Dragon Publishing is looking for a few good modules. If you are the
proud creator of an adventure or scenario for any of the TSR Hobbies'
RPG systems, and you think your work compares favorably
with modules previously published in DRAGON Magazine, we
invite you to enter your manuscript and maps in the Dragon Publishing
1982 Module Design Contest.

This contest is much larger than the design contests we've
held in the past. Many of the rules are different, and some of them are
more strict, than for previous contests. If you intend to enter, be sure
your entry is composed and submitted in accordance with all the
regulations spelled out in the following text. An author's failure to
comply with all the rules will almost certainly result in the automatic
disqualification of that entry.

Contest entries will be accepted for any of the categories listed
below.

The categories
A-1: A “dungeon” adventure designed for from 4 (minimum) to 8
(maximum) ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® characters of
levels 1-3. The “dungeon” should be a self-contained adventuring environment
consisting of a number of interconnected encounter areas.
The total area (in scale) of the rooms, chambers, corridors, and other
features of the “dungeon,” plus the spaces separating those elements,
cannot exceed 60,000 square feet on any one level of the dungeon, and
there can be no more than 120,000 sq. ft. in the entire adventuring area.
The design can include as many levels or sub-sections as desired, as
long as the overall space limitation is met. The “dungeon” can be
subterranean (as with an actual dungeon), above ground (a castle or
fort), or a combination of both environments. Dungeon modules in
other categories must also meet these requirements.

A-2: A dungeon for 4-8 AD&D™ characters of levels 4-7.

A-3: A dungeon for 4-8 AD&D characters of levels 8-11.

A-4: A “wilderness” adventure for 4-8 AD&D characters of levels 1-3.
This is an adventure in which all, or virtually all, of the activity takes
place outdoors. The environment may include some artificial (nonnatural)
structures or enclosures, or natural phenomena such as caves,
which have to be entered to be investigated, but the total area of all such
enclosures cannot exceed 5,000 square feet (in scale). There is no limit
on how much space the outdoor environment can occupy, but it should
be apparent that a “wilderness” area measuring hundreds of miles on a
side would be impossible to describe fully within the maximum allowable
page count of an entry (see general rules). Wilderness modules in
other categories must also meet these requirements.

A-5: A wilderness adventure for 4-8 AD&D characters of levels 4-7.

A-6: A wilderness adventure for 4-8 AD&D characters of levels 8-11.

A-7: An aquatic or underwater adventure for 4-8 AD&D characters of
either levels 1-3, levels 4-7, or levels 8-11. The adventure can begin on
dry land (presuming that characters will need to equip themselves and
prepare for a shipboard or underwater journey), but all of the adventuring
activity thereafter should take place on or in the water, or on a piece
of land (such as an island or peninsula) that can only be reached by
traveling on or through an aquatic environment.

A-8: An urban (town, village, or city) adventure for 4-8 AD&D characters
of levels 1-5. An urban adventure is one that takes place inside, or
(partially) in the immediate vicinity of the borders of a town, village, or
city.

A-9: An urban adventure for 4-8 AD&D characters of levels 6-10.
 

B-1: An adventure or scenario for the BOOT HILL™ game. This
adventure or scenario can be of any general type — indoor, outdoor,
urban, rural, or a combination of environments.

D-1: The same as category A-1, except the dungeon adventure
should be designed for 4-8 DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® characters of
levels 1-3, and should be constructed in accordance with the D&D®
Basic Rulebook.

D-2: The same as category A-2, except the dungeon should be for 4-8
D&D characters of levels 4-14, and should be designed in accordance
with the D&D Basic and Expert Rulebooks.

D-3: The same as category A-4, except the wilderness module should
be for 4-8 D&D characters of levels 4-14, and should be designed in
accordance with the D&D Basic and Expert rules.

D-4: An “all others” category for D&D modules that do not belong in
one of the other three categories. Included in this category, for instance,
would be wilderness adventures for characters of levels 1-3,
and aquatic or underwater adventures for either levels 1-3 or 4-14. Any
D&D module using a set of D&D rules published previous to the Basic
and Expert sets automatically falls into this category. In any case, the
module must be playable by a party of 4-8 characters.

G-1: An adventure for 4-8 characters using the GAMMA WORLD™
rules that takes place in a “dungeon” environment; that is, an enclosed
or self-contained structure.

G-2: An “all others” category for GAMMA WORLD modules for 4-8
characters that do not belong in category G-1.

