D&D Basic Set - Players Manual (BECMI Ed) (Basic)

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS is a registered trademark owned by TSR Hobbies. Inc.
Preface
This is a game that is fun. It helps you
imagine.
"As you whirl around, your sword ready, the
huge, red, fire-breathing dragon swoops
toward you with a ROAR!"
See? Your imagination woke up already.

Now imagine: This game may be more
fun than any other game you have ever
played!
The DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
game is a way for us to imagine together
like watching the same movie, or
reading the same book. But^ow can write
the stories, without putting a word on
paper just by playing the D&D
game.
You, along with your friends, will
create a great fantasy story, you will put
it away after each game, and go back to
school or work, but like a book the
adventure will wait. It's better than a
book, though; it will keep going as long
as you like.
It is nearly the most popular game
How to use this book

You can learn how to play the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game by yourself, simply by reading the next sections
of this booklet. You don't have to memorize everything as you read; the first two
adventures are designed to teach you
while you play. If you are ready to learn,
begin reading at Start here.
The game is usually played in groups
of 3 or more people. If you want to learn
with others, it's best if one person already knows how to play, and can teach
the others. If not, you (or one of the
others) may read the first adventure
aloud, while everyone follows along, to
learn the basics of the game. However,
it's better if each person can read the
adventures separately.
When you all know how to play characters, read the sections "DUNGEONS
& DRAGONS Characters" and "Playing with a Group". One person must
also learn how to be a Dungeon Master
(or DM) the person who plays the
roles of the Monsters. The other booklet
ever made. And you will see why, in just

a bit.
When you bought some other game
or book, did you ever think, "Gee, that's
nice, but it's not quite what I thought it
would be"? Well, your D&D adventures
will be just what you want, because
you're the one making them up!
And it's not hard. It takes a little reading and a little thinking, but most of all,
it's fun.
It's fun when you discover that nobody loses, and everybody wins!
It's fun when you get good at the
game . . . for example, knowing what to
expect in a kobold cave, and which dragons are on your side.
And you don't have to put in a coin
each time, like many other games. Once
you have these rules, you don't need
anything else.
There's more, of course, if you want it:
exciting adventures to play, miniature figures of monsters and characters, expert
rules for more experienced players, and
in this set is the DUNGEON MASTERS

RULEBOOK, and explains everything
the DM needs to know.
This set gives all the details for playing a
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game. With
these rules, your characters can reach
the 3rd level of experience. (These and
other terms are explained later in this
booklet.) Other sets are available, with
more magic items and spells, monsters,
and rules for bigger and better games.
Set #2 is the D&D EXPERT Rules,
for character levels 4th through 14th.
The D&D COMPANION Rules is Set
#3, for characters levels 15th through
25th; and the D&D MASTERS Set
gives the remaining details for character
levels 26th through 36th.
Everything in these sets fits together
to form a complete system for playing
D&D fantasy role playing games. You
may use all or part of these rules. They
often include several ways of playing
and running the game. You may create
new rules, monsters, and magic, using
these rules as guidelines.
lots more. But you already have everything you need to start: this package, and
your imagination. That will do it.
Ah, yes; it does cost one more thing,
which you also have right now a bit of
time. It takes a few minutes to learn the
basic rules, and another hour or two to
play a full game. You will probably want
to spend more time, and might even
make it a hobby; millions of people have.
But for now, just sit back and imagine.
"Your character stands atop a grassy hill. . .
the sun glints off your golden hair, rippling in
the warm breeze . . . you absent-mindedly rub
the gem-studded hilt of your magic sword, and
glance over at the dwarf and elf, bickering as
usual about how to load the horses . . . the
magic-user has memorized her spells, and says
she's ready to go . . . a dangerous dungeon
entrance gapes at you from the mountain
nearby, and inside, a fearsome dragon awaits.
Time to get moving . . .
Have Fun!
Frank Mentzer
February, 1983
Acknowledgements
The following individuals have made
this work possible through its years of
evolution: Dave Arneson, Brian Blume,
Dave Cook, Anne C. Gray, Ernie Gygax,
E. Gary Gygax, Allen Hammack, Kevin
Hendryx, John Eric Holmes, Harold
Johnson, Tim Kask, Jeff Key, Rob
Kuntz, Alan Lucien, Steve Marsh, Tom
Moldvay, Mike Mornard, Jon Pickens,
Brian Pitzer, Michael Price, Patrick L.
Price, Paul Reiche, Evan Robinson, Gordon Schick, Lawrence Schick, Don
Snow, Edward G. Sollers, Garry Spiegle,
Stephen D. Sullivan, Ralph Wagner, Jim
Ward, Jean Wells, and Bill Wilkerson.
Thanks also to Donald Paterson, for
opening my own door to the D&D
world, and special thanks to Harold
Johnson, who escorted me in.
IP Players Manual
\t-2/
by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson

Table of Contents
Revised by Frank Mentzer

Illustrations by Larry Elmore
and Jeff Easley
1974, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1983
TSR Hobbies, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Dedication
This game has undergone a startling

metamorphosis from its earliest forms,
written for hobbyists, to the current
revision, usable and understandable by
nearly anyone. The original flavor and
intent has been carefully preserved.
With the greatest admiration, respect,
and thanks, this edition is dedicated to
the president and founder of TSR
Hobbies: E. GARY GYGAX.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and D&D
are registered trademarks owned by

TSR Hobbies, Inc.
This book is protected under the

copyright laws of the United States of
America. Any reproduction or other
unauthorized use of the material or
artwork contained herein is prohibited
without the express written consent of
TSR Hobbies, Inc.
Distributed to the book trade in the
United States by Random House, Inc.
and in Canada by Random House of Canada,
Ltd. Distributed to the toy and hobby
trade by regional distributors.
Printed in the U.S.A.
First Printing May, 1983
TSR Hobbies, Inc.
Learning to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games

Start here
What is "role playing"?
What role will I play?
Your first adventure
Your character
Alignment: How characters and monsters behave
Now where do you go?
The character sheet
Ability scores
Adjustments
Saving throws
Special abilities
Combat chart
Magic items
Normal items
Other notes
Money and treasure
Experience
Dice
This is very important. Be sure to read it carefully.
Solo adventure
Part 1: Town business
Part 2: Battles
More damage
The monsters
Combat checklist
Record keeping
Getting killed
Mapping
Part 3: Into the caves
After the adventure
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS characters
What comes next?
Character classes
Prime requisites
Saving throws
Character class: human
Cleric
Fighter
Magic-user
Thief
Character class: demi-human
Dwarf
Elf
Halfling
Making up a new character
Players are not characters!
Playing with a group
How to prepare
Character alignment
Adventuring rules
Encounter rules
Additional rules
Missile weapons
Variable weapon damage
Combat maneuvers
Encumbrance
Retainers
The world of D&D gaming
Glossary
3
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
22
23
24
28
37
43
45
46
47
48
52
53
55
56
58
59
60
61
62
63
Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS" games

Start here
A dungeon is a group of rooms and corridors in which monsters and treasures
can be found. And you will find them, as
you play the role of a character in a fantasy world. There are many kinds of
monsters, but dragons are the biggest
and most dangerous and have the
most treasure.
You can start playing this game right
now without learning any rules, and
without anyone else to play with! Just start
reading, and you will discover the basics of
the game in a matter of minutes.
During your first adventure, you will
only need one of the dice in the box.
The others will be used later, for now all
you need is the roundish one with the
numbers 1 to 20 on it. Use the crayon to
fill in the numbers, and rub off extra
wax with a tissue so only the numbers
are colored in.
After you do that, get a pencil and
paper and you're ready to start!
Read this booklet just like any book.
Don't skip around! This edition has been
completely revised to introduce the
game to you, step by step. While you are
reading the next sections, you will learn
many things about the game. You do not
have to memorize everything as you go
along.
By the time you have played the Solo
Adventure (pages 13-22), you will know
how to play the basic game. The rest of
this booklet gives other details that you
will need when playing the game with
others.
In group games, one person is the
Dungeon Master, and everyone else is a
player. The Dungeon Master (or DM,
for short) runs the game, while the others play the roles of characters. The
other booklet in this set, DUNGEON
MASTERS RULEBOOK, gives all the
information needed for running group
games.
What is "role playing"?

This is a role-playing game. That means
that you will be like an actor, imagining
that you are someone else, and pretending
to be that character. You won't need a
stage, though, and you won't need costumes or scripts. You only need to imagine.
This game doesn't have a board, because you won't need one. Besides, no
board could have all the dungeons,

dragons, monsters, and characters you
will need!
For now, while you are learning, you
will play a role in your imagination.
Later, when you play the game with others, you will all be playing different roles
and talking together as if you were the
characters. It will be easy, but first you
need to get ready.
What role will I play?

Imagine: it is another place, another
time. The world is much like ours was,
long ago, with knights and castles and no
science or technology no electricity,
no modern comforts of any kind.
Imagine: dragons are real. Werewolves are real. Monsters of all kinds live
in caves and ancient ruins. And magic
really works!
Imagine: you are a strong hero, a famous but poor fighter. Day by day you
explore the unknown, looking for monsters and treasure. The more you find, the
more powerful and famous you become.
Your character's basic abilities
In the game, we need some way of describing your character, the fighter you
will pretend to be. We can say the fighter
is "strong, fairly nimble, not too smart"
but we need to describe the character
a little better than that.
We call these descriptions abilities
(Strength, Intelligence, and others). We
measure each one with a number, called
an "Ability Score." The highest score
possible is 18, and the least is 3 (for reasons we'll discuss later).
You are a strong fighter; your Strength
score is 17, nearly the highest possible!
You are "fairly nimble," which means
that you can move swiftly. The name for
this ability is Dexterity. As a fighter, you don't
need a high Dexterity score. Your Dexterity
is 11 (which is a little above average).
A fighter often isn't very smart. Your
character isn't as smart as you are, but isn't
stupid, either. Let's say your Intelligence is 9
(which is a little below average).
Now make a note of your Ability
Scores. Anywhere in the middle of your
sheet of paper, write:
17 Strength
11 Dexterity
9 Intelligence
You also need equipment for adventuring. You are carrying a backpack and
other items, very similar to what you
would carry when camping. Some of
these items include food, water, rope, a
lantern, and so forth; for now, just assume you have everything you need to
survive in the wilderness.
With monsters around, you need protection! You are wearing armor made of
links of chain (called chain mail) and a
helmet. You own a beautiful sword, and
have a dagger tucked into one boot, just
in case. You know how to use all of your
equipment properly.
If you like, you can give your fighter a
name. It doesn't matter whether you are
male or female.
All set? Let's go!
Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games!

Your first adventure
Your home town is just a small place
with dirt roads. You set off one morning
and hike to the nearby hills. There are
several caves in the hills, caves where
treasures can be found, guarded by
monsters. You have heard that a man
named Bargle may also be found in these
caves. Bargle is a sort of bandit, who has
been stealing money, killing people, and
terrorizing your town. If you can catch
him, you can become a hero!
As you approach the entrance, you
look around. It's a nice day, and everything seems peaceful. You know that
things aren't usually peaceful in caves
where monsters live, and it's usually
dark, too. So you get out your lantern
and a tinderbox (matches haven't been
invented yet, so the box has flint and
steel), and carefully light the wick. The
flame sputters a bit, but the oil soon
burns with a soft glow. With your sword
ready, you step into the cave.
It's dark and musty inside. A passage
leads inward from the entrance, going
deeper into the hill. It looks like the only
way to go, so you head in that direction,
watching carefully for bats and other
nasty creatures.
Suddenly, you see a goblin! He is
smaller than you are, and looks like an
ugly little man with gray skin. He sees
you, gives a scream, waves his sword,
and attacks! You dodge his blow, and
raise your sword to swing.
If the goblin hadn't attacked right
away, you might have tried talking to
him; but now you have no choice. You
must fight for your life.
How to hit
In the game, whenever you try to hit a
monster there is a chance that you will
miss and, of course, a chance that you
will hit. It is very hard for monsters to
hit your fighter, because of your fine
chain mail armor. The goblin isn't as
hard to hit, because his armor is not
nearly as good.
To swing at the monster, you must
make a Hit Roll. Roll the twenty-sided
die. If you roll an 11 or less, your character misses the goblin. If you roll a 12 or
higher, you hit! (This number is part of
the Combat Rules. You will learn more
about it as you continue.)
If you miss, the goblin tries again, but

misses. You can swing again; roll again
to see if you hit.
If you hit the goblin, he screams and
runs away, down the corridor and into
the darkness. (Goblins can see in the
dark.) You have wounded him.
If you keep missing, keep rolling! The
goblin is trying to hit you, but you keep
dodging the blows. Remember: if you
hit the goblin, he runs away.
Damage and hit points
In the game, when any creature is hit
(either monster or character), damage is
caused. There is a way of keeping track
of damage, called hit points.
The number of hit points is the
amount of damage that a creature can
take before being killed. Hit points can
be any number; the more hit points a
creature has, the harder it is to kill. We
often use an abbreviation for hit points:
it is hp.
Your fighter starts with 8 hp (hit
points) and still has all 8, since the goblin
never hit you. He may have hit your armor or shield, but never got through
your protection, so these attacks are still
called "misses" they didn't actually
damage your character.
You stop for a moment to be sure that

you are all right, and then continue
down the corridor. There are no side
passages, no other way to go.
Ahead, the corridor leads into a wider
area, which we will call a "chamber". You
carefully approach the chamber, shining
your lantern around to see if anything is
there. A hiss comes from a corner of the
room to your left, and there you see a
huge rattlesnake, almost ten feet long!
Near it, on the floor, are hundreds of
gold and silver coins.
Constitution: Your health

Your fighter is healthy, and can fight a
long time without tiring. This ability is
measured by another Ability Score,
called Constitution. Your Constitution is
16, well above average but not perfect.
Your Constitution affects your hit
points. If you have a low score, you
might only have 2 or 3 hit points. On the
other hand, if you had an 18 Constitution, you might have as many as 10 hp,
or more!
Write your new Ability Score under
the others on your sheet.
16 Constitution
Near the top of the page, above the Ability Scores, make a note of your hit
points:
Hit Points 8
Now back to your adventure:
Talking to a snake will do no good at all,

and you can't just sneak past it. Again,
you must fight. For this battle, you will
keep track of hit points. The snake has 3
hp. On your sheet of paper, near the
bottom, write "Snake 3," leaving some
room to keep track of the snake's
damage.
This time, you will need to roll an 11
or higher to hit the snake. It's slower and
easier to hit than the goblin was. But the
snake has a better chance of hitting you
than the goblin did, because it's bigger
and tougher.
If you hit the snake, cross off the 3
and write a 2 next to it; you have
damaged the snake. If you miss, don't
do anything.
The snake then bites at you, and hits!
At the top of the sheet, cross off the 8
after the words "Hit Points," and write a
7 next to it.
While playing a D&D game by yourself, you should use this method to keep
track of your hit points, and the hit
points of the monster you meet.

Poisoned?
This is a poisonous snake, which can be
very dangerous. In the game, there is a
way of finding our whether the poison
hurt you or not. Roll the twenty-sided
die again. If you roll a 12 or higher, that
means that you dodged before the snake
could inject its poison (but you still take
damage from the bite). If you roll an 11
or less, your fighter takes 2 more points
of damage from the poison (cross off the
7 hp and write 5).
You made this roll to see if you saved
yourself from trouble; this roll is called a
Saving Throw, and will be used later in
many other situations in the game.
Your fighter swings again. Remember,
if you roll an 11 or higher, you hit, and
can subtract 1 hit point from the snake.
If you miss, do nothing.
The snake bites your fighter again!
You lose one more hit point, and must
make another saving throw; remember,
if you roll 12 or higher, you don't lose
extra points. If you roll an 11 or less, you
lose another 2 hit points from poison
damage.
You can now swing again. If the snake
still lives, it bites and misses. (In this battle, the snake won't hit any more; in a
regular game, it might kill your fighter
before you hit it at all!)
The snake will keep attacking, but it
will keep missing. Your fighter may have
to swing many times, but sooner or later
you will kill the snake. Make all the practice rolls you need.
When the snake's hit points become
zero, the snake is dead. (If your hit
points ever reach zero, you're dead!)
You are hurt, but there is nothing you
can do about it right now. The damage
your fighter has taken can be healed by a
few days' rest.
The dead snake is not dangerous, so
you get to work. You pick up the many
coins and put them in cloth sacks you
brought with you. As you are doing this,
you notice that, besides the gold, there
are three types of silvery coins. Most are
silver, but others are more valuable metals called electrum and platinum!
This is a rich treasure; snakes usually
have none. The treasure probably belonged to someone else who tried to kill
the snake but failed.
Sometimes treasure could be hidden.
Looking carefully around the room, you
find a small gem, a pearl, in one corner.

It may be worth 100 gold pieces itself!
After resting a bit to catch your
breath, you shine the lantern around,
and see another corridor leading further into the darkness. Looking back the
way you came, you see the light of day
shining in the cave entrance in the distance. It looks tempting, but you remind
yourself that you are a courageous fighter, and shouldn't run away just because
of a little fighting.
Remember, though, that you are
hurt; if you continue on, beware! If you
see another snake, or something else
that looks as dangerous, you should
probably go back. Don't get killed! Live
to fight another day; the treasure will
wait.
You carefully start down the corridor
into the unknown, your lantern held
high and sword ready.
The corridor leads to another small
cave. As you approach, you hear a voice,
and see a light.
You pull the shutters closed on your
lantern, so you can hide better, and carefully peek around the corner. To your
right, sitting by the cave wall, is a beautiful woman, wearing armor like yours.
She has no sword, but has a rod with a
metal ball on one end; this is a weapon
called a mace. A lit lantern is on the floor
next to her. She seems to be meditating
or praying.
You decide she might not wish to be
disturbed. But as you try to quietly tiptoe past, she looks up and says:
"Greetings, friend! Looking for the
goblin? You might Oh! You are hurt!
May I help?" She watches you carefully,
in case you are dangerous, but seems to
want to help.
You apologize for disturbing her, but
you wonder what she knows about the
goblin, and most of all how she
could help you. But wait; she might be
an enemy. Keeping your sword ready,
you move closer. She stands, and says:
"My name is Aleena. I'm a cleric, an
adventurer like yourself. I live in the
town nearby, and came here seeking
monsters and treasure. Do you know
about clerics?"
Stop and imagine what your character
would say. Back in town, she might be
one of your neighbors, you are not sure,
but you don't know about clerics.
After listening to you, she says, "Well,
the goblin went that-a-way," and points
toward a corridor leading out of the

room. "He came through here so fast I
almost didn't see him. You hit him?
Good for you! Goblins are nasty.
"Since you don't know about clerics,
let me explain. Clerics are trained in
fighting like you, but we can also cast
spells. I meditate, and the knowledge of
spells enters my mind. One of the spells
I can cast right now is a curing spell, and
you look like you need it!"
Spell casting! You've heard of it, but
know nothing about it. You are still cautious, but you watch as the cleric says a
few words and touches you lightly on the
arm. Magically, your wounds are healed!
On your sheet, imss out your I lit
I'oinis and wriir down 8 the full
amoimi you .started with.
"Feel better?" she asks. "Would you
care to sit and rest a bit? I'd like to tell
you a few things that you will need to
know later." You sit down, happy to rest,
but keeping your sword handy in case of
trouble. She sits down next to her lantern.
"If you didn't know about clerics, you
probably don't know about magic-users.
They are adventurers, like you and me,
but they study only spells, and rarely
fight. They have different spells than we
clerics do, and instead of meditating,
they learn their spells from books.
There are a few magic-users living in
town, but not many.
Learning how to play DUNGEONS 8c DRAGONS games!

"If you are attacked by a bad magicuser, you might be able to avoid the
magic, but it's harder than avoiding poison. Spells can be helpful, but they can
be very dangerous, too.
"By the way, that looked like a snake
bite that I cured. That can be very bad,
because most poison is deadly; you
were lucky that it didn't cause more
damage. Some other creatures also
have special attacks, like poison. Some
can paralyze, and some can even turn
you to stone by just looking at you
unless you look away in time. And
dragons are the worst! They can
breathe fire, acid, or other deadly
things. You can never avoid all the
damage from their breaths, but you
can lessen it if you cover up in time.
Your chaiarlcr has different S.i\,inj>
Throws for each of ihe special aitaik
forms; these will be explained laiei.
Charisma: Your personality

Your fighter gets along fairly well with
the cleric; she was friendly right away.
This is the effect of another Ability
Score: your Charisma. Since your fighter
is a likeable person, your Charisma score
is above average, 14 (remember, 18 is the
best possible). If you had a low score, the
cleric would have been very cautious,
and might not have offered to cure you
at all.
Wisdom, Your common sense
A cleric is very wise. This is another
Ability Score, different from intelligence. For example, imagine that you
feel wet drops on your arm. Your Intelligence would tell you that it's raining;
your Wisdom would tell you to go indoors
to avoid catching a cold.
Your fighter is not very wise; your
Wisdom score is 8. The cleric has a
Wisdom of 17, but is fairly weak, with a
Strength of 9. Each type of adventurer
has a different specialty; magic-users,
for example, have high Intelligence, but
often low Strength.
Put these two Ability Scores on your
sheet:
8 Wisdom
14 Charisma
Sharing adventures
As your fighter talks with the cleric, you
get to know each other a little better. She
offers to come along, to help in the adventure. Although this means that the
treasure should be split between you, it
also means that together you can defeat
more dangerous monsters, and find
more treasure. And two adventurers
have a better chance of success than either does alone. You decide that it would
be a good idea, and together you set off
down the next corridor.
Side by side, you quietly walk down the

dark passageway. You see another corridor branching off to the right, about
twenty feet ahead. Keeping your lanterns half-shuttered, so you can see what
you are doing without attracting much
attention, you move up to the corridor
and peek around the corner.
Four beast-like humans in tattered
clothes are standing in a group about ten
feet away, down the side corridor. But
they make no noise at all quiet as the
dead. They look like they are waiting for
some poor victim to come along.
Before you can speak, the cleric
touches your arm, and points back the
way you came. The two of you back up a
few feet so the creatures won't hear you.
"They're ghouls!" she whispers. "If
one hits you, it could paralyze you!
Ghouls are undead monsters, very nasty
things; neither dead nor alive, but something horribly in between. We clerics
have some power over these creatures of
darkness. Follow me, and wish for luck."
You move forward again, but with the
cleric leading the way. Peeking around
the corner, you see the ghouls. Luckily,
they don't seem to have heard your
whispers. The cleric pulls a necklace out
from under her armor, and you see that
there is a symbol of one of the town
churches on her silver chain. She boldly
steps out, holds up the symbol, and says
harshly "BEGONE, vile things!"
When she steps out, the ghouls
quickly turn to attack. But now, as she
thrusts the symbol out, the ghouls
pause; and suddenly, in a rush, they
scramble away down the side corridor,
into the darkness, and all in dead silence.
"Don't bother to chase them," she
mutters. "As I said, they can be quite
dangerous, and we should continue on

our way. I was lucky to Turn them, and it
might not work again."
As you continue down the corridor together, she explains. "We call this Turning Undead', you see. Only clerics can
do it, and sometimes it doesn't work.
Ghouls are only one of many kinds of
undead monsters; there are also skeletons, zombies, and much worse. If you
had been alone, you could easily have
been ambushed, and probably slain.
"Let's hurry, because the Turning only
lasts for a few minutes. There are too
many of them for us to handle."
You see a door ahead, to the right. This

is unusual in caves, and you approach it
slowly and quietly. The corridor continues past it, into the darkness.
Together you examine the door. It is
made of wood, with heavy iron bands
across it; the hinges seem to be on the
other side. A large keyhole is below the
curved metal handle.
"I don't see anything dangerous," says
the cleric, "but then, I don't know much
about the traps you sometimes find on
doors. It's worth a try." She tries to open
it, but the door seems to be locked.
"Could you try to force it open?" she
asks.
You back up a bit and, with a short
run, slam into the door. But try as you
might, you can't break it open.
"What a pity!" murmurs Aleena.
"There is probably some nice treasure in
there, but we can't get to it. We need a
thief!"

Seeing the puzzled look on our face,
she explains. "You may think that thieves
are bad, but many of them aren't.
Thieves are adventurers too; some of
them are quite nice folks, really. You do
have to keep an eye on your coin purse,
but a thief can be very helpful finding
traps, opening locks, climbing walls, and
doing other things.
"I'm sure we could do better if we had
a thief along, and a magic-user could
help, too. I usually go adventuring with
those types, plus a couple of big fighters
like you to handle the rough stuff. Unfortunately, nobody else wanted to come
along this time.
You try the door again, but it won't
open. So, with a sigh of regret, the two
of you continue down the corridor.
The corridor curves to the left, and
you see a light ahead. You stop and listen, and hear voices. One sounds like a
man, but the other sounds like a goblin.
"Get UP, you wimpy weakling!"
growls the man. "Who else did you see,
besides this fighter and a cleric!"
"Please, master! Don't hurt!" whimpers the goblin. "Nobody else, nobody. I
hurt the fighter real bad. I come to tell
you right away!"
The goblin's lies don't seem to fool the
human. "Get UP, I say, or I'll turn you
into a toad. You probably ran away without even trying. Nobody else, you're
sure?"
"Nobody else, master, I swear!"
"Hrmph. They could still mean trouble. Perhaps we can trick them, and kill
them without a fight . . ."
Aleena taps your arm once again, and
you back up to discuss the situation.
"I recognize that man's voice!" she
says. "It's Bargle, one of those bad
magic-users. He has probably cast a spell
on the goblin to force it to serve him.
"If we go back, we should be safe. Oh!
I almost forgot. The ghouls are back
there. If Bargle only has one goblin, we
should risk this battle, rather than face
all those Undead. Besides, he's not ready
for us yet."
Listening carefully, you hear the
magic-user and the goblin planning how
to trick you and Aleena. The two of you
also make plans. The magic-user is the
most dangerous, and Aleena will try to
fight his spells with hers. Your job is to
fight the goblin.
As your return, you hear a spell being
cast up ahead. You peek around the cor-
ner, and see a tall bearded human in a

black robe standing in a room. A goblin
is crouched by one wall, watching. The
robed magic-user is moving his hands
and saying works you don't understand
and suddenly he disappears!
The goblin crackles with glee, and
says "Ah, master, it worked! Nobody can
see you now, and what a surprise those
nasty people will have. And I'm next!
Make me invisible too, master!"
The cleric whispers, "Now! Before
they can do any more!" And you charge
into the room together.
The goblin jumps up and meets your
charge with a swing of its sword. It
The goblin lias 2 hit points, and you
still need to roll a \2 or boner 10 hit.
Roll the die and keep track of the battle in the same way as you did with
the snake.
As you battle the goblin, Aleena looks
wildly around for the invisible magicuser, waving her mace to and fro in the
air. It seems to hit something, and you
hear a deep grunt. She keeps waving her
mace, but without further success, so she
stops and casts a spell. You don't see
what her spell does, so you concentrate
on fighting.
1 In- i>ul]|iii hii mm liijli'ri fnr '_'
| i n i i i [ > u l i l ; i i i ] . i ^ c i Y o n n\\
!> 1
[ m i n i n l d . i i r u j j t ' w h e n \ m i h i : . >III
p . m - i l i n flu.- g u l i l i n ^ J : b u i i h r g u l i l m
u i i K h , i * '_' fin { m i n i s . >ii n \ ,i t.iii
I j ^ l i i . R o l l .lLf.iin i n sic if v i m liii [lit-
(him. If vcm MUM. tin- gohlui

.mil m i w
i
Aleena can't iind Bjiglc, and ib alai ting to look worried. Suddenly, the sound
of a spell comes from a far corner of the
room! The cleric turns and runs in that
direction, waving her mace and shouting, the black-robed magic-user appears
in the same corner as the spell noise,
with a glowing arrow floating in the air
beside him. He points at Aleena; the arrow shoots out, and hits her! She wails
and falls with a sigh, collapsing in the
middle of the room. The glowing arrow
disappears.
If your fighter hasn't slain the goblin yet,

roll again. But while you are swinging,
the goblin hits you again, causing 2 more

points of damage. Remember to keep
track of hit points for both the goblin
and your fighter.
If your hit points reach zero, the enemies win this battle. You will not see
home again.
If you are still fighting, the magic-user
stays back in the corner, thinking about
what spell to throw next. Roll again; the
goblin keeps missing.
The goblin started the battle with 2 hit
points. So the second time you hit the
creature, his hit points reach zero, and
he shrieks and falls dead on the floor.
You have overcome one enemy, but the
magic-user remains!
When the goblin falls, the magic-user
starts looking worried. Watching you
carefully, he starts saying magic words
and waving his hands. He's casting a
spell at you.
You run at him, hoping for a chance
to swing before he can complete the
spell. But it's too late a magical force
touches your mind.
Roll the die once again. You must
make a Saving Throw against the spell.
If you roll a 16 or less, the magic takes
effect; read the next section, Ending #1
for this adventure. If you roll a 17 or
higher, your fighter avoids the spell;
skip to Ending #2 on page 8.
Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games

