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Dungeons & Dragons

Adventure System
Board Game House Rules
For incorporating All
Components, Campaigning,
and Leveling Up

by AerynB
Last Updated: February 23, 2016

One More Purchase: a 7-die set

TABLE OF CONTENTS
SOURCES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 3
GAME OVERVIEW 3
WINNING THE GAME 4
Game Setup 4
To Start Playing 7
Monster Decks 7
Encounter Decks 10
Treasure Decks 12
Choosing Heroes 13
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Choosing an Adventure 14
Dungeon/Cavern Tile Stack 14
PLAYER TURN 15
Hero Phase 15
Healing Surges 16
Movement 16
Triggering Trap Tokens 17
Attacks 17
Critical Hit and Critical Miss 18
Defeating Monsters 18
Disabling a Trap 18
Other 19
Unconsciousness 20
Exploration Phase 21
Villain Phase 22
Allies and Villagers 22
Villains 22
Defeating Heroes 23
CAMPAIGN PLAY 23
Choosing Heroes 24
Town Actions 24
All Other Rules 28
Scaling 29
Item Tokens 30
Coffins 31
Named Tiles 32
Doors 37
Treasure Chests 39
Reshuffling 39
INTRODUCTIONS 40
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION 52
CARD SPECIFIC QUESTIONS ??
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SOURCES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Obviously the core of these rules is the work of Wizards of the
Coast and if I had a greater legal mind I would know how to
credit them properly. All I wanted to do here was rearrange
their rules in a more seamless and coherent fashion, and
incorporate some house rules that seemed to make gameplay
work better in my humble opinion. Also, while a few of the rules
presented here are my own, many of the rules are not but
merely gathered from the posts at www.BoardGameGeek.com
and tweaked to better fit my ideas. Here are some of the ones I
could find so far:

Rawrdo1988 for many variants, especially the idea of themed

Encounter and Monster decks, rewarding experience for
disabling trap cards, splitting the Treasure deck into Fortune
cards and Item cards, drawing a Fortune card and a Treasure
token for defeating a Monster, drawing from the bottom of the
Dungeon Tile stack when exploring away from a door.

Rhys Corlett for the idea that certain Classes can have a chance
to avoid a specific type of Encounter card.

Sam Clark for the custom uses of named tiles in Castle

Ravenloft.

GAME OVERVIEW
The Dungeons and Dragons Adventure System Board Game is a
cooperative campaign game. You and your fellow Heroes must
work as a team to succeed in the adventures that unfold. You
either win together or lose together.
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Exception Based Game

The Dungeons and Dragons Adventure System Board Game is
exception based. That means the cards, powers, monsters, and
Special Adventure Rules may contradict the base rules of the
game. Whenever that happens, you should follow the rules of
the exception even though it contradicts the rules.

WINNING THE GAME

You win by completing the objective in the adventure you are
playing AND escaping the dungeon with at least one Hero. If a
Hero is defeated and there are no Healing Surge tokens
remaining, the other Heroes may continue the adventure.
Adventure objectives are wide and varied. You might have to
destroy an evil dragon in one adventure, while in another you
must find a magic artifact or free the prisoners and help them
escape from the dungeon.

Unless stated otherwise in an adventure, you lose if all Heroes

are defeated (at 0 Hit Points at the start of a Hero’s turn) and
there are no Healing Surge tokens left to play. You also lose if
you are defeated by the adventure you are playing. Each
adventure lists its specific victory and defeat requirements.

Game Setup
There’s a lot of stuff in these game boxes. You don’t use it all at
once, but you do use most of it in every adventure. The
following is a list of ALL components.

214 Figures 4 adventure books

23 Hero cards 4 20-sided dice
14 Villain cards 2 10-sided percentage dice
4 rulebooks 1 each of d4, d6, d8, d12
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3 double-sized interlocking 14 Chamber cards

Start tiles 40 Condition markers:
1 double-sized interlocking 5 Slowed
Start tile with a Town 10 Immobilized
Square tile on the back 5 Dazed
3 double-sized interlocking 10 Poisoned
Destination tiles 5 Advantage
4 double-sized interlocking 5 Disadvantage
Elemental Node tiles with 20 Healing Surge tokens
Town tiles on back 228 1-HP tokens:
4 special Start tiles 50 with black backs
98 interlocking Dungeon 50 with yellow backs
tiles: 128 with red backs
40 with bone piles 36 5-HP tokens:
26 with scorch marks 10 with black backs
32 with elemental 10 with yellow backs
symbols and/or dragon 16 with red backs
icons) 42 Monster 1-HP tokens
10 interlocking Chamber 6 Monster 2-HP tokens
tiles 4 -4 AC tokens
32 interlocking Cavern tiles 10 Monster Stunned tokens
22 interlocking Cavern Edge 19 square Trap markers
tiles (including 4 4 square Hazard markers
numbered Fissure tiles) 44 square Trap tokens:
860 cards: 22 Empty Traps (0 dmg)
20 Sequence of Play cards 6 Dart Traps (1 dmg)
205 Encounter cards 6 Arrow Traps (2 dmg)
186 Monster cards 6 Spear Traps (3 dmg)
230 Power cards 4 Fire Traps (4 dmg)
160 Treasure cards 5 square Adventure
10 Adventure Treasure markers (Altar, Crystal
cards Prison, Gauntlgrym Door,
29 Adventure cards Klak’s Artifact, Vast Gate)
6 Boon cards
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2 square Treasure markers
(Flying Carpet, Glyph of
Warding)
3 square Power markers
(Consecrated Ground,
Freezing Cloud,
Illusionary Crowd)
3 oval Stance tokens
(Bruenor, Catti-brie,
Drizzt)
28 circle Power tokens
(Blade Barrier x5, Charge
x2, Cleric’s Shield, Double
Strike x2, Duel x2,
Flaming Sphere x3,
Freezing Cloud x3, Mirror
Image x3, Power Strike
x6, Wizard’s Eye)
6 circle Treasure tokens
(Caltrops x3, Camp,
Secret Tunnel x2)
23 circle Item tokens
(Animal, Crown,
Dimensional Shackles,
Filled Bowl x2, Feywalk
Amulet, Food,
Gravestorm’s Phylactery,
Holy Water, Icon of
Ravenloft, Key, Lever,
Map, Mirror, Portrait,
Silver Dagger, Skull,
Torch, Treasure x4,
Wooden Stake)
1 Devastation Orb token
1 Fleeing Cultist token
1 Gear token
8 Hero tokens
1 Kavan token
1 Mychasi token
5 Rage of Imix tokens
1 Sun token
23 Villager tokens
4 Water Symbol tokens
1 Snort circle marker
24 Time tokens
6 rectangle Reaction
markers (3 Calm, 3
Enrage)
2 rectangle Villain Power
markers (Dragon’s
Breath, Mist Form)
10 Shield tokens
8 Door tokens
6 Treasure Chest tokens
10 Coffin tokens
3 Collapsed Tunnel markers
55 square Monster tokens:
9 0-Monsters
11 1-Monster
6 2-Monsters
2 3-Monsters
1 4-Monsters
26 Villains
33 square Treasure tokens:
9 100 GP Bag of Copper
11 200 GP Bag of Silver
5 300 GP Bag of Gold
2 400 GP Bag of Platinum
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1 500 GP Bag of Jewels 5 large 1000-gold piece

5 Treasure tokens
40 small 100-gold piece 24 Advancement tokens:
tokens 6 Reroll tokens
16 medium 500-gold piece 6 +1 Damage tokens
tokens 6 Regain 2 HP tokens
6 Recharge tokens

To Start Playing
1. Monster Card deck
You will have to assemble themed Monster and Encounter
Decks depending on which adventure you are playing. Castle
Ravenloft adventures feature undead monsters as well as
spiders, wolves, and kobolds. The adventures in Wrath of
Ashardalon feature clan factions of kobolds, orcs, and duergar,
as well as strange aberrant monsters. Adventures from The
Legend of Drizzt feature drow and goblins, but also spiders and
trolls, while adventures from Temple of Elemental Evil feature
elemental cultists and other monstrous humanoids.

Here’s how the decks should be assembled.

