Basic Rules of DND

1.What is DND?

DND, or Dungeons & Dragons, is an influential tabletop role-playing game. It was developed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arnason in the early 1970s and is the pioneer of modern tabletop role-playing games.

In simple terms, tabletop role-playing games require players to sit around a table and use tabletop game props such as rulebooks, character cards, maps, dice, etc. to play the game through language description and imagination. DND is set in a fantasy world, and players play various adventurers, go deep into mysterious dungeons, explore ancient ruins, fight evil monsters, solve puzzles hidden in the world, and participate in exciting stories.

2.The core gameplay of DND

Narration and choice

In the DND game, players are not bystanders, but the "writers" and "protagonists" of the story. The dungeon master first sets the background of the story, such as a town invaded by monsters. Then the player has to decide what to do through the character he plays. If you play a brave warrior, you can tell the dungeon lord, "My character has decided to investigate the forest where monsters are infested." Every decision you make will develop the story in different directions like a butterfly flapping its wings. Maybe in the forest, you will find a monster's lair, which will lead to a series of subsequent adventures. 

Dice Check​

Nothing in the game is 100% certain. In order to add some uncertainty to the adventure, dice are used to help. The most commonly used is the 20-sided dice (D20 dice). For example, if you want your character to sneak past a group of patrolling monsters, you have to roll the D20 dice. The number rolled by the dice, combined with your character's own stealth skill value, is compared with the difficulty value set by the dungeon lord in advance. If the result is greater than or equal to the difficulty value, then congratulations, you have successfully sneaked. If it is less than, then you will be discovered by the monster and a battle is inevitable. ​

Teamwork​

An adventure alone is not exciting enough. DND emphasizes teamwork. Each character in the team has its own strengths, including warriors who are good at close combat, archers who can attack from a distance, and mages who can heal and cast magic. When completing tasks, everyone has to cooperate with each other. Only when team members work together can they successfully overcome difficulties, complete tasks, and gain more treasures and wonderful adventures.

3.Game Characters

• Player Character (PC - Player Character)

👉 You are the protagonist! Created and controlled by the player himself, participate in various plot developments such as adventure, battle, and puzzle solving. You can decide the character's background story, profession (such as mage, warrior, thief), skills, equipment, etc., and affect the progress of the entire game.

• Dungeon Master (DM - Dungeon Master)

👉 The host of the game, controlling the entire world! DM is responsible for describing the world, promoting the plot, and playing all non-player characters (NPCs), including villagers, enemies, monsters, etc. TA determines the direction of the story, sets challenges, and judges the rules of the game.
🔹 Simple understanding: the player is an adventurer, and the DM is the controller of the world. The two interact to create an unforgettable adventure together! 🎲✨

4. Dice rolling mechanism

In the DND game, dice are an important tool to determine fate! Different dice have different uses. The most common dice is the D20 dice). At the same time, dice with different numbers of sides such as D4, D6, D8, D10, D12, and D100 are also used to determine the results of various game events.

🎲 D20 dice- Main test dice
👉 Most commonly used! Determine your success or failure!

• Attack test (whether to hit the enemy)
• Skill test (climbing, stealth, perception, etc.)
• Attribute check (strength to open the door, intelligence to solve puzzles, charm to persuade, etc.)
• Immunity test (dodge fireballs, resist poison, etc.)

Rolling D20 determines the success or failure of the action, high value = success, low value = failure. 20 points = "big success" (perfect performance), 1 point = "big failure" (embarrassing tragedy).

🎲 Other dice uses
Except for D20, other dice are mainly used to calculate damage, recovery, random events, etc.:

• D4 (4 sided dice): small damage (such as dagger), healing spells
• D6 (6 sided dice): ordinary damage (such as short sword, fireball), random numbers
• D8 (8 sided dice): medium damage (such as long sword, healing spell)
• D10 (10 sided dice): higher damage (such as great axe), specific abilities
• D12 (12 sided dice): high-damage weapons (such as greatsword)
• D100 (percent dice): random events (such as treasures, fate choices)

🔹 Simple understanding: D20 is responsible for determining the success or failure of an action, and other dice are responsible for calculating damage, healing, and random events. Every roll of the dice may change the direction of the story, making the adventure more exciting! ✨

Basic Game Concepts

Required Game Materials

• D20 dice and other dice

As mentioned above, the various dice are indispensable tools in the game and are used to determine the results of various actions.

• Role Card

The character card is used to record all the information of the player's character, including race, occupation, attributes, skills, equipment, etc. It is an important reference material for players in the game, and records the character's abilities and characteristics in detail.

• DM screen (optional)

The DM screen can help the dungeon master hide game information, such as monster attributes, plot details, etc., and it is convenient to place reference materials and record the game process, providing convenience for DM.

• Map & RPG miniatures models (optional)

In the battle scene, maps and battle chess can more intuitively show the battle layout and character actions. Different types of maps, such as paper maps, electronic maps, and miniatures models of various characters, can enhance the immersion of the game and allow players to better integrate into the game world.

