{"id":47,"date":"2009-08-03T14:47:27","date_gmt":"2009-08-03T14:47:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/through-dungeons-deep\/"},"modified":"2025-06-28T10:18:13","modified_gmt":"2025-06-28T17:18:13","slug":"through-dungeons-deep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/through-dungeons-deep\/","title":{"rendered":"Through Dungeons Deep"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>A Fantasy Gamers&#8217; Handbook by Robert Plamondon<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_168\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-168\" style=\"width: 192px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/08\/through_dungeons_deep.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-168 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/08\/through_dungeons_deep.jpg?resize=192%2C300&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"through_dungeons_deep\" width=\"192\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/08\/through_dungeons_deep.jpg?resize=192%2C300&amp;ssl=1 192w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/08\/through_dungeons_deep.jpg?w=325&amp;ssl=1 325w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 192px) 85vw, 192px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-168\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Through-Dungeons-Deep-Fantasy-Handbook\/dp\/0972177078?_encoding=UTF8&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VYKZPd5rXnv23py3IjxA4g.wKrtxJGkIddpjNWwqgZ5e2QM3yQYB4eVVTQf1ns6a-0&amp;qid=1750956729&amp;sr=8-1&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=robertplamondon&amp;linkId=ed785e192de399487c10281e10603bae&amp;language=en_US&amp;ref_=as_li_ss_tl\">Buy on Amazon.<\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bookfinder.com\/isbn\/0972177078\/?st=sr&amp;ac=qr&amp;mode=advanced&amp;author=&amp;title=&amp;isbn=0972177078&amp;lang=en&amp;new=1&amp;destination=us&amp;currency=USD&amp;binding=SOFT&amp;keywords=&amp;publisher=Norton+Creek+Press&amp;min_year=&amp;max_year=&amp;minprice=&amp;maxprice=40\">Compare Prices.<\/a><\/b><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><em>Reissued by Norton Creek Press. 340 pages. ISBN 9780972177078<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Learn how to play D&amp;D and other fantasy role-playing games<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Learn how to be a Dungeon Master<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Learn how to design your own fantasy campaigns<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Tips and tricks for every occasion<\/b><\/li>\n<li><strong>Great companion for anyone interested in role-playing&#8217;s old-school revival<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>From the Author: <\/strong>I spent a good fraction of my college days playing Dungeons &amp; Dragons when I should have been studying. In the process, I discovered a wealth of ideas and techniques in how to play well and be a good Dungeon Master. I wrote these up in Dragon Magazine and others. One day I discovered that my list of topics looked more like a table of contents than a list of future magazine articles, so I began writing <i>Through Dungeons Deep.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>The book went out of print when Reston Publishing went out of business. But demand for the book has never died. The original edition is being reissued by Norton Creek Press for far less than the going rate for the original Reston edition, which often sells for over $50.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Book That Would Not Die<\/strong>. I still get fan mail like this:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Robert,<br \/>\nJust a note to wish you and yours a happy holiday, and to tell you how much I enjoy &#8220;Through Dungeons Deep&#8221; (the reprinted edition). Although I&#8217;m a DM with many years of experience, I still find new and insightful ideas in every chapter. The bits about your personal gaming group and characters are especially fun to read as well. I look forward to recommending it to my friends, who will undoubtedly enjoy it every bit as much as I have.<br \/>\nBest wishes,<br \/>\n<em>Todd Rooks<\/em><br \/>\n<em> Barberton, OH<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Testimonials like this tell me that I was right to come up with a book that ignores game mechanics and focuses on what fantasy games are all about &#8212; playing roles, creating worlds, and having a great time. These require that you develop skills that have nothing to do with understanding the rules. I show you how to do this.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Works With Any Rules System.<\/strong> This concept has withstood the test of time very well &#8212; I started out with Basic Dungeons and Dragons, but used Original Dungeons &amp; Dragons plus Greyhawk and Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, too. Later I ran customized campaigns based on a now-forgotten rules system called High Fantasy, and played in campaigns running under any number of rules systems &#8212; Rune Quest, Traveler, Paranoia, any number of newer D&amp;D editions, plus all sorts of other games. Right now I&#8217;m running a little campaign using my much-annotated Original D&amp;D booklets. It&#8217;s all good, and my book is relevant to all of them, though it covers fantasy role-playing games better than other genres.