ADVENTURE

HOUR!
 WELCOME! This one is for my brother, Caleb.
This is a game of creativity, exploration, Through all the journeys and adventures.
and wonder. Great to have you onboard! Love you, dude.
This is a game intended for all audiences
Text, layout, art, brain fuel by Sam Doebler
from ages 3 to 300 and designed with kids
in mind. That said, the advice that applies v1.2 (Feb 2022) CC-BY-4.0
to younger players often also applies to ISBN: 9798409421717
adult players. Find more at dreamingdragonslayer.com
Rather than label this game specifically as and dreamingdragonslayer.itch.io
“a game for kids” this game takes its players
seriously by speaking plainly and without Special thanks to…
many references to age or maturity. Matt and Chris Doebler
Yochai Gal, editor
Adventure Hour! has been tested with a
Zuzana Schroeder, editor & promo design
range of folks, but mostly with kids ages 8 Licopeo, dungeon artist
to 12. Do not let this deter any younger or Jim Parkin
older players from enjoying its contents. Chris McDowall
Ben Milton
Stay young at heart, let your imagination Schroeder Fam
soar, and happy gaming! The Fellowship Crew

Touchstones
Activities TV Shows/Movies
Playing with LEGOs Adventure Time
Bedtime stories Avatar: The Last Airbender
Theater games HarmonQuest
Improv/comedy sports DuckTales
Playing house Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir
Playing anything but house The Lord of the Rings
Playing with toy guns and swords with the Star Wars
neighborhood kids after school Over the Garden Wall

