Editing Dungeon (magazine)

{{Short description|Magazine related to the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox magazine <!-- [[Template:Infobox magazine]] -->
| title = Dungeon Adventures
| image_file = Dungeon Magazine Cover.jpg
| image_size =
| image_alt = The red dragon Flame strikes a menacing pose while standing guard over a substantial treasure hoard in his cavern lair.
| image_caption = "Into the Fire" by [[Keith Parkinson]]<br/>Cover of ''Dungeon Adventures'' Issue 1<br/>Dated September/October 1986
| editor = {{hidden|ta1=left|Editors|[[Roger E. Moore]]<br/>[[Barbara G. Young]]<br/>[[Wolfgang Baur|Wolfgang H. Baur]]<br/>Dave Gross<br/>[[Anthony J. Bryant]]<br/>Michelle Vuckovich<br/>[[Christopher Perkins (game designer)|Christopher Perkins]]<br/>[[Chris Thomasson]] }}{{hidden|ta1=left|Editors-in-Chief|[[Kim Mohan]]<br/>Pierce B. Watters<br/>[[Bill Slavicsek]]<br/>Christopher Perkins<br/>[[Erik Mona]]<br/>[[James Jacobs (game designer)|James Jacobs]]<br/>Chris Youngs<br/>[[Steve Winter]]}}
| editor_title = 
| previous_editor = 
| staff_writer = 
| category = [[Role-playing game]]
| frequency = ''Print''<br/>Bimonthly (1–97)<br/>Monthly (98–150)<br/>''Online''<br/>Bimonthly (151–154)<ref>{{cite web | url = http://index.rpg.net/display-generalinfo.phtml?key=magazine&value=Dungeon | title = ''Dungeon Magazine'' Information | publisher = [[RPGnet]] | access-date = January 18, 2011}} Following their resumption of control over ''Dungeon'' in September 2007, Wizards of the Coast published Issues 151–154 as "a series of free web pages" before committing to a regular monthly release schedule and the use of [[Portable Document Format|PDF]] files starting with Issue 155 (June 2008). These four issues have since become unavailable, and a promised compilation has not yet materialized.</ref><br/>Monthly (155–221)
| circulation = 
| paid_circulation = 
| unpaid_circulation = 
| total_circulation = 31,465<ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Jacobs | editor-first = J. | editor-link = James Jacobs (game designer) |date=January 2007 | journal = Dungeon Adventures | title = Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation | issue = 142 | page = 82 | location = [[Bellevue, Washington|Bellevue, WA]] | publisher = [[Paizo Publishing|Paizo]] | issn = 0890-7102 }} This represented a decline of 35.9% from an average total distribution of 49,076 copies during the period October 2002 – November 2003, which was, in terms of circulation, the high point in the magazine's print publication history (Issue 107, p. 72). Data for the period October 2006 – September 2007, which would have likely been released in the January 2008 issue of ''Dungeon'', are not available.</ref>
| circulation_year = <small>October 2005 –<br/>September 2006</small>
| publisher = {{hidden|ta1=left|Publishers|Michael H. Cook<br/>[[Jim Ward (game designer)|James M. Ward]]<br/>[[Brian Thomsen]]<br/>Pierce B. Watters<br/>Wendy Noritake<br/>Johnny L. Wilson<br/>[[Lisa Stevens]]<br/>Keith Strohm<br/>[[Erik Mona]]}}
| firstdate = September/October 1986
| finaldate = Sept. 2007 (print) & Dec. 2013 (digital)
| finalnumber = 150 (print) & 221 (digital)
| company = [[TSR, Inc.|TSR]] (1–62)<br/>[[Wizards of the Coast|WotC]] (63–93, 151–221)<br/>[[Paizo Publishing|Paizo]] (94–150)
| country = [[United States]]
| based = [[Lake Geneva, Wisconsin|Lake Geneva, WI]] <small>(TSR)</small><br/>[[Renton, Washington|Renton, WA]] <small>(WotC)</small><br/>[[Bellevue, Washington|Bellevue, WA]] <small>(Paizo)</small>
| language = [[English language|English]]
| website = 
| issn = 0890-7102
}}

'''''Dungeon''''' (originally published as '''''Dungeon: Adventures for TSR Role-Playing Games''''') was one of the two official [[magazine]]s targeting consumers of the ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' [[role-playing game]] and associated products; ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' was the other.

