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Isle of Dread playthrough (freeform LARP + Star Trek cross-over)

by Travis Henry

Hey Piazza friends, here's a rough transcript of our ongoing playthrough of X1: The Isle of Dread. I'm DMing. There's only one player. We use freeform LARP. Usually play outside in a park. I DMed it for my brothers and friends back in the day (circa 1985). Yet except for those dim memories, the format is that I purposely don't read the adventure ahead of time, but just skim through it as we walk along. One salient note: in a previous adventure, the party found an Alternate World Gate to the Star Trek Universe. (For Alternate World Gates, see AC4: The Book of Marvellous Magic).

The Party:

The World:
The Shared Worlds (aka "The Singular World") which is an organic sandbox mishmash of whatever me and my former co-DM happened to run. I call it The Singular World because our co-DMing broke up. But I haven't gotten around to changing the name on campaign guide. The world map (so far) stiches together the Sword Coast of Phandelver, with the Duchy of Berghof from the Greyhawk UK modules, plus the Grand Duchy of Karameikos. Plus all kinds of random modules, from various rules editions and third-party companies.
Link to Shared World Campaign Setting.

[May 22, 2021. At Crellin Park / PS21] Unknown time after the (unfinished) Gauntlet adventure: the party of Slevjor, Ravenscroft, Flintheart, and Brother John make their way west from Berghof to the great city of Specularum (a.ka. Aquabyssium or Waterdeep) in the Grand Duchy of Karameikos. They had found some vellum parchments, which got rain-soaked along the way. Slevjor dried them out in the fire at the inn. And discovered secret writing: an explorer’s story by a sea captain Rory Barbarossa; and his map of the shoreline of the Isle of Dread. They have a convo about tropical vegetation--Brother John is amazed at Slevjors tales of palm trees (which don’t shed their leaves) and coconuts.
Ravenscroft inherits a small ship from his union dad. Which he christens the I.H.H.W.G.(?) [I forget what that stands for.] He pays the inheritance tax, though the union workers in the taxbooth cut him a deal.
Slevjor does some info gathering and through convo with an old sea dog who was a cabin boy at the time, he confirms that Babarossa was a ship captain 30 years ago, and that he was trying to get a crew together, but was slain (turned to ash) by a wizard, due to an unsettled debt. The Thanegioth Archipelago is known to exist, but is just off the edge of the sea charts—it lies uncharted due to fear of cannibals and other unknowns.
They sail south, with Slevjor sitting in the oaken captain’s chair. Along the way they encounter fierce, torrid humidity and a mermaid who tricks them into crossing a sentient whirlpool with a tooth maw, who demands a toll, on a payment plan. Slevjor casts web on the mermaid and she reveals her true self--a birdlike monster. The web spell also closes up the maw, and they continue onward.
With the Archipelago on the far horizon, they encounter a ship which is doing minor repairs after scraping a reef during a pearl-gathering expedition. They consult with the friendly captain, who confirms that the isle is dreaded, and he adds that he has heard the sound of a dragon-like beast, and that a great black pearl could be possible in these pearl beds.
Next morning they sail onward--a deep cloud bank is to their left, which they begin to enter, but upon further examination from the crow’s nest, they decide to circle back to the right, to the west. The island, once a speck, now looms larger and larger, with stark mountains and primal jungle. The Isle of the Dread looms.

[May 29, 2021 sitting at the player's home in Chatham]. Quote of the day: “On the other hand, cannibalism is a rather risky business to deal with.” They serendipitously find Swishy McJackass stranded on a reef north of the island. Like St. Brendan, he trusted himself to the Southern Wind, with only a curragh and a barrel of green beer. Party lands near Mora village on the eastern shore of the peninsula. Witness gigantic coconut fall, making a bomb-like crater. Astounded minute of silence. Flintheart does a flip and embeds his axe in the nut, nicking it enough to drink from. Realize are being watched by islanders. Elderly chief approaches. He asks for “Ro-ri Ba-ba-ro-sa”. Br. John offers his Helios necklace in friendship. The people share venison with the crew. Friendship. Two sentries are sent to lead the party to Tanaroa. Where they are met by sentries of that village. This episode ends with a camera shot of each adventurer’s face as they overlook the village in the jungle clearing, with the great black wall extending as far as the eye can see.

