HauntedTrails2001

From Simreal

As per usual, I don't have pictures of everyone or everything... nor do I know everyone's name so I'm not even going to try...sorry if you feel neglected.

Click a picture to see the big version.

First, a picture of random people in the Wild Basin hall.

Haunted Trails is hard work, and it shows. Here are Sue and Cammy, who kept the madness in check. Joe, of course, is everyone's best friend -- he manages the food (among many other jobs he fills).

Finally, Shawn, the director. We didn't quite manage to entirely kill him. (And yes, this is one of the better photos of him!).

The makeup room was always a center of activity before each run. Jennifer Green and her faithful helpers did an excellent job this year.

Welcome to Haunted Trails! We hope your visit will be a fun one... don't mind that big trash dumper to the right. We split the stairs, so guests coming in wouldn't see people in the middle of the show (and vice versa).

Please forgive me if I butcher the story this year... but there are a lot of pictures to show off, so I'll skimp on the text.

Once up the stairs, the group is interviewed by someone -- asking how they learned about the trail, and so forth. This is conducted in a bit of hallway with a door at the end.

At one point in the interview, a large shaggy monster leaps out from the stairway and eats the interviewer! The person who brought them here from the parking lot rushes the group through the door!

Once safely past the door, the group files into a run-down shack... the home of the groundskeeper of the Trail.

He tells the group a tail of woe -- Death has come unhinged, and is bringing the dead back to life. He gives them a yellow rope, the "Thread of Life," and urges the group to make things right.

Right beyond the door of the Grounds Keeper is a wall, a low tunnel, and a couple of Gargoyles watching over it. The group is urged through this tunnel by their guide... and the emerge into a room with a cardtable and some people playing cards.

Before their guide makes it through, the group hears a scream... it seems that the wolf has deprived them of leadership!

Here are a selection of the people inside this room... you can trust them, they are all stamped "T" for Traitor. Your quest depends on your new, dead, guide.

Each guide has a sad story to tell, and wishes to return to the peace of the grave.

One of the players declares that, since he is losing anyway, he will take the stranded group and show them the way to Death's domain. On the way out, the guide distributes his last remaining money (in the form of four or five tokens) to the group.

The group meanders through the graveyard that lies just beyond the zombie's shack. Soon, they are met by another branded traitor and his girlfriend, Grace (well, at least Grace's head. She is having abad day).

This person informs the group that they need the Scroll of the Styx, because he has heard that Death is afraid of it. To find it, they should consult with the Cave Hag, who lives deeper into the woods. The group should be careful, though; Death is raising all sorts of bad things up from the dead.

At this cue, an eight-foot monster lunges from off the trail and chases the screaming group into the woods. The (hopefully unflattened) guide then leads them into the woods and, ultimately, into a cave.

Inside this cave there was the Hag. For a fee, she might be able to tell the group something useful. Though she does not have the Scroll being sought, they should be able to find it deeper in the woods.

When they did get it, they must consult her sister, Yada Yadotski, who will be able to tell them more.

Stewart pops up, unhappy with his fate of being dinner, and the Guide herds the group out of the cave.

Go here for more pictures of Stewart

A rough shelter soon greats the intrepid group. Inside the bushy enclosure is a perky imp, who wishes for the group to play her game! If the group wins, they get the scroll they want.

Inside each hole is one key; each key opens one box; only one box holds the correct scroll! Since 1 in 3 odds suck, she will give them a riddle... for a price. Ultimately, the answer to this riddle is the 'T' on the traitor's foreheads. If the group guesses correctly, a glowing T appears above one hole to show that it is the correct one.

One lucky member of the group now sticks their hand deep into the cold, slimey, gunk and retreives a key. The imp then gives them their scroll -- the right scroll if they got the right hole, the wrong scroll otherwise.

Walking through the woods, the group is met by some zombies who are headed to Death's realm. These zombies are loyal to death and a definite threat to the group... so the group plays dead. Even though the loyal zombies are taking a shortcut to the underworld, the guardian at the gate notices the group is alive (and hence, no friend of Death) and chases them up the trail.

As they approach a stone nook in the trail, the group is met by a live person... live, but wounded and clearly deranged. She entreats the group to help her bring one of her gargoyles to life, so it can help protect her.

The group says the magic words, "Please wake up," but the wrong gargoyle wakes up. This one is behind them and it is very unhappy, as it does not have all of its legs. The group squeezes past it and up the stairs...

Up the stairs and through a long dark hall, the group finds themselves on a small landing. Their guide recognizes this place, though -- it is the elevator down to the underworld. Or, as it is often known, the express elevator to Hell.

