.01 Introduction

What Is Dungeon World?

A world of fantastic adventure — magic, gods, demons, good and evil, law and chaos.
Brave heroes venture into dangerous corners of the land in search of gold and
glory. Danger lurks everywhere: goblin hordes, cursed woods, hateful dead. But
treasure beyond imagining is there for those bold enough to take it.

The Player Classes

• The Bard — Smooth-tongued teller-of-tales who lives the stories others only retell.
• The Cleric — Brings the glory of their god to a godless world, sword and spell in hand.
• The Druid — Born of the wilds and its spirits; walks the old ways apart from civilization.
• The Fighter — A beast of iron; lives by armor and blade, the wall that dangers break against.
• The Paladin — Holy war machine and instrument of divine justice, standing between hell and the world.
• The Ranger — Guide, hunter, creature of the wilds; the only one who knows the spaces between.
• The Thief — In it for the lucre; picks locks, dodges traps, and eyes the gold.
• The Wizard — Seeks power beyond the world's rules, through tomes and dangerous experiments.

Why Play?

1. To see characters do amazing things — explore, slay the undying, shape momentous events.
2. To see them struggle together — as a party, against foes and each other.
3. To explore an unlooted, unexplored world that has plans of its own.

How to Use This Book

• GMs: Read the whole book (can skim monster stats; save Advanced Delving for later).
• Players: Playing the Game chapter is likely enough — most rules live on character sheets.

Setting Up

• Group of 4–6 (one GM; the rest play player characters / PCs).
• Players say what their characters say, think, and do; the GM describes everything else.
• Print: basic & special moves, class sheets, cleric/wizard spell sheets, adventure sheet, GM moves.
• Need: pens, paper, and dice — d6s for everyone (two per player ideal), plus at least one each d4, d8, d10.

What's It Like to Play?

Play is a conversation between GM and players: the GM describes the world, players
describe their characters' actions. Descriptions can trigger a move — the signal to
roll the dice and see what happens. Characters gain experience from adventure and
level up, growing more powerful. Works as a one-shot or a long campaign.