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Old-School Renaissance (OSR).<\/strong>\u00a0Everything old is new again, and there has been renewed interest in the classic role-playing systems and the classic techniques in playing them well.<\/p>\n<p>I hope the book will help a new generation of players and Dungeon Masters learn the ropes more quickly, and get more excitement out of the game. With all the emphasis these days on the different flavors of Dungeons &amp; Dragons, people sometimes lose track of the fact that<em> the rules are really of secondary importance.<\/em> Everything important is really up to the players and the Dungeon Master, and we all need a little guidance to start moving down the right path. You definitely want to buy this book if you&#8217;re new to playing or dungeon mastering, or have some beginners to bring up to speed, or could use a few more tips.<\/p>\n<p>So take a look at the sample chapters and scan the table of contents below. Look good? Then <b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bookfinder.com\/isbn\/0972177078\/?st=sr&amp;ac=qr&amp;mode=advanced&amp;author=&amp;title=&amp;isbn=0972177078&amp;lang=en&amp;new=1&amp;destination=us&amp;currency=USD&amp;binding=SOFT&amp;keywords=&amp;publisher=Norton+Creek+Press&amp;min_year=&amp;max_year=&amp;minprice=&amp;maxprice=40\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Buy a Copy!<\/b><\/a><\/b><\/p>\n<h2>Sample Chapters<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Chapters 1-2:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/through-dungeons-deep.com\/through_dungeons_deep_chapters_1-2.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to Play<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Chapter 14: <a href=\"http:\/\/through-dungeons-deep.com\/chapter14.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to Referee<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Table of Contents<\/h2>\n<h3>Part I: How to Play<\/h3>\n<p>Chapter 1. What are Fantasy Role-Playing Games?<br \/>\nChapter 2. Getting Started<br \/>\nChapter 3. Characters and Characterization<br \/>\nChapter 4. Outfitting Your Character<br \/>\nChapter 5. Home Bases and Travel<br \/>\nChapter 6. Exploring Dungeons and Ruins<br \/>\nChapter 7. Creatures and Combat<br \/>\nChapter 8. Treasure<br \/>\nChapter 9. Magic<br \/>\nChapter 10. Wealth and Power<\/p>\n<h3>Part II: Game Mastering<\/h3>\n<p>Chapter 11. Becoming a Game Master.<br \/>\nChapter 12. Design Philosophy.<br \/>\nChapter 13. Creating a Campaign.<br \/>\nChapter 14. How to Referee<br \/>\nChapter 15. Nonplayer Characters and Monsters<br \/>\nChapter 16. Traps, Treasure, and Magic<br \/>\nChapter 17. Combat<\/p>\n<h3>Part III: The Complete Campaign<\/h3>\n<p>Chapter 18. World Design<br \/>\nChapter 19. Scenarios<br \/>\nChapter 20. Altering the Rules<br \/>\nChapter 21. Keeping Up With the Players<br \/>\nChapter 22. The Gods<br \/>\nChapter 23. Conclusions<\/p>\n<h3>Appendix<\/h3>\n<p>Miniature Figures<\/p>\n<h2>Related Content<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/running-a-dd-game-for-first-time-players-especially-kids\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Running a D&amp;D Game for First-Time Players, Especially Kids.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/ten-dungeon-mastering-tips-dd-rpg-campaigns\/\">Ten Dungeon Mastering Tips.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/dungeons-dragons-back-fashion\/\">Dungeons &amp; Dragons: Back in Fashion?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>How to Order<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bookfinder.com\/isbn\/0972177078\/?st=sr&amp;ac=qr&amp;mode=advanced&amp;author=&amp;title=&amp;isbn=0972177078&amp;lang=en&amp;new=1&amp;destination=us&amp;currency=USD&amp;binding=SOFT&amp;keywords=&amp;publisher=Norton+Creek+Press&amp;min_year=&amp;max_year=&amp;minprice=&amp;maxprice=40\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Order online<\/a> from a variety of online bookstores.<\/li>\n<li>More options:\u00a0see our <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/how-to-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to Order<\/a> page.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Fantasy Gamers&#8217; Handbook by Robert Plamondon Reissued by Norton Creek Press. 340 pages. ISBN 9780972177078 Learn how to play D&amp;D and other fantasy role-playing games Learn how to be a Dungeon Master Learn how to design your own fantasy campaigns Tips and tricks for every occasion Great companion for anyone interested in role-playing&#8217;s old-school &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/through-dungeons-deep\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Through Dungeons Deep&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[23,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books-by-robert","category-role-playing-games"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p71zFO-L","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":950,"url":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/my-magic-items-from-dragon-magazine\/","url_meta":{"origin":47,"position":0},"title":"My Magic Items from Dragon Magazine","author":"Robert Plamondon","date":"June 2, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"When I and the world were young, my professional writing career got its start with a tiny piece in The Dragon, the D&D magazine from TSR Hobbies. This was my writeup of a humorous cursed magic item, The Rod of Singing, appearing in their Bazaar of the Bizarre column. They\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Role-Playing Games&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Role-Playing Games","link":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/category\/role-playing-games\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Dragon-045-cover.