X-Treme Dungeon Mastery

.IHISSHIRTFEELS YOUWENTUPA LEVELWHEN

OpprcrAlly$nNcuoNrDXDMffrncHnworsr

Putyourselof n thepathto gamingfortuneand o Privateandsecureaccestso ouronlineblog
succesbsy establishinygourownXDMfranchiseF!or for XDMClanMasterosnlyandyourpersonal
theinvestmenotf a fewdollarsy, oucangetin on the digitacl odekeythatwill allowyouaccestso
groundfloorof oneof role-playinggaming'fsastest- secremt essageTsr,ibemeetingsQ, 8tA and
growinginternationaplseudo-phenomenon.' clandestinceonventioenvents.

Foryourinvestmenotf $20 youwill begranted . A signedphotographosf theGrandMasterosf
thesemi-irrevocabrilgehtto establisyhourownoffrcial XDMsuitablefor framedadoration.
XDMTriberightoutof yourownhomeor business!

And there'smore:t

. Oneofficiacl ertifrcateestablishinyogursemi-irre- S i m p l yv i s i to u r w e b s i t ea t

vocablestatusasanofficiaXl DMClanMasterand www.xtremedungeonmastery.cofmor more
yourelevationto XDM level2 status- possibly informationregardintghisopportunity.

signedby theGrandXDMmastertshemselves+. TrueXDMsusesonlyofficiallysanctioneXdDM

blackt-shiru,jeansd, ice,andprotectivegear.A
. TwelveblankXDMcertifrcatefosr youto assign completelistof availabloefficiaXl DMitemscanbe

(atyourpersonadliscretiont)o thoseXDM re- foundat www.xtremedungeonmastery.com

c r u i g t h a ty o u b r i n gi n t o y o u rl o c a lT r i b e .

* Look,we iustgot stanedwith this,so how muchof a phenomenoncanit 5 Okaywe will actuallysignthe picture.We can't be completejerk,
be if we're lettingyou in on the groundfloor?

f Totalvalueof itemsincludeddoesnot exceed$2. Why shouldour scam
be anydifferentthanotherscams?

$ Well,we signedthe original.We cannotvouchfor the multiplecopieswe
subsequentplyrinted,

1s0 fl

XDMf ouranBrlrrYTbsrgconrNc

l. Howmanysidesareon a dodecahedron? C. 20-Totalfabricationth;emakingof an
A. O-Youdon't understanbdasicphysicsd,o XDM.
you?.
D. lO-Goodtechniquief youcancomeup
B.2-Well,at leasitt isanODDsizefor dice. witha reasonbehindit.
C. 1-Monopolydice,friend.
D. I O-Technicalclyorrect. E. 5-OK techniqueb,ut betterto solvethe
E.2O-XDM'srarelyseetheneedfor dice! problem.

2. Oneyoungplayear t theendof thetable. . 6. Didyoulookat theanswerbseforetakingthis
A. O-Anddon'tcomeback! test?
B.2-Neverleavea playebr ehind!
C. O-YouNEVERstopthegamefor A. lO-for beinghonest.
psychobable! B . 2 - Y o u m i g h tb e p r e s i d e notn ed a y ,b u t n o t

D. 20-Excellentet chniqufeor frgurinoguthis a nX D M .
style! C. 2O-Thisistheessencoef beinganXDM!
D. 5-Forbeinghonesat boutcheating.
E. I O-lustbecausiet'scool! E.O-Youmayhavea futureasa non-player

character.

3. Twotrains. . . Score Results
A. lO-Technicalclyorrecbt utyou'llstillhave
to waitfor yourbadge. 1 2o r Youarea perfectcandidatefor
B. 2-At leasyt outriedto do themath. less gettingthe pizzaforthe game.
C. I -lt onlyFEELlSiketrainscollideat
Gencon. 13-30 Haveyouconsideredbecominga
p r o f e s s i o nl ' aN o n - p l a y eCrh ar a c t e r ' ?
D. 2O-Thinkinogutsidethebox. A bribe

on thistestdoesn'ht urt.
E.O-Whyareyouevenreadingthisbook?

