seen.
To avoid guards, the operator must equal or beat the
guard’s Awareness stat using their Agility plus any
specialisations such as Stealth. Darkness will give the
operator an advantage on a roll as long as they stay in
the shadows. Failing stealth does not mean that the
operator is automatically caught but instead will mean
that the guards will investigate the noise, offering the
operator an opportunity to leave the area and hide. To
avoid a searching guard alerted to a sound will involve
98
another Agility roll with a disadvantage. Success indi-
cates that the operator evaded discovery with a fail
ending in either capture or a shoot out.
Hiding bodies and closing doors will help in not
alerting guards. Closing a door is a simple case of
remembering, whereas hiding a body will involve
another Agility roll or even a Focus roll to disguise or
camouflage the body, using the guard’s Awareness as
a DN.
As a Handler, you must offer opportunities to the
players; when describing a location, make sure to
mention pipes, bushes, areas of shadow, places an
operator can climb or hang from. Crates or nooks
that an operator can hide. Operators will find it hard
to stealth across wide open, flat areas during daylight
unless there are places to hide or use as cover.
 Varied Environments
The operators will travel across vastly different envi-
ronments, from deserts to the Arctic and jungles to
urban sprawls. Each environment will bring its chal-
lenges, from dehydration, hypothermia, to poisons and
collapsing structures, all need to be managed by you.
Operators who prepare for the environment in which
they are heading will always lessen their chances of
extra modifiers from thirst, cold etc., from hindering
their progress, but what about those times they are not
prepared? Operators that are suffering environmen-
tal effects should always act with a disadvantage until
they deal with those effects. Prolonged periods with-
out water or in intense heat or cold should accumulate
over time. Each day that the operator is still within the
environment, the modifier should increase, so day one
should have a disadvantage of -1, day two -2, and so
on; once they have passed day 3, they will not only be
at a -3 disadvantage but should also lose two wounds
per day.
99
Operators have survival training, which will slow down
the effects with a successful Fitness roll against a DN
of 4, staving off the effects. Each day the operators
must roll for as long as they are in that environment. If
the operator fails the roll on any given day, the DN is
increased by the disadvantage starting at +1; if the next
day they are successful, the DN returns to 4.
Flashback Mechanic
Operators can be allowed to use Boosts as a flash-
back device; for example, if the operators get to a point
where they are stuck or trapped, then a boost can be
used to determine a way out; see the example below.
The operators come to the end of a corridor with a
door, but the door is locked. They attempt to pick the
lock but fail. A gang of cartel members are getting
closer to the operator’s location; the operators are out
gunned. One player says they wish to use a boost as a
flashback; they state that they want to arrange for an
insider of the cartel to make sure this door is unlocked.
The Handler agrees, and the door is unlocked and
allows the operators to escape the cartel.
The Handler can decide that a flashback should cost
more than a single boost, based on what the player
wants the flashback to do; there is a big difference
between making sure that the vehicle in the garage is
fuelled up to pulling an LMG from the air and this
should be reflected on the boost cost.
Rewarding Success
Once the operators have completed missions and
fulfilled an objective, you will want to reward them
for a job well done, and this is done by handing out
Advancement Points (AVP).

When a boost is used for a flashback, the rules for AVP allows the operators to improve their attributes
boosts still apply. and specialisations, begin the game with an advantage
or contact info and increase their number of Boosts,
Secondary Objectives see pg 36 for more on spending AVP.

During a mission, a team can get called up to fulfil a The following table lists the amount of AVP that
secondary objective; this will often, if not always, be should be handed out to the operators at the end of
connected to the current objective the team is deal- every mission.
ing with. Examples of secondary objectives are shown
below. Action AVP
Completed a mission successfully 8
The team are hunting an HVT. The objective is to elim- Completed a mission partially 4
inate the target. As the operators near their target, a
Completed a secondary objective 2
secondary objective comes in to grab the HVTs laptop; this
then changes the operators plans to snipe the target from Work well as a Team 3
range. No killing of civilians 2
Obtained extra info 2
The operators are approaching a cartel base to burn it Thinking outside the box 4
down and take the cartel boss into custody. The unit Adapted to changes well 2
receives a call stating that satellite imagery shows that a
Completed mission without being seen 3
person of interest is currently a guest of the cartel boss and
Set off no alarms 3
needs also to be captured.
No casualties 4
The agent has infiltrated the offices of an organised crime
front and is about to hack the computer system when they Completed a mission successfully
get a call. Another agent is in the building and needs the All the primary objectives are completed.
operator’s assistance; once they have grabbed the Intel, they
must find and assist the second agent. Completed a mission partially
Not all primary objectives are met but main target
Secondary objectives should always be optional, with eliminated or captured.
the operators receiving more reputation and AVP
by completing them. Still, if it means re-entering a Completed a secondary objective
potentially lethal environment, the operators should Fulfilled any extra secondary objectives that came
have the option of not accepting the new orders. through.

Work well as a team

The operators communicated, took instruction and
were fluid.

100
No killing of civilians
No civilians were killed or harmed by the operators.
Obtained extra info
Operators found vital information that will help track
down and dismantle other threats.
AVP should only be rewarded for those actions relative
to the mission, for example, if there were no alarms to
trigger than the operators do not receive AVP for not
triggering alarms.
Using and Rewarding Reputation

Thinking outside the box Reputation is rewarded to the whole team not to indi-
Operators used their attributes and specialisations to vidual operators and with Reputation they can obtain
beat problems in interesting ways. specialist gear, call in air-drops/air-strikes and use a
contact on the field.
Adapting to changes well
Things can change quickly on the battlefield and oper- Action Reward
ators need to think on their feet not dither around and
Successfully completed mission 3
crumble under pressure.
Successfully completed secondary 2
Completed mission without being seen Action Cost
Operators completed mission without being spotted Air-drop 5
by a guard or camera. Air-strike 12
Call Contact 3
Set off no alarms
No alarms were triggered by the operators. Air-strikes will not be sent when directed at civilian
locations.
No casualties
No operators were wounded or injured in any way. Supply drops are ammo, standard gear and weapons.

101
 Random Mission Generator
The following tables are an expansion on the very
popular Ghost Ops Random Mission Generator
published by FeralGamersInc Ltd. Some of the tables
are repeated but new ones have been added for the
extra background options available in Ghost Ops
Second Strike.
Where?
The Location of the mission, the Handler rolls a D10
and consults the table below. For Spec Ops, ICO
and PMC missions. Roll a D6 for Tactical Police
missions and a D6 for Agent missions

Starting a mission has a number of distinct parts: D10 Spec Ops/ICO/PMC

1 Central American City
Pre-Mission Briefing - This is a broad overview of 2 European City
what the mission involves.
3 Cargo Ship
Load Out - This is where the Operators decide the 4 Island
equipment needed to complete the mission. 5 American Rural Location
6 South American Jungle
Pre-Deployment Check - The last chance to ask 7 African Jungle
questions and gather Intel. 8 Passenger Jet
9 American City
Deployment - Transportation to the mission loca-
10 Eastern Europe
tion.
D6 Tactical Police
Mission Breakdown - Each mission will come in 1 Passenger Jet
several parts and this is where how to best accomplish 2 Dangerous Neighbour-
those parts is decided. hood
3 Cartel/Gang Hideout
ExFil - The Operators must know how to return to a 4 Terrorist Cell
safe location once completing the mission.
5 Remote Compound
De-Brief - This includes any medical attention, a 6 Jungle Base
look back over any mistakes or particular lucky breaks D6 Agent
and the cleaning of weapons. 1 Office Building
2 Private Mansion
The Pre-Mission Briefing 3 European City
4 Casino
The Handler will give a break down of what the
5 Beach Resort
mission will involve, this will be a where, what and
how conversation. 6 Underground Base

102
 Random Mission Generator
What? Based on the number rolled the Handler can roll again
on the What Table to determine the other segments
The main mission objective is the type of mission the objectives or just choose.
Operators will be going on.
Mission Type Breakdown
D6 Mission Type
1-2 Recon The Handler can choose or roll on the following expla-
nations.
3 Retrieval
4 Escort
Recon Mission Requirements:
5 Assault
6 Infiltration • 1-2: Scout out a potential threat zero engage-
D4 Tactical Police ment.
1 Assault • 3-4: Gather Intel on an individual
2 Escort • 5-6: Map out a building or location.
3 Raid
Retrieval Mission Requirements:
4 Surveillance
D4 Agent • 1-2: Gather Intel from hostile forces
1 Infiltration • 3-4: Acquire an item and bring it back
2 Espionage • 5-6: Find and prepare an individual for rendi-
3 Escort tion.
4 Assassinate
Escort Mission Requirements:
This is a broad definition of the mission and it may be
• 1-2: Transfer an item to a pick up point
broken down it a number of small objectives.
• 3-4: Escort a VIP to their destination
• 5-6: Bring back a POW/Hostage alive
Mission Objective Segments

A missions main objective may be recon but it may

Assault Mission Requirements
include a number of smaller missions (called segments)
• 1-2: Take out an enemy location
that need to be accomplished in order to get to the
• 3-4: Kill an Important enemy figure
main mission. These segments are determined by the
• 5-6: Storm a location and release hostages
table below.

Infiltration Mission Requirements

2d6 Segments
2 1 • 1-2: Infiltrate a building, kill the target, no
3-4 3 witnesses
5-6 5 • 3-4: Assassinate 3 targets in plain sight, no
7-9 3 witnesses
10 - 11 2 • 5-6: Infiltrate agency building, hack systems,
plant bugs.
12 Re-roll with +1 segment

103
Raid Mission Requirements: Mission Deployment

• 1-2: Enter the location and eliminate all tangos
• 3-4: Enter the location arrest all tangos and
collect evidence.
• 5-6: Clear out location by floor making sure all
civilians are safely removed.
The Operators will be deployed to the location of the
mission in various ways, often this is a few miles out
side of the objectives zone and Operators are expected
to requisition a vehicle or hoof it to the Mission loca-
tion.