Castle Ravenloft monster deck – 76 cards

 All 30 Castle Ravenloft cards

o and 8 Villains
 9 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
o Human Cultist x3, Kobold Dragonshield x3, Snake x3
o plus Kobold Dragonlord Villain card
 8 Legend of Drizzt cards
o Hypnotic Spirit x3, Spider Swarm x3, Hunting Party x2
 10 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
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o Air Cultist x3, Gnoll Archer x3, Troglodyte x3, Air

Elemental
o plus Air Elemental Villain card
 1 Blood of Gruumsh card
o Wereboar
 All 12 Curse of Undeath cards
 No Heart of Cormyr cards
 4 Sting of Lolth cards
o Demonweb Spider x2, Giant Spider, Shadow Mastiff
 2 Tyranny of Goblins cards
o Horned Devil and Wolf

Wrath of Ashardalon monster deck – 93 cards

 15 Castle Ravenloft cards

o Gargoyle x3, Kobold Skirmisher x3, Rat Swarm x3, Spider
x3, Wolf x3
o plus Kobold Sorcerer and Flesh Golem Villain cards
 All 30 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
o and 7 Villains
 12 Legend of Drizzt cards
o Feral Troll x2, Hunting Drake x3, Hunting Party x2, Spider
Swarm x3, Stalagmite x2
o plus Mind Flayer Villain card
 14 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
o Earth Cultist x3, Fire Bat x3, Fire Cultist x3, Troglodyte x3,
Earth Elemental, Fire Elemental
o plus Salamander, Earth Elemental, and Fire Elemental
Villain cards
 All 12 Blood of Gruumsh cards
 No Curse of Undeath cards
 2 Heart of Cormyr cards
o Copper Dragon and Earth Guardian
 5 Sting of Lolth cards
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o Demonweb Spider x2, Giant Spider, Shadow Mastiff,

Umber Hulk
 3 Tyranny of Goblins cards
o Feral Troll, Horned Devil, Wolf

The Legend of Drizzt monster deck – 104 cards

 12 Castle Ravenloft cards

o Gargoyle x3, Rat Swarm x3, Spider x3, Wolf x3
o plus Howling Hag Villain card
 15 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
o Cave Bear x3, Duergar Guard x3, Human Cultist x3, Legion
Devil x3, Snake x3
o plus Rage Drake and Duergar Captain Villain cards
 All 30 Legend of Drizzt cards
o and 7 Villains
 18 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
o Bugbear x3, Doppleganger x3, Fire Bat x3, Hobgoblin
Fighter x3, Water Cultist x3, Earth Elemental, Fire
Elemental, Water Elemental
o plus Ettin and Water Elemental Villain cards
 2 Blood of Gruumsh cards
o Boar and Owlbear
 1 Curse of Undeath card
o Hypnotic Spirit
 2 Heart of Cormyr cards
o Copper Dragon and Earth Guardian
 All 12 Sting of Lolth cards
 All 12 Tyranny of Goblins cards

Temple of Elemental Evil monster deck – 99 cards

 12 Castle Ravenloft cards

o Gargoyle x3, Rat Swarm x3, Spider x3, Wolf x3
 15 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
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o Gibbering Mouther x3, Grell x3, Human Cultist x3, Legion

Devil x3, Snake x3
o plus Otyugh Villain card
 11 Legend of Drizzt cards
o Hypnotic Spirit x3, Spider Swarm x3, Water Elemental x3,
Hunting Party x2
 All 46 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
o and 7 Villains
 1 Blood of Gruumsh cards
o Owlbear
 1 Curse of Undeath card
o Hypnotic Spirit
 2 Heart of Cormyr cards
o Copper Dragon and Earth Guardian
 5 Sting of Lolth cards
o Demonweb Spider x2, Giant Spider, Shadow Mastiff,
Umber Hulk
 6 Tyranny of Goblins cards
o Bugbear Berserker, Hobgoblin Soldier x2, Hobgoblin
Sorcerer, Horned Devil, Wolf

2. Encounter Card deck

The Encounter Card deck should also be assembled based on
the adventure being played. You must not mix them all together
because it would be odd to find Strahd lurking in Ashardalon’s
lair, just as it would be odd to see a volcanic spray in a cold,
misty castle. That being said, some Encounter cards have no
preset theme and can be added to any base Encounter deck.

Here’s how the decks should be assembled.

Castle Ravenloft encounter deck – 110 cards

 All 60 Castle Ravenloft cards

 29 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
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o Numbers 51-54, 56, 58, 60-62, 66, 68, 70, 72, 74-78, 81-
82, 84, 89, 91, 94, 97-98, 101-103
 7 Legend of Drizzt cards
o Numbers 11-14, 113, 124, 127
 13 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
o Numbers 61-64, 73-74, 77-78, 81, 155, 160, 165, 167
 Ally Encounter card from Heart of Cormyr

Wrath of Ashardalon encounter deck – 120 cards

 31 Castle Ravenloft cards

o Numbers 51-52, 54-55, 59-61, 63-64, 66-67, 70-74, 79, 85-
87, 89-90, 94-95, 102, 105-110
 All 57 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
 16 Legend of Drizzt cards
o Numbers 11-14, 19, 21-22, 111-117, 124, 127
 15 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
o Numbers 61-64, 73-74, 77-79, 81, 83, 155, 160, 165, 167
 Ally Encounter card from Heart of Cormyr

The Legend of Drizzt encounter deck – 131 cards

 30 Castle Ravenloft cards

o Numbers 51-52, 55, 59-61, 63-64, 66-67, 70-74, 79, 85-87,
89-90, 94-95, 102, 105-110
 41 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
o Numbers 51-54, 56, 58, 60-61, 63-64, 66, 68, 70, 72, 74-
79, 81-86, 88-95, 97-103
 All 42 Legend of Drizzt cards
 17 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
o Numbers 61-64, 68, 73-74, 77-79, 81, 83, 155, 160-161,
165, 167
 Ally Encounter card from Heart of Cormyr

Temple of Elemental Evil encounter deck – 110 cards

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 26 Castle Ravenloft cards

o Numbers 51-52, 54-55, 59-61, 63-64, 66-67, 70-74, 79, 85-
87, 89-90, 94-95, 98, 102
 31 Wrath of Ashardalon cards
o Numbers 51-54, 56-58, 60-61, 63, 66, 68, 70, 72, 74-78,
81-84, 86, 89, 91-92, 94, 97-99
 7 Legend of Drizzt cards
o Numbers 11-14, 19, 113, 117
 All 45 Temple of Elemental Evil cards
 Ally Encounter card from Heart of Cormyr

3. Treasure Card decks

Treasure cards may be mixed together from all four games. It is
possible you may find a treasure that doesn’t seem to fit the
theme of the adventure you are playing, but it’s rare. What you
should not do is mix Fortunes and Blessings with Items and
Adventure Treasures. They each get their own deck, while
Blessing cards may be shuffled together into the Fortune
Treasure card deck.

There are four types of Treasure Cards:

Fortunes are played immediately and provide an immediate

benefit. If the benefit has no effect, nothing happens. Discard a
Fortune Treasure card immediately.

Blessings are played immediately and last until the end of your
next turn. They provide a benefit to all Heroes while they are in
play. Discard a Blessing Treasure card at the end of your next
turn. These cards are mixed into the Fortune Treasure card
deck.

Items provide a lasting benefit. When you draw an Item

Treasure card, decide if you want to keep it for your Hero or if
you want to give it to another Hero. Once you’ve decided who
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gets the Item, you can’t give it to another Hero later in the
adventure. In campaign play, Item Treasures can be kept and
used in subsequent adventures. They may be traded between
Heroes or even sold for half their value. Place the Item next to
the Hero card of the Hero who received it.

Adventure Treasures were only made for Castle Ravenloft, and

some of them represent special rewards for completing an
adventure. In campaign play, they can be kept and used in
subsequent adventures. Half of these treasures have
corresponding circular Item tokens that can be placed face
down in the Castle Ravenloft adventures, along with other Item
tokens, and then picked up and obtained. Two treasures from
Temple of Elemental Evil also have an Adventure Treasure flavor
to them: the Devastation Orb and Drown: Water Trident.

4. Choosing Heroes
Distribute the d20 dice among the players. They may choose a
Hero from the pool of 23, by choice or randomly. Find the
Heroes’ Hero cards, Power cards, and figures. (The name of
each Hero is printed on the base of the figure.) From now on,
adventures and cards refer to the players as “Heroes.”

A number of statistics are presented on the large cardboard

Hero cards. These include the Hero’s Name, Race, Class and
Level printed at the top and the lower right-hand corner. The
Hero’s AC, HP, Speed, and Surge Value are in the middle.

Each Hero has a special ability described below his or her basic
statistics, and below that is listed which powers he or she starts
out with at 1st Level. Either read and choose your Hero’s
Powers, or for more of a challenge, shuffle the cards together
and choose your Hero’s Powers randomly. Either way, set aside
any Power cards that aren’t used.

Lastly, each Hero draws a Treasure card from the Item deck.
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5. Choosing an Adventure
These rules are designed for campaign play, so in general, you
will start with the first adventure from Temple of Elemental Evil
and proceed through them to The Legend of Drizzt, then Wrath
of Ashardalon, and finally Castle Ravenloft, though, you may
also choose the adventures at random. Either way, check the
“Adventure Setup” section of the adventure book to see if your
chosen adventure calls for any special game pieces.

Unless the adventure says otherwise, place the Start Tile in the
center of the table and place one Healing Surge token per Hero
beside it. The first few adventures in the campaign will be
difficult because of increased Monsters and Encounters. Until
the party has leveled up a little, the Healing Surges will be
extremely useful.