Books Video Games

The Hobbit The Legend of Zelda
The Order of the Stick webcomic Spelunky 2
The Ranger’s Apprentice series Hollow Knight
The Percy Jackson series Minecraft
The Harry Potter series
The Artemis Fowl series RPGs
The Hunger Games series Electric Bastionland
The Odyssey Maze Rats
1 Peter Pan 2400
In the middle of the action…
Alex, the Game Master, is playing
Adventure Hour! with three friends: Beau,
Chris, and Dallas.
Alex, Game Master (GM): You come to a
cavernous room with a squid man
standing in the middle of it, chanting. Yes,
their head is replaced with a squid of some
sort. Two floating electric eels move to the
rhythm of the chant. What do you do?
Beau: This is a really weird room. Are we
sure we want to go in here? We could go
towards that water noise we heard
earlier…
Chris: And let this thing get us later? No
thanks! I havemy trusty trident.I’ll charge
the squid person thing. Rahh!
GM: You’re pretty far away. He’ll see you
coming and get a chance to react.
Chris: Hm. Maybe we’ll try something
else.
Dallas: I have a crossbow. I’ll shoot them
from here.
GM: Okay, if you succeed, you’ll harm the
squid man. Otherwise, you’ll lose ammo
and something else bad will happen.
Dallas (rolls a six-sided dice): It’s worth a
shot. Heh, get it? I rolled a 2. Is that bad?
GM: Very. Lose a crossbow bolt from your
adventurer sheet. As your shot flies over
their shoulder, the squid man’s eyes glow
purple. It locks eyes with you, Dallas. You
can’t control your muscles!
Chris: Oh shoot.
GM: Beau and Chris, you see Dallas’s eyes
also turn purple. Dallas’s adventurer turns
towards you, crossbow ready to fire.
Beau: Let’s run away!
Chris: We can’t leave Dallas!
GM: Then what do you do?
Beau: I’ll tackle Dallas. I’m sorry!
GM: Roll high and you’ll do that.
Otherwise, Dallas will shoot you in the
side.
Beau (rolls a six-sided dice): I got a 6!
GM: You tackle Dallas down. As you do
that, the electric eels float closer, crackling
with energy. Chris, what do you do?
Chris: I’ll strike one with my trident!
GM: Your metal trident? Bad news.
Electricity courses through you and you
drop. Your stuff also clatters around.
Write down ‘shocked’ on your sheet.
Beau: This is bad. Is Dallas back to
normal?
GM: As long as the squid man looks at one
person, they’re under its control.
Beau: Ah! What do we do?!
Dallas: Maybe if you could break its
concentration…
Chris: Wait! I had a mirror shield in my
inventory! Beau, grab that and use it
against the squid man!
Beau: I break away from Dallas and grab
the mirror shield, making the squid man
look back into its own eyes!
GM: You do that! It’s totally unexpected
and the squid man is now stunned, having
hypnotized itself! What do you do now?
Dallas: Can I move?
GM: Yep, your body is free of the spell.
Dallas: Sweet. Now can we run away?
Chris: Yeah, this wasn’t a great idea. I hope
they didn’t have any super cool treasure…
What are the electric eels doing?
GM: They seem stunned too.
Beau: Yeah, time to get out of here. I’ll
grab Chris’s stuff and be the last to leave,
just in case.
Chris and Dallas: Let’s go!
GM: You all leave the room. Smart move.
Back in that hallway you came from, you
see…
What will they find next? What treasures
will they uncover? What adventures will
they have? Create adventurers of your own
and play to find out what happens in
Adventure Hour!!
2
 Introduction
This book you are reading describes a game
but is not in itself a game. While other
games have winners and losers, every
player of this game is a winner if they
enjoyed the process of play and the shared
experience of the story they made together.
This book gives you the tools to create a
game for you and your group. Some
assembly is required.
Adventure Hour! is a fantasy role-playing
game (RPG) about creativity, exploration,
and problem-solving. The game runs
around the same the length as a TV show
episode or a movie, depending on the
group’s preferences and attention span.
One participant acts as the Game Master
(GM) while the remaining two to five
players take on the role of adventurers. In
addition to these rules, the group will need
a six-sided dice (d6) or a dice roller that fills
the same function.
Although this game is played face-to-face at
the table or through a video call, the core of
the game is a conversation; the GM tells the
players what is happening in the world, the
players tell the GM what their adventurers
do in response, and the GM describes how
their actions in turn affect the world.
The world is also a participant of the game.
It’s the place where the action happens and
has a say in the content and tone of the
game. By inhabiting the imagination of all
players, the group builds a shared
understanding of what is happening in
play. The world helps guide these decisions.
Remember: Treat the world as a real place.
Don’t worry too much about the rules.
Trust each other. Be fair. Play to find out
what happens!
3
Roles and Responsibilities
The players’ job is simple: roleplay the
personalities and actions of their
adventurers, interact with the situations
presented by the GM, explore a fantastic
world, and work together to overcome
obstacles. Adventurers develop during
play, gaining and losing items, traits, and
skills along the way which makes them
more experienced, potent, and bizarre.
Only the cleverest players will leverage
these acquisitions and setbacks to their
advantage. Best of luck!
The Game Master is the game’s host and
facilitator. Their job is the most difficult,
but also the most rewarding. A good GM is
someone with a great imagination and
people skills, who enjoys improvising and
helping others have fun. Their primary
duties include playing the other characters,
creating and running the world,
establishing situations for the players to
interact with, adapting to the
unpredictable choices of the players,
applying the rules, and changing the rules
to improve the game.
To Begin Play
Each player creates their adventurer (see
‘Adventurer Creation’ on page 7). The GM
comes to the game with preparation of
their own (see ‘Preparing the Game’ on
pages 11-14). Don’t worry, GM, this game
has you covered for your first adventure
(see ‘First Adventure’ on page 13).
Get everyone together at a scheduled time.
Get comfortable, bring snacks, chat for a
bit. When everyone is ready, play begins.
Playing the
Game
 Playing the Game
The Game Master starts by describing the
surroundings and the situation the
adventurers are in. They finish by asking
“What do you do?” The players are then
given a chance to ask questions and say
what their adventurer does. The GM then
responds with what happens next.
The core of the game is these three repeated
steps:
• The GM sets the situation and gives
information, then asks “what do you do?”
• One or more players declare their action.
• The GM describes the impact.
The vast majority of actions require a quick
judgement call to resolve. Players who
leverage their environment, use their items
and common sense, and clearly declare
their actions often receive success. The
consequences of any described actions
follow accordingly.
Uncertain Actions
If an action described by a player is
uncertain, the GM may call for a roll. Before
the roll, the GM may declare the possible
impact on a successful and unsuccessful
roll. One participant then rolls one six-
sided dice (1d6). If the roll is a 4 or higher,
the adventurer succeeds. If not,something
bad happens. Whatever the result, the GM
describes the impact and the new situation,
continuing play.
Uncertain Action Example
GM: As you run out of the hallway and into
the lobby, you hear the monster catching
up behind you! What do you do?
Beau: I slam the door shut!
GM: If you succeed, the monster won’t get
in. If not, it will hold the door open.
Beau (rolls 1d6): I got a 5. Success!
GM: You slam the door and keep running!
The monster is slowed down! Now what
do you do?
Beau: I look for an exit or something to
brace the door. I gotta make an escape!
5
Advantage and Disadvantage
If the adventurer has an advantage, such as
from the use of a proper item or a good
position or approach, the GM may grant
the following:
• Increased effect: If they succeed, they
enjoy an additional benefit.
• Decreased risk: If something bad
happens, it’s not as bad as it could have
been.
• Automatic success: No roll is required.
Advantage Example
GM: You see a guard in front of the exit.
What do you do?
Beau: As a Spy, I’m pretty good at stealth.
I’ll sneak past them.
GM: Your background in stealth means
decreased risk for the action. Roll the dice.
Beau (rolls 1d6): Drat! I got a 2.
GM: As you move, the guard says, “Hm?
What was that?” and approaches where
you are, holding a torch held high. They
haven’t seen you yet. What do you do?
Beau: Whew. Closecall. I wonder ifI could
distract them…
If the adventurer has a disadvantage, such
as from the use of an improper item or a
bad position or approach, the GM may
grant the following:
• Decreased effect: If they succeed, it’s
not everything they hoped.
• Increased risk: If something bad
happens, it’s worse than they feared.
• Automatic failure: No roll is required.
Disadvantage Example
GM: You see a guard in front of the exit.
What do you do?
Chris: I’ll sneak past them.
GM: With all that loud equipment? You
have over 3000 coins jingling away! This
has an increased risk. Roll the die.
Chris (rolls 1d6): Ahhh! I got a 3!
GM: You don’t get very far. The guard
approaches “You there, stop! We’ve got an
intruder!” You’ve alerted the whole keep.
Now what do you do?
Chris: Good grief…
Other Rules
Fortune. When you want to see the result of
something outside of the players’ control,
like the weather, passing time, a character’s
reaction, or the state of their equipment,
roll 1d6. Rolling a 4 or higher favors the
players. Otherwise, it’s a stroke of bad luck.
The GM decides what the result ultimately
means.
Inventory. An adventurer may only carry 10
items. 1,000 coins count as one item. Items
like potions and ammo are grouped in
threes. Other smaller items may be
grouped and count as one item.
Fatigue. If an adventurer exhausts
themselves or is deprived of a need like
food, water, sleep, or shelter, they gain
fatigue, a temporary condition which
reduces the maximum number of items
they can carry by one. Fatigue does stack,
causing adventurers to carry fewer and
fewer items until they rest (see ‘Healing’).
Magic. When an adventurer uses a magic
from a wand, scroll, or something else,
make a Fortune roll. Magic is potentially
disastrous and may cause fatigue with use.
Melee Attacks. If a player succeeds on a roll
involving a melee attack, their opponent is
harmed. If the roll shows something bad
happens, the adventurer is harmed.
Ranged Attacks and Ammo. If a player
succeeds a roll involving a ranged attack,
their opponent is harmed. If the roll shows
something bad happens, the adventurer
loses 1 ammo (arrow, bolt, stone, etc.). A
character without ammo cannot make a
ranged attack.
Injury. When an adventurer is harmed,
they take an injury. Write down what injury
they took (like ‘broken rib’ or ‘twisted
ankle’). When an adventurer with an injury
takes another injury, they are then taken
out of the action. Armor can prevent injury.
Protection. Armor, including shields, can
prevent injury but is then damaged and
must be repaired or replaced before use.
Healing. An adventurer may use any
combination of rest, medicine, aid, food,
and drink in a safe place to reverse injury
and remove fatigue. However, some injuries
are permanent. Adventuring is dangerous.
6
 Adventurer Creation
Write down ‘Name,’ ‘Inventory,’ and ‘Notes’
on a scratch sheet of paper or another note-
taking device for each player’s adventurer
sheet. Let each player see their own sheets
and the sheets of others. It helps teamwork.
A group can use one or more methods of
creating adventurers at the same time.
GMs have preferences, players have needs,
which should all be balanced accordingly.
Look to the next pages to see the classes,
types, and starting packages.
Method 1: Random. Roll two six-sided dice
(2d6). The first dice indicates the class, the
second indicates the type. Take all starting
items from that package. This is for complete
beginners to fantasy RPGs who want to get
started right away.
Chris (rolls two six-sided dice): I got a 2
and a 3. The 2 means Fighter, the 3…
Gladiator. I get a trident, mirror shield,
three glue pellets, and a trapping net.
Huh. Weird.
Method 2: Choice. The player chooses a
class. Then roll 1d6 for the type. Take all
starting items from that package. This is for
beginners who are familiar with fantasy RPGs
and other fantasy games.
Method 3: Selection. The player chooses
their class and type. Take all starting items
from that package. This is for advanced
7 players who can make quick decisions.
Notes About Starting Items
All items have many ways to use them. The
first starting item is always a weapon.
Potions are consumed or thrown. Wands
contain limited charges before needing to
be refilled or discarded. Scrolls are magic
spells that disintegrate once used. Read
‘Other Rules’ for how to handle ammo. If
you are unsure about an item or how it
works, talk it out with the group and come
to an agreement. Trust each other.
List of Classes and Types
1. Cleric
1. Disciple, 2. Friar, 3. Initiate,
4. Monk, 5. Paladin, 6. Priest.
2. Fighter
1. Barbarian, 2. Blademaster, 3. Gladiator,
4. Knight, 5. Mercenary, 6. Pirate.
3. Ranger
1. Beastmaster, 2. Bounty Hunter, 3. Druid,
4. Survivalist, 5. Trapper, 6. Warden.
4. Rogue
1. Acrobat, 2. Hermit, 3. Poisoner,
4. Saboteur, 5. Spy, 6. Trickster,
5. Wizard
1. Arcanist, 2. Illusionist, 3. Water Mage,
4. Earth Mage, 5. Fire Mage, 6. Air Mage.
6. Stranger
1. Sea Elf, 2. Wood Elf, 3. Mountain Dwarf,
4. Moss Dwarf, 5. Hill Halfling, 6. City Halfling.
1. Cleric 2. Fighter
If you like helping people, be a cleric. Wanting to be the best in a fight with the
Clerics are equipped to support people of greatest weapons is a good reason to be a
all kinds and are by far the best at helping fighter. They’re tough and reliable party
the team and recruiting powerful allies. members.
1 - Disciple 1 - Barbarian
1. Sling and rocks (3) 1. Broadsword
2. Expandable fish net 2. Skull helmet
3. Paralysis wand (3) 3. Energy potion (3)
4. Loaves of bread (3) 4. Bone collection (3)
2 - Friar 2 - Blademaster
1. Frying pan 1. Twin swords
2. Fire-starting kit 2. Metal chain (30’)
3. Jar of grease (3) 3. Lightning wand (3)
4. Jar of honey (3) 4. Bladestorm scroll
3 - Initiate 3 - Gladiator
1. Heavy songbook 1. Trident
2. Instrument 2. Mirror shield
3. Polymorph potion (3) 3. Glue pellets (3)
4. Portable hole 4. Trapping net
4 - Monk 4 - Knight
1. Bo staff 1. Longsword
2. Leaping boots 2. Squire attendant
3. Calming incense (3) 3. Medicine (3)
4. Massage rock 4. Blast horn
5 - Paladin 5 - Mercenary
1. Lance 1. Oversized key
2. Bright shield 2. Winged shield
3. Truth serum (3) 3. Stink bombs (3)
4. Horse whistle 4. Anti-magic potion (3)
6 - Priest 6 - Pirate
1. Morningstar 1. Poisoned cutlass
2. Metal plate armor 2. Loyal parrot or monkey
3. Bandages (3) 3. Delicious apples (3)
4. Symbol of light 4. Oak barrel

8
 3. Ranger 4. Rogue
If you like hunting, foraging, and animals, If you like causing trouble, the rogue is for
pick the ranger. Every ranger has some you! Rogues have plenty of tools to offer
connection to nature and the art of and skills to match. They’re sneaky and
tracking, making them great in any party. devious, a great offense against monsters.
1 - Beastmaster 1 - Acrobat
1. Bow and arrows (3) 1. Throwing knives (3)
2. Animal companion 2. Living rope (20’)
3. Irresistible treats (3) 3. Circus makeup (3)
4. Soap (3) 4. Bag of fruit (3)
2 - Bounty Hunter 2 - Hermit
1. Crossbow and bolts (3) 1. Fireblower (3)
2. Handcuffs 2. Magic contract
3. Smoke powder (3) 3. Size wand (3)
4. Grappling hook 4. Sewing needles
3 - Druid 3 - Poisoner
1. Transform ring 1. Cane sword
2. Sunrod 2. Vial of poison (3)
3. Bird seed (3) 3. Rations (3)
4. Tea set 4. Loaded dice
4 - Survivalist 4 - Saboteur
1. Crossbow and bolts (3) 1. Blowgun and darts (3)
2. Lumber axe 2. Spark stick
3. Barkskin wand (3) 3. Tiny bombs (3)
4. Lantern and oil (3) 4. Royal crown
5 - Trapper 5 - Spy
1. Shovel 1. Hidden knife
2. Bear trap 2. Dark cloak
3. Fireworks (3) 3. Web wand (3)
4. Net 4. Climbing gloves
6 - Warden 6 - Trickster
1. Sling and stones (3) 1. Slingshot and rocks (3)
2. Spike armor 2. Invisible string (50’)
3. Camping set (3) 3. Fake jewels (3)
4. Ramming shield 4. Gremlin in a jar