''Dungeon'' was first published by [[TSR, Inc.]] in 1986 as a bimonthly periodical.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wizards.com/dnd/DnDArchives_History.asp |title=''Dungeons & Dragons'' Archives—The History of TSR: 1966–1999 |year=2003 |publisher=[[Wizards of the Coast]] |location=[[Renton, Washington|Renton, WA]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924195557/http://www.wizards.com/dnd/DnDArchives_History.asp |archive-date=September 24, 2008 |url-status=dead |access-date=August 20, 2005 }}</ref> It went monthly in May 2003 and ceased print publication altogether in September 2007 with Issue 150.<ref name="press release">{{cite web | url = http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/news/20070419a | title = Paizo Publishing to Cease Publication of DRAGON and DUNGEON | date = April 19, 2007 | publisher = Wizards of the Coast | location = Renton, WA | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100308103201/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd%2Fnews%2F20070419a | archive-date = March 8, 2010 | url-status = dead | access-date = March 23, 2009 }}</ref><ref name="notice">{{cite journal | editor-last = Jacobs | editor-first = J. |date=July 2007 | title = All Good Things | journal = Dungeon Adventures | issue = 148 | page = 6 | location = Bellevue, WA | publisher = Paizo | issn = 0890-7102}}</ref><ref name="transition">{{cite journal | last = Mona | first = E. | author-link = Erik Mona | editor-last = Jacobs | editor-first = J |date=August 2007 | title = Statement from the Publisher | journal = Dungeon Adventures | issue = 149 | page = 7 | location = Bellevue, WA | publisher = Paizo | issn = 0890-7102}}</ref> Starting in 2008, ''Dungeon'' and its more widely read sister publication, ''Dragon'', went to an online-only format published by [[Wizards of the Coast]]. Both magazines went on hiatus at the end of 2013, with ''Dungeon'' #221 being the last issue released.

==History==
=== TSR ===
''Dungeon'' (initially titled ''Dungeon Adventures'') first received mention in the editor's column of ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' Issue 107 (March 1986). Lacking a title at that point, it was described as "a new magazine filled entirely with modules" made available "by subscription only" that would debut "in the late summer or early fall" of 1986 and "come out once every two months".<ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Mohan | editor-first = K. | editor-link = Kim Mohan |date=March 1986 | title = Coming Soon: A Magazine Full of Modules | journal = [[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]] | issue = 107 | page = 3 | location = [[Lake Geneva, Wisconsin|Lake Geneva, WI]] | publisher = [[TSR, Inc.|TSR]] | issn = 1062-2101}}</ref>

The publication's original editor, [[Roger E. Moore]], elaborated on this basic outline:<blockquote>''Dungeon Adventures'' is a new periodical from TSR, Inc., in which you, the readers, may share your own adventures and scenarios from ''[[Editions of Dungeons & Dragons#Advanced Dungeons & Dragons|AD&D]]'' and ''[[Editions of Dungeons & Dragons#Dungeons & Dragons|D&D]]'' gaming with the legions of other fantasy gamers. Each issue offers a number of fairly short (but often quite complicated and long-playing) modules, selected from the best we receive.<br/>What kind of adventures do you want to see? We're going to offer as broad a spectrum of material as possible: [[dungeon crawl]]s, wilderness camp-outs, ''[[Oriental Adventures]]'' modules, solo quests, tournament designs, ''[[Battlesystem]]'' scenarios, and more.<ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Moore | editor-first = R. E. | editor-link = Roger E. Moore |date=September–October 1986 | title = Out of the Dungeon, into the Fire | journal = Dungeon Adventures | issue = 1 | page = 1 | location = Lake Geneva, WI | publisher = TSR | issn = 0890-7102}}</ref></blockquote>