Ending #1: YOU MISS THE
SAVING THROW
As you get near the magic-user, a funny
feeling comes over you. Why, he doesn't
look so bad; in fact, Bargle seems to be a
pretty nice guy! You think you used to
be friends, but you are not sure just
where or when.
"Feeling better?" he asks. "You were
overcome with rage for a moment. Are
you okay now?"
"Sure," you reply, somewhat confused. "You seem to be okay, Bargle old
pal, and I only took a little damage from
that goblin. Say, I saw some ghouls back
there; we should get moving."
"Indeed?" replies Bargle. "Well, let's
pack up the goodies, and move on."
Together you collect the treasure: a
small bag from the goblin, and a larger
one from the cleric. Bargle picks up a
black velvet bag, explaining that he
dropped it while he was fighting the
goblin.
As you get ready to leave, you blurt
out "Shouldn't we take the cleric's body
back? She helped me out, earlier."
"That would be nice," Bargle replies,
"but we're carrying all we can. We all
take our risks, here in the dungeon."
Something seems wrong about that.
You argue with Bargle a bit, but he
convinces you that nothing could be
done for her, and bringing her along
could slow you down maybe enough
that the ghouls would catch up. So you
head off down the corridor, as if the best
of friends.
The corridor leads to another room,
which is empty. You search it together;
nothing can be found. But looking down
the next passage, you see a light!
"Bargle!" you exclaim. "Look here!"
"Ah, I see," he says. "That must be a
way out! We're in good shape now. Lead
on, fierce fighter! I shall watch for the
ghouls."
You head down the corridor towards
the light. Sure enough, it's a side
passage, leading out of the hill into the
sunlight. As your stomach grumbles,
you remember that it's after noon. You
missed lunch in all the excitement.
"Shall we head back?" you ask, as you
squint out into the daylight, much
brighter than your lantern.
"Surely!" he replies. As you head outside, you start to talk about how hungry
you are. Bargle's reply isn't in a language

you can understand; you stop and turn,
and see him softly chanting a spell,
waving his hands at you. Before you can
ask what's going on, you begin to feel
very sleepy. Everything goes black.
*
*
*
Something lands on your face, and you
start to wake up. Opening your eyes, you
see a leaf, apparently fallen from the
tree above you. You are lying by a cave,
and it's late afternoon. You can make it
back to town if you hurry. But suddenly,
you remember what happened BARGLE! The fight with the goblin, Aleena
falling, the strange bad-but-nice feeling
about the magic-user Horrors! You
were ENCHANTED! And where is the
treasure?
You get up quickly, brushing the
leaves off your face and equipment.
Perhaps Bargle was afraid to kill you,
and just stole all that he could find. Or,
more likely, Bargle was scared away by
something before he could slit your
throat.
Your dagger is missing, and some
food, but your sword is in its sheath and
your pack is still there. One sack remains, and from the pain in your back,
you must have been sleeping on it. It
contains some of the coins you found by
the snake and the tiny gem. The rest is
missing.
You remember what happened to
poor Aleena. You should take her back
to town; they might be able to help, and
even if it's too late, she should get a
proper burial. As you prepare to return
to the caves, you find that your lamp has
gone out, the oil all burned away.
There is still one oil flask in your pack,
so you refill the lantern, light it with
your tinderbox, and head back into the
darkness.
You pass through one empty room,
and then find the bodies of the cleric
and the goblin in the next. But you see
dark, quiet shapes in the darkness
beyond; it's the ghouls! Quickly, you put
the cleric's body over your shoulder and
run for your life.
The ghouls follow, snapping at your
heels. You can't move as fast as usual
with the weight of the cleric on your
shoulder. But you win the desperate
race, and get outside once again!
You pause for a moment, out of
breath. Looking back, you see the ghouls
in the cave but they don't seem to be
coming out. Then you remember

Aleena's words, "creatures of darkness."
Maybe they hate the sunlight, and only
come outside at night. You'd better hurry, to get back to town before dark.
It's hard to run with the cleric across

your shoulder, but you finally get back
just as the sun goes down. Once there,
you take her body to her church. It's too
late to help her, but they can give her a
proper burial. They thank you for your
kindness, and offer a small bottle as a
reward.
"What is it?" you ask.
"It's a magical potion, of course!" he
exclaims. "It's a Potion of Healing. If you
are hurt, you can drink this and be
cured, somewhat like our magical curing
spells. It's a nice magical treasure; save it
for an adventure in your future, in case
a cleric you are traveling with runs out
of spells. It's the least we can do."
The clerics thank you again for your
help, and you thank them for theirs. You
leave the church and head for your
home on the other side of town, thinking about your adventure and all you
have learned.
Now pretend that you made the Saving

Throw, and read the next section to see
what might have happened.
If you have already read the next
section, skip to the Winning section afterward.
Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games

Ending #2: YOU MAKE THE
SAVING THROW
It won't spoil; save it for an adventure in

your future."
The clerics thank you again for your
help, and you thank them for theirs. You
leave the church and head for your
home on the other side of town, thinking about your adventure and all you
have learned.
Bargle's magic doesn't seem to work! He

pauses, surprised, as you swing.
Kull tin- dn 1 . II w>ii loll M nr highi-i. ;
M>U liii. A mil (if 7 nr It-is n i f . m s ilia!
Mm mitrd. II you citn gif <!').< m
ilifin, iii.i^u-uscr? me- ( i l i t n IMNV in
tin. r t i c \ .in 1 iKK MM \ il.mi;criiiis m a
i IHM1
If you hit, the magic-user gives a cry

and falls, dead. You have won!
If you miss, Bargle screams and runs
down the next corridor, into the darkness. You start after him, but then you
stop. Who knows what magical powers
the man might have, waiting there to
trap you? Better to see if Aleena is alive,
and rest a bit.
You kneel by the cleric, and gently
turn her over. Alas, Bargle's magical
spell has taken her life. Mourning the
loss of your new-found friend, you decide to take her back to town for a
proper burial. You tidy her up while
keeping an eye out for monsters and
listening carefully in case Bargle comes
back; but nothing happens.
The goblin had very little treasure,
just a few copper pieces in a small bag.
Searching the room, you find another
bag, a finer one of black velvet. It must
be Bargle's, dropped in the heat of the
battle! Opening it, you find several valuable gems and a small bottle. You put the
treasure away, planning to examine the
bottle later.
Nothing else of value is in the room.
You pick up the poor cleric and carry
her on one shoulder. Should you continue down the dark corridor, or head
back the way you came?
You suddenly see shadowy shapes approaching from the way you came. The
ghouls must have returned! Now there
is no choice; you must hope that the
magic-user ran away, and that a way out
lies in that direction. Fighting the ghouls
would mean your death.
You stagger under the weight, but
manage to run down the corridor, holding your lantern shakily with one finger.
You enter a room, but it looks empty. No
time to search; you continue onward. As
you head into the next corridor, you see
light ahead! And as you approach, you
see that it's coming from a side passage.
If you haven't read Ending #1, "You

Miss The Saving Throw" go back and
do that now, pretending that you were
enchanted by Bargle's spell.
Winning
Peering into it, you find that the corridor leads outside, into the midday sun.
Carefully, in case Bargle is waiting to
ambush you, you walk outside and all
is clear and calm.
You rest a bit, pick up the cleric, and
head back to town. Once there, you take
her body to her church. It's too late to
help her, but they can give her a proper
burial. They thank you for your kindness, and offer a favor in return. You
remember the strange small bottle in
Bargle's bag, and get it out, asking
whether they can tell you what it is.
One of the clerics opens the bottle,
and sniffs at it. "Why, it seems to be a
magical potion!" he exclaims. "Let me
see, now, I'm sure I've smelled that
before. Ah! I remember. It's a Potion of
Growth! If you drink it, you will become
a giant for a short time, for one to two
hours and can do double normal
damage when you hit a monster. Congratulations, it's a nice magical treasure!
You have just played a D&D game!

This adventure was designed to show
you some of the basic parts of the game.
You played a fighter, who tried to survive in the dungeon, while finding monsters and treasures. You succeeded so
your character "wins."
Think a moment. Why do we play
games? To have fun. Each player "wins"
by having fun so if you had a good
time, you win! You can have fun even if
your character gets killed and if that
happens, don't worry. You can always
make up another one!
Winning a role playing game is like
"winning" in real life; it's just succeeding
in doing what you wanted to do, and
living through it. The fun comes from
doing it, not ending it! This is why we
say that in this game, everybody wins
and nobody loses.
Is this a game or a story, you ask? It's a
little of both. As you learn more about it,
it will become more and more like a
game. You still have many game details
to learn, so continue reading.
You have met some monsters, and
won the battles. You have found some
treasures not only coins and gems,
but a magical potion.
Most important, you have learned
how to use your own imagination, while
using the rules of the game. Could you
see, in your mind, the wicked magic-user
Bargle? Or the kind, wise cleric Aleena?
Can you imagine the gold and silver
scattered on the floor by the huge,
deadly rattlesnake and the fierce battle afterward?
This is another part of the fun in a
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game.
Your character
Alignment: How characters
and monsters behave
Take a moment, now, and think about
how your character behaved. The
fighter was one of the "good guys." You
wanted to do the right things; for example, you brought the cleric back home
with you. On the other hand, the magicuser and the goblin were the "bad guys."
They didn't care whether you lived or
died, just what they could get from you
selfish, and nasty besides.
There is a way to describe how your
character behaves in the game; it is
called Alignment. Your fighter's Alignment is called Lawful, he tries to protect
others and defeat monsters.
Aleena the cleric was also Lawful.
This is one reason why you became
friends. Your Charisma helped when
you first met her, but if your Alignments
were different, you probably wouldn't
have been so friendly to each other.
Bargle, the magic-user, had a different Alignment than yours. He was
Chaotic, the opposite of Lawful. He was
selfish, cared only about himself and
steals from others. Most people don't
like chaotic's. You two wouldn't normally
become friends at all (except for the
spell he cast, that magically forced you to
be his friend for a short time).
Monsters have alignments, too. The
goblin and the ghouls were Chaotic. But
the snake wasn't really bad or good (although it certainly was dangerous). Its
Alignment is called Neutral. It will fight to
protect itself and will help others, if that
will help it, but is mostly concerned with
surviving. Neutral doesn't mean stupid
(Alignment has nothing to do with Intelligence); it means a balance, an average
between the Law and Chaos. The snake
was just a typical animal, trying to stay alive
and get something to eat.
Alignment will be explained in more
detail later in this booklet, on page 55.
Now where do you go?

You can have more adventures by yourself! Another adventure has been designed just for your fighter. It starts on
page 13. But before you play that adventure, you will need to know a few more
details about your fighter, and how to
use all the dice.
All the details of your character
your hit points, Ability Scores, Saving
Throws, and so forth are written

down for you on a sheet in the middle of
this booklet, along with other details.
This description of your character is
called a Character Sheet.
Remove the character sheet by carefully folding it along the dotted line and
then tearing it along the perforation.
You will find the scores for other
character types in the center of this
booklet too. These are for when you
play with a group. You will have to write
the information on copies of the blank
character sheet on the back of this book.
Do not use any of these characters for
the Solo Adventure in this booklet.
Use a pencil whenever you need to
write on a character sheet, not a pen.
Many of the notes you will make are
temporary, like the amount of money you
have, your equipment, and so forth.
Get out the rest of the dice and the
crayon. If you have the dice, the crayon,
a pencil, and your character sheet, you
are ready to learn some more.
The Character Sheet

Let's look at the whole character sheet,
bit by bit.
At the top of the sheet, fill in your
name above "Player's Name."
What's your character's name? It
could be the same as yours, or you could
make one up. Write the name in the
place for it, under your own.
Your fighter is one of the "good guys,"
so your Alignment is Lawful. This has
already been filled in on your sheet, and
shouldn't change. If you want to play a
Neutral character (or, if you want to take
the chance, a Chaotic one), you should
put the Alignment on the character
sheet for that new character.
The Class of your character is the
type of adventurer you are playing.
Fighter has already been filled in, because once a Class is chosen, it will never
change.
You are just starting, so your Level is
1, or "first" (1st). You will learn more
about a character's "level" very soon.
Armor Class is a measure of how
hard it is for monsters to hit you; abbreviated AC. It can be any whole number,
9 or less. The lower the number, the
smaller the chances are that you. will get
hit. Since your fighter is wearing sturdy
armor, your Armor Class is 4; write that
number in the shield shape.
In the box above the words Hit

Points, put 8. You should know what
that means, from your first adventure.
It's a measure of how much damage
your fighter can take.
At the top right corner, there is a
place for the name of your Dungeon
Master. In group games, this is the person who plays the monsters, while you
play your character. You don't have one
yet, so leave that blank. Later, when
you're playing in a group, one person
will be the Dungeon Master.
Below that line is a rectangle labeled
Character Sketch or Symbol. You may
wish to draw a picture of your character
there, a "character sketch." You may skip
this part of the character sheet, if you
wish; it won't affect the game, but might
help you imagine what your character
looks like. Or instead of a sketch, you
may want to pick a symbol something
that your character will be connected
with. Your symbol could be a bird, or a
tree, or anything you wish. For example,
if your character's name is Hawk, you
may wish to draw a falcon-like bird in
this rectangle.
The middle part of the character
sheet gives all your Ability Scores and
Saving Throws.
Ability Scores
Let's take a closer look at your character.
Your fighter has the following Ability
Scores:
17
9
8
11
16
14
Strength
Intelligence
Wisdom
Dexterity
Constitution
Charisma
In the adventure, it said "your Ability

Score is . . . ," because your starting
character was already made up. Later, if
you would like to play another character,
you can use any of the others included in
this booklet. But when you are ready to
make up a completely new character,
you will roll for your Ability Scores,
using the dice. This is explained in more
detail on page 48.
Every D&D character has these six
Ability Scores (though the numbers are
usually different, of course). The numbers are always from 3 to 18, the total of
three six-sided dice.
Your character
Adjustments
There is a place on the sheet for "adjustments" next to your Ability Scores. If
any Ability Score is very high or low,
there may be adjustments, which can be
good or bad. The adjustments will apply
to certain die rolls in the game. An
"average" Ability Score is any number
from 9 to 12, and has no adjustments.
Strength: With a low Strength score, it
would be harder to hit monsters, and
you would have a "minus" adjustment, a
penalty. But your great Strength gives
you a bonus, the "plus" adjustment.
Your + 2 bonus helps you in fighting; it
is added to both your Hit Rolls and to
the Damage you do. It also helps when
you try to perform feats of strength
like breaking open a stuck door, or
lifting a huge rock.
The + 2 adjustment has already been
included in your Hit Rolls for the Solo
Adventures in this booklet.
Intelligence: Your Intelligence is average so there are no adjustments here.
Because of your intelligence, your character can speak two languages. You can
speak the same language as all the other
humans, which we call "Common."
Your fighter can also speak a code
language, called an "Alignment
Tongue." This is used to speak privately
with someone else of the same Alignment. (In your first adventure, you
could have spoken to Aleena the cleric in
the Lawful tongue, and Bargle the
magic-user wouldn't have understood
what you were saying; he speaks Chaotic.) Characters usually don't use their
Alignment tongue unless they have to.
You can say that you speak "Common"
and "Lawful." Near the bottom of the
sheet is a place to write the names of
your languages.
Wisdom: Your Wisdom is 8, just below
average, so you have a penalty adjustment
of 1. As with your Strength bonus, your
Wisdom penalty has been included in the
Solo adventure to come.
In group games, you will subtract one
from your die roll each time you make a
Saving Throw against a magic spell.
Aleena the cleric had a bonus against
magic spells, because of her high Wisdom,
but she had a penalty on her Hit rolls,
because of her low Strength score.
Dexterity: Your Dexterity is average, so

there are no adjustments here. If you
were clumsy (with a low Dexterity score),
you would have trouble using missile
weapons like bow and arrow (which you
will learn about later in this booklet).
You might also react a little slower than
the monsters. But your average score
here keeps you even with them.
Constitution: Your Constitution score is
high, so you get a + 2 bonus here. As we
explained in the adventure, you have 8
hit points; without your good Constitution, you would only have 6 hit points. If
you had a low Constitution score, you
might have even less. A higher Constitution score would mean more hit points.
Charisma: Your Charisma is also above
average, and you get a + 1 bonus when
meeting and talking to others. Your
Charisma will affect their reactions; they
will probably like you, and you can probably get your own way a little more
often, because of your Charisma bonus.
As with your other bonuses, your
Charisma bonus has been accounted for
in the Solo Adventure to come.
Saving Throws
In the first adventure, you made Saving
Throws against poison and magic spells.
When you try to save yourself from a
special attack, you roll the twenty-sided
die; if the result is equal to or higher
than your number you succeed in avoiding the attack.
There are three other Saving Throws,
against Magic Wands (if someone shoots
one at you), Paralysis (which would have
been used if one of the ghouls had hit
you), and Dragon Breath (dragons can
be very dangerous, so there weren't any
in your first adventure). You will always
use a twenty-sided die to roll a Saving
Throw.
For most characters, the easiest Saving
Throws to make are those against Poison
and Magic Wands, and the hardest are
those against Dragon Breath and Magic
Spells. Saving Throws are explained in
more detail in the Dungeon Masters
Rulebook.
Special Abilities
Your character does a better job at fighting than any other type of character, but
10
this is not a "special ability." Most other

characters can't fight as well, but have
Special Abilities which they need for
survival and success. The Special Abilities of each character class are given in
the class descriptions (pages 23 - 47).
EXAMPLES: Clerics can Turn L ndead monsters. Magic-users i.im cast
spells (as tun clerics anil el\es).
Thieves (-;in pick locks.
Combat Chart
You know how to roll when your character wants to hit a monster; this is called a
"Hit Roll." You will always use a twentysided die for Hit Rolls.
You will not need to use this Combat
Chart until you play in a group game.
When you read a one-player adventure,
the Hit Roll you need will be given. This
will include your Strength adjustment as
well as the monster's Armor Class.
In group games, you will use a slightly
different procedure, using this chart. In
the D&D combat system, every creature
has an Armor Class, whether it is wearing armor or not. If your roll (including
the Strength adjustment) is a number
high enough to match or beat the number listed under the target's Armor
Class, you will hit the target, and can
then roll Damage. This will be explained
in more detail later.
TURN THE SHEET OVER
We are done with the hardest parts, but
there are a few more things to come. Be
very careful when you get to "Money"
and "Experience."
Your character
Magic Items
Whenever you find a magic item, write it
down here. This includes the magic potion you found in your first adventure!
In this box, write Potion of Healing the
magic item you found in Ending #1.
(Since you probably missed the Saving
Throw against Bargle's spell, we will use
that ending for your character's adventure. You will need the Potion of Healing
in your next adventure.)
Normal Items
This is where you list the equipment that
your character has. Copy the following
list into the box, and look it over so you
know what you are carrying. For now,
don't worry about how much the items
cost or where they came from.
You have a dagger and other normal
equipment again, even though Bargle
stole some. We will assume that you kept
spare equipment at home but the list
here is all that remains.
YOUR EQUIPMENT LIST
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
Flasks of oil
Tinderbox
Rope, 50'
Leather backpack
Standard rations (preserved food)
Waterskin (leather canteen)
Lantern
Torches
Small sacks
Large sack
Suit of Chain Mail armor
Shield
Dagger
Sword
goblin. You brought home a little of

each, though Bargle stole most of it.
This is where you make a note of the
treasure you have, adding to the list for
any more treasure you find. We use
abbreviations for the types of coin (listed
here in order, starting with the most
valuable):
platinum
gold
electrum
silver
copper
Other Notes
This is a way to help you remember who
your character has met, and where you
have gone. You should write down
"Caves near town; met Bargle, Chaotic
magic-user." Make more notes as you
play more adventures.
Money and Treasure

You found many gold and silver pieces
when you killed the giant snake, and a
few copper pieces when you killed the
pieces
pieces
pieces
pieces
pieces
pp
gp
ep
sp
cp
These abbreviations are often used, so

you should get to know them well. To
write down the treasure you found, copy
this into the Money box on your character sheet:
pp:
gP :
ep:
sp:
cp:
7
50
20
40
100
1 gem: 100 gp
Total Value: 200 gp

11
=
=
=
=
=
To find the Total value (200 gp), you

need to know more about the D&D
money system.
Think of copper as pennies, silver as
dimes, and gold as dollars. Electrum
pieces are like half dollars, but platinum
is expensive; one platinum piece is like a
five-dollar bill. Study the Money Conversion Table on this page.
MONEY CONVERSION TABLE
100 cp = 1 gp
2 ep = 1 gp
10 sp = 1 gp
5 gp = 1 pp
1 pp = 5 gp = 10 ep = 50 sp = 500 cp
When you find treasure in an adventure, write it down on a separate piece of
paper. At the end of the adventure, add
the treasure to your list, and Figure out
your new total.
In your adventures, look for the most
valuable treasure. If you are carrying all
you can, you may have to drop some
treasure to pick up more valuable coins;
drop copper first, of course.
Your character
Experience
In the game, your character will become
more powerful each time you complete an
adventure. The way of measuring this
"power" is another number, called Experience Points; the abbreviation is XP.
When your character started, you had
no Experience Points. But in your first
adventure, you killed a giant snake and a
goblin, and found some treasure. You get
Experience Points for each of these things.
For the treasure you found, you get
200 XP (one experience point per gold
piece value). For killing the monsters,
you get 30 more. That adds up to 230
XP, but it's not your total. You also get a
bonus because you are a Fighter and
have an above average Strength score.
This bonus is + 10% of your XP. Since
you earned 230, you get 23 bonus
points, for a total of 253 XP. In the
Experience box at the bottom of the
page, write "253."
Did you notice that you get a lot of
FOUR-SIDED d4
SIX-SIDED d6
Dice
This is a very important section
Be sure to read it carefully.
When you have several dice, they are
just called "dice" but one is called a
"die." Each side of a die is called a "face."
Each type of die is named for the number of faces it has. The dice, and the
abbreviations for them, are used in
every adventure, so you should get to
know them well.
Check to be sure your set has all the
dice you need:
The four-sided die looks like a pyramid. Try to spin it as you throw it, to be
sure of making a fair roll. When it lands,
only the bottom number on each face is
right-side up; this is the result of the
"roll." For all the other dice, roll them on
a table or flat surface, and the number
on top is the result of the roll.
The ten-sided die has a zero on one
face, which is read as "ten."
The ten-sided die can also be used to
find a Percentage (a number from 1 to
100), in the following way. Roll the die
once and read the result as the "tens"
experience for treasure, and not much

for killing monsters? It's better to avoid
killing, if you can, by tricking monsters
or using magic to calm them down. You
can sometimes avoid the risks of combat.
But you will have to fight many monsters to get their treasures.
Remember your "Level" at the top of
the front of the sheet? That relates to XP
(Experience Points) in the following
way; if you gain enough experience
points your level goes up.
When your Level goes up, you become more powerful. Each time this
happens, you will get more Hit Points.
Sometimes (but not every time) when
your Level goes up, your character will
be able to make Saving Throws a little
easier, and hit things a little more often.
So the more Levels you gain, the longer
you can survive, and the more treasures
you can collect.
On the line at the bottom of the
Experience box, write the number
"2,000." This is your goal. When you
EIGHT-SIDED d8
Now you should know how to use each

part of your Character Sheet. If you
didn't understand something, STOP!
Go back and read the details again.
You will have a character sheet for
each character you play. It will have all
the details you need to play the character properly.
TWELVE-SIDED d l 2
number, counting zero as "no tens." Roll

a second time for the "ones" number.
If both rolls are "zero", the result is
one hundred.
EXAMPLES: A roll ol 5 followed bv a
roll ol 3 gi\es a mial result of .Vi. If ihc
3 were rolled fiisi. the result would be
35. A mil ol 0 Followed by a roll oi i
gi\es a total o( 06. or simph 6.
Now stop and color in the numbers on

all the other dice by rubbing the crayon
across the grooves and using a tissue to
wipe off the extra way.
We often use abbreviations for the kinds
of dice: a "d," followed by the number of
faces. For example: d8 means an eightsided die.
The roll of a ten-sided die twice, to
find a Percentage, is abbreviated "d%,"
and sometimes called a "Percentage roll"
or "Percentage dice."
Whenever a number appears before
the "d," it means the number of times
you need to roll the die. So "2d4" means
"roll a four-sided die twice, and add the
results," for a total of 2-8. Or, if you have
more than one set of dice, you can just
12
finally have this many XP, adding up

your points from each and every adventure, your character will no longer be
Level 1; you will move up in power, to
Level 2. This doesn't mean that you lose
any XP; you will keep adding more as
you get them.
You will probably work your way up to
Level 3, 4, 5 and so forth, becoming more
powerful each time. And human characters can go all the way to 36th level,
though this should take hundreds of
games. For low level your goal doubles for
each Level: 4,000 XP for 3rd Level, 8,000
XP for 4th Level, and so forth.
TWENTY-SIDED d20
roll two 4-sided dice at once, adding the

results normally.
Some examples:
d%
4d8
9dl2
ld20
Roll the ten-sided die to find

the "tens" number, and again
to find the "ones" number.
Roll an eight-sided die four
times
Roll the twelve-sided die nine
times
Roll the twenty-sided die once
Sometimes you will find a number after

the "d" that's not a kind of die; for
example, Id3. In this case, it means that
the result should be 1, 2, or 3. To make a
"Id3" roll, roll Id6 and divide by 2
(rounding up), to get a result from one
to three.
Using the same principle, you can
find the result of Id2 (Id4 divided by 2)
and Id5 (ldlO divided by 2).
If you have read everything so far
YOU ARE READY FOR YOUR NEXT
ADVENTURE!
To Start, just turn the page.
Solo adventure
In the following one-player adventure,
you will explore a dungeon, looking for
monsters and treasures. Part 1 is a shopping trip in town. In Part 2, you will
learn more about battles. And in Part 3
you will visit the dungeon. You will often
be given choices, and asked to pick one.
Each choice gives a number; turn to that
number to find the results of your
choice. Your adventure will continue
from there.
Part 1: Town Business

You spend a few days in town, letting
your wounds heal. Since you found so
much treasure on your first adventure,
you go shopping for some better armor.
Armorer Baldwick knows you well.
He's a jolly fellow, getting a bit gray. You
remember snitching apples from the big
tree in his yard when you were young
and foolish.
"Well, well!" he booms, as you enter
his shop. "How have YOU been these
days? All grown up now, I see!"
You chat for a few minutes about your
younger days, and then you ask if he has
any armor that would fit you.
"Why, surely! Let me see, let me see
. . ." He pushes his way through racks of
armor of all kinds, as you follow closely
behind. There are dozens of sets of
armor, for people of all sizes, but most of
them need repair.
"AHA!" he exclaims, pulling an
armload of metal down. "Try this on!"
The armor you are wearing is made
of round chain links, all skillfully interwoven to form a covering for most of
your body. But this armor is different.
Large pieces of well-crafted metal are
fastened to chain mail and leather, fashioned into pieces that you could wear.
"Plate mail, of course; just finished it a
week or two ago. Want to try it on? I
think it'll fit."
You go to a back room and remove
your chain mail, and try this heavier
armor on for size. Sure enough, it fits,
almost as if it were made just for you.
The metal plates hang from leather
straps and chain mail links, forming a
tough protective suit. But it's very heavy,
almost twice as heavy as your chain mail.
You come out to show him, and he
walks around you, carrying a piece of
charcoal and marking the armor here
and there for some necessary adjustments.
"Looks good!" he exclaims. "Just a bit

here, and a bit there . . . want to trade in
that chain mail you had on? Looked to
be in pretty good shape . . . ."
"Wait a minute!" you reply. "Don't you
have anything lighter than this stuff? I'm
not going to be able to carry as much
treasure if I wear all this metal!"
"Ah, well!" he says, soothingly. "If you
want better protection, you have to use
this. Unless, of course, you can somehow
find magical armor."
Plate mail will improve your Armor
Class to AC 2, better than your current
AC 4, so it would be nice to have.
"Well, how much?" you ask.
"Well . . . 75 gold pieces as is. Want to
trade in that chain mail?" he repeats.
"Oh, I guess so," you reply. "How
much?"
"For you, well . . . since you're trying
to get started, and since I've known you
so long . . . 50 gold pieces, with your
trade-in."
You talk with him a bit more, using
your Charisma, and bargain him down
to a better price.
"Okay, OKAY!" he says finally. "Just
30 gold pieces with the trade-in, and you
13
promise to come here first the next time

you need better armor or more weapons. Agreed!" He stomps off, grumbling, then stops and turns. "You can
pick it up Tuesday. Pay the clerk on your
way out!"
Subtract 30 gold pieces worth of coins
from the Money on your character
sheet. You can either subtract it from
your gp, or use some coins of lesser
value if you understand the Conversion
Table. Change the numbers on your
sheet to account for your spending, and
change your Equipment List. Then turn
the sheet over, and change your Armor
Class to 2.
You come back to the shop in a few
days and pick up your heavy Plate Mail
(it's not ready on Tuesday, but you have
time to wait). You spend the time looking around for other adventurers any
help would be welcome but the few
you find all just want to relax, have a
good time, and heal up from their last
adventures.
So, fully equipped but still alone, you
set off one morning for the caves near
town, remembering to watch out for
ghouls.
Solo adventure
Part 2: Battles
You are almost ready to enter the "dungeon." But first, you need to learn a little
more about battles.
You already know how to swing at a
monster:
You roll ld20 (a twenty-sided die),
and compare the result to the Hit roll
given in the description. If you rolled
that number or higher, you hit the
enemy, and roll Damage.
More Damage!
In your first adventure, each time you
hit a monster you.did 1 point of damage.
However, from now on, you will roll Id6
(a six-sided die) to see how much
damage you do to the creature you are
fighting.
You will keep track of the damage in
the same way, writing down the starting
number and subtracting the damage
each time you hit. Just cross off the old
number of hit points, and write down
the new number.
The Monsters
Monsters will also be able to do more
damage. In your one-player games, you
will keep track of their damage on a
separate sheet of paper along with your
own. In group games, the Dungeon
Master keeps track of all the monster
details.
Some monsters do 1-6 points of
damage, just as you do. But sometimes
they do more or less than Id6. Each time
you encounter a monster, the information you need will be given in a box, like
this:
GOBLIN: 17
You: 12
D: Id6
hp: 4
The number after the monster's name is

the roll it needs to hit your fighter. "D" is
the dice to roll after the monster hits, to
find the amount of damage it did to you.
The monster's hit points are also given.
In this example, if you roll a 12 or
higher, you hit the goblin. You then roll
Id6, the standard amount, and add 2
(for your Strength bonus). You subtract
that total from the goblin's 4 hp (as given
above). If the goblin's new total is zero or

less, the creature is dead. If the goblin
still has any hit points left, it swings at
you:
If you roll a 17 or higher for the
goblin's attack, he hits you, for 1-6 points
of damage as noted in the box above.
You roll the six-sided die and subtract
the result from your 8 hit points.
Combat Checklist
A step-by-step list of everything you
need to do when fighting a monster is
given on the same page as the monster
description (the boxed information).
Use this checklist for every battle, to be
sure you are running each one correctly.
Record Keeping
Use a piece of scrap paper to keep track of
the battles. Whenever you find some treasure, write down the amount and type on
the same paper. Experience points will be
given at the end of the adventure, but you
will need a list of the creatures your fighter
conquers. All the points for treasure and
experience will be added up at the end of
the adventure.
Getting Killed
If your character is slain by the monsters, that is the end of the adventure.
But it's not the end of the game! You can
start the fighter over again, pretending
that it is a new character.
If you play this adventure a second
time, do not keep any treasure found
before you "got killed!" You should start
the character over again, from the beginning.
Remember that you are carrying a
magical Potion of Healing. If you get
hurt, you can drink it, and it will cure