9
5. Wizard 6. Stranger
Curious about magic and mysteries of the Think being human is boring? Why not be
fantastic? Be a wizard. They’re all about a stranger? They’re outsiders to society
learning and obtaining power to get their with a culture of their own depending on
team to victory. their parents.
1 - Arcanist 1 - Sea Elf
1. Big bug net 1. Lightning spear
2. Magic missile wand (3) 2. Seaweed rope (20’)
3. Sleep powder (3) 3. Waterform potion (3)
4. Teleport scroll 4. Rotting fish (3)
2 - Illusionist 2 - Wood Elf
1. Daggers (3) 1. Bow and arrows (3)
2. Switcheroo orb 2. Camouflage cloak
3. Mirror image wand (3) 3. Alluring perfume (3)
4. Invisibility dust (3) 4. Paint set
3 - Water Mage 3 - Mountain Dwarf
1. Wooden oar 1. Pickaxe
2. Fishing rod 2. Headlamp helmet
3. Icestorm wand (3) 3. Glow chalk (3)
4. Infinite waterskin 4. Thunderstone
4 - Earth Mage 4 - Moss Dwarf
1. Stonefist gauntlets 1. Boulder
2. Gem helmet 2. Spore mask
3. Stoneshape wand (3) 3. Mushrooms (3)
4. Tremorsense boots 4. Fairy friend
5 - Fire Mage 5 - Hill Halfling
1. Flaming sword 1. Umbrella
2. Ferret pet 2. Infinite string spool
3. Fire shield wand (3) 3. Hot pies (3)
4. Circus rings 4. Sheriff badge
6 - Air Mage 6 - City Halfling
1. Boomerang 1. Wooden bat
2. Hover cloak 2. Wig disguise
3. Gust wand (3) 3. Fire kit (3)
4. Golden flute 4. Unbreakable lasso

