THE ISLAND

An Introductory Adventure for 7th

Sea by Thomas Harrison
Opening Scene: The Storm
ACTION SCENE
The Heroes man a brigandine that is begin tossed about in a fierce storm in
the Numanari Approach. The ship groans and strains under the force of
winds and the roaring waves. Brilliant flashes of lightning have silhouetted
an island the ship is being pushed towards, and the grinding of the hull
against the rocks below has been heard by the Bilge Crew.

Goal: The Heroes cannot save the ship, but they can save their crew. The
heroes have two rounds to avoid the rocky shoals and see the floundering
ship beached on the sandbars.

Crew: The crew begins at Strength 8 and is reduced by 2 each round.

Potential Consequences:
• Being washed overboard by the crashing waves.
• Driving wind and rain does 4 wound each round (group consequence)
• The ship takes 3 hits each round (both through wind, lightning, and taking
on water below the hull). (group consequence)

Timed Consequence:
• On Raise 2 of the Second Round, the ship is beached, either against the
rocks or on a sand bar.

Opportunities:
• Spying a passage through the rocks.

The Island: a 7th Sea Introductory Adventure 1

Scene Two: The Island
The heroes wake the following morning to find themselves on the beach of a
mysterious island. The gently smoking caldera of a volcano stands at the
middle of it.

Details
• It is low tide when the Heroes awake.
• To the East lie thick jungles.
• To the West stand rocky cliffs and light forestation.
• The ship lies moored, either among the rocks on sandbars about 70 yards
off the beach.
• If the ship crashed against the rocks, the crew will be at Strength 2.
• An earthquake rattles the survivors as they gather their resources,
accompanied by a thick plum of smoke from the caldera.
• Streams of clean water are easy to find.
• Tracks indicate the island is populated by wild pigs.

Opportunities:
• In the wreckage, the footlocker containing the ship’s charts, now ruined by
seawater but vaguely readable.
• Tracks of ape-like footprints. (Player Handout 1)

Other challenges:
• At night, red apes from the jungles to the east (Scene Three) will emerge
to investigate the campsite. If the opportunity presents itself, they will
drag men off to be sacrificed to their hideous god.

Other Locations
The Ship
The Brigantine the Heroes arrive upon has met one of two fates:
Smashed against the rocks: the ship is irreparable.
Beached on a sandbar: listing to one side but otherwise secure, the ship rests
on a series of sandbars some 60-70 yards out from the beach (during low
tide, anyway). The hull of the ship is damaged but not irreparable. The
rudder, however, is badly dam aged.
• One dingy remains fixed to the side of the ship.
• Food and water stores have been spoiled by the storm; the Heroes may
spend a Hero Point to preserve some stores if they choose.

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SCENE THREE: THE JUNGLES OF THE RED
APES
The thick steaming jungles of the island are filled with biting insect swarms
and the calls of hundreds of colorful birds amongst the canopy. As the
heroes travel deeper into it, an inhuman scream cuts through the air, sending
birds flying and an unnatural silence settles about them. Then, a stray
footstep breaks the tension and angry hoots and screams surround the
heroes as the Red Apes attack.

Red Apes (Brute Squad)

• Strength 8; 6 squads (approx. 60 apes)
• Powerful: Spend a Danger Point to double the number of wounds dealt
from a successful attack.
The apes use crude weapons: clubs, spears, and hatchets, but are strong and
capable of rending with their bare hands. The appear to have a certain crude
intellect. Their skin is gun-metal gray and their fur is a fiery orange in color.

If the apes are beaten, the heroes will hear more of them in the distance,
circling the group and waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Opportunities:
• Finding a source of wood suitable for repairing the ship.

Locations in the Jungle

The Temple
An overgrown stone temple baring the likeness of a faceless humanoid. The
ruin is wrapped in vines and cracked and worn by weather and earthquakes.
The base is stained with blood and a bowl of fresh(?) blood sits below the
statue as an offering by the Red Apes.

The Prisoners
The Apes have taken the survivors of a scouting party prisoner, intending to
sacrifice them to their terrible god. The pirates are mostly Crescent in
heritage. They will assist the Heroes as long as it serves them. Once they
return to camp, they will quickly turn on their saviors and take them prisoner.

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SCENE FOUR: THE CLIFFS AND POOL
Traversing the cliffs is slow going. One misstep can send a man tumbling to
his death. Fortunately many vines offer grips and footholds amongst the
rocky terrain.

Potential Risk Consequences:

• Slipping a falling, causing 2 wounds and hanging over the edge of a cliff
suspended by vines.
• Foot falls into a narrow gap, causing 1 wound and twisting your ankle.
• Rock falls send you tumbling towards the edge of a cliff!