all your damage. You can then
change your hit points back to 8. You
can only drink it once, and then it's
gone.
You may drink the potion whenever you wish, but you should wait
until you have only 2 or 3 hit points
left, if possible. If you drink it in the
middle of a battle, you must skip your
attack (you are drinking, not swinging), and roll only for the monster's
attack for that round of combat.
14
THINGS TO REMEMBER
1. Keep a record of the monsters
killed and treasure found, using a
separate piece of paper.
2. Use the Combat Checklist whenever you have a battle.
3. Roll Id6 each time you hit, to find
the amount of damage done.
4. Drink your potion when you are
badly hurt.
Mapping
This time, you will make a map of the
dungeon so you don't get lost. Maps also
help in remembering where the worst
monsters were like the ghouls so
you can avoid them until you feel ready
for them.
You will draw your map on a piece of
graph paper. Each line one square long
will equal 10 feet in the dungeon. Copy
each map carefully. Draw an arrow
pointing to the top of the paper and
label it "North", then draw a line across
the arrow and label "East, South, and
West." This will help you remember the
directions.
As you draw your maps be sure to
write notes on it to help you remind you
where things are.
If you don't make a map as you go,
you will probably get confused.
Solo adventure
Part 3: Into The Caves
Since you explored some of the caves
earlier, you find yet another entrance to
venture into this time. After finding a
suitable cave, you pause to be sure you
are ready.
The caves are dark and dreary, as you
remember from the last time, so you get
out your lantern and light the wick,
using your tinderbox. Then, carefully,
you step into the first "room."
Tear the sheet of graph paper out of
the center of this booklet. Then, starting
near the bottom, copy Entry 1 Map:
1 The room you are in is fifty feet
square, with 10' wide exits in the middle
of the north, south, east, and west walls.
The ceiling of the room is 15' up, but the
corridors are only 10' tall.
The walls, floor, and ceiling are made
of rough rock. There are some cracks
and crevices in the rock walls, all very
small. Standing in the exact center of the
room is a stone statue of a woman in
armor. You examine it carefully, and
finally even touch it but it is merely a
statue, nothing magical or special.
You have entered this 50' square
room by the southern corridor, which
leads out to fresh air and sunlight. The
other corridors are dark. The light from
your lamp helps, but shadows linger in
the corners of this large room. Do you
want to:
Stop and Listen?
Search the room?
Go down a corridor?
Read 42
Read 57
Read 58
2 You are back outside! If you want to

go back inside, read #1. If you want to
quit, stop reading here; your fighter
goes back to town. If you killed any
monsters or found any treasure, read 88
to find how many Experience Points you
have earned. If you want to go shopping
for supplies, read 89.
5 You decide to go back to the statue

room. Return to 1.
6 You go back to the statue room. Read
58.
7 You turn the corner and follow the
passage back to a room. Read 9.
8 After the turn, the corridor goes 50'
west and opens into a room. Read 54
after you add Entry 8 Map to yours:
9 You may go one of three ways. Do
you want to:
Go North?
Read 21
Go East?
Read 53
Go back to the Statue room? Read 36
10 If you have already killed the monsters and taken the treasure from this
part of the dungeon, read 9. If not,
continue:
The corridor goes 20' north from the
room and then turns right. You peek
around the corner, and see that the
corridor goes 20' and opens into another room. Read 54.
11 You quietly approach the room, and
you don't see anything unusual. But as
you step into the room, some giant rats
leap out from the corner to your right,
and attack! Two of them hit you, for a
total of 3 points of damage. You are
suddenly in battle, and cannot escape.
Read 83.
12 Talking to the creature doesn't do
any good. It attacks, and gets one free
swing while you are talking! Read 86,
and run the battle normally after giving
the monster one free attack.
13 You kill the two skeletons! As each

one "dies," its bones collapse in a heap,
and the rusty sword drops to the floor
with a clang.
You search the area, but find no treasure. However, there is a door in the east
wall of the room. Do you want to:
Go South?
Open the door?
Read 62
Read 27
14 You go west, and come to another

room. It has an exit south, leading outside, and another corridor heading west.
You don't want to go west, the ghouls
are in that direction.
You recognize this room as the entrance for your very first adventure!
This is where you hit the goblin, and he
ran away. Do you want to:
Go back East?
Go South?
Read 62
Read 3
15 If you have already killed all the

monsters in this part of the dungeon,
read 61. If not, continue:
The corridor goes north and opens
into a room. The area looks like Entry 15
Map (add it to your map):
As you peer into the room, you see
two skeletons with rusty swords standing
about 10' from you, around the corner.
Without making a sound, they step forward, grinning horribly, and swing at
you. One of them hits, for 2 points of
damage. Read 26.
L_
i-
Entry 8 map
3 You go south, and leave the caves.

You may go home, and end this adventure, or you can go back to the first
room. Read 2 for further instructions.
4 You go south from the strange room.
If you have already killed the monsters
and taken the treasure from this part of
the dungeon, read 23. If not, read 44.
Entry 15 map
Solo adventure
16 You are leaving the Rust Monster
room, heading west. Have you mapped
this part of the dungeon yet?
No
Yes
Read 28
Read 62
17 The corridor goes north 30', and

then there is a side passage to the left
(west). The main corridor continues another 30' and then turns left. When you
get to the side passage, you see that it
goes 10' west and opens into a strange
room. Read 49.
18 You carefully enter the room, and
see two goblins in a far corner. They
have swords, and seem to be expecting
you. They attack, and each gets a free
swing before you can react. Read 85 and
run the battle normally, but give each
goblin one free swing to start.
19 You think that there are goblins up
here, so you keep your lantern shuttered
and sneak up to peek into the room. You
hear soft talking in a language you don't
understand.
Peeking around the corner, you see
two goblins to your right, at the south
end of the room. They seem to be
talking about something and don't
notice you. Do you want to:
Go back?
Talk to them?
Attack?
Read 32
Read 50
Read 63
2 0 You decide to leave the goblins

alone. But as you start to back off, the
goblin you have been talking to draws its
sword and attacks! The other one leaves,
going north and turning left. Do you
want to:
Fight the goblin?
Run away?
Keep talking?
Open the door?

Go back?
Read 66
Read 37
2 2 If you have been in this room before, please read 39. Otherwise, continue:
You enter the strange room to investigate. The room is empty and clean, and
the only feature is the orange mouth on
the far wall, about 8' long. The room
looks like Entry 22 Map (add it to your
map):
You search the room, listening and
looking carefully, but you find nothing.
Suddenly, as you are about to leave, the
lips of the giant mouth move, and in a big
booming bass voice it says, "Surprise! You
are here for double-or-nothing! Ready or
not, here we go. O-T-T-F-F-S-S. What's
next in line? If you solve this riddle, your
treasure will double. If you fail, it will all
disappear. What is your answer?"
If you try to leave, you find the way
blocked by an invisible force. "You must
answer, y'know!" bellows the mouth.
Think about it, and decide what the
answer is. Then read 82.
2 3 You go back to the room where the
giant rats were and continue through,
arriving back at the first room. Read 58.
2 4 You suddenly feel different (either
more or less weighted down, depending
on your answer). Whatever answer you

gave, the mouth laughs and says "Come
back again some time!" The invisible
barrier is gone, and you can leave the
room. You cannot find anything more
here, nor will the mouth speak to you
again.
Read 40.
2 5 You decide that the rats look dangerous, and you head back the way you
came. The rats don't notice.
Read 58.
2 6 You are facing two skeletons. Do
you want to:
Talk to them?
Turn them?
Run away?
Fight?
Read 30
Read 47
Read 72
Read 84
2 7 You carefully examine the door,

and fine nothing strange about it. There
is a keyhole in it. Have you found a key?
Read 80
Read 46
Yes
No
2 8 The corridor goes only 10' west

before connecting to another corridor
heading north; the main corridor continues west, into darkness. The north
corridor goes 30' and opens into a
room. Do you want to:
Go North?
Continue West?
Read 15
Read 14
2 9 You go back to the statue room.

Read 58.
Read 64
Read 73
Read 51
2 1 If you have already explored this

area, please read 52. If not, then continue:
Starting from the north wall of this
room, the corridor goes 10' north, turns
left (west) and goes 10' further, opening
into the east wall of another room.
There are more goblins here! But when
they see you, they shriek and run
through a stout door on the north wall,
slamming it behind them. The room
looks like Entry 21 Map (add it to your

map):
You search the room carefully and
find one small bag by the door, apparently dropped by one of the goblins.
The bag contains 10 sp, 5 gp, and a
key! Now do you want to:
Entry 22 map
Solo adventure
3 0 The skeletons ignore your chatter,
and swing again. One of them hits you,
doing 2 more points of damage. Return
to 26.
3 8 You go east down the long corridor,

around the corner heading south, and
come to the side passage leading into the
strange room. Read 49.
31 You go north from the strange

room. If you have already been through
this part of the dungeon, read 7. If not,
read 8.
3 9 The mouth roars, "YOU again?! Go

away, pest!" You can't find anything of
value here. Read 40.
32 You decide to go back. The goblins

don't notice you, and you return to the
statue room. Read 58.
3 3 You decide to attack the goblins
before they can get help. You leap out
and block the first goblin's escape, and
they both draw swords and attack you.
Read 85 and run the battle normally.
4 0 From here, do you want to:

Go North?
Go South?
Read 31
Read 4
4 1 The creature is feasting on rust, and

ignores you. You run past it through the
room and arrive back at the statue room.
Read 58.
3 4 As you keep talking to the goblin

you see 3 more coming from the north.
They look mad. Do you want to:
Run away?
Fight?
Read 73
Read 87
4 6 You try to bash the door open without using a key, but without success. The
solid door remains securely closed. You
eventually give up, passing the scattered
skeleton bones as you head out to the
main corridor. Read 62.
Yes
No
3 6 You decide to go back to the start.

Going west from here, the corridor
turns south. You follow it back to the
Read 55
Read 67
4 9 You may go in and investigate the

strange room, or you can go north or
south. Do you want to:
3 7 You go back to the room where you

first found the goblins. Read 9.
4 2 You stop and listen, and hear squeaking noises to the east. Go back to 1.
4 3 The corridor goes 20' to the west
and opens into a room, which looks like
Entry 43 Map (add it to your map):
The room is empty, except for a few
small piles of reddish dust. Do you want
to:
Go back?
Continue?
Read 5
Read 45
4 4 As you approach a room, a giant rat

jumps out of the shadows and bites you!
You see 2 more giant rats in the room.
Take 2 points of damage, and read 83.
17
Read 12
Read 56
Read 86
4 8 You get back to the Rust Monster

room. Did you kill the Rust Monster?
Read 73
Read 87
Entry 43 map
Talk to it?
Run away?
Fight?
4 7 You try to Turn the skeletons like

the cleric Aleena Turned the ghouls, but
nothing happens. It's a special talent that
clerics have, not fighters. Each skeleton
swings at you again, but they both miss.
Return to 26.
3 5 Although you try to talk to them,

the goblins are ferocious and ready for a
fight. One swings and hits you, for 2
points of damage. Do you want to:
Run away?
Fight?
4 5 You go into the room and look

around. There is nothing here but the
reddish dust. When you look closely at
the dust, however, you realize that it's
rust!
You hear a snort, and when you look
up, you see a strange looking creature
coming into the room from the western
corridor. It looks like a giant armadillo
with a long tail, and has 2 feathery
feelers on the front.
It charges at you! Do you want to:
Go North?
Go South?
Investigate?
Read 31
Read 4
Read 22
5 0 You greet the goblins in your own

language, the Common Tongue. They
look up, startled, and one growls something in its own language. The other
smiles at you, and says "Why, hello
there! What can we do for you?" The
growling goblin starts heading north,
apparently leaving the room. Do you
want to:
Keep talking?
Attack?
Go back?
Read 69
Read 33
Read 20
Solo adventure
51 You try to keep talking, but the
goblin attacks; it misses. You suddenly
hear more goblin noises to the north,
and see 2 more goblins coming, with
their swords out and looking very angry.
Do you want to:
Run away?
Fight?
Read 73
Read 87
52 You go around the corner and look

in the room, but nobody is there. There
is nothing here to find, so you go back
around the corner to the last room you
were in. Read 9.
5 3 If you have already mapped this of
the dungeon, read 38. If not, continue:
The corridor goes 50' east from the
room and then turns right, to the south.
Peering around the corner, you see that
the corridor goes 30' south, and a side
passage then opens to the west. When you
get to that point, you see that the side
passage goes 10' west and opens into
another room, with blue walls and a huge
orange mouth on the opposite wall.
Read 49 after you add Entry 53 Map
to your map:
5 4 The room looks like Entry 54 Map
(add it to your map):
What are you expecting here? If you
didn't find or hear any clues, read 18.
If you found some information about
the creatures in this direction, read 19
instead.
5 5 You continue through the Rust
Monster room, and get back to the
5 6 As you turn to run away, the monster quickly attacks, and gets in your way.
You cannot retreat! Read 86.
5 7 You search the room carefully, and
you find a small scrap of paper in a
niche (small hole) in one wall. Opening
it, you discover a note, written in the
Common tongue:
RATS EAST
GOBLINS NORTH
BEWARE WEST!
You can also see parts of the corridors
leading out of the room, which look like
Entry 57 Map.
You find nothing else in the room.
Return to 1.
5 8 From this room, you can go many
ways. Do you want to:
Go
Go
Go
Go
East?
West?
North?
South?
Read 79
Read 43
Read 10
Read 2
5 9 As you approach the room, you

hear more squeaks. You wisely shutter
your lantern, leaving only a dim reddish
glow, and peek into the room. You see
three giant rats scurrying around and
some scattered treasure nearby. Do you
want to:
Go back?
Talk to them?
Try to scare them?
Attack?
Read
Read
Read
Read
25
74
77
68
6 0 Your armor, shield, sword, and dagger have all been turned to rust by the
fearsome Rust Monster! But now that
you have no more metal, the creature
turns away from you, not interested any
more. You can see, now, that it has no
teeth or claws, and can't actually hurt
you!
You watch as it ambles over to one of
the piles of rust, and it starts to eat,
ignoring you completely.
Keeping a careful eye on the creature,
you look around the room. There are
gems here and there, some covered by
rust; you collect six of them! Their total
value is 300 gp.
Since you are unprotected and unarmed, you go east to the first room and
then go outside, heading for town.
To find how many Experience Points
you have earned, read 88. You will also
have to go shopping for more armor
and weapons. The shopping list is given
in 89.
61 You peer into the skeleton room,
and see that nothing has changed. If you
already investigated the door, there is
nothing more to do here; read 62.
If you want to investigate the door in
this room, read 27.
6 2 You are at an intersection of the
corridor to the north and the east-west
corridor. Do you want to:
Read 15
Read 48
Read 14
Go North?
Go East?
Go West?
IIII
/JNI
Entry 53 map
Entry 57 map
Solo adventure
6 3 You leap out and attack the goblins!
You will get two free swings before they
can get their swords out. Read 85, and
run the battle normally after taking your
2 free attacks.
6 4 You attack the goblin. Your first
swing misses, and the goblin misses you.
But you see, coming from the north corridor, two more goblins, waving swords
and looking very angry. Do you want to:
Keep fighting?
Run away?
Read 87
Read 73
6 5 You have won the great goblin

fight. Congratulations! It was a tough
battle for one lonely fighter. Don't forget
that you started the adventure with a
Potion of Healing, which can cure all your
damage if you haven't already used it.
Searching the area, you find 100 sp
and 50 gp in small sacks that the goblins
were carrying. Their swords look rusty
and worthless, and they have nothing
else of value. Do you want to:
Go west?
Go north?
Go east?
Read 36
Read 21
Read 53
66 You try to open the door, but without success. Your key doesn't seem to
work. You hear a goblin voice say from
the other side, in Common, "Go away!
We don't want any!" You may keep trying, if you wish, but the goblins seem to
have barred the door.
You must eventually go back, so read
37.
67 Since you didn't kill the Rust Monster, it's still there, eating rust. Are you
dragging a large chest full of coins?
Yes
No
Read 81
Read 41
6 8 You jump out and swing at the rats.

Read 83, but take 2 free swings before
the rats can do anything! Then run the
rest of the fight normally.
6 9 You keep talking as one goblin
leaves, going north and turning left.
The other tries to seem friendly, but you
can tell that he doesn't like you. Suddenly, you hear more goblin noises from
the north. Do you want to:
Attack?
Read 64
Run away?
Read 73
Keep talking?
Read 34
7 0 You have slain the horrible Rust

Monster! Searching the room, you find
10 gems laying about, some in cracks and
crevices, and some in the piles of rust.
The total value of the gems is 600 gp!
Now do you want to:
Go west?
Go back east?
Read 28
Read 6
71 You approach the room with caution, listening to the squeaking. But suddenly, three giant rats jump out of the
shadows and attack! One of them bites
you for 1 point of damage. Read 83.
72 You turn to run and a skeleton hits
you again for 1 more point of damage. If
you are still alive, you run south to a
corridor, where you can turn east or
west. Looking back, you see that the
skeletons are not following you. You stop
and catch your breath. Read 62
7 3 You decide to flee. As you turn to
run, you are hit by one goblin's sword
for 2 points of damage. (If your hit
points reach zero, you are dead unless
you can drink the potion; otherwise,
continue.) You run back into the first
room, and continue through it and out
the south passage, toward sunlight.
A group of goblins is running after
you, shouting and waving their swords.
They stop at the cave entrance, and keep
screaming and waving their swords; but
there are too many of them. You decide
to go home.
This is the end of this adventure.
Read 88 to find your Experience Points
and treasures. If you wish to buy some
supplies, the Equipment List is given in
89.
7 4 You try to talk to the rats, but talking doesn't work. You only give yourself
away, and they attack! One of them bites
you for 1 hit point of damage. Read 83
to run the rest of the battle.
7 5 You have defeated the pair of
goblins! But before you can look around
the room, you hear noises from the
north. Three more goblins are coming
down the north corridor. They have
their swords out and look angry. Do you
want to:
Read 73
Read 35
Read 87
Run away?
Talk?
Fight?
19
7 6 You arrive in the rat room; it is

empty. Do you want to:
Go north?
Go west?
Read 17
Read 6
7 7 You decide to scare the rats. You

leap out and scream, waving your sword
and flashing the light around. One of
the giant rats runs off to the north, but
the others attack you! Read 83.
7 8 You have won the battle with the
giant rats! Searching the room, you find
100 cp and 100 sp scattered in the messy
rat lair, and you put them in the sacks
that you are carrying. Now do you want
to:
Go North?
Go West?
Read 17
Read 6
7 9 If you have already been through

this part of the dungeon, read 76. Otherwise, continue
The corridor goes 50' east and opens
into another room. What are you expecting here, and why? You may have
found one or two clues.
If you haven't found or heard any
clues, read 11.
If you only found a note that mentioned creatures, read 44.
If you only heard creature sounds,
read 71.
If you did both (heard noise and
found a note), read 59.
Solo adventure
8 0 You put the key in the lock and turn
until you hear it "click." Putting the key
away you open the door.
There is a small room behind the
door! The area looks like Entry 80A
Map (add it to your map):
The room is empty except for one
large chest by one wall. You walk over to
it, and discover that it's made of heavy
wood with metal bands around it. It isn't
locked (luckily), so you carefully open it.
But alas it's trapped. Make a saving
throw vs. Magic Wands! (You need to
roll a 13 or higher on ld20.)
This Saving Throw is used for many
things. Generally, it indicates whether
you jump out of the path of danger
such as the beam of a magic wand. However, in this case, the danger is a blade,
mounted on the edge of the chest and
connected to a metal spring. When you
open the lid, the blade sweeps out
toward you.
If you made the Saving Throw, you
jump back as the blade misses you. However, if you missed the Saving Throw,
you take 4 points of damage!
If you are struck down to zero hit
points or less, you can grab your potion
if you still have it and drink it before you pass out. It will cure you somewhat, but only back up to 4 hit points. If
you don't have the potion left sorry,
but you are dead! (Special note: In group
games, you will not be allowed to do this.
Zero hit points indicates death, with no
extra time to do anything.)
If the trap kills you, read 90. But if
you survived the trap, continue reading.
You look in the chest and see hundreds of coins 500 cp, 200 sp, and 200
ep. You start to close the chest and drag
it out with you. But as you close the lid,
you see a peep hole in the north wall,
about an inch across. It was blocked by
the door as you entered.
You look through, and see a short corridor that goes north 20' and turns left.
To the east, by the turn, is a large door
with two stout bars across it. A goblin is
standing by the door, apparently on
guard. The area looks like Entry 80B
Map.
There is a crack in the wall near this
peep hole. You suddenly realize that the
crack might be the edge of a secret door!
This treasure chest must belong to
goblins! However, you can't open the secret door, so you drag the chest back out,
past the scattered bones of the dead skeletons and south to the main corridor.
Read 62.
81 Oops! As you enter the room, the
Rust Monster looks up from its feeding,
grunts, and runs toward you. It rushes
to the chest you are dragging, and before you can escape, it dissolves the
metal bands around the chest. The chest
comes apart, coins falling everywhere,
and the creature gleefully turns all the
coins to rust! Do you want to:
Go East?
Go West?
Attack the creature?
Read 29
Read 16
Read 86
8 2 If you guess the answer correctly,

you may double the amount of treasure
you have. If not, it all disappears, and
your character is left with none.
The answer is "E." The letters stand
for One, Two, Three, four, Five, Six,
and Seven. The "next in the series" is
Eight!
Now read 24.
8 3 You are having a battle with giant
rats. Three of them are here, unless you
scared one off. The area looks like Entry
83 Map.
GIANT RATS: 17
You: 10
Run the battle normally, using the

Combat Checklist to be sure that you are
doing it correctly. If you don't remember what "Id3" means, read the section
on "Dice" again (page 12).
All the rats will fight until dead. If you
decide to run away, one rat will bite you
as you turn to run (roll for damage). But
then, if you are still alive, you can go
back to the statue room. If so, read 58.
If you kill all the rats, read 78.
If the rats kill you, read 90.
8 4 You are fighting two skeletons.
SKELETONS: 16
You: 10
8 5 You are fighting two goblins!

GOBLINS: 17
You: 11
D: Id6
hp: 5 each
Remember to make two rolls for the

monsters; each one gets a swing after
you make yours.
Use the checklist to be sure that you
are running the battle correctly.
If you decide to run away, read 73.
If you kill the goblins, read 75.
If the goblins kill you, read 90.
1
1
Entry 80A map
Entry 80B map

20
D: Id6
hp: 4 each
Use the checklist to run the battle.

The skeletons will fight until slain. If you
decide to run away, read 72.
If you kill the skeletons, read 13.
If the skeletons kill you, read 90.
D: Id3
hp: 2 each
L n
Entry 83 map
Solo adventure
COMBAT CHECKLIST
Player Actions
1. Make a Hit roll
2. If you hit, roll Id6 to find the
damage done to the monster,
adding 2 for your Strength bonus;
then:
3. Subtract that damage from the
monster's hit points. When its hit
points reach zero, the monster is
dead.
Monster Actions
4. Make Hit Rolls, 1 for each monster (there may be more than one
monster attacking at the same
time!);
5. For each attack that hits you, roll
to find the Damage done to you,
using the dice indicated. Then:
6. Subtract that damage from your
hit points. If your hit points reach
zero, you are dead.
8 6 You are fighting the Rust Monster!
RUST MONSTER: 13
You: 15
D: rust
hp: 15

If the rust monster hits you, it does no
damage at all. Instead, it makes metal
turn to rust! As you run the battle, use
the following notes to find the effects of
each hit.
If you decide to run away, the monster
gets one free attack, but only needs a Hit
Roll 9 or better. You can run away after
that, but you can only run either east (back
to the statue room) or west. If you run
east, read 1; if you go west, read 28.
If you kill the rust monster, read 70.
If you have been here before, you
might not have some of the items mentioned below. Resume the battle wherever you left off, and remember to keep
track of the equipment you have left.
First Hit: your shield turns to rust
and falls apart. Now the Rust Monster only needs an 11 or better to hit
you. Read the "Special Note" below.
Second Hit: Your Armor turns to
rust. Now the creature only needs a
roll of 6 or higher to hit.
Third Hit: Your sword turns to rust!

You must get out a dagger if you want
to continue the fight.
Fourth Hit: Your dagger turns to
rust! You have no more weapons.
Read 60.
Special Note: When you lose your armor or shield, you become easier to hit.
All monsters you encounter afterward
will gain bonuses to their Hit Rolls. If
you lose your shield, give them a + 1
bonus. If you lose your armor, give them
a total bonus of + 7 to their Hit Rolls.
Note this special bonus on your scrap
paper, and apply it to all battles until you
get new armor or shield.
8 7 You are fighting three goblins!
GOBLINS: 17
You: 11
Remember to make three rolls for the

monsters; each one gets a swing after
you take yours.
If you decide to run away, read 73.
If you kill the goblins, read 65.
If the goblins kill you, read 90.
8 8 When you complete this adventure, you get Experience Points. First,
add up all the treasure you brought out
of the dungeon (ignore anything you
lost), and figure out how much it is all
worth, in gold pieces. (The explanation
of the Money system is on page 10.) You
will get 1 XP for each 1 gp worth of
treasure you find in addition to getting the treasure.
After adding up the treasure,findout
how much Experience you get for slaying monsters, according to this chart:
Giant Rats
Goblins
Skeletons
Rust Monster
5 each
5 each
10 each
300
Add that total to your treasure total to

get the total number of Experience
Points awarded for this adventure. To
determine your +10% bonus, drop the
last number, and add it to the total
awarded. Then add the adjusted total
XP earned to the current XP on the back
of your character sheet, to find your new
total overall. To finish up, add the treas21
D: Id6
hp: 5 each
ure you found to the money you already

had.
I- \ \MI'[.I-.: Imagine ih.it von killed
rhe Kusi Minister ,tml found li fjems
there, whh a v.ilue oi liUu v\i. You jlsn
killed A giant i.irs. timlins; 100 qi .md
Inn -,p. Imagine ihur von hint mi
Ollll1] lliltl't.
Looking on the conversion chart, you

see that 100 cp = 1 gp; 100 sp = 10 gp.
Adding that to the gem value, your
newly found treasure is worth a total of
611 gp.
For monsters, you get 300 XP for the
rust monster, plus 15 XP for the giant
rats (5 each). That total is 315. Adding it
to the 611 for treasure, your total XP
award is 926.
To find your 10% bonus, drop the 6.
Add the bonus of 92 to the award of
926, for an adjusted total XP of 1018.
Then you add that to your current 523
XP, for a new total XP of 1541 less
than 500 XP from 2nd Level! Lastly, you
add the actual treasure 6 gems (worth
600 gp), 100 cp, and 100 sp to your
treasure list.
That finishes this adventure. You may
go to the next adventure, or you may
wish to go shopping. If you want to buy
something now, read 89.
Solo adventure
8 9 You want to go shopping. Instead
of making an adventure out of it (like
the beginning of this trip), you may simply imagine that you are visiting the various shops in town, buying whatever you
need. The items you may buy armor,
weapons, and other equipment are
listed below, along with their prices.
To make a shopping trip, first write
down the items you want, and their
prices, on a piece of scrap paper. Then
add up the total cost. If you can afford
what you want, subtract that total cost
from your treasure. Write the items in
the "Normal Items" section on the back
of the Character Sheet. Be sure to write
the new total treasure in the Money box.
WEAPONS AND EQUIPMENT

Item
Cost (in gp)
Weapons
Dagger
Sword
Armor
Leather Armor
Chain Mail Armor
Plate Mail Armor
Shield
Other Equipment
Backpack, leather
Flask of Oil
Lantern
Mirror (hand-sized, steel)
Pole (wood, 10' long)
Rations:
Iron Rations
(preserved food
for 1 person
for 1 week)
Standard Rations
(unpreserved food
for 1 person
for 1 week)
Rope (50' long)
Sacks:
Small
Large
Tinder Box (flint, steel, dry
wood shavings and twigs)
Torches (6)
Waterskin (or wineskin)
Wine (1 quart)
3
10
9 0 Your character has been lost in the

dungeon. Don't be upset; it can happen
in any DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
game, and often does, through no fault
of yours. That is the end of this adventure.
You may start over, if you wish. To do
that, be sure not to keep any treasure you
may have found before you died. The
character should have exactly the same
equipment, treasure, and hit points as
when you started this adventure. In
other words, you start over. If you want
to do this, read 1.
After the adventure . . .

A map of the entire dungeon is given
here. Check your map against it to see if
you made any mistakes.
If you had problems with any part of
the dungeon, go back and read the difficult section again. Now that you have
learned the basics of the game, you will
probably see what went wrong.
20
40
60
10
5
2
10
5
1
15
wm.
Skeletons
5
1
1
3
1
1
1
(Note: There are more weapons and

equipment available in group adventures. See the complete list in the center
of this book.)
Solo adventure map

22
DUNGEONS 8c DRAGONS Characters

What comes next?
You have now learned most of the details needed to play a character in DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games. You may
now play more Solo Adventures, if you
like. Several Solo Adventures are sold
separately, including: adventure module
Ml, Blizzard Pass and M2, Maze of the
Riddling Minotaur.
However, most of the fun of a DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game comes from
playing in a group. To play in a group, one
person must be the Dungeon Master (or
DM). The DM is the person who plays the
parts of the monsters and runs the game.
A new DM should read the first section of
the other booklet in this set, the DUNGEON MASTERS RULEBOOK, before
starting the game. It explains all the information needed, and includes a step-bystep game for everyone to enjoy while
learning. But a new DM should not try to
run a game before looking at that book.
A group game is best with 3-6 players.
Each player should know how to play. If
there is time, each person should read
through this booklet, just as you have. You
may also teach someone yourself, by explaining what you have learned, giving
them one of the simple characters in this
booklet (the Fighter, or Dwarf for example), and helping them during the game.
When you play in a group, you may
play your fighter, or you may choose any
of the other six characters included in
the center of this booklet. Before the
game, be sure to read the description of
the Character Class (pages 24-47), even

if you are still playing your fighter. Several players can all have the same fighter
character, if different names are used.
Fighters are always needed. If you have
4-6 people in the group, try to play most
of the characters given.
If you have time, read the rest of this
booklet to see what other information is
given. More details on group games are
given on pages 53-58. Some additional
rules, to add when you are familiar with
playing in a group, are explained on
pages 59-62. Don't try to memorize
everything, but try to remember the
types of things explained. During a
game, use the Index on page 64 to locate
information you need.
Character Classes
Most D&D characters will be humans. A
human can be a Cleric, Fighter, MagicUser, or Thief. Humans are the most
widespread of all intelligent beings.
A character may also be a nonhuman: a Dwarf, Elf, or Halfling. Each
of these classes is also a separate race of
beings. They are all commonly known as
"Demi-humans," because they seem to
be partially human. The demi-human
races are all distantly related to the
human race.
One sample character for each of the
seven classes is included in the center of
this booklet. You may play those characters in group games, but before you do,
be sure to read the full description of the
class.
You may create a new character instead of using those in this booklet.
When you do, you will roll dice to determine Ability Scores. If the scores are
high enough, the character can be a
demi-human; otherwise, the character
must be human. The rules for creating
characters are given on pages 48-52.
the Prime Requisite Adjustment Table.