10
Preparing the
Game
Hello, Game Master!
This section and the rest of the book is for
you especially. You have the most difficult
role in the group, but also the most
rewarding! Take on the responsibility and
get ready for fun times ahead! But first,
here are some things to make it all easier.
Organizing the Group
In addition to being the Game Master, you
are also likely the facilitator of the group.
With that in mind, here is advice related to
garnering interest and arranging the
scheduling process.
Start a conversation with people you like.
Chances are you already have two or three
people in mind who might give this a go.
Hook their interest. Pitch the game you’d
like to run. What is the world like? What are
the players going to do as adventurers?
Where will they go? Get them with the
‘what’ before the ‘when.’
Start small. Maybe those two or three
people are all you can get. That could be the
starting group right there! Better to start
small than not at all. As an added bonus,
you and the players get the joy of inviting
new people to the group!
Set up a consistent time. It can be tough to
wrangle schedules together. Since you’re
the Game Master, offer two or three times
that work best for you and have players vote
on it. Try to stick to playing at the same
time, day of the week, or day of the month.
If playing online, be aware of differences in
time zones!
Set up a consistent place. Find somewhere
convenient for everyone to meet. Get
online as the case may be. Use a platform
the group can agree on.
Hold on loosely, be ready to pivot. As a
game, it’s not worth getting worked up
over. Start a different group if you need to.
Readying the Environment
In addition to being the Game Master, you
are also likely the host of the session. With
that in mind, here is advice related to where
you hold your games of Adventure Hour!
Be together. The session doesn’t have to be
around a table, but this is the most
common setting. You could be on a hike
through nature, on a car ride, or on the
floor of the living room. You could be
talking through voice or video chat, but it
helps that all participants be visible as
visuals really help convey the energy and
immediacy that makes games enjoyable.
Be present. Eliminate distractions. Pay
attention. React to one another. You can
only be in one place at a time, so choose to
be here with the group. They want you here!
Be comfortable. Bring blankets, pillows,
cushions. Get snacks to share. Dim lights.
None of these elements should be
distracting for other players but should add
to the overall enjoyment of the session.
Have materials be visible. Adventurer
sheets are for everyone to read, not just the
player who writes on it the most. This
allows for accountability and better
teamwork between players. The dice are
always out in the open, especially when
rolled. This allows everyone to join in on the
thrill of success and the “Oh no!” of defeat.
Take breaks. Every hour, ask the group
about taking a break, either putting the
session on pause for a few minutes or
stopping for the day. Everyone needs to
stretch, go to the bathroom, grab a bite, or
be finished for today. That’s okay. It’s better
to finish early and chat or play a board
game than drag a session out and associate
a bad feeling with playing this game.
Relax. Just like hosting a party, the game is
not only for its attendants; you’re a part of
the party too! Enjoy yourself. :)
12
 Preparing the Session
Situations, not plots. Do not come to the
game with a story to tell. Instead, come
with a set of problems that concerns the
players’ characters with no clear solution.
Your job is to set the scene, not give the
players the lines to speak. If you go “off-
road” freely recycle any unused preparation
you have.
Challenge the players more than their
adventurers. Players are not meant to solve
problems with dice rolls, but with critical
thinking and creativity. Introduce
problems that can be addressed with
common sense and with a variety of tools or
approaches.
Adapt to the player’s actions. Have
situations that are not static. Use the
actions of the players to fuel more
adventures. Make them feel the impact of
their decisions. Have consequences reveal
themselves in future sessions.
Focus on the world. Don’t worry about the
rules. Think more about what the
adventurers experience and interact with.
What do they see? Who do they talk to?
What challenges arise? What rewards are
found? What are the consequences?
Make lists. List activities to do, places to go,
things to find, and villains to defeat. List
rumors that the group will hear, purchases
they can make, and jobs that are posted.
Keep these ideas short and exciting. Share
these lists with the group as they come up.
Start strong. Take something the players
want and place it somewhere dangerous
and interesting. Start them near that place,
like at the entrance to a dungeon filled with
treasure. Begin in the middle an action-
packed situation like a fight or a chase if
you choose.
13
First Adventure
For your first adventure, this game has you
covered! The Belly of the Fishy Beast
adventure (opposite page) has been created
for this purpose. You can see the adventure
in this book or as an electronic document to
be viewed on a device or printed out.
Before playing that adventure, read the
instructions titled “Using this adventure”
on the sheet. Then read and digest as much
of the text of the adventure as you can.
Later, get the group together for a session.
Assemble the needed materials, like dice
and something to record adventurer sheets
on. Pitch the game to the players to set
expectations. Something like this:
GM: This is a role-playing game. It’s a
conversation super-powered by our
imaginations and some rules. I’ll be the
Game Master and describe the situation
you find yourselves in. Then I’ll ask,
“what do you do?” and you’ll respond
with what your adventurer does.
Sometimes we’ll roll dice when
something uncertain happens. You’ll
encounter many odd, fantastic, and
dangerous things along the way, so be
ready. Once you have your adventurers
made, we’ll start!
After the players have created their
adventurers, use the section that reads
“Start here!” on the Belly of the Fishy Beast
adventure to begin play. Try not to read the
text on the adventure aloud to the players.
Instead, paraphrase wherever possible
while still highlighting the most important
information about each room.
Read the “Running the Game” section of
this book (page 15) for more guidance on
what to do from moment to moment.
The rest of this section details what and
how to prepare your own adventure.
14
Running the
Game
Being the Game Master
Give information. More than you think.
You are the players’ eyes and ears, and they
rely on you for it. Answer their questions
and ask one back. If they might have
misunderstood you, clarify. Tell them what
will happen if they succeed and if they fail.
Let them know! Additionally, handouts like
maps and written notes can be especially
thrilling sources of info for players.
Treat the world like a real place. RPGs ask,
“what if…?” and ask players to help answer
the question. Everyone suspends their
disbelief to see what these fantastic
situations in imaginary places, among
made-up monsters and unbelievable
treasures would be like. As a GM, treating
the world like a real place increases that
believability. There are laws like physics,
nature, and more although these can be
twisted and changed based on the world
you’re playing in. Imagine the world and
invite players to come along.
Treat the people in the world like real
people. The inhabitants of the world have
motivations of their own that run parallel
or cross paths with the players’. These
characters want to stay alive and decrease
risk whenever possible, often only fighting
when they have a good chance of winning.
Otherwise, they surrender or retreat. Allies
and enemies alike may switch sides
depending on what they’re offered.
Ask “what do you do?” This is the most
important question in the game. It puts the
players in the driver’s seat and invites them
to action. Ask this question of the group;
ask it of just one player; ask it slowly and
casually to ease the tension; ask it loudly
and quickly to ramp things up. When a
player declares a vague action, ask them
how they do it. Drill down and get in the
world!
Reward clever solutions. When players
execute an action that will certainly work,
let them have it, no roll required. Do this
even when it “foils your plans.” Hold on
loosely and the players will enjoy the
experience just by witnessing their own
cause and effect on the world.
Stick to the results. The dice are binding.
Roll them in the front of the players or don’t
roll them at all. Let failure happen honestly.
Always be ready to give an open answer as
to why you made a ruling the way you did,
even if it means an adventurer failed or
succeeded automatically.
Show consequences. The world and the
people in it are alive! They react to what the
players do! During and between sessions
ask yourself “what could happen as a result
of the players’ actions?” Extend the logic
until it bleeds back into the lives of the
players’ adventurers and fuels more
adventures to come.
Skip to the good parts. You only have so
much time to play in a session, so why
spend it on the least interesting choices?
Zoom in, zoom out, speed up, slow down,
rewind, and fast-forward to the action
points with the most potential for impact
and consequences. Breeze past details that
don’t matter or don’t mean as much. For
example, some groups adore shopping,
some despise it. Same goes for fighting
enemies. Practice addressing what the
players want to do and they’ll love you for it.
16
 Knowledge and Perception
Players must be given information
constantly. The GM is their window into
the world, their eyes, their ears, and all
other senses. Without being told what they
can perceive, the players are blind and
cannot take informed actions. The
difficulty of the game doesn’t need to be
increased by confusion and frustration
about what is going on.
In Adventure Hour!, there are no
knowledge or perception rolls like you
might see in other RPGs. If something is
hidden, they cannot see it. Have players
specify how they search a room and look for
what’s important. If something is widely
unknown, they do not know it. They must
find out for themselves by going to the
library or asking someone who does know.
Players should leverage their smarts, tools,
and contacts to help.
If your adventure relies on a good
knowledge or perception roll to figure out
what is going on, you’re running a bad
adventure. Playing without knowledge and
perception rolls is game-changing if you
haven’t tried it before.
Give information. More is better here.
17
Knowing
When a player asks if their adventurer
knows something, consider the following:
• Is it common knowledge? They know it
unless there is a compelling reason why
they shouldn’t.
• Is it specialist knowledge? They know it if
their background or experiences cover it.
• Is it obscure knowledge? They will need to
find an expert or resource in that subject
area.
Perceiving
When telling the players what their
adventurers see, consider the following:
• What here is easily seen? They see it
unless there is a compelling reason why
they shouldn’t.
• What here is difficult to see? They can
partially see it. Give only vague impressions
of what they can perceive.
• What here is hidden? They only see it if
they investigate that area, object, or person
further.
These questions apply to other sensory
information, like sound and smell,
although sight is the most common.
Common Knowledge
Chris: So, what does my adventurer know
about this fishy beast that we’re exploring
right now?
Game Master: Everyone knows that the
fishy beast is a total anomaly. It’s been
dead out in the desert for years, rotting
away. There were rumors of creatures
taking up residence inside the beast’s
stomach.
Specialist Knowledge
Dallas: What about the creatures inside
the beast’s stomach? Would I know
anything about that?
GM: Your background of Gladiator does
not really help you here. Maybe if you were
something else…
Beau: I’m a Sea Elf! What do I know?
GM: You did business with fish-men a
long time ago and they have a liking for
building homes inside dead water
creatures. Makes them smell pretty bad…
Obscure Knowledge
Beau: What about leaders? As a Sea Elf, do
I know the name of fish-men’s king or
queen, assuming they have one?
GM: You’d need to consult an expert or
find a book on the subject to find
something more about that.
Beau: Got it. Where should we go next?
Easily Seen
Chris: Let’s go down the left passageway.
Dallas and Beau: Sounds good.
GM: Going left, you come to a large
chamber. There’s a deep, deep pit that’s too
far to jump right in front of you. On the
other side of that pit, there’s a large clam in
shallow water that quickly snaps shut.
What do you do?
Difficult to See
Beau: Was there anything inside the clam?
GM: There were a couple small objects
inside, but it’s hard to tell at this distance.
You only had a quick look.
Chris: Could be a trap. It could be pearls.
GM: Maybe.
Hidden
Dallas: How manyof these small objects are
there?
GM: It’s impossible to tell now that’s the
clam is shut. You’d have to be closer and get
inside that if you’d want to know. What do
you do?
Chris: Alright, we need to deal with the pit
first. Then we’ll jam the clam open. Time to
get some treasure.
Dallas: Assuming it even is treasure…
18
 g
Fighting
Harm. When a healthy adventurer is
harmed, they take an injury. When an
adventurer with an injury takes another
injury, they are then taken out of the action.
Some enemies, like critters and minions,
are taken out the first time they are
harmed, while others, like monsters and
leaders may be harmed many times to be
taken out. Enemies use armor too!
The opposition never rolls dice. Instead,
they threaten harm to a player which
invites the adventurer to act instead.
Players are harmed if they fail a roll, ignore
a threatening enemy, or that enemy’s
attack is certain to hit and damage them.
Fights are not always “blow-by-blow.” If a
fight arises that’s not particularly
interesting, describe the consequences of
the fight and move on. If a fight is
especially important or interesting, zoom
in on the action to give it the weight it
deserves. Get detailed without completely
stopping the pace of the fight.
Leverage the environment. No empty
rooms! Use furniture, plants, buildings,
walls, pits, fireplaces, torches, rivers, art,
ropes, towers, coffins, pulleys, bridges,
doors, corridors, spikes, rubble, boulders,
trees, waterfalls, lakes, fog, rain, and more
to make it dynamic. Change it up!
19
Have multiple objectives. Straight forward
fights to the death are as simple as tug-of-
war. Tactically interesting fights have more
than one goal have. Things like:
• The warlock’s ritual is almost complete!
• The water level is rising!
• We must get that amulet!
• They have a hostage!
• Let’s set off that explosive!
• A third party arrived!
Vary the types of opponents. There are two
key templates for enemies:
• Dangerous, but dumb.
• Cunning, but weak.
Give the first obvious shortcomings or
limitations. Give the second superior
preparation and tactics. Pair them together
in different combinations to great effect.
Remember self-preservation. Most people
will retreat, surrender, or risk humiliation
before throwing their life away in a fight
they can’t win. Smart monsters fight
another day, usually when it’s not expected.
Use maps and miniatures as you please.
For times when the fight may be too
complex to describe with words alone, use
visual aids! Even small pebbles or dice on a
sheet of paper will do if it helps get the
point across.
Fighting Example
Alex, the Game Master (GM): You enter
the tunnel beneath Stomach City. After
passing some darker alcoves you come to
a larger chamber with three wooden
coffins and a stone corridor exit on the
right side of the room. There are scattered
bits of bone around the room. What do
you do?
Beau: I move towards the stone corridor.
Chris: I examine the coffins.
GM: There are figures of snake-men
carved into the covers of each coffin. The
center one is the largest.
Chris: I kick a smaller one open.
GM: Dallas, you see Chris about to kick a
coffin open. What do you do?
Dallas: I let it happen. That’s what I was
going to do anyways…
GM: Once Chris kicks open the coffin, a
skeletal hand flails about wildly. Chris,
your ankle has been slashed open!
Chris: Wait! Can I use my mirror shield to
block it?
GM: You could, but it would be broken by
the impact. Do you want to do that?
Chris: Not yet I guess…
GM: Write ‘sliced ankle’ down on your
adventurer sheet. You’re injured now! The
other two coffins spring open also, the
bones assembling into skeletal snake
men! Dallas, what do you do?
Beau: Wait! I want to do something!
Dallas: Can Beau go before me? I’m not
sure what to do yet…
