Score! Isle of Dread module presumed lost, now found.

[KyleC]

As I was cleaning up my game room this evening, what should I stumble across but an old, ragged, beat-up copy of TSR's Isle of Dread adventure module. I had long since given it up as lost. This module has special meaning for me as it was the very first D&D game I'd ever played. I was all of maybe 13 years old and very much the bratty little brother who wanted to join in the game my sister's boyfriend was running. I got my chance when a member of the group dropped out and they needed someone to play his character. It was classic 1st edition AD&D fun and it's what started my love for the game.

Next step, convert the module to True20 and revisit the Isle of Dread from the other side of the DM screen.

What about you folks? Do you remember your "first time?"
-KyleC

[timemrick]

Actually, I don't. I remember when (which school year, anyway), and what system (AD&D 1e), but no details of the adventure. (It was ~24 years ago, after all...)

My second time, a year later--that I remember. I can recall more about my character than the adventure, because another player kept derailing things. But I *think* I have since figured out which adventure the DM was running (unless it was something original that just happened to be very close to that).

[Akrasia]

'Keep on the Borderlands' was the first module I ever played. It came with the Holmes Basic set back in 1979. I DMed it for my parents. Only 9, I assumed that I was supposed to treat the map of the caves of chaos as the 'play board'.

'Isle of Dread' was one of the first modules I DMed more or less successfully.

[KyleC]

Doh! I found some time to read through the adventure and realized that I am missing the last two maps. They are apparently located on the inside of the cover which is, unfortunately, missing in action.

Oh well, at least I have the memories. And E-bay, to purchase a new copy if I can find one cheap.

-KyleC

[Bhikku]

My first module was "Escape from Zanzer's Dungeon," from the big black box set... but i don't remember if I actually played throught that one at the time. I remember I sent my players wandering around the Karameikos map from the Expert set for a while, and then started them on the voyage to the Isle of Dread. I had this whole campaign arc planned where the black pearl at the island's center would be used to defeat our evil overlord... but the campaign kept getting derailed by those daily checks to see if they get lost. They wandered all over the ocean, their ship's crew being gradually whittled down by weresharks and i don't know what else, until they were finally all-but decimated by a random pirate attack. The PCs survived, clining to their wreckage, and finally drifted to an island where I gave them a reasonable climax and let them retire.

It was my first campaign, and i think it was my favorite, despite all that. I still want to play the Isle of Dread someday, but if I ever convert it to True 20, I plan on using it as a 'lost world' setting for a superhero or pulp adventure game.

[KyleC]

My first module was "Escape from Zanzer's Dungeon," from the big black box set... but i don't remember if I actually played throught that one at the time. I remember I sent my players wandering around the Karameikos map from the Expert set for a while, and then started them on the voyage to the Isle of Dread. I had this whole campaign arc planned where the black pearl at the island's center would be used to defeat our evil overlord... but the campaign kept getting derailed by those daily checks to see if they get lost. They wandered all over the ocean, their ship's crew being gradually whittled down by weresharks and i don't know what else, until they were finally all-but decimated by a random pirate attack. The PCs survived, clining to their wreckage, and finally drifted to an island where I gave them a reasonable climax and let them retire.

I was reading through the adventure and came across the section regarding getting lost. Basically you had a 1 in 3 chance per day of getting lost, period. Considering the Isle of Dread is about 1,000 miles away, that's a lot of getting lost. I came into the Isle of Dread adventure after the party had already landed, so I don't know how easy or hard their voyage was. Sounds like your crew had a rough go of it.

It was my first campaign, and i think it was my favorite, despite all that. I still want to play the Isle of Dread someday, but if I ever convert it to True 20, I plan on using it as a 'lost world' setting for a superhero or pulp adventure game.

I've had the same idea! I'm in the planning stage (also known as the thinking-real-hard-about-it stage) of a Indiana Jones meets Cthulu (without the insanity) meets Disney's Atlantis meets The Mummy type of campaign. Probably a little wackier than what you are thinking about, but I think I can make it all fit together in a believable campaign. I've got the BBEG, backstory, and hook all figured out, all I need now is everything else.

-Kyle