Dungeon Masters Guide 1st edition

The Dungeon Masters Guide 1st edition was the original Dungeon Master's Guide for the AD&D game, authored by Gary Gygax and first published in August 1979. Note that unlike other publications from future editions which were entitled "Dungeon Master's Guide" (such as Dungeon Master's Guide 3rd edition or Dungeon Master's Guide 3.5), this book's title lacks the apostrophe.

"DUNGEON MASTERS EVERYWHERE, REJOICE! TOO LONG HAVE YOU HAD TO SUFFER ALONG WITH CRUCIAL CHARTS AND TABLES SPREAD THROUGH MANY WORKS. TOO LONG HAVE YOU HAD TO USE MAKESHIFT REFERENCES TRYING TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM. YOU NOW HAVE A COMPLETE COMPILATION OF THE MOST VALUABLE MATERIAL FOR YOUR REFEREEING, THE DUNGEON MASTERS GUIDE. HEREIN YOU WILL FIND:


 * COMBAT MATRICES
 * ENCOUNTER TABLES
 * MONSTER ATTACKS ALPHABETICALLY LISTED
 * TREASURE AND MAGIC TABLES AND DESCRIPTIONS
 * GEM VALUES BY TYPE
 * RANDOM WILDERNESS TERRAIN GENERATION
 * RANDOM DUNGEON GENERATION
 * SUGGESTIONS ON GAMEMASTERING

...AND A WHOLE LOT MORE. IT IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST FOR EVERY DUNGEON MASTER!"

First print
The first printing of the Dungeon Masters Guide had a print run of around 40,000 copies. It was first made available at Gen Con XII on 16th-19th August 1979.

Second print, alpha
In August 1979, an edition of the Dungeon Masters Guide was printed which accidentally contained sixteen pages from the fourth printing of the Monster Manual 1st edition. A recall was issued quickly and the error was corrected, but a few copies of this printing are still in circulation.

Second print, beta
Between August and September 1979, the corrected version of the second print was sold. The original covers from the second print alpha were recycled to create this print, making it recognizable.

Third print
The third print of the Dungeon Master Guide occurred between September and November 1979. The boxing machine used for this printing had a loose wire, causing half of the books to have a deep score mark on the cover. This "alpha" print was recalled, the scored copies were removed, and it was sent out again. It is believed that the non-scored copies became the "beta" print. The Acaeum believes that the "gamma" print was created from the scored copies, whose covers were replaced.

Fourth and fifth print
The Acaeum speculates that the fourth print might have been created from books left over from the third print alpha. In the fifth print, a number of minor changes were made to the book's cover.

Sixth to ninth print
The sixth print (December 1979) introduced six additional numbered pages, increasing the total from 232 to 238, some text was revised, images removed and a reference section added. The seventh, eighth and ninth prints (to 1981) remained largely identical.

From the December 1979 printing: ""all the information you need to referee your ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS&reg; game is in this book"

Whether you're running a single adventure or masterminding a complete campaign, the Dungeon Masters Guide is the absolute best source for information. There's no need to guess the rules. You'll learn spells, monsters, travel, magic lists, and combat rules."

Subsequent prints
In 1983 the book was again reprinted but this time, the cover art was altered. The book was printed again many times, and print information began appearing within the book from 1985 onwards. By July 1990, the book had reached its fourteenth print.