GM: Sure! Beau, what do you do?
Beau: I drink my Waterform potion and
trap a skeleton in my water shape!
GM: Nice! Mark one use. The skeleton
snake-man in front of you can’t move!
Dallas: Cool! I’ll shoot that snake-man
with my crossbow!
GM: Well, it’s tough to damage a skeleton
with a crossbow bolt and this one is
immersed in water which would slow
down the crossbow bolt. Try something
else maybe?
Dallas: Could I reach in the water and
break the skull with my hands? Do I roll?
GM: The skeleton is slowed, and Beau is
helping you out, so no roll! You break the
skull and the rest of the skeleton
crumbles.
Chris and Beau: Wahoo!
GM: Chris, that skeleton that struck you
moves closer. Green venom falls from its
teeth. What do you do?
Chris: I attack with my trident!
GM: Roll for it! If you fail, it’ll bite you!
Chris (rolls a six-sided dice): 3! Yarwgh!
GM: The snake-man moves in…
Chris: I block with my shield!
GM: …and bites your mirror shield. It snaps
in half and the glass shatters. The largest
skeleton snake-man moves towards you,
Dallas. What do you do?
Dallas: I’ll hit it with my crossbow.
GM: Hm. Risky… If you fail, you’ll break
your crossbow on its bony ribcage.
Dallas (rolls a six-sided dice): I got a 4! Yay!
GM: The large skeleton staggers back as you
hit them with the crossbow.
Dallas: He’s not destroyed?
Beau: You hit him with a piece of wood!
Also, that’s the bigger skeleton. It’s tougher.
I’m going to ram into that skeleton!
GM: It claws at your water form, but it’s no
use. You smash the skeleton against the
rocky wall. Chris, that snake skeleton just
broke your shield. What do you do?
Chris: I can’t think of anything else besides
attacking again. I hit it with my trident.
GM: Remember, you’re injured. If it hits
you again, you’ll be taken out.
Chris: Like, unconscious? Oh boy…
GM: Yep. It will bite you if you fail…
Chris (rolls a six-sided dice): A 1?! Now?!
GM: That’s bad. Beau, Dallas, you both see
Chris get bitten by a skeleton snake-man
and crumple to the ground.
Beau: Dallas and I attack the snake-man!
GM: The skeleton is no match for you.
When you move close to your friend, you
can see Chris is still alive, but that bite mark
doesn’t look good. Chris’s veins glow green.
Like, a bright, unnatural green.
Chris: Oh gosh, I’m a mutant now. But hey,
we won the fight! Yay us!
Dallas: I might be able to stabilize Chris
because I’m a Survivalist, but we should get
back to Stomach City for a healer…
Beau: Agreed. Let’s hurry!
What’s another objective you could add
to this fight? What else could you add to
the environment? What would make a
good “cunning, but weak” monster here? 20
 Dying
When an adventurer with an injury takes
another injury, they are then taken out of
the action. “Taken out” can mean retreat,
unconsciousness, or even death, all
depending on the tone of the adventure.
If an adventurer is todie, their player must
first be properly warned. “If you don’t
succeed your roll for attacking the assassin
robot, your adventurer without any armor
will die. Are you sure?” This gives them a
chance to reconsider or renegotiate.
Players that know the stakes before rolling
are more likely to accept the outcome. “If
you’re sure, roll the dice.”
No cheap shots. Especially when using
traps. “A spike you didn’t see punctures
your lungs.” When you have an unlimited
arsenal, there’s no challenge to “beating”
the players. It’s not interesting.
Get right back into the game. If an
adventurer dies, have that player create a
new adventurer and join the game again.
Favor inclusion over realism. Their new
adventurer is in the next room, around the
corner, or tied up nearby and ready to
adventure with the group!
21
Deathlessness
Many protagonists in books and film are in
dangerous situations but often don’t risk
death. You may want this for your group. If
you remove death from the game…
Threaten the adventurers’ assets, not their
lives. Anything that a player’s adventurer
has or cares about is an asset and can be
damaged, lost, or stolen. This includes their
weapons, houses, pets, allies, vehicles,
reputation, food, money, health, limbs,
family, good looks, and more. Find out
what’s of value, threaten it, and see the
interesting choices made as a result.
Think of loss as opportunity. When an
asset is damaged, lost, or stolen, this is a
chance to repair, replace, or rescue it! Loss
doesn’t just have to be a setback; it can be
fuel for more adventures!
Have adventurers retire. Without death,
there are still many ways for an adventurer
to leave the group. Retirement allows
adventurers to stop adventuring on their
own terms. Allow the player to describe
their final moments with the group before
exiting the stage. Then roll a new
adventurer for the next adventure!
Uncertain Action Alternatives
You maynot havea d6or access to an online
roller. Or you just might prefer a different
method to determine success. Here are
s0me alternatives that also have a 50/50
chance of success and something bad
happening. If an action described by a
player is uncertain….
The last two alternatives deviate from the
Traditional Style. Roll a twenty-sided dice rules and change the “50/50 framework.”
(d20). If it shows higher than 10, the
Hardcore Style. Roll a twenty-sided dice
adventurer succeeds. If not, something bad
(d20). If it shows higher than 15, the
happens. This is for those who swear by the
adventurer succeeds. If not, something bad
d20-fantasy RPG connection. :)
happens. This makes the game much tougher.
Ancient Style. The GM rolls two six-sided
Players are encouraged to avoiding rolling
dice (2d6). The player does the same. If the
whenever possible. Players, remember that
player rolls higher, the adventurer
those who leverage their environment, use
succeeds. If the GM rolls higher, something
their items and common sense, and clearly
bad happens. Re-roll ties. Or have the player
describe their actions are often rewarded
succeed AND something bad happen.
with success without rolling the dice.
Coin Style. Flip a coin. If heads, the
Age Style. Roll a twenty-sided dice (d20). If
adventurer succeeds. If not, something bad
the number is the player’s age or higher, the
happens. Use your favorite coin. Flip with flair!
adventurer succeeds. If not, something bad
Card Style. Draw a playing card from a happens. This is for players ages 3 to 18.
deck. If the card is of a red suit, the
There may be kids of different ages in the
adventurer succeeds. If not, something bad
game. Likely, there are at least two kidswho
happens. Shuffle constantly to increase tension.
aren’t the same age or twins. Having kids of
Timer Style. Start a stopwatch and stop different ages can be tough, both in general
when you choose. If the last digit (usually and in fantasy role-playing games. The
the hundredths place) is 5 or higher, the intended results of this alternative are:
adventurer succeeds. If not, something bad
Younger players have an easier time
happens. The GM may declare the possible
rolling. Coming up with an action that is
impact after starting the stopwatch.
possible (see also: within the realm of
Playground Style. The GM and player play rolling) is the goal for them.
“Rock-Paper-Scissors.” If the player wins,
Older players are challenged more. Coming
the adventurer succeeds. If the GM wins,
up with an action that is certain (requires
something bad happens. Redo ties, as per
no rolling) is the goal for them.
the usual rules. “I’m picking rock, just saying.”
If plans do roll dice, older players are
Palm Style. The GM hides an object in one
encouraged to make youngers enact the
hand behind their back and presents both
plan instead of themselves. Younger
hands closed. If the player choosesthe hand
players are literally more likely to succeed.
with the object inside, the adventurer
succeeds. If not, something bad happens. Older players feel great for THINKING.
You can ‘reverse’ this with a “poisonous object.” Younger players feel great for DOING. 22
 Problems
Rash actions. “I attack the queen!” A player
may not know what consequences will
naturally follow their declared action. Don’t
prevent a player from acting but give them
a chance to reconsider. Allow for “take-
backs.” When a player declares an action
that is rash or potentially devastating to
themselves or the group:
• Describe the situation again. Highlight
key details that makes the situation
precarious. “There are armed guards in
the room that protect the queen.”
• Cut to another player. Another player
may have a better grasp of the situation
and to talk reason to their fellow group
member. “Chris, you see Beau reaching
for their weapon in this guarded royal
throne room. What do you do?”
• Ask “are you sure?” A final warning.
“The guards would attack and attempt
to lock you away, whether or not you
actually succeeded. Are you sure you
want to do that?”
• Let it happen. Don’t block or stall a
hard-headed player forever. Some
lessons are best learned with
consequences. Be sure to play those
consequences out fully.
23
Going off-road. Feeling unprepared is one
of the most gut-wrenching experiences as a
GM. When players go “off-road,” be it off
the map, away from the action, or in an
unexpected direction:
• Call for a short break. If nothing comes
to mind right away, give your brain a
break. Don’t underestimate a quick trip
to the bathroom!
• Roll on a table for ideas. There are
random tools in this book that can help
fill the in the gaps. Even rejecting
results that you roll can uncover what
should happen next.
• End the session. If you’re far enough
into the session to call it there, go right
ahead. Chat, play a board game, or say
adieu. Before you go, ask the group
what they plan to do next time, where
they want to go, and what they want to
accomplish.
Hurry up! The players might be planning
more than playing or talking about
something only loosely related to the game
and their situation. When the players take
too long or are unfocused:
• Ask “what do you do?” Direct the
question at one player if necessary. This
gets things focused back on what’s
going on in the world of the game.
• Move things forward in slow-motion.
Just because the players haven’t
decided what to do next, doesn’t mean
the rest of the world has to wait.
Monsters make their threats and act,
people clear their throats politely, time
continues on.
• Force consequences. Time is wasted,
torches and daylight start fading,
adventurers get tired and hungry, a
random encounter stumbles on the
group. Kick up the tension.
Unwanted content. Players and GMs alike
can say or do things “not cool” or straight
up shocking. Clearly these situations are
best handled on a case-by-case basis. When
there is inappropriate or unwanted content
in the game:
• Put the spotlight somewhere else. If it
was something quick or accidental, just
move on. Describe the situation again
or cut to another player. This is a largely
indirect method.
• Address it quickly. Don’t spend too
much time on it, but a quick “hey, no
thanks” or “don’t do that” can go a long
way.
• Address it later. If it’s something
annoying, but not game-stopping, talk
it out later. It might just be a
misunderstanding. Choose to do this
one-on-one or as a group. It’s good
practice for conflict-resolution.
• Address it now. If it simply goes too far,
crosses too many lines, stop the game.
Keep cool, but don’t back down. Be
honest.
Conflicts in scheduling. Scheduling can be
tough. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out.
But today is still game day! When one or
more players don’t show up:
• Be present with the players that
showed up. Ask them how they’re
feeling about continuing without the
other players. If the group (including
yourself!) would rather hang out or play
a different game instead, do it!
• Proceed with justification. Handwave
why the other adventurers couldn’t
make it for this adventure. If you left off
the previous session in the middle of
the action, make those adventurers “go
puppet.” They’ll simply follow the
directions of the other players without
speaking, risking resources, or
needlessly putting themselves in
danger.
• Welcome the other players when they
return. It happens, no hard feelings.
Catch them up to speed and get back
into it! Adventure on!
24
Building the
World
Inhabit the World
The world of Adventure Hour! is a
fantasyland, a hodgepodge of people,
objects, and beings from common media,
mythologies, and stories. Monsters, crazy
inventions, treasures, weird science, odd
folk, and magic are all around. Because of
this any idea can be somewhere in this
unfathomably huge world. With all this
space, everything has a place.
The benefit of this world is that the world
requires as much or as little work as you
want to put into it. Your imagination has
already done most of the heavy lifting.
Steal from Everywhere
This is a fantasy RPG. There are many
elements from history, mythology, and
fairy tales littered throughout many of
these games and stuck permanently in the
mind of the fans of these games. Vampires,
dragons, unicorns, the minotaur, and more
have their origins from different stories
from around the world and yet have found
their way into the fantasy genre. When
preparing the game, keep this in mind: pull
inspiration from everywhere. Steal it, twist
it, turn it on its head, and make it yours.
What are some favorite TV shows, books,
and movies? What are some memorable
characters and monsters? Use them. Take
anything you want from any other genre
like superheroes, romance, and science
fiction, and inject them with fantasy flavor.
This is the artistic mindset of fantasy.
Need a justification for something? Magic!
There’s no need to explain the fantastic.
If things are too crazy? Dial it back. Don’t
let it get in the way of a good time.
If the point of the game is to entertain and
have fun, don’t forget to have some fun of
your own. Fill the world with what excites
everyone, not just the players.
Make it awesome, not accurate.
Expanding Play
To change the laws of the world into your
own, the best place to start is the starting
packages. Create six of them and have
players roll 1d6 to see which one they get.
Packages exist at the intersection of the
world and mechanics of the game, so it’s a
great place to start designing.
Don’t discard the starting packages once
adventurer creation is over! As part of the
world, the packages can be a source of tools,
treasures, and neat new items. These
packages can also describe other friendly
and enemy characters the adventurers
encounter on their journey. It’s the stuff
they use!
Then make your own factions (page 34)!
Quick Notes on Tables
Many of the following tables ask you to roll
d66 on them. To do so, roll 2d6 (two six-
sided dice). The first number is the tens
place, the second number is the ones place.
Alex (rolls two six-sided dice): I got a 4
and a 5 for the “Inside the city” table.
Looks like the first adventure location
will be a museum. I’ll roll some treasures
and threats to see what’s in there…
If a table has bold entries in it, that refers
to another table found in the book. Roll on
that table and transfer the results.
Remember: the point of rolling on a table is
to get the ideas flowing. Once you have a
good idea about what an adventure,
location, or person looks like and how it
interacts with the world, stop rolling. If you
get stumped, come back to rolling.
26
 Adventure Locations
d66 Inside the City Outside the City Under the City Beyond the City d66
11 Alleyway Abbey Abyss Airship 11
12 Aviary Battlefield Aquarium Another plane 12
13 Bakery Beach Arena Asteroid 13
14 Bank Camp Armory Canopy 14
15 Bathhouse Canyon Barracks Clouds 15
16 Bazaar Cave Bazaar Floating city 16
21 Bridge Cliffs Bunker Gondola 21
22 Butchery Colony Casino In a book 22
23 Carnival Crater Catacombs In a game 23
24 Cathedral Desert Chamber In a machine 24
25 Construction site Farmhouse Den In an animal 25
26 Costume shop Generator Forge Inside, floating 26
31 Courthouse Glacier Fungal garden Inside, in space 31
32 Embassy Hot springs Geyser Inside, underwater 32
33 Factory Inside, isolated Graveyard In your house 33
34 Funeral parlor Island Inside, sunken Labyrinth 34
35 Garden Jungle Laboratory Lighthouse 35
36 Harbor Lair Mausoleum Monument 36
41 Hospital Landfill Mineshaft Moon 41
42 Hotel Mountains Nest Nebula 42
43 Library Ocean Outside, sunken Observatory 43
44 Mansion Orchard Prison Outside, floating 44
45 Museum Palace Reservoir Outside, in space 45
46 Office Pit Secret base Outside, underwater 46
51 Orphanage Plantation Sewer Parallel universe 51
52 Park Port Shrine Rocket 52
53 Playground Resort Slave pit Rooftops 53
54 Restaurant River Station Skyscraper 54
55 Retirement center Ruins Storage Space station 55
56 Salon Savanna Throne Statue 56
61 Stable Ship Tomb Sun 61
62 Theater Swamp Trenches Theme park 62
63 University Tundra Tunnels Train 63
64 Wall Volcano Vaults Under, floating 64
65 Waterpark Waterfall Vents Under, in space 65
66 Zoo Woodlands Workshop Under, underwater 66

