Starcrash 1978

Starship attacked; crew driven insane; escape pods launch

A starship pursuing Count Zarth Arn is struck by a mysterious weapon, driving the crew to madness. In the resulting chaos, three escape pods launch and the ship crashes into the planet's atmosphere. The survivors scramble for safety as the vessel is destroyed.

Stella and Akton confront Imperial Space Police; hyperspace escape

Stella Star and Akton collide with the Imperial Space Police led by Elle and Thor. They spark a desperate escape by jumping into hyperspace. The trio finds an escape pod from the attacked starship, containing a disoriented survivor.

Arrest and piracy conviction

The Imperial authorities track their hyperspace trail and arrest the fugitives. Stella and Akton are tried and convicted of piracy, sentenced to life in prison on separate planets. The verdict sets the stage for their later escape.

Stella escapes prison; recaptured; sentence canceled

Stella escapes her prison, but Elle and Thor recapture her. They inform her the authorities have canceled her sentence and relocate her to an orbiting ship. There, she is reunited with Akton, who remains in custody.

Emperor assigns mission; locate weapon and missing pods

The Emperor of the Galaxy contacts Stella and Akton, thanking them for recovering the starship survivor. He tasks them with finding Count Zarth Arn's secret weapon and locating two more missing escape pods and the mothership. Clemency is offered if they cooperate.

First pod search begins; beach landing

Accompanied by Thor and Elle, Stella and Akton travel to the calculated location of the first escape pod. They land on a beach and begin the search, discovering no survivors among the wreckage.

Amazon fortress confrontation; Corelia's betrayal

Stella meets an Amazonian warrior tribe and is taken to their underground fortress. Elle is ambushed and left for dead, while Queen Corelia, secretly allied with Zarth Arn, confronts Stella. Corelia's treachery becomes clear.

Hostage rescue and robot pursuit

Elle survives and makes her way to the throne room, taking Corelia hostage to force Stella's release. They escape, but Corelia activates a giant robot that pursues them until Akton and Thor arrive to rescue the group.

Frozen planet betrayal; lockout and rescue

On an uninhabited, frozen planet, Stella and Elle investigate the mothership crash site and find no survivors. Returning to their ship, they discover Thor is a Zarth Arn agent and has locked Stella and Elle outside as the temperature plummets. Elle sustains Stella through the cold, and Akton revives to battle Thor and rescue them.

Third pod approach; cavemen abduct Stella; Simon intervenes

Approaching the planet of the third escape pod, their ship is attacked by the weapon that felled the starship. Stella and Elle are separated and abducted by cavemen. The Emperor's son, Simon, arrives and rescues Stella with lasers; Akton then defeats the cavemen and reveals they are standing on the Count's weaponized planet.

Underground lab; Count's trap

The trio is captured in an underground laboratory. Count Zarth Arn reveals his plan to use them as bait to lure the Emperor to the planet, then trigger the weapon's self-destruction to annihilate the Emperor and all three of them. Akton battles the robot golems but is mortally wounded and fades away.

Emperor halts time; escape as planet explodes

The Emperor arrives and fires a green ray from his flagship to stop time for three minutes, allowing Stella, Elle, and Simon to escape as the planet explodes. The miraculous delay buys them a chance to survive the trap.

Final space battle and the Floating City attack

A grand battle erupts between the Emperor's armada and the Count's forces. The Emperor orders a daring ramming attack, using the Floating City to strike the Count's space station in a 4D starcrash. Stella and Elle flee aboard the City as it collides with the enemy station.