# Tunnels & Trolls

**Tunnels & Trolls** (commonly abbreviated T&T) is a fantasy role-playing game created by Ken St. Andre in 1975 and published by Flying Buffalo, designed as a simpler, cheaper alternative to the original [Dungeons & Dragons](https://www.edgepedia.org/dungeons-and-dragons). It is usually considered the second role-playing game ever published, and it is notable for using only six-sided dice, resolving combat by opposed totals rather than attack rolls, and pioneering the published solo adventure.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_2426.phtml)</sup>

| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Creator and year | Ken St. Andre, 1975; first edition self-published, second edition by Flying Buffalo the same year<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup> |
| Dice | Entirely a six-sided-dice game; no polyhedral dice are used<sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup> |
| Character creation | Six stats rolled on 3d6 (eight in Deluxe); classes warrior, wizard, rogue, or warrior-wizard; races include human, elf, dwarf, hobbit, leprechaun, and fairy<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup> |
| Combat | Each side totals its weapon dice plus "adds"; the high total wins and the loser takes the difference in Constitution points; there are no hit points in the conventional sense<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_2426.phtml)</sup> |
| Saving Rolls | Roll 2d6, add the relevant attribute, and beat a level-based target (Level 1: 20, Level 2: 25, Level 3: 30, and so on); doubles add and re-roll<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup> |
| Monsters | Summarized by a single Monster Rating (MR), from which combat dice and adds are derived; examples range from MR20 for an average human to MR500 for a Balrog or Smaug<sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup> |
| Latest major edition | Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls (Flying Buffalo, 2015), a 368-page hardcover by St. Andre, Liz Danforth, and James "Bear" Peters<sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup> |

## Origin and design intent

Ken St. Andre, a Phoenix librarian and game designer, wrote the game in direct response to the original Dungeons & Dragons set, which he found unplayable as written. He lived in Phoenix, a city he described as largely untouched by the early spread of D&D, and could not acquire his own set until the spring of 1975; the first edition of T&T appeared that year.<sup>[2](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_2426.phtml)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[5](https://files.spawningpool.net/docs/Vault2.0.-.TTRPG-Gamebooks/OSR%28ic%29/HAWK%20%26%20MOOR%20-%20Book%203%20Lands%20and%20Worlds%20Afar.pdf)</sup> In the first edition he stated that the game bore about the same relationship to D&D as [Chevrolet](https://www.edgepedia.org/chevrolet) to Ford, and the foreword named Dungeons & Dragons as the source of inspiration.<sup>[6](https://saveversusallwands.blogspot.com/2017/04/game-review-part-2-tunnels-trolls-1st.html)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[7](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=13683)</sup>

The design goal was simplicity and low cost. Compared with contemporary D&D, T&T used only six-sided dice, replaced hit points with the Constitution statistic, dropped alignments and the Cleric class, and omitted monster descriptions and special-ability lists entirely.<sup>[2](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_2426.phtml)</sup> The game was cheaper and easier than its rival, and for a brief period it even rivaled Dungeons & Dragons in popularity.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup>

## How the game works

**Character creation** is fast. A player rolls 3d6 for each attribute, picks a class (warrior, wizard, rogue, or warrior-wizard) and a race, adjusts stats for race, computes "Adds" (a combat modifier based on Strength, Dexterity, and Luck), rolls for gold pieces, and buys equipment.<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup> The classes measure ability in combat and magic: warriors are combat proficient but magic deficient, wizards the opposite, and rogues (short for Rogue Wizard) mix both after training at the Wizards' Guild.<sup>[2](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_2426.phtml)</sup> In the original rule, if all three dice show the same number, the player rolls three more and adds them, continuing until the dice no longer match; a 2018 mathematical analysis calculated the average result of this procedure as 10 + 4/5, against a plain 3d6 average of 10.5.<sup>[8](https://arxiv.org/abs/1901.06869)</sup>

**Combat** is resolved by opposed totals. Each combatant adds personal and weapon "adds" to their weapon's damage dice, both sides roll, and the loser takes the difference as damage to Constitution; armor absorbs damage, doubled for warriors. Any 6 rolled on the damage dice inflicts a point of damage on the enemy regardless of who wins the exchange.<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[9](https://wargamedork.blogspot.com/2008/09/my-playtest-review-of-tunnels-trolls.html)</sup> Monsters need only one statistic, the Monster Rating, from which the game master derives combat dice and adds; Deluxe also allows rolling up and customizing monsters like player characters.<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup>

**Saving Rolls** handle everything else. The player rolls 2d6, adds the relevant attribute, and must beat a target number set by the difficulty level, with doubles adding and re-rolling. The mechanic was novel in the 1970s for being based on the character's own statistics, and it encourages stunts and improvised actions; reviewers have noted that high-level Saving Rolls against a character's own level can become very hard to make.<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup>

Magic uses leveled spells with names such as Catseyes, Wizard Speech, Freeze Pleeze, and Zombie Zonk, costing Strength points to cast, with staff use reducing the cost.<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup> Unlike D&D, there is no Cleric class; cures are the province of wizards, and the game's flavor leans toward swords-and-sorcery rather than pseudo-medieval fantasy.<sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup>