4. Haveyoueverbeena membeor f the 3 1 - 6 0 CongratulatioWnsit!hsignificant,,
CommunisPt arty? t r a i n i n gy o uc a nb e c o m ea nX D M . '

A. 4-Showscommitment. 61-80 CongratulationsY!ouarenatural
B . 4 - S h o w sc o m m i t m e n t . b o r nX D Mm a t e r i a l ! 2
C. 2-Not fastenough.
D. lO-Yourprioritieasrein therightplace. 8 1 - 1 2 0 Congratulations!YaroeuanXDM!
E.0-Too muchsolitare. Y o uq u a l i f yf o r o u ra d v a n c e d
p l a c e m e npt r o g r a m . 3
5. Theplayejrumpsup fromthetable. . .
A. 2-Technicalclyorrectb, utalsoleadsto Remediaml athematiccsoursesare
bloodyfighs. n o wo p e na t y o u rl o c a lH i g hS c h o o l
B.O-Neverapologizfeor a ruling!
I Yourtrainingwill startat levelI assoonasyou purchasethisbook.
* The Mdbiusdie hasyet to be invented.We haveXDMsin Turkey 2 By purchasintghisbook,you will be admittedat onceinto your XDM
workingon it. trainingprogramat frrstlevel.
3 Advancedplacemenpt rogrammeansthat all of your initiationfeeshave
beenwaived.All you will needto purchaseis thisbookasyour coursework
materials.You stan asa level I Wet Newt XDM

51

{wrxorcrs

TgYOoOoFUKLNIaPE/'EIEHROE.,

?IOVWONSNW,T

'laal7 :le;dugqsrnu '66 Aepro 'rq8laqttnJle
leplusnuoPraelqalesJaJlneouJs,a!,lq.ltl.a,'raep;d!/arl^e$r anl!o'aiAsle,rqelqlmrsr!rlleeqdl s,l!eroJaq^epeqrtqElaqsl!JIpl.elqplno^ l! uaql
l(epqreasalqnolp!Jl 's{ep66 01-U
Jl 'Iseol qlnu eprlte s!slqr(sra{e;d.ro)s.ropem
p;dnrs;odn apeuuEledueer u!leqran8;ep;nor 'Jaqlou
auo'lllts 'srno{u! pera^olslpuoeq{pear;et,useq s,(oqaqls!repueueaqql 6-d

t! {emou s!areqlpueppo/rr{no uo o8esrea{ 'eloqe s,lg{qms,leql
s!ua0eeOorOuas'qrplaep{suene;sdEren^|or{d=Jtlp)'rLql/l6vuloaqlsqat'a!ldlleg^l'qIrdIpEuaupnls;onnlrn;eMpnooqo{eu 'aloqe u!ulp ou s!eraql 'orazg-d
(t8au'arge;runlenous;eEsleulpqn);8a;{lqade)qr)nuu1;as'srsa;;1J(epua;unen)rrlo!ae)$qqellrqueloUu{oVrU'eapguquoltue,ouJUIs!
{lyealaraql 'remsuleanal).ro{seaeqrloJlool ol 'lno u!o)aqlaleqs
paulllus! !auoasneleq(s;{emppoe u1pue)alppg puealuoqaql oru!lro) aql qsnd/-u

e eM spunotseqrs8ultlal soqJl oeuoslqql Zl-U 'ernlue^peaql ol luP^elals!sB,rou/
Jo ,r'sraan{,a,slueoqprns'lsaenabrlqe'aq;llseJtooi'vernslu{e;eNdtauq1ls
speaH=Jeddo's] peap=Jonlls'z a{JsqlMs;J;a;nqaloop'ulnoolel!qsl oatrng8f goerls/v!p\Inroos/rJ4eas^qall)'alq
s l l e J=Ja d d o 3 'sp e=arpe ^l l Sl' -1ssosdrpJoryarsWoseelaprlnomq)lq/nuol$anb