Unless the adventure says otherwise, place each Hero figure on

any square of the Start Tile.

6. Dungeon/Cavern Tile Stack

Set up the Dungeon/Cavern Tile stack (the deck of tiles) using
the setup instructions in the adventure you have selected.
Unlike the Monster, Encounter, and Treasure decks, you don’t
have to mix the dungeon tiles together. For one, the Legend of
Drizzt tiles say “Cavern Tile” on the back instead of “Dungeon
Tile” and the Temple of Elemental Evil tiles have a slightly
different logo, both of which make mixing counterproductive.
And two, the Legend of Drizzt tiles are slightly “rockier,” making
the dungeon feel more like a cavern.

Technically, Castle Ravenloft, Wrath of Ashardalon, and Temple

of Elemental Evil tiles can be mixed, but there’s quite a bit of
theme to the Castle Ravenloft tiles, with all the bones and
coffins, and same goes for the Temple of Elemental Evil tiles,
with all the different element symbols and trap squares. That
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being said, some generic Castle Ravenloft tiles could be mixed

with Wrath of Ashardalon tiles to make its Dungeon Tile stack
more robust than its basic 24 tiles. There are 8 Castle Ravenloft
tiles with no skull and no name, meaning they can easily
transfer to Wrath of Ashardalon.

After assembling the Dungeon Tile stack, you are now ready to
begin play. The adventure tells you any other rules you need in
the “Special Adventure Rules” section, or any rules that change
the general game rules presented in this book.

Town Adventures
For town adventures, create the town by assembling the 5 town
tiles located on the back of the 5 Temple of Elemental Evil
double-sized tiles. The Town Square tile is on the back of the
Start Tile and goes in the middle. The back of the Elemental
Earth Node tile goes to the east, the back of the Elemental Fire
Node tile goes to the southeast, the back of the Elemental
Water Node tile goes to the west, and the back of the Elemental
Air Node tile goes to the northwest.

Cavern Edges Tiles and Cavern Complexes

Some adventures in The Legend of Drizzt use the quarter-sized
Cavern Edge tiles to close off unexplored edges of some tiles.
They can also be used in creating pre-built cavern complexes.

First, place the Start Tile on the table and shuffle the Cavern Tile
stack. Then place a Cavern tile next to each unexplored edge of
the Start Tile.

Next, place another Cavern tile next to each unexplored edge.

Count the number of unexplored edges that remain, then take

that many Cavern Edge tiles. If the adventure calls for the
numbered Fissure Tiles, take them before other plain Cavern
Edge tiles. Shuffle the pile of Cavern Edge tiles and place one
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next to each unexplored edge in the cavern complex. When you

have finished, you have created a completely closed off cavern
complex and may start the adventure.

Blocked Edges
Some adventures call for you to add Cavern Edge tiles to the
map during play. If you cannot physically place a tile because a
Cavern Edge Tile is in the way, your Hero is blocked from
exploring in that direction.

PLAYER TURN
Each player’s turn consists of three phases. On your turn,
complete these phases in this order:

 Hero Phase
 Exploration Phase
 Villain Phase

Hero Phase
This is the phase in which your Hero moves through the
dungeon and makes attacks against the Monsters encountered
along the way.

1. Take Poisoned (and/or Cursed) Damage.

2. If your Hero has 0 Hit Points, use a Healing Surge token if
one is available.
3. Move and perform one of four actions (your Hero may
move before or after performing the action):
 Attack
 Disable a trap
 Move
 Other action (mostly introduced in ToEE)
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Healing Surges
The Heroes begin the campaign with one Healing Surge token
per Hero. These tokens are a resource that the entire group
shares. You use Healing Surge tokens to revive a Hero that has
been reduced to 0 Hit Points.

Movement
Your Hero moves according to his Speed, a number
representing squares per turn. Your Hero can move any number
of squares in any direction, including diagonally, up to his
Speed.

Exceptions:

 You can’t move your Hero into a square filled with a

wall (or building, fenced-in area, or plateau on a Town
tile).
 You can’t move your Hero into a square occupied by a
Monster. (By these two rules together, you can’t move
your Hero diagonally between a wall and a Monster.)
 You can move your Hero through a square occupied by
another Hero, but you can’t end your Hero’s movement
there.
 You can’t move part of your Speed, place a new
Dungeon tile, and then continue your move, since those
are considered to be two different phases of your turn.

Definition: Adjacent
Most of the time a Hero is adjacent to anything surrounding
him, even if diagonally. However, in the case of walls, doors,
treasure chests, and 1-inch trap tokens, a Hero is adjacent if the
square he is on shares an edge with the wall, door, chest, or 1-
inch trap token. If the square shares a single corner, the Hero is
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not adjacent. Tiles behave the same way—tiles are only

adjacent if they share an edge, not a corner.

Conditions
In general, conditions are gained during the Exploration or
Villain Phase, but take effect during the Hero Phase, so their
explanation is being put here.

Though you can have multiple types of Condition markers on

your Hero card simultaneously, you can have only one of the
same type on your Hero card at the same time.

There are six types of “Hero” Conditions and one “Monster”

Condition:

Slowed: If an attack or other effect causes your Hero to become

Slowed, put a Slowed marker on your Hero card. If your Hero is
Slowed, your Speed is reduced to 2. Your Hero can only move
more than his Speed if instructed to move to an adjacent tile.
Slowed Heroes can still swap positions with other figures or be
placed in new positions. At the end of your Hero Phase, discard
the Slowed marker.

Immobilized: If an attack or other effect causes your Hero to

become Immobilized, put an Immobilized marker on your Hero
card. If your Hero is Immobilized, your Speed is reduced to 0—
you can’t move! Immobilized Heroes can still swap positions
with other figures or be placed in new positions. At the end of
your Hero Phase, discard the Immobilized marker.

Dazed: If an attack or other effect causes your Hero to become

Dazed, put a Dazed marker on your Hero card. If your Hero is
Dazed, you can only perform one action: Move, Attack, Disable
a Trap, or Other. If a power or other effect allows you to
remove the condition during your Hero Phase, you immediately
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regain your full allotment of actions and can perform them that
turn. At the end of your Hero Phase, discard the Dazed marker.

Poisoned: If an attack or other effect causes your Hero to

become Poisoned, put a Poisoned marker on your Hero card. If
your Hero is Poisoned, you take 1 damage at the beginning of
your Hero Phase. Take this damage before using any Treasure
cards and before checking to see if you must spend a Healing
Surge. At the end of your Hero Phase, roll a d20 die. If your
result is greater than 10, discard the Poisoned marker.

Advantage: If an attack or other effect causes your Hero to gain

Advantage, put an Advantage marker on your Hero card. While
your Hero has Advantage, the next time he makes an Attack, roll
2d20 and use the higher result. Then discard the Advantage
marker. If your Hero gains Disadvantage while having
Advantage, discard both markers.

Disadvantage: If an attack or other effect causes your Hero to

gain Disadvantage, put a Disadvantage marker on your Hero
card. While your Hero has Disadvantage, the next time he
makes an Attack, roll 2d20 and use the lower result. Then
discard the Disadvantage marker. If your Hero gains Advantage
while having Disadvantage, discard both markers.

Stunned: If an attack or other effect causes a Monster to

become Stunned, put a Stunned marker on that Monster’s
figure. When a Monster is Stunned, it skips its next activation
and does nothing. After the Monster skips its activation, discard
the Stunned marker.

Triggering Trap Tokens

When a Hero moves into a square containing a 1-inch Trap
token, or when he unsuccessfully attempts to disable a 1-inch
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Trap token, trigger the Trap and flip the token face up to reveal
its effect. Monsters do not trigger Traps.

If the token doesn’t have a damage number, the Hero suffers no

effect. Otherwise, the Hero takes the damage indicated (in
other words, the 1-inch Trap tokens only affect the active Hero).
Then remove the token from the board. If your Hero was in the
middle of his move and has Hit Points remaining, you may
continue to move him normally.

Attacking
A Hero makes attacks using his Power cards or the powers on
Treasure cards. A Hero’s Power cards represent weapons,
physical training, arcane spells, or divine prayers, depending on
a Hero’s class. Whenever your Hero attacks, you pick a power
you have in front of you (either from a Power card or a Treasure
card).

Daily Powers
Daily powers represent a significant attack or spectacular effect.
When you use a Daily power, you flip it over and cannot use it
again until some other effect (usually a Treasure card or special
event) allows you to flip it back up. Daily powers are the
strongest attacks you have access to in the game.

At-Will Powers
At-Will powers are relatively simple attacks, spells, or prayers.
Using at At-Will power requires no special effort. It is weaker
than a Daily power, so when you use it you do not flip it over.
You can use it again on your next turn.

Utility Powers
Utility powers are special maneuvers that don’t actively attack
Monsters but instead provide other advantages. These
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advantages may include a specialized move or the ability to

counter a Monster’s attack. Many of these powers don’t require
any attack action to use, instead specifying when to use the
ability. Whether or not to flip the card over after use is written
on the bottom of the card. You may not use it again until some
other effect (usually a Treasure card or special event) allows you
to flip it back up.