[June 5th, 2021 at Art-Omi east path] Brother John studies the four totems at the entrance to the village. They are greeted by the elderly Matriarch. She speaks pidgin Common Speech. Asks if they are, or know of Rory Barbarossa. They say he couldn’t make it on this journey. She leads them to the Hawk council hut. She says the village wants to trade with the Big Land. Slevjor offers the Star Trek Alternate World Gate. She asks for magic words. Slevjor’s arcane sight makes out “liv-lon-gand prosp-ur” with a split-fingered gesture. She holds the gate (a metal triangular pin), and says the magic words and fades in a golden shimmer of light. The pin falls to the ground.
The warriors circle in nervousness. The party decides to bring her back. Slevjor perceives a call of return: “Bim-mi-ap-sko-ti”, which he recites, and himself fades away, as the Matriarch returns. She is now dressed in a golden mini-skirt, has a triangular brooch on her breast, with a beehive hairdo. Amazingly, she looks 20 years younger, and speaks eloquent Commmon.
She introduces herself as “Captain Matriarch” of the United Federation of Planets. She shows her pipe-shaped Universal Translator. She has apparently been away a long time, and learned the ways of the other universe. They ask about Slevjor, and she says she connected with him in the other world, and that he met a friend there who shared his logical demeanor. She won’t say more, out of respect for the Prime Directive. Not wanting to disrupt the indigenous culture of the adventuring party.
She senses Slevjor’s return, and he returns: in a blue shirt with black fitted pants. He has the triangular brooch. He has apparently been on many adventures in the other universe too! He served on Capt. Matriarch’s science vessel as Lieutenant Slevjor.
She gives an overview of the village. She plans to stay and better her people with what she has learned in the other world. She says the seven villages of the peninsula will be admitted to the Federation of Planets.
When asked about the Black Pearl, she only knows it’s rumored to be in the center of the island. When asked about sentient life, she shares rumors of “racoon-folk” and “cat-folk.”
The party (first via Muffins the cat, and then via Swishy) tries to speak with a thunder lizard (brontosaurus) using Slevjor’s universal translator. Mistaken as a leaf, Swishy is picked up and slightly chewed on before Flintheart can pull him away.
The gates are opened and the intrepid adventurers file through. They gaze at the vast 2-mile extent of the wall, and the white line of beach visible in the distance far to the east and west. The camera scrolls across each face, and credits roll.

[June 26, at Borden’s Pond, Chatham] Scene: Flintheart bathes at the beach, scooping of handfuls of pure white sand, for potential glassmaking. He’s bit by a shark. And a feeding frenzy commences. Escape with help of friends.
Following a pterodactyl north in Slevjor’s hopes of communicating, the party encounters a Wooly Mammoth. Threat of trampling. Running away. Mammoth was just protecting wittle baby mammoth.
Rakasta (catfolk) encampment. Ravenscroft sends Muffins ahead. Sees and hears through Muffins. Muffins understands their cat-speech. Seem to be noble and friendly enough, though armed with metal war-claws and sabertooth tiger mounts. Muffin is sent in to make contact. They’ve never seen such a tiny sabertooth tiger. They adopt Muffins as a mascot and build a platform for him. Party then connnects, and they make friends. Muffins speaks the Cat-folk tongue. Rakasta tribe gives overview of way to central plateau, and loans sabretooths for mounts.
Cliffhanger ending: encounter Neanderthal. Meat-juice dripping, big toothed, “stoopidest looking human being you’ve ever seen.” Scroll across faces of party. Roll credits.