:sa;r;;;qlssoo/dvue^eq(1uor*ouaandn e teqldno$ aqlo] 1no11;;adsl,uo6 :IION
speeqspueul lol la^llsot{lleql /}toularl 'a)ueJaJ
-J!pe eleu.st aopsrolorluaroJJlapresu!o)leql DpJ

aql'0S-0S are{;;earasp)slrlru!sppoaql l l-d

152

')FolJ'uo/snloulnrooJr^eullou,ls^/qvMlo,alloqsJl araro^sludexreeoql aloaa{qlal al rl)s!rlq{/lnJ'ospeeueo{qs;u!uoa'squl Joolleduoaoeterqqtl$nroU{eEqut;s;o;an{tqeel
rnoJrequnuuopdosaleulullelpppaql
'plO/Y\s
s;;e1's;1e1'y
aql esPela$lnu u arulreMsue$! aleu ol raprou! speeH'speag'g
pupuopsenabqr;oued puoraseqlol 6upra;aar q
s p e a H' s l l e l ' Z
ol a^eqplnol l! 'aroJaJeql'aleulouue)anle$ s ; ; e 1' s p e e g' 1
Ja/sylt\eslloqurolreloupuqllllrrlauy^|\asouuNee,lneo'$a{a'!llsa$lse)lJeeusaJe!qd,,p$olrunuuoao/vql(N\ulseoenp'ubssoaltn!lllb :sa;1;;;q;ssrnood;(;uo are
-sapnlbnaoqmlJl!ouueeLdlp,lruooul/eresa/vq\lsouloBol uelleaM/nusuJleo'pl aa^reeNq
eraLlel )Uv$u!o)e Eulssoutaq/V:\s^olloJser1ule;d
s!sPproMsaql eseeleoJl e^eqplno/yr\! eqruaql -xaos;; 'no{ enaltalqou {eu sarnluenpJenoA
,,'seA,r,a/nsuoel elamenlpNaqll V ul 'Iro/n
'aneq{aqtleqtanle^Jo
s u o l N e neb^ o q ea q l { q Ms u l e ; d xlel 8 o l a l d u l s Eulqlauoselet ueu ploaql aneqtuorr*r! re8^aqr

dr!daal puPou lo plo/v\s aJnl eJqJ'toqr6a;D.rro! 1lp0u6e^ua!qol)gal q'{leusaoql lpsasuolllulue!auJpelaouaoqsl
aql dorppuesa^re^^suJeeqUano{ 11;13y1 seOS-OSlou 'aarqJl olno auoetesppoeql g-d

dpro/v\esql dael puPou Ja^sueno{ 11;1gy1 ;o ' . r o o p, , 1 q 6 1 Ja,q, l ro ' ' ' 6l reqtoaql
rq8;.at ql ol roopeqls!ll '02 taqunuroops!
cpro/nsaql asealer
ro uo!$anbslrllol ou le/nsuBlaqueno( 11;1yy1 'tuqo8lylsoal nUbsallrulloo4l rasl/onospuaeqLtl8luuepqataquuonWua!t/,rnEt ou{lJulnZs-d

:6urno;;oe;ql epnl)u!Iro/nteql srafi\suv9-d ('au Nnrtrn[os
'|oa'lr;leduqoeramlad$tl!,ourroeupe'(qfu;^;areoqarlrnIel/tuunpoqp$nsloUp^laolpql utl!ln!uoalre^eelpdlelxaaapqql,rlunnooop/{n
'lseq)$lu aql dermol preqr! pugno(Jl 'plp^aqtJlro^eJrleql
u; s1{qnr aqrJls!$lro/nl! {em{;uo aq1'e;qlssod 'ous!o{1oer4nt,)nuepalpra{aryqln\t qs.'rdonolpauqa}rJn{o;euuoolopuuslqpapqost,llaeqql^^

