Paper App Dungeon Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Getting Started
  • Open Your Notebook, Adventurer
  • Decorate Your Hero
  • Your First Floor
• Movement
• Interacting with Objects
  • Stairs
  • Coin
  • Treasure Chest
  • Standard Enemy
  • Mystery Enemy
  • Standard Heart
  • Mystery Heart
  • Spiderweb
  • Keys & Locks
  • Teleporters
• Finishing the Floor
• Dying
• Starting the Next Level
• Shops
  • Single Use Items
• Finishing the Game

Getting Started

Hello! And welcome to Paper Apps DUNGEON. Thank you for playing.

You are about to embark on a minimalist paper adventure. Make sure you have your notebook, a pencil or pen, and a d6 die. Find somewhere nice to play. Perhaps perched near a creek, riding on a train, or nestled in a comfy papasan.

Open Your Notebook, Adventurer

The first thing you'll see are the simplified rules contained in each notebook. These pages are left intentionally minimal and symbolic to make them easier for non-English speakers to understand. They serve more as a reminder of how to play but are not exhaustive.

This guide is intended to explain all the rules in detail, and hopefully clear up any confusion of how to play.

Decorate Your Hero

This page is straightforward and completely open to your creativity. Feel free to use colored pencils, markers, etc to bring your character to life. Give them a name, too!

Your First Floor

Just like that, you've entered the DUNGEON. Brace yourself!

First, locate the smiley face. This represents the starting position of your character. Now that you've done that, it's time to start moving.

Movement

To move, you must roll the die. This determines your movement style and distance. If you roll an odd number (1, 3, 5) you will move diagonally. If you roll an even number (2, 4, 6) your movement style will be orthogonal.

Select a direction to move and proceed one square at a time.

IMPORTANT: Once you choose a direction to travel, you must continue in that direction. You may only turn if you run into a wall. You may not turn to avoid enemies, get treasure, or for any other reason. Furthermore, you may only double back the way you came if it is the only possible path.

Orthogonal Example: Upon rolling a 6, the player opted to move to the east. Once they hit a wall, they moved south. Hitting another wall, they continued east.

Diagonal Example: Upon rolling a 3, the player moved NE one square. A wall blocked them, so they continued SE one square. Another wall, so they went NE one final move, for a total of 3 moves.

Mark your path with a line or series of dots. Mark your new location with an X, so you know where to start your next turn from.

Interacting with Objects

During your move, you likely encountered various objects such as enemies, coins, hearts, etc. You must interact with every object that you travel through. The only exception is objects that have already been used on a previous turn.

Stairs

This is the exit of each DUNGEON floor. To access the stairs you must land on the stair square or any adjacent square. You may also choose to take the stairs if you cross them at any time during a move. Taking the stairs is optional, you don't have to exit the floor until you're ready.

NOTE: Stairs are the only object that you may encounter and opt not to use at that time.

Coin

Coins are littered throughout the DUNGEON floors. Pick them up as you move about. For each coin that you cross, add 1 to your + ¢ quadrant.

Treasure Chest

These chests contain anywhere from 1 to 6 coins. For every treasure chest you encounter, roll your die an additional time to determine how many coins it contains. Then add that number to your + ¢ quadrant.

Standard Enemy

This enemy's strength is clearly emblazoned across their thorax. When you encounter these enemies, simply write this number down in the - HP quadrant.

Mystery Enemy

This enemy keeps its strength a secret. When you encounter this enemy, roll your die to determine its strength. Write this number in the - HP quadrant.

NOTE: You do not instantly die even if your - HP is greater than your starting & + HP. Final numbers are not calculated until you exit the floor. This means you may have an opportunity to go find some hearts and save yourself! (More on this later)

Standard Heart

Just your standard heart. Write this number in your + HP quadrant upon encountering.

Mystery Heart

Cross your heart and hope to live! Roll your die to determine how much HP you recover. Write the number in your + HP quadrant.

Spiderweb

This treacherous trap stops you in your tracks. You also lose 1 coin. Write 1 in your - ¢ quadrant.

HARD MODE: Roll the die to see how many coins you lose instead.

Keys & Locks

In order to pass through a locked door, you must have already picked up the key on that same floor.

Teleporters

When you hit a teleporter, you are instantly transferred to the other teleporter on the same floor. You then continue the remainder of your moves from there.

NOTE: Teleporters are the only objects that may be used more than once. You must interact with it the first time you hit it, but it is optional to use it on subsequent encounters.

Finishing the Floor

Once you reach the stairs and decide to leave the current floor, it is time to do a bit of math.

Do the following for the HP and ¢ rows:

• Take the Starting number on the left
• Add the amount in the + column
• Subtract the amount in the - column
• Write the total in the Ending column

NOTE: You can't have negative ¢. If your ¢ total is below 0, write 0 instead.

Dying

The game is designed to not punish deaths too heavily. If your HP is below zero when you total it, go to the Stats page at the back of the book and tally a death on the tombstone. Then simply begin the next floor with 10 HP and 0 ¢.

HARD MODE: Begin again with less health. Try 5 or 7.

Starting the Next Level

Carry over your HP and ¢ amounts from the previous page to the next page. Write them in the Starting column.

Shops

You will encounter several shops as you proceed through the DUNGEON. You can use ¢ you have earned to buy items to aid you in your adventure. Each item explains its effects. Record the money you spend in the - ¢ quadrant. Record the health you gain in the + HP quadrant.

Single Use Items

Some items state that they may only be used once. In this case, you may use it at any time, but when you do, come back to the shop page and put a checkmark in the Used box.

Finishing the Game

When you complete all the floors in your notebook, you have reached the Treasure Room! Congratulate yourself, and color in your precious gem if you wish. Every notebook has a unique gem with a unique name!

Now proceed to the Stats page. Total your deaths and record your final amounts of ¢ and HP. Write the dates of when you began and finished your adventure. You may add your name or signature to the bottom if you wish.

Thank you for playing Paper Apps DUNGEON. I hope you enjoyed yourself!