Espionage Mission Requirements: The Handler can roll or choose from the following
table.
• 1-2: Enter location, grab Intel and place explo-
sives. 1d6 Spec Ops/ICO/PMC
• 3-4: Reach mainframe and download files and 1 HALO Jump
then scrub drives. 2 Chopper Deployment
• 5-6: Reach HVT and extract them destroying
3 Passenger Airliner
all relative data.
4 Navy Vessel
Surveillance Mission Requirements 5 HAHO Jump
6 By Road
• 1-2: Understand the targets routines and follow D4 Tactical Police
them when necessary. 1 Chopper Deployment
• 3-4: Infiltrate the targets location and place
2-3 By Road/Boat
surveillance gear.
4 Rappel
• 5-6: Infiltrate targets organisation
D4 Agent
Assassination Mission Requirements 1-2 As a civilian
3-4 Undercover
• 1-2: Assassinate the target and make it look like
an accident. Sometimes deployment may take a few different jour-
• 3-4: Assassinate the target from distance neys and this can be decided by the Handler.
• 5-6: Assassinate the target and make it look like
a rival gang/faction/cartel did it. With certain forms of deployment there is need for a
Exfil from the location once the mission is complete.
Mission Specifics This does not affect Tactical Police or Agents just
Spec Ops, ICO and PMCs.
Each mission will have specific requirements or info
that needs to be taken into consideration. The follow- 1d6 Exfil
ing table can be used.
1-2 Chopper pick up
3 Boat
1d6 Mission Specific
4 Requisitioned Vehicle
1 No Witnesses
5 On Foot
2 High Risk Tango’s
6 Operators choice
3 Known Enemy Vulnerability
4 Precision Deployment
5 Heavy Civilian Area - No collateral Damage
6 HVT Wanted for by another Agency

104
 Mission Complications Mission Threats

These are complications that the Handler can throw in The operators will come up against a number of threats
to make the segments of the mission more interesting as they fulfil the mission, this can be in the shape of
or challenging. Tango’s, corrupt police forces or military and even
electronic security or booby traps, the following tables
1d6 Complication can help with deciding what the Operators face during
Recon the mission and it’s complications.
1-2 Guard patrol in wider area
1d6 Threat
3-4 Snipers
Tangos
5-6 Enhanced Electronic Surveillance
1-2 Minor d6
Retrieval
3-4 Standard d6
1-2 Enemy Forces know you are coming
5-6 Major d6
3-4 VIP held within secure location
Corruption
5-6 Item booby trapped
1-2 Police Force
Escort
3-4 Military
1-2 Road Blocks
5-6 Security Forces
3-4 A large number of POWs
Surveillance
5-6 You are being Hunted
1-2 Camera’s
Assault
3-4 Snipers
1-2 Enemy numbers doubled
5-6 Laser trips
3-4 Target within secure facility
Booby Traps
5-6 Location is booby trapped
1-2 Minefield
Infiltration
3-4 Rigged to explode
1-2 Location is occupied by civilians
5-6 Sound alarm
3-4 Targets in heavy civilian areas
5-6 Location has high security HVTs
Raid
1-2 Civilians used as human shields Mission objectives can often involve High Value
3-4 Tight corridors Targets, these can be known or unknown, and the
5-6 Location is booby trapped Mission could be about capture or avoidance. What
follows are a selection of HVTs that can be inserted
Espionage
into a mission or be the main objective.
1-3 Hacking detection systems
4-6 Heavily armed guards
1d6 HVT
Surveillance
1 Arms Dealer
1-3 Target expecting a tail
2 Gang Leader
4-6 Target uses doubles
3 Warlord
Assassination
4 Crime Boss
1-2 Heavy civilian area
5 Corrupt Politician
3-4 Target wears body armour
6 Cartel Boss
5-6 Bulletproof glass

105
 Tangos and HVTs • Influential – The HVT is known in certain
circles, could be rich, a prominent business owner,
Most missions will involve dealing with tangos and loved by the people (Pablo Escobar) or has friends
HVTs of some kind; how tough the tangos are and in high places.
how vital the HVT is will vary along with how well • Untouchable – The HVT is a politician,
financed, informed and equipped. protected by highly trained soldiers, has many
people in their pockets, or lives somewhere not
Each type of Tango has four attributes along with friendly to the operator’s host country.
a number of derived stats. Bad guys are listed under
three types, Minor, Standard and Major, as described The type of Tango or HVT the bad guy is will deter-
below mine their attributes and derived stats as shown
below.
• Minor – Minor bad guys are low rate, often used
as cannon fodder or as a cheap option. Tangos HVT
• Standard – These are what most operators will
Attribute Mnr Std Mjr Infl Untbl
experience, bad guys with some knowledge, will-
Awareness 2 3 4 4 4
ing to do what it takes and dedicated to the cause.
• Major – These usually are bosses and command- Skill 2 3 3 4 5
ers, and secondary objectives in some missions. Ranged 3 4 5 4 5
Melee 2 3 4 3 4
HVTs fall into two categories Influential and
untouchable, as described below. Wounds 3 4 6 8 12
Defence 1 2 3 3 4
Morale - 3 4 4 5

106
 Bad Guy Attributes Tango Gear

Awareness Many Tangos will not be as well armed and equipped

Used to detect stealthed attackers. Unlike the opera- as the operators. Below we list the most common
tors this is not a passive ability but must be rolled vs weapons and gear used by some Tangos. The exception
the lowest Stealth success number of the operators. to the rule will be Mercs who are often well funded
and as well trained as the operators.
The operator is using stealth to approach a guard the
player rolls the dice and adds their operators Agility Weapon Calibre
plus any specialisation, their total is a 6, this is now AK47 7.62
the DN that the guard has to equal or beat with their
Uzi 9mm 9mm
Awareness to spot the operator.
Glock (Pistol) 9mm
Skill Spas 12 Shotgun 12g
Used for climbing, chasing, driving etc.. Handlers can AR15 5.56
opt to ignore this attribute until it is really important Desert Eagle .50
to the narrative to use. Melee DMG
Machete 3
The operators are being chased by a pickup filled with
gun toting tangos. The Handler decides to use the Axe 3
players rolls to determine if the tangos catch up to Baton 2
them or manage to hit the operators vehicle. Armour AR
Kevlar 3
The operator manages to hit the tyre of the pickup, the Stab Vest 2
Handler rolls the dice and adds the skill of the Tango
Light Body 4
driving to see if they stay in control.
Gear ENC
Ranged Hand Radios 1
Used for ranged and throwing attacks. Flashlights 1
Zip Ties -
Melee First Aid Kit 1
Used for unarmed and armed attacks as well as grap-
ples. Higher level Tangos and HVTs may be better
equipped and even have military grade weapons and
Derived Stats armour but it is unlikely.

Wounds Tangos Worldwide

Work the same as operator wounds except they do not
give modifiers when reduced.
Defence
The number added to the base DN used to attack the
Tango with a melee attack.
Morale
Used to determine whether the tangos run or stay and
fight, the base is a DN 2 plus the tangos morale.
Below is a list of tangos that the Handler can use that
actually exist and where they are most likely to be
found. Tangos come in many shapes and sizes from
domestic activists to highly financed armies of fanatics
and even to whole countries that follow and ideology
or are lied to by a government that suppresses infor-
mation.

107
 Example
Tango Region The operators are sent to deal with a terrorist cell in
Rogue State Asia, Middle East, Africa Africa. This terrorist cell recently crashed a plane of
over 150 people, one of which was a whistleblower
Terrorist Cell Middle East, Africa
travelling to speak to a journalist about secret docu-
Drug Cartel South America, Asia ments he had found. A senior agent who is help-
Political Activist USA, Europe ing with the operation is aware that the agency they
Arms Dealer USA, Europe, Middle East work for financed that terrorist cell and aided them in
Fanatic Middle East destroying that plane as the whistleblower had damn-
Organised Crime South America, Eastern Europe ing information on the agency, which could not be
Pirates Africa, Asia known. The operators carrying out the mission could
discover all of this, so they have to be stopped. One
way to do that would be to accuse, plant evidence or
Rogue Operators
have something happen that makes the operators look
like criminals or traitors and be hunted themselves.
Can operators go rogue, and should you let them?

In some missions or with some player groups, the

Having the operators become hunted under false
operators may go rogue, but what does that mean?
accusations could be an exciting twist to a mission
Whether they be tactical police, agents or special
and turn a routine mission into one of survival with
forces, and even PMCs, operators have to abide by
no help from control and no access to safe houses
strict laws of engagement. Basically, the laws state that
or supply drops. Often the hunters will be another
killing civilians, killing for personal gain or hand-
special forces team or, more likely, a PMC with grey
ing over sensitive information and equipment to the
morals.
enemy is a crime.

Players may, by accident or on purpose, go on Spotting Snipers

rampages, bomb civilians or civilian buildings by acci-
dent or on purpose, or may hand over info to the bad
guys with the right incentive. This would lead to an
investigation and possible court-martial or suspen-
sion. This could be more dramatic for game purposes,
with other operators hunting down the player-con-
trolled operators, turning the tables; in this instance,
the operators hunting the players will be considered
Major Tangos.
Enemies of the State
Snipers are trained to find ideal shooting locations,
spend long periods watching for targets, and how to
camouflage themselves. When a sniper takes their
shot, should they be easy to spot and target in return?
A sniper can be hundreds of meters away from their
target; in forests and urban locations, they could be
anywhere, and in jungles, deserts or snowfields, they
will be blending in with their environment. This is
what makes a sniper so deadly.

But what if the operators are accused of something
they did not do?
The main character being hunted for a crime they did
not commit has been used in quite a few films, and it
can work with Ghost Ops Second Strike as well.
Tangos will be at +2 disadvantage to spot a sniper, as
will operators. If a sniper fails a shot, the disadvan-
tage to spot them drops to +1, and a critically failed
shot offers a standard chance that the targets will see
a reflection of light off a scope or a slight movement
exposing the sniper’s position.