rous!slql'uleEy'uolldu)sua!nJle a^eqplno^A 6ulureara; upspullur;aqt8upueq3r ouopdoaqt
$sue!qsleo/Mv{l\qrnaqr aloqel;q;rJ'uooalutdopuraswua$!n0JqlP) pseuoqe)saesaeqsl lp a;doad6u;46paddor{saql
uo{qmslslqr'{ernaqlttg) 'll ,,;eaqe elehl s,lal,,
eqrsplorlleql$aq) eqle)u!seqlouue)slqlrnq e^pqueql la; {;;ea.r
'as;ea; qol eneqplno^Asuolldprsuol/$ raqloeql droEa'aaJausJp4o;l{;roa's;rquqrur;lpt;aslqguqnx1slea!'Is!u)sl;pealpltDa{ulrlqelaJrpEutroreulpaq5g/aqtnqnqteatota'JE1auurultoe;uedes5a^{q;a^{e;rneaqqauqqr -'ellutJuqeolotuqasruaalelseqqauElaltro8';ula;a!;os^qq;seatl
Jo qroqueqllsaq)'$parqlr).lNel qrUl ua!qsleu^;s^q;{nqrnelqalqJll S-U
rs*poluo>qda;nsoo$oqat)q/lutpellpo{laaqrtnssaatqer8no!t*'taeuqelJ8ornr.oll{!ru.;{tn
pUser{a1ye8sonr;r'fsa6{uquod1audra.u'tqurolloseet8^ty;ea'qUunaupqopl/ur'seo'eptu$uu,yJlelnoaq{,da4rsasl1oaynJp{earlpe,uqqplaalpJqumor
-quedpappJ;oaralde u!slrllalpmaueEe u; s;qr6ulopuaq/vyauolq6p eqls!eetqltaqunu
ele8a;duuexJanou! oS 'rooprq8;raqr4r;d l1yrar q
,r'oueluMlllMno^/
:srLlsl!radeddn paplogeql u! UaDUMs! soppl toauq!tsI (teu;oda4qdJulnre! lulrasqatllell/;nr^sdppups6os;sgaqq';1;niras. upt;.oZq
reqry'1{e|d ol }oufnllaUaq s/UasPfs,ltllul 'esol omlateEleqt8ulureerleupeeJqal lpEsasoot{)
ol no{ eltoJll!/r^sJary\s,uropu,pue,,se(,,tllog }-d
pee$ua! qJ!os ,,'sPPoeLlrqr!/nesoorl),p, uepultu
'eatqt s;qe8ueqNr nu ra{e;deqrleq}s!areq{a1 aq1 1-X
ul euospporno{ Eu14eusnql',,speaq'speaq,s, 1
(9y a8eduo-g)

sappld ol sre/llsuv

QrossARY

BlackArt Whena magiciaunsescombinationosf Expositionparlop Any objectthatassisttshe
blackclothandbrightlightto performillusions. XDMin conveyinignformatloanbouthegame.

CampaignA commonnamefor a largescalerole Force A magiciant'sechniquteo geta spectator
playingadventurwehereplayercsangoin any
directiontheychoose.(seeLineaDr esign) to "randomly"selecet xactlythecardthema$-
cianwishehserto pick.

CampbelliManonomyth Thebasicstructurefor epic GameMaster (seeDungeoMn aster)

storyasquantifiebdy JosepCh ampbeilnl hisbook GameReferee (seeDungeoMn aster)lt's right
TheHerowitha ThousanFdacesW. etell you all uptherein theD section.

aboutit startingon page30.

ClosedMatrix Therecommendefodrmof gamede- GM (seeDungeoMn aster)No, D comes
signfor allXDMs. Playerasreallowedfreechoice beforeG.
withina rangeof directedevents.
HickmanC,urtis A GrandMega-lordTaloned
AownShoesRidiculousThisisour XDM codefor GriffrnXDMandco-authoorf thisbook.You
somethinsgopointlessrliydiculoutshatevenbring- canlookhimup in theintroduction.
ingit up islaughable.
HickmanL,aura A CrandLadyPegasuXsDM
Codex Thelatinwordfor book. In currentusageit andwifeof TracyHickmanS. he'smentioned
implieseitherageor importanceW. eiustthinkit in theintroductiontoo.
soundcsool. That'swhyweputonein ourbook.
It isfullof creatures. HickmanT,racy A GrandPaladin-lorHdorned
DragonXDMandco-authoorf thisbook.Did
CrazyOldMan What?Himagain?Wethoughwt e younot readtheintroduction?
hadhimtrappedin chaptesr ix. Wholeftthegate
open? ImplieSd tory Whenthedescriptioonr obiects
in anadventurleocationcausetheplayertso
CutScenesShortsegmentosf storywherethe createstoriesin theirmindsaboutwhatmight
playershaveno controloverevents.Commonly haveoccurred.
foundin videogames.
KillerBreakfastJustfindout wherethenearest
DM (SeeDungeoMn aster) oneisto yourlocationandgoto it. Thatwill
workfar betterthananyexplanatiowne can
DungeoMn aster (AlsocalledDM, GM, Game give. Or youcouldiustgoreadthe whole
MasterG, ameRefereeT)hisisthepersonwhois chapter'wdeevotedto talkingaboutit. Weare
in chargeof organizinagnddirectinag roleplay- startingto suspectthatperhapysouareiust
inggame.ThetraditionaDl ungeoMn asterelies flippingthroughthebookat a storeandhaven't
heavilyon chartst,ablesa, ndpilesof booksto run readit at all.
thegame.lf youknowa DungeonMastery, ou
shouldrunoutandbuyhima copyof thisbook lauraQuest Youstillhaven'treadthe Killer
rightaway. Breakfascthapter?Honestly.