Power Tokens
Some power cards come with corresponding tokens such as
Thorgrim’s Consecrated Ground (square), or Heskan’s Flaming
Sphere (circle), or Drizzt’s Dancing Serpent stance (oval). Keep
these tokens out of the way until you use the power on the
card, then place the tokens in the appropriate spot, either on a
tile or on a card, wherever the power says to put them.

Targeting, AC and HP, Attack Bonus, Damage

When you decide to attack, first determine which Monsters
your Hero can target. A power specifies what Monsters you can
target, ranging from only Monsters in an adjacent square to a
Monster as far as 3 tiles away.

Keep in mind that you can never trace a diagonal path between
tiles. If a power lets you attack a Monster within 1 tile of you,
that does not include Monsters on a Dungeon tile that is
diagonal to yours. Also using this example, you cannot attack a
Monster within 1 tile of your Hero if a wall completely blocks
the path between the Hero’s tile and the Monster’s tile.

Definition: Within 1 tile

Very simply, the phrase “within 1 tile of an object” means
anything on the same tile as the object AND anything 1 tile
away from the object.
22

The AC (Armor Class) of a Hero or Monster determines how

difficult it is to hit. It represents a combination of physical
armor, agility, and natural toughness. HP (Hit Points) show how
much damage a Hero or Monster can take before being
defeated.

Most, if not all, attack powers and Monster attacks have an

attack bonus. A power with a higher attack bonus is more likely
to hit than one with a lower bonus.

For each enemy a Hero’s power or a Monster’s attack targets,

roll a d20 die and add the power’s attack bonus. If the result of
the die roll plus the bonus is equal to or greater than the
target’s Armor Class, the attack hits.

If an attack hits, it deals the listed damage to the target.

Damage that reduces a Monster or Hero’s Hit Points to 0
defeats it (see below). Damage that does not reduce a Monster
or Hero’s Hit Points to 0 stays on that Monster or Hero (use Hit
Point tokens to track damage).

Critical Hit and Critical Miss

When a Hero attacks and rolls a natural 20, that attack deals +1
damage. When a Hero attacks and rolls a natural 1, it is not only
a Miss but also a Fail, meaning there is no “Miss” damage
either.

Monsters do not benefit or suffer from Critical Hit and Critical

Miss rolls.

Defeating Monsters
If a Monster’s Hit Points are reduced to 0, the Monster is
defeated. Remove its figure from the board. The player
controlling that Monster discards its Monster card into the
 23

Experience pile. If more than one Hero controls that type of

Monster, the player who made the attack discards the card if he
controls one of those Monsters. If not, go to the next player
around the board. The first player you reach who controls one
of those Monsters discards that Monster card.

When your Hero defeats a Monster, draw a Fortune Treasure

card and a Treasure token. You can draw only one Treasure card
and one Treasure token per Hero Phase, no matter how many
Monsters you defeat.

Disabling a Trap
Traps can be disabled. While a Hero is on a tile with a Trap
(either a 1-inch square token or a 2-inch square marker), as an
action, he can attempt to disable that Trap. Roll a d20.

 If you a roll a 1-10, you failed. A 1-inch square Trap

token is triggered automatically. A 2-inch square Trap
marker will activate during the Villain Phase of the Hero
who controls it.
 If you roll an 11-20, you succeeded! Put the Trap token
or marker in the Experience pile to represent 3
Experience Points and discard the corresponding Trap
card.

Note that the 2-inch square Trap markers say “Disable 10+.” The
above rules still apply. 1-10 is a fail, while 11-20 is a success.

Also note that a Hero may simultaneously move onto a square

containing a trap token AND announce he is attempting to
disable the trap BEFORE it is set off. If he fails to disable the
trap, he suffers the trap’s damage (if there is damage). He may
not continue to move, of course, as he has elected to take his
Disable Trap Action.
24

Experience Points
Heroes earn Experience Points by defeating Monsters or by
disabling Traps. As stated above, when you defeat a Monster,
the Hero who controls it puts that Monster card in the Heroes’
Experience pile. Each Monster card lists the Experience Points it
provides. The tougher the Monster, the more Experience Points
it provides. All disabled traps are worth 3 Experience Points.

Heroes can spend Experience Points in two ways: to cancel an

Encounter card or to level up. Spending Experience Points
during an adventure requires the Heroes to discard Monster
cards and Trap markers or tokens from their Experience pile.
Leftover Experience Points from previous adventures can only
be used to train and level up in town between adventures. They
cannot be used to cancel Encounter cards in future adventures.
So for example, if the players need to spend 5 Experience Points
to cancel an Encounter card but there is only a 3 Experience
Monster card and a 3 Experience Trap marker in the pile, then
they will have to sacrifice that extra Experience Point to cancel
the Encounter card.

Other
Investigating coffins, opening doors and treasure chests,
unlocking doors, and picking up and setting down objects do not
count as an “Other Action.” They may be done at any time in
step 3, unless otherwise specified on cards or in the Special
Adventure rules. Treasure cards will nearly always tell you when
and under what conditions you may use them.

Picking Up and Dropping Objects

Some adventures instruct you to pick up or place an object
(represented by a token) on a tile. To pick up an object, your
Hero needs to be in any square adjacent to the object during
 25

your Hero Phase. Likewise, to drop a carried object, the carrying

Hero just needs to be in a square adjacent to the location where
he wants to drop it. Your Hero can carry any number of objects.
Picking up or dropping an object does not take an action. You
can even pick up or drop objects in the middle of a move.

Destroying Objects
An adventure might specify that an object needs to be
destroyed to win a particular scenario. If the object has an
Armor Class and Hit Points, your Hero can target it just like a
Monster. If your Hero has a power that attacks all Monsters on
a specific tile, it can also attack an object on that tile. Once you
deal damage equal to its number of Hit Points, you destroy the
object and remove its marker from the tile.

Escaping the Dungeon

Campaign rules, as well as some specific adventures, require
Heroes to escape from the dungeon. To escape from the
dungeon, your Hero needs to be on the specified location of an
adventure (such as the ladder square on the Secure Exit tile or
the stairs of the Secret Stairway tile) or the stairs on the Start
tile at the end of your Hero Phase. Unless the adventure
specifies otherwise, once you have escaped from the dungeon
you no longer take your Hero or Exploration Phase, but you do
continue to take your Villain Phase and activate your Allies, the
Villain (if there is one), and any Monster or Trap cards you
control.

Any Other Actions

Some adventures and cards allow for Heroes to take special
actions. These actions might range from rescuing a panicked
villager to passing a magical artifact. When your Hero takes one
of these actions, follow the instructions for the action as
described in the Special Adventure Rules section, or on the card.
26

Unconsciousness
A Hero knocked unconscious during his Hero Phase does not
have an Exploration Phase, but does have a Villain Phase, when
his Allies, the Villain(s), and his Monsters and Traps activate.

Regaining Hit Points

Heroes and Monsters can regain lost Hit Points through various
means. A Hero or Monster can never regain more Hit Points
than his total. Whenever a Hero that has been reduced to 0 Hit
Points regains any hit points, stand him back up—the Hero is
back in the fight and can use powers and items normally.

When you have finished all the steps in your Hero Phase, your
Exploration Phase begins.

Exploration Phase
This is the phase in which you add new Dungeon tiles, draw
Monster tokens and cards, place Monsters, and draw Encounter
cards.

1. If your Hero occupies a square along an unexplored edge,

then:
a. Draw and place a Dungeon tile.
b. Draw a Monster token (not for ToEE) to determine if 0,
1, 2, 3, or 4 Monsters show up.
c. Draw and place the indicated number of Monsters on
the new tile.
d. Go to step 2.
2. (optional) You may Search your current tile. Roll d4, d6,
d8, and d12.
a. If the sum is divisible by 4, draw an Encounter card. Go
to step 3. (25%)
 27

b. If the sum is divisible by 3, draw a Monster card and

place it on your Hero’s tile. Go to step 3. (25%)
c. If the sum is divisible by 2 and there is no “searched”
token on the tile, draw an Item Treasure card and
place a “searched” token (a plain yellow HP token from
WoA) on the tile. Go to step 3. (16.67%)
d. If the sum is divisible by 2 and there IS a “searched”
token on the tile, draw a Treasure Token. Go to step 3.
e. If the sum is prime, draw a Treasure token. Go to step
3. (31.09%)
f. Otherwise (i.e. if the sum is 25), nothing is found. Go to
step 3. (2.25%)
3. Draw an Encounter card, unless you placed a tile with a
white triangle in step 1.

Monster Cards
Monster cards are laid out similarly to Hero cards in that the
Monster’s Name, Type, AC, and HP are clearly printed near the
top. All Monsters also have Experience Points noted at the
bottom of their card, while some have a Special Ability to pay
attention to.

