TEXT: An e23 Sourcebook for GURPS
  ®
  STEVE JACKSON GAMES
  Stock #37-0304
  Version 1.0 – January 24, 2008
  ®
  By SEAN PUNCH
  Illustrated by THOMAS BAXA, KENT BURLES, 
  ED NORTHCOTT, and DAN SMITH
  
  CONTENTS
  2
  CONTENTS
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  Playtesters: Paul Chapman, Philip Reed, and Thomas Weigel.
  GURPS System Design ❚ STEVE JACKSON
  GURPS Line Editor ❚ SEAN PUNCH
  e23 Manager ❚ PAUL CHAPMAN
  Page Design ❚ PHILIP REED and ––––
  JUSTIN DE WITT
  Managing Editor ❚ PHILIP REED
  Art Director ❚ WILL SCHOONOVER
  Production Artists ❚ ALEX FERNANDEZ 
  and PHILIP REED
  Indexer ❚ THOMAS WEIGEL
  Prepress Checker ❚ WILL SCHOONOVER
  Marketing Director ❚ PAUL CHAPMAN
  Sales Manager ❚ ROSS JEPSON
  Errata Coordinator ❚ FADE MANLEY
  GURPS FAQ Maintainer ❚ –––––––
  STÉPHANE THÉRIAULT
  INTRODUCTION
  The term “dungeon” refers to a simple fantasy adventure.
  Typically, the PCs wander from room to room, killing monsters
  and grabbing treasure . . . A “dungeon” can also be a building,
  battleship, space station, etc. If the adventurers are dropped into
  a limited area, with little or no goal except to grab what they can
  and get out alive, it’s a “dungeon.”
  – GURPS Basic Set
  Dungeon Fantasy: Dungeons is
  about what heroes created using
  Dungeon Fantasy: Adventurers actu-
  ally do: raid dungeons! For players, it
  offers pragmatic advice on how to
  (ab)use advantages and skills from the
  Basic Set before, during, and after a
  dungeon crawl. For the GM, it pro-
  vides tips on how to keep dungeon
  adventures challenging but fun.
  Like all Dungeon Fantasy titles,
  this isn’t a self-contained game – it’s a
  play aid. It gives quick-and-dirty rules
  that are (mostly) compatible with the
  Basic Set but that don’t require
  gamers to search 576 pages to find
  them. Most important, it shows the
  GM what corners to cut and calls to make when his only goal
  is a fast-and-loose dungeon crawl.
  The shortcuts and rules of thumb that follow probably
  aren’t very sensible outside a dungeon crawl. GURPS is gener-
  ic, but this stuff isn’t – it’s all about adapting generic rules to
  the dungeon fantasy environment.
  About the Author
  Sean “Dr. Kromm” Punch set out to become a
  particle physicist and ended up as the GURPS
  Line Editor. Since 1995, he has compiled the two
  GURPS Compendium volumes, written GURPS
  Wizards and GURPS Undead, edited or revised
  over 20 other GURPS books, and masterminded
  rules for dozens more. Most recently, he created
  the GURPS Basic Set, Fourth Edition with coau-
  thor David Pulver, wrote GURPS Powers with
  coauthor Phil Masters, and wrote GURPS
  Martial Arts with coauthor Peter V. Dell’Orto.
  Sean has been a fanatical gamer since 1979. His
  non-gaming interests include cinema, computers,
  and wine. He lives in Montréal, Québec with his
  wife, Bonnie. They have two cats, Banshee and
  Zephyra, and a noisy parrot, Circe.
  INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
  CONTENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING . . . . . . . . . 3
  About GURPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  Getting Ready to Go . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  Travel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
  Exploring the Dungeon . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Breaking and Entering. . . . . . . . . . . 7
  Traps and Hazards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
  Monsters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  Combat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  No “I” in “Teamwork” 
  (No Profit Without It) . . . . . . . . 11
  After the Battle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  Loot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
  Disposing of the Spoils. . . . . . . . . . 14
  Last Ditch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
  Dungeon Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  MASTERING DUNGEONS. . . . . . 16
  Tavern Tales and Moldy Books . . . . 17
  Fiendish Traps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
  Perilous Encounters . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
  Monsters and Player Knowledge. . . 20
  Combat Rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
  Treasure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  Beyond the Dungeon . . . . . . . . . . . 29
  Making Everybody Useful . . . . . . . . 30
  INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
  
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  3
  Delvers such as those created with the templates in
  Dungeon Fantasy: Adventurers may have dozens of skills –
  and dungeons can hold hundreds of challenges. The burning
  question, then, is “What skills do I use to get rich without get-
  ting dead?” Below are lots of answers, arranged by topic, with
  the operative skills (and occasionally advantages or spells) in
  boldface.
  For the GM, this is a guide to setting up and handling com-
  mon situations in dungeon fantasy games. For the players, it’s
  advice on how to survive a dungeon crawl. It’s also use-
  ful when choosing abilities, buying gear, and exploit-
  ing the system for a few extra coins!
  GETTING READY TO GO
  The GM might simply ask the players to create
  characters and buy gear, and then drop the PCs into a
  dungeon. This section won’t apply in that case. Real
  munchkins will want their heroes to start out in town,
  though, so that they can beg, borrow, and steal the
  most useful equipment for the upcoming quest while
  spending as little as possible.
  Getting Stuff Cheap
  List prices in Dungeon Fantasy: Adventurers are
  the going rate. Whether a PC gets his gear through
  purchase, barter, or inheritance, it normally comes
  out of starting money at those prices. There are other
  options, though (none of which apply to Signature
  Gear).
  Below, “item” means one large article (weapon,
  magic item, etc.) or a group of small ones (e.g., a suit
  of armor or a quiver of arrows). The GM should prob-
  ably limit each PC to rolls for three or four items –
  although true munchkins will quibble!
  Scrounging: Any PC may try one Scrounging roll
  before each adventure. Success means he can take
  $10 worth of nonmagical items for free. Critical suc-
  cess 
  (ordinary 
  success, 
  for 
  someone 
  with
  Serendipity) yields a more valuable, useful item of
  the GM’s choice. Failures, even critical ones, aren’t
  noteworthy.
  Crafting: Heroes with Armoury can start with ordi-
  nary arms and armor of their own making – anything
  listed in the Basic Set, but no fine swords, magic
  items, etc. Materials and labor consume starting cash
  equivalent to list cost, but roll against skill: any suc-
  cess reduces the price by 20%, while any failure
  means wastage that adds 10%. Use whatever specialty (Body
  Armor, Melee Weapons, or Missile Weapons) suits the item.
  Brewing: Individuals with Alchemy can use the crafting
  rules above for any chemical or potion, while those with
  Poisons can use them for any poison. Adventurers with Herb
  Lore can start with natural preparations and healing potions
  (minor, major, or great) at half price on a success – but still 10%
  extra on a failure. Heroes with Clerical Investment get holy
  water at 50% off without a roll.
  About GURPS
  Steve Jackson Games is committed to full support of GURPS
  players. Our address is SJ Games, P.O. Box 18957, Austin, TX
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  Errata. Everyone makes mistakes, including us – but we do our
  best to fix our errors. Up-to-date errata sheets for all GURPS releas-
  es, including this book, are available on our website – see below.
  Internet. Visit us on the World Wide Web at www.sjgames.com
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  web page is www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/dungeonfantasy2.
  Bibliographies. Many of our books have extensive bibliogra-
  phies, and we’re putting them online – with links to let you buy the
  books that interest you! Go to the book’s web page and look for the
  “Bibliography” link.
  Rules and statistics in this book are specifically for the GURPS
  Basic Set, Fourth Edition. Page references that begin with B refer
  to that book, not this one.
  CHAPTER ONE
  DUNGEON-
  CRAWLING
  
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  4
  Bargain Hunting: A PC who has the Merchant skill can roll
  a Quick Contest vs. a generic skill of 15 (Merchants’ Guild
  members are canny!) for a given item. If he wins, he saves 10%;
  if he ties, he pays list price; and if he loses, the price is 10%
  higher than usual. He can opt not to pay an inflated price – but
  he’ll be unable to find that piece of gear at a better price before
  the adventure begins.
  Black Market: As an alternative to bargain hunting, an
  adventurer can use Streetwise to get something cheaply on
  the black market. Use the same rules, except that losing still
  leaves the option of buying a legit item at list price. The catch:
  critical failure on the roll means the Thieves’ Guild or Town
  Watch confiscates cash or gear equal to 10% of the PC’s start-
  ing money!
  Shoplifting: A daring PC can try a Filch roll to steal any arti-
  cle that would fit under a shirt – GM’s judgment, but 3 lbs. is a
  fair limit. Pricy items are watched more carefully: roll at -1 for
  anything over $100, another -1 per doubling (-2 for $200+, -3
  for $400+, and so on), and a further -3 for anything rare or
  magical. Any failure means the powerful Merchant’s Guild pil-
  lories the thief – he loses all his gear! Even a successful thief
  must make a Smuggling roll before leaving town with stolen
  goods, with any failure giving identical results.
  Scoring Extra Cash
  Even with the above tricks – especially with those tricks, for
  failed crooks – money can be tight. These next few measures
  may help. A PC can try each of them once while in town before
  each adventure, or one of them daily while awaiting a quest
  (see Finding a Quest, below).
  Dredging and Mud-Larking: Desperate heroes can try an
  Urban Survival roll to seek coin in gutters. Success finds $1
  times margin of success; critical success finds a useful item of
  the GM’s choice. Critical failure means a dire case of sewer rot:
  -1 on all attribute and skill rolls for the next adventure, barring
  Cure Disease.
  Bumming, Busking, and Haranguing: Adventurers can beg,
  perform, or give sermons for cash. Beggars use Panhandling.
  Buskers use Dancing, Musical Instrument, Performance,
  Poetry, or Singing – and those with several skills start with the
  best, roll once against any others, apply +1 per success or -1 per
  failure, and then roll against the total (if the show includes
  music or song, also check Musical Composition). Soapbox
  lecturers use Public Speaking or Theology. Success earns $2
  times margin of success; critical success scores a useful gift.
  Critical failure means a beating (1d HP) or a broken musical
  instrument.
  Gambling: If the PC knows Gambling, he can bet any
  amount. Roll a Quick Contest vs. a generic skill of 12 for sums
  up to $25. Higher stakes attract sharks: +1 to opposing skill per
  doubling (13 up to $50, 14 up to $100, and so on). If he wins,
  he doubles his money; if he ties, he breaks even; and if he loses,
  he forfeits his stake. Success at Sleight of Hand allows cheat-
  ing for +3, but any failure means the crook loses his bet and is
  beaten for 1d HP.
  Working the Crowd: Dishonest delvers can go on a spree
  with Pickpocket. Success nets $5 times margin of success;
  critical success means $50 times the margin! Any failure
  means a beating (1d HP); critical failure indicates swift justice
  in the form of a broken hand (1d months to heal, barring
  magic).
  Debasing Coin: Really depraved scum can debase (shave or
  add impurities to) the King’s coin. Start with honest coin up to
  $1,000 and then roll against Counterfeiting. Success increases
  the sum by 10%. Failure means ruined coin or lost metal, cost-
  ing the crook 20% of his stake. Critical failure means the King’s
  men stick his hand in molten silver, giving him One Hand.
  Finding a Quest
  The GM wouldn’t be running a dungeon fantasy game if he
  didn’t have an adventure in mind – but having a dungeon ready
  doesn’t mean that the heroes know about it!
  Rumors: The GM might allow each PC one Carousing roll
  (for tavern talk) and one Current Affairs roll (to know a rumor
  already) between adventures. The player decides whether to
  attempt either roll, but the GM rolls in secret. Success reveals
  the quest – or if the GM has several dungeons ready, each suc-
  cess reveals one at random, and the players can choose based on
  hearsay. Failure discovers nothing. Critical failure finds a quest
  with wrong rumors, like a cave full of vampires described as “the
  Faerie Caverns.”
  Starving: If nobody succeeds, the GM can say “A week pass-
  es,” dock everyone $150 for cost of living, and let them try again.
  To avoid this cost, each hero can try a Survival roll (if he camps
  outside town) or an Urban Survival roll (if he lives like a bum).
  Failure means starting the eventual adventure down 1d HP.
  Advertising: Each week, one PC can use Propaganda to adver-
  tise the party’s services. The GM rolls in secret. Success brings an
  adventure of the GM’s choice. It’s probably the dungeon he had
  planned all along – but the quest’s bearer smells desperation, so
  clearly it’s nasty. The GM will quietly make the monsters and
  traps scarier. Critical failure also means bad info, as above.
  Details: After learning of a quest, one PC can use Research to
  unearth information about the dungeon. Again, the GM rolls in
  secret. Success reveals something useful (e.g., “It’s full of were-
  wolves!”). This lets heroes with suitable skills prepare according-
  ly; see Exploiting Weaknesses (p. 10). Failure gives nothing.
  Critical failure yields false info.
  Finding a Sponsor
  Once the party has a quest, it may be possible to get more
  money for gear by finding a backer. The group must appoint one
  mouthpiece to approach potential sponsors. He can try Savoir-
  Faire to seek merchant or noble backing, Streetwise to get the
  support of the Thieves’ Guild, or Writing to compose an aca-
  demic proposal to the Wizards’ Guild or a temple. Apply any
  Charisma bonus.
  Scum and Villainy
  At the GM’s discretion, adventurers caught shopping
  or selling on the black market, shoplifting, cheating,
  pickpocketing, or debasing coin, or who betray a spon-
  sor, may end up with Social Stigma (Criminal Record).
  Thieves might even start with this! The effect in dun-
  geon fantasy is -2 on rolls to buy or sell, beg for alms,
  advertise for quests, or engage future backers. Even the
  Thieves’ Guild is reluctant to back anybody stupid
  enough to get caught!
  
  Failure or critical failure means no backing. Any success
  gives each adventurer an equipment allowance: gear (not cash)
  worth $100 times margin of success, minimum $100 apiece. The
  catch is that the group owes the sponsor future loot worth triple
  the total allowance (a 200% return). The backer may settle for
  an artifact of special significance regardless of its value – which
  usually means it’s worth more than the party realizes!
  TRAVEL
  Once the heroes have gear and a quest, their goal is to reach
  the dungeon. Again, the GM might simply drop them into the
  thick of things; if so, skip these notes. But it’s traditional to trek
  across monster-infested wilds whilst subsisting on rat-on-a-stick.
  Getting There Quickly
  The GM should set a base travel time. He might roll dice,
  always proclaim “40 days and 40 nights!”, or do something else.
  For simplicity’s sake, assume that this accounts for encum-
  brance, weather, and terrain. The GM is free to set longer times
  for heavily burdened parties or lousy traveling conditions
  (“Sorry, but the trip to the Lair of the Weather Witch will take 60
  days, not the usual 40.”).
  Delvers must carry, forage, or conjure three meals apiece per
  day of travel. When they arrive at the dungeon, they’ll be down
  1 FP per missed meal (and 1 HP per FP below 0!). This FP penal-
  ty will last for the entire dungeon crawl, unless the group rests
  with food for a day per 3 FP lost.
  Naturally, the GM will roll daily for a random encounter with
  bandits, dire wombats, etc. More days means more chances to
  get killed!
  Thus, it’s important to minimize travel time. There are three
  tricks for this. For each, any success knocks 10% off travel time,
  failure adds 10%, and critical failure adds 20%. The results are
  additive, giving from -30% to +60% travel time. The party can
  opt out of any of these rolls.
  The Golden Path: If the party appoints a guide, he can make
  a Navigation roll (-5 with just the shadows of the trees, -1 with
  a sundial, or no modifier with a compass) to pick an optimal
  route over the best terrain.
  Wind at Your Back: If the guide has Weather Sense, a suc-
  cessful roll lets the party walk or sail with the wind, avoid storms
  . . . whatever. This is fantasy weather!
  Forced March: If the party is traveling overland, everyone can
  try Hiking, Riding, or Skiing, as appropriate, to move quickly;
  use the worst result. On water, one hero can roll against Boating
  for a small craft, Seamanship for a large one, to make good
  time.
  Foraging
  Rations are expensive, and cumbersome to lug around a dun-
  geon (you have to bring enough to make the return trip!). Next
  to the Create Food spell, foraging is the best way around that.
  Only a traveler who knows Fishing, Naturalist, or Survival – no
  defaults – can forage in a world with killer bunnies and man-
  eating shrubs. Roll once per trip.
  Success means that he needs only half as much food from
  rations; e.g., 60 instead of 120 meals on a 40-day journey. Critical
  success means he can either consume no rations or halve the
  rations used by himself and one companion.
  Failure still means some good days – but mostly bad ones. He
  needs only 2/3 as many rations. Critical failure means he must
  rely on rations like everyone else. This is probably a disaster: an
  outdoorsman counting on foraging and carrying less food will
  be half-dead after a long trip – or the whole party will be weak,
  if they’re nice and share with him.
  Most sensible delvers plan on modest failure. Those with
  Overconfidence bank on success.
  Camping and Posting Watches
  Camping requires no special skill, but the party should post
  watches. The order isn’t important; when a nighttime encounter
  occurs, the GM will randomly determine whose watch it inter-
  rupts, and secretly roll against the higher of Perception or
  Observation for that PC. For sneaky monsters, this becomes a
  Quick Contest against Stealth (likely to be 18+ for were-
  leopards, undead shadows, etc.).
  If the watch-keeper succeeds (wins, if a Contest), the party
  isn’t surprised – although those who were asleep start combat
  lying down. Otherwise, everyone is asleep or stunned; each
  delver must make one IQ roll per turn, at +1 per turn after the
  first and +6 for Combat Reflexes, and can only react on the turn
  after he succeeds. So post watches – it’s free.
  Wilderness Camps: If a nighttime encounter involves mon-
  sters that hunt by sight, the GM will roll a Quick Contest: the
  monsters’ Vision vs. the party’s highest Camouflage skill, at
  bonus equal to the number of party members who know the skill
  (no defaults!) but a penalty equal to party size. Victory means
  the enemy spends enough time sniffing around that any watch-
  keeper gets a second chance to detect the monsters, as above.
  Dungeon Camps: When sleeping in a dungeon, camouflage
  won’t work – but if the room has doors, use the same rules with
  Traps to set simple noise-makers. In that case, victory means the
  monsters awaken the party; the delvers won’t be surprised.
  Sleeping heroes will still start combat lying down, though.
  Tracking
  The adventurers may have to follow a trail to the dungeon –
  that of the last group to die there, rivals with a lead, monsters
  boiling out to eat travelers, etc. Since it won’t be much of an
  adventure if the party never gets there, they’ll eventually find the
  trail. Make one Tracking roll per delver, at -2 in wastes (ice, rock,
  etc.) or -4 in goo (slime, swamp, etc.), and note the best result.
  Success lets the party follow the trail at full speed. Failure or
  critical failure means time wasted searching for tracks: add 10%
  or 20%, respectively, to base travel time.
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  5
  Sleeping in Armor
  To answer an age-old question: No, this isn’t that
  hard, even in real life, once you’re used to it. Paranoid
  munchkins are definitely used to it! The GM shouldn’t
  be a cad and assess terrible penalties for this. However,
  the occasional creepy-crawler under the armor, biting
  and slithering, can be fun.
  