If the PR is below average, a penalty is
applied.
The Prime Requisite for each class is
given in each class description. Finding
the bonus or penalty is part of the procedure for creating new characters. You
will not need it until then.
PRIME REQUISITE
ADJUSTMENT TABLE
Prime
Requisite
Score
3-5
6-8
9-12
13-15
16-18
- 20%
- 10%
No adjustment
+
5%
+ 10%
Saving Throws
Each character class will have a Saving
Throw Table. Copy the numbers onto
your character sheet. Your Dungeon
Master will tell you when you need
them. To make a Saving Throw, roll
ld20. If the result is equal to or greater
than the number given your Saving
Throw is successful.
Prime Requisite
Each character class has a specialty. For
example, a fighter's specialty is Strength;
a cleric's is Wisdom. This specialty is
called the Prime Requisite for the class
(abbreviated "PR").
If a character's PR score is above average, the character gains a bonus every
time Experience Points are earned. See
23
Adjustment to
Experience
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS characters (character class human)

Cleric
Description
A cleric is a human character who is dedicated to serving a great and worthy
cause. This cause is usually the cleric's
Alignment; for example, a cleric may be
dedicated to spreading law and order. A
cleric has good fighting skills, and can
also learn to cast spells after gaining a
Level of Experience. A first level cleric
cannot cast any spells.
In D&D games, as in real life, people
have ethical and theological beliefs. This
game does not deal with those beliefs. All
characters are assumed to have them, and
they do not affect the game. They can be
assumed, just as eating, resting, and other
activities are assumed, and should not become part of the game.
A cleric's spell powers come from the
strength of the cleric's beliefs. The cleric
sits and meditates, and mystically learns
spells. These spells can then be used
during an adventure. Most clerical spells
are for curing, protection, and gathering
information. Cleric spells are different
from magic-user spells. Clerics can use
only their own type of spells.
Your cleric also can fight monsters. A
cleric can wear any type of armor, like a
fighter, and must be ready for combat at
any time. Unlike magic-users, whose
spells are often used during battles, a
cleric's spells are usually needed after
battles (such as cures) or for general exploring (such as detecting things).
If your party has enough fighters,
your cleric should not need to fight
often. But you are equipped for fighting
if your combat skill is needed. Watch for
ways that your spells can help, whether
before, during, or after battles.
CLERIC SAVING THROW TABLE
Death Ray or Poison
Magic Wands
Paralysis or Turn to Stone
Dragon Breath
Rods, Staves, or Spells
11
12
14
16
15
Explanation of Cleric
Experience Table
XP: When this number of Experience
Points have been earned, the cleric automatically moves up to the next Level of
Experience.
Title: Your cleric should use this title

when talking with other characters. Instead of saying "I'm Clarion, a Second
Level cleric," the character should say
"I'm Clarion, the Adept."
Spells: The number of spells a cleric can
cast, and their level of power, are given
here. Spells are explained in detail below, under "Special Abilities."
CLERIC EXPERIENCE TABLE

XP
0
1500
3000
Level
Title
Acolyte
Adept
Priest (or
Priestess)
24
No. of
Spells/
Spell Level
None
1 First
2 First
Other Details:
Prime Requisite: A cleric's PR is
Wisdom. If a cleric has a Wisdom score
of 13 or more, the character gains a
bonus to Experience Points earned in
every adventure.
Hit Dice: A six-sided die (Id6) is used to
determine a cleric's hit points. A cleric
starts with 1-6 hit points (plus Constitution bonus, if any) and gains Id6 more
hit points (plus bonus) with each Level
of Experience.
Armor: A cleric may wear any kind of
armor, and may use a shield.
Weapons: A cleric cannot use any weapon
with a sharp edge; this is forbidden by the
cleric's beliefs. A cleric may only use a
mace, club, war hammer, or sling.

Special Abilities
CLERIC TURNING UNDEAD TABLE
A cleric has two Special Abilities: Turning Undead monsters and casting Cleric
Spells.
1. Turning Undead
A cleric has the power to force away certain monsters called the "Undead" (skeletons, zombies, ghouls, wights, and
other more powerful types). No other
class has any special effect on the Undead. This special ability is called "Turning" the Undead monsters.
When a cleric encounters an Undead
monster, the cleric may either attack it
normally (with a weapon or spell), or try
to Turn it. The cleric cannot both attack
and Turn Undead in one round.
When you want your cleric to try to
Turn Undead, just tell your Dungeon
Master "I'll Turn the Undead."
The Undead monsters are not automatically Turned by the cleric. When the
encounter occurs, the player must refer
to the Cleric Turning Undead Table to
find the effect the cleric has.
Using the Cleric Turning
Undead Table:
When the cleric encounters an Undead
monster, find the cleric's Level of Experience on the left side of the chart. Then
read across to the column under the name
of the Undead monster, and apply the results immediately. If the attempt succeeds,
one or more of the Undead monsters will
retreat, but may soon return.
Explanation of Results
7, 9 or 11: Whenever a number is
given, the cleric has a chance to Turn
the Undead monsters. The player
rolls 2d6 (two six-sided dice). If the
total is equal to or greater than the
number given, the attempt at Turning Undead is successful. A cleric's
chances improve as more Levels of
Experience are earned.
T: The attempt at Turning the Undead
automatically succeeds.
N: No Effect. The cleric cannot Turn
that type of undead.
Skeleton
1
2
3
T
T
Success: If the attempt at Turning Undead succeeds, the Dungeon Master will
roll 2d6 to determine the number of Hit
Dice of Undead monsters that turn
away. You might not Turn all the monsters encountered, but if you succeed in
Turning, at least one will be affected. A
Turned monster will not touch the cleric
and will flee as far from him as possible.
2. Clerical Spells
When a cleric reaches the 2nd Level of
Experience (having earned 1500 XP or
more), the cleric can use spells.
Learning Spells:
To learn a spell, the cleric meditates. The
memory and details of the spells appear in
the cleric's mind. The spells may be cast at
any time thereafter. The cleric will remember each spell until it is cast, even if it is not
used for days or weeks.
As a player, all you need to do is
choose whatever spells you want your
character to have. This can only be done
at the start of an adventure. You may
choose any of the spells described hereafter. You may not choose any magicuser spells; they are a different type.
A 2nd Level cleric can cast one spell
per adventure. A 3rd Level cleric can
cast two spells per adventure.
In more advanced games, adventures
may last more than a day. In such cases,
a cleric can gain spells each morning, if
completely rested. Any and all spells
may be changed at this time, if desired.
Undead Monster
Zombie
Ghoul
9
Wight
11
9
N
11
9
at a target, and you must tell the DM

what the target is. The player does not
have to learn any special words. For example: "I'm casting a Cure Light Wounds
on Ruggin, the dwarf."
When the cleric casts a spell, the memory of that spell is forgotten. Imagine
that your cleric's memory is like a blackboard. The knowledge of the spells appear on it, but each spell is erased as it is
cast. If your character knows two of the
same spells and casts one, the other still
remains to be used.
The character must be able to gesture
and speak normally to cast a spell. While
casting a spell, the cleric must stand and
concentrate. Spells cannot be cast while the
character is walking or running. If the
cleric is disturbed while casting a spell, the
spell will be ruined, and will still be
"erased," just as if it had been cast.
Spells must be cast one at a time. If the
character wants to cast more than one (for
example, two Cure Light Wounds spells
just after a battle), the fastest they can be
cast is one each round.
Types of Spells:
Some spells have an instant effect. For
example, a Cure Light Wounds spell instantly cures damage. Other spells may
be different; the cleric may cast a spell to
gain special abilities for a short time, or
give those abilities to a friend. For example, a Remove Fear spell helps the recipient (the creature upon whom the spell is
cast) to resist fear caused by magical
effects or spells.
Casting Spells:
Saving Throws versus spells:
In the game, when you want your character to cast a spell, just tell your Dungeon Master. The DM may ask for some
details; for example, some spells are cast
Some spells only have full effect if the

victim fails a Saving Throw vs. Spells. If
a Saving Throw is allowed, it is mentioned in the spell description.
25
Cleric's
Level

Clerical Spell Explanations:
Each spell has a listed Range, Duration,
and Effect.
Range: The character should be sure
that the target is within range before
casting the spell. If the description says
"Range: 0," the spell may only be used
by the cleric, and cannot be cast on
others. If "Range: Touch" is given, the
spell can be placed on any creature the
cleric touches including the cleric
himself (or herself, as the case may be).
Duration is given either in rounds (of 10
seconds each) or turns (of 10 minutes
each). If the description says "Duration:
Permanent," then the spell has an instant and permanent effect that does not
go away after a given duration.
Effect of the spell gives either the number of creatures or objects affected, or
an area or volume of space. If an area is
given, it is measured in square feet (a flat
area). If a 3-dimensional volume is affected, it is either a round "ball" with a
given diameter, or a square or rectangular "box" of a given size; both are measured in feet.
Spell Power:
When a cleric reaches 4th level, more
powerful spells can be cast. These are
given in the D&D EXPERT Set. The
power of a spell is described in a way
similar to the power of a character.
Spells of the lowest level of power are
called "First Level" spells. The D&D
EXPERT Set describes spells of the Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth level.
Sixth and Seventh level spells are described in the D&D COMPANION Set.
Clerical Spell Descriptions

FIRST LEVEL CLERIC SPELLS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Cure Light Wounds*

Detect Evil*
Detect Magic
Light*
Protection From Evil
Purify Food and Water
Remove Fear*
Resist Cold
*These spells may be "reversed" (that is,

learned and cast with an effect exactly
opposite from the original) in the D&D
EXPERT Set. A cleric must reach the
Fourth Level of Experience before
learning how to reverse spell effects.
Cure Light Wounds*
Range: Touch
Duration: Permanent
Effect: Any one living creature
This spell will either heal damage or
remove paralysis. If used to heal, it will
cure 2-7 (Id6+1) points of damage. It
will not heal any damage if used to cure
paralysis. The cleric may cast it on himself (or herself) if desired.
This spell will never increase a creature's total hit points above the original
amount.
EXAMPLE: Your first fighter started
wilh A hit points. You were damaged
in the bank: with the snake, down to 4
hit points. Alce.na cyst a Cure Light
Wounds spell and touched vou. She
26
mlled .i (i. i in mi; a t o u l (if 7 point* ui

d.1111:1141'. Inn VIIIIT liil point*. reLuiiifd
in f. ilit- .unmmi von waited with
I In- "I'Mr.i" * [ m i n i s wi-ic urn
mined
Detect Evil
Range: 120'
Duration: 6 turns
Effect: Everything within 120'
When this spell is cast, the cleric will see
evilly enchanted objects within 120'
glow. It will also cause creatures that
want to harm the cleric to glow when
they are within range. The actual
thoughts of the creatures cannot be
heard. Remember that "Chaotic" does
not automatically mean Evil, although
many Chaotic monsters have evil intentions. Traps and poison are neither good
nor evil, merely dangerous.
Detect Magic
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
When this spell is cast, the cleric will see
magical objects, creatures, and places
within range glow. It will not last very
long, and should be saved until the cleric
wants to see if something found during
an adventure is, in fact, magical. For
example, a door may be held shut magically, or a treasure found might be
enchanted; in either case, the magic
item, creature, or effect will glow when it
is within the effect.
Light
Range: 120'
Duration: 12 turns
Effect: Volume of 30' diameter
This spell creates a large ball of light, as
if a bright torch were lit. If the spell is
cast on an object (such as the cleric's
weapon), the light will move with the
object. If cast at a creature's eyes, the
creature must make a Saving Throw. If
the Saving Throw is failed, the victim
will be blinded by the light until the
duration ends. A blinded creature may
not attack.

Protection from Evil
Remove Fear*
Resist Cold
Range: 0
Duration: 12 turns
Effect: The cleric only
Range: Touch
Duration: 2 turns
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
Effect: All creatures within 30'
This spell creates an invisible magical

barrier all around the cleric's body (less
than an inch away). All attacks against
the cleric are penalized by - 1 to their
Hit rolls, and the cleric gains a + 1 bonus
to all Saving Throws, while the spell
lasts.
In addition, "enchanted" creatures
cannot even touch the cleric! If a magic
weapon is needed to hit a creature, that
creature is called "enchanted." However,
a creature that can be hit by a silver
weapon a lycanthrope (were-creature), for example is not an "enchanted" creature. Any creature which is
magically summoned or controlled (such
as a Charmed character) is also considered to be an "enchanted" creature. The
barrier thus completely prevents all attacks from those creatures unless they
use missile weapons.
This spell will not affect a Magic
Missile (magic-user's) spell. If the cleric
attacks anything during the spell's duration, the effect changes slightly. "Enchanted" creatures are then able to
touch the magic-user, but the Hit roll
and Saving Throw adjustments still apply until the spell duration ends.
When the cleric casts this spell and then

touches any living creature, the spell will
calm the creature and remove any fear.
If the creature is running away due to
magically created fear, the creature may
make another Saving Throw vs. spells,
adding a bonus to the roll equal to the
cleric's Level of Experience, up to a
maximum bonus of +6. If the Saving
Throw is successful, the creature may
When this spell is cast, all creatures

within 30' of the cleric can withstand
freezing temperatures without harm. In
addition, those affected gain a bonus of
+ 2 to all Saving Throws against cold
attacks. Furthermore, any damage from
cold is reduced by - 1 per die of damage
(but with a minimum of 1 point of
damage per die). The effect will move
with the cleric.
*trp m n n i n \ r<->ll r>f 1 v.-ill nlnv< f i i l

I l n V r . i n . : I In - . . . n l i I" m i - m i
U
lll.lil'
I '.I
In .ill"..
I I i l IIII
N I1 I I I
11 .11
i | ! I | |
I I I I - - - - .11 I I I V
11
.i-
EXAMPLE: A 3rd Level cleric casting this spell gives a bonus of * 3 to

the Saving Throw of the creature
touched.

Range: 10'
Duration: Permanent
Effect: See below
This spell will make spoiled or poisoned
food and water safe and usable. It will
purify one ration of food (either Iron or
Standard rations), or 6 waterskins of
water, or enough normal food to feed a
dozen people. If cast at mud, the spell
will cause the dirt to settle, leaving a pool
of pure, clear water. The spell will not
affect any living creature.
27
. .1-
EXAMPLE: I he pauy sees a white

dragon approaching (whose breath is
a blast ray of cold), so the cleric warns
the others to stay near and casts thin
spoil. All characters who remain
within 30' of the cleric gain a + 2
bonus to cheir Saving Throws vs.
Dragon Breath.

Fighter
Description
A fighter is a human who studies combat. Fighters usually have greater
Strength than other characters. They
usually hit monsters more often, and
inflict more damage.
In the D&D game, fighters protect the
weaker characters. A party of all fighters
would probably survive most dungeons,
even where magic would be useful.
Every group of explorers should have at
least one or two fighters.
Strength is needed in many game
situations. For example, a door may be
stuck, or a huge boulder may block the
party's progress; a strong fighter can
often solve these problems. Magic might
also work, but magic is limited, and a
fighter can use strength as often as
needed.
Your fighter could probably survive a
dungeon adventure when exploring
alone. This is why your Solo Adventures
have been designed for fighters. The
other classes are not as self-sufficient as
the fighter. Magic-users and thieves are
much weaker, and although clerics can
wear any type of armor, they are limited
in other ways.
In group adventures, your fighter
should stay in front. If there are three or
more fighters in the party, one should
stay in the back, in case a monster tries to
sneak up on you. Whenever a battle
occurs, don't be afraid to move in; your
character is better equipped for combat
than any other type.
When a group is surprised, the monsters may damage the characters before
they have a chance to react. Fighters
have a better chance at surviving these
dangers, since they have more hit points.
A fighter character should know
more about the many weapons than
other characters. Be sure to read the
Combat section, on page 59, to learn
how to use both hand-to-hand and missile weapons. Learn the forms of Defensive Movement described in the same
section, so you can play your fighter
most effectively when those rules are
added to your game.
Fighters often look for magical healing potions, since they are usually hurt
in battles. Magical weapons are also valuable, adding bonuses to Hit and Damage
Rolls.
FIGHTER SAVING THROW TABLE

Death Ray or Poison
Magic Wands
Dragon Breath
XP
Level
Title
1
2
3
Veteran
Warrior
Swordmaster
0
2000
4000
Explanation of Fighter
Experience Table:
Points have been earned, the fighter
automatically moves up to the next Level
of Experience.
Title: Your fighter should use this title
when talking with other characters. Instead of saying "I'm Fleetwood, a Second
Level fighter," the character should say
"I'm Fleetwood, the Warrior."
Other Details:
Prime Requisite: A fighter's PR is
Strength. If a fighter has a Strength
score of 13 or more, the character gains
a bonus to Experience Points earned in
every adventure.
Hit Dice: An eight-sided die (Id8) is
used to determine a fighter's hit points.
A fighter starts with 1-8 hit points (plus
Constitution bonus, if any) and gains
Id8 more hit points (plus bonus) with
each Level of Experience.
Armor: A fighter may wear any kind of
Weapons: A fighter may use any kind of
weapon.
Special Abilities:
Fighters need no special abilities to survive and prosper. Their great strength,
hit points, strong armor and many
weapons make them a powerful character class.
28
12
13
14
15
16
FIGHTER EXPERIENCE TABLE
Creating a new character

1. Roll for Ability Scores
8. Note adjustments for Ability Scores
2. Choose a Class
9. Give your Character a Name and Alignment
3. Exchange Ability Score points
10. Get ready to play
Your Prime Requisite (and only that score) goes up 1 point for each 2
points that another Ability Score goes down.
Constitution and Charisma points can never be exchanged with
others.
Dexterity cannot be lowered (but it may be raised if you have a Thief
or Halfling character).
No score can be lowered below 9. If it is already 10 or less, it cannot
be lowered.
HUMANS
4. Roll for Hit Points (see Character Classes)
Class
Prime Requisite
Fighter
Magic-User
Cleric
Thief
Strength
Intelligence
Wisdom
Dexterity
(No minimum scores for human characters)
5. Roll for Money (gp = 3d6 x 10)

6. Buy equipment: (see Equipment List)
Class
7. Figure out your:
Dwarf
Elf
Halfling
a. Armor Class
b. Character Hit Roll Table
c. Saving Throws (see Combat)
DEMI-HUMANS
Minimum Scores
Con 9
Int 9
Con 9
Dex 9
Prime Requisites
Str only
Str + Int
Str + Dex
Complete list: weapons and equipment

WEAPONS
Item
EQUIPMENT
Cost (in gp)
Axes:
Battle Axe (two-handed)
Hand Axe
Bows:
Crossbow Lt. (fires quarrels)
Case with 30 quarrels
Long Bow
Short Bow
Quiver with 20 arrows
1 silver-tipped arrow
Daggers:
Normal dagger
Silver dagger
Swords:
Short Sword
Normal Sword
Two-Handed Sword
Other Weapons:
*Mace
*Club
Pole Arm (two-handed)
*Sling with 30 Sling Stones
Spear
*War Hammer
Item
Backpack
Flask of Oil
Holy Symbol
Holy Water (1 vial)
Lantern
Mirror (hand-sized, steel)
Pole (wood, 10' long)
Rations:
Iron Rations (preserved food
for 1 person for 1 week)
Standard Rations (unpreserved food
for 1 person for 1 week)
Rope (50' long)
Sacks:
Small
Large
Spikes (iron, 12) and small Hammer
Thieves' Tools
Tinder Box (flint, steel, dry
wood shavings and twigs)
Torches (6)
Waterskin (or wineskin)
Wine (1 quart)
Wolfsbane (1 bunch)
7
4
30
10
40
25
5
5
3
30
10
15
5
3
7
2
3
5
*These weapons may be used by a cleric
(Note: Items will be added to this list in the D&D EXPERT Set.)
ARMOR
Item
Leather Armor
Chain Mail Armor
Plate Mail Armor
Shield
Cost (in gp)

20
40
60
10
29
Cost (in gp)

5
2
25
25
10
5
1
15
5
1
1
2
3
25
3
1
1
1
10
Character classes
ELF
Hit Dice: Id6 per level
CLERIC
XP
0
1500
3000
Cleric's
Level
1
2
3
No. of Spells/
Spell Level
Level
Title
Acolyte
Adept
Priest
(or Priestess)
2
3
9
7
T
0
4000
8000
None
1 First
2 First
CLERIC TURNING UNDEAD

Undead Monster
Skeleton
Zombie
Ghoul
7
T
T
XP
XP
Level
Title
0
2000
4000
1
2
3
Veteran
Warrior
Swordmaster
2500
5000
XP
Medium
Seer
Conjurer
2
3
ENCUMBERED MOVEMENT RATES TABLE

Normal
Encounter
Running
Speed
Speed
Speed
(Feet per
(Feet per round)
Encumbrance
turn)
Title
up to 400 en
401-800 en
801-1200 en
1201-1600 en
1601-2400
2401 and more
25
20
20
89
30
20
30
1-3
XP
0
2200
4400
1
2
3
120
90
60
30
15
0
40
30
20
10
5
0
A gem is counted as 1 en, and other treasures (potions, jewelry, and so

forth) are counted as 10 en each.
CONTAINER VOLUME
200 en
400 en
600 en
1000 en
Small sack
Backpack
Large sack
Saddle bag
MULE MOVEMENT/ENCUMBRANCE
Title
Encumbrance
up to 3000 en
3001-6000 en
6001 en or more
Dwarven Veteran
Dwarven Warrior
Dwarven Swordmaster
Detect traps, sliding walls, sloping corridors, new constructions: 2/6

Infravision 60'
30
120
90
60
30
15
0
Basic Encumbrance: unarmored = 300 en; armored = 700 en
Except for "Hear Noise," each number is the Percentage chance that
the thief is successful in using that Special Ability. "Hear Noise" is
determined in a similar way, using ldb.
DWARF
Level
Halfling Veteran
Halfling Warrior
Halfling Swordmaster
Hide in woodlands 90% success

Hide in dungeon (shadows) Yt>
Apprentice
Footpad
Robber
THIEF SPECIAL ABILITY TABLE

Level of Experience
Special Ability
2
Open Locks
(d%)
15
20
Find Traps
(d%)
10
15
Remove Traps
(d%)
10
15
Climb Walls
(d%)
87
88
Move Silently
(d%)
20
25
Hide in Shadows (d%)
10
15
Pick Pockets
(d%)
20
25
Hear Noise
(Id6)
1-2
1-2
Tide
+1 bonus to Individual Initiative
1 First
2 First
2 First
plus 1 Second
0
1200
2400
1
2
3
+ 1 bonus to the Hit Roll when using any missile (see "Additional
Rules")
No. of Spells/
Spell Level
THIEF
Level
1 First
2 First
2 First
plus 1 Second
Combat Bonuses:
- 2 bonus to Armor Class when attacked by creatures larger than
man-size
MAGIC-USER
HALFLING
Level
0
2000
4000
Title
Veteran-Medium
Warrior-Seer
Swordmaster-Conjurer
XP
FIGHTER
Level
1
2
3
N
11
9
XP
Title
Detect secret or hidden doors: 2/6

Immune to paralysis from ghouls
Infravision 60'
Wight
11
9
7
No. of Spells/
Spell Level
Level
Movement Rate
120'/turn
60'/turn
0
DUNGEONS 8c DRAGONS Character Record Sheet
Player's Name
Dungeon Master
Character's Name
Alignment
Class
Level
Character Sketch or Symbol

Hit
Points
Armor
Class
ABILITIES:
STRENGTH
INTELLIGENCE
WISDOM
DEXTERITY
CONSTITUTION
CHARISMA
SAVING THROWS:
POISON or
DEATH RAY
\Z
adjustment
adjustment
MAGIC WAND
adjustment
TURN TO STONE or
PARALYSIS
adjustment
J5~ I DRAGON BREATH

adjustment
SPELLS or
MAGIC STAFF
adjustment
LANGUAGES:.
SPECIAL SKILLS: Spells, Thief's abilities, Cleric's turning, etc.
TARGET AC:
HIT ROLL
NEEDED
'
9
10
'
11
8
'
7
12
31
'
6
13
'
5
14
4
'
15
3
'
16
"~~
17
18
19
) 1980,1983 TSR Games

All Rights Reserved.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Character Record Sheet

EQUIPMENT CARRIED
MAGIC ITEMS
NORMAL ITEMS
OTHER NOTES including places explored, people 8c monsters met
MONEY and TREASURE

PP:
GP:
EP:
SP:
CP:
EXPERIENCE
GEMS:
RONTT TS/PF.M A T TV-
TOTAL VALUE:
32
Sample Characters
One sample of each character class is
provided here for your convenience.
You may use these characters in group
adventures, but not in the Solo Adventure in this booklet.
To start one of these characters, copy

the information onto a character sheet
(sold separately) or onto a piece of blank
paper, using your first fighter's character sheet as a guide.
The Saving Throws for each character

are given in the character class description
(pages 24 - 47). Be sure to read the full
description before you play the character!
Cleric
Magic-User
Thief
9 Strength
11 Intelligence
17 Wisdom ( + 2 bonus to Saving
Throws vs. magic)
8 Dexterity (1 penalty to missile fire
Hit rolls; + 1 penalty to AC)
14 Constitution ( + 1 bonus to hit point
rolls)
16 Charisma (+ 1 bonus to reactions)
8 Strength ( - 1 penalty to Hit rolls,

damage rolls, opening doors)
17 Intelligence ( + 2 added languages)
11 Wisdom
16 Dexterity (+2 bonus on missile fire
Hit rolls, - 2 Armor Class bonus)
14 Constitution (+ 1 bonus to hit point
rolls)
9 Charisma
16 Strength ( + 2 bonus on Hit rolls,

damage rolls, and opening doors)
14 Intelligence (+ 1 added language)
9 Wisdom
17 Dexterity ( + 2 bonus to missile fire
11 Constitution
8 Charisma ( - 1 penalty to reactions)
Armor Class: 5 (includes Dexterity

penalty)
Hit Points: 6 (roll of 5, +1 Constitution
bonus)
Money: 10 gp
XP: 0
Equipment:
Chain mail & shield
Mace
Holy Symbol
1 flask oil
Backpack
Iron rations
6 tinder box torches
Rope (50')
2 waterskins (full)
2 small sacks
2 large sacks
See page 24 for special abilities and
full class description.
Armor Class: 7 (includes Dexterity bonus)

Hit Points: 4 (roll of 3, +1 Constitution
bonus)
Money: 10 gp
XP: 0
Equipment:
Backpack
Iron rations
1 silver dagger
1 Holy water
Lantern
4 flasks oil
Tinder box
Small metal mirror
1 waterskin (full)
1 wineskin (full)
2 small sacks
2 large sacks
Spell Book: Read Magic, Sleep
Dwarf
Elf
Halfling

7 Intelligence
11 Wisdom
9 Constitution
9 Charisma

9 Intelligence
7 Wisdom ( 1 penalty on Saving
Throws vs. magic)
Hit rolls, 1 Armor Class bonus)
9 Constitution
11 Charisma

11 Intelligence
14 Wisdom ( + 1 bonus on Saving
Throws vs. magic)
9 Dexterity
9 Constitution
7 Charisma ( 1 penalty to reactions)

Hit Points: 6 (roll of 6, no adjustments)
Money: 7 gp
XP: 0
Money: 10 gp
XP: 0
Equipment:
Equipment:
Backpack
Iron rations
Plate mail armor
Shield
Backpack
Iron rations
Sword (normal)
Dagger
Chain mail armor
Shield
Small hammer
12 iron spikes
Long bow
20 arrows
Rope (50')
Wolfsbane
Sword (normal)
Rope (50')
1 full wineskin
2 small sacks
1 large sack
Wolfsbane
Spell Book: Read Magic, Charm Person
34

Money: 3 gp
XP: 0
Equipment:
Backpack
Iron rations
Leather armor
Wolfsbane
Sword (normal)
Dagger
Lantern
3 flasks oil
Tinder box
Thieves' tools
2 small sacks
2 large sacks
Armor Class: 4
Money: 6 gp
XP: 0
Equipment:
Backpack
Iron rations
Chain mail armor
Shield
Short bow
20 normal arrows
Short sword
4 silver arrows
Tinder box
6 torches
1 wineskin (full)
1 waterskin (full)
Spells
Cleric Spells: First Level
Cure Light Wounds*
Range: Touch
Duration: Permanent
Detect Evil
Range: 120'
Duration: 6 turns
Detect Magic
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
Light*
Range: 120'
Duration: 12 turns