[July 3, Art-Omi west path] Flashback Travel Scene: party leaping gigantic goat-headed wheeled sceptre [an Omi sculpture] via sabretooth mounts, like “fellowship travel” scene in Fellowship of the Rings. Theme music. Swishy riding backwards. Flintheart fails to clear it.
Back to Cave-Man. Turns out he’s friendly like stoopid giant Hugo the Abominable Snowman in Looney Toons: “I will love him, and squeeze him! Duh!”
And there’s a tribe of them, gathered around a monolith. [An Omi sculpture.] With the help of Caveman #1, Br. John intuits that this is a relic of Helios. A shard of the Black Cloud, from when Helios battled the Black Cloud, and sheared a sliver off which fell to earth. Holy, because it was touched by the blade of Helios.
Br. John reads ancient runes which appear to be a divine shopping list. Given it’s chaotic nonsensicalness, he supposes it was actually the Black Cloud’s shopping list. Though interspersed with items of light and color from its being touched by Helios. Other side of monolith is lighter color--a sliver of the steely-light blade of Helios.
Swishy has a spiritual experience and realizes, with Br. John’s guidance, that his own Sweet Bejesus is none other than Helios! He weeps and begins a path of sobriety.
Crossing the northern mountains. From crest, see central plateau and rope-bridge-spanned gorge.
Crossing bridge: Ravenscroft is picked up by Pterodactyl and dropped 1000 feet. Gandalf in Moria moment. Moist eyes all around. [Each character had 1 in 10 chance. I displayed four fingers behind my back. The player guessed the one wrong number “4” on his very first character. Others made it across. I guessed for Swishy. In freeform game, assured that Ravenscroft is not really dead.]
Climb black volcanic plateau = real-life hillock in center of Architectural area of Art-Omi. Top (spinning house) is black snowy crag at top of volcanic cone lip, sensed to be a home of an earth elemental. Party puts on all clothes they have. Grassy vegetation on slopes due to elevated climate.
Ancient artifacts on plateau: Industrial relic (black ‘factory’ style Omi sculpture). Gigantic clam fossils, being explored by natives. The party succeeds in stealth and follows natives towards village.
In tropical forest approaching village, a the party befriends a Coatl feathered serpent, who gives them a lowdown on the vile Kopru Empire, the friendly and noble village of Mantua, and the rebel cannibals of the isle in the middle of the crater lake.
The party contacts the villagers, who are impressed with Flintheart’s spear carrying courtesy, and they are introduced to the Talking Chief, the Shaman, and the Chief (a statue). Have a fantasy Yoruba culture. Swishy is impressed with communication tubes. Friendly council meeting and feast in a lake-town-style pile dwelling. End credits.
Hidden scene at end of credits. Ravenscroft lives! Sustaining only minor buffets, he is gathering himself together within what looks to be an ancient Kopru water outlet pipe which empties into the bottom of the gorge. How did he survive the 1000-foot fall? Was it through help of a friendly Coatl? Was it magic? Lucky landing? Stay tuned for next episode.

[July 10, Columbia County Fairgrounds] As the party beds down for the night in the lake-side village of Mantua inside the volcanic caldera, Slevjor ponders the genealogy of a small human village which has apparently been lost to all other human contact for hundreds of years. Just then a villager comes by, who has three arms. He proudly announces that all his cousins have three arms, and that his cousins are also his aunt, uncle, mother, and father. Slevjor raises an eyebrow: “Indeed.”
Next morning, the Mantuans see the party off joyfully. Chief corrects misconception of rebels as cannibals: “Our wayward kinfolk are not man-eaters, they’re only headhunters.” Oh.
A paleolithic Normandy-style landing on the beach. Swarm of spears. Knocking headhunters heads clear off, Swishy invents the game of golf using his shillelagh. Beach secured, paddle around to temple steps which extend out into the water.
Careful entry. Find upper room with a sort of megapone and eyeholes in the wall for falsifying words of the stone god whose broken feet remain at the entrance.
Hallway, Flintheart’s stature saves him from a secret spear thrust. Party shift into fight-mode. Tribe’s children scurry up rope through skylight. Swishy practices golf some more, and calls on St. Andrew of the Links. Br. John casts divine spell, which surprisingly manifests as an image of the god Olorun, a local manifestation of sun god, Helios. Olorun calls on his rebel people to surrender and return to Mantua, giving up headhunting, and making amends to their kinsmen, which they do, in dramatic reconciliatory style. Turns out they were all under mind-control by the Kopru. They can hardly help the party, since their memory of recent events is fuzzy.
Exploring a room beyond, Br. John falls through a trap door, encountering hooded spitting cobras. Though he gets some venom in the eye, with some help of a lowered friend, he dispatches the spitting serpents.
A youth from the repentant tribe calls to show them a hidden room which she remembers, beyond the balcony, behind the great statue which is carved into the back of the wall. Flintheart detects and avoids a pitfall, and they find a room with small sarcophagus placed on an altar. Opening the box, all in party must make Save vs. Charm. All succeed but Swishy. [As player, I had him fail just for dramatic purposes.]
Final scene: close-up of Swishy’s countenance, now grinning evilly.

[July 24, PS21 old hill-top orchard] With the DM having forgotten the module and left it at home, when he transferred his stuff to his new car, The player suggests that DM Travis improvise a story. Alright!
This episode has two special guest directors: David Lynch and William Shatner (though credited for the script, he actually used a ghostwriter).