  EXPLORING THE DUNGEON
  Huzzah! The party is now at the gates of the Durance of
  Doom or Tunnels of Terror. Time to see lots of monsters and
  kill them and take their treasure! This works best with a little
  forethought.
  Mapping
  Traditionally, the GM describes what the PCs see and the
  players attempt to map it. Players and GM alike should read
  Player-Made Maps (p. B491) to understand how this works.
  For the players to be allowed to make a map in the real
  world, a party member must serve as “mapper” in the game
  world. He requires ink, paper, and two free hands. He can’t
  carry a ready torch, shield, weapon, etc.
  When using the map (e.g., to predict where a tunnel comes
  out) leads to nonsense results, the players can ask the GM for
  help. He’ll make a secret Cartography roll for the mapper.
  Success means he explains what’s wrong so that the players
  can correct their map. Failure means he smiles smugly. On a
  critical failure, he pretends it’s a success and lies! Even a good
  map of a twisted and weird dungeon will seem wrong – the GM
  should never reveal that.
  Light Sources
  In a typical dungeon, the party will be blind without light
  sources. Most lights require a hand, which can’t be used for
  combat. Those marked * below are hands-free, and the first
  choice for fighters who must carry their own light.
  A light usually eliminates darkness penalties to combat and
  vision, for everyone, in a semicircle in front of the bearer –
  who’s presumably holding it so that he can see:
  Candle, Continual Light spell (level 1)*, Light spell*: 1 yard
  Continual Light spell (level 2)*, Glow Vial*, Lantern, Torch:
  2 yards
  Continual Light spell (level 3)*: 4 yards
  Spells like Glow and Sunlight eliminate penalties over
  their entire area of effect. One of the most useful things a cast-
  er can do when combat starts is cast such a spell!
  For simplicity’s sake, assume that if the party has any area-
  effect source, vision and combat are possible at -3 out to triple
  the range of the best source; e.g., 6 yards if a torch, 12 yards if
  a 4-yard-radius Sunlight spell. After that, the ambient level
  applies: -3 for the lamps and candles in an evil temple, -8 for
  glowing slime, or total darkness for shadowy tunnel.
  Other lights throw a beam that eliminates darkness penal-
  ties in a path 1 yard wide, in the direction of the carrier’s
  choice (pointing it is a free action each turn), out to a fixed
  range:
  Helmet Lamp*: 5 yards
  Bull’s-Eye Lantern, Light Jet spell: 10 yards
  Marching Order
  The party should establish one marching order for traveling
  single-file down narrow passages, another for moving two
  abreast along typical interior corridors, and a third for walking
  three abreast in spacious hallways. Be sure to note gaps
  (between, to one side, etc.). It usually makes sense to put peo-
  ple who know Traps in front, fighters with long weapons
  behind those with short
  ones, and delvers with
  missile weapons where
  they’ll have a clear shot.
  Positioning 
  casters
  demands careful thought.
  Placing them in front lets
  them detect supernatural
  dangers but exposes them
  to physical ones better
  faced by nimble thieves
  and 
  armored 
  knights.
  Putting them in back lets
  them cast unmolested . . .
  unless 
  attacked 
  from
  behind. They’re probably
  safest in the middle and/or
  protected by a tougher
  buddy.
  When 
  it 
  becomes
  important to know who
  can see by what light
  sources, trips a trap, is in front (or back!) when the monsters
  come, etc., the GM will use the current order. If the players
  want to change this, they must tell the GM. Otherwise . . . too
  bad.
  Hidden Doors
  Secret Doors: Secret doors are things like pieces of wall that
  spring open, altars that roll aside, and fireplaces that drop into
  the floor to reveal hidden portals – but only when some hard-
  to-find control is manipulated. Finding them always requires
  an active search; the GM rolls secretly against the highest of
  Vision, Observation, or Per-based Traps for each searcher.
  Success reveals a door, if there is one; it may require an IQ-
  based Traps roll to open. These rolls often have steep penalties!
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  6
  
  Concealed Doors: Concealed doors are ordinary doors
  behind or inside other items, like tapestries and wardrobes.
  They require a roll to find, as for a secret door, but not to oper-
  ate. However, the GM may wait for a player to declare that he’s
  looking behind the curtain or whatever – so pay attention when
  the GM describes the area!
  Scouting Ahead
  It’s useful to send a thief or a scout ahead of the main
  marching order to reconnoiter – especially if he can run fast!
  Sneaking: Roll against Stealth to sneak ahead. Normally,
  any success will do – but if you happen upon a sentry, this
  becomes a Quick Contest against the better of his Hearing or
  Vision. In a dark dungeon, you can’t sneak with a light source;
  you’ll need a spell like Dark Vision, Infravision, or Sound
  Vision.
  Information Gathering: Spotting pits, counting orcs, notic-
  ing doors, and so on requires no roll. A successful Observation
  roll will reveal interesting details: the pit is freshly dug, the orcs
  have a shaman, the second door looks more worn, etc. It will
  also determine patrol frequency and sentry placement, but
  that’s a Quick Contest vs. Stealth or Camouflage for hidden
  sentries. If you can get within 7 yards (¥2 with a telescope, ¥2
  per level with the Hawk Vision spell), you can use Lip
  Reading to learn what intelligent monsters are saying – per-
  haps even a password! Detecting traps requires a Traps roll;
  see Traps and Hazards (p. 8). Noticing monster tracks calls for
  Tracking.
  Dogging: To follow a monster to its lair or treasure without
  being noticed, win a Quick Contest of Shadowing against its
  Vision. Any other result means it sees you and may try to eat
  you. This is where the “run fast” part comes into play (don’t
  overlook the Haste spell!).
  A wizard can cast Wizard Eye or Wizard Ear to do these
  things remotely; enemies are at -7 to spot such effects, and
  can’t see Invisible Wizard Eye or Invisible Wizard Ear. But
  spells aren’t a perfect replacement for old-fashioned reconnais-
  sance – magic is fatiguing, and few wizards are skilled at notic-
  ing sentries, tracks, and traps. Savvy mages prefer to assist
  thieves and scouts with spells like Hide, Hush, Invisibility,
  and Mage Stealth.
  Signaling
  Gesture can communicate a simple concept – “six mon-
  sters,” “attack,” etc. – without compromising stealth. The play-
  er writes what he wants to relay and hands the note to the GM,
  who rolls in secret. Success means he tells everyone the mes-
  sage. Failure – or an attempt to relate anything complex (e.g.,
  “a death brain and two dire wombats”) – means he says noth-
  ing. Critical failure means he gets to be evil.
  Mimicry (Animal Sounds or Bird Calls) can deliver a pre-
  arranged signal to warn the party. Outdoors, assume this is
  stealthy. In a dungeon without animals or birds, it’s likely to
  warn monsters, too. Failure simply means the others don’t
  hear the call of the wild.
  If a party member spots danger and doesn’t signal, or fails,
  the GM may roll secretly for an ally’s Body Language. Success
  means the GM gives a hint (“Bob looks like he’s seen a ghost.”).
  BREAKING AND ENTERING
  Delvers often run into obstacles (literally, if they lack ade-
  quate light) while sneaking around corridors and mapping
  passages. Some have to be skirted – by one brave soul or by the
  whole party – while others must be removed.
  Dungeon Parkour
  Martial artists, swashbucklers, and thieves sometimes use
  athletics to reach difficult areas. This lets them get into posi-
  tion to deploy a rope or a portable ladder to help less-agile
  friends. All of these rolls have a penalty equal to encumbrance.
  Balancing: Roll Acrobatics to traverse something narrow, at
  -2 if it’s taut or rigid (a ledge or a rail) or -5 if it’s slack (an ordi-
  nary rope). A pole helps balance – add +2 for a quarterstaff or
  a 6’ pole, +3 for a 10’ pole. Failure means a fall, but allows a DX
  roll to catch something and try a pull-up to get back on.
  Critical failure (or failure on a DX roll to catch yourself) drops
  you into the depths. Those with Perfect Balance don’t have to
  roll!
  Climbing: Most dungeon-sized climbs require one Climbing
  roll, at no modifier for a steep slope, -2 for a rope straight up,
  or -3 for a vertical wall (no penalty with climbing spikes).
  Failure means a fall from halfway up; critical failure means a
  fall from the top.
  Diving: An Acrobatics roll at -4 lets you dive through a nar-
  row opening – under a pendulum, between two rollers, etc.
  Failure means you end up stuck halfway through, which may
  hurt! Critical failure adds 1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t pro-
  tect).
  Jumping: If an obstacle is small enough for anyone to hur-
  dle, the GM should let people do so on a DX roll. If it’s wide, it
  calls for an expert with the Jumping skill, who can run and
  jump up to skill/2 yards. In either case, success gets you across
  in one piece. Failure allows a DX roll to catch the far side (no
  consolation with a shallow hazard) and try a pull-up. Critical
  failure – or failure on the last-ditch DX roll – means you fall
  right in.
  Leg Up: A friend can boost you to reach a high area. He
  makes a ST roll while you roll Acrobatics at -2. If you both
  succeed, you can reach anything up to the sum of your heights
  and try a pull-up to get yourself up there. Failure by either of
  you lets you retry, but your partner must pay 1 FP per repeat-
  ed attempt. On any critical failure, you collapse in a pile and
  each take 1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t protect).
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  7
  “. . . With Spikes”
  The dungeon-delving tasks discussed here assume
  the basic, plain version of each situation or hazard. The
  GM may assess penalties for trickier versions. A handy
  way to think about it is like this: for every nasty qualifi-
  er added, the roll has another -1. For instance, balanc-
  ing on a slimy, twisting, smoke-obscured ledge is at an
  extra -3. This lets the GM “scale up” threats to challenge
  even experienced delvers.
  
  Pull-Up: Make a ST-based Climbing roll to pull yourself up
  onto anything you can reach: your height plus 1.5’. On a fail-
  ure, you hang there and may retry, paying 1 FP per repeated
  attempt. Critical failure means a strained arm (crippled for 30
  minutes) and a fall – bad, if you’re trying to recover from
  another failed stunt.
  Running Climb: If two obstacles are within a couple of
  yards, you can run at one and kick off back and forth between
  them to gain additional height before a pull-up. Use the better
  of Acrobatics or Jumping, at -4 to gain Basic Move/4 yards
  or -6 to gain Basic Move/2 yards (round up). Failure means a
  fall from that height; critical failure means maximum falling
  damage!
  Skidding: To cross ice or similar, make a DX or DX-based
  Skiing roll at the combat penalty for bad footing – usually -2.
  Failure means you fall; roll DX-4 to stand up before you can try
  again (this is when the ice weasels attack). Critical failure adds
  1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t protect) to a random limb.
  Squeezing: Roll against Escape to wiggle through a narrow
  crack. Success gets you to the other side. Failure means you
  won’t fit, and can’t retry. Critical failure means you’re stuck and
  must be rescued.
  Swinging: If you can affix a line to an overhead anchor (toss
  a grapnel, climb up and tie it, etc.), you can swing across a haz-
  ard. Regardless of the rope’s true length, effective length can’t
  exceed the distance from anchor to ground. You can swing up
  to 3/4 of that length from a vertical rope, or 1.5 times that
  length if it starts 45° off-vertical. Make an Acrobatics roll at
  the range penalty for that distance (p. B550). Failure allows
  you to retry. Critical failure drops you into the hazard!
  Bridging Hazards
  In all cases above, if one party member gets past the obsta-
  cle, he can coordinate with somebody on the far side to set up
  a ladder (no roll) or a line (roll vs. Throwing to toss a line, but
  not to carry one) so that the others can safely join him, provid-
  ed the group has a rope, ladder, etc., long enough to reach!
  Once this is ready, people can be hoisted up – or cross using
  handholds, or on hands and knees – one at a time. This
  requires no roll – or a DX roll, if the GM feels mean (probably
  DX+5, unless he’s being really mean).
  Water Hazards: It’s possible to swim across water – make a
  Swimming roll, with the usual consequences for failure
  (p. B354). Most water in dungeons has Things That Bite, and
  then you’re stuck using Water Move (Basic Move/5), while your
  combat skills can’t exceed your DX-based Swimming level.
  Picking Locks
  Reliable locks are either anachronistic or costly in a
  “medieval” setting, yet portals in dungeon fantasy are often
  locked. (Somewhere, gnomish craftsmen are growing wealthy
  selling locks to stupid goblins.) Picking them is a Lockpicking
  roll, at -5 with a knife or similar crude tool, no modifier for
  proper picks, or +1 or +2 for good or fine tools, plus anywhere
  from +5 to -5 for cheap through fine locks. It’s traditional in
  dungeon fantasy for lockpicking to be a fiddly physical task, so
  this skill roll is DX-based, and gets High Manual Dexterity
  bonuses. Puzzle locks still require IQ-based rolls.
  Muscling Through
  Delvers don’t have to unlock or skirt doors and other barri-
  ers. They can plow through many obstacles! The disadvantage
  is that stealth is impossible – each attempt at the tasks below
  has a chance of being heard.
  Bashing: You can destroy a door or a chest with a crushing
  or cutting weapon. Don’t bother with attack rolls! Roll damage
  at +2, or +1 per die, for All-Out Attack (Strong) – plus another
  +1 per die with Forced Entry at DX+1, or +2 per die at DX+2.
  The GM will subtract DR, multiply by 1.5 if you used a cutting
  attack, and reduce the target’s HP until it breaks. Swords dis-
  like such abuse, and have a 3 in 6 chance (2 in 6 if fine, 1 in 6
  if very fine) of bending: -1 to skill. Crowbars revel in destruc-
  tion, and deliver swing+2 crushing.
  Forcing: Another option is to apply boot or shoulder to the
  door and overpower its attachments without annihilating it.
  Roll a Quick Contest: ST vs. the lock or hinge’s HP (6 to 46).
  You may add Lifting ST, +2 for a crowbar, and +1 with Forced
  Entry at DX+1 or +2 at DX+2, but have a penalty equal to the
  hardware’s DR (-3 to -24). For a barred or wedged portal, use
  the bar or wedge’s DR (-1 to -16) as a penalty, if greater than
  the lock or hinge’s DR; similarly, the portal resists with the bar
  or wedge’s HP (14 to 37), if higher than the lock or hinge’s HP.
  You must win to open the door. Repeated attempts have a
  cumulative -1 and cost 1 FP each.
  Bending: To pry apart metal bars in a grate or a portcullis,
  use the rules for forcing. A metal bar gives from -6 to -24 for
  DR, and has from 12 to 46 HP.
  Lifting: If the problem is a heavy barrier (fallen lintel,
  unlocked portcullis, etc.), the solution is to lift it. This is a two-
  handed lift; use Basic Lift ¥ 8 lbs., figured using ST plus
  Lifting ST. Add another 5% to BL per point by which you
  make a Lifting roll.
  Hiii-yah! For all the feats above, martial artists can make a
  Breaking Blow roll (-1 for wood, -5 for metal) to divide object
  DR by 5 and/or a Power Blow roll to double ST. This costs 1
  FP per skill per attempt.
  TRAPS AND HAZARDS
  Monsters aren’t the only things that can kill delvers (or at
  least give them a really bad day). Dungeon security systems
  include all manner of infernal devices. In all cases, if an adven-
  turer with Danger Sense is on a fast path to enjoying one of
  these dangers, the GM should make a secret Perception roll for
  him. Success warns him that he’ll be in danger if he continues
  – but not what the danger is!
  Dealing with Traps
  A trap is a mechanical device – covered pit, shuriken
  launcher, overhead chute full of rusty morningstar heads –
  intended to harm those who trigger it. Everything to do with
  traps is a function of the Traps skill.
  Finding: Detecting a trap requires a Per-based roll, with
  Acute Vision bonuses and darkness penalties. Concealed traps
  give a penalty. The party is assumed to be looking for traps at
  all times. The GM rolls secretly against their best Traps skill –
  separately for each group, when split up – to see if they notice
  each trap. When fleeing or similarly rushed, the roll is at -5!
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  8
  
  Disarming: Disabling most traps calls for a DX-based roll,
  with bonuses for High Manual Dexterity. Tricky traps give a
  penalty.
  Rearming: By making the roll to disarm again, it’s possible
  to rearm some traps after the party has passed.
  Stealing: Small traps (leg-hold traps, tripwires, etc.) can be
  taken once disarmed. This is a standard IQ-based roll.
  Tricks
  A trick is a non-mechanical trap – mirror or other optical
  illusion (IQ roll at a penalty to discover), temporary spell
  (Detect Magic cast on dodgy-looking scenery, or an active
  Mage Sight spell, to reveal), enchantment (Magery allows a
  Perception + Magery roll to detect), etc. Details are up to the
  GM. It’s impossible to prepare for every trick!
  Portals: A favorite trick of evil wizards is a magic portal that
  transports the party somewhere bad. If you’re tricked into
  walking through one of these, Magic Resistance won’t help!
  You’ll also be disoriented and forced to Do Nothing for the first
  turn after you arrive – when the zombies attack – unless you
  can make a Body Sense roll.
  Dangerous Stuff
  Other unpleasantness includes . . .
  Gunk: Some “traps” aren’t triggered but consist of vile glop
  sitting where heroes will touch it; e.g., contact poison on treas-
  ure or flesh-eating acid in a mud puddle. To spot these, adven-
  turers get a Per-based roll against Poisons for toxins, or
  Alchemy for acid, volatile oil, etc. Acute Vision adds if the goo
  is visible; otherwise, Acute Taste and Smell helps sniff it out.
  Such rolls often have penalties! Make a standard IQ-based skill
  roll to wash it off safely, with failure meaning it gets on some-
  one.
  Potions: Magic potions (see Dungeon Fantasy: Adventures
  for examples) can guest-star as gunk. Use the rules above, but
  mages get a Perception + Magery roll to spot this. Removing
  such gunk requires an Alchemy or Hazardous Materials
  (Magical) roll.
  Evil Runes: Nobody knows who carves them, but Evil
  Runes that drain life, explode, etc., show up regularly in dun-
  geons. They’re enchantments of some sort, but don’t corre-
  spond to standard wizardly spells; they require a
  Thaumatology roll to distinguish from orc graffiti or a
  mason’s mark, and defy Analyze Magic. Most are permanent
  and target intent, affecting delvers who “cleverly” try to avoid
  them using 10’ poles or pull-ropes. The usual solution is to
  send the barbarian up, because he has the most HP.
  Curses 101
  Some dungeon areas are cursed by squid shamans,
  satanistas, etc. Possible effects include something resembling
  the Curse spell (-1 to -3 to success rolls), disease-like symptoms
  (injury or attribute loss), flying objects (inflicting damage or
  stealing gear), and possession (spinning head and vomiting).
  They might be persistent (constantly affecting a room) or trig-
  gered (e.g., afflicting those who touch an altar), and may be
  confined to the area or haunt the victim after he leaves.
  Detection: Those with Holiness or Power Investiture get a
  Perception roll at a bonus equal to advantage level to recognize
  a cursed zone before it’s too late. If they’re not in front, though,
  somebody may already be cursed! An Occultism roll will also
  reveal the danger, if there’s a visible altar, idol, or the like that
  will curse those who mess with it (e.g., by prying the rubies
  from the idol’s eyes). The GM makes such rolls in secret.
  Analysis: A separate Occultism or Theology roll – at a
  penalty for altars of forgotten cults or unspeakable gods – may
  turn up clues about the curse’s effects and triggers. The GM
  rolls in secret. Critical failure means the curse affects the ana-
  lyst. It isn’t wise to stand around the evil altar, thinking hard
  about what the squid motif means!
  Cleansing: Making a cursed area safe to enter or a cursed
  altar safe to pillage requires an Exorcism roll by someone with
  Holy Might. This is a Quick Contest vs. the (possibly high) Will
  of the evil force possessing the area. A blessed or high holy
  symbol gives +1 or +2, respectively. This takes three hours, if
  time matters, and fails automatically if anyone casts any magic
  within the exorcist’s sight. The exorcist must win to prevail.
  Otherwise, he can’t retry for a week (others can). If his roll is a
  critical failure, he suffers the curse.
  Treatment: If a person is cursed, use the procedure for
  cleansing, but add the higher of the victim’s ST or Will to the
  exorcist’s roll.
  Magic: Those with more FP than time may use a Remove
  Curse spell for cleansing or treatment. This works just like
  Exorcism, but costs 20 FP and takes only an hour.
  MONSTERS
  A monster is any hostile being – including not only creatures
  like dragons and trolls, but also dangerous and warped ani-
  mals, evil humans (like bandits and cultists), former humans
  (zombies, werewolves, etc.), slimes, and magical creations
  (notably golems and animated statues). Dungeons are full of
  ’em. Adventurers normally handle monsters through combat
  (p. 10), but there are other options to consider before or even
  instead of fighting.
  Recognition
  It’s good to know the opposition. The GM makes identifica-
  tion rolls in secret – but only if somebody asks and has the
  right skill:
  • Heraldry to recognize bandits, orc tribes, etc., by their
  mark. They always have a mark, like a pig’s head on a stick.
  • Hidden Lore specialties (Demons, Elementals, Undead,
  etc.) for supernatural entities with complex hierarchies or
  cultures.
  •Naturalist for giant, dire, and warped versions of normal
  animals. Anybody can recognize lions, tigers, and bears, but
  things like greater dire numbats are trickier.
  •Occultism for freaky-weird things, like Spawn of ’Thulhu.
  • Thaumatology for golems and other wizardly automata.
  Success identifies the target, plus one useful tidbit (favorite
  weapon, special power, weakness, etc.) per two points of suc-
  cess. Failure reveals nothing. Critical failure means the GM lies
  (“It’s mostly harmless, and likes apples.”).
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  9
  