Range: 0
Duration: 12 turns
Effect: The cleric only
Range: 10'
Duration: Permanent
Effect: 1 ration or 6 waterskins
Remove Fear*
Range: Touch
Duration: 2 turns
Resist Cold
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
Effect: All creatures within 30'
*Spell may be cast with reverse effects in D&D EXPERT Rules.
Magic-User Spells: First Level*
Magic-User Spells: Second Level
Charm Person
Range: 120'
Duration: See below
Effect: One living "person"
Detect Magic
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
Floating Disc
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
Effect: Disc remains within 6'
Hold Portal
Range: 10'
Duration: 2-12 (2(16) turns
Effect: One door, gate, or similar portal
Light
Range: 120'
Duration: 6 turns +1 turn per Level of the magic-user
Magic Missile
Range: 150'
Duration: 1 turn
Effect: Creates 1 or more arrows
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
Effect: The magic-user only
Read Languages
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
Read Magic
Range: 0
Duration: 1 turn
Shield
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
Sleep
Range: 240'
Duration: 4-16 (4d4) turns
Effect: 2-16 Hit Dice of living creatures within a 40' x 40' area
Ventriloquism
Range: 60'
Duration: 2 turns
Effect: One item or location
Continual Light
Range: 12O7
Duration: Permanent
Detect Evil
Range: 60'
Duration: 2 turns
Detect Invisible
Range: 10' per Level of the magic-user
Duration: 6 turns
ESP
Range: 60'
Duration: 12 turns
Effect: All thoughts in one direction
Invisibility
Range: 240'
Duration: Permanent until broken
Effect: One creature or object
Knock
Range: 60'
Duration: See below
Effect: One lock or bar
Levitate
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns +1 turn per Level of the magic-user
Locate Object
Range: 60' + 10' per Level of the magic-user
Duration: 2 turns
Effect: One object within range
Mirror Image
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
Phantasmal Force
Range: 240'
Duration: Concentration
Effect: A volume 20' x 20' x 20'
Web
Range: 10'
Duration: 48 turns
Wizard Lock
Range: 10'
Duration: Permanent
Effect: One portal or lock
35
Combat and ability adjustments

COMBAT SEQUENCE TABLE
A. Each side rolls for initiative, using Id6.
B. The side that wins the initiative acts first:
1. Morale Check (monsters and non-player characters only)
2. Movement (using speed per round), including Defensive
Maneuvers
3. Missile fire combat (additional)
a. Choose targets
b. Make Hit Rolls
c. Roll Damage for hits
4. Magic spells
a. Choose targets
b. Make Saving Throws if necessary
c. Apply results immediately
5. Hand-to-Hand combat
a. Choose targets
b. Make Hit Rolls
C. The side that loses the initiative then completes all steps given
above.
D. DM handles all retreating, surrender, and other special results.
SAVING THROWS
a. Death Ray or Poison
d. Dragon Breath
b. Magic Wands
e. Rods, Staves or Spells
c. Paralysis or Turn to Stone
Cleric
Fighter
Magic-user
Thief
Dwarf
Elf
Halfling
Normal Man
9
10
8
11
7
12
6
13
5
14
4
15
-1
16
17
18
19
20
INTELLIGENCE ADJUSTMENTS
Intelligence
Score
VARIABLE WEAPON DAMAGE

Id4 (1-4) points of damage:
Club
Spear
Dagger
War Hammer
Sling stone
Torch
Sword (normal)
*Battle Axe
*Arrow (long or short bow)
ldlO (1-10) points of
Hand Axe
damage:
Mace
*Pole Arm
*Quarrel (crossbow)
*Two-Handed Sword
Short Sword
*This weapon requires two hands for use. Attacker may not use shield
and always loses initiative.
3
4-5
6-8
9-12
13-15
16-17
18
120
140
100
80
40
30
20
180
210
150
160
60
50
30
Charisma
Score
Reaction
adjustment
3
4-5
6-8
9-12
13-15
16-17
18
1.
2.
3.
4.
Using Missiles: Remember to adjust for:

1. Dexterity
3. Cover
2. Range
4. Magic
Effect
Has trouble with speaking, cannot read or write
Cannot read or write Common
Can write simple Common words
No adjustments; can read and write Common and
Alignment languages
+ 1 Language
+2 Languages
+3 Languages
CHARISMA ADJUSTMENT
MISSILE FIRE TABLE

Maximum Ranges (in feet)
Short (+1)
Medium(O)
Long ( - 1)
60
70
50
40
20
10
10
- 3 Penalty
- 2 Penalty
- 1 Penalty
No adjustment
+1 Bonus
+ 2 Bonus
+ 3 Bonus
3
4-5
6-8
9-12
13-15
16-17
18
Armor Class
9
7
5
3
Bonus of 1*
Crossbow, (Lt)
Long Bow
Short Bow
Sling
Spear
Oil or Holy Water
Hand Axe or Dagger
17
15
16
15
15
12
15
12
17
ABILITY SCORE BONUSES AND PENALTIES

Ability Score
Adjustment
*A shield subtracts 1 from your Armor Class number. For example,

Chain Mail alone is AC 5, but with a shield it drops to AC 4.
Weapon
16
15
16
16
13
15
13
- 20%
-10%
No adjustment
+ 5%
+ 10%
3-5
6-8
9-12
13-15
16-18
ARMOR CLASS
Armor type
No armor
Leather
Chain Mail
Plate Mail
Shield
14
14
13
13
10
13
10
16
12
13
14
14
9
13
9
15
PRIME REQUISITE EXPERIENCE ADJUSTMENT

Prime
Adjustment to
Requisite
Experience
CHARACTER HIT ROLL TABLE

Target's
AC
Roll
11
12
13
13
8
12
8
14
36
Retainers
Maximum
number
Morale
-i
No adjustment
+1
+1
+2
HIRING RETAINERS
Find NPCs
Explain the job, make offer
Hire, buy equipment
Make retainer sheet
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Magic-user
Description
A magic-user is a human character who
studies the powers of magic. Magic-users
find spells, put them into books, and
study those books to learn the spells.
Magic-users have their own spells, entirely different from cleric spells. A
magic-user has poor fighting skills, and
should avoid combat.
In D&D games, magic is merely a part
of the action of the game. The player
can imagine how spells would be cast,
using various mysterious items, but no
special items are needed by the player.
After the player has learned the effect
each spell has in the game, a magic-user
is as easy to play as any other character
class.
A magic-user concentrates on learning and casting magic spells. A high
Intelligence is needed, and the other
Ability Scores are often low. However, a
high Constitution score will help your
magic-user survive longer, because it
gives a bonus to hit points a magicuser's weak point.
Magic-users greatly fear damage. All
the other character classes can use armor of some kind, but magic-users can
only wear their robes or normal clothes.
Thus, they are easy to hit. In addition,
they have few hit points. Magic-users
start as the weakest characters, but can
become the most powerful! Their magic
spells can be used for many things
from simple things like opening doors
and locks, to impressive and dangerous
magical attacks, such as lightning bolts
(described in the D&D EXPERT Set).
Your Magic-user should never explore

dungeons alone; one surprise could kill
you. In groups, you should always stay
in the middle of the party, protected
from attacks. Watch for ways that you
can help the battles, by casting spells, but
never try to fight a monster hand-tohand. Always carry a dagger, to be ready
if you are forced to fight. Be sure to call
for help if you get into a battle; other
characters can fight the same monster,
distracting it and (hopefully) keeping it
from attacking you.
Beware of other magic-users! Some
spells are designed specially to protect
you from attacks, including other magic.
When you encounter another magicuser, keep watch. If the enemy starts
casting a spell, warn your friends.
As a player, you should study the spell
descriptions on the next pages. Your
greatest challenge will be keeping the
character alive, to gain more Levels of
Experience.
Explanation of Magic-User
Experience Table:
Points have been earned, the magic-user
of Experience.
Title: A magic-user should use this title
when talking with other characters. Instead of saying "I'm Felonius, a Second
Level magic-user," the character should
say "I'm Felonius, the Seer."
Spells: The number of spells a magicuser can cast, and their levels of power,
are given here. Spells are explained in
detail below, under "Special Abilities."
MAGIC-USER SAVING
THROW TABLE
Death Ray or Poison
Magic Wands
Dragon Breath
Prime Requisite: A magic-user's PR is

Intelligence. If a magic-user has an Intelligence score of 13 or more, the character gains a bonus to Experience Points
earned in every adventure.
Hit Dice: A four-sided die (Id4) is used
to determine a magic-user's hit points. A
magic-user starts with 1-4 hit points (plus
Armor: A magic-user may not wear any
kind of armor, and may not use a shield.
Weapons: A magic-user can only use a
dagger for a weapon.
Special Abilities
A magic-user can cast magic spells, as
described hereafter.
Spell Power:
There are many spells for magic-users to
use. The power of a spell is described in
a way similar to the power of a character.
Spells of the lowest level of power are
called "First Level" spells, which can be
used by beginning magic-users. Higher
level spells are usable by higher level
characters. Be careful not to confuse
your character's Level of Experience
with the level of a spell's power.
MAGIC-USER EXPERIENCE TABLE

13
14
13
16
15
XP
0
2500
5000
37
Other Details:
Level
Title
No. of Spells/
Spell Level
1
2
3
Medium
Seer
Conjurer
1 First
2 First
2 First plus 1 Second

Spell Books:
Your Medium (1st Level magic-user)
starts with a spell book, containing two
First Level spells. Your Dungeon Master
will tell you what spells your character
starts with. The spell book is a large
bulky thing, and cannot be easily carried. A spell book is about 2 feet square,
2-6 inches thick, and weighs at least 20
pounds. It will not fit inside a normal
sack of any size, but may be carried in a
backpack or saddlebag.
When your character becomes a Seer,
you will add another First Level spell to
the book; again, your DM will tell you
which spell. Upon reaching 3rd Level of
Experience, a Second Level spell will be
gained. When the 4th Level of Experience is reached, another Second Level
spell is added to the book. (Magic-users
of levels 4-14 are explained in the D&D
EXPERT Set.)
Assume that your character is given
these additional spells by a teacher, a
powerful magic-user of 7th Level or
greater. All magic-users of less than that
level must have teachers. These teachers
never go on adventures with characters.
They will not affect most games.
Different magic-users often have different spells in their books. For example,
you might start with the Read Magic
and Sleep spells, and find another
magic-user who knows Read Magic and
Magic Missile. But magic-users never
trade spells, nor do they ever allow
anyone (except their teachers) to read
their spell books. The risk of losing the
book or having it damaged, is too great.
If a magic-user's book is lost, the character cannot memorize any spells to cast!
One magical treasure which may be
found during an adventure is a magic
scroll. Some scrolls contain magic-user
spells. If a new spell is found on a scroll, it
may be added to the magic-user's book
but this can only be done once for each
scroll spell, and uses up the scroll in the
process. If the spell is of too high a level to
be cast, it cannot be put into the book.
also be carried during adventures, to be

cast as needed. Any magic-user can cast
a spell found on a scroll as if it were
memorized, regardless of the level of the
spell. If the spell is cast, it disappears
from the scroll.
You, the player, need only keep a list
of which of the many spells are in your
character's book. Keep the list on your
character sheet, under "Special Abilities." Scrolls are magic items, listed on
the back of the character sheet.
Learning Spells:
To learn a spell, the magic-user must be
completely rested. A good night's sleep
is enough. The character then gets out
the spell book and studies the spells to be
used, which takes an hour or less. The
character is then ready for adventure,
and is able to cast the spell or spells
studied.
A Medium can cast one spell per adventure. A Seer can cast two First Level
spells per adventure. A Conjurer can
cast 3 spells per adventure, two of the
First Level of Power and one of the
Second Level.
In more advanced games, adventures
may last more than a day. In such cases,
a magic-user can study spells each morning, if completely rested. A mule should
be brought along on long adventures, to
carry the spell book along with normal
equipment. But beware! If the book is
lost, the character is in big trouble. If
that happens, ask your Dungeon Master
what you should do.
Don't confuse the spells memorized
with spells in a book! Your magic-user
character will eventually have many
spells in a spell book, but can still only
memorize a few each day.
EXAMPLE: .'The;
onius the Seer
Sleep and Shield;
adventure,'he <fa
twice (as he can. _^,
adventure). He <*
and still remembefj;0!(*
to be used later in thai i
The character must be able to gesture
and speak without interruption to cast a
spell. While casting a spell, the magicuser must concentrate, and may not
move. A spell cannot be cast while the
character is walking or running. If the
magic-user is disturbed while casting a
spell, the spell will be ruined, and will
still be "erased," just as if it had been
cast.
Types of Spells:
Most spells have an effect that lasts for a
given time. For example, a Magic Missile
spell creates a glowing arrow that follows
the magic-user around, either until it is
shot or until a turn passes (10 minutes).
However, some higher level spells may
have "instant" duration. A Fire Ball spell
creates an explosion which causes
damage. The damage remains until
cured, but the spell itself only lasts part
of a second, much less than a round.
Casting Spells:
In the game, when you want your character to cast a spell, just tell your Dungeon Master.
KXAMI'LE: "I'm casing u Slei'p spell
K\ \MFI F. A Medium find*, .i *in>J!

ut erne Second [.I*M"1 spi'II The ipi-11
(diiiidi be put into a book until the
ihar.icU'i Ixi nines A ('tmjuier iMrrl
Ifvc-li .jnd i .lblc tci list1 ,i
S l
I IM-1
di LIIC goblins." Hit- DM ma\ ask loi
A spell on a scroll may be saved, to be

put into a book at a future time. It may
When the magic-user casts a spell, the

memory of that spell is forgotten. Imag-
some details: for example, MUIHspells are i.ist at .i tdigei. ;md wui
miiM tell Lhe DM whji LIM- t.ugri is.
'I he player dues mu hint- in Icdin JI>\
I
38
ine that the magic-user's memory is like

a blackboard. When studying, the character "writes spells on the blackboard,"
but each spell is "erased" as it is cast. If
your character has studied a spell twice
and casts one, the other still remains to
be used.
Saving throws vs. Spells:

Many spells only have full effect if the
victim fails a Saving Throw (vs. spells). If
a Saving Throw is allowed, it is mentioned in the spell description.

Magic-user Spells:
Each spell has a given Range, Duration,
and Effect.
Range: The character should be sure,
before casting the spell, that the target is
within range. If the description says
"Range: 0," the spell may only be used
by the magic-user, and cannot be cast on
others. If "Range: Touch" is given, the
spell can be placed on any creature the
magic-user touches including the
magic-user himself (or herself, as the
case may be).
Duration is given either in rounds (of 10
seconds each) or turns (of 10 minutes
each). If the description says "Duration:
Permanent," then the spell has an instant and permanent effect that does not
go away after a given duration.
Effect of the spell gives either the number of creatures or objects affected, or
an area or volume of space. If an area is
given, it is measured in square feet (a flat
area). If a 3-dimensional volume is affected, it is either a round "ball" with a
given diameter, or a square or rectangular "box" of a given size; both are measured in feet.
Magical Spell Descriptions

FIRST LEVEL MAGIC-USER SPELLS
1. Charm Person
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Detect Magic
Floating Disc
Hold Portal
Light
Magic Missile
Read Languages
Read Magic
10. Shield
11. Sleep
12. Ventriloquism
Charm Person
Range: 120'
Duration: See below
Effect: One living "person" (see below)
This spell will only affect humans, demihumans, and certain other creatures.
The victim is allowed a Saving Throw vs.
Spells. If the Saving Throw is successful,

the spell has no effect. If it is failed, the
victim will believe that the magic-user is
its "best friend," and will try to defend
the magic-user against any threat,
whether real or imagined. The victim is
"Charmed."
As a general rule, the "persons" affected by this spell are all creatures
which look similar to humans in various
ways. It will not affect animals, magical
creatures (such as living statues), or
human-like creatures larger than ogres.
You will learn, through trial and error,
which monsters can be charmed.
If the magic-user can speak a language that the Charmed victim understands, the magic-user may give orders
to the victim. These orders should
sound like suggestions, as if "just between friends." These orders will usually
be obeyed, but orders that are contrary
to the victim's nature (alignment and
habits) may be resisted. A victim will
refuse to obey if ordered to kill itself.
EXAMPLE: Allot Bargle Charmed
\ou. hi1 ordered you to leave lhe
cleric's body behind. You resisted, because that was against your nature.
B.ugle had lo talk, YOU into doing
what he wanted. If he had ordered
you lo go away, you would h;ne resisted that, too: you considered him a
friend!
A Charm may last for months. The
victim may make another Saving Throw
every day, week, or month, depending
on its Intelligence. If you are Charmed,
your DM will tell you when to make the
new Saving Throw.
The Charm is automatically broken if
the magic-user attacks the victim,
whether by spell or by weapon. The
victim will fight normally if attacked by
the magic-user's allies.
Detect Magic
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
When this spell is cast, the magic-user
will see all magical objects, creatures,
and places within range glow. This effect
will not last very long, and should be
saved until the magic-user wants to see if
something found during an adventure
is, in fact, magical. Example: Shortly
39
after casting this spell, a magic-user

walks into a room containing a door
locked by magic, a magical potion laying
nearby, and a treasure chest containing a
magic wand. All the magic will glow, but
only the door and potion will be seen;
the light of the glowing wand is hidden
by the treasure chest.
Floating Disc
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
Effect: Disc remains within 6'
horizontal platform about the size and
shape of a small round shield. It can
carry up to 5000 en (500 pounds). It
cannot be created in a place occupied by
a creature or object. The floating disc is
created at the height of the magic-user's
waist, and will always remain at that
height. It will automatically follow the
magic-user, remaining within 6' at all
times. It can never be used as a weapon,
because it has no solid existence and
moves slowly. When the duration ends,
the floating disc will disappear, suddenly
dropping anything upon it.
Hold Portal
Range: 10'
Effect: One door, gate, or similar
portal
This spell will magically hold shut any
"portal" for example, a door or gate.
A Knock spell will open the Hold Portal. Any creature 3 or more hit dice
greater than the caster (including characters) may break open a held portal in
one round's time, but the portal will
relock if allowed to close within the
duration of the spell.
EXAMPLE: Am .'nil level char.nter
ma\ bleak through a Hold Portal
spell ia<i bv a 2nd level
k

Light
Range: 120'
Duration: 6 turns +1 turn per Level of
the magic-user
This spell creates a large ball of light, as
if a bright torch were lit. If the spell is
cast on an object (such as a coin), the
light will move with the object. If cast at
a creature's eyes, the creature must
make a Saving Throw. If the Saving
Throw is failed, the victim will be
blinded by the light until the duration
ends. A blinded creature may not attack.
If the Saving Throw is successful, the
Light appears in the air behind the
intended victim.
Magic Missile
Range: 150'
Duration: 1 round
Effect: Creates 1 or more arrows
A Magic Missile is a glowing arrow,
created and shot by magic, which inflicts
2-7 (Id6+1) points of damage to any
creature it strikes. After the spell is cast,
the arrow appears next to the magicuser and hovers there until the magicuser causes it to shoot. When shot, it will
automatically hit any visible target. It will
move with the magic-user until shot or
until the duration ends. The Magic Missile actually has no solid form, and
cannot be touched. A Magic Missile
never misses its target and the target is
not allowed a Saving Throw.
For every 5 levels of experience of the
caster, two more missiles are created by
the same spell. Thus a 6th Level Magicuser may create three missiles. The missiles may be shot at different targets.
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
barrier all around the magic-user's body
(less than an inch away). All attacks
against the magic-user are penalized by
- 1 to their Hit rolls, and the magic-user
gains a + 1 bonus to all Saving Throws,
while the spell lasts.
In addition, "enchanted" creatures
cannot even touch the magic-user! If a
magic weapon is needed to hit a creature, that creature is called "enchanted."

However, a creature that can be hit by a
silver weapon a lycanthrope (werecreature), for example is not an "enchanted" creature. The barrier thus
completely prevents all from attacks
from those creatures unless they use
missile weapons.
This spell will not affect a Magic Missile spell. If the Magic-user attacks anything during the spell's duration, the
effect changes slightly. "Enchanted"
creatures are then able to touch the
magic-user, but the Hit roll and Saving
Throw adjustments still apply until the
spell duration ends.
Read Languages
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
This spell will allow the magic-user to
read, not speak, any unknown languages
or codes, including treasure maps, secret
symbols, and so forth, until the duration
ends.
Read Magic
Sleep
Range: 240'
Effect: 2-16 Hit Dice of living creatures
within a 40' square area
This spell will put creatures to sleep for
up to 16 turns. It will only affect creatures with 4 + 1 Hit Dice or less generally, small or man-sized creatures. All the
creatures to be affected must be within a
40' x 40' area. The spell will not work
against Undead or very large creatures,
such as dragons. Any sleeping creature
can be awakened by force (such as a slap
or kick). A sleeping creature may be
killed with a single blow of any edged
weapon, regardless of its hit points.
Your Dungeon Master will roll to find
the total Hit Dice of monsters affected,
using 2d8. The victims get no Saving
Throw.
Range: 0
Duration: 1 turn
read, not speak, any magical words or
runes, such as those found on magic
scrolls and other items. Unfamiliar
magic writings cannot be understood
without using this spell. However, once a
magic-user reads a scroll or runes with
this spell, that magic can be read or
spoken later (without) using a spell. All
spell books are written in magical words,
and only their owners may read them
without using this spell.
Shield
Range: 0
Duration: 2 turns
This spell creates a magical barrier all
around the magic-user (less than an inch
away). It moves with the magic-user.
While the duration lasts, the magic-user
becomes Armor Class 2 against missiles,
and AC 4 against all other attacks.
40
If a Magic.Missile is shot at a magicuser protected by this spell, the magicuser may make a Saving Throw vs.
Spells (one Saving Throw per missile). If
successful, the Magic Missile will have
no effect.
Ventriloquism
Range: 60'
Duration: 2 turns
Effect: One item or location
make the sound of his or her voice to
come from somewhere else, such as a
statue, animal, dark corner, and so forth.

Continual Light
Range: 120'
Duration: Permanent
This spell creates a globe of light 60'
across. It is much brighter than a torch,
but not as bright as full daylight. It will
continue to glow forever, or until magically removed. It may be cast on an
object, just as the first level light spell. If
cast at a creature's eyes, the victim must
make a Saving Throw vs. Spells. If the
Saving Throw is failed, the victim is
blinded. If the Saving Throw is successful, the globe will still appear, but will
remain in the place it was cast, and the
intended victim will suffer no ill effects.
Detect Evil
Range: 60'
Duration: 2 turns
will see all evilly enchanted objects
within 60' glow. It will also cause creatures that want to harm the magic-user
to glow when they are within range. The
actual thoughts of the creatures cannot
be heard. Remember that "Chaotic"
does not automatically mean Evil, although many Chaotic monsters have evil
intentions. Traps and poison are neither
good nor evil, merely dangerous.
Invisibility
Range: 240'
Duration: Permanent until broken
Effect: One creature or object
This spell will make any one creature or
object invisible. When a creature becomes invisible, all items carried and
worn also become invisible. Any invisible
item becomes visible again when it leaves
the creature's possession (dropped, set
down, etc.). If the magic-user makes an
object invisible that is not being carried
or worn, it will become visible again
when touched by any living creature. An
invisible creature will remain invisible
until he or she attacks or casts any spell.
A light source (such as a torch) may be
made invisible, but the light given off
will always remain visible.
SECOND LEVEL
MAGIC-USER SPELLS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Continual Light
Detect Evil
Detect Invisible
ESP
Invisibility
Knock
Levitate
Locate Object
Mirror Image
Phantasmal Force
Web
Wizard Lock
ESP
Range: 60'
Duration: 12 turns
Effect: All thoughts in one direction
"hear" thoughts. The magic-user must
concentrate in one direction for six
rounds (1 minute) to ESP the thoughts
of a creature within range (if any). Any
single living creature's thoughts may be
understood, regardless of the language.
The thoughts (if any) of Undead creatures cannot be "heard" with this spell.
If more than one creature is within
range and in the direction concentrated
on, the magic-user will "hear" a confused jumble of thoughts. The magicuser may only sort out the jumble by
concentrating for an extra six rounds to
find a single creature. The ESP will not
be hampered by any amount of wood or
liquid, and will penetrate as much as 2
feet of rock, but a thin coating of lead
will block the spell.
Detect Invisible
Range: 10' per Level of the Magic-user
Duration: 6 turns
can see all invisible creatures and objects
within range. The range is 10' for each
level of the magic-user. For example, a
Conjurer can use this spell to see invisible things within 30'.
41
Knock
Range: 60'
Duration: See below
Effect: One lock or bar
This spell will open any type of lock.
Any normal or magically locked door
(by a Hold Portal or Wizard Lock spell),
and any secret door, may be opened
when found (but a secret door must be
found before it can be Knocked open).
Any locking magic will remain, however,
and will take affect once again when the
door is closed. This spell will also cause a
gate to open, even if stuck, and will
cause any treasure chest to open easily. It
will also cause a barred door to open,
magically forcing the bar to fall to the
floor. If a door is locked and barred, both
will be opened.
Levitate
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns + 1 turn per Level of
the magic-user
may move up or down in the air without
any support. This spell does not, however, allow the magic-user to move from
side to side. For example, a magic-user
could levitate to a ceiling, and then could
move sideways by pushing and pulling.
Motion up or down is at the rate of 20'
per round. The spell cannot be cast on
another person or object. The magicuser may carry a normal amount of
weight while levitating, possibly another
man-sized creature if not in metal armor. Any creature smaller than man-size
can be carried, unless similarly heavily
laden.

Locate Object
Range: 60' + 10' per Level of the
magic-user
Duration: 2 turns
Effect: One object within range
For this spell to be effective in finding an
object, the magic-user must know exactly what the object looks like. A common type of object, such as a flight of
stairs, can also be detected by this spell.
The spell will point to the nearest desired object within range, giving the
direction but not the distance. The range
increases as the magic-user gains Levels
of experience. For example, a Seer can
locate objects up to 80' away; a Conjurer,
up to 90'.
Mirror Image
Range: 0
Duration: 6 turns
With this spell, the magic-user creates
1-4 (Id4) additional images which look
and act exactly the same as the magicuser. The images appear and remain
next to the magic-user, moving if the
magic-user moves, talking if the magicuser talks, and so forth. The magic-
user need not concentrate; the images

will remain until the duration ends, or
until hit. The images are not real, and
cannot actually do anything. Any successful attack on the magic-user will
strike an image instead, which will
merely cause that image to disappear
(regardless of the actual damage).
moves, takes any damage, or fails any

Saving Throw, the concentration is broken and the phantasm disappears.
This spell never inflicts any real
damage! Those "killed" by it will merely
fall unconscious, those "turned to stone"
will be paralyzed, and so forth. The
effects wear off in 1-4 (Id4) turns.
Phantasmal Force
Web
Range: 240'
Duration: Concentration (see below)
Effect: A volume 2O'x2O'x2O'
Range: 10'
Duration: 48 turns
This spell creates or changes appearances within the area affected. The
magic-user should create the illusion of
something he or she has seen. If not, the
DM will give a bonus to Saving Throws
against the spell's effects. If the magicuser does not use this spell to attack, the
illusion will disappear when touched. If
the spell is used to "create" a monster, it
will be AC 9 and will disappear when hit.
If the spell is used as an attack (a phantasmal magic missile, collapsing wall,
etc.), the victim may make a Saving
Throw vs. Spells; if successful, the victim
is not affected, and realizes that the
attack is an illusion. The phantasmal
force will remain as long as the magicuser concentrates. If the magic-user
This spell creates a mass of sticky strands

which are difficult to destroy except with
flame. It usually blocks the area affected.
Giants and other creatures with great
strength can break through a web in 2
rounds. A human of average Strength (a
score of 9-12) will take 2-8 (2d4) turns to
break through the web. Flames (from a
torch, for example) will destroy the web
in 2 rounds, but all creatures within the
web will be burned for 1-6 (Id6) points
of damage. Anyone wearing Gauntlets
of Ogre Power (a magical treasure) can
break free of a web in 4 rounds.
Wizard Lock
Range: 10'
Duration: Permanent
Effect: One portal or lock
This spell is a more powerful version of
a Hold Portal spell. It will work on any
lock, not merely doors, and will last
forever (or until magically dispelled).
However, a Knock spell can be used to
open the Wizard Lock. A wizard locked
door may be opened easily by the magicuser casting the Wizard Lock, and also
by any magic-using character or creature of 3 or more Levels (or Hit Dice)
greater than the caster. Any such opening does not remove the magic, and the
lock will relock when allowed to close
(just as the Hold Portal spell).
42

Thief
Description
A thief is a human who specializes in
stealth, lockpicking, trap removing, and
other activities. Thieves are the only
characters that can open locks and find
traps without using magic. As the name
indicates, however, thieves do steal,
though rarely from members of their
own groups. Any thief who steals from
friends is usually not permitted to adventure with them ever again!
In the D&D game, all thieves belong to
an organization (sometimes called a
Guild). Every town has a building, called
the Guild Hall, where thieves may live and
eat (for a price, of course). Every thief
learns "The Arts" (a thief's unique skills;
see Special Abilities, below) from teachers
at the Guild. Thieves are a normal part of
D&D life, because of their unique skills,
but they are not usually welcome in the
better parts of towns.
While adventuring, your thief should
avoid danger whenever possible. The
thief's job is to use the Special Abilities
where needed. A thief's skills can be
very useful, as they can be used over and
over. For example, a magic-user may use
a spell to open a lock, but the spell only
works once; a thief may try to open locks
whenever desired.
When an encounter occurs, your thief
should stay out of the way. You may try to
sneak around a monster, either to steal its
treasure or to attack it from behind. You
should not fight hand-to-hand unless you
have to. A thief has few hit points, and
although some light armor may be worn,
it is not much protection.
Most thieves have high Dexterity

scores. Since this can affect missile fire
(see Advanced Combat, page 58), you
should learn the rules for missiles, and
carry missile weapons. A sword or dagger will be needed in situations where
you can't avoid close combat.
Thieves are found in most groups of
adventurers. The task of staying alive by
sneaking and using your wits, instead of
just fighting, can be an exciting game
challenge.
Explanation of Thief
Experience Table:
Points have been earned, the thief automatically moves up to the next Level of
Experience.
Title: Your thief should use this title
when talking with other characters. Instead of saying "I'm Greegan, a Second
Level thief," the character should say
"I'm Greegan, the Footpad."
Other Details:
Prime Requisite: A thief's PR is Dexterity. If a thief has a Dexterity score of
13 or more, the character gains a bonus
to Experience Points earned in every
adventure.
Hit Dice: A four-sided die (Id4) is used
to determine a thief's hit points. A thief
of Experience.
THIEF SAVING THROW TABLE

Death Ray or Poison
Magic Wands
Dragon Breath
13
14
13
16
15
THIEF EXPERIENCE TABLE

XP
0
1200
2400
Level
Title
1
2
3
Apprentice
Footpad
Robber
43
Armor: A thief may only wear Leather

armor, and may not use a shield.
Weapons: A thief may use any missile
weapon, and any other weapon usable
with one hand (two-handed weapons are
prohibited. For more information, see
"Advanced Combat," page 58).