Part One: David Lynch director.
A strange, luxurious room, covered entirely with black and red tiles. Swishy McJackass reclines on a velvet couch with twelve lovely ladies gathered around, cooing, and feeding him grapes. Every time Swishy tries to remember his adventuring companions, he is distracted by a delicious grape. This happens over and over again. Days pass.
After what seems like months, the chief lady of the ‘harem’ walks in carrying a barrel of green beer. She announces: “The time has come to offer you your favorite drink dearest man. Come, drink deeply.” As Swishy reaches for the tap, he remembers Br. John for a split second, and pauses, in hesitation. The madame announces: “Drink!”
At that moment, Swishy has a spiritual experience: “Wh...wh...where’s my companions? Oh Sweet Bejeezus!”
There’s a flash of sunlight, and a man appears, with his arms outstretched to his sides in a T-shape, and his hands in a “Vulcan V” shape. He poignantly calls: “Brother. You have fallen to the mind-control of the Kopru Empire.”
Swishy: “Where am I?”
The man: “You are nowhere. You are imprisoned in your mind. Break free, and find your true friends.”
Swishy turns to the madame: “No, I will not drink.”
In that moment, the ladies turn into squishy amphibian koprus with slurping sucker mouths.
Swishy rises from the couch, and climbs up the only window in the room, which he’d not noticed before. There is an opening at the top. He drops down, onto a ledge, overlooking thin air. The Kopru slither up after him, and call to him from the window: “Come back to us!”
Swishy says: “No.” And he leaps from the ledge.
And lands on a giant eagle, who screeches as Swishy flies off to freedom.

Swishy awakes to find himself riding the back of Flintheart, and is tied there. He is gripping the “eagle” tightly, to Flintheart’s complaint. Swishy: “Are you an eagle?”
The dwarf gruffly replies: “Of course ah’m not an eagle! I’m your friend Flintheart! Don’t ye remember?”
Swishy remembers. Br. John approaches and sees the sunny gleam in his eyes. Swishy tells what he experienced. Br. John explains that only minutes have passed, that they are still in the altar room, and that Swishy was vexed by the Kopru statuary, and flew into a “murderous rampage” that was only prevented by their tackling Swishy and tying him up.
Swishy deeply apologizes. Br. John blesses him in the name of Sweet Bejeezus. All is well. End of David Lynch scene. (Network couldn’t afford to pay Lynch’s rate for more than half an episode. The lead actor (the player) is nominated for an Emmy for Best Actor.)

Part Two: Willliam Shatner director.
Rather incongruously, as the party gathers themselves, Captain Matriarch materializes in golden transporter shimmer. “Lt. Slevjor.”
“Yes captain.”
“The events which occurred just now between Swishy and the Kopru have triggered a breach in the fabric of the universe, resulting in a Kopru incursion into the Federation Universe. In fact, the U.S.S. Enterprise is being boarded by the Kopru Empire!” *bum-bum-bum: dramatic 60s drums and trumpets*
“And you are the sapient beings, in all the universes, who have the most experience with the Koprus, and so the Federation calls on your help!”
Everyone is confused except for Slevjor. They all ask him what is going on. And he reassures them.
They fade in a golden transporter mist.
Scene: 1960s technicolor. Transporter room.
An engineering officer is desperately manning the transporter console, as a whole squad of red shirts holds the door, which is swarming with Kopru. Fisticuffs and standard “male death scream” sound effects as red shirts fall. One Kopru breaks through. The transporter operator quickly aims his phaser, and the Kopru fades out. Phasers are set on “disintigrate.” He calls to the newcomers in his Scottish burr: “C’mon then noo, an’ help us oot!”
Enter party: Slevjor readies fire cantrips. Flintheart literally leaps on top of the transporter console. Br. John readies divine light beam. Swishy pulls out shillelagh. Muffin goes panther.
And that’s how they roll. With Flintheart doing a flip to land on a Red Shirt’s shoulders, as he plays golf with his axe. (This is a PG-13 series, so Koprus just sort of fall, even when seemingly hit by a swinging axe.) Fire cantrips blasting. Muffins panthering. Til Br. John calls down divine pillar o’ radiance. Which makes a thunder boom, knocking kopru and red shirts alike to the deck. The shimmering wave of radiance ripples through the ship.
Scenes:
Infirmary: Dr. McCoy is wrestling with a kopru, with orderlies and red shirts attempting to pull the sucking, toothy maw away from the good doctor, as the shimmering wave passes through. The Kopru falls inert. On McCoy.
Mess Hall: Captain Kirk fisticuffs with gigantic Kopru. Camera lingers on Kirk of course. With ripped shirt and exposed chest. Just as he gives the Kopru a two-handed haymaker, the wave shimmers through the room, and the kopru falls.
Spock’s Quarters. Mr. Spock applying Vulcan martial arts to a Kopru savant. The Vulcan Death Grip does the trick. As the wave of radiance passes through. Spock lifts eyebrow.
Elevator Tube: Chekov is glassy eyed, flanked by two kopru, headed for the bridge. He’s charmed. Wave passes, and the koprus fall. “Bolshoy! Vat in the vurld?! Ver am I?”
Bridge: Sulu and Uhura. Sulu is going full karate on a squad of kopru, while Uhura spins with flying kicks from Zulu martial arts. Just as the Kopru captain is about to sit in Kirk’s chair, the shimmer wave passes through, and the kopru fall.