  Negotiation
  Intelligent monsters that aren’t bloodthirsty and pure Evil
  might be willing to parley. This is advisable when the party
  can’t afford a fight; e.g., everyone is wounded, power items are
  exhausted, and the cleric is somewhat dead.
  Make a reaction roll (3d). Modifiers are infinitely variable,
  but generally, the GM will assume a basic -5 (these are mon-
  sters, not merchants), and allow only the bonus for the speak-
  er’s Charisma and +1 for Social Chameleon. If the sum is
  10+, the monsters will listen instead of attacking immediately.
  Making Deals: Deal-making is pure roleplaying. The PCs
  offer something, the GM counteroffers, and so on. If everyone
  seems to agree at some point, roll Diplomacy – at -3 with non-
  human monsters, unless the bargainer has Cultural
  Adaptability. Success means the monsters accept the deal.
  Failure means it isn’t good enough after all, and the party must
  make an extra concession (usually loot) to close the deal.
  Critical failure means war! This roll isn’t secret. The party will
  hear the orc boss yell, “Get ’em, boys!”
  Language: Most intelligent beings in dungeon fantasy have
  at least some command of the “generic human” or “common”
  tongue of adventurers. The GM may rule that these orcs speak
  only Orcish, however! In such cases, the Diplomacy roll is at -
  1 for an Accented grasp of the monsters’ language, or at -3 for
  Broken comprehension. If no one knows the right language,
  hand signs may work: roll against the lower of Diplomacy or
  Gesture. The -3 for nonhumans still applies in all cases.
  Skeevy Bastards: The GM might have decided that these
  monsters are cheats, and have no intention of honoring any
  deal. He’ll roll secretly against the bargainer’s Detect Lies skill
  – and if anyone in the party has Danger Sense, he’ll roll for
  that. Success means he warns the players. Otherwise, the
  heroes won’t see trouble coming.
  Trickery
  Intelligent (IQ 6+), free-willed monsters that aren’t too intel-
  ligent can sometimes be fooled. This is a chance to get creative
  with skills that rarely see use. Possibilities include feigning
  injury or death to draw the enemy into an ambush (Acting),
  posing as fellow monsters (Disguise or Disguise (Animals)),
  using noises or voices to distract them (Mimicry or
  Ventriloquism), duping them with a snake-oil pitch (Fast-
  Talk), mesmerizing them with old Bardic mind tricks
  (Captivate, Hypnotism, Musical Influence, Persuade,
  Suggest, or Sway Emotions), exploiting their appetites or
  fears (Psychology (monster)), or even showing some leg (Sex
  Appeal, best saved for mostly compatible species).
  The only goals of much importance in dungeon fantasy are
  getting past the monsters without a fight (like negotiation, but
  without giving up anything) or getting the drop on a big horde
  in order to whittle them down a little. Most such “dirty tricks”
  involve a Quick Contest against the IQ of the leader of an organ-
  ized group or the smartest monster in a rabble. The trickster is
  at -5 if the monsters are already on the verge of combat (e.g.,
  they chase the party around the corner, only to come across a
  nude Marge the Barbarian rippling her unibrow knowingly).
  If the party wins, they avoid the fight or score a second of
  surprise (the monsters are stunned, but roll vs. IQ to recover,
  at +1 per turn). If they tie, the attempt has no effect. If they lose,
  it backfires in some way; e.g., a hidden archer shoots the trick-
  ster mid-speech.
  “Good (Three-Headed) Doggie!”
  Druids, elves, etc., may take exception to adventurers who
  kill animals, even in self-defense. The following alternatives
  work as written on natural animals, at -5 on giant or dire ones
  that share the mindset of their natural brethren, and not at all
  on supernatural things that merely resemble animals (e.g., hell-
  hounds).
  Call of the Wild: An Animal Handling roll – at -5 for man-
  eaters, cumulative with the -5 above – allows Nature Boy to
  distract a beastie while the party passes. A Mimicry (Animal
  Sounds) roll lets him lead it away from the party, although
  he’ll need a plan for dealing with it when it finds him.
  Doggo: Winning a Quick Contest of Disguise (Animals)
  against the animal’s Perception lets someone pass uneaten.
  One person can use his skill to disguise as many party mem-
  bers as he wishes, although some may object to being smeared
  with dung.
  Soothe the Savage Breast: As in most fantasy, Musical
  Influence does affect animals.
  COMBAT
  Delvers spend a lot of time killing monsters in order to take
  their stuff – and monsters smarter than slimes tend to fight
  back. Combat is one situation where the GM will need to break
  out the Basic Set. It’s too complex a topic to summarize in a
  few paragraphs! However, the Basic Set doesn’t directly
  address several dungeon fantasy standbys.
  Exploiting Weaknesses
  Dungeon denizens often have bizarre flaws. Some weak-
  nesses require a skill roll to discover – and it’s more fun if the
  players don’t know these initially! If the players forget a weak-
  ness, they must roll again unless somebody in the party has
  Eidetic Memory.
  Higher Purposes: Heroes with such Higher Purpose advan-
  tages as “Slay Demons” or “Slay Undead” get +1 on all attack
  and damage rolls against the relevant foes, and to all active
  defenses and resistance rolls against those monsters.
  Supernatural Flaws: A delver who has a suitable Hidden
  Lore specialty can ask the GM to roll against skill in secret
  when combat begins. For every two points of success, the GM
  will disclose one form of Dread, Fragile, Revulsion,
  Susceptible, Uncontrollable Appetite, Vulnerability, Weakness,
  or similar disadvantage that the monster possesses. Failure
  reveals nothing. Critical failure means the GM lies!
  Turning Undead: A hero who has True Faith (Turning) may
  take a Concentrate maneuver and roll a Quick Contest of Will
  with any undead or evil spirit he can see (roll just once for a
  mob with uniform Will). A blessed or high holy symbol gives
  +1 or +2, respectively. If he wins or ties, the monsters can’t
  come closer to him than yards equal to margin of victory, min-
  imum one yard; those that are closer must move away. This
  lasts while he concentrates and for 1d seconds afterward.
  Vitals: A successful roll against a suitable Physiology spe-
  cialty will reveal where to find the equivalent of the brain,
  vitals, etc., on a creature for which this isn’t obvious – assum-
  ing it has such areas! Any failure means the PC simply doesn’t
  know.
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  10
  
  Medic!
  The best way to get healed in battle is to yell for the cleric to
  cast a healing spell – or to swig a healing potion. Another unre-
  alistic dungeon fantasy tradition is combat-speed bandaging.
  This requires a First Aid or Esoteric Medicine roll, at -10 for
  “instant” use! The medic must take a Concentrate maneuver,
  be close enough to touch the patient, have one hand free, and
  have bandages, a first aid kit (+1), or a healer’s kit (+1) ready in
  his other hand. Success heals 1d-3 HP; critical success restores
  3 HP. Failure has no benefit; critical failure costs 2 HP.
  Technically, this takes time – but compared to 30 minutes, it’s
  instant!
  “Onward to Victory!”
  Fantasy warriors often shout orders, wave battle standards,
  and strike inspiring poses. In dungeon fantasy, this can serve a
  purpose . . . if the fighter is willing to stop hacking and slash-
  ing for a second! The options below require at least one turn
  and a Do Nothing maneuver. (Everything here is doing some-
  thing, but overlooking this lets badly wounded heroes con-
  tribute while trying not to pass out.)
  Advice: You can observe and advise your friends. Choose
  one companion to aid. On his turn, he can listen to you – or
  ignore you! If he listens, make your Tactics roll. The result
  affects all his attack and defense rolls that turn: +2 on a criti-
  cal success, +1 on a success, -1 on a failure, or -2 on a critical
  failure. Reroll each turn. If multiple people try to advise a
  fighter, he chooses whose advice to take, and only that person
  may roll.
  Encouragement: A successful Leadership roll gives +1 to
  your side’s Fright Checks, resistance rolls against mind control
  or fear, and self-control rolls for disadvantages that would
  affect combat. Critical success gives +2. This bonus lasts until
  your next turn, but you can roll and shout for as many turns as
  you like. Failure, or several people trying this at once, gives no
  benefit (but no penalty).
  Observation: You can take a turn and ask the GM to roll
  Strategy for you. Success means he’ll reveal the enemy’s 
  general plan – if they have one – beyond “Kill ’em all!” For
  instance, “Guard the altar,” “Keep the party away from the
  west wall,” or “Kill the guy wearing the Sacred Talisman.”
  Failure means he lies.
  Playing Dead
  If you wish to opt out of combat, feign death. This is a free
  action at any time – just fall down, drop your weapon (mon-
  sters never trust a “corpse” with a ready weapon!), and stop
  moving. If a monster that attacks only the living (e.g., zombie)
  would attack you, roll a Quick Contest: Acting vs. the higher of
  its IQ or Perception. It gets bonuses for special senses (like +4
  for Discriminatory Smell); you’re at +1 at half HP, +2 at 0 HP,
  +3 at -HP, +4 at -3¥HP, and +5 at -4¥HP (you’re really dead at 
  -5¥HP, and succeed automatically). If you win, your would-be
  tormenter overlooks you and eats another party member.
  Recognizing Magic
  Those who know a spell recognize it automatically in com-
  bat. Should it become important to identify an unknown
  enemy spell (“Is Sir George asleep or dead?”), a player can ask
  the GM to roll against his PC’s Thaumatology skill. Success
  means the GM reveals the spell – or the closest spell, for spell-
  like effects that aren’t spells. Failure, as always, means he lies!
  Roguish Skills in Battle
  Thieves aren’t as tough as front-line fighters. In an ideal
  world, they would avoid fights. Yet they’re often out in front,
  scouting or looking for traps, when the whacking starts.
  Fortunately, roguish skills can be helpful in combat.
  Backstabbing: When the GM starts combat time, anyone
  may try a Stealth roll to hide in shadows, duck into the 
  bushes, etc.
  Modifiers: A basic -5; any encumbrance penalties; +5 if the
  party is ambushing, no modifier in a stand-up fight, or -5 if the
  party is ambushed; and -5 anywhere but in bush or shadowy
  tunnels.
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  11
  Dungeon fantasy is about the adventures of a team of
  delvers. If the GM decides that a task requires the party to
  pull together – or that a group effort would be fun for more
  of the players if it involved more of the heroes – he can use
  one of these rules:
  With a Little Help From My Friends. If the GM feels that
  a hero with the skill needed for an undertaking would ben-
  efit from assistants who know the same skill or comple-
  mentary skills, each helper may try his skill roll first. This
  gives a modifier to the final roll: +2 per critical success, +1
  per success, -1 per failure, and -2 per critical failure. For
  example, a bard using Singing to distract monsters as a
  form of Trickery (p. 10) might benefit from a musical
  accompaniment from a few of his bard friends, who would
  roll against Musical Instrument.
  Part of the Solution or Part of the Problem. In a situation
  where everyone needs to look out for himself but some
  party members lack the right skill, skilled adventurers
  might be able to cover for unskilled ones. Start with the best
  skill level in question, add a bonus equal to the number of
  delvers who know the skill (no defaults!), and subtract a
  penalty equal to party size. An example is when concealing
  the group’s camp using Camouflage; see Camping and
  Posting Watches (p. 5).
  Pulling Your Weight. For combined feats of strength, the
  GM must first decide how many sets of hands can con-
  tribute; e.g., two heroes could lift a chest that had two han-
  dles, while four could cooperate to raise a 4-yard-wide
  portcullis. If combining ST for a ST roll or to deal damage
  (e.g., with a battering ram), use the highest ST plus 1/5 the
  total of the other ST scores (round up). If working together
  to lift a weight, add together everybody’s Basic Lift.
  No “I” in “Teamwork” (No Profit Without It)
  
  Success lets him attack his nearest foe (GM chooses) from
  behind; critical success lets him get at any enemy. On a combat
  map, start him one step away from and behind his target. He
  gets +4 to hit because he can afford to be completely telegraph-
  ic against an opponent who can’t see him; this helps offset the 
  -3 for vitals (¥3 injury), -7 for skull (+2 DR but ¥4 injury), -8 for
  chinks in torso armor (halve DR), or -10 for chinks over the vitals
  or skull (half DR and extra injury). The victim gets no defense.
  The sneak can opt to make this an All-Out Attack, with further
  bonuses, but this isn’t wise – attacking reveals his presence!
  Hidden Weapons: A small blade can be hidden in the palm,
  along the forearm, etc. This requires a Holdout roll, at no mod-
  ifier for shuriken, -1 for daggers, -2 for larger knives, or -3 for
  sabers, shortswords, and smallswords. Success means that
  when combat starts, the first attack with that weapon will be
  hard to see coming: -2 to the target’s defense. Ensuing blows
  won’t surprise anyone.
  Practical Poisoning: Anybody can poison a blade – a long
  action that must be done before combat. There are tricks for get-
  ting a larger dose to the target with one blow. The poisoner may
  apply two or four doses, if he has enough. When he hits, make
  his Poisons roll. Failure means it isn’t any more effective than
  one dose. Success gives -2 to HT rolls to resist and ¥2 damage
  for two doses, or -4 to HT rolls to resist and ¥4 damage for four;
  e.g., four doses of monster drool require a HT-4 roll to avoid 8
  points of injury.
  Traps: Traps add to the fun when setting an ambush. Make
  one Traps roll per trap. Repeated attempts are allowed but take
  a minute apiece – and critical failure means the trapper is affect-
  ed! On any success, record the margin; during the fight, the GM
  will make a secret Vision roll for anyone who enters the trapped
  area, with a penalty equal to this margin (allies who know about
  the trap add +10, but success is only automatic for the trapper).
  Those who make the Vision roll see and avoid the trap; the first
  person to fail trips the trap, after which it’s obvious or sprung,
  and can’t affect anyone else. Hasty traps used by delvers include
  concealed caltrops (margin of failure on Vision determines how
  many affect the victim), crossbows with trigger lines (inflict
  their usual damage), leg-hold traps (damage a foot and, if
  anchored, hold the target in place until he breaks free), trip-
  ropes (roll DX-2 or fall), and shallow stake pits (thrust impaling
  damage based on victim’s ST). Each affects a one-yard area –
  one hex, on a combat map.
  Speed is Armor!
  Not really – if you’re hit, it’s better to be an immobile lump in
  dwarven plate. Still, mobility keeps martial artists, swashbuck-
  lers, and thieves from getting hit. Your first dodge after any of
  the moves below counts as your Acrobatic Dodge (p. B375) for
  the turn, even if you didn’t use Acrobatics, giving +2 to Dodge if
  the trick succeeded but -2 if it failed.
  Acrobatic Evade: You may substitute Acrobatics for DX
  when evading (p. B368) on a Move maneuver, tumbling between
  your foe’s legs, rolling over his shoulder, etc.
  Acrobatic Guard: If you fear for your life, you can declare that
  you’re acrobatically avoiding one opponent and doing nothing
  else. Roll a Quick Contest of Acrobatics vs. his best melee skill.
  If you win, he’ll have a penalty equal to your margin of victory
  on his roll to hit you on his next turn. If you tie or lose, you waste
  your turn. Regardless, you still get your usual active defenses.
  Acrobatic Stand: If you’re lying down, you can jump to your
  feet using one Change Posture maneuver instead of two by
  making an Acrobatics roll at -6 plus encumbrance penalties.
  Failure means you end up sitting; critical failure means you
  fall face-down!
  Athletics in Combat: Scenery permitting, the feats under
  Dungeon Parkour (p. 7) can be part of any Move or Move and
  Attack maneuver. During a Move and Attack, they count as the
  “Move” portion, and both your attack roll and roll for the
  stunt take an extra -2.
  Tumbling: During a Move maneuver, you may try to cart-
  wheel or roll at full Move. Make an unmodified Acrobatics
  roll. Success means that anyone who makes a ranged attack
  on you adds your full Move to range. Failure means you only
  get half your Move and no special benefits. Critical failure
  means you fall down and go nowhere!
  Taunt and Bluster
  Delvers often want to draw the aggression of monsters
  away from allies – especially wimpy allies. Many skills work
  for this: Animal Handling to provoke dumb animals, a suit-
  able Psychology specialty to distract things that have a psy-
  chology, Religious Ritual to aggravate evil monsters (espe-
  cially demons), and Singing to taunt foes smart enough to
  understand insults (IQ 6+).
  Take a Concentrate maneuver and roll a Quick Contest of
  skill against the higher of the monster’s IQ or Will. If you win,
  that foe decides to attack you from now on. A tie means it con-
  tinues to fight as it was. If you lose, it targets a hurt or other-
  wise vulnerable party member! Win, lose, or tie, if you roll a
  critical success, your mark also makes an All-Out Attack on its
  next turn.
  You can try Intimidation to drive off an intelligent mon-
  ster, but not one with IQ 0-5, Indomitable, and/or Unfazeable
  (which excludes animals, golems, undead, most plant-
  monsters, many demons, etc.). Roll dice as above. If you win,
  that foe attacks somebody other than you next turn, and must
  move away from you to do so (so if you step between it and a
  friend, you can protect your friend) – and if you rolled a crit-
  ical success, it must make a Will roll or flee the battle. If you
  tie or lose, though, it wants your lungs!
  AFTER THE BATTLE
  After succeeding at the “killing the monsters” part, the
  party will want to move right to the “taking their stuff” bit.
  There are occasionally steps between killing and looting,
  however.
  Prisoners
  Sometimes, the monsters aren’t dead – they’re charmed,
  knocked out, pinned, put to sleep, or trapped. In that case, the
  party has to decide what to do with the prisoners.
  Chains and Irons: Top priority is to ensure that they don’t
  escape. Shackles are ideal, but not every party brings those
  (thieves hate them), and they rarely come in dragon size.
  Rope or cord will do; divide the prisoner’s BL by 50 to get the
  needed weight in pounds. Make a Knot-Tying roll to estimate
  this amount and bind the target. Failure means he’ll wiggle
  free as soon as nobody is looking. Critical failure lets him
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  12
  