The premiere issue of ''Dungeon: Adventures for TSR Role-Playing Games'' was undated, but "November/December 1986" appears on the cover of the subsequent issue, and Moore stated that it had been released prior to the November issue of ''Dragon''.<ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Moore | editor-first = R. E. |date=November 1986 | title = Hello, Hello | journal = Dragon | issue = 115 | page = 3 | location = Lake Geneva, WI | publisher = TSR | issn = 0279-6848}} As the newly installed editor of both ''Dragon'' and ''Dungeon'', Moore himself appeared in the "TSR Profiles" feature on page 82 of this issue.</ref> The magazine's format consisted of 64 pages of short ''D&D'' and ''AD&D'' game adventures of various lengths, themes, and tones, written by both amateur and professional fantasy role-playing writers.

In conjunction with the first anniversary of ''Dungeon Adventures'', [[Ken Rolston]] included a brief review in Issue 125 (September 1987) of ''Dragon''. Regarding the modules themselves, he called them "[c]heap and cheerful, full of the basic fun of ''D&D'' games", and said that they reminded him of "the selection of game sessions you find at gaming conventions or in old-fashioned modules". Rolston commented on the anthology format, which allowed writers to "publish fine little bits" and provided "great training grounds for new writers" that offered "an opportunity to experiment with offbeat themes and tones". Rolston concluded that "sophisticated gamers will find a lot to snicker at here, but there are some cute ideas", and added that the "writing ranges from young and enthusiastic to polished, and when compared with some of TSR's current modules...the quality of the layout and graphics is quite decent."<ref>{{cite journal | last = Rolston | first = K. | author-link = Ken Rolston | editor-last = Moore | editor-first = R. E |date=September 1987 | title = Role-Playing Reviews | journal = Dragon | issue = 125 | page = 80 | location = Lake Geneva, WI | publisher = TSR | issn = 0279-6848}}</ref>

===Wizards of the Coast===
With the sale of TSR due to solvency concerns, the magazine came under the umbrella of [[Wizards of the Coast]] in 1997, and the company printed the next 30 issues. With the release of Issue #78 in January 2000, the long title printed on the cover was simplified from ''Dungeon: Adventures for TSR Role-Playing Games'' to ''Dungeon: Adventures''. By Issue #82 (August 2000) it was simplified again to ''Dungeon''.

=== Paizo===
In late 2002, [[Paizo Publishing]] acquired publishing rights to both ''Dungeon'' and ''Dragon'' magazine titles as part of a move by [[Wizards of the Coast]] to divest business ventures not related to its core business.

===Return to Wizards of the Coast===
On April 18, 2007, Wizards of the Coast announced that Paizo would cease publication of ''Dungeon'' in September of that year.<ref name="notice"/><ref name="transition"/> [[Scott Rouse]], senior brand manager of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' at Wizards of the Coast, stated, "Today the [[internet]] is where people go to get this kind of information. By moving to an online model we are using a delivery system that broadens our reach to fans around the world."<ref name="press release"/>

Coinciding with the release of the [[Editions of Dungeons & Dragons#Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition|4th edition]] of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' in June 2008, Wizards of the Coast launched a website that included online versions of ''Dungeon'' and ''Dragon'' magazines for subscribers. In this new format, ''Dungeon'' (now subtitled ''A Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Supplement'') retained its mandate to deliver adventures of varying lengths and levels as well as articles with information and advice for DMs. Mainstay columns such as "Dungeoncraft" (written by [[James Wyatt (game designer)|James Wyatt]]) were retained, and DM-focused articles that formerly appeared in ''Dragon'' magazine (like "Save My Game") were incorporated into ''Dungeon'', making it a "one-stop shop" for DMs. The magazine shifted to a landscape format with the intent of making the articles and adventures more readable onscreen. Content was released daily and gathered into [[Portable Document Format|PDF]] compilations on a monthly basis. In May 2011, Wizards of the Coast stopped the monthly compilations and left content in single article format. In October 2012, Wizards of the Coast resumed monthly compilations.