108
 TPK & Capture
What happens if the whole team dies?
An unfortunate fact of life for many operators is that
what they do is dangerous, and often intelligence on a
mission is not always correct or has all the facts. Oper-
ators enter a situation hoping for the best but planning
for the worst, and this can sometimes lead to surprises
like tangos better armed or trained than expected or in
wait for the operators.
If a squad dies during a mission, another squad is sent
to collect the bodies and, if possible, finish the job.
Killing a highly trained team of operators will boost
the enemy, and any tangos left behind will be upgraded
to the next level, so Minor to Standard.
109
The capture of operators will lead to torture, and for
each day that the operator is captured, they must make
a Focus test vs DN 6 or lose one wound (SERE Train-
ing will help with this). A rescue mission will be set
up, and this will take 1d6+3 days to organise.
No member of a team is left behind, and that includes
any K9 units. A rescuing squad will often be from the
same force as the dead or captured operators; if any
Intel was sent from the original operators, it would
be known, meaning the second team may be better
prepared than the first.
In the ICO, captured operators are often considered
MIA due to the nature of their missions, and total
deniability by control takes effect. What this means is
that ICO operators are on their own if they decide to
rescue a captured member of the team.
 D6
Mechanic

Why Alternate Mechanics? How to Play

With the original Ghost Ops, it was discovered that Below is a breakdown of rules changes for the D6
many people liked the concept of the game but were system. This section is designed to be to the point for
either not interested, were not familiar or did not like you to pick up and understand any changes quickly
the Fudge dice we used, so this time it was decided to and easily.
offer every player two alternate systems.
Challenges
Both of the alternate systems within this book are
designed to work with the rules with very few changes Challenges still have a Difficulty Number, but this
so that once you have read the rules, you can seam- differs from the one used in the core book, as shown
lessly use any created operators with each of the three below.
mechanical systems.
Challenge DN
Below we go into the changes needed to use each Easy 3
system and any new rules that have been created to
Standard 5
facilitate this.
Hard 7
If a rule is not listed below it remains unchanged with Very Hard 9
just the dice type being different. Near Impossible 11

Operator Recruitment In order to overcome a challenge the player needs to

The system for creating an operator stays the same, as
does the AVP system and K9 operator creation.
Gear and Weapons
All gear and weapons act in the same way, with the
same damage and rules.
roll equal to or above the DN.
The above DN is just a guide and the Handler can use
numbers that fall between the DN listed on the table
as well as use the DN used in the core rules. It is easy
to adjust or replace either.

110
 Rolling the Dice
The player rolls a number of D6 equal to the operators
attribute and keeps the highest result. They then add
any specialisation bonus or other modifiers. If the total
equals or exceeds the DN they succeed.
Hunter is facing a difficulty seven situation, but in
a previous challenge, she had earned an Advantage,
so she uses it here, reducing the 7 to a 5, much more
manageable.
Successes and Failures

Hunter has a Coordination of 4 so the player rolls
4d6 and gets a result of 3, 4, 2 and 5. The five result is
the highest and to this the player adds Hunters CQB
specialisation of +1 for a total of 6. As the DN was a 5
then this was a success.
How successes and failures work has changed slightly,
but mainly to failures. For every two points that a roll
exceeds the target DN the operator’s success improves
from success to a good success and then a critical
success. The benefits of these do not change.

If the player rolls a number of high dice of equal value, With failures, there is not bad or critical failure, just
the player still only take one as a success with the failure unless, of course, the player rolls the dice, and
others adding a +1. every single one comes up with a 1 result; this is a
major fumble.
The player rolls 4d6 and gets a 2, 3, 5, 5. Five is obvi-
ously the highest result but because they rolled two of Combat
them they also receive a +1 making the result a 6. If
the player had rolled 5, 5, 5, 5 the highest result would Engaging in combat follows the same rules as in the
still be a five but with a +3 added for each extra 5 core rules section of this book. The to-hit DN will
rolled. change, though, to reflect the new Difficulty Numbers,
In another example if the player had rolled 5, 5, 5, 6 as shown below.
the result would only be six.
Location DN
Opposed Rolls
Head 9
In an arm wrestle situation, holding a door against a Body 5
wave of tangos or pulling a vehicle from a ditch, the Arms 7
operator makes an opposed action. In this situation, Legs 5
both parties roll their dice, and the highest result wins.
Defence
Hunter is arm-wrestling Yuri, a local member of a
rebel force. The player rolls 3d6 for Hunters Fitness Defence is still added to the DN when attacking
and get a 3, 3, 5. Hunter has Fitness Training at +1, someone with a melee.
which increases the 5 to a 6. The Handler rolls for Yuri
and gets a 4, 3, 5, 4. The highest result for the rebel is a Extra Damage
five, and Yuri loses to Hunter.
If the dice roll exceeds the DN of the attack, the extra
Advantage and Disadvantage successes are converted to damage and added to the
weapon damage.
Advantage and Disadvantage works the same way,
with Advantage lowering the difficulty and disadvan-
tage raising it

111
 Morale Handlers Section

The morale rule changes the DN to a 3 with a +1 per The rules within the Handlers section, along with the
casualty lost. Failure results in one of three results; this Random Mission Generator, are still relevant. Tangos
is rolled on a D6. and HVTs stay the same, and any optional rules can
crossover without any rewriting or home-brewing.
1-2 Enemy retreats
3-4 Enemy bunkers down and continues to fight Blueprint and 1-on-1 play rules do not need adjusting
5-6 Enemy surrenders and can be used as written. The character sheet can
also be used as it is with no adjustments.
Modifiers
Tangos and HVTs
Modifiers stay the same with maybe minor adjust-
ments made by the Handler based on the situation. The stats for Tango’s and HVTs are the same as
shown on pg 107, with the Handler adding arbitrary
Wound Modifiers bonuses when it feels right to do so.

Wound modifiers stay the same, with the penalty

coming from the dice total.

112
 D100
Mechanic

The second optional dice mechanic designed for the Difficulty DN

game. As with the D6 mechanic section, only those
Easy 1
changes that need clarification are explained below. If
the ruling is not listed, they work the same way with Standard 3
just a dice change. Difficult 5
Hard 7
Operator Recruitment Very Hard 9
Near Impossible 11
The creation of operators follow the same rules as does
the rules for AVP, Boosts etc.. The only real change is Difficulty numbers can be adjusted by modifiers and
specific Derived stats, as shown below. advantages and disadvantages, meaning they could
reach as high as 12. Likewise the operators ability
Perception is no longer passive and becomes active. could also be modified and reach as high as 12.

Gear and Weapons Rolling Dice

No changes to gear and weapons. Damage is no longer
increased by success, but on a roll of 01 will inflict
double damage.
How to Play
The following shows changes to how the game is
played. If the rule is not listed below, they do not
change their function, just the mechanic that powers
that rule, i.e. the dice roll.
With a d100 mechanic, the players will need access
to 2 ten-sided dice, with one of the dice designated
the units and the other the tens; this is often done by
choosing dice of different colours. The d100 mechanic
uses a percentile number that the player needs to roll
equal to or under with the ten-sided dice to succeed.
To discover the percentile number that the player must
equal or get lower than, the player compares the oper-
ator’s attribute + specialisation to the DN, as shown in
the table below.

113
 Difficulty Number / Defender
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
1 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 05% 03% 01%
2 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 05% 03%
Attackers Attribute

3 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 05%
4 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10%
5 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15%
6 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20%
7 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25%
8 85% 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30%
9 90% 85% 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35%
10 95% 90% 85% 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45% 40%
11 96% 95% 90% 85% 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50% 45%
12 98% 96% 95% 90% 85% 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% 55% 50%

Hunter has a Coordination of 4 and the pistol special-
isation at +1 giving her a total of 5. The Handler has
stated that the DN to hit the target is 6. Checking
the chart above Hunter needs to roll 45% or less to
succeed.
Hunter is behind cover and in a fire-fight. The cover
means that the enemy are at a -2 to hit hunter. The
to hit number is Standard or 3 and hunter also has a
+2 defence, this means that her defence is 5, (3+2=5).
The attackers Ranged stat is 4 but the disadvantage
reduces this to a 2. Checking the chart above the
attackers need to roll 35% or less to hit Hunter.
Opposed rolls also use the chart above with the oper-
ator’s attribute + specialisations Vs the oppositions
attribute + specialisation or stats.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantage and disadvantage work the same way
except that if a difficulty is below 1 or above 12
means, the difficulty is either 1 or 12; there are no
minus numbers.
Modifiers
The weapon, environment and other modifiers stay
the same, but the Handler can adjust them based on
the situation and the ability of the operator’s.
Wound modifiers also stay the same, with penalties of
-1 to -3 coming off the overall operator’s total.
Morale Rolls

Criticals and Fumbles Works by comparing the enemy’s morale against a

There are no levels of success with this mechanic;
instead, there are criticals and fumbles. A roll of 01
must be made to have a critical success, and a fumble
happens on the roll of a 00. A critical can offer extra
damage or an advantage. In contrast, a fumble could
be anything from a jammed weapon to a backfire or
civilian shooting.
DN of 4 +1 for each casualty and the Handler rolling
under the percentage number. Failure is then rolled on
a d6 to discover the result.
1-2 Enemy retreats
3-4 Enemy bunkers down and continues to fight
5-6 Enemy surrenders

114
 Handler Section
Tangos HVT
The rules within the Handlers section, along with Attribute Mnr Std Mjr Infl Untbl
the Random Mission Generator, are still relevant. Awareness 4 6 8 7 8
Tangos and HVTs do change (see below), and any Skill 4 6 6 7 10
optional rules can crossover without any rewriting or Ranged 5 7 9 7 10
home-brewing.
Melee 4 6 8 6 8
Blueprint and 1-on-1 play rules do not need adjust-
ing and can be used as written. The character sheet can Wounds 5 4 6 8 12
also be used as it is with no adjustments. Defence 3 5 7 6 8
Morale 1 3 4 4 5
Tangos and HVTs

Due to changes between the Fudge based version of

Ghost Ops Second Strike and the d100 version the
Tango and HVT stats need to change but this will not
affect any other aspect of the game.

Changes to Tango stats will basically be double what

they would be in the Fudge based game, as shown on
the table below. Stats such as defence will be tripled in
order to make it more fair. HVT stats will also increase
but not double as shown on the same table below.