A brief technical detour here...

The elevator was mounted on a simple motion platform. This consisted of four pneumatic cylinders attached to four compound levers. One for each corner of the elevator box. Actually, the cylinders are placed as two opposing pairs, one pair each on a steel beam. When the cylinder extends, the levers flatten and lift that corner of the elevator!

This arrangement, with the help of some compressed air and valves, jolted the elevator up and down about 3 and a half inches, in a very convincing manner. From all accounts, this was a fun ride!

Soon after the guide pushes the screaming, flashing doorbell (ouch!), the elevator door opens. The group files into the cramped box, but the elevator operator says it's full before the guide can get in! The door closes, and the group is alone.

Inside the elevator, the operator offers to take them down. At one stop, they are met with the screaming agony of sufferer in hell! Oops, wrong level.

Ultimately, they are ejected on the correct floor.

But there is nothing there! With some looking around, and finally discussion on the best plan to follow, the group opens a small grating and crawls into an access tunnel.

As they crawl through the darkness, they hear their guide calling to them from the outside. "Hey! Where are you guys? You aren't in the access tunnel, are you? Good grief! Keeping crawling, let's get you out of there!"

Once everyone has emerged from the far end of the tunnel (leaving through the door that opens just before the "bottomless tunnel" effect), the group gathers their wits and follows the guide into a black room filled with randomly flashing strobes.

The above pictures don't do the room justice; they don't show the crumpled plastic, half-melted, black, flashing, duct-covered confusion of this "dot" room.

Once the group has entered the first half of the room, a (previously invisible) creature detaches from the wall, growls at them, and rushes around the corner to the second half of the room.

Though somewhat startled, the group presses on. Around the corner, they are confronted again by the creature who, for a price, tells them the story of how to use the scroll they carry.

The group walks through a short, dark hall and enters into a room with a rich throne in it, an odd oval table, and six sturdy chairs. Weary, the guide sits in the big chair (of course) and directs everyone else to take a load off for a bit.

No sooner than they make themselves comfortable, Yada comes in, ejects the guide from her chair, and offers to tell their fortues (for a fee). If the group is good, doesn't offend her, and pays her price -- they learn how to manipulate the thread of life and the thread of death in Death's realm.

Yada is suddenly disturbed, and she calls on her demons to rid her of her guests.

The chairs come alive and poke the guests until the leave.

Gathering again in the open space outside the fortune teller's room, the group is disturbed by a huge bat-like creature that swings out into space over them.

The only escape from this is into a very dark passage with glowing, floating heads. Passing through this room (which I call the Hall of Perverts) the group is... groped, somewhat... by invisible creatures.

Finally out in the open air again, everyone clambers up and then down a few steps of stairway... and hit the open trail, wondering where they might find the final piece of the puzzle, the Thread of Death.

A little ways up the trail, the group is met with a blank wall. After some searching, the guide notices a small portal they can use to go in... but one at a time.

Inside this room (though, it seems, short one member!) the astute group notices a red rope around the occupent's neck. Though this imp seems interested in doing anything but give them this rope, she ultimately relents and sells it to them for their last token.

Now the group has everything they need... assuming they spent their money wisely and paid attention, and didn't offend everyone. They have the thread of life, the thread of death, and scroll of the Styx, and the knowledge to use them wisely. Or perhaps they made a mistake and will end up doing the hokey-pokey in death's lair... to their ultimate doom.

Death's lair looms large on the trail, a forbidding stone entrance way.

Entering, the group works their way through a dark, oppressive corridor until the emerge into the main room of Death's realm. In the middle of this there is a glowing circle; to one end, a large mirror. To the other end, a raised platform and dark curtain.

A slightly different experienced met the one person seperated from the group. They were met outside the portal by a guide, who led them into Death's realm and through a hidden passage to a dark little room with a window out into the main room. This guide explained that the person was dead now, but Death might take pity on them if they screamed really loud when the light shone on them.

Hopefully, the group doesn't spend much time admiring the scenery, but is busy placing their ropes into the glowing circle and getting ready for their showdown with Death.

In due time, Death appears on the stage and taunts the group. He points to the mirror, saying he already has one of their souls. The mirror lights up and they group sees their friend behind it... who screams like the end of the world.

Finally, a light comes on overhead and the group reads their scroll. If everything went well, Death is destroyed to be replaced by a kinder, gentler Death who congratulates the group, reunites their friend, and sends them on their winning way.

If there is an error... the crazy Death taunts them mercilessly and sends them and their dead friend out, losers, into the cold unfriendly night.