To determine how a Monster moves and attacks, the players

should refer to the Monster’s Tactics section. The Monster’s
tactics are presented as a list. Each possible tactic for the
Monster starts with a statement. If that statement is true, the
Monster uses the resulting tactic. If the statement is not true,
go on to the next statement. The final entry in the tactics list is a
default action that the Monster follows if no other statements
are true.

If the tactic requires the Monster to move to a new tile, place

the Monster on the new tile’s spawn spot if the square is
empty. Whenever possible, Monsters move from tile to tile by
28

following the spawn spots. If the spawn spot square is occupied

or the tile doesn’t have one, place the Monster anywhere on
the tile.

Once the Monster has selected and followed one set of tactics,
the Monster’s turn ends. Do not continue to check its remaining
tactics for that turn.

Sometimes a Monster’s tactics requires you to place a new

Monster. Add that Monster to the end of any Monster cards
you control. The new Monster acts during your Villain Phase as
well.

Encounter Cards
Encounter cards represent the Events, Attacks, Traps, Hazards,
Curses, and Environments you and your fellow Heroes will
encounter during your adventures. Whenever you draw an
Encounter card, apply its effects immediately, or cancel the
Encounter card by spending (discarding) 5 Experience Points
from the Experience pile.

Event: An Event card is a strange occurrence, a dreadful sight or

sound, or some other incident that befalls your Hero. An Event
takes place when you draw the card unless you cancel it with
Experience Points. Once you have resolved the Event, discard it.

Most Events are yellow cards. A few Events include an attack

roll against one or more Heroes. These events appear on red
cards and are called Event—Attacks to distinguish them from
the Events that don’t include an attack roll.

Environment: An Environment card represents a major change

in the dungeon or cavern. The effects of an Environment card
apply to all Heroes and remain in effect until another
 29

Environment card is played. Place the Environment card where

everyone can see it.

If you draw an Environment card and there is already one in

play, discard the old Environment card and replace it with the
new one. You can cancel a newly drawn Environment card with
Experience Points just like any other Encounter card. If you
cancel a new Environment card when there is already one in
play, you do not discard the old Environment card.

Curse: Some Encounter cards represent a curse that affects a

single Hero. Place a Curse card on top of your Hero card to
remember its effect. Curses last a varying length of time as
described on their cards.

Trap: A Trap is a snare or other mechanical device placed in the

dungeon or cavern to defeat the Heroes. Each Trap card has a
corresponding marker. When you draw a Trap card, place the
Trap’s marker on the active Hero’s tile. If there is already a
marker there, discard the card and draw another Encounter
card.

After placing the Trap marker, put the Trap card in front of you
with any other Monster cards and Trap cards you have
acquired. Unlike other Encounter cards, the Trap activates
during your Villain Phase, like a Monster. Unlike Monsters,
Traps lack tactics. Instead, a Trap takes the actions listed on its
card just like an Encounter card. A Trap might attack all the
Heroes on its tile, or it might just attack the Hero closest to it.

Hazard: A Hazard is an obstacle that slows your passage through

the dungeon or cavern. A rock fall blocks part of the corridor, or
red-hot lava pouring from a fissure slowly fills the dungeon.
When you draw a Hazard card, place the Hazard’s marker on
the active Hero’s tile. If there is already a marker on the tile,
discard the Hazard card and draw a new Encounter card.
30

After placing the Hazard marker, follow the directions on the

Hazard card. You can cancel a newly drawn Hazard card with
Experience Points just like any other Encounter card. You
cannot disable a Hazard once it is in play as you can with Traps.

When you have finished all the steps in your Exploration Phase,
your Villain Phase begins.

Villain Phase
This is the phase in which you activate the Villain (if a Villain is in
play) and any Monster and Trap cards you have in front of you.

1. Activate any Allies and Villagers under your control.

2. Activate any Villains in play, one at a time.
3. Activate each Monster and Trap card, in turn, in the order
you drew them.

Allies and Villagers

Allies and Villagers follow slightly different rules than Heroes.
Allies and Villagers count as Heroes for the purpose of Monster
tactics and Hero powers. Allies and Villagers are unaffected by
Encounter cards. In general, if an Ally or Villager is reduced to 0
Hit Points or fewer, he is dead and removed from the board,
though sometimes you may be able to spend a Healing Surge on
him to revive him and carry on, depending on the adventure.

Villains
Villains are not controlled by any one player as Monsters are.
They activate during each player’s Villain Phase, even if that
player has escaped the dungeon or is unconscious. To keep
things orderly, the active Hero who discovers a “goal tile” and
 31

Villain may take its card and read its tactics for the remainder of
the adventure.

All attacks and powers that apply to Monsters also apply to

Villains with some exceptions, notably the Wand of Polymorph
Treasure Card (WoA 166). Any other exceptions are handled
within the special rules of the adventure you are playing.

When you defeat a Villain, you gain more treasure. If it is a

minor Villain (see chart below under Scaling), the active Hero
and the next player each draw a Fortune Treasure card and a
Treasure token. If it is a major Villain, then the active Hero and
the next 2 players each draw a Fortune Treasure card and a
Treasure token. If it is an epic Level 5 Villain, then the active
Hero and the next 3 players each draw a Fortune Treasure card
and a Treasure token, and finally if it is an epic Level 6 Villain,
the active Hero and the next 4 players each draw a Fortune
Treasure card and a Treasure token. Afterwards, place the
Villain’s card in the experience pile as with regular Monsters.

Defeating Heroes
A Hero that starts his turn at 0 Hit Points must spend a Healing
Surge token. If there are no Healing Surge tokens remaining, the
remaining Heroes may continue the adventure. If all Heroes are
at 0 Hit Points at the start of any Hero’s Hero Phase, the Heroes
lose the adventure.

When you are done with your Villain Phase, the player to your
left begins his or her turn.

CAMPAIGN PLAY
32

Instead of starting each adventure with new 1st level Heroes

and new Treasures, keep track of levels and advancement with
Campaign Rules.

There are over 50 official D&D adventures, with that many or

more fan-created ones. To be honest, running the same 4 or 5
Heroes through so many adventures could become boring. So,
keep a notebook handy, and record which Heroes went on
which adventures, whether they leveled up, what treasures
they found, and how much gold and experience they acquired.
Then come back to town, pool what you can, spend gold on
items, Healing Surges, or allies, spend experience to level up
and advance, and then rest up for the next adventure.

Choosing Heroes
Here is an example of how you can choose Heroes randomly for
an adventure. Roll 2d10.

1-4: Roll again. (Or if playing by yourself, start with one less
Hero in the group.) 5-8: Alaeros (mHF)
9-12: Allisa (fHRa) 13-16: Arjhan (mDbF)
17-20: Artemis (mHAs) 21-24: Athrogate (mDB)
25-28: Barrowin (fDC) 29-32: Bruenor (mDF)
33-36: Catti-brie (fHAr) 37-40: Drizzt (mDrRa)
41-44: Heskan (mDbW) 45-48: Immeril (mEW)
49-52: Jarlaxle (mDrS) 53-56: Kat (fHRg)
57-60: Keyleth (fEP) 61-64: Nymmestra (fEW)
65-68: Quinn (mHC) 69-72: Ratshadow (mhRg)
73-76: Regis (mhRg) 77-80: Talon (fHRa)
81-84: Tarak (mhORg) 85-88: Thorgrim (mDC)
89-92: Vistra (fDF) 93-96: Wulfgar (mHBar)
97-100: Roll again. (Or choose your own Hero.)
 33

Attempt to complete as many adventures as you can with Hero

levels, powers, treasures, gold, and experience carried over
from previous adventures. Healing Surges also carry over. They
are not reset in subsequent adventures until all Heroes are
defeated.

If you do decide to “rest” Heroes in order to choose new

Heroes, divide the current Experience Points equally among the
“resting” Heroes. Keep track of their experience as well as their
Levels and Powers, so that when you call on them again you can
add their experience back into the pool.

Town Actions
Before and after each adventure, each player can take any
number of Town actions to prepare for the next adventure. A
player can choose from the Town actions below.

 Swap Powers. In between adventures, you may change

your Hero’s selected powers. You are still bound by the
selection requirements on the Hero card.

 Hire Allies. Allies can be hired for 1000 gold pieces if you
look through the cards and choose the exact one you want.
They can be hired for 400 gold pieces if you shuffle the Ally
cards together and choose one at random. If an Ally
survives an adventure and a Hero wishes to retain his
services for the next adventure, he need only spend an
additional 100 gold pieces.

 Trade Treasure Cards. You may give or trade an Item

Treasure card with another player.

 Buy Items or Healing Surges. The Town’s merchants are

always changing their inventory. Between adventures, draw
34

three Item Treasure cards at random to form the “store”

from which you can buy new items. Two Healing Surges are
always available from the store and priced at 1500 gold
pieces.