Wild Pigs (Brute Squad)

• Strength 4 (1 squad per 2 Heroes)
• Gore: Spend a Danger Point for a pig to gore a Hero for 3 points of
damage.

Opportunities:
• Hear the distant sounds of musket fire.

The Heroes eventually come upon a great lagoon at the foot of a massive
waterfall. Flanking the waterfall are two tall vaguely-humanoid statues. At
the bottom of the deep lagoon, a large metallic disk glitters in the deepening
gloom.

Closer examination reveals the metal disk to be a series of spirally clockwork-

like gears of emasculate design and of an unknown (brass-like) metal.

Consequences:
• Swimming down to the metal construct costs 1 Raise consecutive per
round (1, first round; 2, second round; etc.). This resets when the hero
surfaces for a breath.

The Machine
The Heroes may spend raises to tamper with the machine: turning dials,
levers, and other apparatus. After 5 raises are spend, the machine activates.
The device takes on a life of its own as the gears begin to spin. A trickle of
bubbles at the center of the disk becomes a torrent as a wide maw nearly 6
feet in diameter opens, creating a deadly whirlpool. Above, the ground
shakes and the volcano rumbles angrily, belching forth a thick cloud of white
vapor. The lagoon will drain completely.

Consequences:
• Being dragged down by the whirlpool to your death
o Yes, any hero consumed by the whirlpool is considered lost
forever unless the GM deems otherwise.
o Consider applying Pressure and/or spending a Danger Point to
increase the difficulty here.

Opportunities:

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• Heroes on land can assist those trapped by the whirlpool. Ropes, vines,
poles, whatever means they choose to use.

Locations in the Cliffs

The Hut
In a dense tangle of thick trees and vegetation sits an empty hut. Inside are
many well-worn comforts of home: crudely fashioned tools, worn and patched
personal effects, even an old stained pillow. It has clearly been recently
inhabited, though the place is a bit of a mess. It does not appear to have
been ransacked.

Opportunity:
• Discover the journal of Jonathan Locke, a midshipman aboard Her
Majesty’s Grace, a ship that was lost at sea 5 years ago. The journal
details Locke’s experiences on the island, his encounters with the red
apes, and his discovery of a strange building at the foot of the volcano
near the great bay on the northern face of the island. He believes this to
be a remnant of the Syrne. On the last page of the journal, dated 2 years
ago, Locke laments that he has no more paper upon which to record his
life on the island. He closes saying that today he intends to go into the
strange building.

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SCENE FOUR: THE PIRATE BAY
On the northern face of the island lies a deep bay. Here rest two ships, triremes
flying the colors of the notorious pirate Kheired-Din. The larger of the two is
clearly The Strange Skies. The smaller is The Red Sea. Both are manned
with a skeleton crew and a full company of galley slaves. The pirates have
made camp on the beach. On a series of stakes rest the decapitated heads
of some 6 red apes, a warning to their kind. A trail has been cut in the foliage
leading inland.

• By day, the camp is manned by a small contingent of pirates (3 squads;

Strength 6)
• At night, the camp swells to full capacity (10 squads; Strength 10)
• Kheired-Din’s tent is prominent and well guarded day and night.
• A patrol of 1 squad (Strength 6) is always on guard around the parameter.
o Watch changes every four hours.
o The patrol is armed with muskets
o Previous encounters with the red apes has them on edge.
• The red apes will not come into the campsite, but may test the parameter
on occasion, throwing rocks and rotten fruit (and even a hatchet) at the
pirates.
• Jonathan Locke is currently held prisoner by the pirates inside their camp
o While he seems sane, his experiences within the ruins have
made him mad.
o His obsession is to activate the great machine in the foundry,
but he needs another person to assist him.
o Activating the machine will cause the volcano to erupt.

The trail leads to the Syrneth ruins, which the pirates are exploring. Kheired-
Din is intensely interested in the site, but is not finding what he is looking for.

Commandeering a Ship
Even with just a skeleton crew, commandeering The Strange Skies is a nearly
impossible task for the heroes in their current state. However, The Red Sea
might pose a tempting target. The galley slaves, though hesitant, are easily
intimidated or might cooperate if given a convincing promise of freedom.
Certainly defeating the skeleton crew aboard in a dramatic fashion will go a
long way to earning their goodwill. If the Heroes are cunning, they can
commandeer the ship and get enough of a headstart to leave the island (and
Kheired-Din) far behind!

The Red Sea Skeleton Crew

• Strength 10; 3 squads
During the day, one squad will be below deck monitoring the slaves; it takes
a full round for them to join the fight. At night, two squads will be below
decks and a watch posted.

