Players Basic Rules Version 0.

Credits
D&D Lead Designers: Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford Based on the original D&D game created by
E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, with Brian Blume, Rob
Design Team: Christopher Perkins, James Wyatt, Rodney Kuntz, James Ward, and Don Kaye
Thompson, Robert J. Schwalb, Peter Lee, Steve Townshend, Drawing from further development by
Bruce R. Cordell J. Eric Holmes, Tom Moldvay, Frank Mentzer, Aaron Allston,
Editing Team: Chris Sims, Michele Carter, Scott Fitzgerald Gray Harold Johnson, David Zeb Cook, Ed Greenwood, Keith
Producer: Greg Bilsland Baker, Tracy Hickman, Margaret Weis, Douglas Niles, Jeff
Grubb, Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Richard
Art Directors: Kate Irwin, Dan Gelon, Jon Schindehette, Mari Baker, Peter Adkison, Bill Slavicsek, Andy Collins, and Rob
Kolkowsky, Melissa Rapier, Shauna Narciso Heinsoo
Graphic Designers: Bree Heiss, Emi Tanji
Interior Illustrator: Jaime Jones Playtesting provided by
over 175,000 fans of D&D. Thank you!
Additional Contributors: Kim Mohan, Matt Sernett, Chris
Dupuis, Tom LaPille, Richard Baker, Chris Tulach, Miranda Additional consultation provided by
Horner, Jennifer Clarke Wilkes, Steve Winter, Nina Hess Jeff Grubb, Kenneth Hite, Kevin Kulp, Robin Laws,
S. John Ross, the RPGPundit, Vincent Venturella, and Zak S.
Project Management: Neil Shinkle, Kim Graham, John Hay
Production Services: Cynda Callaway, Brian Dumas, Jefferson
Dunlap, Anita Williams

Brand and Marketing: Nathan Stewart, Liz Schuh, Chris

Lindsay, Shelly Mazzanoble, Hilary Ross, Laura Tommervik,
Kim Lundstrom Release: August 12, 2014

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon
ampersand, Players Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon Masters Guide, all
other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks
of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their
distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected
under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or
unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the
express written permission of Wizards of the Coast.

2014 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA.
Available for download at Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Bochat 31, 2800 Delmont, CH.
Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park,
DungeonsandDragons.com Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK.
Introduction
THE Dungeons & Dragons ROLEPLAYING GAME IS ABOUT teams up with other adventurers (played by friends).
storytelling in worlds of swords and sorcery. It shares Working together, the group might explore a dark
elements with childhood games of make-believe. Like dungeon, a ruined city, a haunted castle, a lost temple
those games, D&D is driven by imagination. Its about deep in a jungle, or a lava-filled cavern beneath a
picturing the towering castle beneath the stormy night mysterious mountain. The adventurers can solve
sky and imagining how a fantasy adventurer might react puzzles, talk with other characters, battle fantastic
to the challenges that scene presents. monsters, and discover fabulous magic items and
other treasure.
One player, however, takes on the role of the Dungeon
Dungeon Master (DM): After passing through the Master (DM), the games lead storyteller and referee.
craggy peaks, the road takes a sudden turn to the east The DM creates adventures for the characters,
and Castle Ravenloft towers before you. Crumbling who navigate its hazards and decide which paths to
towers of stone keep a silent watch over the approach. explore. The DM might describe the entrance to Castle
Ravenloft, and the players decide what they want their
They look like abandoned guardhouses. Beyond these, a
adventurers to do. Will they walk across the dangerously
wide chasm gapes, disappearing into the deep fog below.
weathered drawbridge? Tie themselves together with
A lowered drawbridge spans the chasm, leading to an rope to minimize the chance that someone will fall if
arched entrance to the castle courtyard. The chains of the drawbridge gives way? Or cast a spell to carry them
the drawbridge creak in the wind, their rust-eaten iron over the chasm?
straining with the weight. From atop the high strong Then the DM determines the results of the
adventurers actions and narrates what they experience.
walls, stone gargoyles stare at you from hollow sockets
Because the DM can improvise to react to anything
and grin hideously. A rotting wooden portcullis, green the players attempt, D&D is infinitely flexible, and each
with growth, hangs in the entry tunnel. Beyond this, the adventure can be exciting and unexpected.
main doors of Castle Ravenloft stand open, a rich warm The game has no real end; when one story or quest
light spilling into the courtyard. wraps up, another one can begin, creating an ongoing
story called a campaign. Many people who play the
Phillip (playing Gareth): I want to look at the gargoyles. I
game keep their campaigns going for months or years,
have a feeling theyre not just statues.
meeting with their friends every week or so to pick
Amy (playing Riva): The drawbridge looks precarious? I up the story where they left off. The adventurers grow
want to see how sturdy it is. Do I think we can cross it, or in might as the campaign continues. Each monster
is it going to collapse under our weight? defeated, each adventure completed, and each treasure
recovered not only adds to the continuing story, but also
earns the adventurers new capabilities. This increase
Unlike a game of make-believe, D&D gives structure in power is reflected by an adventurers level.
to the stories, a way of determining the consequences Theres no winning and losing in the Dungeons &
of the adventurers action. Players roll dice to resolve Dragons gameat least, not the way those terms are
whether their attacks hit or miss or whether their usually understood. Together, the DM and the players
adventurers can scale a cliff, roll away from the strike create an exciting story of bold adventurers who confront
of a magical lightning bolt, or pull off some other deadly perils. Sometimes an adventurer might come to
dangerous task. Anything is possible, but the dice make a grisly end, torn apart by ferocious monsters or done in
some outcomes more probable than others. by a nefarious villain. Even so, the other adventurers can
search for powerful magic to revive their fallen comrade,
or the player might choose to create a new character to
Dungeon Master (DM): OK, one at a time. Phillip,
carry on. The group might fail to complete an adventure
youre looking at the gargoyles? successfully, but if everyone had a good time and created
Phillip: Yeah. Is there any hint they might be creatures a memorable story, they all win.
and not decorations?
DM: Make an Intelligence check. Worlds of Adventure
Phillip: Does my Investigation skill apply? The many worlds of the Dungeons & Dragons game
DM: Sure! are places of magic and monsters, of brave warriors and
Phillip (rolling a d20): Ugh. Seven. spectacular adventures. They begin with a foundation
DM: They look like decorations to you. And Amy, Riva
of medieval fantasy and then add the creatures, places,
and magic that make these worlds unique.
is checking out the drawbridge?
The worlds of the Dungeons & Dragons game exist
within a vast cosmos called the multiverse, connected
In the Dungeons & Dragons game, each player in strange and mysterious ways to one another and to
creates an adventurer (also called a character) and other planes of existence, such as the Elemental Plane
of Fire and the Infinite Depths of the Abyss. Within

D&D Players Basic Rules v0.2 | Introduction

2