Special Abilities:
Thieves know how to Open Locks, Find
and Remove Traps, Climb Walls, Move
Silently, Hide in Shadows, Pick Pockets,
and Hear Noise. They also learn the skill
of "Backstabbing."
Except for "Hear Noise," each number is
the Percentage chance that the thief is
successful in using that Special Ability.
Your Dungeon Master will roll d%; if the
result is equal to or less than the Percentage given, the thief's attempt is successful. "Hear Noise" is determined in a
similar way, using Id6.
Explanation of Thief Special Abilities:
OPEN LOCKS may only be tried once
per lock, and only if "Thieves' Tools" are
carried. The thief may not try again with
that lock until gaining another Level of
Experience.
FIND TRAPS may also be tried only
once per trap. If a trap is found, the
thief may attempt to remove it.
REMOVE TRAPS may only be tried if a
trap is found. It may be tried only once
per trap.
CLIMB WALLS applies to any steep
surfaces, such as sheer cliffs, walls, and
so forth. The chances for success are
good, but if failed, the thief slips at the
halfway point and falls. The DM will roll
for success only once for every 100'
climbed. If failed, the thief takes 1-6
(Id6) points of damage per 10' fallen.
Failure during a 10' climb will inflict 1
point of damage.
MOVE SILENTLY will always seem successful to the thief. However, the DM
will know (based on the Percentage roll)
whether the thief's movement is actually
heard by nearby enemies, who may then
take appropriate action.
HIDE IN SHADOWS means that the
thief moves into and remains in shadows, also using neutral concealment.
Movement is possible while hiding, but
not attacking. The attempt will always
seem successful to the thief, but only the
DM will know for sure.
PICK POCKETS may be risky. If the
DM rolls a number greater than twice
the given chance for success, the thief is
n o f n n l v s e e n b v t h o s e n e . i r h v b u t is
<.111_; 11T i n i h e ,ii i l>\ i l i e i i i i e n d e d \ ic l i m .
u l l o I I I , I \ 1,111(1 n l l e l l d u e s i l e u I 1111l.iwu.ll'h.
EXAMPLE: An apprentice tries to pick

the pocket of a hired tighter (a nonplaycr character, played by the DM).
Rolling IdlO twice (see "Dice." page V2),
the DM rolls 11. so the thief is caught in
the an. The DM then rolls to determine the reaction of the fighter, who
might attack the rhic-1!
HEAR NOISE (checked using Id6) applies both to listening at doors and hearing the footsteps of approaching monsters. However, there is too much noise
during battles to hear anything unusual.
Using thief special abilities
Watch for opportunities to use Special
Abilities, and simply tell your Dungeon
Master when you want your thief to use
one. Be sure you understand how each
THIEF SPECIAL ABILITY TABLE

Special Ability
Level of Experience
1
2
3
Open Locks
Find Traps
Remove Traps
15
10
10
20
15
15
25
20
20
Climb Walls
Move Silently
Hide in Shadows
87
20
10
88
25
15
89
30
20
20
1-2
25
1-2
30
1-3
Pick Pockets
Hear Noise
(Id6)
one works. The attempt will automatically fail if improperly used. For Example: An ogre is charging at the party, so
you say "My thief will Hide in Shadows
and get out a dagger." The DM replies,
"The ogre sees the movement, and
heads straight for your thief!"
Backstabbing: If a thief can sneak up on a
victim, completely unnoticed, the thief
may Backstab. If the intended victim sees,
hears, or is otherwise warned of the thief's
approach, a Backstab may not be taken,
but the thief may still attack normally.
When Backstabbing, the thief gains a
bonus of +4 on the Hit Roll, and if the
target is hit, the damage done is twice
normal.
EXAMPLE: An Apprentice is carrying a sword, and sees an ogre approaching the partv. The player sajs
'Til Hide in Shadows." The 1JM rolls
W on drji. so ihe ogre does not see rhc
thief (but the DM docs not announce
that fact). During the batik:, the ogre
eis turned around, with its back
towards the thief. '1 he player says "I'll
try to move in for a Backstab!" The
DM decides that the ogre doesn't
notice the thief's approach (no roll i
made: it depends on the situation,
and the I)Ms judgment) and savs
"'I he ogre doesn't notice you; roll for
a Baikstab." The thief player then
makes a Hit Roll, adding 4 lo it. li the
ogre is hit, the player rolls for
damage, doubling the result.
When no battle is in progress, a Backstab attempt may require a "Move Silently" check. Your DM will make all the
necessary rolls.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS characters (character class demi-human)

Dwarf
Description
A dwarf is short and stocky, standing
about 4' tall and weighing about 150
pounds. Male dwarves have long beards,
and females have short beards. Their
skin is earth-colored and their hair is
dark brown, gray, or black. Stubborn but
practical, dwarves are fond of good food
and drink. They value craftsmanship,
and love gold. Dwarves are sturdy fighters and are resistant to magic, as shown
by their Saving Throws. A dwarf character must start with a Constitution score of
9 or more.
Although the dwarf class is different
from the fighter class in many ways,
their tasks are the same. Both fight, and
both should use the same strategy in
combat. Read the description of the
fighter class (page 28) for some tips on
combat.
Explanation of Dwarf
Experience Table:
Points have been earned, the dwarf automatically moves up to the next Level
of Experience.
Title: Your dwarf should use this title
when talking with other characters. Instead of saying "I'm Rolf, a Second Level
dwarven fighter," the character should
say "I'm Rolf, the Warrior."
Other Details:
Prime Requisite: A dwarf's PR is
Strength. If a dwarf has a Strength score
of 13 or more, the character gains a
every adventure.
Hit Dice: An eight-sided die (Id8) is

used to determine a dwarf's hit points. A
dwarf starts with 1-8 hit points (plus
Armor: A dwarf may wear any kind of
Weapons: A dwarf may use any weapon
of small or normal size. Dwarves may not
use two-handed swords or longbows (short
bows and crossbows are permitted).
Special Abilities:
A dwarf has special vision, knows several
languages, and can detect certain things
better than other characters.
Vision: Dwarves have Infravision in addition to normal sight and can see 60' in
the dark. Infravision is the ability to see
heat (and the lack of heat). Normal and
magical light makes infravision useless.
With infravision, warm things seem
red, and cold things seem blue. For
example, an approaching creature could
be seen as a red shape, leaving faint
reddish footprints. A cold pool of water
would seem a deep blue color. Even
items or creatures which are the same
temperature as the surrounding air
(such as a table or a skeleton) can be
dimly seen by infravision.
Languages: In addition to the languages
of all characters the Common and
Alignment tongues, as explained on
page 51 a dwarf can speak dwarf,
gnome, goblin, and kobold. The character may have problems reading and writing these languages, however, as explained on the same page.
Minimum Scores: A dwarf character

must have a Constitution score of 9 or
greater when first played.
Detection: All dwarves are experts at

mining. They can sometimes detect
traps, sliding walls, sloping corridors,
and new constructions. If your dwarf
character wants to search for such things
DWARF SAVING THROW TABLE
DWARF EXPERIENCE TABLE
Death Ray or Poison

Magic Wands
Dragon Breath
8
9
10
13
12
XP
0
2200
4400
Level
Title
Dwarven Veteran
Dwarven Warrior
Dwarven Swordmaster
2
3
45
in an area, tell your Dungeon Master.

You have 1 chance in 2 to find them.
Your DM will roll Id6, and a result of 1
or 2 will indicate success if there is
anything to find. You may check once
for each type. You must tell your DM if
you want to look for anything; the detection is never automatic.
KXAMH.KS: You sav Til check this
wall to sec il it slides." The* DM.
knowing that it will slide,' rolls ldfi.
.ind gets a result of 1. The DM savs
"Yes, it appears to slide."

Elf
Other Details:
Description
Prime Requisite: Elves have two Prime

Requisites: Strength and Intelligence. If
an elf has a score of 13 or more in both
Ability Scores, the character gains a 5%
every adventure. If the Intelligence
score is 16 or greater (along with
Strength of 13 or more), the XP bonus is
10%.
An elf is slender and graceful, with

delicate features and pointed ears. An
elf is 5 to 5^2 feet tall, and weighs about
120 pounds. Elves are able to use all
armor and weapons, and can cast magicuser spells. They can thus be valuable
friends (or dangerous opponents), but
usually prefer to spend their time feasting and frolicking in woodland glades.
They rarely visit the cities of Man. Elves
are fascinated by magic and never grow
tired of collecting spells and magic items,
especially if the items are beautifully
crafted. An elf character must start with
an Intelligence score of 9 or greater.
Elves are similar to both fighters and
magic-users. Read the description of the
fighter class for some tips on playing a
fighter-type character, but remember
that your elf does not have as many hit
points as a fighter. Be sure your character is either undamaged or only slightly
hurt before you enter a battle; otherwise, stay back and help with magic
spells, as a magic-user does.
Minimum Scores: An elf character must

have an Intelligence score of 9 or
greater when first played.
determine an elf's hit points. An elf
of Experience.
Armor: An elf may wear any kind of
Weapons: An elf may use any weapon.
Special Abilities:
Explanation of Elf Experience Table:

Points have been earned, the elf automatically moves up to the next Level of
Experience.
Title: Your elf should use this title when
talking with other characters. Instead of
saying "I'm Belrain, a Second Level elf,"
the character should say "I'm Belrain,
the Warrior Seer."
Spells: The number of magic-user spells
an elf can cast, and their level of power,
are given here. Spells are explained below, under "Special Abilities."
An elf has special vision, knows several

languages, and can detect certain things
better than other characters. Elves can
cast magic-user spells, and cannot be
paralyzed by ghouls.
Vision: Elves have Infravision in addition to normal sight and can see 60' in
the dark. Infravision is the ability to see
heat (and the lack of heat). Normal and
magical light makes infravision useless.
With infravision, warm things seem
red, and cold things seem blue. For
example, an approaching creature could
be seen as a red shape, leaving faint
reddish footprints. A cold pool of water
would seem a deep blue color. Even
ELF EXPERIENCE TABLE
XP
0
4000
8000
Level
Title
No. of
Spells/
Spell Level
1
2
3
Veteran-Medium
Warrior-Seer
SwordmasterConjurer
1 First
2 First
2 First
plus 1 Second
46
items or creatures which are the same

temperature as the surrounding air
(such as a table or a skeleton) can be
dimly seen by infravision.
Languages: In addition to the languages
of all characters the Common and
Alignment tongues, as explained on
page 51 an elf can speak elf, gnoll,
hobgoblin, and ore.
Detection: All elves can find secret and
hidden doors better than other characters. If your elf character wants to search
for hidden doors in an area, tell your
Dungeon Master. The DM will roll Id6,
and a result of 1 or 2 will indicate success
if there is a door to be found. You may
check once for each door. You must tell
your DM if you want to look for anything; the detection is never automatic.
EXAMP1
wall
find a.aecrtt.
Immunity to Ghoul Paralysis: All elves
are naturally immune to the paralyzing
attacks of ghouls. Other types of paralysis, such as from a carrion crawler or
gelatinous cube, may affect them.
Spells: Elves can use magic-user spells
just as magic-users can. Read the descriptions of spell casting, spell books,
etc. on pages 39 - 42. Elves must obey all
the rules for using magic-user spells (but
not the other rules for the magic-user
class).
ELF SAVING THROW TABLE
Death Ray or Poison
Magic Wands
Dragon Breath
12
13
13
15
15

Halfling
Description
A halfling is a short demi-human, and
looks much like a human child with
slightly pointed ears. A halfling stands
about 3' tall and weighs about 60
pounds. Halflings rarely have beards.
They are outgoing but not unusually
brave, seeking treasure as a way to gain
the comforts of home, which they so
dearly love. Halflings are woodland folk,
and usually get along well with elves.
They have special abilities in the outdoors. A halfling character must start
with a score of 9 or greater in both
Dexterity and Constitution.
Halflings behave similarly to fighters
and dwarves. Read the description of
the fighter class for some tips on playing
your halfling. Remember your special
abilities (see below), and use them whenever possible. A halfling's Saving Throws
are as good as those of dwarves, and you
may survive where others fall to magic
or poison attacks.
Explanation of Halfling
Experience Table:
Points have been earned, the halfling
of Experience.
Other Details:
Prime Requisite: A halfling has two
Prime Requisites: Strength and Dexterity. If either of these Ability scores is 13
or greater, the character gains a 5%
every adventure. If both of these scores
are 13 or greater, the XP bonus is 10%.
Minimum Scores: A halfling character
must have a score of 9 or greater in both
Dexterity and Constitution.
Title: Your halfling should use this title

when talking with other characters. Instead of saying "I'm Touchberry, a Second
Level halfling," the character should say
"I'm Touchberry, the Warrior."

determine a halfling's hit points. A halfling starts with 1-6 hit points (plus Constitution bonus, if any) and gains Id6
more hit points (plus bonus) with each
Level of Experience.
HALFLING SAVING THROW TABLE
Armor: A halfling may wear any kind of

armor, and may use a shield. However,
their armor and shields must be specially
made for their small size. Even dwarfsized armor is too large for them.
Death Ray or Poison

Magic Wands
Dragon Breath
8
9
10
13
12
HALFLING EXPERIENCE TABLE

XP
0
2000
4000
Level
Title
1
2
3
Halfling Veteran
Halfling Warrior
Halfling Swordmaster
Weapons: A halfling may use any small

sized weapon (such as a dagger, short
sword, or short bow). Halflings may not
use two-handed swords, longbows, battle
axes, pole arms, or other large weapons.
Special Abilities:
A halfling gains several combat bonuses
(some due to their small size) and can
hide easily in woodlands.
47
Combat: Halflings often use missile

weapons, and are better at dodging the
attacks of large creatures than are other
characters. All halflings gain the following bonuses when in combat.
- 2 bonus to Armor Class when attacked by creatures larger than
man-size;
+ 1 bonus to the Hit Roll when using
any missile (see Additional Rules,
page 59)
+ 1 bonus to Individual Initiative (optional combat rule, page 59)
Hiding: Outdoors, halflings are difficult
to spot, having the ability to seemingly
vanish into woods or underbrush. In
such cover, they can only be detected
10% of the time (the DM will roll).
Halflings can even hide in dungeons,
though not with as much success. In
normal light, if a halfling finds some
shadows or cover to hide in (remaining
absolutely quiet and not moving), the
attempt at hiding will succeed Vs of the
time. To use this ability, tell your DM.
The DM will roll Id6; a result of 1 or 2
indicates success at hiding, as long as the
character does not move or make any
noise.
Magical light, such as a cleric's Light
spell, will ruin the attempt. If the character is carrying any light, it will be impossible to hide.

Making up a new character
After you are used to the rules of the
game by playing your Fighter, you can
try other characters by using the Character Sheets included in this booklet. But
remember that they are not usable in the
Solo Adventure! That adventure was
designed only for your first fighter.
Sooner or later you will want to make
up your own new character. Before you
start, get a pencil and all the dice. You
will also need a blank Character Sheet
(or a normal-size piece of paper) to keep
track of the details.
If you are using a blank piece of
paper, copy the form of the Character
Sheet onto it in other words, allow a
space for your name and the character's
name at the top left, a place for Class,
Level, Armor Class, and Hit Points below that, and so forth.
Your first try at creating a new character will probably take an hour or so.
Even when you are used to the procedure, it will still take 10-30 minutes.
You should not try to create a character
after everyone gets together for a game.
All the rolling, adjusting, buying, and so
forth should be done beforehand.
Your Dungeon Master will be needed
for part of the process, and should
watch the creation of the character, including all dice rolls. You should get
together with the DM before the game
to work out the details. One good
method is to have all the players make
new characters together, with the Dungeon Master helping.
At the bottom of this page is a list of
the steps to take when making a new
character; each step is then explained in
detail.
Now find your highest Ability Score.

If it is less than 9, you should roll all the
Scores again. You may keep the character if you wish, but he or she probably
won't be suitable for dangerous adventuring! However, before you discard the
character, ask your Dungeon Master
what to do. Your DM might prefer that
you play the character you rolled, especially if you are an experienced player.
If two or more Ability Scores are less
than 6, the character may have problems
later on. This type of character should
also be discarded, unless the DM says
otherwise.
You can adjust the' Ability Scores in
step 3 (Exchange Ability Points), but first
you must decide what Class your character will be.

2. Choose a Class
3. Exchange Ability Score points (if
desired)
4. Roll for Hit Points
5. Roll for Money
6. Buy equipment
7. Figure out your:
a. Armor Class
b. Hit Roll Chart
c. Saving Throws
8. Note adjustments for Ability
Scores
9. Give your Character a Name and
Alignment
2. Choose a Class
Each type of character is called a Class.
Your first character's Class was Fighter.
You know now that there are other
kinds of adventurers: clerics, magicusers, and thieves. You could play one of
those, or even a character that's not
human: you can be a dwarf, an elf, or a
short child-sized person called a halfling.
Each of these seven adventurer types is a
Character Class.

Instead of just making up numbers for
your Ability Scores, you will roll dice to
find each Score. This is done by rolling
the six-sided die three times, and adding
the results. Or, if you have other sixsided dice, roll 3 dice together.
For example, if you roll 1 each time,
then the total score is 3, the least possible.
If you roll all sixes, then the total is 18, the
highest you can have. You should finish
with six numbers, each between 3 and 18,
which are your character's Ability Scores.
Write the Scores down as you roll them,
next to the names of the Abilities.
Each Class has a specialty. Fighters are

strong, Magic-Users are intelligent, Clerics are wise, and so forth. This specialty
is called the Prime Requisite for the
Class. For example, Strength is the
Prime Requisite for Fighters.
If your character's Prime Requisite is
high enough, you will get a bonus on
Experience Points. That is why your first
Fighter got a bonus: your Strength, the
Prime Requisite, was 17. You are allowed
to play a Fighter with any Strength score,
but strong fighters are better at what
they do (and get more XP) than weaker
ones.
You are not forced to pick a Class on
your highest Ability Score but it
helps. If you have two or more high
scores, you may wish to consider a nonhuman character.
Look at the following chart, and compare your highest Ability Scores with the
Prime Requisites for the Character
Classes. Then, if you are playing a
Human character, pick one Class that
fits the Ability Scores you rolled.
(Constitution and Charisma affect all the
Classes, and are never Prime Requisites.)
Prime Requisite
Strength
Intelligence
Wisdom
Dexterity
48
CREATING A CHARACTER
Class
Fighter
Magic-User
Cleric
Thief

out XP, you will add extra points. But if
your Prime Requisite is low, you will be
penalized, and must subtract XP from
the number awarded by the DM.
The amount of XP added or subtracted is given in the following chart:
I'.XWIIM l-S: II \i>ui inaipi-nsri lu
in liui'llitfriii t- nl 11. iiui gel .in rxliii
1 \ P Jiir v\rr\
I'll) XP riwanlrd b\
i h e D M . It \ o i i r Kiwjhii-r li;is a
Siiciitiih ill fi. vuii niilv (jri HH XI' f"i
v\r\\
inn \ p .IH.III1I-CI.
3. Exchange Ability Score Points
Dwarves, Elves, and Halflings

Any human character can be any of the
four Human classes, but non-human
characters are handled differently. It
you wish to play a non-human character,
you must have high Ability Scores in
certain areas.
Elves have abilities similar to both fighters and magic-users, so they must have
good Scores in both Strength and Intelligence. Both of these Ability Scores are
Prime Requisites for Elves. Also, if your
character has an 8 or less for Intelligence,
the character cannot be an Elf.
Halflings have some fighting abilities,
and must have good Strength and Dexterity. Both of these are Prime Requisites
for Halflings. In addition, Halflings are
also very healthy. If your character has
an 8 or less in Dexterity or Constitution,
the character cannot be a Halfling.
Dwarves are always healthy, too. If
your character has an 8 or less in Constitution, the character cannot be a dwarf.
Dwarves specialize in combat, similar to
Fighters, so their Prime Requisite is
Strength.
If you wish to play a non-human character, you may pick one of these if you
have rolled the minimum Scores given,
or if you can exchange ability points (see
step 3) to meet the minimum Score(s)
for the Class.
Whichever Class you pick, you should
read the full description of the Class on
pages 23 - 47 before you get to step 6.
Prime Requisites
If you rolled well and chose well, the
Ability Score of your Prime Requisite
should be 9 or greater. But it can be fun to
play characters with lower scores, too.
Imagine a poor dwarf who is perfectly
healthy (Constitution 16) but very weak
(Strength 5); he does the best he can in
combat, but doesn't do much damage.
The fun in the game comes from role
playing, and this could be a very interesting character to play. Remember that you
can always start another character later.
For a very high Prime Requisite Score,
your character gets a bonus to XP (Experience Points). At the end of each adventure, when the Dungeon Master gives
Class
Minimum Scores
Prime Requisites
Dwarf
Elf
Halfling
Constitution
Intelligence
Constitution
Dexterity-
Strength only
Strength + Int.
Strength + Dext.
1. Your Prime Requisite (and only that

score) goes up 1 point for each 2 points
that another Ability Score goes down.
2. Constitution and Charisma points
can never be exchanged with others.
3. Dexterity cannot be lowered (but it
may be raised if you have a Thief or
Halfling character).
4. No score can be lowered below 9. If it
is already 10 or less, it cannot be
lowered.
I W M P U - N : An ill li.. Inn-Hi-niii
.irid Mirni;lh Sum", nl 1'J. .ind .<
Wi-'itiin >it M. 1 hi* pl.ivcr ili'npti the
\ \ isiltuii s u m 1 in J1 ii 1 r.in tic ciddt'd
in S i r c n ^ i h . , m d ilu-ii drop*, llie
Wis'lnin .IH.IIII. > '.'. anil .ul(l<> I In
liilc-lht>riinI his u-Mills in Inli-lliuciuc .ind Siiriiirlli Siiui-s nl l.i
'until] cnoiiuli Im - .V? [II XPi. .mil
in .<il]UM(-il Wiidnm (it 'I
A Cleric with Strength and Wisdom

of 15 drops the Strength by 6 (to 9)
and raises the Wisdom by 3 (to 18).
If you want to exchange any Ability
Score points, you must do that now
before you go any further in making the
character. No exchanges can be made
later.
49
At this point, it is possible to raise a

Prime Requisite by lowering other Ability Scores. This is like practicing hard to
learn your Class, but at the cost of not
developing another Ability at the same
time. (For example, a Magic-User might
study hard and neglect his exercise for a
higher Intelligence, and end up with a
lower Strength.)
The rules for exchanging Ability
Points are:
DUNGEONS 8c DRAGONS characters

4. Roll for Hit Points
Different Classes have different numbers of hit points. Fighters and Dwarves
need many because they take damage in
battle. Magic-Users and Thieves have
less hit points, and should try to stay out
of fights. Other Classes are in between,
and can fight if they must, but often
avoid it if possible.
Find your character's Class on the
chart below, and roll one die to find your
starting Hit Points.
Class
Hit Point Dice
Fighter
Dwarf
Cleric
Elf
Halfling
Magic-User
Thief
Id8
Id8
Id6
Id6
Id6
Id4
Id4
Now find your Constitution Score on the

Bonuses and Penalties for Ability Scores
Table below, and apply the bonus or
penalty to the number of hit points you
rolled. But whatever the adjustments,
your hit points cannot be lowered to
zero; you will have at least 1 hit point for
each roll.
BONUSES AND PENALTIES FOR
ABILITY SCORES
Ability Score
Adjustment
3
4-5
6-8
- 3 Penalty
- 2 Penalty
- 1 Penalty
No adjustment
+ 1 Bonus
+ 2 Bonus
+ 3 Bonus
9-12
13-15
16-17
18
(This chart is used for adjustments for

most of the Ability Scores, and you will
refer to it later.)
You can immediately see the benefit of
having a good Constitution score. Your
first character, the Fighter with a Constitution of 16, had a + 2 bonus to hit
points. Therefore, your starting roll for
that character would have been a 6 (out
of 8 possible), plus a bonus of 2, for a
total of 8 hit points. Did you ever get
badly hurt, down to 2 hit points in your

adventures? If so, you could have been
dead but you were saved by the bonus
for your high Constitution!
Each time you gain a Level of experience, you will roll for more Hit Points.
And each time you roll, you adjust the
roll according to your Constitution
score.
5. Roll for Money
Your character starts out with no possessions except for normal clothes and a
little money, saved up over many years.
You will need to go shopping for equipment, but first you must find out how
much money you have.
Roll 3d6 (the total of 3 rolls of a sixsided die), and multiply the total by 10.
(For example, if you roll 12, the total is
120.) This is the amount of gold pieces
that you start with. Write that on the
back of your character sheet in the
"Money" box.
6. Buy equipment
Now you can spend your money on the
equipment you need to go adventuring.
There is a complete list of equipment in
the center of this book.
There are restrictions on what items
you are allowed to have, especially on
armor and weapons. Before you go
shopping, be sure you have read the full
description of your Character Class
(pages 39 47). For Example, a MagicUser cannot wear any armor at all, and
can only use a dagger for a weapon! It
would be a waste of money for this Class
to buy a sword or shield; instead, money
can be saved or spent on oil, torches, and
other items. Thieves, on the other hand,
must buy Thieves' Tools to be able to
Open Locks.
On a piece of scrap paper, write down
all the equipment you want to buy and
add up the cost. If it's more than you
have, you must put something back.
When you can pay for your list of equipment, subtract the cost from your
money, and write the equipment down
on the back of the Character Sheet.
Be careful shopping! You may forget to
buy rope, for example, and suddenly find
a need for it during an adventure and if
you didn't buy it, you don't have it. But
remember also that money can be saved
for buying expensive equipment later.
Only buy what you need.
50
7. Figure out your Armor Class, Hit

Roll chart, and Saving Throws
a. Armor Class
Armor Type
Your Armor Class is a combination of the
type of armor you are wearing, plus any
adjustments due to Dexterity. First, find
your armor type on the chart below:
ARMOR CLASS
Armor Class
Armor Type
No armor
Leather
Chain Mail
Plate Mail
Shield
7
5
3
Bonus of 1*
*If you bought a shield, subtract 1 from

your Armor Class number. For example,
Chain Mail alone is AC 5, but with a
shield it drops to AC 4.
Dexterity Adjustments to Armor Class
Find your Dexterity Score on the
Bonuses and Penalties Table and for
every +1 bonus, subtract 1 from your
Armor Class and for every - 1 penalty,
add 1 to your Armor Class.
l-.XAMPLF.S: II >mi arc wearing
Chain Mail ,rad A <liield (AC !). bin
li.ivc a I)c\ri"rit\ Store of 1:"> ( - 1
bonus), yoni Armor (-lass ruimbei
i)fs donn. It) 3. If von are wearing
Plate Mail and shield (AC 2) bin have
a Di-Mi'rily Score of 5 (- 2 p<:n:ilt\).
\iiui" Armor ("lass gm'S up to 4.
/;,, )!__>
iln_- k m r i
ilu-
\ (
iniiiilici,
the harder you are to hit. A minus

(Penalty) to Armor Class actually raises
the number, making you easier to hit.
If your AC is even better than zero
for example, with a Dexterity Score of 18
and wearing Plate Mail and Shield
then "minus" numbers are used. In this
case, the AC would be "minus one" ( - 1).
CHARACTER H I T ROLL TABLE

Target's
AC
Roll
CHARISMA ADJUSTMENT TABLE

1
0 -1
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Charisma
Score
Reaction
adjustment
3
4-5
6-8
-2
-1
9-12
13-15
16-17
18
b. Hit Roll Chart

Every starting character has the same
chances to hit. You will not change the
chart until your character gets at least to
4th level. You may find magic weapons
as treasures, which help your chances to
hit as well as the damage done.
Copy the numbers below into the
boxes at the bottom of the Character
Sheet (Hit Roll Needed):
When you try to hit a monster, roll ld20.
Adjust the roll for your Strength, and
find the total on the bottom line of the
chart. You hit the Armor Class on the
chart just above the roll. Announce what
Armor Class you hit, and the DM will tell
you whether you hit or missed your
target. For example, if your total is 15,
you say "I hit AC 4." If the target was AC
4 or higher (AC 5, AC 6, etc.), then you
have successfully hit.
If your adjusted total is 9 or less, then
you miss, whatever the target is. If your
adjusted total is 20 or more, then you hit,
whatever the target is as long as it's
possible to hit it. (There may indeed be
things you can't hit; you will know this is
the case if your Dungeon Master says you
missed, even with a total of 20 or more.)
The adjustments to the roll are based
on your Strength score, according to the
"Bonuses and Penalties" chart above. If
you have an adjustment, write it down
now, next to "Strength," and remember
to use it each time you make a Hit Roll.
c. Saving Throws
Your Saving Throws are based on your
Character Class and Level of Experience. However, your Saving Throws will
not change until you reach 4th level (or
higher, for some Classes). All of your
beginning Saving Throws are given in
the description of your character's Class.
When making a Saving Throw against
a magic spell, your Wisdom score may

cause an adjustment. Find your Wisdom
score on the "Bonuses and Penalties"
chart, and write the adjustment down on
the Character Sheet.
i.x.wiri i s . \ Mint uiiii.1 WIM1I.NI
nt :"i iiiviN in !"!! A 17 m liiulu-i in
in.ikc j >i:iMiif> I h n m Lig:iin-r .i spell.
A (.In if wilh .i Wi-doni i>l IM nnl\
I It < t Is .1 M>11 ill 12 ill lirllt-l
8. Note adjustments for Ability Scores

You should now have most of the adjustments for Ability Scores noted on your
Character Sheet. Your Strength,
Wisdom, Dexterity, and Constitution
bonuses or penalties have been explained in the steps taken so far. You
should double-check to be sure they are
correct, using the Bonuses and Penalties
Table. All of these adjustments (if any)
should be written on your Character
Sheet in the spaces provided for them,
next to the Ability Scores.
Using the chart, fill in the bonus or
penalty for your Intelligence Score. The
Charisma Score uses a different chart.
Intelligence
A character of "average" Intelligence (a
score of 9-12) knows 2 languages: the
Common tongue and an Alignment
tongue. The character can read and
write those languages.
If the adjustment is a bonus, this is the
number of additional languages the
character can read and write. Your Dungeon Master will tell you what languages
are available. You must choose your
added languages before you play the
character in a game.
If the adjustment is a penalty, then the
character has trouble either writing or
speaking, as given on the Languages
Table:
51
Retainers
Maximum
number
Morale
1
-1
No adjustment
+1
+1
+2
3
4
5
6
7
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Languages can be important when you

are trying to talk to a monster, or talk in
private with another character.
Charisma
Your Charisma will affect the reactions
of others, whether monsters or characters, when you are talking to them (but
not unless you are talking). If you try to
hire retainers (bodyguards, assistants,
and so forth), your Charisma will determine the number of them that you can
hire, and how loyal they will be. Your
Dungeon Master will tell you if any
retainers are available, and will play the
roles of the retainers you find and (possibly) hire.
Find your Charisma Score on the
Charisma Adjustment Table, and note
the details on your Character Sheet.
Whenever you are talking to another creature in the game (whether monster or
character), tell the Dungeon Master what
your Reaction adjustment is. If your Dungeon Master allows the use of Retainers,
you will need to give your Maximum
number, as well as the Morale score (which
is a measure of loyalty and courage). You
will not need to adjust any of your rolls due
to Charisma; only the Dungeon Master
will need the information.
LANGUAGES TABLE
Intelligence
Score
3
4-5
6-8
Use of Languages
Has trouble with
speaking, cannot
read or write
Cannot read or write
Common
Can write simple Common words

9. Give your Character a Name and
Alignment
Names
Your character may have a normal
name, like "Gary" or "Candace," or may
have a fantasy name like "Felonius," or
just a nickname, like "Eagle-Eyes." Your
Dungeon Master might have some hints.
For example, if your home town is in a
forest, the DM may encourage fantasy
names like "Silverglade" or "Whisperrain."
Choose a name carefully. It should
represent the character in some way, or
at least be a name you like. If you give a
character a silly name, you might regret
it later.
your first adventure, and is covered in

detail on page 59. Select an Alignment,
and write it on your character sheet.
Remember that Alignment is the way
you actually want to play the character,

If your character can cast magic spells,
you will need to select spells before
starting your adventure. Magic-Users
get 1 spell to start. Clerics do not get
spells until they reach 2nd Level. MagicUser spells are explained on pages 39 42, and cleric spells are explained on
pages 26 - 27.
Your character will be adventuring
with others, so you should talk with the
other players to find out something
about their characters. Before starting,
you should understand how to play in a
group. This is explained on the following pages.
Alignment
Be sure you understand what Alignment is; it was explained briefly during
Players are not characters!