====Cessation====
In the September 2013 issue of ''Dragon'' (#427) an article by Wizards of the Coast game designer and editor [[Christopher Perkins (game designer)|Chris Perkins]] announced that both ''Dragon'' and its sibling publication ''Dungeon'' would be going on hiatus starting January 2014 pending the release of the [[Editions of Dungeons & Dragons#Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition|''Dungeons & Dragons'' 5th edition]] product line.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Perkins|first1=Chris|author-link1=Christopher Perkins (game designer)|title=Going Dark|journal=Dragon Magazine|date=September 2013|issue=427|page=1|quote=In other words, the December issues (#221 of Dungeon and #430 of Dragon) will be the last issues you see for a while.}}</ref> The final online version was Issue #221 in December 2013. The successor magazine, called [[Dragon (magazine)#Dragon.2B|Dragon+]], was subsequently released online on 30 April 2015.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20150502170118/http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/news/dragonplus Wizards.com] Dragon+: Let the Adventure Begin Retrieved 20157-08-18</ref>

== Content==
Each issue featured a variety of self-contained, pre-scripted, play-tested game scenarios, often called "modules", "adventures" or "scenarios". [[Dungeon Master]]s (DMs) could either enact these [[Adventure (role-playing games)|adventures]] with their respective player groups as written or adapt them to their own [[campaign setting]]s. ''Dungeon'' aimed to save DMs time and effort in preparing game sessions for their players by providing a full complement of ideas, hooks, plots, adversaries, creatures, illustrations, maps, hand-outs, and character dialogue. It was a resource containing several modules per issue, significantly cheaper than [[Adventure (Dungeons & Dragons)|standard-format modules]].

From Dungeon's founding in 1986, it published content that could be used in a variety of forms of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' systems, much like its sister magazine, ''Dragon''. When Wizards of the Coast merged all ''D&D'' product lines into one, 2000's 3rd Edition, ''Dungeon'' published exclusively 3E content between September 2000's issue 82 and July 2003's issue 100, which shifted to 3.5E. With the release of 4th Edition in June 2008, issue 155 saw the 3.5E content dropped and focused exclusively on 4E. Like ''Dragon'', ''Dungeon'' was cancelled by Wizards of the Coast before the release of 5th Edition.

===Polyhedron===
''[[Polyhedron (magazine)|Polyhedron]]'', the monthly membership publication of the [[RPGA|Role-Playing Game Association]], was combined with ''Dungeon'' into a single magazine beginning with Issue 90 (January 2002) and lasting until Issue 111 (June 2004).<ref>''Dungeon'' was assigned a different ISSN during this period, as is standard practice when a periodical undergoes a major title change: {{ISSN link|1542-5401}}.</ref> Many of the ''Polyhedron'' sections presented complete mini-games for the [[d20 system]] in genres other than fantasy.

Editor [[Erik Mona]] changed the format in September 2004, starting with Issue 114, discontinuing the ''Polyhedron'' component and focusing solely on ''Dungeons & Dragons''.<ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Mona | editor-first = E. |date=September 2004 | title = Building a Better ''Dungeon'' | journal = Dungeon Adventures | issue = 114 | pages = 6–7 | location = Bellevue, WA | publisher = Paizo | issn = 0890-7102}}</ref> Each issue included three adventures, one each for low, medium, and high levels. A few issues each year also contained another substantial article which provided further details on the setting of one of the adventures (Previously, ''Dungeon'' almost never had features other than modules). Following the adventures and articles, many issues included the three-page "Dungeoncraft" column, at the time written by [[Monte Cook]], as well as a handful of shorter articles on various subjects, collectively titled the "Campaign Workbook".