Wounds will stay the same as weapon damage will not

change. Weapons and gear stays the same as listed on
Pg 107

115
 Introductory
Mission
A Mission in Three Parts
This is an introductory mission for new players
which can be used by returning or existing players.
The mission is in three parts and uses three different
playstyles. Each mission can take a single session, and
players will need to either use the pre-generated oper-
ators supplied or create new operators, whether they
be careers or backgrounds.
It is suggested that each mission has between 2-4
operators for a balanced non-cluttered game. When
it is advised to attempt a challenge, the key attribute
will be stated, and it is advised for the players to check
their operator’s specialisations for any modifiers.
The Handler is given a lot of control over these
missions and they will be expected to set Difficulties
based on the operators abilities.
Overview
Dario Martinez is a prominent property owner and
society figure in Florida, often seen at charity func-
tions and galas. Martinez can claim the Florida
Mayor and District Attorney as close friends, and
many people have encouraged him to get into politics.
116
The truth is that Martinez, along with his brother
Ramos are the heads of a major drug cartel in Colom-
bia. Ramos still controls the cartel funnelling money
through various shell companies to his brother; Dario
then uses that money to buy properties and gain
influential friends.
The DEA has Dario and his brother under surveil-
lance, and though they know how Dario has earned
his wealth, they need to be able to catch Dario in the
act in a way that will allow them to take both the
brothers and the cartel down. During their surveil-
lance, the DEA notice that communications have
begun between Dario and another unknown person
regarding a package. Though it is suspicious, the
agency does not think it has anything to do with their
investigation, so they pass on the Intel to Homeland
Security.
Homeland security starts their investigations and
discovers that Dario and Ramos spent the early
nineties in Cuba smuggling American goods in and
Cuban goods and people out. During their time in
Cuba, communism fell with the Berlin wall. After the
fall of communism, several briefcase-sized nuclear
devices went missing. It is believed that some ended
up in Cuba, and soon after that, Dario and Ramos
returned to Colombia and started their drugs cartel.
Further investigation indicates that the brothers
purchased a briefcase nuke. It is believed that Dario is
selling the nuke to a domestic terror group, but when,
and who the group are is unknown.
Each part of the mission is a step closer to stopping
a possible terrorist attack with a nuclear device, each
part must be done in order, and each part should take
no longer than one or two sessions. Each part also
includes a different group of operators, from agents to
tactical police and special forces.
Part 1: The Mansion Party
The players are Agents of either Homeland Security or
the ICI. One of them must have the SIGINT speciali-
sation. This part is best done with three agents but can
be played with 2 or 4 agents easily.
The agency has obtained invites for two agents using
a fake construction company interested in gaining a
contract to build some condos with Dario.
This mission has many working parts and many areas
where the agents can go off script, it is advised the
Handler improvises DN’s and reactions based on
player decisions.
The Cover
The construction company is a shell created by the
agency and have placed the agents as joint owners; this
also includes back profiles and identity for each agent,
which will coincide with construction business owners.
Agent Roles
Agent #1: Surveillance – This agent is in the van
scanning surveillance cameras, nullifying alarms and
doing the driving in the case of a getaway.
Agent #2: The agent is tasked with locating and
entering the server room of the mansion to hack the
internal networks and set up the bugs for the agent in
the van. In the case of fewer agents, this agent can play
both the role of agent #1 and #2.
117
Agent #3: Trade-craft – The agent will enter the
mansion as a guest and obtain a key-card from Dario,
distract the security whilst also obtaining information
from Dario and his guests.
Agent #4: Infiltration – The agent will enter along
with agent #3 receive the key-card and then locate the
office of Dario and download any information they
can find regarding the sale of the ‘package’, once done
they will exit to the van driven by agent #1 and along
with all the other agents leave the mansion. This agent
can play the roles of agents #3 and #4.
The Party
Almost 300 people turn up to the event at the
Martinez mansion, security guards patrol the grounds
and keep the guests safe. Invites are checked, and the
agents will be expected to pass through a metal detec-
tor before being allowed inside.
Dario will be seen walking around the party, talking
and shaking hands, with a security guard following
behind. A band is playing, and waiters and waitresses
are walking around with trays of drinks and food.
Dario will be carrying the key-card to his office, and
the agents need that key-card to gain access to Dario’s
computer. Obtaining the key-card is a DN 7 task and
will use trade-craft (Agility). To converse with Dario
will use HUMINT (Intellect) DN 4.
• Telling Dario that they are interested in a contract
• Discussing future plans of Dario’s career
• Claiming they are friends with Ramos
Once an agent has managed to get the key, they should
pass it on to another agent whilst they stay to continue
talking with Dario or stay in the party as a backup.
Without the Key-card the door to the office cannot
be opened, enterprising Handlers may wish to create
other ways into the office, such as vents etc. but this is
up to them.
 Mansion 2nd floor
Back Stairs

Office

Main Stairs Mansion Ground Floor

Back Stairs

Server Room
Mansion Basement

Garden
Entrance
Main Stairs

Party
 give access to agent #1 in the van to hack into the
Stealing the Key-card servers and control the security camera feeds. This will
Stealing the keyboard will not be easy, and a distrac- allow agent #1 to over-watch for agents #3 and #4.
tion may be needed to do so, but what if the agents fail
to get the card? If agent #1 has access to the security Agent #2 can then either retreat to the van or deal
via the servers, the Handler can technically allow agent with any side objectives that may be sent from control.
#1 to hack the office doors keypad using Intellect and
SIGINT (DN 6). An attempt to steal the key-card The Van
that fails can also place the agent in danger, nothing
will happen during the party, but security will take the Agent #1 is a vital part of the operation as they will
agent and lock them up until police arrive or Dario has guide the agents in the mansion, alerting them of
the chance to “speak” to them. Any agent captured will guards and potentially unlocking security doors. Also,
need to be rescued. the agent in the party will transfer files to the van
from Dario’s office; this will involve hacking Dario’s
computer (Intellect DN 6, SIGINT).
The Server Room
Security guards will check out suspicious noises and
The server room is located in the cellar, which is
do routine patrols around the mansion, making it
accessed via the mansion grounds. The door to the
extremely difficult for anyone to move around the
cellar is locked (Agility, Trade-craft) DN 4. Entering
mansion without being spotted unless they have
the cellar leads first into a storage area holding tools,
an extra set of eyes. For each round that an agent is
bags of cement and other items. A passage leads from
moving through the restricted areas of the building,
the storeroom to the server room.
the agent in the van must roll a dice (either a fudge
dice or a D6) on a roll of - or 1-2 the guards are
Three security guards (standard tangos) are stationed
suspicious and searching, on a roll of 0 or 3-4 the
in the cellar, one stays in the server room, and the
guards are just patrolling, and on the roll of a + or
other two move around or spend time in the server
5-6, the guards are relaxing or chatting.
room drinking and chatting.
The agent in the van should relay this to the agent
Two of the guards can be avoided with stealth, but the
inside to keep them from being discovered.
server room guard will need to be dealt with. All secu-
rity are ex-military and will shoot intruders, so stealth
The Bust
is essential. The agents are allowed to defend them-
If the Handler has Busts, they can use these to have
selves but killing security guards will be frowned upon.
the van noticed, maybe a guard patrolling the grounds
spots the van and investigates, this will cause problems,
Flashbacks
not only forcing Agent #1 to give a reason for being
This is a good point to discuss flashbacks and using
their (Intellect, HUMINT DN 4) but also taken them
Boosts to have one. An agent can use a flashback to
away from keeping an eye on the security cameras.
solve a problem, for example maybe the flashback is of
the agent obtaining a taser or tranq guns to deal with
The agent in the van is also the driver and must be
guards. Or maybe one of the guards is an old army
prepared to leave the area once the agents have left,
buddy or ex-agency, maybe they have a criminal record
whether calmly away from the location or quickly,
they wish to have removed. Flashbacks are great for
whilst being chased.
sorting out sticky situations.

Once the agent has gained access to the servers and

security cameras (Intellect DN 6, SIGINT), they must

119
 The Office
Dario’s office is on the second floor of the mansion
and is locked with a key-card. A guard patrols the
corridor that the office is on. Without the key-card,
the office is impossible to enter. The agent in the
van can override the lock as long as they have secu-
rity access, and to do this would be a DN 6 (Intellect,
SIGINT).
Inside the office will be a desk, filing cabinets, a
computer, and an air break laptop; the laptop is only
linked to the internal servers and has no internet
connection. This laptop holds a lot of relative files, and
the agent needs to decide the following:
1. Print the files; this will take time and create noise
2. Steal the laptop; this will make it hard to leave as it
is bulky and will set off the metal detectors
3. Steal the laptop’s hard drive, which would set off
metal detectors at the main door.
The agent will need to decide what to do whilst coor-
dinating with the other agents; the options are:
Leave the mansion via another exit, maybe the
window, bypassing the detectors. If spotted by secu-
rity, this will look suspicious.
Hand-off the hard drive to another agent and distract
security whilst they climb down the outside of the
building.
Use a Boost to have a flashback where you decide to
take along a flash drive disguised as a phone or some-
thing, constructed from plastics etc.., and upload the
hard drive to it.
Lower the laptop out of the window and instruct
agent #1 or #2 to collect it.
The agent should also place a key-logger onto the
desk computer (DN 4) to allow the agency to keep an
eye on all of Dario’s other dealings. Once done, the
agent should leave the office and return to the party
and eventually make excuses and exit the mansion.
120
The Escape
As long as none of the agents were discovered, they
can leave the party and return to the van. If the agents
are discovered and attempt to escape, they will be
chased, first on foot by security, who will shoot to kill,
and if the agents reach the van, they will be chased by
vehicles with security using Humvees. If it becomes
too loud, the police will be called.
Escaping the area without detection and with the
laptop or the information it held is a Mission success;
not obtaining the information is a mission failure, and
a second operation will need to be tempted.
Side Objectives
Below is a list of suggested side objectives that can be
included in this part of the mission.
• The DEA want a bug placed in the office of
Dario.
• One of the security guards is a wanted fugitive
and must be returned to police custody
• A guest at the party is there to kill Dario, and the
DEA need them stopped
Part 2: Operation Keyside
The second part of the mission starts when the
agents pass the information they have found onto
law enforcement. Each player is now a tactical police
squad member planning an operation on a dockside
warehouse owned by an organised crime game.
Overview
Files found by undercover agents show that Dario
Martinez, a prominent Florida businessman, is
attempting to sell a briefcase nuke to the highest
bidder. Emails found in Martinez’s computer show
that contact was made with an unknown group with
connections to a Boston organised crime family.
According to the emails, the nuke will be delivered to
the warehouse on the Boston docks and then trans-
ported from there by the crime gang to the buyers.
Warehouse
Bathrooms