 Sell Items. You may sell any Treasure cards your Hero has
gained. The sold Treasure cards go back into the Treasure
deck and the Hero gains the value listed on the card in gold
pieces.

The Castle Ravenloft Item Treasures are worth the following

amounts of gold:

Amulet of Protection 1000 gp

Boots of Striding 1000 gp
Crystal Ball 2000 gp
Dragon’s Breath Elixir 1500 gp
Glyph of Warding 300 gp
Holy Avenger 1500 gp
Holy Water 1500 gp
Lucky Charm 600 gp
Magic Sword 1000 gp
Necklace of Fireballs 1000 gp
Potion of Healing 600 gp
Potion of Rejuvenation 1000 gp
Ring of Accuracy 1000 gp
Ring of Regeneration 2000 gp
Scroll of Teleportation 1000 gp
Thieves’ Tools 600 gp
Wand of Teleportation 1500 gp

The Temple of Elemental Evil Item Treasures are worth the

following amounts of gold:
 35

Claws of the Umber Hulk 1500 gp

Cloak of Protection 1000 gp
Exploding Gem 1500 gp
Flame Tongue 1500 gp
Frost Brand 1500 gp
Healing Ember 1000 gp
Healing Potion 600 gp
Horn of Blasting 1000 gp
Instrument of the Bards 2000 gp
Ioun Stone of Inspiration 2000 gp
Javelin of Lightning 1000 gp
Potion of Haste 600 gp
Potion of Stonewalk 600 gp
Ring of Elemental Command 2000 gp
Ring of the Ram 2000 gp
Robe of Eyes 1000 gp
Thundering Boomerang 1500 gp
Wings of Flying 2000 gp

 Level Up. During an adventure, your Hero can level up if you

roll a natural 20 on any Hero’s roll – whether it is an attack
roll, a disable trap roll, an end Poison roll, or an end Curse
roll – and have enough Experience Points to spend (basically
any d20 roll made during the Hero Phase). Between
adventures, your Hero can also level up, but it will cost
more Experience Points. Here is a table:

Roll a Natural 20 Train in Town

2nd Level 3 Experience 7 Experience
3rd Level 6 Experience 13 Experience
4th Level 10 Experience 22 Experience
5th Level 15 Experience 34 Experience
6th Level 21 Experience 48 Experience
36

1. A Hero levels up to 2nd Level normally by following the

rules on his Hero card:
a. Turns his Character card over
b. Gains +1 to AC
c. Gains +2 HP
d. Gains +1 to Surge Value
e. Chooses a new Daily Power (in general)
2. A Hero levels up to 3rd Level by following these rules:
a. Uses the black sides of 3 CR HP tokens
b. Chooses a new Utility Power (in general)
c. Gains a Reroll token
d. Learns Hero’s Instinct. This is an ability to cancel a
drawn and read Encounter card with a roll of equal to or
less than the Hero’s level on a d10. If the roll fails, the
card may not be canceled with the usual 5 Experience
Points.
 Clerics and Paladins may cancel Curse cards.
 Rangers and Archers may cancel Environment and
Hazard cards.
 Rogues may cancel Trap cards.
 Villainous Heroes (Artemis, Jarlaxle, and
Athrogate) may cancel Event—Attack cards.
 All other Heroes may cancel only Event cards.
3. A Hero levels up to 4th Level by following these rules:
a. Uses the black side of 4 CR HP tokens
b. Gains +1 to AC
c. Gains +2 HP
d. Gains +1 to Surge Value
e. Chooses a new At-Will Power (in general)
f. Gains a +1 Damage token
4. A Hero levels up to 5th Level by following these rules:
a. Uses the black side of a CR 5-HP token
b. Chooses a new Daily Power (in general)
c. Gains a Regain 2 HP token
 37

d. Gains a Recharge token

5. A Hero levels up to 6th Level by following these rules:
a. Uses the black sides of a CR 5-HP token and a CR 1-HP
token
b. Gains +1 to AC
c. Gains +2 HP
d. Gains +1 to Surge Value
e. Gains his remaining Power cards

 Advancement Tokens. Advancement tokens are now only

available through leveling up and experience, not by
purchasing with gold. You may ignore the gold values on the
tokens. Your Heroes will start earning the Advancement
tokens at 3rd Level and above. An Advancement token
allows your Hero access to a specific benefit. A Hero can
never trade or give an Advancement token to another Hero.

The available tokens include:

 Reroll: This token can be used to reroll any die rolled

during your Hero Phase.
 +1 Damage: This token can be used after you hit with an
attack to deal +1 damage.
 Regain 2 HP: This token can be used during your Hero
Phase to regain 2 Hit Points.
 Recharge: This token can be used during your Hero
Phase to flip up any face-down Power or Treasure card,
enabling another use of that card.

Once you have earned an Advancement token, you may use it

as noted on the token during an adventure. It does not take an
action. After you use it, flip it over and it becomes inaccessible
until the next adventure.

All Other Rules

38

This section covers all other rules that haven’t yet been covered
in this book.

Scaling
You will be drawing Monster tokens when Exploring to
determine if 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 Monsters show up. For each gained
level among the Heroes, take a 0-Monster token out of the
draw pool. For example, if you have a party with two 1st-Level
Heroes, one 2nd Level Hero, and one 4th Level Hero, take out 4
0-Monster tokens because this set of Heroes has gained 4 levels
beyond 1st Level.

When there are no more 0-Monster tokens to remove, then for

each gained level add a lesser villain Monster token to the draw
pool. These consist of:

 Werewolf (CR)
 Young Vampire (CR)
 Kobold Sorcerer (CR or WoA)
 Kobold Dragonlord (WoA or CR)
 Orc Shaman (WoA)
 Duergar Captain (WoA or LoD)
 Mind Flayer (LoD or WoA)
 Artemis (LoD)
 Jarlaxle (LoD)
 Air Elemental (ToEE or CR)
 Salamander (ToEE or WoA)
 Fire Elemental (ToEE or WoA)

Afterwards, add a greater villain Monster token to the draw

pool. These consist of:

 Zombie Dragon (CR)

 Howling Hag (CR or LoD)
 Flesh Golem (CR or WoA)
 39

 Otyugh (WoA or ToEE)

 Rage Drake (WoA or LoD)
 Shadow Dragon (LoD)
 Yochlol (LoD)
 Earth Elemental (ToEE or WoA)
 Water Elemental (ToEE or LoD)
 Ettin (ToEE or LoD)

Finally, add an epic villain Monster token to the draw pool.

These consist of:

 Strahd (CR)
 Gravestorm (CR)
 Ashardalon (WoA)
 Gauth (WoA)
 Balur (LoD)
 Matron Baenre (LoD)
 Velathidros (ToEE)

For example, let’s say you have a party with one 3rd-Level Hero,
two 4th-Level Heroes, and two 5th-Level Heroes and you are
playing a generic WoA adventure that doesn’t call for any
specific villain. This party has gained 16 levels past 1st Level (4
each for the 5th-Level Heroes, 3 each for the 4th-Level Heroes,
and 2 for the 3rd-Level Hero), so take out all 9 0-Monster
tokens, add the 5 WoA-themed lesser Villains, and 2 of the 4
WoA-themed greater Villains.

A maxed out party with five 6th-Level Heroes would have

gained 25 levels past 1st Level. It’s possible, depending on the
adventure, that you won’t have enough tokens to add into the
draw pool. If you still think you need to add difficulty, take out a
few 1-Monster tokens.

Item Tokens
40

As well as drawing Monsters, place one of 22 circular Item

tokens face down on

 the bone piles of Castle Ravenloft tiles with names but

without skulls (6 tiles out of stack of 40),
 the scorch marks of Wrath of Ashardalon tiles with
doors and black arrows (5 tiles out of stack of 24),
 the mushroom patches of Legend of Drizzt Volcanic
Vent tiles (8 tiles out of stack of 32),
 the elemental symbol of Temple of Elemental Evil tiles
with traps and black arrows without names (7 tiles out
of stack of 32).

Each token has a specific effect:

 Dimensional Shackles, Feywalk Amulet, Holy Water (CR

only), Icon of Ravenloft (CR only), Silver Dagger (CR only),
Torch, Wooden Stake (CR only) – Take the corresponding
Treasure card.
 Treasure (x4) – Draw a Treasure (Item) card.
 Crown – Sell for 500 gp.
 Key, Lever – Open any Locked Door without having to roll.
 Mirror, Portrait – Sell for 100 gp.
 Map – Flip up the next two tiles in the Dungeon Tile stack
and leave them face up.
 Filled Bowl (x2), Food – Heal 1 HP.
 Skull – Take 1 damage.
 Animal – You are startled; draw an Encounter card.