===Adventure Paths===
Beginning in 2003, ''Dungeon'' magazine featured episodic, multi-part adventures, referred to as "[[Adventure Path]]s", which were designed to take a group of player characters from the beginning of their adventuring careers (1st level) through epic levels (20th and above). As of April 2013, four such serials were published: ''[[The Shackled City Adventure Path|Shackled City]]'', ''[[Age of Worms]]'', ''[[Savage Tide]]'', and ''Scales of War''.<ref>''[[The Shackled City Adventure Path|Shackled City]]'': Issues 97 (March 2003), 98 (May 2003), 102 (September 2003), 104 (November 2003), 107 (February 2004), 109 (April 2004), 111 (June 2004), and 113 (August 2004) – 116 (November 2004); ''[[Age of Worms]]'': Issues 124 (July 2005) – 135 (June 2006); ''[[Savage Tide]]'': Issues 139 (October 2006) – 150 (September 2007); ''[[Scales of War]]'': Issues 156 (July 2008) – 168 (July 2009) and 170 (September 2009) – 175 (February 2010).</ref> In August 2005 the ''Shackled City'' Adventure Path was collected into a hardcover edition with various revisions and corrections, new background information, and a bonus adventure meant to fill a gap near the beginning of the series. Similarly, several shorter campaign arcs (typically consisting of three parts) and various sporadic, open-ended series and side treks were featured in these later issues.

== Recognition ==
;Awards
* '''1990''': [[Origins Award]] for Best Professional Adventure Gaming Magazine of 1989<ref name="origins">{{cite web | url = http://www.originsgamefair.com/aagad/awards/archive | title = Origins Game Fair Awards Archive 1974–2007 | author = Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design | publisher = [[Game Manufacturers Association]] | location = [[Columbus, Ohio|Columbus, OH]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090604130545/http://www.originsgamefair.com/aagad/awards/archive | archive-date = June 4, 2009 | url-status = dead | access-date = August 15, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Young | editor-first = B. G. | editor-link = Barbara G. Young |date=September 1990 | journal = Dungeon Adventures | title = The More Things Change... | issue = 25 | page = 1 | publisher = TSR | location = Lake Geneva, WI | issn = 0890-7102}}</ref>
* '''1991''': Origins Award for Best Professional Adventure Gaming Magazine of 1990<ref name="origins"/><ref>{{cite journal | editor-last = Young | editor-first = B. G. |date=November 1991 | journal = Dungeon Adventures | title = Go Ahead—Make My Day | issue = 32 | page = 3 | publisher = TSR | location = Lake Geneva, WI | issn = 0890-7102}}</ref>
* '''2002''': [[ENnies|ENnie Award]] for Best Aid or Accessory<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2002-noms-and-winners/ | title = 2002 Nominees and Winners | work = ENnie Awards: History of Winners | date = 24 August 2010 | publisher = [[Gen Con]] | location = [[Seattle|Seattle, WA]] | access-date = April 9, 2013}}</ref>
* '''2005''': ENnie Awards for Best Cartography ("World Map of Greyhawk", Issues 118–121), Best Adventure (''[[Maure Castle]]'', Issue 112), Best Aid or Accessory (''Dungeon'' magazine), and Best Free Product or Web Enhancement (Maps and handouts, Issues 114–122)<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2005-noms-and-winners/ | title = 2005 Nominees and Winners | work = ENnie Awards: History of Winners | date = 24 August 2010 | publisher = Gen Con | location = Seattle, WA | access-date = April 9, 2013 | archive-date = 13 January 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140113120532/http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2005-noms-and-winners/ | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://paizo.com/paizo/v5748eaic9k0f | title = Paizo Publishing Wins Five ENnies! | date = August 20, 2005 | work = Paizo News | publisher = Paizo | location = Bellevue, WA | access-date = August 15, 2011}}</ref>
* '''2006''': ENnie Awards for Best Cartography, Best Adventure, and Best Campaign Setting/Setting Supplement (''Shackled City'' Adventure Path); and Best Free Product or Web Enhancement (''Age of Worms'' Overload)<ref name="ennie06">{{cite web | url = http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2006-noms-and-winners/ | title = 2006 Nominees and Winners | work = ENnie Awards: History of Winners | date = 24 August 2010 | publisher = Gen Con | location = Seattle, WA | access-date = April 9, 2013 | archive-date = 2 October 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191002152810/http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2006-noms-and-winners/ | url-status = dead }}</ref>
* '''2007''': Origins Award for Best Fiction Publication of the Year 2006<ref name="origins"/>
* '''2007''': ENnie Award for Best Free Product (''Savage Tide'' Player's Guide)<ref name="ennie07">{{cite web | url = http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2007-noms-and-winners/ | title = 2007 Nominees and Winners | work = ENnie Awards: History of Winners | date = 24 August 2010 | publisher = Gen Con | location = Seattle, WA | access-date = April 9, 2013 | archive-date = 11 December 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151211163745/http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/about-us/2007-noms-and-winners/ | url-status = dead }}</ref>