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":419,"url":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/norton-creek-press\/","url_meta":{"origin":47,"position":1},"title":"Norton Creek Press","author":"Robert Plamondon","date":"January 3, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Classic Reprints and Old-Time Wisdom Note: This site is a combination book catalog and blog. To go straight to the books, use the categories at the top of the links in this post. For the blog, keep scrolling. Most of the best books ever written are out of print and\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":847,"url":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/current-examples-ruth-stouts-no-work-gardening\/","url_meta":{"origin":47,"position":2},"title":"Current Examples of Ruth Stout&#8217;s No-Work Gardening","author":"Robert Plamondon","date":"August 11, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"People still love Ruth Stout's no-work, no-dig, permanent mulch gardening methods, as described in her book Gardening Without Work. Here are some recent blogs posts from people who use Ruth's methods in their own gardens: Growing Food With Greg: Gardening the Easy Way Greg even includes a video, \"How to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ruth Stout&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ruth Stout","link":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/category\/ruth-stout\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/vmcdn.ca\/f\/files\/localxpress\/images\/al\/growing-food-with-greg\/072117-ruth-stout-method.JPG;w=630","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/vmcdn.ca\/f\/files\/localxpress\/images\/al\/growing-food-with-greg\/072117-ruth-stout-method.JPG;w=630 1x, https:\/\/vmcdn.ca\/f\/files\/localxpress\/images\/al\/growing-food-with-greg\/072117-ruth-stout-method.JPG;w=630 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":857,"url":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/dungeons-dragons-back-fashion\/","url_meta":{"origin":47,"position":3},"title":"Dungeons &#038; Dragons Back in Fashion?","author":"Robert Plamondon","date":"October 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The New Yorker just published an article, The Uncanny Resurrection of Dungeons & Dragons. Apparently even trendy people are playing role-playing games now! \u00a0 In the years after I wrote Through Dungeons Deep: A Fantasy Gamers' Handbook, one thing that's surprised me is how well the old-school role-playing games have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Role-Playing Games&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Role-Playing Games","link":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/category\/role-playing-games\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/steed.dand_.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/steed.dand_.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/steed.dand_.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":417,"url":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/william-wallace-cooks-plotto-featured-on-bbc\/","url_meta":{"origin":47,"position":4},"title":"William Wallace Cook&#8217;s Plotto Featured on BBC","author":"Robert Plamondon","date":"January 3, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots, and its author, William Wallace Cook, were recently featured on BBC Radio, in a program called \"Miles Jupp and the Plot Device.\" Listen to it here. Jupp goes into Cook's tremendously prolific writing life, the difficulty of getting a copy of the original\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Plotto&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Plotto","link":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/category\/plotto\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"plotto_cover250","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/plotto_cover250.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":860,"url":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/amelia-b-edwards-egyptology\/","url_meta":{"origin":47,"position":5},"title":"Amelia B. Edwards and Egyptology","author":"Robert Plamondon","date":"November 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"A charming blog post, Walk Like an Egyptian, talks about the connection between novelist and travel writer Amelia B. Edwards and the development of modern Egyptology. After Edwards visited Egypt in 1873 and wrote A Thousand Miles up the Nile, she founded the Egypt Exploration Fund, which supported the efforts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Egypt&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Egypt","link":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/category\/egypt\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/1000_miles_up_the_nile_sm1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":961,"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47\/revisions\/961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nortoncreekpress.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}