Coffins
Some Castle Ravenloft Dungeon tiles have a coffin symbol. Place
Coffin tokens whenever you draw a tile with a coffin symbol on
it. It does not take an action to investigate a coffin. If you are
 41

adjacent to a Coffin token, you may choose to flip over the

token and reveal what’s inside. The contents are as follows:

 3 Traps: “Active Hero takes 1 Damage.”

o When you reveal a Trapped coffin, only the Hero who
opened the coffin takes 1 damage.
 2 Monsters: “Place 1 new Monster on this tile,” and “Strahd
Appears!”
o Consider removing the “Strahd Appears!” token
until the party has gained a few levels.
 2 Items: “You find the Wooden Stake” or “Holy Water Silver
Dagger. Take its item card.”
o If this coffin is revealed and the party already has
both the Wooden Stake and the Silver Dagger, draw
an Item Treasure card instead.
 1 Empty!

Heroes and Monsters can move over a space containing a

coffin, but cannot end their movement there.

Named Tiles
Try variant rules for tiles with names. Only use these variant
rules for tiles that do not have special rules in the adventure
you are playing. Adventure specific rules always override any of
these variant rules.

 Arcane Circle (Castle Ravenloft) – black arrow, skull

 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero on this tile may
attempt to decipher this arcane circle. Roll the die. Wizards
add +6 to their roll. Each Hero gets only one attempt.
 1-17: You fail and a monster appears. Draw 1 Monster
Card and place it on the tile.
 18-20: You succeed and flip up all of your Power Cards.
 Chapel (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, skull
42

 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero (only one per

adventure) who begins his turn adjacent to the altar may
spend 10 Experience Points and all of his movement for
this turn to…
 Fully heal the entire group.
OR
 Gain one Healing Surge.
 Dark Fountain (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, no skull
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero adjacent to the
fountain may drink from it. Roll the die.
 1-12: The water is poisoned! Take 1 damage.
 13-18: The water refreshes you. Heal 3 HP.
 19-20: The cool water seems blessed. Recover to full life.
o Each Hero may drink from the fountain once. However,
once the fountain has been rolled for, the other
Heroes will automatically get the same result from it.
They do not roll again.
 Fetid Den (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, skull
 Draw a Monster Token and place two more than the
indicated number of Monsters on the tile.
 Laboratory (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, skull
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero on this tile may search
this room. Roll the die.
 1-12: You find nothing of use.
 13-20: Draw from the Item Treasure Deck until you draw
a potion. Take it, then shuffle the deck.
o The tile can only be searched once.
 Rotting Nook (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, no skull
 Draw from the Monster deck until you draw 2 Undead
Monsters. Then shuffle the deck.
 Secret Stairway (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, no skull
 A Hero who ends his Hero Phase on the Secret Stairway tile
may use this tile as an alternate exit from the dungeon.
 Workshop (Castle Ravenloft) – white arrow, no skull
 43

 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero on this tile may search

this room. Roll the die.
 1-15: You find nothing.
 16-20: Draw two items from the Item Treasure Deck.
o The tile can only be searched once.
 Tunnel Exit (Wrath of Ashardalon) – black arrow
 Draw an Item Token and place it on the scorch mark.
 A Hero who ends his Hero Phase on the Tunnel Exit tile
may use this tile as an alternate exit from the dungeon.
 Vault (Wrath of Ashardalon) – white arrow, door
 Place a Treasure Chest token behind the door.
 Broken Door (Legend of Drizzt)
 A Hero on this tile may examine the doorway. Roll the die.
Dwarves add +5 to their roll.
 1-12: Dead end. Place Cavern Edge tiles on the tile’s
unexplored edges. Do not place a Cavern Edge tile if it
will completely close off the dungeon.
 13-20: Just a minor cave-in. You push aside the largest
rocks and continue on your way. (No effect.)
 Crystal Shard (Legend of Drizzt)
 The Crystal Shard affects nearby Heroes differently. A Hero
on this tile may roll the die to investigate the crystal shard.
 1-5: The Hero is Immobilized for two turns. Take 2
Immobilized markers and discard 1 after each of the
Hero’s next two turns.
 6-10: The Hero is Dazed (for one turn as normal).
 11-15: No effect.
 16-20: The Hero may heal up to his Surge Value.
 Dark Chasm (Legend of Drizzt)
 It’s a Troll Bridge. The first Hero wishing to cross must pay
300 gold or surrender an Item. If the Hero does not pay the
toll, search the Monster Deck or the discard pile for a Feral
Troll and add its figure to the tile, if able. Then shuffle the
Monster Deck.
44

 Drow Glyph (Legend of Drizzt)

 An unlit brazier sits in the middle of the Drow Glyph tile. If
the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero on this tile may light the
brazier. Roll the die. Wizards add +5 to their roll.
 1-5: You carelessly left yourself inside the glyph when
you lit the brazier. An abyssal beast tears at you. Lose 2
HP.
 6-13: No effect.
 14-20: Draw 2 Treasure tokens.
 Dwarven Statue x2 (Legend of Drizzt)
 You use the giant statue to your advantage. Any Heroes on
this tile gain +2 AC.
 Secret Cave (Legend of Drizzt)
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero may end his Hero
Phase on the tile and choose one of the following:
 Regain 2 Hit Points.
 End one Condition.
 Flip up 1 used Utility or Daily Power.
o Each player may “rest” like this once per adventure.
 Underground River (Legend of Drizzt)
 The swiftly moving river and its slick shores are quite
treacherous. While on this tile, Heroes must reduce their
Speed by 2 (minimum of 2). Heroes may move into the tile
using their normal Speed.
 Air Altar (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, air symbol,
0 traps, 2 monsters
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero (only one per
adventure) who begins his turn adjacent to the altar may
spend 10 Experience Points and all of his movement for
this turn to…
 Fully heal the entire group.
OR
 Gain one Healing Surge.
 45

 Earth Altar (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, earth

symbol, 2 traps, 0 monsters
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero (only one per
adventure) who begins his turn adjacent to the altar may
spend 10 Experience Points and all of his movement for
this turn to…
 Fully heal the entire group.
OR
 Flip up all his Powers and Items.
 Fire Altar (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, fire
symbol, 0 traps, 2 monsters
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero (only one per
adventure) who begins his turn adjacent to the altar may
spend 10 Experience Points and all of his movement for
this turn to…
 Fully heal the entire group.
OR
 Flip up all his Powers and Items.
 Furnace Room (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, fire
symbol, 0 traps, 2 monsters
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero on this tile may search
this room. Roll the die.
 1-14: You find nothing of use.
 15-20: Draw one item from the Item Treasure Deck.
o The tile can only be searched once.
 Guard Room (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, water
symbol, 0 traps, 2 monsters
 Place a Treasure Chest token on the tile.
 Massacre Site (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, air
symbol, 4 traps, 0 monsters
 Even though the tile does not have dragon icons on it,
place two Monsters on two of the dead bodies and one
Item token on the other.
46

 Oubliette (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, earth

symbol, 4 traps, 0 monsters
 A Hero who ends his Hero Phase on the trap door of this
tile may “rest” underground. Remove the Hero from play.
The Hero does not draw Encounter cards during his
Exploration Phase. The Hero also chooses one of the
following:
 Regain 2 Hit Points.
 End one Condition.
 Flip up 1 used Utility or Daily Power.
o Each player may “rest” like this once per adventure.
 Pool of Olhydra (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow,
water symbol, 0 traps, 3 monsters
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero adjacent to the pool
may drink from it. Roll the die.
 1-9: The water is poisoned! Take 1 damage.
 10-17: The water refreshes you. Heal 3 HP.
 18-20: The cool water seems blessed. Recover to full life.
o Each Hero may drink from the pool once. However,
once the pool has been rolled for, the other Heroes
will automatically get the same result from it. They do
not roll again.
 Water Altar (Temple of Elemental Evil) – white arrow, water
symbol, 0 traps, 1 monster
 If the tile is free of Monsters, a Hero (only one per
adventure) who begins his turn adjacent to the altar may
spend 10 Experience Points and all of his movement for
this turn to…
 Fully heal the entire group.
OR
 Gain one Healing Surge.

Doors
 47

Some Wrath of Ashardalon Dungeon tiles have an open door

symbol, and some unnamed Castle Ravenloft tiles with skulls
and some Temple of Elemental Evil tiles with traps can
accommodate doors. As Legend of Drizzt is a cavern-based
game, doors would not make sense in those adventures, so you
should not use them.

Place Door tokens whenever you draw a tile with an open door
symbol, or whenever you draw a Castle Ravenloft unnamed tile
with a skull on it, or whenever you draw a Temple of Elemental
Evil tile with two sets of traps. Doors fit on unnamed Castle
Ravenloft tiles near the skull graphic. Flip a coin (or circle token,
or roll a d20) to determine where the door should be placed on
Temple of Elemental Evil tiles with two sets of traps.