The City. The adventures all take place in
relation to The City. You get to name it
(Babel, Paris, New London, Zagraf). This
city is the central hub that connects these
adventures, hinting at a living and
consistent world beyond the group. It’s also
a place teeming with adventure of its own.
Scale. When rolling a location, make it
bigger than you first think. A large,
amorphous space can contain more threats
and treasures, allowing for multiple visits
and gradual development.
27
Transportation. Use an interesting way to
get from one place to another (like sailing,
riding, flying, surfing, tunnelling, driving,
falling, swimming, jumping, scooting).
Simply describe the journey or place one or
more dangers, opportunities, or dangerous
opportunities to encounter along the way.
Mixing. Try rolling twodifferent places and
combining them. Blend the layout and
inferred contents to surprising effect. Then
place it in an unexpected area.
Adventure Context
d66 Treasure Threat Timer Twist d66
11 Accessory Alien Air depletion Ally involved 11
12 Animal Animal, air Army invasion Bad intel 12
13 Antidote Animal, ground Avalanche Bad timing 13
14 Bank note Animal, water Buyer’s patience Betrayal 14
15 Blueprint Assassin Collapse Birthday 15
16 Body Berserker Curse Bystanders 16
21 Body part Bounty hunter Earthquake Cannot be seen 21
22 Clothing Centaur Eruption Chaperone 22
23 Crown Clown Evil ritual Fake treasure 23
24 Dark ritual Dinosaur Execution Festivity 24
25 Deed Dragon Exit closing Frame another 25
26 Food Experiment Expenses Inside intel 26
31 Gem Fairy Famine Law enforcement 31
32 Historic artifact Fungus Fire Little time 32
33 Holy relic Giant Flooding Many delays 33
34 Hostage Goblin Growth Meeting first 34
35 Instructions Huge insect Haunting No casualties 35
36 Instrument Lich Hostage No payment 36
41 Journal Machine Magic disaster Obvious lie 41
42 Key Mastermind Melting Other group lost 42
43 Legendary weapon Minotaur Mutation Other threat 43
44 Medicine Monstrosity Plague Other timer 44
45 Painting Pirate Poison gas Other treasure 45
46 Perfume Plant Resources spent Rival helping 46
51 Potion Rival Revolt Secret identity 51
52 Recipe Shadow Rising dead Send message 52
53 Ring Skeleton Rising debt Side task 53
54 Royal seal Soldier Ritual complete Split up 54
55 Scientific tool Sorcerer Rival intercepts Sting operation 55
56 Spell book Title Sandstorm Tag-along 56
61 Spice Traitor Snowfall Test 61
62 Statue Troll Storm Third party 62
63 Technology Vampire Threat attack Trapped 63
64 Treasure map Werewolf Ticking bomb Uncovered plot 64
65 Vehicle Zealot Time distortion Uprising 65
66 Wanted villain Zombie Villain’s plan Witnesses 66