Offices

Main Area

121
A police tactical unit has placed surveillance on the
warehouse but has seen no activity, so it is decided
to send in a tactical squad. The squad must include a
breacher and demolitions expert.
The Warehouse
The warehouse belongs to an organised crime gang,
and police have known for a while that they use it
for smuggling goods via boat to other parts of Amer-
ica but have never been able to prove it. With the
evidence from the communications found on Dario’s
computer, the police now have a legitimate reason to
enter.
The warehouse is large, and gang members have been
seen entering, but no sign of the briefcase nuke has
been verified. It is believed that there are at least four
gang members in the warehouse.
The Plan
Players should plan how they will enter the ware-
house. The Handler can allow drones or infra-red to
determine the location of each gang member so that
the operators can use that to decide their entry. Gang
members should be marked on the map.
Random Gang Placement
The Handler can place the gang members where they
like, or they can make the placement random. This is
done quickly by splitting the warehouse map into four
parts, rolling a D4 for each gang member, and placing
them there.
Warehouse
Main Area - This is a large open area; assorted boxes
and shelves stand against the walls, and a forklift
stands in the centre of the floor. The warehouse is lit
by strip lights that hang from the ceiling. By moving
the forklift, a hatch is revealed on the floor.
Offices - A selection of offices that look normal and
have no apparent clues to illegal activities. An obser-
vant operator will notice that many cables seem to go
into the floor rather than plug sockets or devices.
122
Bathrooms - The bathrooms look like ordinary bath-
rooms though maybe a little untidy.
With a routine investigation, the warehouse appears
like any other; Handlers should nudge players to take
more time searching (Focus DN5, Investigation) to
discover either the hatch under the forklift or the
cables entering the floor indicating a basement of
some kind.
Gang Members
Members of a prominent and influential crime family
based in Boston, the people in the warehouse, will not
give up easily unless they feel they have no choice. If
the plan to enter the warehouse goes well, roll Morale
for the gang members. If the plan does not go well,
allow the gang members the chance to get themselves
into cover. The primary purpose of the people in the
warehouse is to protect the bunker below, and none of
the gang members in the warehouse will indicate that
the bunker exists.
Each gang member is a standard Tango and is armed
with a selection of handguns, shotguns and assault
rifles, along with kevlar armour.
The Bunker
Once the operators discover that the Bunker exists
under the warehouse, they need to plan how to
proceed. The hatch is only 3ft square and leads to a
ladder that descends around 10ft to the floor below.
D6+2 tangos populate the bunker, and an Awareness
vs DN 4 for the tangos will decide whether they are
aware of the operators raiding the warehouse above.
Tangos not Aware – Operators can get the jump on
the tangos, roll morale.
Tangos Aware – Operators are walking into a possible
trap and could be surprised. Recon, drones or sending
the dog in will cancel out any surprise attacks.
 Bunker

Escape Tunnel
Storage Area

Bunks

Hatch

Comms
Area

Office

Bathroom

123
 Inside the Bunker
Operators will only be able to enter the bunker one at
a time. The Handler must have deduced whether the
gang knows of the raid, (see above), as this will change
what the operators face when descending the ladder.
Will they face barricades, will the gang run or hide,
and so forth.
Gang members need to react to the operators and be
placed where it is best to cause the players problems,
and the opportunity to plan their attacks and avoid
being ambushed or overwhelmed. Gang members
will be armed with a selection of shotguns, pistols and
assault rifles.
Hatch - The hatch leads to a large open area with a
concrete floor and walls. A strip light illuminates the
area. Handlers can decide that if the gang is aware of
the raid, they have built cover from crates etc.. and
will be waiting for the operators to descend the ladder,
in which case the players will need to work out how
to enter the bunker safely. Unless flash-bangs or other
distractions are used, then the gang is at an advantage
when shooting at anyone using the ladder.
Bunks - A room with bunks and lockers for gang
members that work down in the bunker for days at a
time. Gang members can use the bunks as cover, and
more weapons will be found here.
Comms Area - Computers and radios cover desks
and tables; hacking and downloading info from
these will discover information regarding the current
mission and information on crimes which will aid
other investigations. Computers are encrypted (Intel-
lect and SIGINT Vs DN 7).
Office - A standard-looking office, on the wall, is a
shotgun and in the corner a locked safe. The operators
could search the office for a key (DN 5), or use some
other method, question gang members, pick the lock
or blow the lock with explosives.
Bathroom - A typical bathroom with stalls and
urinals.
124
Storage Area - A large area filled with crates, gun
cases and cabinets filled with tools, illegal items and
weapons, this is where most of the gang will run to
and set up a last stand with barricades and cover, and
if they can use the secret tunnel to escape when they
get the chance.
Escape Tunnel - This tunnel leads to a field near
the docks and allows the gang to move goods without
anyone noticing. The tunnel is large enough to allow
a mid-sized truck to move down it. This is where
many of the gang will attempt to flee. The tunnel is
unknown to the Feds and police.
The Discovery
The nuke has gone, but a laptop will be found with
communications with a group calling themselves the
American Patriots. The information, evidence and
computers are handed over to the agency.
An interesting piece of information will be also found
stating that a number of gang members went to visit
the Patriots due to the group requesting help with
cracking security and a safe.
Secondary Objectives
Capture - This objective is simple, capture the gang
members so they can be questioned on other crimes.
Shoot to wound if possible.
Intel – Find information regarding the gang’s
contacts, jobs and key members.
Part 3: Operation Wayward
Delta
The raid in Boston was too late, but they gathered
enough Intel for the agencies to determine the threat
and to start planning an operation.
Overview
A group calling themselves the American Patriots
have planted a bomb in a Las Vegas casino called The
Castle Rock. The casino is host to a delegation from
Saudi Arabia who has arrived to discuss business deal-
ings from arms to oil with various US companies; the
American Patriots feel this is another example of the
USA being sold off to the highest bidder and Ameri-
can jobs being farmed off to cheaper foreign countries.
To demonstrate their disapproval, the Patriots hold the
delegation and several American citizens hostage and
threaten to detonate the nuke unless their demands are
met.
The mission will not be simple, and operators are
advised to make sure they go fully kitted as getting
gear and ammo to them would be impossible once
they enter the casino.
The Terrorists
The American Patriots formed in the Bible Belt of
America as a Christian group that would demonstrate
against events and other things they felt were unamer-
ican and unchristian. This changed when a member
blew up an abortion clinic in Idaho, killing four
doctors and several young men and women.
The group quickly became more militant as the federal
government began to take more interest in their activ-
ities. Soon after the clinic bombing, an unknown
benefactor started funnelling money into the group,
allowing them to buy land and build a compound and
attract new members. As the years passed, it became
clear to Federal Agents that the Patriots were planning
something, but what that involved was not clear. Then
two months ago, communications were intercepted
between the Patriots and the crime family in Boston.
Though the communications were often encrypted or
spoken in code, the Feds decided that it had some-
thing to do with buying weapons. Still, they never
expected a nuclear device and hence kept an eye on the
Patriots.
It is believed that there are at least 20 armed Patri-
ots in the casino, maybe more. The group are highly
trained are and carrying military-grade weapons along
with body armour. They are fanatics in their beliefs
and are willing to die for the cause. They are using the
internet to talk to supporters outside the casino, and
125
the Feds are concerned that many of these supporters
may decide to offer their support in a more direct way.
The VIP Hostages
The Patriots have at least 17 VIP hostages; the Feds
are not precisely sure of numbers as it is unclear how
many secretaries and other support staff were with the
delegates and company negotiators. What is known is
that seven vital Saudi VIPs and at least four American
CEO s are amongst them
None of the Hostages will attempt to escape or over-
whelm the terrorists so the operators will not find any
help there.
The hostages are located on the conference level,
which is on the 14th floor of the casino; the elevators
to the floor have been shut down, and communica-
tions between terrorists are done via radio.
Other hostages are being kept on the ground floor
along with the bomb.
The Bomb
The briefcase nuke is old compared to today’s muni-
tions. Still, if detonated, it will level a two-mile radius
of the city and turn the area not just back into a desert
but a highly radioactive one, with possible casualties
of around one hundred thousand. The age of the bomb
is a benefit, and a curse as its age could make it less
stable, but on the flip side, if the operators can locate
it, then defusing it should be pretty standard. Defus-
ing the bomb will need an operator with the CBRNE
specialisation with a DN of 7.
It is advised that the operators defuse the nuke before
freeing the hostages to remove the terrorist’s main
threat. The nuke has been placed somewhere on the
ground floor with six of the terrorists along with up to
30 hostages consisting of casino staff and customers;
the terrorists allowed the majority of the people in the
casino to leave after rounding them up, only retaining
30 as a deterrent against a raid by the authorities.
Ground Floor