It does not take an action to open a door. A Hero that is in a

square adjacent to a Door token can try to open the door.
Reveal what type of door it is by turning the token over. There
are three types of doors:

 4 Unlocked! When you reveal an Unlocked Door, discard

the Door token.
 2 Trapped! When you reveal a Trapped Door, each Hero
adjacent to the Closed Door token immediately takes 1
damage. Then discard the Door token.
 2 Locked! When you reveal a Locked Door, place the face-
up token back on the Dungeon tile. While a Hero is adjacent
to a Locked Door, he can attempt to unlock the door. It does
not cost an action; it can be done at any time during the
Hero Phase. If you roll higher than 10, you unlock the door.
Discard the Door token.

If a Door token is in play and you explore anywhere within 1 tile

of the closed door, you draw a tile from the bottom of the tile
stack.
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Treasure Chests
Place a Treasure Chest token on tiles which have spawned
Monsters worth 6 Experience Points or more. If there is not
enough space to place a Treasure Chest token on the tile, no
token is drawn.

It does not take an action to open a chest; however, the tile

must be free of Monsters. A Hero that is in a square adjacent to
a Treasure Chest token can open it. Reveal what type of chest it
is by turning the token over. There are three types of chests:

 2 Empty: When you reveal an Empty chest, discard the

Treasure Chest token.
 2 Trapped: “Each Hero adjacent to the chest takes 1
damage, then draw 1 Treasure card.”
o When you reveal a Trapped chest, each Hero adjacent
to the Treasure Chest token immediately takes 1
damage. Then the active Hero draws 1 Item Treasure
card, and discards the Treasure Chest token.
 2 Treasure Chests: “Draw 1 Treasure card.”
o When you reveal a Treasure chest, simply draw 1 Item
Treasure card, and discard the Treasure Chest token.

Once all Treasure Chest tokens are used, no more are placed
until the next adventure.

Heroes and Monsters can move over a space containing a chest,

but cannot end their movement there.

Reshuffling
Players have some options when deciding how to shuffle decks
in between adventures of the campaign. On one hand, you
could separate and shuffle the decks after each game, though
 49

this increases the chances of seeing some cards more and more
often and not getting to see other cards much at all. On the
other hand, you could keep the decks very large and not shuffle
anything until you have exhausted a Monster, Encounter, or
Treasure deck and are forced to sort through the discard pile. In
this way, you will be able to see a variety of Monsters,
Encounters, and Treasures without any of them turning up too
often.

INTRODUCTION: Castle Ravenloft

In an ancient time and place, magic permeates the land
and monsters stalk the shadows that gather along the edges of
civilization. In this age of dungeons and dragons, the world
needs Heroes. Encased in varied types of armor and armed with
swords, bows, staves, and spells, these Heroes explore ancient
ruins, take on daring quests, and challenge the most fearsome
monsters. One such quest takes Heroes to a dark and
mysterious place called Castle Ravenloft.
The master of Castle Ravenloft is having guests for
dinner—and you are invited!
The castle rises over the dark forests of the land of
Barovia, looking down upon a sad, frightened village
surrounded by an endless sea of dense fog and mist. The master
of the castle, Count Strahd, is a vampire, and the night and its
creatures belong to him. As long as Strahd exists, Barovia and
the land around it will never be safe.
A group of Heroes has recently arrived in Barovia,
stepping out of the mists to find themselves caught up in the
evil emanating from Castle Ravenloft. These Heroes have
chosen to enter the castle and discover the secrets waiting
within. The dangers are great, the monsters are deadly, and
only the bravest and most capable Heroes stand a chance of
50

surviving—let alone succeeding—in defeating Strahd and his

minions.
The entrance to the castle looms ahead. Strahd’s plans
are nearing fruition, and the master of the castle has an undying
thirst for blood. Can you defeat Count Strahd and the Monsters
that inhabit Castle Ravenloft?

INTRODUCTION: Wrath of Ashardalon

In another world where magic is real, the forces of evil
gather to destroy the few remaining settlements of humans,
dwarves, and elves. To fight back the raiders, brave Heroes arm
themselves with swords and spells and attack the evil hiding in
the dark corners of the world. In the lands around Firestorm
Peak, the Heroes fight on despite incurring the wrath of the red
dragon Ashardalon.
The lands around Firestorm Peak have grown restless.
The few villages near the volcano have been besieged by
marauding bands of orcs and kobolds, and more dangerous
horrors lurk in the shadows. Worst of all, a new villain calls the
mountain home—the terrifying red dragon Ashardalon has
turned the volcano into its lair.
Hope appears in the form of a band of Adventurers that
arrives in the village of Longbridge, hidden away in the foothills
of Firestorm Peak. They are welcomed, but the village elders
have little hope that their plight will change. Brave heroes
regularly attempt to destroy the evil within Firestorm Peak, but
none have ever returned from the dungeon beneath the
volcano. Perhaps these new Heroes will be the ones to stop the
red dragon Ashardalon and save the village of Longbridge . . .
 51

INTRODUCTION: The Legend of Drizzt

Deep below the ground lies the Underdark, a network
of caverns forever cloaked in starless night and home to millions
of deadly creatures. Only the most courageous surface dwellers
dare to travel there. But one epic adventure originally hails from
the Night Below: the tales of the drow ranger Drizzt and his
companions, who travel both above and below the surface.
Born in the drow city of Menzoberranzan, Drizzt
Do’Urden was forced to flee to the surface or face the wrath of
the evil drow goddess, Lolth. Upon reaching the surface in
Icewind Dale, Drizzt found a band of friends: a dwarf in search
of his clan’s lost home, along with his adopted human daughter;
a fierce yet noble barbarian; and a cunning halfling thief.
Together, these brave heroes fight against the evil of the
Underdark.
The enemies they battle are many. The shadow dragon
that conquered Mithral Hall will not give up its new home so
easily. The minions of Lolth seek the destruction of Drizzt, and
mercenaries and assassins have all targeted the renegade dark
elf. Worst of all is the balor Errtu—most mortals do not survive
long when a demon such as he names them enemies.
Fortunately, Drizzt is not like most mortals . . .

INTRODUCTION: Temple of Elemental Evil

Evil gathers beneath the Sumber Hills, north of
Waterdeep near the High Forest. Four cults dedicated to the
Princes of Elemental Evil have formed an alliance to gain untold
power at great cost to the rest of Faerun. The cultists have been
spreading their message of deception and power across the
52

land, recruiting all manner of foul monsters and gullible

followers. Forces of air, earth, fire, and water have begun to
spread destruction across the towns surrounding the Sumber
Hills, and adventurers from Baldur’s Gate to Icewind Dale are
answering the pleas of the citizens of small communities such as
Red Larch.
The Princess of Elemental Evil reside on distant planes
that are far removed from Faerûn, but mad mortals have
acquired the means to reach out to these dark powers and offer
their devotion. The princes have no love or need for mortal
worshipers, but they relish any chance to sow destruction on
the Material Plane. The Elemental Princes give weak-willed or
power-hungry mortals the might they seek and command them
to wreak havoc in their names.
The Cult of the Howling Fury, The Cult of the Black
Earth, The Cult of the Eternal Flame, and The Cult of the
Crushing Wave: These cults hide beneath a thin veneer of
respectability, but savvy heroes can see them for the power-
mad lunatics the cultists truly are.
Red Larch, a small town near the Sumber Hills has seen
strange, unnatural occurrences recently that threaten not only
their lives, but the Sword Coast as a whole. Several adventurers
recently arrived in Red Larch, representing powerful
organizations of Faerun: the Harpers, the Lord’s Alliance, the
Order of the Gauntlet, the Emerald Enclave, and the Zhentarim.
Each group has a vested interest in finding the source of the
elemental corruption and putting a stop to it. Unfortunately,
not all has been according to plan . . .

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

These aren’t really rules, so much as suggestions. For instance,
there is only one Encounter card provided with the Dungeon
Command expansion set, Heart of Cormyr, which allows for the
 53

finding of an Ally during an adventure. You might consider

doubling or even tripling this card if you are expanding your
Encounter deck with cards from other games.

CARD SPECIFIC QUESTIONS

Bless (CR 8): The attack bonus is granted to all Heroes within 1
tile of the active Hero as soon as that Hero uses this power. If
any of those Heroes then move away, they do not lose the
attack bonus. Likewise, Heroes cannot gain the attack bonus by
later moving within 1 tile of the Hero who used this power.
Therefore, create a token, paper, or marker of some kind to
show which Heroes have been “blessed” and which haven’t.

Consecrated Ground (CR 9): If you discard a marker that was

placed by a persistent card (such as a Trap card), you also
discard that card.

Shield of Faith (CR 10): The AC bonus is granted to all Heroes

within 1 tile of the active Hero as soon as that Hero uses this
power. If any of those Heroes then move away, they do not lose
the AC bonus. Likewise, Heroes cannot gain the AC bonus by
later moving within 1 tile of the Hero who used this power.
Therefore, create a token, paper, or marker of some kind to
show which Heroes have been given a “shield” and which
haven’t.
54

Cleave (CR 12): If your Hero can’t move because of being

Immobilized, that Hero can still deal 1 damage to a Monster he
is currently adjacent to.