  burst out immediately. In the case of a spellcaster, any failure
  means he wasn’t gagged and blindfolded securely enough to
  prevent casting!
  Whips and Thumb-Screws: Monsters often know things –
  like where the secret door is and how to open the trapped
  chest safely. Win a Quick Contest of Interrogation vs. Will to
  get an answer; assume that any penalties for ferociousness
  are canceled by bonuses for Bad Things Done by Greedy
  Munchkins (and Best Left Unsaid). Losing by 5 or more
  means the prisoner lies.
  Elbow-Length Gloves: Make a Search roll to find objects
  that the prisoner is trying to hide in unexpected places on its
  hairy, dirty body.
  Patching Up
  When Ed the Barbarian is face-down in a puddle of blood
  and you need him to bash the vault, the surest fix is to pour
  a healing potion in his ear or ask the cleric to heal him.
  However, clerics and druids study nonmagical healing skills
  for a reason.
  For the tasks below, one attempt is allowed. Failure pro-
  duces no change. Critical failure inevitably makes things
  worse.
  Antidotes: In a wilderness setting, an hour and a
  Pharmacy (Herbal) roll will cook up an antitoxin for a
  known poison – if the victim can hang on for that long.
  Bandaging: Assume that dungeon fantasy is TL3 for the
  purposes of first aid. It takes 30 minutes to restore 1d-3 HP.
  This requires a successful roll against First Aid (+1 with first
  aid kit) or Esoteric Medicine (+1 with healer’s kit). See also
  Medic! (p. 11).
  Bleeding: Ignore Bleeding (p. B420) in dungeon fantasy
  unless some monster, poison, or weapon specifically causes
  it. The usual cure is a particular degree of magical healing.
  Taking a minute and making a bandaging roll will also work
  – but apply a penalty equal to the healing needed (e.g., -4 if
  the effect requires 4 HP of healing to stop bleeding).
  Horrible Grubs: In the event of skin-boring grubs, burrow-
  ing arrowheads, or similar unpleasantness, healing magic
  can cure the injury but not solve the problem. That takes a
  Surgery roll – at -5 without real surgical instruments (e.g.,
  just a dagger). Failure means 2d injury, critical failure means
  4d injury, and either means the grubs are still there.
  Weird Afflictions: Make a Diagnosis roll to reveal what’s
  wrong with somebody who isn’t responding to healing, or to
  avoid -5 when casting Cure Disease. Roll Poisons to identi-
  fy poison and avoid -5 on Neutralize Poison. Use
  Thaumatology to deduce the spells needed to cure an ongo-
  ing magical effect.
  Weird Treatments: Magic spells have no penalty to cure a
  diagnosed affliction. If the party lacks the right spell, taking a
  day out to make an Esoteric Medicine roll (+1 with healer’s
  kit) might work. Of course, the GM may cackle and apply
  penalties, and a day holds the potential for many random
  encounters with monsters that can smell suffering. Not to
  mention that fantasy diseases and poisons often kill in hours
  or minutes!
  Fido and Ol’ Paint: Use the same rules to patch up the
  party’s pets, but Veterinary replaces Esoteric Medicine and
  First Aid.
  Searching the Bodies
  Dead enemies, like live ones, may have hard-to-find loot on
  them. Make a Search roll to find this. If several people search,
  use their margins of success to determine who finds the best
  stuff. The GM should reveal search results to the players in
  secret. That makes it easier for the thief to palm evil, mind-
  warping things that the cleric would destroy!
  Dead Monster Bits
  Taking rings from dead hands isn’t enough for the truly
  greedy – some will want to keep the fingers. The necessary
  preparations must be done while the kill is fresh. If the party
  returns to an undefended room full of carrion, assume that mas-
  sive dungeon rats (or grubs, ’pedes, or something) carried it off,
  or at least ate the valuable eyes.
  Poisons: Make a Poisons roll to milk toxins from a mundane
  venomous creature (like a cobra, even a giant cobra), or a
  Hazardous Materials (Magical) roll to extract any agent with
  weird magical powers. Failure ruins the lot. Critical failure poi-
  sons the looter.
  Mundane Parts: Make a Naturalist roll to know what furs,
  horns, etc., are useful for raw materials or medicine (in dungeon
  fantasy, this skill does cover “unnatural” things like giant
  worms). Roll against a suitable Physiology specialty to find any
  internal part of this kind. To remove a pelt, yank out claws, etc.,
  make a Survival roll. To take out internal organs, roll Surgery.
  Any failure on the extraction roll spoils the loot.
  Magical Parts: “Mana organs” require a Thaumatology roll
  to find and know how to properly extract, and a Surgery roll to
  remove. Failure on either roll ruins the body part.
  LOOT
  All that glitters is not gold;
  Often have you heard that told:
  Many a man his life hath sold
  But my outside to behold:
  Gilded tombs do worms enfold.
  – William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice
  And now for the feature presentation: booty, plunder, spoils,
  swag, treasure . . . loot.
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  13
  Cracking Chests and Vaults
  Use the rules under Picking Locks (p. 8) and Muscling
  Through (p. 8) to open loot containers – and Dealing with
  Traps (p. 8) for any traps on them. A few notes:
  • Bashing open a container using Forced Entry will
  set off any trap on it!
  • When picking a trapped lock, use the lower of
  Lockpicking or Traps. Success opens the lock – which,
  when done correctly, also leaves the trap untriggered.
  Failure means the lock stays shut but the trap goes off.
  • Some traps aren’t visible from outside an enclosed
  chest. A looter can feel for these and try to interrupt them
  as he opens the chest. This is working by touch: make a
  DX-based Traps roll at -5, but with any bonus for High
  Manual Dexterity.
  
  Identifying the Good Stuff
  Not all loot looks like loot. Some has hidden properties that
  make it more valuable – or trash. Professional dungeon-
  crawlers need special skills to figure out what to keep, sell, and
  discard. Except as noted, the rolls called for here identify the
  treasure but not its fair market value.
  Coin: Assume that any delver who isn’t completely illiterate
  (as barbarians often are) can count and evaluate coin: a copper
  farthing is $1; a silver penny, $4; and a gold piece, $80. Copper
  is $62.50/lb.; silver, $1,000/lb.; and gold, $20,000/lb. To avoid
  being ripped off, bring scales and weigh it all!
  Stones: Everybody knows that shiny rocks are valuable. To
  tell semiprecious stones from gemstones, make a Merchant
  roll. All trained dungeon fantasy merchants seem to know
  about gems.
  Luxury Items: To know fine incense from cathouse per-
  fume, rare tropical woods from common types, ermine from
  rat fur, etc., roll against a suitable Connoisseur specialty.
  Rare Artifacts: Some things, especially artwork, are valuable
  because of who made or owned them, or by dint of some other
  historical quirk. Make a Connoisseur roll to spot a potential
  item of this kind – and a Forgery roll to discover whether it’s
  real or a fake! A Heraldry roll might deduce makers or past
  owners from marks left on the item (GM’s decision).
  Superior Weapons and Armor: Roll against an appropriate
  Armoury specialty to spot better-than-average arms and
  armor, including such properties as “balanced,” “dwarven,”
  and “meteoric.”
  Blessed Items: A Perception roll with bonus equal to
  Holiness or Power Investiture lets those with either trait spot
  a blessed (or cursed) item. A cleric can take four hours to pray
  to his god and get the full details by making a Religious Ritual
  roll. Critical failure triggers any curse present.
  Magic Items: The most reliable way to spot magic items is
  for a wizard to make his Perception + Magery roll on sight or
  on touch. Use the Analyze Magic spell to reveal specific
  enchantments. A delver with a backpack alchemy lab can take
  an hour and make an Alchemy roll at -2 to learn the item’s gen-
  eral abilities (not specific spells) – but critical failure wrecks
  the item! If the item is legendary, a Hidden Lore (Magic
  Items) roll will identify its common name and known func-
  tions.
  Magical Writings: The reader of a book must know its lan-
  guage to have any hope of knowing what it’s about. Skimming
  a spellbook reveals what spells are in it. Roll Hidden Lore
  (Magical Writings) to discover other properties (“Those who
  read this will turn into a duck!”), with any failure activating
  bad effects. Either takes four hours – or an hour and a half with
  a Speed-Reading roll. Magic scrolls show up to Magery;
  make a Thaumatology roll to learn what spell a scroll casts.
  Potions: These are visible to Magery. Roll Alchemy to ana-
  lyze a potion’s effects. The tester can use a backpack alchemy
  lab, take four hours, and at worst ruin the potion on a critical
  failure . . . or taste the stuff, which takes 10 seconds but means
  that bad effects affect him on any failure!
  Naturally Occurring Money
  Even an “empty” room – especially a cave – may contain
  loot. To identify the ore that the goblins were mining, the
  strange metal in the excrement of that rock-chewing worm,
  etc., make a Prospecting roll. The GM decides how much is
  there, and how long it takes to mine.
  Determining Value
  Looters who want to estimate an item’s fair value must fully
  identify the booty first; e.g., “A fine, balanced broadsword of
  smiting, blessed by the Squid God, known to be the blade that
  Hack Slashman used to slay the great wyrm Blargh.” The GM
  will make a secret Merchant roll. On a success, he’ll reveal a
  round figure based on what the delvers know. This will be bogus
  if the party is missing major details, or if the roll fails!
  DISPOSING OF THE SPOILS
  Once the loot is identified and evaluated, it’s time to decide
  what to do with it all.
  Keepers
  What the party keeps and what it sells is entirely a matter
  of intraparty negotiation. Approaches include:
  • Split loot by shares, seniority, etc. Enforcement takes the
  form of “If you cheat, the others will pound you!”
  • Allocate items to those who can make the best use of
  them. This sounds altruistic, but munchkins often prefer it
  because it makes the party more powerful.
  • Free-for-all! Keep whatever you grab! (Thieves tend to
  play by this rule no matter what the rest of the party does.)
  However it works, skills don’t affect negotiations. PCs can
  Fast-Talk and haggle with NPCs, but weaseling each other is
  pure roleplaying.
  Fixer-Uppers: Armor is an unusual special case, as it’s made
  for a particular user. If the new owner’s SM isn’t that for which
  the armor was designed, it will never fit. If SM matches, the
  armor may fit with adjustments. Make an Armoury (Body
  Armor) roll, at -1 per unusual property (dwarven, magical,
  spiked, etc.) – but -5 for fine. Success fits the armor to the new
  wearer. Failure means it won’t fit him (“Sorry, Bob, but most
  people aren’t as freakish as you.”) but, with further adjust-
  ments, might fit somebody else. Critical failure ruins it for
  good.
  Getting a Good Price
  True munchkins will want to sell swag they can’t use to get
  money for better gear. Dungeons with vast unexplored depths
  – or ones that repopulate or rearrange when nobody is visiting
  – often have a perpetual merchant encampment outside. A few
  might have shops inside, surrounded by mana-free areas and
  patrolled by armed ogre guards from Stinkerton’s. Otherwise,
  the party has to drag the spoils back to town; see Travel (p. 5),
  and remember that a trip takes longer when hauling 523 lbs. of
  copper coins, the worldly goods of 114 dead goblins, and a gold
  cockroach the size of your head . . . while driving off the
  inevitable bandits bent on stealing it all.
  Coin always fetches its full value. For everything else, start
  with the lower of actual value and what the seller believes his
  item is worth (see Determining Value, above). As noted in
  Dungeon Fantasy: Adventurers, the sum that an adventurer
  will actually receive depends on his Wealth: Dead Broke yields
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  14
  
  0% of this price (a euphemism for “Get out of my shop, you
  bum!”); Poor, 10%; Struggling, 20%; Average, 40%;
  Comfortable, 60%; Wealthy, 80%; and Very Wealthy, 100%. The
  wealthy can weasel out of taxes and are assumed to be good for
  any damages caused by stolen, cursed, or exploding articles
  (the Merchants’ Guild collects taxes for the King and insurance
  from its members). Thus, selling is most profitable if the rich-
  est party member does it – and if he’s smart, he’ll take a per-
  centage.
  There are a few ways to bend the rules, however.
  “For you, a special price!” Make a reaction roll (3d) before
  each selling spree. Add any bonuses for the hero’s Appearance
  and Charisma. If the total is 16+, the merchant likes the sell-
  er: treat the PC’s Wealth as one level higher (cumulative with
  the effects of haggling, if attempted).
  Haggling: For each item, a PC with the Merchant skill can
  roll a Quick Contest vs. a generic skill of 15. If he wins, treat
  his Wealth as one level higher for that sale; if he ties, he
  receives his usual rate; and if he loses, treat his Wealth as one
  level lower. Thus, even Dead Broke delvers can cut deals, while
  Very Wealthy ones shouldn’t bother. The seller can reject the
  offer, but other merchants will be reluctant to make another –
  no repeated attempts until after the party brings its next haul
  to town!
  Black Market: A seller can try to move goods on the black
  market. Use the haggling rules, except that Streetwise
  replaces Merchant and losing leaves the option of selling to a
  merchant. Critical failure on the roll means that some snivel-
  ing snitch turns the PC in for tax evasion or violating Guild
  privilege, and the Town Watch or King’s men seize the item for
  good.
  The Temple: Those with Clerical Investment can trade lux-
  ury items and rare artifacts suitable for a temple (statuary,
  incense, etc.), and blessed items, as if their Wealth were a level
  higher – no roll required. They don’t get cash, though, but 
  credit for merchandise in town.
  Scrap
  Greedy delvers who bring a wagon and haul back everything
  may end up with tons of scrap – rusty iron gratings, partly sun-
  dered doors, etc. Make one Scrounging roll for the party at the
  adventure’s end. Success means the junk might be of some
  value to someone. Failure indicates that it really is garbage.
  In town, make one Current Affairs roll to discover whether
  anybody is buying scrap (“Archmage Recnam Orcen is exca-
  vating a new, um, cellar, and could use such wares.”). Success
  finds a buyer who offers $1d¥100 per half-ton wagonload –
  take it or leave it. Any failure reveals nothing, but for each
  week the party stays in town (at $150 apiece for food and lodg-
  ing), one PC can try a Propaganda roll; success means he finds
  a similar deal through the power of advertising.
  Selling the Tale
  At the end of a dungeon crawl, the heroes can take a week
  to immortalize their recent adventures. Each may try one roll
  – Cartography to map the journey, Musical Composition to
  compose a ballad, Poetry to pen an epic, or Writing to create
  a learned work on the Squid Cult, ochre slime mating rituals,
  etc. Success creates something worth selling; the creator gets
  $100 (of course, it costs $150 a week to live at the inn, which
  explains why most authors live in garrets). Critical success is
  literally that, and scores $500. Dungeon fantasy worlds don’t
  have presses, syndication rights, etc.; those who aren’t happy
  with their fee can deny the world their brilliance, but it won’t
  help.
  DUNGEON-CRAWLING
  15
  Dungeon fantasy is about the rousing sound of tunnels
  collapsing, the bracing smell of suffocating gas, and the salt
  spray of (your friends’) blood. Sometimes, though, things
  go really wrong thanks to unlucky dice. Then the GM may
  wish to grant hints or assistance. When checking for aid,
  failure shouldn’t make matters worse – if things are so bad
  that brave adventurers are begging, it isn’t funny to have
  The Devil show up and curse them, too.
  Seeking Guidance: If the players are merely at a loss for
  what to do next, they may make a Meditation roll to seek
  enlightenment (popular with martial artists), or a
  Theology roll to decide “What would my deity do?”
  Success means the GM gives a small hint – nothing as clear
  as magic divination, just a cryptically worded shove in the
  right direction. This has the benefit of making contempla-
  tive PCs actually seem contemplative.
  Praying: “There are no atheists in dungeons.” Adven-
  turers who really need help can pray! Roll vs. the highest of
  IQ, Meditation, or Theology, at a base -10, +1 per unspent
  character point sacrificed, +1 per Holiness or Power
  Investiture level, and -3 for wizards with Social Stigma
  (Excommunicated). Success means a fortuitous coinci-
  dence saves the supplicant; e.g., his pack snags, stopping
  his fall. Critical success means a miracle; e.g., his god tele-
  ports him to safety. (Gamers familiar with the computer-
  ized adventures of @ will find this comforting.)
  Altars and Shrines: Dungeons often contain ready-made
  altars and shrines – just not ones holy to friendly gods.
  Someone with Clerical Investment and an hour to spare
  can make a Religious Ritual roll to sanctify such a site
  (provided that it isn’t actually cursed). Success makes it
  holy; only critical failure angers the resident god enough to
  blast him. With a proper shrine, he can then lead the party
  in a prayer for aid. Roll against Religious Ritual at -10,
  plus Holiness or Power Investiture, plus the total of all
  points sacrificed by everyone. Success and critical success
  work as above, but benefit the entire group.
  Pass the Plate: When a god answers delvers’ prayers, any-
  one who benefits is advised to donate $1,000+ to the temple
  when he’s next in town. Otherwise, the helpline will be busy
  next time . . .
  Last Ditch
  
  If you’re not the GM, please stop reading.
  – The Management
  Much of what the GM needs to know appears in Dungeon-
  Crawling (pp. 3-15). With the rules for kicking in doors, sneak-
  ing around, looting, and so on spelled out, it’s simple to come
  up with challenges for the heroes – just decide on things like
  how hard the locks are to pick, how many HP the doors have,
  what monsters live there, and how much gold is in the hoard!
  Some additional advice on such matters follows, with cross-
  references to earlier rules that may be relevant.
  DUNGEON DESIGN
  Dungeons don’t have to make sense, but they do demand
  some forethought so that the GM isn’t making things up while
  the players tap their toes. Dungeon fantasy is all about what the
  heroes do – that’s why most of Dungeon Fantasy: Dungeons
  consists of ways for PCs to exploit their skills! Before starting a
  dungeon adventure, the GM should make notes on the elements
  below so that when the players do things, he’s ready to respond.
  Archetype
  What is the dungeon? Answering this question can be a big
  help when making maps and “winging” the answers to the play-
  ers’ questions! Some possibilities:
  Cave: Unlit and damp, with deep fissures, ponds, and simi-
  lar natural dangers. A cave won’t have “rooms” or “levels” as
  such, but erosion can produce the same effect. It may house
  cave-dwellers (bears, giant bats, etc.) or intelligent monsters
  that have taken it as a lair and installed traps, doors, etc. Open
  caves make it easier for distant foes to hear the party; tighter
  ones can challenge armor-clad heroes to wiggle through narrow
  openings.
  Cellar: Might be lit, albeit poorly (-3 to Vision), and even in
  use; in the latter case, the users are either hostile or rarely seen
  (perhaps monsters are eating them). Extended cellars have
  numerous small rooms separated by thick walls that support
  the building above, and thus have lots of doors and traps – but
  also easily secured rooms for resting in. Monsters tend to be
  either humans or kept pets, unless something has burrowed in.
  Labyrinth: A deliberate dungeon, created to challenge those
  within. Some are meant to keep something in – usually a terri-
  ble monster. Others are designed to tax explorers to the limit,
  but reward those who reach the far side or some inner area.
  Labyrinths tend to twist and sprawl; feature endless obstacles,
  tricks, traps, and monsters; and often require adventurers to
  use all of their skills to survive.
  Mine: Dark, unless in use (parts in use will be lit at -3 to
  Vision). “Traps” are more like mining hazards – collapsing gal-
  leries, suffocating or explosive gas, and so on. Mines can go for
  miles and have many levels, but consist almost entirely of
  claustrophobic tunnels. Monsters might be the miners (evil
  gnomes, kobolds, etc.) or whatever ate them (giant worms, bal-
  rogs, etc.). Treasure often consists of raw ore or uncut gems.
  Prison: Prisons resemble cellars with some important dif-
  ferences. They have guards, torturers, plenty of locked doors,
  and traps that offer a way for the guards to pass. There will
  also be cooks, kitchens, and even work areas for slave labor.
  Both the prisoners and the guards may qualify as monsters! An
  important subcategory is the menagerie: a prison for beasts.
  Wizards in particular seem to imprison some very unusual
  things . . .
  Sewer: Sewers run under metropolises. They may have
  entrances all over town, but the interesting parts are remote.
  Sewers are wet, rank, and unhealthy; the heroes will have to
  make lots of HT rolls! Many have both deliberate traps (set by
  assassins and thieves) and bad engineering (e.g., collapsing
  walls). Inhabitants include slimes, giant rats, and undead
  drowning victims. Some sewers are dimly lit by glowing slime
  (-8 to Vision).
  Tomb: Tombs tend to be dark, sealed, and dry. Many are
  labyrinthine, with cunning tricks and traps for foiling 
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  16
  CHAPTER TWO
  MASTERING
  DUNGEONS
  