T-1: A mission for 4-8 TOP SECRET® characters, designed so that
the primary objective of the mission is one that can be best carried out
by a member or members of the Assassination Bureau.

T-2: The same as category T-1, except that the primary objective of
the mission is related to the activities best performed by a member or
members of the Confiscation Bureau.

T-3: The same as category T-1, but designed to use the skills of one or
more members of the Investigation Bureau in fulfilling the primary
objective of the mission.

T-4: A mission for 4-8 TOP SECRET characters that does not qualify
for one of the other three categories. The primary objective of the
mission cannot be directly related to any of the objectives listed on the
“Table of Missions” in the TOP SECRET rule book. For instance, agents
could be imprisoned at the start of an adventure, and their “mission”
could be to break out of prison without outside assistance. Since the
objective of escaping imprisonment does not directly relate to any
function listed on the “Table of Missions,” this module would be an
acceptable entry for category T-4.

_____________________________________________________

General rules
Be sure the module you intend to enter fits the qualifications for one
of the 20 categories. You must fill in your name and address, the title of
your work, and the category you are entering on the entry blank (see
the other side of this page), and also include that information on the
first page of the manuscript. As specified on the entry blank, all entries
become the property of Dragon Publishing and cannot be returned.

Every module consists of at least two elements: the text (manuscript),
and any maps or schematic diagrams that are needed to play the
adventure. A contest entry should include any diagrams or illustrations
that are essential to the understanding of the text. Optionally, a contest
entry can also include accessory illustrations (artwork). The presence
or absence of accessory illustrations will not affect the judging of an
entry, but may serve as helpful information for an artist illustrating a
prize-winning module which is to be published. Accessory illustrations
provided by a contestant will not be published unless they are of
professional quality.

Manuscripts must be typewritten on good-quality, 8½ x 11-inch white
paper. Computer printouts are acceptable if the characters are clean
and dark; if you’re not sure, get a new ribbon. Typewriting must be
double-spaced or triple-spaced; a manuscript with no space between
the lines cannot be edited and will not be judged. Photocopied manuscript
pages are acceptable if the copies are, in the opinion of the
judges, legible and easy to read.

A manuscript must contain at least 5,000 words and no more than
12,500 words. Pages should have a margin of at least one inch on all
sides, and each page should contain no more than 250 words. At the
rate of 250 words per double-spaced page, a manuscript should have
from 20 to 50 pages. (If your word count per page is slightly less than
250, the manuscript may contain slightly more than 50 pages and still fit
the maximum-length requirement.)

A contest entry can contain as many maps, diagrams, and illustrations
as you feel are necessary, within the surface-area limitations (for
maps) given under category A-1. Inaccurate or incomplete maps will
disqualify an entry. Maps need not be of reproducible quality (published
maps will be redrawn by our staff), but should be original works
(not duplicates or photocopies). Black drawing ink, black felt-tip
markers, and black or blue ball-point ink are acceptable mediums;
pencil, colored pencil or markers, and/or crayons are not.

An entry must be derived directly and entirely from the official published
rules for the game for which it is designed. For the AD&D game,
this includes the DMG, PH, MM, and FF. For the D&D game, this includes
the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game Basic rulebook and/or the D&D
game Expert rulebook, or (for an entry in category D-4) an older edition
of the D&D rules, such as the Collector’s Edition. For the BOOT HILL,
GAMMA WORLD, and TOP SECRET games, any rulebook from any
edition of the boxed game is acceptable. Monsters, character types,
magic items, spells, technological items, weapons, and other beings or
things not mentioned in the rulebooks are prohibited. This prohibition
includes material from DRAGON™ magazine and any TSR™ module or
game accessory, material from any other company’s product(s), and
new items and creatures devised by the author.

Exceptions to this “official” rule will be granted for minor additions
(not alterations) to a game system, to cover an aspect or function not
addressed in the rules which is essential to the playability of the module.
Minor additions to the rule system must be identified as such at the
places where they appear in the text, and must be mentioned (with
page-number references) in a cover letter accompanying the entry.

A manuscript will be judged, first and foremost, on originality, playability,
and adherence to the rules for which it was designed. The technical
quality of a manuscript is also important — almost as much as the
main criteria of originality, playability, and “legality.” Manuscripts
which contain several examples of misspelling, improper word usage
and sentence structure, and inaccuracy or incompleteness in descriptive
passages will not be judged as favorably as entries that do not
exhibit those qualities.
 
 

Adventures	-	Dragon magazine	-	1st Ed. AD&D
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