Context. The treasure is the reward to be Danger. Think of threats in different

found. The threat is the danger that
prevents the adventurers from just
walking up and taking it. The timer is a
form of threat that has yet to happen but
will at some point during the adventure.
The twist happens when it’s appropriate,
dramatic, or appropriately dramatic.
Reward. The treasure’s value is around
1,000 coins and selling it can be an
adventure all on its own. Make the
treasure rare, magical, or one of a kind.
quantities: all alone, in pairs, in threes, as
a group, as a horde. Make them large,
make them small. Make them more like
people with needs and wants and
peculiarities. Make them more like
animals with obvious reactions and
abilities. Make them truly dangerous.
Unique. The high-impact way to make an
adventure memorable comes from the
unique combination of timer and twist.
Make them count.
28
 Adventure Site
d66 Purpose Room Feature Obstacle d66
11 Art Animal room Altar Acid 11
12 Beauty Art room Art Alarm 12
13 Brooding Balcony Barrel Boulder 13
14 Business Bathroom Bed Bridge 14
15 Buying Cavern Blood Brush 15
16 Cleansing Closet Body Corridor 16
21 Communication Courtyard Bones Crawlspace 21
22 Debate Dead room Bookshelf Darkness 22
23 Education False room Broken treasure Door 23
24 Entertainment Food room Cage Fire 24
25 Exercise Guard room Cart Fog/smoke/dust 25
26 Farming Jail room Chains Gas 26
31 Feeding Living room Chair Glass 31
32 Gambling Long hallway Chandelier Ice 32
33 Hiding Low ceiling Chemicals Ladder 33
34 Housing Many doors Claw marks Lava 34
35 Imprisonment Meeting room Closet Mud 35
36 Information Planet room Cooking materials Net 36
41 Meeting Plant room Counter Pillar 41
42 Mining Prayer room Curiosity Pit 42
43 Murder Record room Grate Puddle 43
44 Nesting Relax room Lamp Quicksand 44
45 Organization Royal room Machine Roots 45
46 Prayer Ruined room Nest Rotten ceiling 46
51 Processing Secret room Pedestal Rotten floor 51
52 Recreation Secure room Pipes Rubble 52
53 Rejuvenation Sleeping room Plants Sentry 53
54 Ritual Stage room Rope Slippery 54
55 Rumors Stairwell Seats Slope 55
56 Sports Storage room Staircase Spikes 56
61 Storage Study room Statue Stairs 61
62 Study Trophy room Table Tree 62
63 Theater Walkway Trash Wall 63
64 Torture Water room Weapon rack Water 64
65 Training Weapons room Well Webs 65
66 Worship Work room Writing materials Wind 66

Depth. Giving a site multiple Purposes
gives people more reasons to go there
(park that is also a meeting spot, theater
that also serves food, arena that also
serves as a mining site and housing). A
site that’s been ruined is a perfect excuse
to place monsters and treasures there.
Layout. Have 5 to 9 rooms with clear
connections between them. Use loops,
branching pathways, shortcuts, and
secret passageways to allow for
interesting choices and approaches.
29
Planning. Always look to add “one more
thing” until the site reaches “completion.”
Here are some things to include in the
adventure site:
• One or more things to take
• One or more things to attack
• One or more things to attack intruders
• One or more things to experiment with
• One or more chances for development
• One or more hazards or puzzles
• One or more beings to talk to
• One or more secrets
Adventurer Development
d66 Spell Power Scar Mutation d66
11 Barkskin Animal Anxious Acidic spit 11
12 Charm Break Battle scar Additional arm 12
13 Command Bubble Broken arm Additional eye 13
14 Comprehend Chase Broken leg Additional leg 14
15 Cure Darkness Broken nose Additional hair 15
16 Detect Dream Broken rib Additional head 16
21 Disguise Fire Bruise Animal arm 21
22 Earthquake Glass Burn Animal face 22
23 Fireball Gravity Chipped tooth Animal legs 23
24 Fly Ice Cold Animal tail 24
25 Fog cloud Illusion Dented head Animal skin 25
26 Growth Imprison Fractured skull Changed age 26
31 Haste Levitate Headache Claws 31
32 Hypnotize Light Irritable Dragon breath 32
33 Illuminate Lightning Memory loss Elemental skin 33
34 Invisibility Magma Missing ear Forceful jaws 34
35 Leap Metal Missing eye Frog tongue 35
36 Liquid form Mud Missing finger Gargoyle wings 36
41 Miniaturize Open Missing hair Hunchback 41
42 Mirror image Plant Missing hand Increased senses 42
43 Multiarm Repair Missing leg Lycanthrope 43
44 Pacify Sand Missing tooth Malleable body 44
45 Phobia Sap Paranoia Malleable voice 45
46 Portal Shadow Phobia Mesmerizing eye 46
51 Rage Shield Punctured lung Noiseless 51
52 Sleep Slime Pyromania Ogre tumors 52
53 Slick Smoke Reckless Ooze-form 53
54 Snatch Snow Seeing double Poison spit 54
55 Sticky Star Shaken nerves Prophetic dreams 55
56 Swap Stasis Shattered ego Skin-shedder 56
61 Telekinesis Stone Sleeplessness Spider climb 61
62 Telepathy Summon Slurred speech Spiral horns 62
63 Teleport Thunder Soft attitude Sword-form 63
64 Transform Time Splintered mind Troll regeneration 64
65 Vision Water Unstable Undead flesh 65
66 Web Wind Vicious Vampirism 66

Adventurers don’t improve, they develop. To preserve interesting choices, balance

Development…
• Comes from the world (injury, curses,
mishandling magic, spell books, items,
encountering odd beings and places)
• Changes the adventurer (new abilities,
new ways to interact with the world,
have more information, made stranger,
stronger, hindered, options in fights)
• Produces more adventure (quest to
find a healer, journey to new locations,
solve complex problems and threats)
developments that help adventurers:
• It’s exhausting, take fatigue each use.
• It has limited uses as a scroll (1 use),
wand (3 uses), potion (3 uses), etc.,
• It’s attached to an item and can be
destroyed, lost, stolen, or worn down.
• It attracts unwanted attention from
dark, greedy, or cunning forces.
• It requires a cost like ingredients, food,
a magical source, help from someone
else, preparation, or time. 30
 People
d66 Title Quirk Desire Talent d66
11 Actor Anecdotes Acceptance Burglary 11
12 Artist Angry Allies Cooking 12
13 Athlete Breathless Animals Dancing 13
14 Baker Breathy Attention Debating 14
15 Brewer Catchphrases Change Disguise 15
16 Captain Chuckles Collecting Drawing 16
21 Chef Cryptic Discovery Eating 21
22 Clerk Excited Enlightenment Engineering 22
23 Executive Foreign accent Escape Fashion 23
24 Exile Growls Fame Fishing 24
25 Explorer Grumpy Fashion Games 25
26 Farmer Inquisitive Food Grooming 26
31 Forecaster Interrupts Forgiveness Hypnotism 31
32 Gambler Itches Freedom Impressions 32
33 Healer Jolly Friendship Intimidating 33
34 Hunter Laughs Fun Inventing 34
35 Inventor Mopey Glory Languages 35
36 Leader Mumbles Honor Lifting 36
41 Musician Nervous Influence Listening 41
42 Noble Pauses Justice Music 42
43 Officer Rambles Learning Puzzles 43
44 Outlaw Relaxed Love Remembering 44
45 Owner Rude Luxury Riding 45
46 Peddler Sarcastic Mystery Running 46
51 Performer Scared Novelty Sculpting 51
52 Pilgrim Shouts Peace Singing 52
53 Runner Sickly Power Smithing 53
54 Scholar Slurs Respect Sports 54
55 Servant Soothing Responsibility Spotting 55
56 Smith Sour Revenge Spying 56
61 Smuggler Stammers Security Swimming 61
62 Soldier Stuffy Service Teaching 62
63 Student Suspicious Toys Tracking 63
64 Tourist Trails off Trust Trapping 64
65 Trainer Twitches Wealth Wrestling 65
66 Wanderer Whispers Winning Writing 66