  grave-robbers. Obvious residents are the undead and things
  that eat corpses. Since burial is a religious ritual, tombs are
  often sanctified and include prayer facilities, making sanctity
  variations, curses, and strange altars likely. The dead are fre-
  quently buried with rich treasures, however, making the dan-
  gers worth braving.
  Warren: A warren is similar to a mine, but excavated by bur-
  rowers (big ants, worms, killer bunnies) who lair there, not by
  miners. Most such creatures can navigate in the dark, so light
  is unlikely. The size and shape of tunnels will depend on the
  monsters that dug them; e.g., 7’-thick worms dig 7’-wide tun-
  nels. The walls might be shored up with dung, straw, viscous
  goo, or the bones of prey. Things like webs and trapdoors are
  likely.
  A dungeon may include different sectors with diverse
  themes. It’s traditional to give the party a clue when they
  change sectors, though, so that they have a chance to prepare.
  This might depend on a skill roll – Hidden Lore for a forgot-
  ten labyrinth, Prospecting for a mine, Urban Survival for a
  sewer, Theology to spot tomb symbols, Naturalist for a war-
  ren, even Streetwise to know a prison. All such rolls should be
  Per-based.
  Maps
  The next step is to map out the dungeon – get some graph
  paper and start drawing rooms and passageways. Caves tend to
  have irregular areas linked by narrow tunnels. Mines and sewers,
  being manmade, are fairly regular; most have more corridors
  than rooms. Warrens could go either way, depending on the res-
  idents. Cellars, prisons, and tombs typically have lots of rooms
  and reasonably predictable, squared-off floor plans. Labyrinths
  vary too much for generalizations beyond “confusing.”
  Don’t worry (much) about cartography or architectural
  soundness, but remember these things:
  Scale: Decide how many feet or yards each graph-paper
  square or hexagon represents.
  Walls: Draw reasonably thick walls, and note their HP and
  DR – for when the players decide to carve a shortcut! Most
  dungeon walls are stone, with ablative DR (see p. B46). A 6”
  wall is about as thin as it gets, and has DR 78, HP 75; a 1’ wall
  has DR 156, HP 94; a 2’ wall has DR 312, HP 118; and a 3’ wall
  has DR 468, DR 135.
  Ups and Downs: In a multilevel dungeon, you’ll need one
  map per floor or level. Be sure to include staircases, ladders,
  ramps, shafts, magic lifts, etc. Keying these between levels (say,
  with colors or letters) lets you see at a glance where the heroes
  will end up.
  Area Labels: Number any area that you think might contain
  interesting features or an encounter, so that you have a way to
  refer to it in your notes. Each set of “generic” areas (connect-
  ing tunnels, prison cells, etc.) can share a number and a
  description. It’s best to number areas in the rough order you
  think the adventurers will reach them, so that as the party
  explores the dungeon, you can consult your notes with mini-
  mal page-flipping.
  Legend: You’ll need symbols that represent doors, secret
  doors, stairs, ladders, and so on. You’ll find it easier to answer
  the players’ questions if you box off these symbols and always
  use the same ones in all of your dungeons.
  For rules covering maps made by adventurers, see Mapping
  (p. 6) and Selling the Tale (p. 15).
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  17
  After designing the dungeon, the GM should decide what
  delvers can learn about it through hearsay and/or research
  (see Finding a Quest, p. 4). This step comes last because hav-
  ing all the facts at hand makes it easier to concoct useful tid-
  bits that give a fair return on the PCs’ investment in skills of
  little use outside town.
  Rumors
  Come up with a few general rumors about the dungeon to
  give to adventurers who make their Carousing or Current
  Affairs rolls: archetype (cave, mine, etc.), dangers obvious
  from the outside (“Halfway up a volcano, and full of fissures
  and lava pits.”), a simple description of monsters seen nearby
  (“Ahr! Blue goblins, as sure as I be standin’ here!”), fabled loot
  (“Everybody knows there’s a Holy Sword in there.”), etc.
  Critical success reveals a detail instead; see below.
  Also cook up two or three bits of hogwash for delvers who
  critically fail! These should be consistent with the accurate
  rumors. For instance, if success reveals “The Vault of Vileness
  is next to the ocean,” critical failure might add “It’s full of
  kraken!” when the Vault is actually a sealed tomb full of
  undead.
  Details
  Write down a few specifics to share with heroes who suc-
  ceed at Research rolls: particular inhabitants (“The Passages
  of Pain are said to be the lair of the lich Ruinas, necromancer
  extraordinaire.”), construction (“The complex is the work of
  Hell Gnomes, masters of cunning locks and Evil Runes.”),
  unambiguous dangers (“It’s called the Cave of Curses for good
  reason – bring an exorcist.”), or hints about treasure that go
  beyond greedy speculation (“The Holy Sword rests within,
  true. However, Evil placed it upon the Altar of Doom, since it
  could not be unmade. Only the strong of will can lift it.”).
  Critical success gives an especially valuable tidbit – a weakness
  of one of the worst monsters, a password, a partial map, etc.
  Also note a couple of fatally flawed details for researchers
  who critically fail. Again, these shouldn’t disagree with other
  findings. If holy water heals the lich Ruinas, he’s unlikely to
  discourage bogus rumors that it burns him . . .
  Tavern Tales and Moldy Books
  
  Area Information
  Looking at your map, write down the area labels in numer-
  ical order and note anything interesting in each area as you go.
  Your notes don’t have to be wordy, but they should be thorough.
  A four-room dungeon can be hours of fun if it has lots going
  on, while 1,337 rooms with identical doors, no furniture, an
  orc apiece, and minimal loot is a recipe for boredom.
  “Interesting” is subjective, but here are some classics.
  Doors and Locks
  Area entrances in dungeons often have doors, grates,
  portcullises, or similar barriers.
  Locks: Such portals may be locked; see Picking Locks (p. 8).
  Standard Lockpicking penalties range from +5 to -5.
  Especially tough locks might go down to -10! A Magelock spell
  can’t be picked – it requires Counterspell or Lockmaster.
  Doors: If lockpicking fails, the party lacks a thief, or the
  delvers simply want to break stuff, forced entry becomes an
  issue; see Muscling Through (p. 8). Any lock or bar can be
  forced. Typical values are:
  Construction
  Lock/Hinge
  Bar/Wedge
  DR
  HP
  DR
  HP
  Light
  3
  6
  1
  14
  Average
  6
  12
  2
  18
  Heavy
  9
  18
  4
  23
  X-Heavy
  12
  23
  8
  30
  Vault
  24
  46
  16
  37
  The door itself can be bashed. Wood has ablative DR (see
  p. B46), while ironbound wood and iron don’t. Use these num-
  bers:
  Construction
  Wood
  Ironbound
  Iron
  DR HP
  DR
  HP
  DR HP
  Light
  1
  23
  5
  27
  12
  36
  Average
  2
  29
  10
  34
  25
  46
  Heavy
  3
  33
  15
  39
  50
  58
  X-Heavy
  6
  42
  30
  49
  75
  66
  Vault
  12
  54
  60
  62
  150 84
  Metalwork: Gratings, grilles, etc., can be bashed or bent. The
  stats below are per bar; defeating one bar lets a Skinny person
  pass, two lets most adventurers get by, and three allows Fat or
  Very Fat delvers, or those with Gigantism, to squeeze through.
  Weight is for lifting unlocked portcullises; ST is the minimum
  effective ST needed without extra effort.
  Construction
  DR
  HP
  Weight
  ST
  Light
  6
  12
  200 lbs.
  12
  Average
  9
  18
  500 lbs.
  18
  Heavy
  12
  23
  1,000 lbs.
  25
  X-Heavy
  18
  35
  2,000 lbs.
  36
  Vault
  24
  46
  3,000 lbs.
  44
  Inhabitants
  Many areas should have monsters! Put their complete stats
  on a separate sheet that you can refer to whenever they show
  up. All you need to note in area information is the type and
  number of foes, any deviations from standard abilities and
  equipment, and perhaps a few important rolls (especially
  Hearing and Vision for sentries; see Scouting Ahead, p. 7). For
  advice on monster stats, see Perilous Encounters (p. 20).
  Nasty Surprises
  Traps and Hazards (p. 8) discusses many unpleasant gim-
  micks that could lurk in a dungeon. A few clever dangers – hid-
  den on entrances, in rooms, and/or on furnishings – are a
  major part of what makes dungeon crawls fun! Avoid the temp-
  tation to put them everywhere, though. That will just make the
  players paranoid and turn the game into a tense-but-tedious
  mine-clearing mission. Some specific notes:
  Traps: Describe unique traps in the notes for the area that
  holds them. Many traps are “generic,” though, and show up
  repeatedly. Keep stats for these on a separate reference sheet,
  as recommended for monsters. Area information merely needs
  to note the traps’ location, plus deviations from the standard
  versions.
  Curses: Try to make these unique. Curses that show up often
  enough to get “generic” stats will seem lame – not weird and
  creepy! To describe a curse, specify its resistance roll (if any)
  and effects: damage (type and amount), or injury if it comes off
  FP or HP and ignores DR; afflictions (such as attribute penal-
  ties or temporary disadvantages); or spell-like effects (every
  malign spell in GURPS Magic is inspiration for a curse). If the
  curse is due to an evil spirit, note its effective Will for would-
  be exorcists.
  Evil Runes: These differ from curses primarily in that
  they’re uncommon but not rare, and mostly cause instanta-
  neous effects similar to wizardly spells – usually Burning
  Touch, Deathtouch, Dehydrate, Frostbite, Icy Touch, or
  Shocking Touch. Note the spell, effective level, any resistance
  roll, and damage.
  Gunk: Gunk requires a resistance roll and effects, like a
  curse. Resistance is normally against HT, generally at a penal-
  ty; effects typically mirror acid, poison, or potions. Note
  whether the gunk must touch skin or can leach through armor
  (similar 
  to 
  Oozing 
  Doom; 
  see 
  Dungeon 
  Fantasy:
  Adventurers). Some glop can rust or rot gear! For that, make
  a HT roll for the equipment – again, possibly at a penalty.
  Delicate tools (like lockpicks) and articles with moving parts
  have HT 10, while armor, weapons, and heavy tools (like poles)
  are HT 12. Fine combat gear and good tools get +1, very fine
  weapons and fine tools get +2, orichalcum gets +2, silver or
  dragonhide usually gets +1, and meteoric iron is immune to
  magical goo. Failure most often means the item is ruined.
  Tricks: Even more so than curses, tricks should be remark-
  able. What makes a trick tricky is that it’s unexpected! For
  things like portals and shifting passages, indicate where the
  adventurers end up by keying the entrance(s) and exit(s) exact-
  ly as you would for a staircase between levels.
  See Fiendish Traps (p. 19) for a handy format for writing up
  not only traps, but also curses, Evil Runes, gunk, and tricks.
  Obstacles
  Some areas should include obvious quandaries that call for
  the Dungeon Parkour (p. 7) and/or Bridging Hazards (p. 8)
  rules. These include interesting spots that are hard to reach
  and self-evident dangers that can be avoided but not disarmed,
  broken, or resisted; e.g., acid pits. Note any of the following
  that apply:
  • The height of a vertical challenge: drop to a lower area,
  distance from the floor to the top of a giant altar or to a small
  opening halfway up a wall, depth of a pit, etc.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  18
  
  •The width of any horizontal challenge: chasm, icy surface,
  lava pit, water, and so on.
  • Penalties to rolls to defeat these challenges; see “. . . With
  Spikes” (p. 7).
  Be sure to spell out the consequences for those who fail!
  Some examples:
  Falls: Those who fail to cross chasms, narrow ledges, pits,
  steep slopes, etc., smash into the ground. Don’t bother doing
  the math on p. B431. Just use the above table.
  Pits of Death: Falling damage becomes impaling when there
  are spikes at the bottom! Ignore falling damage for liquid-filled
  pits – but acid means 1d-1 corrosion damage per second, while
  lava does up to 8d+2 burning damage per second (and tends to
  be rather final, so use sparingly).
  Water: Failure leads to drowning (see Swimming, p. B354).
  Special Features
  A dungeon area might contain all manner of weird and
  wonderful stuff – most of it bad, some of it good, and all of it
  entirely up to the GM. Old favorites include:
  Altars: These might be cursed (see Curses 101, p. 9) or
  blessed (see Last Ditch, p. 15), or raise effective sanctity for evil
  clerics in the area.
  Enchanted Fountains: These affect people who drink from
  them, those who bathe in them, or items dipped in them, caus-
  ing corrosion (1d-1 corrosion for a dip, 3d injury if swallowed),
  poisoning (note damage and the penalty to any HT roll to
  avoid it), potion effects, and so on. Some have a whole table of
  random effects – or even separate tables for drinking, bathing,
  and dipping!
  Mana: Areas with other-than-normal mana (see Mana,
  p. B235) can be an interesting challenge on occasion. Don’t fill
  a whole dungeon with no-mana areas just for kicks, though –
  that’s boring for wizards and bards, and unfair to PCs with
  magical Signature Gear.
  Natural Features: Ore veins (specify net yield in $ and lbs.),
  weird fungus (glows, or poisons those who eat it, or heals those
  who eat it), and so on.
  Sanctity: Areas can have different sanctity levels, too. This
  affects clerics exactly like mana affects wizards. Use this spar-
  ingly – clerics are the only healers in most parties!
  Statues: These may talk, posing riddles for the players to
  solve. Getting the answer right might open a door or even
  grant a wish. Or perhaps the statue seems mundane, but is an
  NPC that the party can free with a Stone to Flesh spell (but be
  sure to offer a clue). Treat walking, attacking statues as mon-
  sters!
  Secret and Concealed Doors
  Secret and concealed doors are de rigueur in dungeon 
  fantasy! As with traps, avoid the temptation to put them 
  everywhere. Pressing against every last 10’ wall section while
  making an “ugh-ugh” noise is fun in 1990s video games, but not
  at the gaming table.
  As noted in Hidden Doors (p. 6), a secret door requires a roll
  to spot and another to operate, while a concealed door
  demands only a detection roll but the searcher must be look-
  ing inside or behind the right scenery have any chance of suc-
  cess. Assign each such door a penalty to any rolls involved (typ-
  ically from -1 to -10). Each concealed door also needs a piece
  of concealment – include this in the area information. Well-
  placed red herrings (a big cabinet here, a tapestry-lined hall
  there) make nice additions to any area.
  Booty
  An area or its inhabitants will often have swag – see
  Treasure (p. 28).
  FIENDISH TRAPS
  Traps give the GM an opportunity to exercise diabolical cre-
  ativity. For each trap, briefly note what it is and what triggers it,
  and then list the following:
  Detect: The skill needed to find the trap – usually Traps, but
  Alchemy or Poisons for gunk, or Thaumatology for Evil
  Runes – along with any difficulty modifier. Such rolls are
  always Per-based. Not every trap is detectable! Only magic can
  spot a trap concealed entirely within a wall or a chest, or
  behind a door.
  Disarm: The skill required to render the trap harmless. This
  is most often DX-based Traps, but gunk may require Alchemy,
  Hazardous Materials, or Poisons. Some traps allow alterna-
  tive skills – for instance, Armoury (Missile Weapons) would
  be as good as Traps for neutralizing an accessible crossbow.
  This roll, too, may carry a modifier. Also note whether failure
  triggers the trap! Some traps can’t be disarmed – consider a pit
  with an illusionary floor over it. The only solution might be to
  spot and avoid such a trap.
  Circumvent: How to avoid the trap if it’s found but not dis-
  armed. This might not even require a roll; it’s simple enough
  not to step on the big, red tile. If there is a roll, it’s just about
  always against DX – or Acrobatics or Jumping, if higher. As
  always, there may be a modifier. By definition, failure means
  triggering the trap!
  Evade: Whether the trap offers a last-ditch chance to avoid
  its effects when triggered. In most cases, this is a Dodge roll,
  possibly a qualified one (“A Hearing-2 roll lets the victim hear
  a click behind him. He can roll Dodge at -2 to duck.”). For gas
  or blinding powder, though, it might be a HT roll for the target
  to hold his breath or shut his eyes quickly. A few undetectable
  traps can be stopped by somebody carefully reaching into the
  trapped area to feel for and intercept traps – a DX-based Traps
  roll at -5 plus any High Manual Dexterity bonus.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  19
  Falling Damage
  Distance
  Damage
  Distance
  Damage
  Distance
  Damage
  1 yard
  1d
  15 yards
  3d+2
  45 yards
  6d
  2 yards
  1d+1
  20 yards
  4d
  50 yards
  6d+2
  3 yards
  1d+2
  25 yards
  4d+2
  60 yards
  7d
  4 yards
  2d-1
  30 yards
  5d
  70 yards
  7d+2
  5 yards
  2d
  35 yards
  5d+2
  80 yards
  8d+1
  10 yards
  3d
  40 yards
  6d-1
  100 yards
  9d+1
  
  Effects: The trap’s consequences! It might hit the victim
  with a spring-loaded melee or ranged weapon (find damage for
  the weapon as if someone with respectable ST were wielding
  it), drop something heavy (any damage is possible, but instant
  death is boring), restrain the target (give it an effective ST), or
  fill an area with gas (offers a penalized HT roll to resist, and
  causes sleep, injury, etc.), among other things. Magical traps,
  such as Evil Runes, should specify a spell, its effective level,
  and all necessary parameters (resistance roll, damage, etc.).
  Shots: How many times the trap can be triggered. Most
  traps are one-shot. A few can fire several times. Magical traps
  often have infinite shots! Things that don’t have shots, like pits,
  are “constant.”
  Rearm: If the trap is one that can be disarmed, indicate
  whether it’s possible to rearm it by making the roll to disarm a
  second time.
  Steal: State whether an IQ-based Traps roll – possibly with
  a modifier – lets a thief take the trap! If it does, spell out what
  the thief acquires (“A ST 15 crossbow.”) and how much it
  weighs.
  This information will make it much easier to adjudicate
  Dealing with Traps (p. 8) and Dangerous Stuff (p. 9).
  Sample Traps
  Concealed Crossbow: Crossbow concealed behind tiny
  hole in wall, triggered by loose floor tile.
  Detect: Per-based Traps at -9.
  Disarm: DX-based Traps. Failure triggers!
  Circumvent: Automatic (don’t step on tile).
  Evade: Hearing roll at -2 allows Dodge at -2.
  Effects: 1d+5 impaling.
  Shots: 1.
  Rearm, Steal: No – crossbow is inside wall.
  Frozen Runes: 30’ stretch of floor covered in Evil Runes
  casts magic on anyone who passes.
  Detect: Per-based Thaumatology, or Perception + Magery
  for mages.
  Disarm: No.
  Circumvent: DX-5 to walk without stepping on runes.
  Evade: No.
  Effects: Resist Frostbite-15 with HT or suffer 3d injury.
  Shots: Infinite.
  Steal: No.
  Illusion-Covered Pit: 30’-deep spiked pit under 10’¥10’
  square of illusionary floor.
  Detect: Per-based Traps (or suitable spell).
  Disarm: No.
  Circumvent: DX or Jumping – or automatic with ladder,
  board, etc.
  Evade: No.
  Effects: 3d impaling.
  Shots: Constant.
  Steal: No.
  PERILOUS ENCOUNTERS
  Killing monsters is necessary in order to take their stuff.
  Since that’s the main point of dungeon fantasy, it’s crucial that
  the GM do a respectable job of determining when and where
  monsters show up, what they can do, and how many try to eat
  the heroes at once.
  Encounter Types
  Dungeon fantasy encounters customarily fall into two 
  categories.
  Wandering Monsters
  “Wandering monsters” are hostile things that traipse around
  looking for trouble. They might actively patrol a wilderness area
  or an underground dungeon. They could even pop in from Hell
  without rhyme or reason!
  Handle these by assigning each outdoor area or dungeon
  level odds of an encounter. A roll of 6 or less on 3d suits “safe”
  roads, while 9 or less is best for most wilderness and dungeon.
  Save odds of 12 or less and 15 or less for Hell, giant wasp hives,
  and similarly monster-infested locales.
  Assess up to +3 to the roll if the delvers are doing something
  stupid that will attract attention (e.g., hauling a ballista through
  the dungeon). Conversely, deliberate attempts at caution (e.g.,
  everybody making Stealth rolls and using Infravision instead of
  lights) might give up to -3. The GM is welcome to assign further
  situational modifiers.
  The GM must also set the frequency of such rolls. Hourly rolls
  are about right when moving around indoors, searching for
  secret doors, etc., while daily rolls work well when traveling out-
  doors. Also roll once per night when the party camps, once
  whenever the party stops to conduct an exorcism or other long
  task, and once per attempt to bash or force a door.
  The GM decides what shows up (and how quickly) when a
  roll indicates an encounter. Some areas have just one sort of
  monster; others have dozens. Old-school GMs will want to put
  together a random encounter table for each area and let it deter-
  mine the party’s bad fortune!
  Set Encounters
  “Set encounters” are run-ins with monsters that the GM has
  deliberately placed in one particular dungeon area. This might
  still involve rolling dice! Area information that says something
  like “9 or less chance of 2d orcs” or “touching the altar summons
  a demon on 12 or less” can give a dungeon better replay value.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  20
  Monsters and 
  Player Knowledge
  It’s only fair to permit delvers who learn monster
  strengths and weaknesses through skills and spells, or
  by losing body parts, to exploit that knowledge; see
  Recognition (p. 9) and Exploiting Weaknesses (p. 10).
  The GM has no special obligation to respect player
  knowledge gleaned from game supplements, though!
  The time-honored response to this munchkin tactic is to
  mix things up: vampires dislike rowan or wormwood
  instead of garlic, or are laid to rest by burial under a
  sword stuck in the ground instead of by being staked
  through the heart; the “fire dragon” breathes lightning
  (or a jet of fire ants!) instead of flame; and so on.
  