## Editions

Five minor editions were published between 1975 and 1979, and then 25 years lapsed before the next edition.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup> The first edition was self-published in 1975; Flying Buffalo took over with the second edition the same year, followed by a third edition from Games and Puzzles in the UK and a fourth from Flying Buffalo, both in 1977, and the long-lived fifth edition in 1979.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup> The fifth edition remained in print for decades, with UK editions from Chris Harvey and a 1986 Corgi Books rulebook.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup>

The modern era began in 2005, when Fiery Dragon Productions published a heavily revised seventh edition with revisions by Ken St. Andre, while Flying Buffalo issued its own 5.5 edition the same year; Flying Buffalo also produced quick-start editions for Free RPG Day in 2007, 2008, and 2011.<sup>[10](https://manuals.plus/m/5425ad8a9e8997ca338260489f957091c630227f5190e844c55e336f7982f872.pdf)</sup> Outlaw Press published a "Mythical Sixth Edition" in 2007 and 2009.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup> **Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls** (2015), effectively the eighth edition, was funded by [Kickstarter](https://www.edgepedia.org/kickstarter) and written by Ken St. Andre, Liz Danforth, and James "Bear" Peters. It is a 368-page hardcover in which over a third of the book details the Trollworld setting for the first time, including a full-color map and gazetteers; the core rules occupy 155 pages. The hardcover sold out in less than a year, and Flying Buffalo reprinted it on March 31, 2018, as a 385-page book with an MSRP of $59.95.<sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[11](https://icv2.com/print/article/39762)</sup>

## Solo adventures

T&T is closely associated with solitaire play. Titles such as Buffalo Castle, the most common T&T item with at least two or three dozen US printings, and Michael Stackpole's The City of Terrors introduced many readers to the game, sometimes before they owned the rulebook.<sup>[14](https://www.acaeum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?cache=1&f=2&t=12996)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup> The Deluxe edition includes a complete solo adventure and a GM-run group adventure, and Flying Buffalo later released T&T Adventures Japan, collecting material originally published for the game in Japan.<sup>[11](https://icv2.com/print/article/39762)</sup>

## Influence and related games

The game was very influential on later designs.<sup>[1](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)</sup> Commentators have also observed that the game's descriptive, outcome-first resolution anticipated the narrative focus of later role-playing design: the rules ask whether you overcome your opponent or get past the door, and leave it to players and game masters to describe how.<sup>[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)</sup> Liz Danforth's pen-and-ink artwork has been a signature of the game since the fifth edition.<sup>[4](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)</sup>

## References

1. [Tunnels & Trolls (2008 Fiery Dragon edition), RPGnet Game Index](https://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?editionid=12073&mainid=903)
2. [Review of Tunnels & Trolls, RPGnet (classic review 2426)](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_2426.phtml)
3. [Sarah Newton, "Packed Full of Fantasy Goodness: The Deluxe Tunnels and Trolls RPG," Black Gate, December 29, 2015](https://www.blackgate.com/2015/12/29/packed-full-of-fantasy-goodness-the-deluxe-tunnels-and-trolls-rpg/)
4. [Dr. Rotwang!, "Review of Tunnels & Trolls," RPGnet, October 20, 1999](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=2404)
5. [Hawk & Moor, Book 3: Lands and Worlds Afar](https://files.spawningpool.net/docs/Vault2.0.-.TTRPG-Gamebooks/OSR%28ic%29/HAWK%20%26%20MOOR%20-%20Book%203%20Lands%20and%20Worlds%20Afar.pdf)
6. [Save Versus All Wands, "1e Tunnels & Trolls, Part 2: Troll Talk, Character Creation and a Tasteless Joke," April 8, 2017](https://saveversusallwands.blogspot.com/2017/04/game-review-part-2-tunnels-trolls-1st.html)
7. [Save Versus All Wands, "1e Tunnels & Trolls, Part 1," April 2017; RPGnet review 13683](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/view-printable.phtml?reviewNumber=13683)
8. [Tommi Brander, "Expected characteristic in Tunnels & Trolls character creation, with generalizations," Mathematics for Applications 7(2):111-116 (2018), arXiv:1901.06869](https://arxiv.org/abs/1901.06869)
9. [Wargame Dork, "My Playtest Review of Tunnels & Trolls," September 2008](https://wargamedork.blogspot.com/2008/09/my-playtest-review-of-tunnels-trolls.html)
10. [Shannon Appelcline, Designers & Dragons: The '70s](https://manuals.plus/m/5425ad8a9e8997ca338260489f957091c630227f5190e844c55e336f7982f872.pdf)
11. [ICv2, "'Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls' Returns to Print," March 1, 2018](https://icv2.com/print/article/39762)
12. [Frank Mitchell, "A Non-review of Tunnels & Trolls: A New Age"](https://frank-mitchell.com/posts/tntana-nonreview/)
13. [Roll to Doubt, "Who Up Tunneling Them Trolls?" March 31, 2025](https://rolltodoubt.wordpress.com/2025/03/31/who-up-tunneling-them-trolls/)
14. [The Acaeum forum, Tunnels & Trolls collecting appraisal](https://www.acaeum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?cache=1&f=2&t=12996)

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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Board, card, and puzzle games › Tabletop role-playing games*

*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*

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