Award ceremony. All are recognized as Heroes of the United Federation.
“Captain’s Log: Stardate 07242021. As the Enterprise is invaded by a strange otherworldly species of sapient reptiles, the day is unexpectedly saved by the timely arrival of a contingent of beings with strange and wonderful powers, from a parallel Earth, a world of dungeons and of dragons.”
As Kirk narrates, we see quick shots of camaraderie:

Credits roll with operatic classic Trek theme song.
Bonus scene: What happened to Ravenscroft. He was picked up by the transporter beam too. Transported into a lower storage deck, where he fought koprus alone. Until Br. John’s divine wave passed through. Then he was stuck in the store room. Until the party was transported home. He now finds himself in the basement of the Kopru temple. “Well, at least it’s closer than the Kopru sewage pipe!” The party still thinks he’s dead and gone.

Final Episode of The Isle of Dread / Star Trek LARP!

[August 8th, Sunday morning; French Park, Egremont, Massachusetts]

Key moments:
-The second level of the Kopru temple is played as a montage of scenes of Brother John tripping over every trap or hazard: shards of sharp junk pierce his feet, flammable oil mist singes him, and more than once he pushes open a flooded door and is buffeted as the waters spill him into the next room. On the plus side, Brother John inadvertantly picks up a magical mace +1.
-In a large flooded room (represented by the French Park baseball diamond), they find Ravenscroft having a clambake using his flame cantrip to cook a gigantic slab of oyster flesh. He is nonchalantly sitting on a gigantic black pearl, on top of a gigantic oyster. Heartfelt reunion all around! Except for the sharks! Ravenscroft tells of his survival, and they realize that it was a Coatl who blessed him with a soft landing. They all munch on baked clam. They found the legendary Black Pearl!
-The party is washed into the lower terrace. A large steamy cavern, with Yellowstone-like geyser gypsum terraces.
-The mental domination of the kopru leads a party member into seeking an illusory banquet feast, only to find themselves falling into hot water.
-A Kopru reveals itself! The fight is on.
-Using Lt. Slevjor’s com badge, the part requests assistance from the Starship Enterprise.
-There’s transporter interference in the steamy cavern, but a Lt. Horta is beamed down. This silicon-based amorphous crewmember wrestles with the Kopru within the scalding water.
-Then gigantic emperor Kopru arises from the waters!
-Some difficult exchanges: the party takes a beating, and Flintheart is grabbed by a tentacle and flung around, but then Muffins goes panther and leaps on the amphibian monstrosity and deals some heavy damage.
-A red transporter beam brings in an insectoid creature. Tholian, introduces itself as Tch’chk, scout of the Tholian Empire, and ally of the Kopru Empire. Will not let the ally be defeated. It’s the Tholians’ foothold into this dimension. Weaves a golden Tholian Web to protect the Kopru Emperor.
-Transporter lock is achieved, and the Enterprise beams in a whole squad of Red Shirts, along with Kirk and Spock.
-Spock does a Vulcan mindmeld on the Tholian, and susses out the motives. He threatens to reveal to the Klingon Empire what the Tholians did to a Klingon crew. The Tholian scout agrees to retreat to its dimension.
-Federation squad sets phasers on disintegrate and finishes the Kopru Emperor.
-Medal ceremony. Ravenscroft belatedly receives his metal too.
-Ends with Captain’s Log.