  Creating Monsters
  Just about any creature from any GURPS supplement can
  work as a dungeon denizen. If it wasn’t designed for fantasy,
  simply change the special effects. For instance, an alien that
  zips through space, blasting people with psionic pyrokinesis,
  becomes a demon that flies through the air, blasting people
  with magic fireballs. Simple!
  Like traps, monsters are fun to design. For each home-
  made monster, the GM should have enough information to
  resolve not just combat, but all of the situations discussed
  under Monsters (p. 9). Don’t bother building monsters with
  character points! The following details will more than suffice:
  ST:
  HP:
  Speed:
  DX:
  Will:
  Move:
  IQ:
  Per:
  HT:
  FP:
  SM:
  Dodge:
  Parry:
  DR:
  Attack (Skill or Resistance): For instance, “Bite (14): 1d+2
  cutting” or “Death Gaze (15 vs. HT): Heart Attack
  (p. B429).” Bites inflict thrust-1, while strikers (horns,
  scorpion tails, etc.) deliver thrust at +1/die; either may be
  cutting, crushing, or impaling. Limbs do thrust-1 (thrust
  for a hind limb); they may be crushing (+1/die with Blunt
  Claws), or cutting or impaling (+1/die with Long Talons).
  Natural attacks often benefit from Striking ST that raises
  damage; cutting and impaling ones can carry follow-up
  venom (note resistance roll and damage). Resistance and
  effects for supernatural attacks are arbitrary. Give each
  attack its own line.
  Traits: Advantages or disadvantages important in dungeon
  fantasy, such as Acute Senses (for noticing sneaky
  delvers), Constriction Attack, Indomitable (for a monster
  that can’t be influenced), Magic Resistance, Regeneration,
  and Unfazeable (for a fearless creature). Don’t bother
  repeating DR, Innate Attacks, etc., already noted above.
  Skills: Relevant skills, especially Brawling (at DX+2 or above,
  this gives +1 damage per die with natural attacks) and
  Stealth.
  Class: Animal (Giant if huge or Dire if mutant; affected by
  Animal Handling and Animal spells), Construct (incorrupt-
  ible magical servant), Demon (hostile extradimensional
  creature subject to the Banish spell), Elder Thing (hostile
  extradimensional creature not subject to Banish), Elemental
  (subject to Banish and Control Elemental), Faerie (free-
  willed creature of magic), Hybrid (as Animal, but shares
  traits of two or more beasts and requires a special subset of
  Animal spells), Mundane (any living thing that isn’t Animal,
  Plant, or Slime and that has vital areas, like goblins and
  generic mouth-and-tentacles creatures), Plant (affected by
  Plant spells), Slime (diffuse, IQ 0 ooze that’s immune to most
  Animal and Plant spells), or Undead (can be turned with
  True Faith). This is important for Higher Purpose advan-
  tages and when choosing the skill used to recognize the
  thing (see Recognition, p. 9).
  Notes: Whether it will negotiate or feign willingness to negoti-
  ate (see Negotiation, p. 10), whether it’s truly evil (matters to
  clerics and holy warriors), useful body parts (see Dead
  Monster Bits, p. 13), etc.
  Sample Monsters
  These monsters might prove useful to GMs who are in a
  hurry or who need inspiration for their own critters.
  Acid Spider
  This giant spider has a relatively tiny body – “only” 7’ across
  – attached to long, hairy legs that lift it 7’ off the ground. It can
  walk unhindered over all but the tallest of men. A hunting spi-
  der, it lurks in dark cracks, waiting for warm prey to happen
  by. It then jumps on its quarry, bites with fangs capable of pen-
  etrating plate armor, and injects fast-acting corrosive venom
  that partially digests its prey.
  ST: 26
  HP: 26
  Speed: 7.00
  DX: 15
  Will: 12
  Move: 9
  IQ: 5
  Per: 12
  HT: 13
  FP: 13
  SM: +2
  Dodge: 11
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 4
  Acidic Bite (15): 2d+1 impaling + follow-up 1d-3 corrosion (10
  one-second cycles).
  Traits: 360° Vision; Combat Reflexes; Extra Legs (Eight Legs;
  Long, Can walk over SM 0 or smaller adventurers without
  needing to evade); Horizontal; Infravision; No Fine
  Manipulators; Super Jump 1 (10-yard jump); Wild Animal.
  Skills: Jumping-16; Stealth-15.
  Class: Dire Animal.
  Notes: Acid glands contain enough acid for 3d acid grenades
  ($10 each). Specimens with higher ST and HP aren’t
  unheard of; Move, leaping distance, and acid are
  unchanged.
  as-Sharak
  The as-Sharak are elemental sorcerers who sold their souls
  for power . . . only to be turned into monsters in Hell and
  returned to the living world to punish similarly arrogant mor-
  tals. With the physique of great cats (but upright, like men) and
  some of the magical powers they so craved as mortals – but
  their mind shattered by madness – these demons guard troves
  of hidden lore, lying in wait for power-hungry wizards. They
  believe that taking sufficient mortal lives will eventually break
  their curse.
  ST: 18
  HP: 18
  Speed: 6.50
  DX: 14
  Will: 14
  Move: 6
  IQ: 10
  Per: 14
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 10
  Parry: 12
  DR: 2
  Bite or Front Claw (16): 1d+2 cutting.
  Breath (16): Can breathe a 5-yard-wide ¥ 20-yard-long cone of
  magic breath once a day. Effects depend on subspecies:
  • Agni (Fire) as-Sharak: Breath of Flame (5d+1 burning).
  • Akasha (Spirit) as-Sharak: Removal of Life (2d fatigue).
  Suffocation damage; DR has no effect on this respiratory
  attack, but Doesn’t Breathe protects completely.
  • Jala (Water) as-Sharak: Ocean’s Frozen Spray (3d-1 crushing,
  no blunt trauma or knockback). Roll vs. HT at -1 per 2
  points of penetrating damage or be frozen (paralyzed) for
  (20 - HT) minutes, minimum 1 minute.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  21
  
  • Prithvi (Earth) as-Sharak: Desert’s Sand (3d+1 crushing). Roll
  vs. HT at -1 per 2 points of penetrating damage or be blind-
  ed for (20 - HT) minutes, minimum 1 minute.
  • Vayu (Wind) as-Sharak: Rending Storm (5d+1 crushing).
  Hind Claw (14): 1d+3 cutting.
  Weapon (16): Shamshir (3d+1 cutting or 1d+3 impaling).
  Traits: Combat Reflexes; Detect (Supernatural); Doesn’t
  Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink; Doesn’t Sleep; Higher
  Purpose (Punish invaders of protected place); Immunity to
  Metabolic Hazards; Indomitable; Injury Tolerance (No
  Blood, No Vitals); Night Vision 5; Supernatural Durability
  (Can only be killed by supernatural damage).
  Skills: Brawling-16; Broadsword-16; Innate Attack (Breath)-16;
  Stealth-14.
  Class: Demon.
  Notes: Some wear armor; if so, add armor DR to natural DR 2.
  Treat a shamshir as an ordinary cavalry saber (p. B271).
  Wizard as-Sharak with IQ 12+, Magery 2+, and spells are
  rumored to exist. Unwilling to negotiate. Truly evil.
  Crushroom
  A crushroom is a man-sized, ambulatory fungus. It resem-
  bles a huge mushroom with dozens of tentacle-like “feet” 
  surrounding its base (allowing it to move) and a gaping maw
  on top (permitting it to eat delvers). Made of solid vegetable
  “muscle,” it’s fantastically strong. Druids believe that 
  crushrooms are nonsapient, although rumors abound of
  intelligent fungus-men with hallucinogenic spores.
  ST: 40
  HP: 40
  Speed: 4.50
  DX: 10
  Will: 10
  Move: 4
  IQ: 2
  Per: 10
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 7
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 2
  Bite (10): 4d crushing.
  Traits: Constriction Attack; Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Sleep;
  High Pain Threshold; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards;
  Indomitable; Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood); No
  Fine Manipulators; Unfazeable.
  Class: Plant.
  Notes: Bite counts as a grapple on opponents of SM 0 or small-
  er, and is followed by the Constriction Attack. Crushrooms
  aren’t intelligent enough to negotiate. Plant spells affect
  them normally.
  Dire Wolf
  Dire wolves are huge, strong, fast wolves with thick, wooly
  coats, keen senses, and a taste for human flesh. Tales of orcs
  using them as mounts are apocryphal – they’ll eat orcs, too.
  While one dire wolf might be no challenge for adventurers,
  they tend to occur in packs of up to 20 . . .
  ST: 16
  HP: 16
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 12
  Will: 11
  Move: 9
  IQ: 4
  Per: 14
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: +1
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 2
  Bite (14): 1d+1 cutting.
  Traits: Discriminatory Smell; Night Vision 2; Quadruped;
  Temperature Tolerance 1 (3° to 70°); Wild Animal.
  Skills: Brawling-14; Tracking-14.
  Class: Giant Animal (despite the name).
  Notes: While not sapient, dire wolves use effective pack tactics.
  Each pack has an alpha male with ST 17, IQ 5, HP 17, Will
  12, Per 15, damage 1d+2 cutting, and Tactics-12.
  Doomchild
  Doomchildren (plural – there’s always a horde) are pint-
  sized demons, barely sapient, that attack viciously with unex-
  pected strength and speed. Bulging eyes and bloated heads
  mar their disturbingly childlike appearance. They’re very frag-
  ile; one solid hit will kill them. On dying, though, they explode
  in a cloud of flame, just like a magical fireball.
  ST: 8
  HP: 8
  Speed: 7.00
  DX: 18
  Will: 10
  Move: 10
  IQ: 6
  Per: 10
  HT: 10
  FP: 10
  SM: -1
  Dodge: 10
  Parry: 11
  DR: 0
  Weapon (18): Large knife (3d-2 cutting or 1d+2 impaling).
  Death Blast: 3d burning explosion + linked 1d cutting frag-
  mentation (flying bone shards!) on dying.
  Traits: Berserk (12); Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink;
  Doesn’t 
  Sleep; 
  Immunity 
  to 
  Metabolic 
  Hazards;
  Indomitable; Striking ST +10 (ST 18); Unfazeable.
  Skills: Knife-18.
  Class: Demon.
  Notes: Unwilling to negotiate. Truly evil.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  22
  
  Erupting Slime
  Most slime is only dangerous if touched or if it drips on a
  careless delver. This one is unusual in that it oozes around,
  spewing globs of toxic gunk at anything that moves, with the
  goal of killing the target in order to engulf it and thus repro-
  duce. Left undestroyed in an area with dead bodies, erupting
  slime will convert a body into a new slime in an hour. This dou-
  bling will continue until the slimes run out of corpses.
  Someone turned to slime cannot be resurrected!
  ST: 0
  HP: 10
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 12
  Will: 0
  Move: 1
  IQ: 0
  Per: 10
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 0
  Slimeball (12): Ranged attack (Acc 3, Range 10/100).
  Penetrates armor in DR seconds, and then delivers 2d toxic,
  reduced to 1d toxic with a HT roll.
  Traits: Amphibious; Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Sleep; High Pain
  Threshold; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards; Injury
  Tolerance (Diffuse; Infiltration, Can ooze under barriers and
  through tiny holes); Invertebrate; No Legs (Slithers); No
  Manipulators; Vibration Sense (Air).
  Class: Slime.
  Notes: Nonsentient – can’t communicate or negotiate.
  Unaffected by Animal or Plant spells that don’t specifically
  target slimes. A dead slime can be used (or sold) as one dose
  of Oozing Doom.
  Flaming Skull
  Flaming skulls are semi-corporeal undead that resemble
  flying human skills wreathed in fire. Streaking into close com-
  bat, they deliver flaming bites to their living prey. Owing to
  their size, speed, and diffuse nature, they’re difficult targets,
  and can often inflict great damage before being destroyed. The
  jury is out on whether they’re necromantic creations or free-
  willed evil spirits who loathe mortals.
  ST: 0
  HP: 20
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 14
  Will: 10
  Move: 12 (Air)
  IQ: 10
  Per: 10
  HT: 10
  FP: N/A
  SM: -5
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 0
  Flaming Bite (14): 2 points burning. This
  Cosmic attack ignores all DR!
  Traits: Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink;
  Doesn’t Sleep; High Pain Threshold;
  Immunity 
  to 
  Metabolic 
  Hazards;
  Indomitable; Injury Tolerance (Diffuse); No
  Fine Manipulators; No Legs (Aerial); Unfazeable.
  Skills: Stealth-14.
  Class: Undead.
  Notes: Unwilling to negotiate. Truly evil.
  Flesh-Eating Ape
  Flesh-eating apes superficially resemble the banana-
  eating kind, but have a mouth full of meat-tearing teeth and
  a predatory temperament. They’re strong, combative, and
  have a nose for flesh, tracking tasty humans by scent. Due to
  their physical power, adventurers are advised to slay them
  before they get into close combat and grapple!
  ST: 17
  HP: 17
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 12
  Will: 10
  Move: 7
  IQ: 6
  Per: 10
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: +1
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: 10 (Unarmed)
  DR: 1
  Bite (14): 1d+2 cutting.
  Fist (14): 2d crushing.
  Traits: Arm ST +2 (ST 19); Brachiator; Discriminatory Smell;
  Ham-Fisted 1; Wild Animal.
  Skills: Brawling-14; Climbing-14; Wrestling-14 (+2 ST when
  grappling).
  Class: Dire Animal.
  Notes: Flesh-eating apes are smart enough that Animal spells
  won’t work – use Mind Control magic. Arm ST and
  Wrestling skill give effective ST 21 for grappling, and some
  apes like to use Neck Snap (at ST-4, or 17, for 4d-1 damage;
  see p. B404) on grappled victims.
  Foul Bat (Batchala)
  These gigantic bats lack the fear of fire and men possessed
  by normal beasts. Their stench at close proximity can over-
  come victims before a single bite is delivered, and their mouth
  carries toxins that make wounds weep and bleed, causing
  weakness.
  ST: 10
  HP: 10
  Speed: 6.50
  DX: 14
  Will: 10
  Move: 13 (Air)
  IQ: 3
  Per: 10
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: 0
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  23
  
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 1
  Bite (16): 1d+1 cutting + follow-up 1 FP.
  Stench (Resisted by HT): Smell-based emanation in one-yard
  radius. Those who don’t resist are nauseated (-2 to attribute
  and skill rolls, -1 to active defenses, and possible vomiting;
  see p. B428) for minutes equal to margin of failure.
  Traits: Acute Hearing 8 (Hearing 18); No Fine Manipulators;
  Sonar (20 yards); Striking ST +5 (ST 15); Wild Animal.
  Skills: Aerobatics-14; Brawling-16.
  Class: Dire Animal.
  Notes: Some colonies have a demonic leader who has IQ 10+,
  Indomitable, Magic Resistance 10, and Unfazeable. This is a
  demon, not a dire animal with the Wild Animal meta-trait.
  Frost Snake
  This white-furred serpent is feared by barbarian cultures in
  the Frozen North. It hunts by seeking body heat, and can func-
  tion even in extreme cold. Its surprisingly strong bite delivers
  venom, and it can also weaken prey with an exhalation of pure
  cold.
  ST: 10
  HP: 10
  Speed: 7.00
  DX: 14
  Will: 10
  Move: 7
  IQ: 2
  Per: 12
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 10
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 2
  Bite (16): 1d cutting + follow-up 2d toxic (HT-4 to resist).
  Chill Breath (14): 1d(5) burning (Jet, Range 5/10). This is
  extreme cold, not fire!
  Traits: DR 20 (Limited, Cold/Ice); High Pain Threshold;
  Infravision; Striking ST +3 (ST 13); Temperature Tolerance
  10 (-135° to 40°); Terrain Adaptation (Ice); Vermiform; Wild
  Animal.
  Skills: Brawling-16; Innate Attack (Breath)-14; Stealth-14.
  Class: Dire Animal.
  Notes: Cold organ worth $50 to alchemists, who use it in liquid
  ice potions.
  Giant Rat
  There’s little to be said about giant rats: they’re as cunning
  and dextrous as regular rats, but huge, the size of the children
  they carry off as food. Almost all dungeons have them – espe-
  cially sewers. They’re fodder for well-equipped adventurers,
  but every now and then, 20 or 30 of them will get crazy and
  swarm a party anyway.
  ST: 9
  HP: 9
  Speed: 6.50
  DX: 13
  Will: 10
  Move: 7
  IQ: 5
  Per: 12
  HT: 13
  FP: 13
  SM: -1
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 1
  Bite (15): 1d-1 cutting.
  Traits: Night Vision 5; Semi-Upright; Striking ST +2 (ST 11);
  Wild Animal.
  Skills: Brawling-15; Stealth-15.
  Class: Giant Animal.
  Notes: Anyone wounded by giant rats must make a HT roll to
  avoid infection with some disease or other. Sewer rot (-1 on
  all attribute and skill rolls until stopped with Cure Disease)
  is typical.
  Golem-Armor Swordsman
  This construct consists of a flesh golem – made from a for-
  merly living swordsman – riveted inside solid metal plates that
  are also animated, thereby augmenting strength. It’s virtually
  indestructible . . . and when the flesh golem is slain, the armor
  reanimates on its own as an “armor golem” and must be
  destroyed a second time. Fortunately for delvers, the vast
  weight of metal used (200 lbs.) makes the thing slow and
  clanking, and it seems to have the usual human vulnerabilities
  at the head and vitals.
  ST: 13
  HP: 13
  Speed: 7.00
  DX: 13
  Will: 10
  Move: 2
  IQ: 10
  Per: 10
  HT: 13
  FP: N/A
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 8
  Parry/Block: 12
  DR: 17
  Weapons (16): Broadsword (3d+1 cutting or 1d+4 impaling)
  and medium shield (1d+2 crushing).
  Traits: Automaton; Berserk (12); Cannot Learn; Combat
  Reflexes; Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink; Doesn’t
  Sleep; Extra Life 1; Fragile (Unnatural); High Pain
  Threshold; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards; Indomitable;
  Injury Tolerance (No Blood); Reprogrammable; Striking ST
  +5 (ST 18); Unfazeable; Unhealing (Total).
  Skills: Broadsword-16; Shield-16.
  Class: Construct.
  Notes: Usually carries an ordinary broadsword and a medium
  shield (DB 2), but these may be magical. The golem’s mas-
  sive armor can’t be worn by a man, but is worth $1d¥100 on
  its own as scrap! No golem will negotiate or reveal useful
  information.
  Horde Zombie
  Horde zombies aren’t necromantic servitors, but victims of
  a horrible curse. Anyone slain by a horde zombie will rise as
  one a minute later and try to eat any living person in sight.
  While capable of speech, horde zombies only ever moan the
  name of the body part they wish to eat: “Braaaain,” “Spleeeen,”
  “Skinnnn,” etc. They’re mostly weak fodder – but if enough of
  them attack, the danger of being grappled, pinned, and eaten
  is real. On the other hand, they’re easy to outrun, and usually
  forget about victims who duck out of sight (6 or less chance of
  staying on the trail).
  ST: 13
  HP: 17
  Speed: 5.00
  DX: 8
  Will: 8
  Move: 4
  IQ: 8
  Per: 8
  HT: 12
  FP: N/A
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 8
  Parry: 9 (Unarmed)
  DR: 0
  Bite/Punch (12): 1d crushing.
  Traits: Bad Smell; Cannot Learn; Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t
  Sleep; Fragile (Unnatural); High Pain Threshold; Immunity
  (All mind control); Immunity to Metabolic Hazards;
  Incurious (6); Indomitable; Infectious Attack (Must kill vic-
  tim); Injury Tolerance (No Blood, Unliving); Temperature
  Tolerance 10 (-115° to 60°); Uncontrollable Appetite (6);
  Unfazeable; Unhealing (Total).
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  24
  