15+

Qrossnnv

LineaDr esignA formof gamedesignwherethe Selddir Go backandreadchaptesr ixagain.We
playersareledfromevento eventwithoutbe- alreadtyoldyouwhatselddimr eanast theendof
ingableto deviatefromthesetpath. thesecondparagraph.

Magic ls neverto beusedby XDMsasan Societedel' Ultimel4aitres TheSocietyof the Ul-
excuseto plasteor vershoddygamedesign; timateMasterosf theGame.Wetalkabout hem
Prestidigitatioilnlu,sionl,egerdemaainn,dblack on page9.
art usedby anXDMto drawattentionaway
fromshocidgyamedesign. Storything TheamazinXgDMsystemfor creating
storyor adventuriedeasin a matterof moments.
Offloading WhenanXDMassignasgametaskto Youcanflndit on page3s 8-41.
someonoetherthanhimself.
TimemisdirectionA magiciant'sechniqueusinga
OpenMatrix A formof gamedesignwherethe delayto causethespectatortso forgetpartof
playerscanventurein anydirectiontheychoose whatwentbeforet,husallowintghemagiciatno
andtheGM mustworkto stayaheadof them. foolthem.
Alsoknownasa campaign.
TaylerH, oward An up-and-cominWgetArchduke
OptionLock An adventurdeesignwheretheop- KoboldXDMwhodrewthepicturesfor thisbook.
tionsavailabtleo theplayerdsiminisohvertime Whydidwewritethatintroductionif you'renot
untiltheyareleftwithonlya singlecourseto evengoingto readit?
follow.
TimeLock A formof adventurdeesignwherethe
PictureA flightschootlermwherepilos are playerasrelimitedbytheamounot f timeavailable
instructetdo keepa mentapl ictureof thespace beforea largeeventoccurs.
aroundtheiraircrafat t alltimes.In roleplaying
theGM isexpectetdo do thisfor theadventur-
i n gc h a r a c t esr sot h a ts h ec a np l a na h e a df o r t h e
nextencounter.

Polling XD20RolePlayingSystem Thisisthe hottest hing
When to hit gaminsgincegaming.lt issohot,it iscool;
andsocool,it ishot. Wewroteseveraclhapters
anXDMlooksaroundthetableto seeif the devotedentirelyto XD20. Go readthemnow.
p l a y e r 'ns e e d sa r eb e i n gm e t .( s e ep a g e2 7 )
X-tremeDungeoMn astery Thisisthe bookthatyou
Purpleprose A literarytermusedto describe iustread.On theotherhand,if youhadactually
passageosr,sometimeesntirebooksw, rittenin readthebookyouwouldnot needto belookingit
wordssooverlyextravaganotr,nateo, r flowery up in theglossaryl.f youhavenot readthebook,
asto breaktheflowanddrawattentionto iself. gobackto pageoneandstartover.
Adventuremodulesarefullof thisstuff. We
tellyouhowto dealwithit on page63.

RolePlayinGg ame Thepremiereformof enter-
tainmenitn theworld,wherea groupof people
gatherto createa sharedimaginativaedventure

story.