It is important to remember that the
player and the character are two different persons. The more the two are
kept apart, the better your games can be.
The most obvious example of this is the
dice rolls you make. All dice rolls are called
"game mechanics," as are other details
such as Armor Class, Hit Points, and so
forth. These things would not be part of a
character's knowledge. The characters
would talk about armor, health, and attacks, but never about Ability Scores, Hit
Rolls, or other parts of the game. Everyone can usually tell whether the players
are in the role of the characters or being
themselves, handling game mechanics.
If there is any doubt, the player
should clarify.
Suppose that a player has a Chaotic
character (unusual, but not impossible).
The character will act wildly at times, but
the player should remain calm while
dealing with the others. If the player acts
Chaotic, the game will become very confusing and less fun.
There are many ways that this can
affect the game, especially when a player knows something that the character doesn't. For instance, if a character
starts to fight a new, unknown monster,
and the DM says "It hit you; save vs.

Poison, please!" then all the players
know that the monster is poisonous. But
the better players will ignore that information. Their characters don't know
about the poison, and shouldn't use that
"player information." The characters
will probably find out after the battle,
when they talk to their wounded friend
and discover that the wound "stung, like
poison," or is discolored. (All of such
descriptions are left to the DM's imagination.)
A question like "What time is it?"
could be answered two different ways: in
"real time," which any player can find by
looking at a clock, and "game time," of
which the DM should be aware, but of
which the characters might only have a
general idea. The DM could reply, "Real
time, it's 7:30. Game time, it's past noon,
but you are not sure exactly."
When the players remember the difference between themselves and their
characters, everyone can have more fun in
Role Playing. If a character has low Intelligence and Wisdom scores, for example,
and then does something stupid, the
player can honestly say "I was playing my
character," and others should remember
not to get mad at the player. Their characters may indeed get mad at the stupid
52
not just the way the character should

behave.
The other characters don't need to
know what your Alignment is, but they
should be able to figure it out by the way
you play the character.
character, but it is very important to remember that the player is a different

person.
This should not be used as an excuse
for bad or selfish play. The DM should
watch all the role playing closely to help
everyone have the most fun. Since the
object of the game is to have fun by
playing roles, stupid or weak characters
can be as much fun as smart, powerful
ones if the roles are played well.
The Dungeon Master may say, at any
time in the game, "You don't know that!"
or "You wouldn't think of that." Good
players will learn to avoid this type of
problem by keeping the character knowledge and player knowledge separate.
Playing in a group
How to Prepare
D&D games are the most fun with 2-6
players plus one Dungeon Master. When
you get a group together, each of you
can pick one of the characters included
in this booklet. All the different types
are there, and each character is all ready
to go, with Ability Scores, hit points, and
Alignment. All you have to do is pick the
one you want, think of a name, and
select some equipment.
ONE PERSON MUST BE THE DUNGEON MASTER.
Whoever that is, the person should
read the DUNGEON MASTER'S
RULEBOOK to see what is involved.
This must be done before a group gets
together to play.
Remember that everyone will be
learning together during your first
group games. The DUNGEON MASTER'S RULEBOOK contains step-bystep instructions to help everyone learn,
but have patience. A module (separately
published adventure) should not be used
in your first games. The DM should use
the dungeon in this set, which contains
many hours of entertainment and can
be used for two or three games. The "B"
series of modules may be used after that.
While you are using that adventure,
the Dungeon Master should review the
rules. The Additional rules may be
added at some point, if desired. More
adventures and dungeons may either be
created by the DM or purchased from
stores. Eventually, your characters will
reach 4th Level, and you will want to
move on to the D&D EXPERT Set rules.
Setting Up
When your group gets together to play,
everyone should bring what they need,
including dice, pencils and paper, and
characters (preferably on Character
Sheets). Refreshments, if desired, are
often brought by everyone, as a game
may go on for hours.
A table is normally used. The Dungeon
Master sits at one end, with the secret
information about the dungeon to be explored. The DM often uses an upright
piece of stiff cardboard (called a "shield"
or "screen"), to hide the description and
maps of the dungeon so they are not
accidentally seen by any of the players.
The players sit around the table, away
from the DM, where they can all easily
see any maps made during the adventure, the order of the figures (if used),
and so forth. To avoid confusion, the
table should be kept clear of other items.
During the game, players should be
allowed to refer to the PLAYERS MANUAL whenever they wish. They should
not be allowed to see the DUNGEON
MASTER'S RULEBOOK during the
game! The mystery and excitement of
unknown monsters and magic can be
spoiled if someone looks up the details
during the game.
If you only have two or three players,
the DM may allow the use of a few hired
non-player characters, retainers. The
rules for retainers are given in the DUNGEON MASTER'S RULEBOOK.
Mapper and Caller
Although each person will be playing
the role of a character, the players
should also handle the jobs of "Mapping" and "Calling." Any of the players
can be the "Mapper" or "Caller," whatever their characters may be.
The mapper is the player who draws a
map of the dungeon as it's explored.
One or more of the characters should be
making maps, but one of the players
must make the actual game map. The
map should be kept out on the table for
all to see and refer to. Pencil should
always be used in making the map, in
case of errors and tricky passages.
Mapping is an important part of
imagining where your characters are.
Sooner or later, all players should learn
to make maps. If you play often, take
turns at mapping; it is an important and
useful skill to learn.
The caller is a player who announces to
the Dungeon Master what the group of
characters (the Party) is doing. The Caller
must check with every player to find out
what all the characters are doing, and then
tell the DM (quickly and accurately) what
they plan to do. The Caller does not tell
the others what to do; the Caller merely
reports what is going on.
The Caller's first job is to find out the
"party order" the way the characters
are lined up or grouped during normal
travel. The Caller should also report the
movements of the group, such as "We'll
go northeast through the woods," or
"We'll turn right at the next corridor."
53
Battles are always more complicated,

and the DM should then take the time to
check with each player, instead of handling it all through the Caller.
You may have games without Callers,
if the Dungeon Master is willing to ask
each player what each character is doing,
and make notes to remember the actions. But it's usually easier and more
organized if one player acts as Caller.
First steps to take
When all the players are together, with
characters ready, each player should take a
moment to think about the adventure to
come. Some of these things apply to players, and some apply to the characters.
Who is your character, and who are the
other characters? Have you adventured
with them before, or not? Are any of
them friends or enemies? Should you
keep an eye on any one character? Who
can you trust completely?
Why are you going? Are the characters
just out to explore, or is someone looking for a specific item? Are you out to
rescue a prisoner, destroy a famous
monster, or some other goal? Games are
usually more fun if a specific goal is kept
in mind; if nobody is sure just what they
want to do, you can waste a lot of time
doing nothing.
Where are you going? Nearby caves, or a
castle, or some other dungeon? Have
you bought the equipment you need to
explore?
When are you going? Do you plan to
explore a dungeon at night, when more
dangerous creatures could be around?
Players: decide when the game will end;
it's very easy to play longer than you
intended. Set a time for quitting, and
stick to it! Remember to leave some time
for dividing the treasure found.
What are you going to do? Look for big
monsters or small ones? Will you run
from danger, or face it? What can your
party do, considering the abilities and
special items available amongst the characters?
Playing in a group
Treasure
Before the adventure begins, all the
players should decide how the treasure
will be divided after it is found. This is a
very important decision, as characters
earn more XP from treasure than from
anything else. The method of division is
left entirely to the players!
The most common method is described on page 55. You may use it if you
wish, or you may make up your own.
The method should be chosen before
starting, to avoid arguments later.
Marching Order
You should arrange your characters in a
line, either singly or two-by-two, for a
"Standard Marching Order." If figures
are used, the DM can easily see everyone's position; otherwise, write the
Marching Order on a piece of paper for
the DM's reference.
You should have at least one Fighter
in front, as this is where most of the
action takes place. A short person (halfling or dwarf) should also be in front of
taller folk. Those behind may still see
clearly, and are able to cast spells or
shoot arrows over the shorter characters'
heads.
Weaker characters (Magic-Users and
Thieves, especially) should be in the
center of the Marching Order, protected
front and rear by Fighters or Clerics. If
this is not possible, the characters with
the best Armor Class and/or Hit Points
should occupy the outer positions.
If you change the Marching Order
during the game (if a front Fighter is
badly wounded, for example), be sure to
correct the figure setup (or the DM's
diagram) accordingly.
Tactics of Play
When you are ready to go, your Dungeon Master will start telling you what
the characters see. In beginning games,
the characters often start at the dungeon
entrance; the DM then describes the
entryway, asking questions of the Caller
when choices can be made ("Turn right
or left?"). All the players should listen
carefully to the descriptions, and play
the roles of their characters as they react
to the situations that develop.
The Marching Order will be used as
the normal positioning of the characters

as they proceed down corridors. In
empty rooms and after battles, party
members usually spread out to search
for hidden treasure, but someone
should be left to watch for approaching
monsters. The DM will keep track of
who is doing what, in case a monster
appears.
When creatures are encountered,
Fighters, Dwarves and Halflings usually
move toward the encounter, while
Magic-Users move back to avoid attacks,
adding their magical powers to the battles where needed. Thieves may also
move back, or may try to slip by the
encountered creatures if possible. A
Thief can help turn the tide of battle by
attacking a monster from behind (if the
creature doesn't notice the Thief first).
Remember, however, that a clever DM
may have monsters arrive at the rear of
the party, occasionally when other monsters are at the front. The rear of the
party should never be left defenseless.
Clerics can often fill the need for a
strong guard, as they can wear armor
and fight well.
If an encounter is peaceful, those
characters with high Charisma Scores
should do most of the talking. If they are
weak, negotiations should be made from
a distance (ten to twenty feet is fine).
When special needs arise, those best
equipped to handle them should move
to the scene, while the rest of the characters stay in the Marching Order. For
example, a Thief should move forward
each time a door is found, to search for
traps and pick locks. After doing the job,
the Thief should move back into position. Thieves normally do not open
doors, preferring to leave that task to the
stronger Fighters in case there is a monster waiting on the other side!
54
Ending the Adventure

The end of a D&D game often comes
when the party's resources have been used
up for example, when spell casters have
used most of their spells, or when several
characters are wounded (having lost half
of their Hit Points, or more) and have no
available magical cures.
Even if all goes well, the game should
end 15-30 minutes before the planned
stopping time. The remaining time is
used by the DM to calculate and award
Experience Points, and by the players to
divide the treasure.
If characters are still in the dungeon
when they decide to end the adventure,
they must still find their way out and
back home. When they have arrived at a
safe location, the adventure ends.
Most Dungeon Masters allow shopping after the adventures, so characters
may restock items used (such as oil,
torches, and so forth). If this is left for
the next game, players might forget to
restock, and can find themselves short of
supplies while deep in a dungeon.
Players must keep track of items used,
and the DM should be strict about supplies. However, everyone should remember that the purpose of the game is
to have fun, not bookkeeping. The DM
should make allowances for beginners.
Characters who return to a safe place
resume their normal day-to-day lives.
Beginning players and DMs do not normally deal with this during games. The
"town business" that would naturally occur can become an adventure in itself. If
the DM has all the details of the Home
Town available (either those given in the
D&D EXPERT Set or details made up
by the DM), town adventures can be
very entertaining. They do not normally
involve much fighting.
Playing in a group
Dividing the Treasure
The amount of treasure your characters
find is decided by the Dungeon Master,
who places the treasures and monsters
in the dungeons. The DM is also responsible for giving Experience Points to the
characters at the end of the adventure.
The division of treasure is usually left
to the players, though some DMs have
their own rules for it, especially with
well-developed fantasy worlds. There
are several methods for dividing treasure, as both normal (coins, gems, and
jewelry) and magical (potions, wands,
etc.) treasures can be found.
As a rule, the division of treasure
should not be based on the amount of
work done by the different characters.
Fighters will usually be more active than
others, and thieves may have little to do;
though the role may be played well,
there may be few traps and locks to deal
with. But each character risked danger
in search of treasure, and each should
have done special work as needed; it is
not the character's fault if few needs
arose.
Beginning players should use the following method for dividing treasure.
Other methods are discussed at the end
of this booklet. But whatever methods
are used, they should be decided upon
before the party goes on the adventure, to
avoid arguments afterwards.
Magical Treasure
Magical treasures are usually divided
first, as the results affect the division of
normal treasure.
Each character may pick one item
(each) from the magical treasure found.
The order in which they choose may
either be decided as a group or by
random roll. If by random roll, each
player rolls ld20; the player with the
highest roll picks first. If there is a tie,
everyone rolls again. When all the magic
items have been taken, divide the normal treasure.
Normal Treasure
Count the number of shares to be given,
using the following method.
Some magic items are "permanent." A
magic sword, for example, is never
"used up," but a potion is only good for
one use. A potion is called a "temporary"
magic item.
If all the characters in a party get a

permanent magic item, divide all normal
treasure equally, whatever the division
of any temporary magic items.
If everyone gets a magic item but one
or more of the items are temporary,
each character with a permanent item
gets Vi share of normal treasure.
If there are not enough magic items for
one to be gained by each character then Vt
share of normal treasure goes to each
character with a temporary magic item,
but a character with a permanent magic
item gets no share of normal treasure.
Finally, divide the total normal treasure by the number of shares (adding the
number of V'i shares and full shares
according to the instructions above), to
find the value of each SHARE. Each
character then takes one share, Vi share,
or no share, depending on the distribution of magic items.
This method is fair; those who receive
permanent magic items, which can be
used in every adventure, get less treasure.
Character Alignment
Three basic ways of life guide the acts of
both player characters and monsters.
Each way of life is called an alignment.
The three alignments are named Law,
Chaos, and Neutrality. Each alignment
has a language that includes hand signals and other body motions. Player
characters always know how to speak
their alignment language in addition to
any others they may know. If a monster
is able to speak, it will also be able to use
its alignment language.
Players may choose the alignments
they feel will best fit their characters. A
player does not have to tell other players
what alignment he or she has picked, but
must tell the DM. Most Lawful characters will reveal their alignment if asked.
When picking alignments, the characters should know that Chaotics cannot
be trusted, even by other Chaotics. A
Chaotic character does not work well
with other player characters.
The alignments give guidelines for
characters to live by. The characters will
try to follow these guidelines, but may
not always be successful. If a DM feels
that a player is not keeping to a character's chosen alignment, the DM may
suggest a change of alignment or give
the character a punishment or penalty.
Law (or Lawful) is the belief that everything should follow an order, and that
obeying rules is the natural way of life.
Lawful creatures will try to tell the truth,
obey laws, and care about all living
things. Lawful characters always try to
keep their promises. They will try to
obey laws as long as such laws are fair
and just.
If a choice must be made between the
benefit of a group or an individual, a
Lawful character will usually choose the
group. Sometimes individual freedoms
must be given up for the good of the
group. Lawful characters and monsters
often act in predictable ways. Lawful
behavior is usually the same as behavior
that could be called "good."
Chaos (or Chaotic) is the opposite of
Law. It is the belief that life is random,
and that chance and luck rule the world.
Everything happens by accident and
nothing can be predicted. Laws are
made to be broken, as long as a person
can get away with it. It is not important
to keep promises, and lying and telling
the truth are both useful.
To a Chaotic creature, the individual
is the most important of all things. Selfishness is the normal way of life, and the
group is not important. Chaotics often
act on sudden desires and whims. They
cannot be trusted, their behavior is hard
to predict. They have strong belief in the
power of luck. Chaotic behavior is usually the same as behavior that could be
called "evil."
Neutrality (or Neutral) is the belief that
the world is a balance between Law and
Chaos. It is important that neither side
get too much power and upset this balance. The individual is important, but so
is the group; the two sides must work
together.
A Neutral character is most interested
in personal survival. Such characters believe in their own wits and abilities rather
than luck. They tend to return the treatment they receive from others. Neutral
characters will join a party if they think it
is in their own best interest, but will not
be overly helpful unless there is some
sort of profit in it. Neutral behavior may
be considered "good" or "evil" (or neither), depending on the situation.
Playing in a group
Example of Alignment Behavior
THE SITUATION: A group of player
characters is attacked by a large number
of monsters. Escape is not possible unless the monsters are slowed down.
A Lawful character will fight to protect
the group, whatever the danger. The
character will not run away unless the
whole group does.
A Neutral character will fight to protect the
group as long as it is reasonably safe to do
so. If the danger gets too great, the charac-
ter will try to save himself (or herself), even

at the expense of the party.
A Chaotic character might fight the monsters or might run away. The character
will not care what happens to the rest of
the party.
Alignment Languages
Each alignment has a secret language of
passwords, hand signals, and other body
motions. Player characters and intelligent monsters will always know their
alignment languages. They will also rec-
ognize when another alignment language is being spoken, but will not understand it. Alignment languages are
not written down, nor may they be
learned unless a character changes alignment. When this happens, the character
forgets the old alignment language and
starts using the new one immediately.
Note that playing an alignment does
not mean a character must do stupid
things. A character should always act as
intelligently as the Intelligence score
shows, unless there is a reason to act
otherwise (such as a magical curse).
Adventuring Rules
Here are some additional details you will
need at some point during your adventures.
Using Your Equipment
Some of the standard equipment may be
new to you. The following items can be
used in various handy ways:
Iron spikes and Hammer: These can
be used to wedge doors open, provide grips for climbing, pry things
loose, and so forth.
Mirror: Some creatures can turn you
to stone with their gaze. If you use a
mirror to look around corners, examine empty rooms, and so forth, you
might avoid a nasty surprise.
Rations and Wineskin: Your character food and drink. Standard rations
may become moldy and unusable if
you stay in a dungeon overnight, so
carry Iron (preserved) rations whenever possible. Standard rations are
fine for long trips overland.
Rope: This can be tied to an iron
spike and used to climb up steep
walls. It may also be useful in tying up
captured prisoners, pulling doors,
open, etc.
Wolfsbane: This herb is useful when
fighting werewolves and other lycanthropes. You may use it as a weapon
try it and see what happens.
Wooden Pole: A character in front of
a party may sometimes avoid being
surprised if a pole is used to tap on
the floor ahead, poke into corners,
touch suspicious-looking items, etc.
Time
Movement
Time in D&D games is usually kept track

of in turns of 10 minutes in "game time." A
turn is not a measure of real time, but is a
measure of how much a character can do
in the game in a given amount of time.
During encounters and combat, the
DM uses rounds of 10 seconds of "game,
time," instead of turns, and each character can perform only one action during a
round a swing of a sword, a spell,
some movement, or other action. A battle normally lasts only a minute or two,
but is counted as a full turn because your
characters rest afterwards, clean up their
equipment, and do other assumed normal actions.
In D&D games, it would take too long
for you to describe each action your
character takes. Many actions are assumed, and do not need to be talked
about such as eating, resting after and
during travel, normal careful behavior,
and so forth. The DM should decide
how long any action takes.
Time for you, the players, is called
"real time" to avoid confusion. A game
usually takes 2-3 hours of real time, but
may last for days in game time. The DM
may say, for example, "you take two
hours to walk to the dungeon, and . . . ."
On the other hand, it may take you half
an hour of real time to play a battle that
lasts only a few minutes of game time.
In D&D games movement is given as the

number of feet a character may move in
one turn.
A single character moves up to 120'
per turn in a dungeon-like setting unless
a lot of weight (such as armor) is carried.
The movement speed may slow down to
as little as 30' per turn, depending on
the amount carried. Groups move at the
rate of the slowest character. A character
wearing heavy armor moves at half the
normal rate: 60' per turn.
Though 60' per turn may seem very
slow, it includes many assumed actions
mapping, peeking around corners,
resting, and so forth.
During encounters, movement is
much faster. Characters can move Vh
their movement rate per round, up to
40' per round during battles (20' per
round if in armor). In addition, you may
run away from creatures, at the even
faster rate of 120' (or 60' if armored)
per round. However, you may only run
for 20 rounds at most (5 minutes) before
becoming exhausted. If you are exhausted, you must rest for 3 turns (30
minutes).
If you are forced to fight without rest,
the exhausted characters are penalized
in combat. Monsters gain a + 2 bonus to
their Hit Rolls, and you must subtract 2
from all your characters' Hit Rolls and
Damage Rolls. (Any successful hit will
still inflict at least 1 point of damage.)
56
Playing in a group
Listening
You should always listen carefully while
you are exploring a dungeon; you may
hear noises that give clues about what
lies ahead. To hear anything, all the
characters must stop moving and be
very quiet. Armor and weapons clank
and rattle when you move, spoiling your
attempts at listening.
To listen for noise, simply tell the DM
that you are doing so. The DM will roll
to see if you hear anything. When listening at closed doors, each character can
try once. Thieves have better chances
than other characters. Undead creatures, like skeletons and ghouls, make no
noise at all.
Light
Most dungeons are dark. Be sure to

bring a tinderbox, which contains wood
shavings, flint rocks, and a small piece of
steel. (No matches or lighters in this
medieval world!)
You will also need something to light
with your tinderbox. A torch is cheapest,
and will burn for 6 turns (1 hour). It
cannot easily be "turned off." A lantern is
more expensive and uses oil. One flask of
oil will burn for 24 turns (4 hours) in a
lantern. The lantern must then be refilled,
using another flask of oil. A lantern has
shutters, which can be closed for temporary darkness, if desired. A torch or lantern shines 30' in all directions.
If you are carrying a light source (a
torch or lantern), other creatures will
probably see the light as you approach,
and will not be surprised.
Remember that you only have two
hands. If you are carrying a light source
in one hand, then the other hand may
hold a weapon or a shield but not both.
Dwarves and elves have Infravision, a
special ability which enables them to see
60' in the dark by seeing heat. This
means that they can move and fight
without light, but it's risky. They cannot
see a pit in the floor, for example, unless
it is warmer than the air above it. They
may also stumble over objects which are
the same temperature as the floor, unless they are very careful.
Doors
You will find two kinds of doors in
dungeons, normal and secret doors.
A normal door is made of wood, and
often has metal reinforcing strips across
it. Some have metal hinges, a ring or
doorknob, and possibly a lock, either a

padlock hanging on a latch or a lock
inset into the door. Normal doors can
often be forced or broken open, but a
strong bar of wood mounted on the
other side will prevent this.
To open a normal door, just tell your
DM that you are doing so. The DM will
assume that you are turning the handle,
pulling the ring, or pushing on it gently.
If it doesn't open, you may tell the DM
"I'll force the door." Your character is
then using Strength to open it, which
may be successful if the door is merely
stuck quite (quite common in dungeons). If the door still does not open, it
may be locked, barred, or closed magically; or your attempt might have simply been unsuccessful, based on a dice
roll. Try again! However, if a door is not
opened on the first try at forcing it, any
monsters on the other side will not be
surprised by your party.
A secret door does not look like a door.
It may simply be a section of wall that
can be moved, or may be a small normal
door hidden behind a curtain, rug, or
some other furnishing. Any character
may look for secret doors, but they are
usually hard to find. Your DM will roll to
see if you succeed, but you must tell the
DM that you are searching for one, and
where.
KXAMPI.K: I'll .search for s e e m
doors along the east wall of I lic-
it takes 10 minutes (1 turn) of searching a 10' x 10' area to find a secret door.
Less time will mean automatic failure.
Traps
Dungeons often contain traps. Old ruins

usually have more traps than caves. The
most common trap is a hidden trap door,
which falls open as a character walks on it,
dumping the character into a pit. There
could be something in the pit spikes,
deep water, or a monster. Beware!
Many other traps are possible. A chest
or treasure may be coated with poison;
deadly if touched, but easily removed by
rinsing with water. Some poisons are
sticky, and can only be removed with wine.
A blade trap may be found nearly anywhere, and usually inflicts enough damage
to kill a 1st or 2nd level character.
Doors may be trapped on the handles,
locks, or surface. Small darts may be
57
found inside a lock, and may be poisoned for many different effects (paralysis, damage, death, etc.).
If you wish to search for a trap, tell the
DM where you are searching, and the DM
will roll to see if you find anything. You
might have no chance to find a small trap,
such as the type on a door or treasure.
Thieves have a percentage chance at detecting any type of trap. Dwarves have
better chances at finding large traps (such
as pits) than other characters.
It takes 10 minutes (1 turn) to search for
a trap in a small area, such as a 20' square
room or a 20' long section of corridor. If
less time is spent, no trap will be found.
Wandering Monsters
You will usually encounter monsters in
rooms, rather than corridors. But the
DM makes dice rolls to see if any Wandering Monsters come by. This type of
creature usually has little or no treasure,
and is a dangerous nuisance.
Wandering monsters are often determined by the type of dungeon. For
example, caves could contain wandering
animals. A castle ruin might contain
wandering skeleton guards.
Miniature Figures
As you try to imagine your characters
and the areas they explore, it is helpful
to use miniature figures to represent the
characters and monsters. Several types
of miniature figures are available from
toy and hobby shops worldwide, made
of metal or plastic and suitable for painting. You should be able to find figures
that look very similar to your characters.
Official DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
figures are available.
To keep track of the party marching
order, line up the miniature figures on
the playing table. You may use a large
piece of graph paper to draw the rooms
and corridors found by the characters,
and simply move the figures around on
the paper. Several types of more permanent playing surfaces are available in
plastic and vinyl, and the rooms drawn
on them can be easily erased.
Scale Movement: When using miniature
figures on a playing surface, a ruler is
used to determine distance moved. One
inch represents 10 feet. A movement
rate of 60' per turn means that the
figure moves 6 inches each turn. Spell
ranges and other ranges are easily determined when an accurate scale is used.
Playing in a group
Encounter Rules
Surprise
There is more to an encounter than just
walking into a room and seeing a monster. For example, you might have
sneaked up on the creature or it
might have sneaked up on you! You
might turn a corner, and be completely
surprised to find a monster right there.
But if the monster is surprised, too, then
you would both stop for a moment and
look at each other. The mutual surprise
on both sides would cancel out, for no
effect except a short delay.
For example, let's look back at your
very first encounter with the goblin.
You entered the room, and the goblin
screamed and swung his sword at you,
but missed. You didn't get to do anything before he had swung, because you
were surprised.
In the one-player adventure in this

booklet, surprise has already been
worked out. The description tells you
whether you or the monsters or both!
are surprised.
In group adventures, you roll to see
who is surprised, and by how much. A
six-sided die (Id6) is rolled for each side,
and the results are compared in the
following way:
You are only surprised if you roll a 1 or a
2; the same applies to the monsters.
This is called Initiative. If you have the

initiative, you get to act first, before the
monster.
In all of your group's encounters, you
will roll to see who has the initiative. The
DM rolls Id6 for the monsters, and one
of the players rolls Id6 for the characters. It doesn't matter which player rolls.
Whoever gets the higher number wins
the initiative, and swings first.
When the party has the initiative, the
characters may use the time to talk,
attack, move (fighters moving to the
front, for example), or run away. Some
monsters will also have similar choices,
but most will either talk or attack. Very
few monsters run away before anything
happens.
If a monster has more than one attack, it will get all of its attacks before
yours if it wins the initiative.
If each side rolls the same number,
then all the action happens at once; the
actions are "simultaneous," and neither
side wins the initiative. Attacking characters can try to Hit, but whatever the
result, the monsters may also make all of
their attacks, even if you kill them with
your first attacks'
Pursuit and Evasion
If either side decides to run away, the
other side may chase. Time is measured
in rounds for as long as the chase occurs.
The side running away is "Evading," and
those chasing are in "Pursuit."
If both sides are surprised, neither side

can move or fight during that round.
The mutual surprise cancels out. For
the next round, either side might go
first, so another roll (on Id6 again) is
used to decide. This is called rolling
for Initiative, and is described below.
ORDER OF COMBAT
A. Each side rolls for initiative, using
Id6.
B. The side that wins the initiative
acts first:
1. Morale Check (monsters and
non-player characters only)
2. Movement (using speed per
round), including Defensive
Maneuvers
3. Missile fire combat (additional)
a. Choose targets
b. Make Hit Rolls
4. Magic spells
a. Choose targets
b. Make Saving Throws if necessary
c. Apply results immediately
5. Hand-to-Hand combat
a. Choose targets
b. Make Hit Rolls
C. The side that loses the initiative
then completes all the steps given
above.
D. The DM handles all retreating,
surrender, and other special results.
Combat Sequence
If one side surprises the other, the

surprised side must wait during the
first round, while the other side acts.
Those that can act might spend the
time attacking, talking, or moving
even running away!
During a battle, the actions do not all

happen at once. Your DM will use a
checklist to be sure that the battle is run
properly. The list is also given here for
your reference.
This Combat Sequence includes several optional rules. If you are not using
the rule referred to (such as Missile
Fire), simply skip that step.
Repeat steps A through D as needed
until the battle is over.
If neither side is surprised, the DM

must determine which side acts first
in the round, by checking Initiative.
Initiative
When an encounter begins, you might
act first, or the monster might go first.
58
You may evade monsters if you can

move faster than they can and if you
know where you are going so once
again, a map becomes important. If the
monsters are catching up, try dropping
things! Unintelligent monsters may stop
to eat food. Intelligent monsters may
stop to pick up treasure. In each case,
there is a 50% chance that the monsters
will stop or slow down. Your DM will
make all the necessary rolls.
Additional rules
The following rules should not be used
by beginners. They may be added after
you have played two or three group
games.
thrown, Strength bonuses are used instead of Dexterity, and no adjustments

are made for Range or Cover. A dagger
or hand axe may be thrown at an opponent within range. Each spins in the air
striking with the blade forward.
A spear is a long shaft of wood or
metal with a sharp tip, and can be
thrown straight at an opponent. It has
the best range of any thrown missile.
Missile Weapons
You have learned what to do when your
character gets into a fight, but so far, you
have only used a sword or dagger. These
are called "hand-to-hand" or "melee"
weapons (pronounced MAY-lay). Other
types, called "missile weapons," such as
bow and arrows, are handled somewhat
differently.
Missile fire is a type of combat used
when the enemy is too far away to fight
hand-to-hand in other words, more
than 5 feet away. Missile fire can be
affected by the distance to the enemy
(Range), objects that the enemy can hide
behind (Cover), the attacker's Dexterity
Score, and magic adjustments, if any.
Not all missiles are actual weapons.
Missile fire rules also apply when a character throws something at a monster,
such as oil or holy water.
The various types of Missile fire you
can use, and the ranges for them, are
listed on the Missile Fire Table:
The first group of weapons are devices
that fire missiles; the second group are
missiles your character throws by hand.
Whenever your character buys one of
these items, you should make a note of
the ranges. For example, a Long Bow
should be listed as 70-140-210, the longest distances it can shoot in each Range
category.
Device: A missile fire device is a weapon
that fires missiles, such as a bow or
crossbow. Devices cannot be used in
Holy Water: This is water which has

been specially prepared by a Cleric for
use against Undead creatures. It can be
used by any character. Holy Water must
be kept in small, specially prepared glass
bottles (known as vials) for it to remain
Holy. The effect of one vial of Holy
Water on an Undead creature is 1-8
(Id8) points of damage. For it to cause
damage, it must successfully strike the
target, thus breaking the vial. It may
either be thrown (using missile fire
rules) or used hand-to-hand (using normal combat rules.
hand-to-hand combat, or against targets
within 5 feet.
A crossbow is similar to a normal bow
(long or short), but is held horizontally
and shot by pulling a trigger, which
releases the string.
A sling is a leather pocket with long
strings; the user holds the strings and
puts a stone in the pocket. The stone is
thrown by swinging it around and releasing one string at the right time. A
sling is the only missile weapon usable by
Clerics.
Thrown Weapons: A spear, dagger, or
hand axe may be either thrown or held.
They are good weapons to use when the
monsters are nearby, as the character
can use any thrown weapon in hand-tohand combat. If the weapon is not
MISSILE FIRE TABLE
Weapon
Crossbow (Lt)
Long Bow
Short Bow
Sling
Spear
Oil or
Holy Water
Hand Axe
or dagger
Maximum Ranges (in feet)