  Skills: Brawling-12; Wrestling-12 (+2 ST when grappling).
  Class: Undead.
  Notes: While “intelligent,” horde zombies are uninterested in
  negotiation and immune to trickery. They just want to eat.
  They aren’t truly evil – they’re more a force of nature.
  Mindwarper
  Mindwarpers are Things from Beyond Time and Space,
  with genius-level intellect and devastating psychic powers. No
  mortal has survived to describe one, but ancient lore suggests
  that they’re humanoids with pebbly skin (similar to that of a
  starfish), no nose, and hands and feet that consist of suckers
  surrounded by writhing cilia instead of digits. An encounter
  with a mindwarper generally ends in madness or death.
  Fortunately for humans, mindwarpers don’t work well togeth-
  er; a mindwarper is likely to be the boss of a dungeon, found
  on the lowest levels, surrounded by mindless fodder.
  ST: 10
  HP: 10
  Speed: 5.50
  DX: 10
  Will: 20
  Move: 5
  IQ: 18
  Per: 18
  HT: 12
  FP: 20
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 8
  Parry: 13 (¥5)
  DR: 10
  Psychokinetic Lash (20): 3d crushing (¥5). This ranged attack
  (Acc 3, Range 10/100) can be dodged but not blocked or par-
  ried.
  Traits: Compartmentalized Mind 4; Dependency (Mana;
  Constantly); Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink; Doesn’t
  Sleep; Flexibility; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards; Injury
  Tolerance (No Blood, No Vitals); Magic Resistance 6;
  Pressure Support 3; Regeneration (Very Fast, 1 HP/second);
  Temperature Tolerance 5 (-15° to 100°); Terror; Unfazeable.
  Skills: Innate Attack (Gaze)-20; many IQ-based skills at skill 16-
  20.
  Class: Elder Thing.
  Notes:
  Parry, DR, attack, and Terror are psionic.
  Compartmentalized Mind lets the mindwarper psychokinet-
  ically strike and parry five times per turn! A mindwarper will
  often feign willingness to negotiate; it may even honor a deal
  that involves delvers agreeing to a horrible, soul-tainting
  quest. Truly evil.
  Peshkali
  Peshkali are powerful demonic sentinels set to guard for-
  gotten places. They have a muscular, vaguely humanoid torso
  with six arms, while their lower body is that of a great serpent.
  What they lack in sorcery or astonishing powers they make up
  in strength and martial prowess.
  ST: 20
  HP: 20
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 12
  Will: 14
  Move: 6
  IQ: 10
  Per: 14
  HT: 12
  FP: 12
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 10
  Parry: 13 (¥6)
  DR: 4
  Weapons (18): Six clubs (3d+3 crushing), scimitars (3d+3 cut-
  ting or 2d impaling), or spears (2d+1 impaling).
  Traits: Combat Reflexes; Constriction Attack (+2 to grapple and
  ST per arm used after first two!); Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t
  Eat or Drink; Doesn’t Sleep; Double-Jointed; Extra Arms 4;
  Extra Attacks 5; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards;
  Indomitable; Infravision; Injury Tolerance (No Blood, No
  Brain, No Neck, No Vitals); No Legs (Slithers); Supernatural
  Durability (Can only be killed if all six arms are crippled);
  Unfazeable.
  Skills: Broadsword-18 or Spear-18; Wrestling-16 (+2 ST when
  grappling).
  Class: Demon.
  Notes: Unwilling to negotiate. Truly evil.
  Siege Beast
  These gigantic, stooped brutes are stupid, ill-tempered, and
  completely loyal to the dark forces that control whatever dun-
  geon they’re found in. Their purpose in life is to tow siege
  engines and guard gateways. They wade into battle with a mas-
  sive hammer like a meat tenderizer riveted to one hand and
  steel bands nailed directly to their leathery hide. Fortunately
  for delvers, siege beasts are flesh-and-blood creatures, not con-
  structs, and thus are subject to poison, strangulation, and
  blows to vital areas.
  ST: 30
  HP: 30
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 12
  Will: 12
  Move: 5
  IQ: 8
  Per: 8
  HT: 12
  FP: 18
  SM: +2
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: 11
  DR: 10
  Weapon (16): Hammer (5d+5 crushing). Cannot be dropped!
  Mailed Fist (16): 3d+3 crushing.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  25
  
  Metal Boot (14): 3d+4 crushing.
  Traits: Bad Temper (12); Fanaticism; Hard to Kill 4; High Pain
  Threshold; Very Rapid Healing.
  Skills: Axe/Mace-16; Brawling-16.
  Class: Mundane.
  Notes: Siege beasts aren’t supernaturally bound and can be
  tricked or even negotiated with. Mind control also works –
  but given a siege beast’s Will (and the triple cost to cast spells
  on SM +2 targets), this isn’t usually practical. A siege beast’s
  “weapon” and “armor” consist of 180 lbs. of low-quality
  scrap.
  Stone Golem
  A stone golem is a magical automaton created as a
  guardian. Most golems found in dungeons have outlived their
  creators, and carry out obscure orders completely by the letter.
  Some warn delvers away from a particular place or action, and
  attack only those who fail to heed the warning; others simply
  attack on sight.
  ST: 20
  HP: 30
  Speed: 6.25
  DX: 11
  Will: 8
  Move: 6
  IQ: 8
  Per: 8
  HT: 14
  FP: N/A
  SM: +1
  Dodge: 9
  Parry: 9
  DR: 4
  Stone Fist (12): 2d-1 crushing.
  Weapon (13): Huge (SM +1) maul (3d+8 crushing) or execu-
  tioner’s sword (3d+6 cutting).
  Traits: Automaton; Cannot Learn; Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat
  or Drink; Doesn’t Sleep; Fragile (Unnatural); High Pain
  Threshold; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards; Indomitable;
  Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood); Pressure
  Support 3; Reprogrammable; Unfazeable; Unhealing (Total);
  Vacuum Support.
  Skills: Brawling-12; Two-Handed Axe/Mace-13 or Two-Handed
  Sword-13.
  Class: Construct.
  Notes: This is a basic model; there’s no actual limit to ST, HP,
  DR, or skill. If clad in barbarian-sized (SM +1) armor, add
  armor DR to natural DR 4; DR 5 bronze plate (total DR 9)
  is common. No golem will negotiate or reveal useful 
  information.
  Toxifier
  Toxifiers might be mistaken for ghosts due to their smudgy,
  semisolid appearance. However, they’re actually demonic
  clouds of greenish poison vapor. They attack simply by stand-
  ing near victims and engulfing them in a lethal mist of contact
  poison. They’re largely unaffected by weapons other than those
  specifically designed to injure spirits, and are unusually
  strong-willed and hard to repel with magic.
  ST: 0
  HP: 10
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 14
  Will: 16
  Move: 12 (Air)
  IQ: 10
  Per: 10
  HT: 10
  FP: 10
  SM: 0
  Dodge: 10
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 0
  Toxic Attack (Resisted by HT-4): Contact agent emanated in
  a two-yard radius. Those who fail to resist take 1d toxic
  damage and are nauseated (-2 to attribute and skill rolls, -1
  to active defenses, and possible vomiting; see p. B428) if
  injury reaches 2/3 of HP. Nausea lasts until healed above 2/3
  HP.
  Traits: Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink; Doesn’t Sleep;
  Dread (Blessed Objects; 5 yards); High Pain Threshold;
  Immunity to Metabolic Hazards; Indomitable; Injury
  Tolerance (Diffuse); No Legs (Aerial); No Manipulators;
  Silence 2; Unkillable 1 (Achilles Heel, Magic Weapons);
  Vibration Sense (Air); Vulnerability (Wind ¥2).
  Skills: Aerobatics-16; Stealth-14 (18 vs. Hearing).
  Class: Demon.
  Notes: Unwilling to negotiate. Truly evil.
  Triger
  A triger is nothing more than a mutant tiger with three
  heads. It can bite three times instead of just once – and this
  bite is deadlier than a regular tiger bite due to the unusual
  strength needed to support two extra necks and heads!
  ST: 19
  HP: 19
  Speed: 6.00
  DX: 13
  Will: 11
  Move: 10
  IQ: 4
  Per: 12
  HT: 11
  FP: 11
  SM: +1
  Dodge: 10
  Parry: N/A
  DR: 1
  Bite (15): 2d cutting (¥3).
  Front Claw (15): 2d cutting.
  Hind Claw (13): 2d+1 cutting.
  Traits: Combat Reflexes; Extra Attacks 2; Extra Heads 2; Night
  Vision 5; Peripheral Vision; Quadruped; Temperature
  Tolerance 1 (24° to 90°); Wild Animal.
  Skills: Brawling-15; Stealth-13; Swimming-13.
  Class: Dire Animal.
  Notes: Some mutant tigers have even more heads! For every
  Extra Head, add +1 to ST and HP (increasing damage to
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  26
  
  match), plus another Extra Attack. Triger skins are prized
  for rugs, and can fetch up to $1,000 apiece.
  Balancing Encounters
  Determining suitable encounters for the party is an art,
  not a science. There’s no mathematical formula for it, 
  and nothing helps as much as GMing experience. A few
  guidelines:
  Offense: In all but the most trivial of encounters, there
  should be at least one creature that can threaten the PC with
  the highest DR. If basic damage that high would slaughter the
  delver with the lowest DR, consider alternatives – especially
  armor divisors and attacks that don’t interact with DR
  (innate Deathtouch spells, poison gas, etc.). Against a party
  with huge active defense scores, look at high skill (permits a
  Deceptive Attack) or options that bypass defenses (e.g., spells
  that work via resistance rolls, area effects, or Stealth to allow
  a surprise attack). Most monsters can attack only once per
  turn. Those with Extra Attacks get multiple shots at bypass-
  ing active defenses, resistance, and DR, and should generally
  have slightly lower skill and/or damage.
  Defense: Some monsters are fodder, and just get squished.
  These aren’t necessarily trivial; numbers and effective offense
  can let them chip away at the party before being exterminated.
  Others are evasive, and difficult to hit. This might be due to
  high Dodge, or it could be because of some innate spell-like
  defense that lets them blink aside, turn insubstantial momen-
  tarily, etc., on a roll of 15 or less, or even automatically, once or
  twice per turn. Yet others are tough, with enough DR to turn
  all but the heroes’ biggest physical attacks, sufficient HP to
  soak up several hits from those attacks, Regeneration, and so
  on. An interesting option is Injury Tolerance (Damage
  Reduction). This divides all wounds by 2, 3, or more after DR,
  the net effect of which is that strong warriors can’t kill the crea-
  ture in one blow, while weak ones can at least injure it some-
  what.
  Mobility: A creature that has Move 11-20 can step two yards,
  one with Move 21-30 can step three yards, and so on, allowing
  it to approach, strike, and dart out of reach – very annoying!
  Flying monsters with lots of room to maneuver can stay com-
  pletely out of reach, shooting fire breath, dropping rocks, and so
  on. This forces the party to resort to missile weapons (which
  usually aren’t as nasty as melee attacks) or spells (at -1/yard, for
  Regular spells). Creatures capable of teleportation, melding
  with stone, etc., can make every attack a surprise attack and
  leave the adventurers little option but to Wait and react. Only
  give out such abilities if the PCs have some way to defeat the
  monsters.
  Monsters come in three broad power levels, which modify
  the above assumptions:
  Fodder monsters appear in hordes that outnumber the
  party. They should have weak attacks that are dangerous
  mainly because the threat of lucky dice (critical hit, maxi-
  mum damage roll, winning a Quick Contest, etc.) increases
  when each PC faces many enemies per turn. Such creatures
  should still be able to injure the PC with the lowest DR,
  though! There’s no need for Extra Attacks – a mob of fodder
  is essentially a distributed monster that has lots of attacks
  already. As noted above, fodder monsters don’t require espe-
  cially great defenses. They often have the mobility advantage,
  though, nipping in and out like jackals or piranha, or swarm-
  ing through the air like hornets.
  Worthy monsters can challenge the heroes when the
  numerical odds are more-or-less equal. Most use the offense,
  defense, and mobility guidelines as written. Tradeoffs are
  possible, however, and can make the encounter interesting.
  The GM might nudge offense up a bit at the expense of
  defense, or vice versa. It’s still unwise to punch offense up to
  instant-death levels, even for a critter with no defense (ulti-
  mately, the monsters’ survival doesn’t matter, while the PCs’
  does), or to make defense near-perfect, even for an enemy
  that can’t hurt the party (dungeon fantasy is about killing
  monsters, remember!). Mobility enhances offense and
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  27
  Combat Rules
  Fighting is vital to dungeon fantasy, so the players
  (especially those playing warriors) might want to use
  lots of combat options – including those from Tactical
  Combat (pp. B384-392) and GURPS Martial Arts.
  That’s fine! But all of this can slow down what’s sup-
  posed to be a fun romp, so the GM may wish to imple-
  ment the following rules.
  Trademark Moves
  Much of the time wasted in fights has to do with the
  players working out odds and consulting obscure rules.
  To combat this, the GM may suggest or even require
  that each player work out a few “trademark moves” that
  cover an entire turn’s worth of actions, and write down
  the effects in advance. For instance, “All-Out Attack
  (Strong) for 2d+3 cutting, thrown as a Rapid Strike with
  a chop to the neck, at skill 13, followed by a Deceptive
  slash at the torso for -2 defenses, at skill 14.” To encour-
  age this, the GM might let anyone who takes the time to
  work out such a move spend an earned point on a perk
  that gives +1 to all skill rolls made to use it.
  Dumb Monsters
  While the heroes can try all manner of crazy, com-
  plex moves to show off their skills, letting monsters do
  the same thing almost doubles the time it takes to play
  out a battle. Therefore, monsters shouldn’t try fancy
  options such as Deceptive Attack, Dual-Weapon Attack,
  Feint, Rapid Strike, and combat techniques unless the
  GM specifically designed them to use such tactics to be
  challenging.
  “And Stay Down!”
  Fights can last forever when high-HT monsters keep
  making HT rolls. To get around this, fodder monsters
  are defeated if injured at all – even a 1-HP tap from the
  wizard’s wand will do. Worthy monsters are finished
  when reduced to 0 HP or below. Only boss monsters
  fight to negative HP and attempt repeated HT rolls.
  “Defeated” monsters that aren’t killed or knocked out
  might cower, play dead, flee, surrender, etc. Unnatural
  ones might even vanish!
  
  defense somewhat – remember that when making other
  trades.
  Boss monsters, like dragons, are meant to challenge the
  entire party all on their own. They can be superlative in every
  category! Any attack might be lethal, so the PCs can’t just
  swarm in with a hail of All-Out Attacks. Multiple attacks are
  likely, especially if the boss won’t have fodder for backup.
  Such creatures are often both evasive and tough; the heroes
  might even have to discover a special vulnerability in order to
  win! Some serious foes like this lack mobility, and sit there
  trading blows, but this isn’t universally true. A boss might be
  a challenge because of mobility, moving all over the place so
  that only one PC can actually fight it at a time.
  TREASURE
  Loot shouldn’t be boring – see Identifying the Good Stuff
  (p. 14) for ideas. Specify the weight of each item or collection
  of small items, plus a “fair market value” (which you can pull
  out of thin air, if you like!) for use with Getting a Good Price
  (p. 14). For coin, gems, and luxuries, that’s all you need. A few
  articles call for additional details:
  Rare Artifacts: Note whether objets d’art are real or fake. If
  any item has identifying marks (hallmark, coat of arms, etc.)
  that hint that it’s more than meets the eye, jot that down, too.
  Weapons and Armor: Adventurers will want to use these
  immediately! Specify all the special properties of such things,
  including any enchantments. Also note items meant for users
  with SM other than 0.
  Magic Items: Most of these will see use right away, too, so
  note every enchantment and foible. Also assign a price to the
  underlying object, without its spells, for the benefit of spell-
  casters who want to turn it into a power item.
  Blessed Items: Treat these like magic items. The only sig-
  nificant difference is that the magic is divine, not wizardly,
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  28
  
  and grabs the eye of those with Power Investiture, not
  Magery.
  Magical Writings: List any spells in a spellbook. This is an
  excellent way to hand out spells that you might not otherwise
  allow.
  Potions: See Dungeon Fantasy: Adventurers for a basic
  list. Potions with almost any spell-like effect are possible.
  Unheard-of elixirs found down dark holes boiling with evil
  monsters are hard to sell, though – nobody wants to drink
  poison.
  Unique Items
  Don’t be afraid to include the occasional artifact that just
  does what it does: a musical instrument that gives +1 to all
  Bard-Song rolls, a bow that gains +1 to effective ST (up to
  double ST) per turn it’s held drawn and ready, armor that
  changes size to fit any wearer, and so on. Not every “magic
  item” needs to make sense in terms of enchantments found in
  GURPS Magic (or equivalent blessings). Some use weird
  magic, or are home to spirits with strange capabilities, or are
  relics of cosmic power! These can’t be detected or analyzed in
  the usual ways, and might not even seem that special. They
  may only reveal their secrets after much trial and error. But
  they often end up being the most memorable items in the
  campaign, because they’re truly unique.
  How Much?
  Some GMs believe that it’s easier to deal with too little loot
  than too much. This is a shaky claim. Even a disastrous dun-
  geon crawl should garner enough cash that the PCs can
  afford to recharge power items, replace used-up arrows and
  potions, donate to the temple, and live in town for a week or
  two. Otherwise, nobody will show up for the next adventure.
  Why would skilled professionals do a perilous job that
  demonstrably doesn’t pay?
  On the other hand, soaking up money is easy. Prices are
  suggestions, and will go up if word gets around that the
  delvers struck it rich. Even if the GM dislikes such strata-
  gems, there’s always a way to coax cash out of adventurers:
  rituals that charge power items far beyond their usual limits
  for an exorbitant fee, expensive one-of-a-kind artifacts found
  by other parties, maps to extremely rich dungeons, training
  costs, guild memberships that grant access to hitherto
  unknown spells, and so on.
  As well, there’s no obligation to make all booty – even pow-
  erful treasure – salable. A wagon-load of potent magic items
  might sell only as scrap if they’re unique artifacts that no wiz-
  ard in town can analyze, or if they all bear the Number of the
  Beast. Goods stolen by monsters are still stolen once recov-
  ered; the King, Merchants’ Guild, etc., might not consider
  “finders, keepers” much of a defense. Potions with unknown
  ingredients can’t be sold. And so on.
  Finally, if you give the heroes things they can use, they
  won’t sell them! It’s a good idea to include at least one gew-
  gaw that each party member will fall in love with, and to
  make these the best items in the haul. All the rest together
  might barely cover beer and bed, but that won’t matter if the
  barbarian got a new axe and the bard got a magic lute.
  Playing Hard to Get
  Most treasure is found in three places, each with its own
  challenges:
  Dead Bodies: This is the easiest treasure to get at – kill,
  peel, and take. Don’t forget to assign Search penalties for
  small, valuable items on the dead, though!
  Containers: Locked containers work like locked doors; see
  Doors and Locks (p. 18). Most common containers won’t
  stand up to a beating: a wooden chest has DR 2, HP 14; an
  ironbound one, DR 5, HP 18; and a solid iron strongbox, DR
  12, HP 10. Two things keep adventurers from simply bashing,
  though. First, valuable, fragile goods, like potion bottles, will
  break on 1-4 on 1d (let impulsive players learn this the hard
  way!). Second, bashing will set off any traps present (see
  Fiendish Traps, p. 19).
  Troves: Piles of loot at the bottom or back of the dungeon,
  in the lair of the boss of all boss monsters, might just sprawl
  all over the place like the classic dragon’s hoard. But mon-
  sters appreciate security, too! Why else would they live in an
  underground fort full of traps and locked doors? A trove is
  quite likely to be in a vault with a stout door, good lock,
  and/or traps, all of which use the usual rules – but often with
  extra-large penalties to rolls to get at the treasure.
  BEYOND THE DUNGEON
  One last bit of advice to the GM: the dungeon is the cen-
  terpiece of dungeon fantasy, but standard, less-munchkin
  fantasy adventures can work, too. If the players are having a
  blast with their characters, and the cachet of killing monsters
  and taking their stuff hasn’t worn off after one or two dun-
  geon crawls, consider a quest outside the dungeon.
  Wilderness Adventures
  Travel (p. 5) and Wandering Monsters (p. 20) treat wilder-
  ness as a way for the GM to keep adventurers on their toes
  while yomping to and from the dungeon, but this isn’t the
  only possibility. When ignoring finicky details such as ecolo-
  gy, the main differences between the Mines of Madness and
  the Bog of Badness are that the latter has no doors to bash
  and no roof overhead, and its monsters and hazards have an
  outdoor theme instead of a subterranean one. Both can still
  be dismal, monster-infested, trap-riddled places that demand
  careful searching and mapping.
  Wilderness expeditions favor outdoorsy heroes such as
  barbarians, druids, and scouts, and might even be good start-
  ing adventures for parties made up of these character types.
  On the other hand, for a group of more “urban” types – par-
  ticularly bards and thieves – such quests could be demand-
  ing, making them suitable challenges for experienced PCs
  who’ve already braved several dungeons.
  Guidelines especially useful for outdoor adventures
  include Camping and Posting Watches (p. 5), Tracking (p. 5),
  Mapping (p. 6), Scouting Ahead (p. 7), and “Good (Three-
  Headed) Doggie!” (p. 10). For loot, consider Naturally
  Occurring Money (p. 14).
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  29
  