Kheired-Din
Broad-chested and powerful, Kheired-Din is distinguished by a fiery red
beard, unique among all of his countrymen, and by a complex, unusual

The Island: a 7th Sea Introductory Adventure 6

tattoo, which he claims to have received from angels of Theus.

The heroes confront the captain of The Strange Skies at their peril. For
purposes of this adventure, he is considered an Epic Villain (Villany 15:
Strength 10/Influence 5). He prefers captives to dead pirates, but will
certainly not hesitate to kill if the Heroes pose a real threat to him or his
crew. He will not abide a sorcerer to live! He is intently focused on studying
the Syrneth ruins on the island. Kheired-Din will only personally engage a
Hero if the player forces it.

The captain of The Red Sea, Mehmed ibn Serdar, serves Kheired-Din loyally
and believes in his divine purpose, having seen the captain escape death on
numerous occasions. He is a Weak Villain (Villainy 6: Strength 4/Influence 2).
He is an olive-skinned Crescent who wears his hair oiled and pulled back into
a tight braid. He prefers the color red to all others.

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SCENE FIVE: THE RUIN
Once inside, members of the Explorer’s Society will recognize this as a
Tesseran site. The Tesserans were a reptilian people long since lost to the
world. The passages are tube-shaped and the spherical chambers are
decorated with serpentine columns.

Location Key
The Door
The Door stands open. A guard is posted here day and night.

Guard (Brute Squad)

• Strength 3; 6 at night (1 squad)
The guards are armed with pistols, cutlasses and knives. They will sound the
alarm if give a round to do so.

The Entrance Hall

Antechamber
In the front chamber are six alcoves, 4 of which are currently filled with an
amber-like substance, each containing the trapped body of a pirate. A faint
red glow pulses in their chests. If the machine in the foundry is activated, the
amber will crack, releasing the monstrous remains on these pirates who will
attack anyone in a murderous, berserk rage.

Monster Pirates (Brute Squad)

• Strength 10 (Special)
• Chitinous: Spend a Danger Point to negate all wounds suffered in an
attack
• Powerful: Spend a Danger Point to double the number of wounds dealt by
an attack
• Swift: Spend a Danger Point to take an Action immediately.
While these engineered pirates are technically brutes, each squad is
represented by a single monster. Once they have taken 10 wounds, they fall
to the ground in a quivering heap before melting away into primordial ooze.

Side Chamber

Collapsed passage
This passage was long collapsed by an earthquake or an eruption. Any
progress beyond this point is impossible.

The Foundry
This is a massive spherical chamber deep inside the volcano. The domed
ceiling is drapped in hanging chains. A catwalk extends from a small landing
at the entrance across a wide gulf of simmering lava, to rap around the
contours of the far side, extending half way around the chamber on either
side. Here rests a machine that mirrors that in the Cliffside lagoon (Scene
Four).
• Kheired-Din has been studying this device intently and may well be here.

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• If Jonathan Locke is with the party, he will attempt to convince them to
help him activate the machine.
• A total of 4 raises spent tampering with the machine activates it.

ACTION SCENE
The ground heaves and buckles as the volcano roars angrily. The simmering
lava roils and quakes, splashing upwards in a fine, deadly spray. Dust and
debris fall from the ceiling and the catwalk buckles with the strain of the
earthquake.

Goal: The Heroes need to escape the ruin before it collapses with the
volcanic eruption. The heroes now have 4 rounds to get out of the ruin before
the volcano explodes, collapsing the chamber and burying anyone within
beneath tons of rock and metal. But it’s not as easy as it seems.

Basic Consequences:
• Being thrown from the catwalk or ledge into the lava pool (certain death!).
• Being knocked prone by the buckling earth (getting up afterwards
requires a raise).
• The lava spray does 8 points of damage (group consequence).

Other Challenges:
• Jonathan Locke will refuse to leave, completely overtaken in his madness.
GMs might consider leaving him to die worthy of corruption.
• Kheired-Din is enraged at this development, and will command his men to
take the violators prisoner. “They will learn the error of the ways by lash
and labor!”
• If Kheired-Din is present in the scene, consider allowing him to remain
behind as the volcano explodes. Spend a Danger Point for him to
ultimately escape, but go ahead and allow the Heroes to believe the
volcano has consumed the notorious captain of The Strange Skies. This
only adds to the story of Kheried-Din.
• In the Antechamber, the 3 engineered pirate-monsters will be free and
savagely attack anyone who comes their way, heedless of the
consequence!

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The Island: a 7th Sea Introductory Adventure 10
PLAYER HANDOUT 1
Mysterious Footprints

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PLAYER HANDOUT 2
The Waterfall Statues

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