The Forgotten Island
Introduction and the feel of the area
The coral surrounding this island is brightly coloured and slightly pulsating, covered in an ecosystem of woefully poisonous creatures. Anyone who consumes anything from the reef must save or die in 1d4*5 minutes. Anyone who is bitten by/touches the small creatures living there, must save or suffer from a necrotizing infection on the site affected.
Once you hit the island itself, the colours remain - the plants are also various shades of every colour known, and some unknown. The trees endemic to this island have wood full of scented oils, and their cuttings would be worth their weight in gold. That being said, everything also seems to scintillate - this is due to the dragon, whose presence and machinations on this island has warped its ecosystem.
Just as it has warped the large creatures, so it did with the tiny. The island is swarming with different parasites - the following actions carry risk of catching some parasites:
- Being on the island for a day (due to the mosquito bites) (1-in-100)
- Touching unboiled water (1-in-20)
- Drinking local water unboiled (1-in-6)
- Eating local meat cooked (1-in-100)
- Eating local meat raw (1-in-4)
- Having an open wound (1-in-12)
- Eating local plants without washing them in boiled water first (1-in-12) Parasites can cause the following symptoms (roll 2d8) 1. Awful changes on skin (-1 to reaction rolls for the group you are in), 2. Hunger and Vomitting (consume double the rations), 3. Pain in your hands (-2 to hit), 4. Pain in your legs (you move at 2/3 of your normal speed), 5. Blindness (after a month of having them, you stop seeing in dim light. After three, you go completely blind. 6. Impotence, And A Joyless Disposition (You can not carouse), 7. Cysts In Your Organs (-1 to Max HP per HD), 8. Occasional Fever (After 2d10 calm days, spend 1d4 days incapacitated in bed, fighting an awful fever), 9. Each month roll for a random mutation (up to 3), 10. You begin hearing whispers, as you form a psychic connection to The Rainbow Dragon. If you roll doubles, the symptoms are especially nasty and may lead to your death if untreated. Also, roll 1d4 for how they are transmitted: 1. From human to human (this can start an epidemic), 2. From human to (wide range of) animal and vice versa, 3. From local animal to human (not otherwise), 4. From environment to human. The first two modes may lead to an epidemic if taken off the island. The exact method of transmission is left to the GM's discression, probably based off the method of first infection.
This island is unnaturally rich - each hex of this island seems to contain some sort of a natural resource, be it veins of iron, pure sand or useful plants. The exact nature depends on the technology and magic of your world - it is however meant to be alluring.
The Rainbow Dragon may sometimes (1-in-10 chance per day in the vicinity of the island) be seen flying from, or to this island - it deems itself a collector of an interesting menagerie, having captured and cross-bred creatures from beyond the archipelago.
Random Encounters (1d6):
- The Rainbow Dragon (8! HD, AC as Plate, 2 claws like great axes (if hit, save or be caught and flung upward). Can spew oil (like grease) and set it ablaze (1d6 damage per round for 5 rounds or until you remove the oil. Water causes an explosion). The Rainbow Dragon is a dragon with ebony black skin, covered in an opalizing oily film. He was a magician once, until he has cultivated his chi enough to become this divine creature. Now, he searches further enlightenment by wanting to become an ecosystem - the island is his experiment at creating a new kind of a vessel for his soul, created by a powerful spell. He searches for new species of creatures to mutate and introduce to his system, as well as mutagens and magical knowledge. He can cause bodily changes in both himself and the
- 2d6 Blob Servants (1! HD, AC as Leather, armed with spears and a random mutation from your favourite table each). They look almost like humanoids, except their joints are swollen and their skin translucent, showing the organelle flowing inside. They are fanatically loyal to their creator, The Rainbow Dragon. Not terribly bright - think pinky, more than the brain.
- Symbiotic Tiger (4 HD, AC as Leather, talons as bastard swords, surprises on 5-in-6, almost invisible). A tiger covered in a rainbow of constantly changing stripes, letting it meld into the environment to strike your back. Apex predator.
- Herd of 4d6 Flying Monkeys (1 HD, unarmored, throws stones/dung or strikes as unarmed, glides). Herbivores the height of your knee, with large flaps of leather under their arms.
- 2d4 Songbirds (1 HD, unarmored, singing songs from far away lands (save against charm if you want to harm them)). Colorful, beautiful, completely changed by this place; their songs mutate together as they breed, telling tales of places that have never existed in the first place.
- 1d4 Collared Lizards (3 HD, AC as Scale, spikes treated like spears) - herbivorous dinosaurs, kept by The Rainbow Dragon as a reminder of a previous age.
Hexes themselves
021.043 - Dragon's Lair
It is built out of trees and vines, growing in the shape of a large palace. Inside are great vats of primodial ooze, in which The Rainbow Dragon runs his experiments, as well as ritual circles and various magical instruments, adjusted to make them usable for a Dragon. It is guarded by 40 Blob Servants, who double as research assistants. The bookcase holds scrolls that are priceless to a magical scholar, especially one interested in biology. With them and the equipment, one may splice any trait from one type of an animal to another, with a month of work.
020.043 - Old Temple
A ruin stand her of what was once a monastery, now overgrown with opalizing moss. Skeletons of the monks may be found in a central room, which is where The Rainbow Dragon has ascended. He hadn't purged the records of how he did that, and how he has used his cult to do so. Any magician who reads the writings on the walls could use them to also become a dragon. Required are:
- First, spending a week here, decoding the meanings
- 20 people willing to die
- 10 years of cultivating your chi
- A ritual taking up a month
023.042 - Sand Castles
A population of 200 Overgrown Hermit Crabs (1 HD, AC as Leather, 1d4 damage claws) spliced with beaver genes has built castles here, trading their beautiful shells for other items that they may use as armour. They can be met throughout the beach (replacing the tiger encounter on it); tribal, but if you get to know them they are kind, wanting to share the fruits of their labour and expecting the same.
023.045 - Message In A Bottle
There is a small bottle out of green glass lodged in the coral. Inside it, a detailed drawing of the sky together with a plea for help, dated 6 months ago. A skilled navigator could use it to find an island to the south (~5 days of sailing), where a group of Her Majesty's sailors is trapped; they have built a whole community over there now, where they live together with a group of natives. They don't need rescue anymore, having grown native.
021.040 - Child of Coral
Among the poisonous rainbow-reefs a young woman lives here, born forth from the corals and the fish, all planted by The Rainbow Dragon. She is a curious case, both a dryad (born from nature) and an dayrd (born from artifice). She believes that this reef is her own, and she tries to guard it as much as she can. The Rainbow Dragon sometimes meets her, treating her like a father but secretly resentful for her being closer to what he wants to achieve even though she didn't have to put any effort into it.
Stats: As dryad, but aquatic and with plate armour. Exchange any tree-related things to coral. The coral she comes from could be used for powerful magic, and it would be worth a fortune for a jeweller.