Top 5 Dungeon Master adventure and campaign resources

 

These are the best books for planning a campaign or designing your own setting:

Basic D&D Rules (By Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson- Tom Moldvay revision/restatement 1981).  The relatively simple advice for designing a dungeon really can be inspirational for creating an adventure whether you are a new to D&D or have been playing for a long time.  Simple but effective.

Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide (DSG) By Doug Niles (1986).  Includes a sample Underdark realm.  Includes advice for designing the physical properties of such a realm as well as general DM advice for an underground campaign.

Wilderness Survival Guide (WSG) By Kim Mohan (1986).  Includes a chapter on designing a continent (or more).  Focus is on natural features not civilization.

Dungeon Master’s Design Kit (DMDK) By Harold Johnson and Aaron Allston (1988).  Includes a random plot generator and descriptions of those elements so that the plot could also be constructed deliberately.  It is a great source of starter ideas.  It also provides a way to drive those ideas forward.  (Many listings of adventure ideas lack such a driver)

Campaign Sourcebook/Catacomb Guide (DMGR1) By Paul Jaquays and William W. Connors (1990)- Does include some material from the WSG, DSG and the 1st edition DMG but lots of good new material as well.  Probably the closest book written that handles the “teach me how to DM” question.

All of these books are highly recommended.