1. Main Doors
2. Foyer
3. Show Rooms
4. Restaurant
5. Throne Room
6. Tower Room
7. Elevators
8. Stairs

6
 5

3
2

1
14th Floor

1. Foyer
2. Restaurant
3. Small Meeting Rooms
4. Kitchens
5. Large Conference Room 1
6. Large Conference Room 2

5
4

2
1
6

3
If the operators decide to head to the 14th floor first
or split the team and the hostage rescue fails, the
terrorists on the ground floor could detonate the
bomb, and they will, without a second thought, this
should be made clear. If this happens, it is advised
that the bomb has a timer giving the operators a small
amount of time to get to the bomb and defuse it.
The Ticking Bomb
If the timer is set, the operators will have 10 minutes
to get to the bomb and defuse it; the timer being set
will make the process of defusing harder, and the
operator tasked with the job will need two successes.
To show the passing of time, place a ten-sided dice in
front of you, with the ten visible and when each of the
operators has acted, the dice is flipped to the follow-
ing number, counting down to one. The terrorists will
attempt to stop the operators and will use hostages as
shields.
The Vault
The casino has a large vault which is located beneath
the ground floor in a secure area. Currently, three
Boston gang members are in the basement trying to
break in. The gang hopes that the excitement upstairs
will cover what they are doing and give them enough
time to enter the vault and leave with the contents
during all the confusion. The gang members think the
Patriots are dangerous lunatics but also an opportu-
nity.
The gang will not know about the Boston raid or the
current situation as they do not leave the vault and
have no actual contact with the terrorists.
The Casino
The operators will have access to the blueprints of the
casino and the floor on which the hostages are being
held. This will allow them to make a blueprint play or
act like a regular play and move through that floor.
The maps here are for the Handler and are repeated
in Appendix A, and are available to download on the
Internet.
130
The casino itself is a tall building of glass and steel,
and windows surround every floor. The operators can
choose how they enter and should be allowed to use
the blueprints provided to choose how they will enter
the building to fulfil the mission objectives.
Primary Objectives
• Save the Hostages
• Defuse the Bomb
Secondary Objectives
• Capture or eliminate the Patriots
• Stop the raid on the vault
It may quickly become apparent that saving the
hostages and defusing the bomb will need to be done
simultaneously to stop one group of terrorists from
communicating with the other. To do each individu-
ally would involve a very tight and coordinated strike
which would achieve the objective so fast that the
target group would not have time to communicate
with the other.
If the operators decide to defuse the bomb and fail
on their approach, the terrorists on the 14th floor will
start to execute the hostages. If the operators attack
the 14th floor and are spotted, then the terrorists on
the ground floor will set the nukes countdown. Either
of these outcomes would lead to a fail.
The operators may decide that the nuke is more criti-
cal as its detonation would kill many more people and
be more devastating, and they would be correct. Still,
they also need to consider the loss of human lives in
each scenario and attempt to do both objectives as
quickly and as quietly as possible to succeed.
The Handler should allow the use of flashbacks, have
the players spend as much time as possible with the
blueprints, give them all the equipment they need and
even allow questioning of casino security and staff if
they request it.
Snipers
It is possible to place a sniper on the opposite build-
ing as either over-watch for the operators that may
rappel down from the roof or as an attempt to elimi-
nate the threat. The Handler must decide whether the
windows are tinted, blinds or curtains closed and allow
the operator to use a boost to counter that. Using a
sniper to take out terrorists is possible as long as they
are a good shot, as one failed attempt could make the
whole plan quickly fall apart.
Ground Floor Main Casino
The ground floor has a lot of furniture made of wood
that can be used as cover. The rooms all have double
doors that can be locked from the inside without a key
and outside with a key. There are security cameras on
the walls and the ceilings. These are linked to the secu-
rity room in the basement but have been deactivated
by the terrorists due to fear of them being hacked.
The hostages can be in any area other than the Foyer.
There will always be at least five terrorists with the
hostages, no matter how much noise is outside, and
the terrorists will use the hostages as a bargaining chip
before they set the bomb. They will only set the bomb
if the terrorists on the 14th floor tell them to.
1. Main Doors
The main doors to the casino usually are automatic,
but that has been switched off, and the doors are now
chained shut from the inside. These can be breached
either with rams or charges, which would alert those
inside or using bolt cutters or cutting torch for a more
silent approach.
2. Foyer
There is a chance that a terrorist can be found here
behind the booking in desk, keeping an eye on the
door. This will make entering through the door more
difficult.
3. Show Rooms
These are two large theatres for shows like guest sing-
ers, Broadway shows and even acrobatic displays. Rows
of chairs and areas with tables. A bar and kitchen area
for drinks and food.
4. Restaurant
Large restaurant with kitchen and bar.
131
5. Throne Room
The casino’s main gambling area, called the Throne
room, decked out like a medieval throne room, with
shields and ancient weapons on the wall. Roulette
wheels, blackjack and poker tables fill the area with
slot machines lining the walls.
6. Tower Room
The smaller of the two gambling halls, similar to the
Throne Room in design and layout.
7. Elevators
A bank of elevators has been shut down by the terror-
ists, who can switch them on when they wish. The
operators can reach every floor by climbing the eleva-
tor shaft; this would be a Fitness DN 4 challenge for
each floor reached.
8. Stairs
Emergency stairs, the doors have been chained from
the inside, but each door has a safety glass panel in the
upper half which could allow access to the chain. There
is a terrorist posted on the stairs on the 14th floor.
Desks and filing cabinets have been used to block the
stairwell on that floor and to give the terrorist cover.
The narrowness of the stairs and the cover that has
been constructed gives the terrorist that is posted here
advantage and anyone attacking them disadvantage.
14th Floor Conference Level
The VIP hostages and the leaders of the Patriots can
be found on this level in one of the areas other than
the Foyer. The meeting rooms will be easy to defend
and may be the obvious choice. The 14th floor does
have windows that could be accessible by someone
descending from the roof. Whether the windows are
tinted or not is decided by the Handler.
1. Foyer
Barricades and terrorists can be stationed here if they
believe that the operators may use the stairs or eleva-
tors to access the 14th floor.
2. Restaurant
The restaurant is used by conference delegates and is
not used when the conference rooms are not occupied.
3. Small Meeting Rooms
A few smaller, more secure rooms for important meet-
ings. These rooms have soundproof glass, utilities for
coffee, tea etc.. Internet access with large wall moni-
tors for remote meetings. The tables are solid oak and
very heavy.
4. Kitchens
Large well-equipped kitchen for serving meals to
conference attendees.
5. Large Conference Room 1
A large room with rows of seats and a stage at the
front for public speaking and lectures. The back of the
stage is filled with a large screen.
6. Large Conference Room 2
The same in every way to large conference room 1.
Optional Objectives
Capture the Patriot Leader and as many patriot
members as possible for interrogation, and informa-
tion that could lead to the arrest of Dario Martinez.
Stop the robbery of the vault by the Boston gangsters,
if this does not happen the gang escape with what-
ever valuables were in the vault. (This could be a start
of another mission against the Boston crime family,
especially if important papers were held in the vault).
Mission Success
Completing each part of the mission successfully,
saving the hostages, and defusing the nuke will be a
success. Each part needs the success of the last part
to be activated. The Handler should hand out AVP
for each part after completion with extra AVP to the
player, which they can use for improving their next
operator.
If some hostages are killed, but the VIP hostages
are saved and the nuke defused, the mission is still
considered a success.
132
If the hostages are saved, but the nuke is not
disarmed, this would be a partial success unless the
nuke is on a countdown, in which case, as soon as it
detonates, it will be considered a fail.
Mission Failure
Detonation of the Nuke or the killing of the VIP
hostages is a mission failure. Defusing the nuke but
having the hostages die is still a mission fail.
Handler Note
The mission is very wide open in parts to allow the
players to decide their operators actions as a unit, and
to allow the Handler to plan ahead for whatever the
players decide to do. Having barricades set up or the
hostages held in particular locations would limit the
Handlers ability to adapt to the player choices.
Tangos and Pre-Generated
Operators
All the Tangos that the operators will face are listed
on the following page and can be changed or used
as is by the Handler. The Tangos are of a level that
would challenge new players using new operators
that have not been advanced. It is recommended that
the Handler increase the Tangos’ stats to reflect the
experience of the operators that already have a few
missions under their belts.
Also supplied are pre-generated operators for each
mission with four agent operators, four tactical police
and four special forces. These pre-generated opera-
tors are included for quick or convention play. These
operators should be transferred to the Operator sheets
supplied in Appendix A.
 Part One - Mansion Part 3 - Casino

Dario Martinez HVT Influence Patriot Leader Major Tango

Awareness - 4 Awareness - 5
Skill - 5 Skill - 5
Ranged - 4 Ranged - 4
Melee - 3 Melee - 3

Wounds - 8, Defence - 3, Morale - 4 Wounds - 6, Defence - 3, Morale - 5

Weapons - 9mm in ankle holster Weapon - Assault Rifle 5.56
Armour - Light body 4
Mansion Security Standard Tango
Patriot Terrorist Standard Tango
Awareness - 5
Skill - 4 Awareness - 2
Ranged - 4 Skill - 2
Melee - 4 Ranged - 3
Melee - 2
Wounds - 6, Defence - 2, Morale - 3
Weapon - Glock 17, MP5s Wounds - 3, Defence - 1, Morale - 0
Armour - Body armour 3 Weapon - Assault Rifle 5.56
Part Two - Docks Armour - Light Body 4

Boston Gang Boss Major Boston Gang Member Standard Tango

Awareness - 4 Awareness - 3
Skill - 4 Skill - 3
Ranged - 5 Ranged - 4
Melee - 4 Melee - 3

Wounds - 6, Defence - 3, Morale - 4 Wounds - 6, Defence - 2, Morale - 3

Weapon - Glock 17, Remington Shotgun Weapon - Shotguns, 9mm handguns

Boston Gang Member Standard NPCs

Awareness - 3 Casino staff and customers that are held hostage and
Skill - 3 the VIPs on the 14th floor are considered Minor
Ranged - 4 Tangos stat wise for any collateral damage purposes.
Melee - 3

Wounds - 4, Defence - 2, Morale - 3

Weapon - Shotguns, Assault Rifles, 9mm Handguns

133
 Agent Pre-Gen Agent Pre-Gen

Call-sign: Call-sign:
Nationality: USA Nationality: USA
Career: Homeland Security Career: Homeland Security

Attributes Attributes

Coordination 3, Reflexes 2, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility Coordination 2, Reflexes 1, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility
1, Intellect 3 3, Intellect 3

Derived Stats Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 2, Encumbrance: 11, Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 2, Encumbrance: 12,
Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3, Initiative: 2, Actions: +0, Perception: 3,

Boosts: 3 Boosts: 3

Specialisations Specialisations

CBRNE Training +1 CBRNE Training +1

HUMINT +1 HUMINT +1
Investigate +1 Investigate +1
Medical +1 Medical +1
Pistol +1 Pistol +1
Drive +1 Stealth +2
SIGINT +1 Computers +1
Computers +2 Hand-to-Hand Combat +1

Gear Gear

Primary Handgun Primary Handgun

Van Black Clothing
Tool kit Hack Tools
Fake ID Lock Picks

134
 Agent Pre-Gen Agent Pre-Gen

Call-sign: Call-sign:
Nationality: USA Nationality: USA
Career: Homeland Security Career: Homeland Security

Attributes Attributes

Coordination 2, Reflexes 2, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility Coordination 2, Reflexes 3, Focus 3, Fitness 1, Agility
2, Intellect 3 2, Intellect 3

Derived Stats Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 2, Encumbrance: 12, Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 11,
Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3, Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3,