  Town Adventures
  Dungeon fantasy normally treats “town” as an abstraction.
  Transactions with shops, inns, and temples consist of a few
  rolls of the dice followed by an exchange of funds. The Town
  Watch, King’s Men, Merchants’ Guild, and Thieves’ Guild are
  impersonal forces that somehow manage to dictate prices
  and even mete out punishment to heroes who could wipe the
  floor with clerks, watchmen, and soldiers.
  If the GM wants, though, these things could be adventures
  of their own. Prowling alleys at night, breaking into build-
  ings, stealing from shops, and fighting anybody who tries to
  interfere differs very little from sneaking down tunnels, bash-
  ing doors, killing monsters, and taking loot. This sort of
  “urban dungeon crawl” is excellent for bards and thieves, and
  the prevalence of lighter armor and weapons in the city
  means that martial artists and swashbucklers won’t play sec-
  ond fiddle to barbarians and knights in combat.
  Town adventures will make regular use of Scoring Extra
  Cash (p. 4), Negotiation (p. 10), Trickery (p. 10), and Getting a
  Good Price (p. 14). Dungeon Parkour (p. 7) is, as the name
  suggests, an excellent way to get around rooftops.
  MASTERING DUNGEONS
  30
  The templates in Dungeon Fantasy: Adventurers give
  each character type the ability to handle a relatively narrow
  set of tasks. Their competencies overlap some, but each
  enjoys areas of unique proficiency. This venerable conven-
  tion of dungeon fantasy has a purpose: as diverse challenges
  in the game bring the capabilities of different specialists into
  the spotlight, the players take turns at the center of atten-
  tion, which lets everybody have fun.
  It’s the GM’s job to give each hero a few chances to shine
  on every adventure – preferably about as many as his com-
  panions. This is sometimes tricky. Some suggestions:
  Barbarian: Obstacles that demand high ST (portcullises,
  bars to bend, etc.) let him show off his muscles out of com-
  bat. His great height and ST enable him to give friends a leg
  up, making him a surprisingly good partner for the thief.
  Avoid the temptation to gloss over travel – give him the
  chance to show off his outdoor skills. Giant-sized items that
  only he can use are a fitting reward.
  Bard: Don’t rush through business in town before and
  after dungeon crawls; these activities showcase the bard’s
  social abilities. Work in monsters that are susceptible to
  taunts and trickery, and a few that will negotiate. Surprise
  the party with the occasional artistic turn; e.g., the faerie
  queen who demands a command performance. Include
  ornate and magical instruments in hoards.
  Cleric: Healing is always in demand, so spotlighting the
  cleric rarely requires much work. It’s no fun to be little
  more than a walking, breathing healing potion, though!
  Toss in a few cursed items and areas to identify and exor-
  cise, undead to turn, and the occasional disaster that neces-
  sitates an organized prayer for help. Blessed items and
  ornate holy symbols shouldn’t be too rare.
  Druid: With his abilities weakened underground, it’s
  crucial that part of each adventure happen outdoors. Don’t
  make every monster a demon, Elder Thing, or similar 
  horror – include hostile animals and plants, too. Play up
  desperate poison cures, the mysterious properties of
  slimes, etc. Most druids aren’t materialists, but an interest-
  ing pet is a neat find.
  Holy Warrior: Ensure that his Higher Purpose and
  knowledge of monsters and their weaknesses come into
  play – these things differentiate him from the knight and
  the cleric. As with the cleric, curses to deal with can elevate
  his importance. A common quest item for such champions
  is the “holy sword”: a blessed weapon that only those with
  Holiness can wield.
  Knight: Given his importance in combat, the knight
  won’t ever be far from the spotlight. The trick is making
  him useful without his sword in hand. Try to play up his
  skill at Leadership and Tactics – let him verbally assist the
  thief trapped in combat across the chasm, or lead a horde
  of weak-but-friendly monsters. Mighty weapons and armor
  are, of course, what he craves.
  Martial Artist: Few challenges put a greater premium on
  tremendous DX and athletic skills than those involving
  mighty leaps and deft steps. This gets boring by itself, so
  mix in some weird stuff that depends on chi rather than on
  mana, sanctity, or other occult energy. Have him find pow-
  erful exotic weapons that only he has mastered – or
  enhanced gauntlets and boots, if he fights unarmed.
  Scout: Like the barbarian and the druid, the scout lives
  for outdoor action, so don’t omit travel and tracking. Be
  careful not to cripple his archery skills by setting every
  combat encounter in dark, close tunnels where he has no
  shot – and include some out-of-combat challenges for him,
  like shooting lines across chasms. Obviously, his ideal
  prizes are ever-better bows and arrows.
  Swashbuckler: The swashbuckler is easily entertained.
  He can rival the knight in combat and the martial artist at
  athletics, and his Luck lets him take fun risks. Since the
  archetype attracts fans of dash and flair, handle crazy
  stunts with “Sure! Roll at -10!” instead of “No.” Have his
  blade of choice show up in treasure – or give him ways to
  improve his existing blade, if he’s bound to it.
  Thief: The party won’t get far without the thief. With all
  the locks, traps, and scouting missions in dungeon fantasy,
  his biggest theft may well be the spotlight – at least out of
  combat. If he somehow gets bored, challenge a rarely used
  skill (e.g., Forgery). Welcome rewards include better tools
  and small-but-valuable items to palm (out of sight of his
  companions!).
  Wizard: The wizard – like the cleric, knight, and thief –
  is indispensable. He can spot magic items, counter hostile
  magic, identify books and potions, and defeat multiple
  enemies with a glance. Dozens of spells keep him from get-
  ting bored easily. Items are the key to keeping the player
  happy: books of lost spells, ornate artifacts for power
  items, and so on.
  Making Everybody Useful
  
  Acid spider, 21.
  Acrobatics skill, 7-8, 12,
  19.
  Acting skill, 10-11.
  Acute Taste and Smell, 9.
  Acute Vision, 9.
  Alchemy skill, 3, 9, 14, 19.
  Analyze Magic, 14.
  Animal Handling skill, 10,
  12.
  Appearance, 15.
  Armor, 12; sleeping in, 5.
  Armoury skill, 3, 14, 19;
  Body Armor, 14; Missile
  Weapons, 19.
  Artifacts, 29.
  as-Sharak, 21.
  Athletics, 7.
  Balancing encounters, 27.
  Balancing parties, 30.
  Batchala, 23.
  Boating skill, 5.
  Body Sense skill, 9.
  Boss fights, 28.
  Breaking Blow skill, 8.
  Camouflage skill, 5, 11.
  Camping, 5.
  Captivate skill, 10.
  Carousing skill, 4, 17.
  Cartography skill, 6, 15.
  Charisma, 4, 10, 15.
  Cheap gear, 3-4.
  Clerical Investment, 3, 15.
  Climbing skill, 7-8.
  Combat, 10-12; inspira-
  tional leadership, 11;
  support skills, 11-12;
  taunting, 12.
  Communicating, 7.
  Connoisseur skill, 14.
  Continual Light, 6.
  Counterfeiting skill, 4.
  Criminal record, 4.
  Crushroom, 22.
  Cultural Adaptability, 10.
  Cure Disease, 4, 12.
  Current Affairs skill, 4, 15,
  17.
  Curses, 9, 18.
  Dancing skill, 4.
  Danger Sense, 10.
  Darkness, 6.
  Detect Lies skill, 10.
  Detect Magic, 9.
  Diagnosis skill, 13.
  Diguise (Animals) skill, 10.
  Diplomacy skill, 10.
  Dire wolf, 22.
  Disarming traps, 9.
  Disguise skill, 10.
  Dodge, 12, 19.
  Doomchild, 22.
  Doors, 6-7, 18-19.
  Dungeons, 16-17, 19-20,
  27; balancing, 27;
  encounters, 20; special
  features, 19; types of,
  16-17.
  Eidetic Memory, 10.
  Encounters, 20, 27; bal-
  ancing, 27; types of, 20.
  Erupting slime, 23.
  Escape skill, 8.
  Esoteric Medicine skill,
  11, 13.
  Exorcism skill, 9.
  Falling damage, 19.
  Fast-Talk skill, 10, 14.
  Fatigue loss, 5.
  Filch skill, 4.
  Finding traps, 8.
  First Aid skill, 11, 13.
  Fishing skill, 5.
  Flaming skull, 23.
  Flesh-eating ape, 23.
  Foraging, 5.
  Forced Entry skill, 8, 13.
  Forgery skill, 14.
  Foul bat, 23.
  Frost snake, 24.
  Gambling skill, 4.
  Game balance, 27.
  Gear, acquiring, 3-4; light
  sources, 6.
  Gesture skill, 7, 10.
  Getting caught, 4.
  Giant rat, 24.
  Glow, 6.
  Golem-armor swordsman,
  24.
  Hazardous Materials skill,
  9, 13, 19; Magical, 9, 13.
  Hazards, 8, 18.
  Healing, 11, 13.
  Heraldry skill, 9, 14.
  Hidden Lore skill, 9-10,
  14, 17.
  High Manual Dexterity, 9,
  13, 19.
  Higher Purpose, 10.
  Hiking skill, 5.
  Holdout skill, 12.
  Holiness, 9, 14-15.
  Horde zombie, 24.
  Hypnotism skill, 10.
  Infravision, 20.
  Interrogation skill, 13.
  Intimidation skill, 12.
  Jumping skill, 7-8, 19.
  Knot-Tying skill, 12.
  Leadership skill, 11.
  Lifting skill, 8.
  Lifting ST, 8.
  Light Jet, 6.
  Light, 6.
  Lip Reading skill, 7.
  Lockpicking skill, 8, 13,
  18.
  Locks, 18.
  Loot, 13-15, 28-29; getting
  a good price, 14; how
  much?, 29; splitting, 14.
  Mage Sight, 9.
  Mapping, 6, 17-18.
  Marching order, 6.
  Meals, 5.
  Meditation skill, 15.
  Merchant skill, 14-15.
  Merchants’ Guild, 4.
  Mimicry skill, 7, 10.
  Mindwarper, 25.
  Money, 3-5, 14; extra, 4.
  Monsters, 9-10, 13, 18, 
  21-27; balancing, 18, 27;
  exploiting weaknesses,
  10; samples, 21-26; 
  valuable pieces of, 13;
  weaknesses, 20.
  Musical Composition skill,
  4, 15.
  Musical Influence skill, 10.
  Musical Instrument skill,
  4, 11.
  Naturalist skill, 5, 9, 13,
  17.
  Navigation skill, 5.
  Negotiation, 10.
  Neutralize Poison, 13.
  Observation skill, 5-7.
  Obstacles, 7-8, 18-19.
  Occultism skill, 9.
  Panhandling skill, 4.
  Parkour, 7.
  Parley, 10.
  Party order, 6.
  Penalties, 6-7.
  Perception, 5.
  Performance skill, 4.
  Persuade skill, 10.
  Peshkali, 25.
  Pharmacy skill, 13.
  Physiology skill, 10, 13.
  Picking locks, 8, 13.
  Pickpocket skill, 4.
  Poetry skill, 4, 15.
  Poisons skill, 3, 9, 12-13,
  19.
  Posting watch, 5.
  Power Blow skill, 8.
  Power Investiture, 9, 14-
  15, 28.
  Prisoners, 12.
  Propoganda skill, 4, 15.
  Prospecting skill, 14, 17.
  Psychology skill, 10, 12; 
  monsters and, 10.
  Public Speaking skill, 4.
  Punch, Sean, 2.
  Purchasing gear, 3-4.
  Quests, 4, 17; rumors of,
  17.
  Religious Ritual skill, 12, 
  14-15.
  Remove Curse, 9.
  Research skill, 4, 17.
  Riding skill, 5.
  Rogues in battle, 11.
  Saving the PCs, 15.
  Savoir-Faire skill, 4.
  Scouting, 7.
  Scrounging skill, 3, 15.
  Seamanship skill, 5.
  Sean Punch, 2.
  Search skill, 13, 29.
  Secret doors, 6-7, 19.
  Serendipity, 3.
  Sex Appeal skill, 10.
  Shadowing skill, 7.
  Siege beast, 25.
  Signaling, 7.
  Singing skill, 4, 11-12.
  Skiing skill, 5, 8.
  Skill, Acrobatics, 7, 8, 12,
  19; Acting, 10-11;
  Alchemy, 3, 9, 14, 19;
  Animal Handling, 10, 12;
  Armoury, 3, 14, 19;
  Boating, 5; Body Sense,
  9; Breaking Blow, 8;
  Camouflage, 5, 11;
  Captivate, 10; Carousing,
  4, 17; Cartography, 6, 15;
  Climbing, 7-8;
  Connoisseur, 14;
  Counterfeiting, 4;
  Current Affairs, 4, 15, 17;
  Dancing, 4; Detect Lies,
  10; Diagnosis, 13;
  Diguise (Animals), 10;
  Diplomacy, 10; Disguise,
  10; Escape, 8; Esoteric
  Medicine, 11, 13;
  Exorcism, 9; Fast-Talk,
  10, 14; Filch, 4; First Aid,
  11, 13; Fishing, 5; Forced
  Entry, 8, 13; Forgery, 14;
  Gambling, 4; Gesture, 7,
  10; Hazardous Materials,
  9, 13, 19; Heraldry, 9, 14;
  Hidden Lore, 9-10, 14,
  17; Hiking, 5; Holdout,
  12; Hypnotism, 10;
  Interrogation, 13;
  Intimidation, 12;
  Jumping, 7-8, 19; Knot-
  Tying, 12; Leadership, 11;
  Lifting, 8; Lip Reading, 7;
  Lockpicking, 8, 13;
  Lockpicking, 8;
  Meditation, 15;
  Merchant, 14-15;
  Mimicry, 7, 10; Musical
  Composition, 4, 15;
  Musical Influence, 10;
  Musical Instrument, 4,
  11; Naturalist, 5, 9, 13,
  17; Navigation, 5;
  Observation, 5-7;
  Occultism, 9;
  Panhandling, 4;
  Performance, 4;
  Persuade, 10; Pharmacy,
  13; Physiology, 10, 13;
  Pickpocket, 4; Poetry, 4,
  15; Poisons, 3, 9, 12-13,
  19; Power Blow, 8;
  Propoganda, 4, 15;
  Prospecting, 14, 17;
  Psychology (Monster),
  10; Psychology, 12;
  Public Speaking, 4;
  Religious Ritual, 12, 
  14-15; Research, 4, 17;
  Riding, 5; Savoir-Faire,
  4; Scrounging, 3, 15;
  Seamanship, 5; Search,
  13, 29; Sex Appeal, 10;
  Shadowing, 7; Singing,
  4, 11-12; Skiing, 5, 8;
  Sleight of Hand, 4;
  Smuggling, 4; Speed-
  Reading, 14; Stealth, 7,
  11, 20; Strategy, 11;
  Streetwise, 4, 15, 17;
  Suggest, 10; Surgery, 13;
  Survival, 4-5, 13; Sway
  Emotions, 10;
  Swimming, 8; Tactics,
  11; Thaumatology, 9, 11,
  13-14, 19; Theology, 4, 9,
  15, 17; Throwing, 8;
  Tracking, 5, 7; Traps, 5-8,
  12-13, 19-20; Urban
  Survival, 4, 17;
  Ventriloquism, 10;
  Veterinary, 13; Weather
  Sense, 5; Writing, 4, 15;
  Herb Lore, 3; Merchant,
  4.
  Sleeping in armor, 5.
  Sleight of Hand skill, 4.
  Smuggling skill, 4.
  Social Chameleon, 10.
  Social Stigma (Criminal
  Record), 4.
  Speed-Reading skill, 14.
  Sponsors, 4.
  Stealth skill, 7, 11, 20.
  Stone golem, 26.
  Strategy skill, 11.
  Streetwise skill, 4, 15, 17.
  Strength, team effort, 11.
  Suggest skill, 10.
  Sunlight, 6.
  Surgery skill, 13.
  Survival skill, 4-5, 13.
  Sway Emotions skill, 10.
  Swimming skill, 8.
  Tactics skill, 11.
  Taunting, 12.
  Teamwork, 11.
  Thaumatology skill, 9, 11, 
  13-14, 19.
  Theology skill, 4, 9, 15, 17.
  Throwing skill, 8.
  Time for travel, 5.
  Town adventures, 30.
  Toxifier, 26.
  Tracking skill, 5, 7.
  Trademark moves, 27.
  Traps skill, 5-8, 12-13, 
  19-20.
  Traps, 8-9, 18-20; samples,
  20.
  Travel, 5, 9.
  Trickery, 10.
  Triger, 26.
  True Faith (Turning), 10.
  Unique items, 29.
  Urban Survival skill, 4, 17.
  Ventriloquism skill, 10.
  Veterinary skill, 13.
  Watches, 5.
  Weaknesses, 10, 20.
  Wealth, 14-15.
  Weather Sense skill, 5.
  Wilderness, 20, 29.
  Writing skill, 4, 15.
  INDEX
  31
  INDEX
  
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  STEVE JACKSON GAMES
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/GURPS [multi]/GURPS - 4th Edition - Dungeon Fantasy 2 - Dungeons.pdf