XDroRBsurrJsAnm

oO N N o O o\ 5 N
O

LN N N N A- ,.od
o =.-
O w w N) w
e f r f ;A, -i. .J-
s w(.fl N N A
Lrr tE o'

o\ = c\<

@ -T d'aI

\o I p€-?
tt
al f.iD = Q
Ur o ie
2 83;
N (Jl 5 wN N -aO
O O

N) N a o€

ul o\ 5 UJ N) N' N w P'EF

ow LII A w N N s '*<tos- H

(.fl >P E
.d<=qdq
(w.rl o LN A w w N o
EO r-rci qr r
@ ila 3
o5 \o o\ (.|l 5 w N <Eo=q 8
\o
A o o\ LN 5 UJ N) s
N
LN '3'eqFF'
O
LN o\ (Jl 5 (,^) N
O

ul Ot LN 5 w N 6g

(Jl N :lrfD

o\ o\ A w N of =. €
O w@
:-+ ;i
o(.r\l A @ o\ lJl (.^, N
Ki
O LTI \o O (Jl w N
<J
LN o\ \o O (.n A N fDqr
Oo o \o Or A N
=E
@ @ o \o O Or A N
LN o@ N =.E
o@ o\ 5 N =qr
\oo \o
Or s 36

+f;

; t= . 4

Rd

.;o4o'
=.e

o.D-

o oN N

-)

155

{

POPCHUTES,
EVERYBOOY!

#

WESHOULOHAVE
ROLLEOUP CHA(24.CTERS

BEFOREJUIIPINO,

157

A.rrERwoRD ,
WArnNGFoRQvcnx
i
Doyouremembeyrourfirstroleplaying ame?Youdidn'tknowwhichof those
strangedicewereusedfor what,yourcharactesrheewt aslargelya mysteryto you, I
rulesweresomethintghatyourgamerefereetookcareof, andtherewasa coldcoreof J
fearsomewherdeownin thepit of yourstomacthhatwhatevewr aslurkingbehindthe
nextturnin thecorridoro, r behindthenextdoor,wouldsuddenllyeapat you,betoo )
muchfor youto handlea, ndbringthecurtaindownon yourcharacteinr thegame. l

And it waswonderful.lt wasexcitinga,ndunknowna,ndyoufeltit morethan i
knewit.
I
Theearlyroleplayinggamesby E.GaryGygaxandDaveArnesonwerefusions
of traditionatal bletopminiaturwe ar-gameasndplaypretendT. heyweresimplein
theirbasicformandnearlyopaquein theiradvancesdtagesY.oureallyfeltyouhad
accomplishesodmethinigf yousloggeydourwaythroughtheoriginaDl ungeoMn aster's
Guideandmadeanysensoef it. lt wasa frontierandwewereallpioneersb,lazingnew
trailsanddiscoverinngewwaysto playgames.

Thatwasthen.Butsomethinhgappenetdo ourwildlyexcitingandalmost
r e b e l l i o urso l ep l a y i n ge x p e r i e n clet .b e c a m "et a m e d "a sw i l d e r n e s soefst e nd o . T h e
thrillof theunknownbecamereplacewdithformalizerdulessetsc, omplexsimulations,
andexactinpgrocedurelsn. somewaysgamebsecameasietro learnb, utalsoless
challenginagn, dlessunexpectedE.veryonkenewtheprecissetatisticfsor everypossible
monsteor r nemesitsheymightencounter-threestcamedownto themathematics
of probabilityS.omewhearelongthissmoothedp,avedroad,roleplayinggamens o
longerdealtsomuchwithroles.Theybecamme orelikeprocessethsangamesa,nd
completellyostsightof thetruemeaninogf theword"play."

LikeGodot,webeganwaitingfor anotheGr ygaxb, utthatgoodmanwassadly
gonefromusandour radicagl amehsadtransformeindtoa business.

ft'stimeto takebackour play,timeto rediscoveorn, cemore,whyweplayed
thesegameisn thefirstplaceT. heywereoncethrillinge, xcitinga,ndfun.Theycould
beagain.

That'swhywearegameplayerws hostillbelievetherearefrontiertso bewonin
r o l ep l a y i n gg a m e sT. h a t ' sw h yw e a r eX D M s .

TracyHickman
CurtisHickman

Thispagehasbeenintentionallyeftblank.lt ispossibltehatsomeonheasscribbleadpictureonyourniceblankpagel.f
thisisthecaseq, e'resorry. Wedo thatsometimeslf. you paidextrato haveyourbookscribbleidn,
Yougoupa level! Congratuljtions!

Thispageisalsointentionallbylank.we're n o t s u r ew h i c hs i d eo f thepageyou'llwantscribbleodn. Besideso, metimepsens
bleedthrougha, ndthatcangetmessy.

97 9071+-6-5

jll[ill

80