;Nominations
* '''2006''': Origins Award for Best Role-Playing Game Supplement of the Year 2005 (''Shackled City'' hardcover)
* '''2006''': ENnie Award for Best Production Values, Best d20/d20 OGL Product, and Best Product (''Shackled City'' Adventure Path)<ref name="ennie06"/>
* '''2007''': Origins Award for Best Fiction Publication of the Year 2006<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.originsgamefair.com/aagad/awards/nominees | title = Origins Game Fair 33rd Annual Awards Nominees | author = Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design | publisher = Game Manufacturers Association | location = Columbus, OH | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090609155428/http://www.originsgamefair.com/aagad/awards/nominees | archive-date = June 9, 2009 | url-status = dead | access-date = August 15, 2011}}</ref>
* '''2007''': ENnie Award for Best Adventure (''Age of Worms'' Adventure Path)<ref name="ennie07"/>

== Notes ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://archive.org/details/dungeonmagazine ''Dungeon Magazine''  archive] (all issues)
* [http://paizo.com/dungeon/ Paizo Publishing] – Products, resources, news, and message boards for ''Dungeon Adventures''
* [http://index.rpg.net/display-search.phtml?key=magazine&value=Dungeon&type=pictures RPGnet] – Partial catalogue of ''Dungeon Adventures'' issues with cover images, content descriptions, and user reviews and comments
* Unofficial indices of adventure modules: 
**{{cite web|url=http://www.patman.org/ADD/resources/dungeons.asp|archive-date=February 4, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050204224143/http://www.patman.org/ADD/resources/dungeons.asp|url-status=dead|title=Issues 1–71 (basic list)|access-date=February 4, 2005|df=mdy-all}}
**{{cite web|url=http://www.intwischa.com/dungeon/|archive-date=August 6, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806115631/http://intwischa.com/dungeon/|url-status=dead|title=Issues 1–150 (searchable)|access-date=January 19, 2011|df=mdy-all}}

{{Dungeons & Dragons franchise media}}

[[Category:Bimonthly magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Dungeons & Dragons magazines]]
[[Category:ENnies winners]]
[[Category:House organs]]
[[Category:Magazines established in 1986]]
[[Category:Magazines disestablished in 2007]]
[[Category:Magazines published in Seattle]]
[[Category:Magazines published in Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Monthly magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Online magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Online magazines with defunct print editions]]
[[Category:Origins Award winners]]
[[Category:Role-playing game magazines]]
[[Category:TSR, Inc. magazines]]
[[Category:Wizards of the Coast magazines]]