Qualities. A title gives you a sense of a
person’s role in society. Doing an
impression of that person can easily
revolve around their quirk. A desire
shows what the person wants beyond
mere survival and well-being. Talents give
people interests and skills beyond their
day job and role.
Non-humans. Apply these qualities to
other species, animate objects, animals,
aliens, or machines to bring them to life.
Anthropomorphize like the cartoons!
31
Names. Refer to people by their title or
physical appearance. If they need a name,
name them after someone you know
(friend, family member, movie character,
a celebrity), then alter the name slightly by
changing one or more letters. Just stick to
first names whenever possible.
Purpose. Give the person an immediate
tie to a member of the group. What
connection do they have? What object or
service do they have that’s useful? Is there
history there?
Animals
d66 On the Ground In the Water In the Air By Your Side d66
11 Ant Alligator Albatross Axolotl 11
12 Ape Amoeba Bat Badger 12
13 Armadillo Anglerfish Beetle Bear 13
14 Badger Beaver Bird of Paradise Cat 14
15 Bear Clam Butterfly Chicken 15
16 Boar Crab Condor Cow 16
21 Caterpillar Dolphin Crane Crab 21
22 Centipede Eel Crow Deer 22
23 Chameleon Frog Dragonfly Dog 23
24 Cockroach Hippo Eagle Donkey 24
25 Deer Jellyfish Falcon Eagle 25
26 Elephant Leech Firefly Fox 26
31 Ferret Lobster Flamingo Goat 31
32 Fox Manatee Fly Hawk 32
33 Giraffe Manta Ray Flying Squirrel Hedgehog 33
34 Goat Muskrat Goose Horse 34
35 Horse Narwhal Gull Hyena 35
36 Mole Newt Hummingbird Iguana 36
41 Ostrich Octopus Kingfisher Lemur 41
42 Ox Otter Locust Lion 42
43 Pig Penguin Magpie Lizard 43
44 Porcupine Platypus Mantis Llama 44
45 Rabbit Pufferfish Mockingbird Monkey 45
46 Raccoon Salamander Mosquito Mouse 46
51 Rat Sea Anemone Moth Panther 51
52 Rhinoceros Sea Urchin Owl Parrot 52
53 Scorpion Seahorse Parrot Python 53
54 Sheep Seal Peacock Rabbit 54
55 Slug Shark Pelican Raccoon 55
56 Snail Shrimp Pterodactyl Raptor 56
61 Snake Squid Rooster Skunk 61
62 Spider Swordfish Sparrow Toad 62
63 Squirrel Tadpole Swan Tortoise 63
64 Tiger Turtle Vulture Wallaby 64
65 Wolf Walrus Wasp Wolf 65
66 Wolverine Whale Woodpecker Wolverine 66

Animals are a great source of… To use animals…

• Characters (carrot merchant, tittering
gossiper, folk hero mouse, gluttonous
pigmen guards, jealous spider queen)
• Abilities (wings, breathe underwater,
camouflage, venom, dark vision, teeth)
• Items (bat mask, quill shooter, golden
feather, skunk stink pellets, lion claw)
• Ingredients (spider egg, wasp stinger,
tortoise shell, parrot beak, shark fin)
• Names (Sen Serpenthand, Raptor
Canyon, The Flying Boar Inn, Ox Town)
• As loyal pets, make them friendly,
smart, or powerful, but not all three.
• As mounts, make them difficult,
hungry, or expensive, but worth it.
• As people, infuse their animal nature
with human qualities (title, quirk,
desire, talent, humanoid form).
• As monstrosities, roll two or three
times and then combine their forms,
abilities, and tactics to terrifying effect.
32
 Acquisitions
d66 Common Specialty Expensive Luxury d66
(1-10 coins) (10-100 coins) (100-1,000 coins) (Over 1,000 coins)
11 Arrows (3) Acid (3) Animal Arcane book 11
12 Bag Animal/day Armed escort Army/week 12
13 Boots Animal trap Band/night Business 13
14 Bottle Antitoxin (3) Boat Caged fairy 14
15 Bucket Axe Bomb Contained spirit 15
16 Candles (3) Bandages (3) Cannon Curse an enemy 16
21 Chalk (3) Bow and arrows (3) Clock Exotic transport 21
22 Club Cart Expert/day Exotic vacation 22
23 Crowbar Compass Expert book Fighting machine 23
24 Dagger Face paint (3) Fine art Heaviest armor 24
25 Fire kit (3) Fake item Fine clothes Large bribe 25
26 Fishing rod Helmet Fine food Legal pardon 26
31 Fruit (3) Hourglass Fine metal Livestock 31
32 Game Incense (3) Fine weapon Luxury art 32
33 Glue (3) Instrument Fireworks (3) Luxury cruise 33
34 Grease (3) Ladder Heavy armor Luxury machine 34
35 Handcuffs Lantern Jewelry Luxury rent/month 35
36 Hand drill Lock and key Kitchen appliance Luxury vehicle 36
41 Ink and quill Lockpicks (3) Lawyer/hour Magic animal 41
42 Mirror Longsword Machine Magic clothing 42
43 Net Mercenary/day Magic plant Magic contract 43
44 Oil (3) Metal chain (30’) Medical procedure Magician service 44
45 Pants Music box Monster part Magic item 45
46 Pole (10’) Perfume (3) Mutation potion (3) Magic weapon 46
51 Rations (3) Poison (3) Person trap Mansion 51
52 Rope (50’) Quality meal Power potion (3) Party/night 52
53 Saw Room/day Rent/month Plot of land 53
54 Shirt Shield Shock stick Prototype medicine 54
55 Sleeping bag Shovel Sleep powder (3) Prototype scroll 55
56 Soap (3) Smokebombs (3) Small bribe Prototype tech 56
61 Spikes (3) Spear Spell scroll Royal favor 61
62 Sponge Specialty book Spell wand (3) Star metal 62
63 Tar (3) Specialty service Telescope Swimming pool 63
64 Torches (3) Spices (3) Treasure map Tavern 64
65 Waterskin (3) Spyglass Vehicle Team of animals 65
66 Whistle Wig disguise Wagon Warship 66

Contents. These are things that can be
found, given, bought, fought over, or stolen
over the course of adventuring.
Price. Acquisitions are placed in categories
of value instead of being given exact prices.
Sellers use the following factors to
determine the actual price:
• Quality of the acquisition.
• Number in stock, availability.
• Time required to get a new one.
33 • Connection between buyer and seller.
Complications. No seller has everything,
though they might know of another place
where one could find what they’re looking
for. Sellers are often…
• Informing buyers of sales, hot deals,
and new items.
• Offering to add more items to a
purchase at a discount.
• Selling items they’re not known for.
• Open to alternative payment options,
like bartering, favors, and one-off jobs.
Debt Factions
The beginning of treasure hunting and Factions are large forces outside the
other adventurousactivities can come from control of the players and help create the
having a debt shared among the group. feeling of a living world. The factions listed
Under this premise, the group shares a debt are suggestions and aren’t required to be a
of 10,000 coins. Roll to see what the group part of the adventure. They are merely
spent this large sum of money on. Then roll guidelines to get the ideas flowing about
to see which faction loaned the money. people and organizations beyond the
They pursue payment keenly throughout adventurers. Factions have goals of their
your adventures. own they are working towards, which
How does that faction pursue payment? might conflict with the group or provide
Whose idea was it to spend the money? them chances for them to get involved.
What is the state of that purchase now? They may provide adventures, buy stolen
treasures, or becomes threats of their own.
d66 Rare
(10,000 coins) Which faction does the group have a
11 A sparkcraft servant working relationship with? Which faction
12 A large boat with a big cannon
hates the group’s guts? Which faction has
13 An ancient mansion
14 Many, many lottery tickets use of the group and would be willing to
15 Twelve bags of holding offer payment for their services?
16 A group esoteric education course d66 Faction
21 A sky-blimp 11-12 Ironfang Clan
22 A ballista or trebuchet 13-14 Devil Princess
23 Many horses and livestock 15-16 Yochai’s Legion
24 The best wardrobe in the city 21-22 Fell Court
25 A prototype wand 23-24 Frost Lich
26 A psionic puppy 25-26 The Gravelstone Family
31 A large tunnel beneath the city 31-32 Grey Company
32 A ghost town 33-34 Harken Rangers
33 A library of elvish poetry 35-36 Shadowdrake
34 A noble title or knighthood 41-42 Larva Motherhood
35 A large business 43-44 Mad Prophet
36 A wedding 45-46 Mages of Starlight
41 Medical bills 51-52 Obsidian Warlord
42 A greenhouse with exotic plants 53-54 The Roost Bandits
43 A play commission 55-56 Redblade
44 A sentient whale 61-62 River Rats
45 A wasted Wish spell 63-64 The Sea Witch
46 An unbreakable sword 65-66 The Hurly-Burley Brothers
51 Six bracelets of friendship
52 A small moon
53 A bathhouse
54 A caravan
55 A trading post
56 A night club
61 Elite membership for the group
62 An imperial ton of art supplies
63 So. Many. Bread.
64 One final bonfire
65 An exotic racetrack
66 A menagerie, aquarium, or zoo 34