Boosts: 3 Boosts: 3

Specialisations Specialisations

CBRNE Training +1 CBRNE Training +1

HUMINT +1 HUMINT +1
Investigate +1 Investigate +2
Medical +1 Medical +1
Pistol +1 Pistol +1
Investigation +1 Criminology +1
Trade-craft +2 Computers +1
Linguistics +1 Trade-craft +1

Gear Gear

Primary Handgun (Carbon Build) Primary Handgun (Carbon Build)

Dinner Suit Dinner Suit
False ID False ID
Latex Gloves Lock pick
Pen Drive
Latex Gloves

135
 Tactical Police Pre-Gen Tactical Police Pre-Gen

Call-sign: Call-sign:
Nationality: USA Nationality: USA
Career: SWAT Career: SWAT

Attributes Attributes

Coordination 3, Reflexes 3, Focus 2, Fitness 1, Agility Coordination 2, Reflexes 3, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility
3, Intellect 2 2, Intellect 2

Derived Stats Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 2, Encumbrance: 11, Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 12,
Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 2, Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3,

Boosts: 3 Boosts: 3

Specialisations Specialisations

Ballistics Shield +1 Ballistics Shield +1

Breaching +2 Breaching +2
CQB +1 CQB +1
Investigate +1 Investigate +1
Medical +1 Medical +1
CQC +1 Infiltration +1
CBRNE Training +1 Scout +1
Drone Operator +2 Stealth +1

Gear Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice Primary and secondary weapon of choice
2 x Flash-bangs 2 X Flash-bangs
Drone Breaching Tools
Body Armour 4 Body Armour
Zip Ties Zip Ties

136
 Tactical Police Pre-Gen Tactical Police Pre-Gen

Call-sign: Call-sign:
Nationality: USA Nationality: USA
Career: SWAT Career: SWAT

Attributes Attributes

Coordination 2, Reflexes 2, Focus 3, Fitness 3, Agility Coordination 3, Reflexes 2, Focus 2, Fitness 3, Agility
3, Intellect 1 3, Intellect 1

Derived Stats Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 13, Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 13,
Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3, Initiative: 2, Actions: +0, Perception: 2,

Boosts: 3 Boosts: 3

Specialisations Specialisations

Ballistics Shield +1 Ballistics Shield +1

Breaching +1 Breaching +1
CQB +1 CQB +1
Investigate +1 Investigate +1
Medical +1 Medical +1
Sniper Training +2 HUMINT +1
Pistol +1 Stealth +1
Computers +1 Demolitions +2

Gear Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice Primary and secondary weapon of choice
2 x Flash-bangs 2 x Flash-bangs
Optional Sniper Rifle Demolitions Kit
Body Armour Body Armour
Zip Ties Zip Ties

137
 Special Forces Pre-gen Special Forces Pre-Gen

Call-sign: Call-sign:
Nationality: USA Nationality: USA
Career: Delta Force Career: Delta Force

Attributes Attributes

Coordination 3, Reflexes 3, Focus 2, Fitness 2, Agility Coordination 3, Reflexes 3, Focus 3, Fitness 2, Agility
2, Intellect 2 2, Intellect 1

Derived Stats Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 12, Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 12,
Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 2, Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3,

Boosts: 3 Boosts: 3

Specialisations Specialisations

Airborne Assault +1 Airborne Assault +1

CQB +1 CQB +1
Driving +1 Driving +1
Linguistics +1 Linguistics +1
SERE Training +1 SERE Training +1
Breaching +2 CBRNE Training +2
Computers +1 Drone Operator +1
Infiltration +1 Stealth +1
Gear
Gear
Primary and secondary weapon of choice
IOTV Armour 5 Primary and secondary weapon of choice
Tactical Boots 1 IOTV Armour 5
Knee-pads 1 Tactical Boots 1
Breaching Tools Knee-pads 1
2 x Flash-bangs Drone
Plus ammo 2 x Flash-bangs
Plus ammo

138
 Special Forces Pre-Gen Special Forces Pre-Gen

Call-sign: Call-sign:
Nationality: USA Nationality: USA
Career: Delta Force Career: Delta Force

Attributes Attributes

Coordination 3, Reflexes 2, Focus 3, Fitness 3, Agility Coordination 2, Reflexes 3, Focus 2, Fitness 3, Agility
1, Intellect 2 3, Intellect 1

Derived Stats Derived Stats

Damage Bonus: 1, Defence: 2, Encumbrance: 13, Damage Bonus: 2, Defence: 3, Encumbrance: 13,
Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 3, Initiative: 3, Actions: +0, Perception: 2,

Boosts: 3 Boosts: 3

Specialisations Specialisations

Airborne Assault +1 Airborne Assault +1

CQB +1 CQB +1
Driving +1 Driving +1
Linguistics +1 Linguistics +1
SERE Training +1 SERE Training +1
SIGINT +1 Trade-craft +2
Recon +2 HUMINT +1
Sniper Training +1 Demolitions +1

Gear Gear

Primary and secondary weapon of choice Primary and secondary weapon of choice
Optional Sniper Rifle IOTV Armour 5
IOTV Armour 5 Tactical Boots 1
Tactical Boots 1 Knee-pads 1
Knee-pads 1 Demolition Tools
2 x Flash-bangs 2 x Flash-bangs
Plus ammo Plus ammo

139
 Appendix

This section collects all the maps used in the intro-
duction game and the character sheet which can be
copied for your use, all of these items will also be
available online to download for free.
The maps can be handed out to players or uploaded to
a VTT for the players to use and to plan or organise
combat as it can help visualise the battlefield.
The Appendix also includes a list of Acronyms,
Jargon, Hand signals, Tactical Movement and the
Laws of War which can be used by players and the
Handler alike to add realism to the game.
Other Material
FeralGamersInc will be releasing source books,
missions, expansion books and other materials for
Ghost Ops Second Strike on a regular basis. These
will be available on the FeralGamersInc website or
through DriveThruRPG.
Contact info
FeralGamersInc are very involved with the commu-
nity around Ghost Ops and have set up various places
where games can be arranged, questions can be asked,
and general chat about the game can be had. It would
be great to see you.
FB - https://www.facebook.com/groups/GhostOps-
RPG
Discord - https://discord.gg/7tGPTk7v2w
Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/Ghostops
Twitter - @FeralGamersInc
DTRPG Link - https://www.drivethrurpg.com/
browse/pub/9012/FeralGamersInc/subcate-
gory/24138_31491/Ghost-Ops

The first version of Ghost Ops will be kept available

along with the published missions, source books and
expanded books as these are compatible with Ghost
Ops Second Strike.