Game Goal

The character played by the player completes various tasks under the guidance of the dungeon master. These tasks may involve fierce battles and desperate fights with ferocious monsters; they may require solving complex puzzles and using wisdom and observation to find key clues; they may also involve exploring mysterious areas to discover hidden treasures and ancient secrets; they may also establish good relationships with NPCs through social interactions to obtain important information or help. In short, players need to work together as a team and use the abilities of their characters to overcome numerous difficulties, complete tasks, and advance the story. ​

Game Process​

1. Before each game starts, players first create their own characters and determine the character's race, profession, attributes, and equipment.
2. After the game starts, the dungeon master describes the game scene, and the players make action decisions based on the scene and the characteristics of their own characters.
3. During the action, dice checks are carried out as needed to determine the results of the action.
4. The dungeon master adjusts the game plot based on the players' actions and introduces new challenges or opportunities. Players continue to deal with new situations, and the cycle continues until the current adventure task is completed or the stage goal of the game is reached.

How to create a DND character

In DND (Dungeons & Dragons), each player creates his or her own character, who will adventure in a fantasy world. The process of creating a character includes the following four core steps:

1. Choose a race

The race of the character determines its appearance, background setting, and some innate ability bonuses. In DND, there are multiple races to choose from, each with unique characteristics and advantages.

DND Race	Main bonuses	Special Abilities
Human	+1 to all attributes	Adaptable, can play a role in various professions
Elf	+2 Agility, +1 Perception	Good at ranged attacks, naturally resistant to magic
Dwarf	+2 Constitution, +1 Strength	High durability, good at using heavy weapons
Halfling	+2 Agility, +1 Charisma	High luck value, more likely to successfully attack or dodge
Dragonborn	+2 Strength, +1 Charisma	With dragon blood, can use dragon breath to attack
Orc	+2 Strength, +1 Constitution	Strong warrior, gets an extra melee attack opportunity
Tiefling	+2 Charisma, +1 Intelligence	Naturally resistant to fire, good at dark magic and charm
Gnome	+2 Intelligence, +1 Agility	Good at inventions, has a high talent for magic

8 common DND character races and characteristics

When choosing a race, players should consider the character's background story and career matching. For example, elves are suitable for archers or mages, while dwarves are more suitable for melee careers.

2. Choose a career

The career determines the character's combat style, skills, and growth direction in the game. The following are common careers and their characteristics:

Classes	Main features	Suitable for playing style
Warrior	High health, good at melee	Suitable for tank or strong output
Rogue	High agility, good at stealth and ranged attacks	Suitable for assassination, reconnaissance, trap handling
Mage	Proficient in magic, low health	Long-range output, use powerful spells
Cleric	Can fight and heal teammates	Suitable for team support, holy magic
Ranger	Good at ranged attacks and survival in the wild	Suitable for long-range output, reconnaissance
Paladin	Possesses both melee and sacred magic	Suitable for leading a team, both fighting and supporting
Warlock	Obtain powerful dark magic through contracts	Good at single magic attack
Druid	Controls natural magic and can transform into animals	Suitable for healing, control and summoning

When choosing a profession, you need to consider the role of the character in combat. For example, a warrior is suitable for front-line combat, while a mage is suitable for long-range spellcasting.

3. Assigning attributes

DND characters have 6 main ability values ​​(attributes) that affect combat and skill performance.

Attributes	Effects
Strength (STR)	Affects melee attack damage, carrying capacity
Agility (DEX)	Affects dodge, ranged attack, stealth ability
Constitution (CON)	Affects health value, durability
Intelligence (INT)	Affects spell learning, knowledge and skills
Perception (WIS)	Affects insight, intuition, perception
Charisma (CHA)	Affects negotiation, performance, intimidation, leadership

The six major character attributes and their influence in Dungeons and Dragons

And we have three methods to allocate the attribute values ​​of the character, suitable for different players' needs:

1. Fixed value method (recommended for novices)

The simplest method is to use the preset values ​​to directly allocate to six attributes: 15, 14, 13, 12, 10,
Assign the highest value (15, 14) to the most important attribute (such as the strength of the warrior and the intelligence of the mage).
Assign the lower value (10, 8) to the less important attribute (such as the intelligence of the warrior).
👉 Suitable for: new players, quickly create characters, no need to roll dice.

2. Point Buy method (Point Buy, suitable for balanced games)

All attributes are initially 8, and the player has 27 points to improve the attribute, and each point corresponds to a different consumption:

Property Value	Spend points
8	0
9	1
10	2
11	3
12	4
13	5
14	7
15	9

👉 Suitable for: players who want fair and controllable growth.

3. Dice rolling method (random attributes, suitable for players who like challenges)

Use 4 D6 dice(six-sided dice) to roll 6 times, remove the lowest dice value each time, and then use the sum of the remaining 3 dice as an attribute value, and finally get 6 sets of values ​​and distribute them freely.
👉 Suitable for: players who like random challenges and personalized characters.

4. Choose equipment

Each profession has its own weapons and armor to ensure the best performance in battle.

Professions	Weapons	Armor
Warrior	Longsword / Axe / Lance	Heavy Armor + Shield
Rogue	Dagger / Shortsword / Bow and Arrow	Light Armor
Mage	Stave / Wand / Dagger	Robe
Priest	Warhammer / Shield	Medium Armor
Ranger	Longbow / Dual Shortswords	Light Armor
Paladin	Greatsword / Spear / Shield	Heavy Armor
Warlock	Wand / Dagger	Light Armor
Druid	Staff / Dagger	Leather Armor

This outline covers the basic rules, game concepts and character creation of DND, so that novices can quickly understand the game structure and create their own characters.

We will continue to improve the combat mechanism, skill system, spell system, upgrade rules and other content of Dungeons and Dragons! Which part do you want to go into first? Or you can leave us a message in the comments 🎲😃