Medium (0)
Long ( - 1 )
Short (+1)
60
70
50
40
20
10
120
140
100
80
40
30
180
210
150
160
60
50
10
20
30
59
Oil: Oil is carried in small bottles

(known as Flasks), and is often thrown as
missiles. It may also be spread on a floor.
In either case, it will be slippery but not
dangerous until it is lit by flame.
One flask of oil will make a pool 3' in
diameter, which will burn out in one
turn if lit. Burning oil will cause 1-8 (Id8)
points of damage per round to victims in
the flames, including any creature trying
to cross a pool of burning oil. Oil thrown
at a creature will either miss (forming a
pool where it falls) or hit. If it hits, it will
drip off in a few rounds; if lit, the victim
will take damage for 2 rounds at most.
Oil may be lit with any flame, such as a
torch. If a torch is thrown at a creature,
another Hit Roll must be made, but the
creature's normal AC is not used; the
target of any thrown torch is treated as
AC 10, regardless of the actual Armor
Class of the target (but the roll is adjusted as explained below).
As with Holy Water, oil may be used
either as a missile or in hand-to-hand
combat.
Missile Fire Hit Roll Modifications
Missile fire rules are used when the
target is 5' away or more. Normal combat rules are used if the target is within
5'. A missile fire device will automatically miss a target within 5' unless the
target cannot move.
Playing in a group
When your character tries to use any
type of missile fire, adjust your normal
Hit Roll for the following things:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Dexterity
Range
Cover
Magic
1. Dexterity: Include any bonuses or

penalties to your Hit Roll due to high or
low Dexterity. You may have an adjustment from - 3 to + 3 , depending on
your Dexterity Score (as given in the
"Bonuses and Penalties for Ability
Scores" chart, on page 50).
2. Range: A weapon can only be thrown
or shot to the longest distance on the
chart. This is called weapon's range. For
example, you can't throw a spear any
further than 60 feet.
Ask your DM what the range to the
target is, in feet. The DM may prefer to
give you the general range instead of the
exact distance, and may ask you which
missile weapon you are using.
If the range is short, you add 1 to your
Hit Roll. If the distance to the target is
between the numbers given for short and
medium ranges, there is no adjustment. If
the distance to the target is greater than
the number given for medium range, but
still within the maximum range, you
must subtract 1 from your Hit Roll. (The
bonus and penalty are noted on the
chart, as a reminder.)
Thus, a crossbow can shoot farther
than any other weapon, and an axe or
dagger can only be thrown at a nearby
target.
3. Cover: The enemy may be harder to
hit because it is hiding behind something; this is called cover. Cover could be
gained by hiding behind a table or chair,
or a tree or boulder outdoors. A shield
does not provide cover.
applies here. In your adventures, you

may discover magical missiles arrows,
crossbow bolts, and so forth and
bonuses from such magic also apply to
your Hit Roll.
Variable Weapon Damage

Whenever you hit a monster in your
adventures so far, your character's
weapon inflicted 1-6 (Id6) points of
damage. But if we consider the battle
realistically, a dagger should do less
damage than a sword (for example).
This advanced damage system allows
different weapons to inflict different
amounts of damage. The damage done
by each weapon type is given on the
chart below.
Some weapons can only be properly
used with two hands. These are noted
with an asterisk (*).
The large amount of damage done by
two-handed weapons is balanced by two
penalties: the attacker cannot use a shield,
and will always lose the initiative, whatever
the roll may be. The lack of a shield will

reduce the character's Armor Class
while that weapon is being used (unless,
of course, no shield was used in the first
place).
VARIABLE WEAPON
DAMAGE TABLE
Id4
(1-4) points of damage:

Club
Dagger
Sling stone
Torch
Id6
*Arrow (long or short bow)
Hand Axe
Mace
*Quarrel (crossbow)
Short Sword
Spear
War Hammer
Id8
Sword (normal)
*Battle Axe
ldlO (1-10) points of damage:
*Pole Arm
*Two-Handed Sword
If cover is used, your DM should

mention that the monster has cover and
will apply penalties to your chances to
hit. You should always be told if the
monster has cover, but you might not
know how many penalties apply. These
penalties are determined by the DM and
range from 1 for partial cover to 4
*This weapon requires two hands for
for full cover.
use. Attacker may not use shield and
always loses initiative.
4. Magic: If you are under a magic spell
which helps your chances to hit, that
60
Combat Maneuvers
The following special forms of defensive
movement are usable by any character in
hand-to-hand combat. They may also be
used by monsters. If a player wants to
use one of these maneuvers, he or she
must say so before rolling for initiative.
These maneuvers may not be used if not
declared before that roll.
If a character is near a battle but is not
fighting hand-to-hand, that character may
move normally. The movement rate depends on the amount of weight carried, as
explained in the section on Encumbrance.
Any monster or character using a
maneuver explained hereafter is called
the "defender." The opponent is called
the "attacker."
Fighting Withdrawal
If a defender is engaged in combat and
wishes to back up slowly whilefighting,the
maneuver is called a Fighting Withdrawal.
The defender must have room to

back up. In crowded situations, those
behind the defender will get in the way,
preventing the maneuver from succeeding! If room permits, the defender may
move at Vi the normal movement rate,
or less. The attacker may follow and
continue attacking, but the defender
may attack in return.
Retreat
If a defender wants to back out of a fight
at more than Vi the normal movement
rate, the maneuver is called a Retreat.
The attacker gains a + 2 bonus on all
Hit Rolls, and the defender's AC is calculated without a shield. The defender
may not attack in return.
r\
VMI'l \
H I I \ I I - \ i-
in- |j].ni' m.iil .irniM and A shield i \ ( .

'_'). H e i)|)i-Hs ;i <liii)i .iiuJ is .iritiikfil
Hi- h a s ln-.llil ill.11
In ,i _;.! 1 tili\It.
i;.iri;iit U >. i J I I IIIIK h e 111' liv in-j.vii'
\ \ I ; I | ) I > M V , i i i d hi 1 ti.ii m i l l
iniriii.il
uiic-".. . \ [ llu- uiDiiifiiL. h e ii h l o i k i n i j
tin- liuum.n lit- nirs in im- .1 Ii|r|uIMI; uiiluliriw:il MI u i h r r

i.in uc I m i " llic li;iiili.
A" lie K II.II kina u p . ilif
h'HiMiK linn II.KIK. H e d<'i idc-
in
r. .'!/ i n s u m \ f . I lit- i;.nyiivlc- .il

i.i' k hiiii .i1- In* n i n i . i^.imitii; ,i _'
l
M l l l l nil it"> ( l l . l f l i r t I " hll

: | l . l \ k \ - \ C V II III Mil 'lili'lili
\C
Playing in a group
Paired Combat
When you begin a battle, both sides roll
for initiative. This one roll has applied to
everyone on each side.
Your DM may choose, for small battles,
to determine initiative for each monster or
character instead of the whole group.
When this is done, each player rolls for
initiative, adjusting the roll by Dexterity
bonuses or penalties as given on the following table. The DM will roll for each
monster involved in actual combat, adjusting the roll if the monster is very slow or
very fast. Most monsters have no adjustments to Paired Combat. One other initiative roll may be needed for other monsters
not in hand-to-hand combat, if any, compared to a similar roll for characters not
engaged in battle.
This can become silly, if allowed to

continue. Your characters may eventually find vast dragon hoards of thousands of coins, weighing hundreds of
pounds, and the DM should not permit
you to pick it all up and walk out!
Encumbrance is the name for the
amount of weight that your character is
carrying. The more you carry, the
slower you move, according to the following chart. One new abbreviation is
used. One coin of treasure, whatever the
type (gp, ep, and so forth) weighs about
Vm pound. Since coins are the commonest of treasures, the coin (not the
pound) becomes the simplest unit of
weight. From now on, the weight of all
treasures, equipment, and so forth will
be measured in coins, abbreviated en.
Encumbered Movement Rates
DEXTERITY ADJUSTMENT
TO INITIATIVE
(Optional)
Dexterity
Score
Initiative
Adjustment
3
4-5
6-8
-2
9-12
13-15
16-17
18
-1
-1
No Adjustment
+1
+1
+2
Encumbrance
There have been no rules in your games
thus far dealing with the amount a character can carry. You have been allowed
to pick up as much treasure as you can
find, and take it home.
"Normal speed" is used when your characters are walking through a dungeon.
"Encounter speed" is used whenever
time is kept in rounds, such as during a
battle.
"Running speed" is used whenever the
party is running away from an encounter.
Time is still kept in rounds, rather than
turns, and the party must rest afterward.
(See Movement, page 56.)
Basic Encumbrance
If a character is wearing no armor, or
merely leather armor, and carrying the
normal equipment taken on an adventure, the basic encumbrance is 300 en.
That type of character can pick up 100
coins and still use the top line of the
chart. If more treasure is carried, the
rest of the table is used to find the
movement rate.
SPEED VS. ENCUMBRANCE TABLE
Encumbrance
up to 400 en
401-800 en
801-1200 en
1201-1600 en
1601-2400
2401 and more
Normal
Speed
(Feet per
turn)
Encounter
Speed
120
90
60
30
15
0
40
30
(Feet per round)
20
10
5
0
61
Running
Speed
120
90
60
30
15
0
If a character is wearing metal armor,

whether Chain Mail or Plate Mail, and
carrying other normal equipment, the
basic encumbrance is 700 en. The character moves at 90'/turn, and may pick up
100 coins and still use that line of the chart.
A character carrying more than 2400
en (240 pounds) cannot move. Something must be dropped or given to other
characters.
Using Encumbrance
Find the basic encumbrance for your
character, as explained above, and write
it on the back of your character sheet,
under "Equipment." Remember to add
to it whenever you pick up any treasure;
your DM will tell you how many coins
are found. A gem is counted as 1 en, and
other treasures (potions, jewelry, and so
forth) are counted as 10 en each.
A more detailed system of encumbrance, calculating the weight of
each piece of equipment, will be given in
the D&D EXPERT Set. But remember
that the fun of the game comes from
role playing, not bookkeeping, and your
DM may merely wish to use a simple
system for determining encumbrance.
Containers
Your character could not possibly carry
even a few hundred coins unless they
were placed in a sack or backpack. These
items will hold:
Small sack
Backpack
Large sack
200 en
400 en
600 en
Mules
Saddlebags may also be used if your DM
allows mules to be bought. A saddlebag
will hold 1000 en. A mule normally
moves at the same rate as a character,
120' per turn, and can carry up to 3000
en while doing so. A mule can carry
6000 en at most, which cuts its movement rate in half.
MULE ENCUMBERED
MOVEMENT RATES
Encumbrance
Normal speed
up to 3000 en
3001-6000 en
6001 en or more
1207turn
60'/turn
0
Playing in a group
Retainers
A retainer is a person hired by a character to help on an adventure. Retainers
are sometimes called "hirelings." Retainers are never characters run by players; the DM always plays the part of any
retainers hired. They are called NonPlayer Characters, or NPCs. All the
people in any D&D game other than the
characters, are NPCs.
Ask your DM if retainers are permitted in the game. You cannot use retainers if there are plenty of player
characters, or PCs to do the jobs. In a
game with only one or two players,
retainers are often used.
If you want to hire a retainer, use the
following procedure:
1. Find NPCs interested in working as
retainers.
2. Tell them about the job, including the
pay you offer, what is expected of
them, and how long you intend to
keep them.
3. Some NPCs will turn down your offer, but some will probably accept. If
you find one that is acceptable, buy
all the equipment the NPC will need.
4. Make a "retainer sheet" to be kept
with your character sheet. This
should be similar to the character
information, including the retainer's
name, Class, Level, race, Armor

Class, Hit Points, weapons and equipment carried, Money, Experience
Points, and any other information
you wish to remember.
Using Retainers
When you check your character to see if
you are ready for adventure, check the
retainer sheet at the same time. Remember that you must buy all the equipment
that the retainer needs.
During the adventure, tell your DM
whatever you want to tell the retainer;
the DM will play the role of the retainer.
A retainer will not simply do whatever
you want, though most reasonable instructions will be obeyed. The retainer
might run away from danger, despite
your instructions. This is determined by
dice rolls made by the DM.
Your retainer does not normally get a
share of the treasure found on an adventure. When you hire a retainer, be
sure to clearly state the amount you will
pay. If you find enough treasure to pay
the retainer a bonus, that may make the
retainer more loyal. In other words, the
well-treated retainer will face greater
dangers without running away, and will
obey your instructions more often.
When the DM calculates XP at the
end of an adventure, the total XP
earned by the group is divided by the
number of characters. A retainer gets
Vi the normal award, and is treated as Vi

character for the division.
r \ VMI'I.t: .WO \1 air r a m a l \n "i
i hai ,u if) s ,iml 1 u-umiM iJiMtliiikj
.">.">i> bv J*J (couriling the retainer a-. -:
<h ii.itten. tin- it-Milt is 10(1 XI' ii
M< h dijr.n if i. .ni'l V; \ P > j urn rn.ilj
tur rtu- irtJiucr.
You must keep track of the XP for

your retainer, using the retainer sheet. A
retainer may have a bonus or penalty to
the XP awarded, calculated in the same
manner as XP for characters (explained
in the D U N G E O N MASTER'S
RULEBOOK). In the example above, if
the retainer's Prime Requisite score was
8, the retainer would only get 45 XP (a
10% penalty).
Your retainer may quit the job if
treated badly. Otherwise, the retainer
will stay either until dismissed by your
character or until gaining one or more
Levels of Experience. For example, if
you hire a retainer for 1 month, the
retainer will probably leave at the end of
that month. But if the retainer is close to
gaining a Level, he or she may ask to stay
a bit longer. The decision will be up to
you.
When your retainer quits, give the
retainer sheet to the DM. The DM can
use that character, and you may meet
the retainer again later, in another game
or in another town!
The World of D&D Gaming

Finding Other Players
The DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game
is much more fun when played by
groups than when played alone. Show or
lend this booklet to a friend, so you can
quickly start playing in a group. Each
player can learn by playing through the
Solo Adventures, just as you did.
You will probably be able to find
others who already know how to play.
Many of the best belong to the Official
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS club, called
the ROLE PLAYING GAME ASSOCIATION Network.
This is the only Official D&D Club,
and offers a newsletter, special items,
ways to find other players, and many
other services, for a small fee less than
the cost of this game!
There are many other ways to find

other players. Your local hobby shop
may have a bulletin board where Dungeon Masters can post notices of regular
games. Your school or library may also
have news about other players and DMs.
Higher Level Characters
The dungeons for your characters to
explore are often made up by the Dungeon Master. However, they can also be
purchased, ready to play! You can buy
pre-made adventures called "Modules,"
from TSR and some are designed specifically for use with this set of rules. As this
is called the "BASIC" set, the modules
that go with it are the "B" modules.
When your characters reach the 3rd
Level of Experience, you should be al62
most ready for the D&D EXPERT Set. It

gives more spells, rules for character
levels 4th through 14th, and everything
you need to improve your games. The
modules designed for use with these
additional rules are in the "X" series.
The fun continues with the D&D
COMPANION Set, which covers character levels 15th through 24th.
Eventually you will be ready for the
D&D MASTERS set, with rules for character Levels 25 and above.
The other modules you may find,
with many other letter designations, are
not designed for these rules. They are
for use with the ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game system.
Glossary
Other Player Aids
As you can see, there is much more fun
waiting for you in the DUNGEONS &
DRAGONS game system. And there is
even more than games a whole
Hobby awaits!
Character Sheets: You will probably
want more Character Sheets when you
start making up many of your own
characters. They are available in a separate pack of 16. Be sure to get D&D
Character Sheets, not AD&D sheets, as
both are available.
Dice: More dice can be purchased in
sets, called DRAGON DICE random
number generators. Each package includes one of each type (four-sided, sixsided, and so forth), plus a crayon to
color the numbers with.
Miniatures: If you wish, you can purchase toy figures of your characters (and
monsters, too). These figures can help
you imagine better, because they give
you something to look at. Imagine a
battle with seven characters, fighting ten
monsters! It's hard to imagine exactly
what everybody is doing, so we often use
figures to help keep track of where
everybody is.
If you wish to use miniature figures,
be sure to get DUNGEONS & DRAGONS or AD&D miniatures. The other
game systems do not use the same characters and monsters. Official figures are
available in both plastic and metal.
If you wish to paint your miniatures
with realistic colors, Official D&D paints,
colors and finishes are also available at
better toy and hobby stores worldwide.
ADVANCED DUNGEONS &
DRAGONS Games
The AD&D game system is different
from the D&D system, which you have
now. It is also a fantasy role playing
game, but is much harder and more
detailed.
There are currently six hardback
books of rules for the AD&D system.
Since it is so much more complex than
the D&D system, with established rules
for almost everything, it is often used in
large tournaments, where accurate rules
are needed.
Remember: you are not playing the
more complex AD&D games with these
rules. You are playing the original DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game!
Glossary
Here are the definitions of terms most
commonly used in D&D games.
alignment The behavior of monsters and characters.
Armor Class The armor worn by a
character or the natural protection a
monster has against attacks.
caller The player who tells the DM
what the party will do, based on what the
other players tell him.
character level see experience
charge (magical) The magical energy needed to use a wand once.
class, character The type of character being played.
coin (or en) A unit of weight.
concentration A character putting
all his attention on a single object or
action, and being unable to do anything
else; any distraction will break his concentration.
cover Anything, except a shield,
that one hides behind to gain protection
from a missile attack.
cp Copper pieces. There are 10 cp
to one silver piece.
d # (d4, d6, d8, dlO, dl2, d20, d%)
A symbol showing a type of die.
damage The die roll to determine
how many hit points are lost.
demi-human A human-like creature that is also a character.
dungeon Where characters adventure; often in ruins and underground.
dungeon level This refers to how
tough the monsters found there are.
The greater the dungeon level the
higher the challenge.
Dungeon Master (DM) The referee
who creates the dungeon and monsters.
duration The length of time an
effect lasts.
effect The area and those objects
and creatures within the space which are
affected by a spell or attack.
encounter A meeting between
player characters and monsters.
encumbrance The effect of the
weight of equipment and treasure carried by a character.
ep Electrum pieces. There are 2 ep
per gold piece.
evasion Fleeing from a monster.
experience level Indicates the
power and ability of a character.
experience points (or) XP Awards
given to characters representing improved skills through adventuring.
fighting withdrawal Backing up
slowly while fighting.
63
gp Gold piece. The basic unit of

money in D&D rules.
Hit Dice The number and type of
dice rolled to find how many hit points a
character or monster has.
hit points (or hp) The amount of
damage a character or monster can take
before it dies.
Hit Roll The lowest number
needed to hit an opponent.
infravision An ability that lets a
creature see in the dark.
initiative A die roll to determine
who acts first in combat.
key Information used by the DM
that describes what is found in a dungeon and what the dungeon looks like.
lair A monster's home or nest.
melee Combat that occurs when
within 5' of each other using hand-tohand weapons or claws and teeth.
missile fire Attacks using weapons
that are shot or thrown from more than
5' away.
monster level A measure of how
tough a monster is, usually equal to its
Hit Dice.
morale The willingness to face a
battle or run away.
NPC (or non-player character)
Any character that is played by the DM.
percentage dice (or d%) Roll a dlO
twice to get a number between 1 and
100; the first number is read as the tens
and the second number is the ones.
player character (or PC) A character that is controlled by a player.
pp Platinum piece. One pp equals 5
gold pieces.
prime requisites The ability most
important to a given character class.
quarrel A shaft that is shot from a
crossbow (also called a bolt).
range The maximum distance at
which an attack may be made or a spell
may be cast.
retainer A non-player character
adventurer in the employ of a player
character.
saving throw (or saves) A character's chance (by d o d g i n g , luck,
willpower, etc.) to avoid or lessen the
harmful effects of certain types of attacks.
secret door A door that is hidden
or disguised as something else, thereby
making it hard to find.
sp Silver piece. There are 10 silver
pieces to one gold piece.
spell level A measure of the difficulty and power of a spell.
turn (undead) The ability of a
cleric to make undead monsters run
away by the power of the cleric's faith.
You have taken

the first step
into the wondrous

realm of fantasy
role playing games
And more thrilling adventures

await you in D&D Basic:
Dungeon Module Bl, "In Search of the Unknown"
An instructional aid for beginning players and Dungeon
Masters, this module is the first in a series for the D&D
Basic Rules.
Dungeon Module B2, "The Keep on the Borderlands"
Written by the co-creator of the D&D game, this module is
an introduction to the game and includes legends, history
and background information.
Dungeon Module B3, "Palace of the Silver Princess"
Try to discover the fabulous treasure buried beneath the
palace of the silver princess.
Dungeon Module B4, "The Lost City"
Food, water and wealth await heroic adventurers inside an
ancient pyramid ruled by a strange race of masked beings.
Dungeon Module B5, "Horror on the Hill"
Rumored to be teeming with vicious monsters, the Hill of
Horror taunts your party, tempting you to plunder its
riches, and discover its secrets.
Dungeon Module Ml, "Blizzard Pass"
Trapped by a storm, facing the ghastly horde of goblins,
can you survive the peril of Blizzard Pass? This solo adventure uses invisible ink and a special pen to reveal the mystery as the player creates his own adventures with his
choices.
Dungeon Geomorphs
A combination of ready-to-cut square and rectangular dungeon levels makes planning a dungeon quick and easy.
Player Character Record Sheets

Designed for easy reference, this gaming accessory helps
you keep track of all important information for your character during play.
Monster & Treasure Assortment
Dungeon Masters can improve their dungeons with this
helpful assortment of monsters and treasure. Tips on how
to place in your dungeon are also included.
These and many more fine products from TSR.
And when you are

ready for tougher
challenges, TSR is
ready for you
with DUNGEONS
8c DRAGONS^
Expert Set!!
ROLE PLAY WITH

THE BEST.
Join the only of f icial
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
game club.
Thousands of gamers the world over agree that
our POLYHEDRON Newszine and RPGA
network are the best way to stay in the arena with
the most avid role players. There are membership
cards and pins, new product releases and a twoway communication with the experts. For your
membership application write:
RPGAHQ Box 509 C183
Lake Geneva, Wl 53147
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and POLYHEDRON are trademarks owned by TSR

Hobbies, Inc. RPGAjs a service mark owned by TSR Hobbies, Inc.
1983 TSR Hobbies, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Magazine
The Official Fuel for Over 100.000 of the
Worlds Most Imaginative Gamers.
For ordering information write:
DRAGON" Magazine
P.O.Box 110, C204
Lake Geneva, WI 53147
I ) K A ( . O \ is a trademark of I S R Hobhios, Itu

I W I S K Hobbies. Inc. Ml Rights RisirMil
What would you call

the science fiction magazine
that has four-time Hugo
winner George Scithers
as its editor?
Simply
AMAZING Magazine is now

produced by Dragon Publishing,
a division of TSR Hobbies, which
is known for its creation of the
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS
game phenomenon. Amazing.
That's what it is!
For subscription information contact:
AMAZING Magazine Subscription Dept. C193
Box 110 Lake Geneva, Wl 53147
TSR Hobbiesjnc.
Products Of Your Imagination."
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS is a registered trademark owned by TSR Hobbies, Inc. "TM"
designates other trademarks of TSR Hobbies, Inc. 1983 TSR Hobbies, Inc.
AM Rights Reserved.
TSR Hobbies, Inc.
STAR FRONTIERS'" and DUNGEONS &

DRAGONS are trademarks owned by TSR
Hobbies, Inc. 1983 TSR Hobbies, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.
Level
CHARISMA
CONSTITUTION
DEXTERITY
WISDOM
INTELLIGENCE
STRENGTH
ABILITIES:
Armor
Class
adjustment
adjustment
adjustment
adjustment
adjustment
adjustment
Hit
Points
Alignment
TARGET AC:
HIT ROLL
NEEDED
10
9
12
14
15
16
SPELLS or
MAGIC STAFF
17
DRAGON BREATH
TURN TO STONE c
PARALYSIS
MAGIC WAND
POISON or
DEATH RAY
18
19
GEMS:
MONEY and TREASURE
TOTAL VALUE:
PP:
GP:
EP:
SP:
CP:
NORMAL ITEMS
Needed for Fipiff level:
ROMIIS/PFNAITV-
EXPERIENCE
OTHER NOTES including places explored, people Ic monsters met
EQUIPMENT CARRIED
MAGIC ITEMS
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Character Record Sheet
(This form may be reproduced for personal use in playing DUNGEONS & DRAGONS* GAMES.)
1980, 1983 TSR Hobbies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
13
Character Sketch or Symbol
Dungeon Master
SAVING THROWS:
SPECIAL SKILLS: Spells, Thief's abilities, Cleric's turning, etc.
I AMP.IIAr.FS.
HH
MM
^ M
Class
Character's Name
Player's Name
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 8 Character Record Sheet

D&D Basic Set - Players Manual (BECMI Ed) (Basic)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

D&D Basic Set - Players Manual (BECMI Ed) (Basic)

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

D&D Basic Set - Players Manual (BECMI Ed) (Basic)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS is a registered trademark owned by TSR Hobbies. Inc.

See? Your imagination woke up already.

How to use this book

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

ever made. And you will see why, in just

in this set is the DUNGEON MASTERS

by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson

Revised by Frank Mentzer

This game has undergone a startling

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and D&D

are registered trademarks owned by

This book is protected under the

TSR Hobbies, Inc.

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

Learning to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games

Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS" games

What is "role playing"?

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

board could have all the dungeons,

What role will I play?

Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games!

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

If you miss, the goblin tries again, but

You stop for a moment to be sure that

Constitution: Your health

Talking to a snake will do no good at all,

Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games!

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

find a small gem, a pearl, in one corner.

toward a corridor leading out of the

Learning how to play DUNGEONS 8c DRAGONS games!

Charisma: Your personality

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

Side by side, you quietly walk down the

dangerous, and we should continue on

You see a door ahead, to the right. This

Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games!

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

ner, and see a tall bearded human in a

(him. If vcm MUM. tin- gohlui

If your fighter hasn't slain the goblin yet,

the goblin hits you again, causing 2 more

Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

you are. Bargle's reply isn't in a language

coming out. Then you remember

It's hard to run with the cleric across

Now pretend that you made the Saving

Learning how to play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS games

It won't spoil; save it for an adventure in

Bargle's magic doesn't seem to work! He

If you hit, the magic-user gives a cry

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

If you haven't read Ending #1, "You

You have just played a D&D game!

Now where do you go?

Lars Hjertstedt (order #6605655)

Throws, and so forth are written

The Character Sheet