140
 Acronyms
Acronyms are a constant for militaries and govern-
ment agencies the world over. Here are a few to use
during your gaming sessions to make your special
operations missions seem more ‘special’.
0K Zero Killed “Zero K, Okay” - A term used to
convey that no personnel have been killed during the
operation; can be used as either a mission expectation
or a status. Ex: “At end of day I expect to be at Zero
K, gentlemen” or “Mission accomplished and we are
Okay”.
BDA Battle Damage Assessment - The action of
moving into an area (typically after an airstrike) to
confirm destruction/ death of a target. Ex: “After we
have confirmed detonation, your team will move in to
BDA the area”.
CASEVAC Casualty Evacuation - Either the action
of removing casualties (typical emergency wounded)
from the battlefield by a vehicle not specially equipped
to do so, or the vehicle assigned itself. Ex: “I have
wounded and am sending out a convoy of 3 trucks to
CASEVAC my most in need” or “This MRAP has
been CASEVAC for the last three patrols”.
CBRN Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear
- Gear, personnel, or conditions involving weapons of
mass destruction or defense against them. Ex: “CBRN
is a serious subject boys. Laugh now, but don’t come
cryin’ when your face is melting off ”.
MEDEVAC Medical Evacuation - A vehicle
specially equipped and crewed to deal with medical
emergencies and removing them from the battlefield,
or the act of removing casualties from the battlefield
utilizing a MEDEVAC vehicle. Ex: “MEDEVAC will
be leaving the airfield at 0500 for Landstuhl, I expect
you to be on it.”
PII Personally Identifiable Information - Any piece
of information that can be used to easily identify an
individual or target. Ex: “Each of you needs to go
through your PII checklists; this is a black op” or “I
want you to check all our tangos for PII; we have to
confirm we eliminated our target.”
149
SCI Sensitive Compartmentalized Information -
The official term for information classified ‘above Top
Secret’; the much lauded ‘need-to-know’ information.
Ex: “This mission briefing contains information that is
SCI, I need your verbal acknowledgment of that fact.”
SOFA Status of Forces Agreement “So-fah” - A
treaty between two nations that establishes the recog-
nition and treatment of each other’s military forces.
Ex: “We have no SOFA with the target nation, so if
captured you will be treated as spies.”
SSE Sensitive Sight Exploitation - The identifying
and procurement of items of high intelligence value
from a specific location, commonly a target building.
Ex: “After we have the site secured I want three guys
on SSE.”
TCN Third Country National - An individual of citi-
zenship or ethnicity that does not belong in the oper-
ational area. Ex: “Yeah, Command, something bigger
may be going on; we have about 50% TCNs among
the downed tangos.”
TOC Tactical Operations Center “Tock” - The
command center for any given mission, serving as a
clearinghouse for necessary information and relaying
communications to supporting parties. Ex: “Are we
going to have somebody competent manning the Net
at the TOC this time?”
TIC Troops In Contact “Tick” - The point at which
rounds are first fired, at or by the unit or the entire
combat engagement. Ex: “It was at that point we had
TIC” or “We currently have 3 TICs in progress across
the country.”
VDM Visual Distinguishing Mark - Any easily veri-
fiable features to verify the identity of an individual or
target. Ex: “If you check your dossier you will see that
Target One has several VDM.”
 Jargon
Jargon is common with every profession and the mili-
tary and government are no exceptions. These are a
few common to the military in general, or the special
operations community specifically, to add flavor to
your character’s interactions.
Ass - The vocalization of the acronym AS, standing
for Armored Support, referring to any accompany-
ing dedicated combat vehicles (Tanks, LAVs, etc). Ex:
“Sir, if we’re to be assaulting that heavily fortified of a
position will we be bringing any Ass with us?”
B3 - A shorthand form of Beans, Bullets and
Bandaids, a colloquialism for the basics of logistics,
representing the need for food, ammunition, and
medical supplies. Ex: “Is supply 100% on B3 this
time?”.
Crypto - Shortening of the word cryptography; used
to describe both the process of, and the means to,
secure operational communications. Ex: “Yo, did you
get the SINCGARS up with the new crypto before
we left the MOB, because I can’t raise anyone.”
Flower - Shortening of the term Flower Soldier, a
holdover from the Vietnam War, used in reference to
indigenous forces who don’t even bother to show up
for duty. Ex: “We’re supposed to be training an entire
company here and over half of them are Flowers.”
Fobbit - A mashup of the words FOB and hobbit,
used to indicate a service member who inhabits a
FOB in the way the hobbits inhabited the Shire. Ex:
“Careful now buddy, you keep up that kind of intel
value and they’ll transfer you to Fobbit country
Ghost Soldier - A non-existent soldier (similar in
effect to a Flower Soldier), and another holdover from
the Vietnam War, used to reference a soldier that
exists only on paper, either that never existed at all,
or that died and whose death was never reported. Ex:
“The commander of the local ANA garrison had over
30 Ghost Soldiers on his payroll. We’re to track those
funds and figure out just where they went.”
150
Gogs - A vocalization of the unofficial acronym
GOG, standing for Guys On Ground; used primar-
ily by aviation elements to describe the personnel they
are providing CAS for, it has also been occasionally
used to describe any personnel in the field, particularly
by members of units with long-standing relationships
with Special Mission Aviation units. Ex: “I’ve got 8
blips on thermal, South-East of building 1, is that our
Gogs?”
Indig - Shorthand for Indigenous Personnel, while
officially used to describe a member of the military
or police forces of a nation in which operations are
occurring, it can also be used to identify any native
resident of the country. Ex: “We have the hostages,
but I have 20 count Indigs also in detention. What is
our call Command?”
Pogue - The vocalization of the unofficial acronym
POG, standing for Personnel Other Than Grunt; it
has a shifting definition (much like the word civil-
ian) where members of combat arms specializations
consider everyone else to be a Pogue, while those in
infantry or Special Operations consider everyone not
in those fields to be one. Ex: “Geez man, you take
enough time recovering from that wound? You’re
starting to
look like a pogue.”
Squirter - An individual retreating from the engage-
ment area; originally utilized by aviation units it has
become more commonly used by infantry and Special
Operations. Ex: “South side, South side, I’ve got a
squirter headed out the door on the South side of the
building.”
Straphanger (or more commonly “Strap”) -The term
for Non-SOF personnel assigned to an SOF mission,
often in a supporting role; can also be used to describe
an individual who has not yet finished “training-up”
but is still accompanying an operational unit on
deployment. Ex: “BRC doesn’t mean crap out here.
Until
you have both your bubbles and your wings you are a
Strap, you hear me?”
Terp - Shorthand for Interpreter, specifically one
of indigenous origin working under the promise of
money, protection, relocation, or a combination of the
three. Ex: “Well we’re up The Creek, Terp was with
Boyes and Parson in Victor One.”
Hand Signals
Even in today’s day and age of throat mics and satellite
comms the military still practices hand signals. While
this, admittedly archaic, practice may seem useless
to some it has a very important real-world applica-
tion. Sometimes comms break down, sometimes even
subvocalization would be too loud, sometimes it’s just
more expedient to make a few hand motions than to
speak.
While there are a pretty set standard selection of hand
signals, they can vary from nation to nation and unit
to unit so instead of showing what the signals are and
how and when to use them, instead we’ll cover just
what information can be easily conveyed with hand
signals.
Formation and Posture
From starting and stopping movement to indicating
who will be where while that movement is occuring,
hand signals can be used to declare a great number of
things in this category. Rally codes can also be given
and practiced indicating a series of specific actions to
be taken within a given time frame before
reaching a point to await the next rally code or a call
to the end of the operation. Even basic changes in the
ROE can be given through hand signals, indicating
when to load and/ or charge your weapon or entering
free-fire and cease-fire states.
Enemy Presence, Count, and Location
The specifics of an enemy position can be fairly clearly
communicated via hand signals as well. Of course, just
the mere presence of an enemy comes first, but with a
short series of gestures count, basic armament, posi-
tioning, whether they are a static position or patrol,
and even leadership can be highlighted, all without
speaking a word. While specifics are outside the capa-
bility to hand signals without prearranged coordina-
tion between members, enough information can be
151
passed to allow rough tactical plans to be drawn on the
spot.
Target Building Information
If a building is being targeted for an operation, infor-
mation on its structure can be passed utilizing hand
signals as well. External features such as doors,
windows, access ladders, etc. and on which side they
are placed are some of the more commonly relayed
information, but suggestions and decisions on specific
entry points can also be communicated. Once inside a
structure, hand signals can continue to be used, pass-
ing the same or similar information as on the external
features, as well as stairwells/ ladderwells, points of
interest, and potential caches.
So, as you can see, there is a huge amount of informa-
tion that can be conveyed while remaining non-vocal,
with the threat of detection shifting from sound to
vision (you stand out quite easily making hand signals).
While the biggest drawback is the inability to confer
specifics of situations or things, they can be utilized to
confer a wide array of information. Ultimately, it will
be up to your Game Master whether a particular piece
of info can be passed along utilizing hand signals or
not.
Tactical Movement
To get into the specifics of tactical operations would
take a far greater amount of space than is available
here, and would cover a great number of subjects that
have no bearing on the tabletop gaming environment.
Instead we’ll cover the basic rules of tactical opera-
tions, and the exception to each rule.
Never Skyline Yourself
It may look good in movies and on book covers but
skylining yourself is the absolute best way to giveaway
your position and get your team killed. Don’t walk on
the very top of crests, instead move slightly down from
the top of any ridge to allow you the most visibility
down from your position and allow your
camouflage to do its job. The Exception: when estab-
lishing an Observation Post or a Combat Outpost,
especially where its presence is an instrumental part of
a deterrence plan, and 360 degree visibility is needed,
then the absolute highest point is a must.
Never Bunch Up
It may look good and allow for tighter shots on tele-
vision and movies, but bunching up is a great way
to get a team killed with a single grenade or burst of
automatic fire. Maintaining spacing is an instrumen-
tal part of training and rehearsal exercises, so much so
that it becomes second nature. Knowing the arma-
ment of your enemy can also influence just how much
spacing is to be maintained. The Exception: while
there are a few, the most notable is taking a Diamond
Formation in protection of an HVI for extraction in a
hostile environment, where your job literally becomes
covering as much of their surface area with your body
as possible and taking any bullets that were intended
for them.
Always Conserve Your Fire
Ammunition is not unlimited, and unlike in video
games, running over the top of a downed enemy
doesn’t give you a few extra magazines. The reason
marksmanship is trained so heavily is often times
SOF teams will be carrying out extended duration
missions with limited logistical support and bullets
have a funny way of disappearing in combat. The
Exception: it may seem counter-intuitive, but when
engaging a numerically superior force, a team will
undertake a bounding action and begin engaging with
heavy fire, the intent being to convince the enemy
force that they are engaging a much larger element
than they are and potentially forcing a retreat or
surrender.
Move With Deliberation
It’s not about moving slowly, it’s about moving with
intention. An operator should know where he is
going, and how he’s going to get there, before the
door is ever opened. A part of this is rehearsal exer-
cises, if there is the intel and time to support that, and
the other part is experience as regardless of region,
nation, or culture, buildings tend to get laid out the
same the world over. The Exception: walking into the
unknown, particularly if it is an intentionally “off-de-
signed” structure; speed becomes paramount, with the
intention of catching an enemy presence unprepared
and unable to react and coordinate
152
Laws of War
While there are literally hundreds of books written
on the laws and rules of warfare, not all of these are
applicable to the world of tabletop gaming simulat-
ing such situations, so we have to attempt to parse the
information down to a usable level. The basic prem-
ise of the laws of war are to protect those who are not
involved in the fighting, as well as those no longer
able to fight. Specifics about different groups within
those two categories can vary.
Civilians
Even in the era of modern war against a non-uni-
formed enemy, civilians cannot be intentionally
targeted. Just as with a court of law, suspicion is not
enough, evidence must be gathered before an indi-
vidual can be declared a combatant or operating in
support of the enemy. This protection extends to
things considered vital to the continued survival of
a local populace, to include: livestock, infrastructure,
food and water sources, etc. Additionally, civilian law
enforcement (CLEOs), even when armed, must be
allowed to continue to conduct their business without
interference by military activities.
Detainees
Once an enemy is captured they are no longer the
enemy, they are a detainee. Detainees are entitled to
food, water, communication, and fair treatment; this is
not to say that the food and water cannot be rationed,
that the communication cannot be monitored, or that
the treatment requires any form of nicety, but regard-
less of their previous actions they are no longer a
threat and cannot be treated as such. The issue arises,
however, that many small tactical units cannot afford
to take detainees and have limited options as to
remove them as a threat. While there are several solu-
tions to this situation, of varying degrees of humanity
and legitimacy, the field execution of these individuals
is not one of them.
Wounded
Regardless of which side a combatant was on, once
wounded they become entitled to equal care and effort
to save their lives. Additionally medical personnel,
whether members of a uniformed military, local emer-
gency service workers, or volunteers with an inter-
nationally recognized NGO, are not allowed to be
targeted, coerced, or threatened while in the perfor-
mance of their duties. Once an individual has received
sufficient care to no longer be in a life threatening
situation their status can change, but care tends to be
required for wounds even upon detainment of enemy
combatants.
Weaponry
Limitations to weaponry seems counter to the effort of
warfighting, but is, in all actuality, an effort to allow an
area to return to a semblance of normalcy after fight-
ing has ended, or moved on. It is for this reason that
153
area denial weapons are such a subject of contention
as a majority of them remain active, and most become
increasingly unstable, as they remain in place for years
after the war they were utilized in.
Additionally, weapons that result in intentional maim-
ing or lifelong health conditions are highly restricted,
if not outright banned, due to the fact that soldiers do
not remain soldiers their entire life and they have a
right to pursue the life they chose after they exit their
service.
While a certain level of flexibility should be expected
at the table, and indeed is in actual war, these laws can
provide the potential for an overarching theme or story
outside of combat for your campaigns