Survivalist’s Guide to Spelunking: The Ultimate DnD Survival Guide
Master the Depths with Expert Tactics and Survival Tools!
Surviving the Underworld is no easy task. Whether you’re navigating twisting tunnels, towering caverns, or fungal jungles, the Survivalist’s Guide to Spelunking is your ultimate dnd survival resource. This comprehensive guide equips you with vital tools, tactics, and mechanics to thrive in the darkness below.
Legendary dwarven delver Dugmore Dumple shares hard-earned wisdom for surviving the dangers of the deep. His guidance, supported by seasoned traveler Fin Starling, ensures a practical and effective approach to dnd survival.
Written by RPG veterans Stephen Yeardley, Thilo Graf, and Douglas Niles, this guide is a powerful resource for your dnd 5e survival adventures.
Master DnD Survival with These Powerful Tools
Discover innovative mechanics, tools, and strategies designed to improve your underground survival:
Survival and Exploration Essentials
- 🪨 Cave Taxonomy: Learn about crystal caverns, fungal jungles, and maze-like tunnels. Each environment presents unique dangers.
- 🧗 Climbing Mechanics: Master rules for crossing vertical shafts, jagged ledges, and dangerous walls.
- 🗺️ 3D Map Design Tips: Build complex multi-level dungeons with strategic movement challenges.
- 🏃♂️ Chase Mechanics: Add thrilling underground chases where speed and tactics matter.
Resource Management for DnD Survival
- ⛏️ Mining Rules: Unearth rare minerals, ores, and treasures while exploring cave systems.
- 🥖 Streamlined Survival Rules: Manage food, water, and supplies with simplified mechanics.
- 🍄 Foraging and Hunting: Gather fungi and creatures for sustenance during your journey.
- 🕯️ Light and Darkness Mechanics: Introduce realistic visibility rules to create suspense.
Combat and Hazard Tools for Survival
- 🪄 Segmented Spellcasting: Add flexible tactics to your spellcasting with innovative mechanics.
- 🧩 Tactical Combat Puzzles: Challenge players with strategy-focused encounters and puzzles.
- ⚠️ Hazard Generators: Quickly create environmental dangers with easy-to-use tables.
Environmental Dangers and Survival Challenges
- 🌊 Breath-Engine System: Manage air supplies in spore-filled caves or flooded tunnels.
- ❄️ Environmental Dangers: Endure extreme cold, heat, and afflictions like Shroomitis.
- 🔥 Elemental Border Dangers: Survive chaotic regions where elemental forces rage.
- 🌑 Upper Regions of Hel: Venture into the dangerous edges of Hel — only the most prepared will survive.
Why This DnD Survival Guide is Essential
The Survivalist’s Guide to Spelunking is designed to expand your campaign’s potential. Its powerful mechanics improve exploration, tactics, and player choices in any underground setting.
Whether you’re crafting a challenging dnd oneshot or building an extended dnd 5e survival campaign, this guide equips you with everything you need to test your players’ endurance and creativity.
Joe –
I love this book! It has that old 1st edition feel with 5th edition rules. The art is fantastic and the content is better. There is something for everyone in here for sure. My personal favorites are the rules for survival (hunting/foraging), the rules for momentum which is a fun way to get fast past exciting encounters, and the rules on darkness and light which is something I find I want in all my games but seems especially useful in an underworld setting. Though this book is focused on exploring the underworld, I can see using many parts of it in all of my games. Also TABLES! SO MANY TABLES! I do love a good table.
Jonathan G. Nelson (store manager) –
Thank you for the kind words, Joe! The authors are sure to be pleased to read how happy you are.
Christopher S. (verified owner) –
Great resource for busy DM. Well written and organized.
Dan The Man –
Received my copy today! The book is fantastic!
Love the layout and the thick, glossy pages. What a high-quality feel throughout. Plus, the artwork is extensive without being even a tiny bit garish. Very nicely done!
A hearty thanks to Jonathon, his family, and everyone connected with AAW Games! This is a reference book that I truly needed for my D&D 5e collection.
I’ve been playing D&D since the late 70’s, and this kind of quality in writing, structure, and physical construction wasn’t even something we dared dream about back then.
Denver –
Lot’s of interesting & fun tables to spice up a caving adventure. There are also plenty of optional rules to use in your cave systems; camping, resting, hunting, foraging, and light & dark. Well worth it if you plan to have subterranean heavy game.
STEVEN W. (verified owner) –
Super happy with this. Glad I bought two copies to share with my son.
Larry (verified owner) –
Great book with lots of information, rule variants, etc. I can see this book being used in a variety of settings not just the underdark.
Kevin Hasty –
Excellent source book for the discerning caver!
RICHARD FRASER –
Great stuff in here, everything is really module and stacks together nicely or plays fine singularly.
The big problem with this is when does wetness survival guide come out?
Justin –
Great book and a great addition to my collection.
Theodore –
This is the first book I have bought from AAW Games and they have well exceeded my expectations for a 3rd-party 5E book. There is so many new ways to make underground/underwater travel interesting and more terrifying for players with Survivalist’s Guide to Spelunking. I got interested with AAW Games due to other releases, including Underworld Races & Classes and Occult Secrets of the Underworld. Great release and I can’t wait to start using it in my 5E campaigns.
David (verified owner) –
Useful supplement, entertaining character with funny delivery.
DAMIAN J DODGE (verified owner) –
OSR feel. Awesome B&W artwork.
Andrew –
This is a great supplement, beautifully bound and well-organized. Full of info on deep-underground environments, lots of adventure hooks and random-circumstance tables.
AAW Games customer service is great too. The USPS damaged my book in transit and I got a replacement right away.
Jonathan G. Nelson (store manager) –
Thank you for your support, and your patience awaiting a replacement.
Scott Layell (verified owner) –
Great Book
Katrina Wolffe –
I backed this as soon as I saw it. I still have my Dungeoneers Survival Guide from back in the day, so i had high hopes for he completed product.
I have not been disappointed! It’s packed with good useful information on the Underdark, tips for travel, hunting/foraging, dangers (physical, metal & metaphysical). Many tables to help with world creation & game play.
Well worth the money!
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Eric Medved (verified owner) –
Jason Herrick (verified owner) –
Wayne Pfeffer (verified owner) –
Chris C. (verified owner) –
Awesome addition and love the ideas it has given me for my Underdark campaign.
Paul Wilderman (verified owner) –
I purchased this for use on Fantasy Grounds. I’ve been getting ready to run Rise of the Drow, and this book provides a great resource to make adventures more interesting for the DM and the players. I really like the information about resource collection and the changes in atmosphere as the party delves deeper into the underdark.
In addition to Rise of the Drow, I’ve been running some early modules that I’ve converted for 5E (H1-H4 – Bloodstone). The Survivalist’s Guide to Spelunking has provided a wealth of tables to provide environmental challenges to a scenario that my players have really liked.
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Really impressed by the quality of the book itself, the textured cover is great. The material will help add good flavor to my campaign.
Josh (verified owner) –
Anonymous (verified owner) –
This is a wonderful book that will serve for more than just underworld adventures. Very glad to add it to my collection.
Mike Stuckless (verified owner) –
Great book I really lean towards resource style type books. There is so many setting books out there we need more resource type books now.
Ross (verified owner) –
Anonymous (verified owner) –
Davide Di Gennaro (verified owner) –
The suffocation mechanics are absolutely perfect. This product is a must!!!
Corey Cain (verified owner) –
I havnt even recieved my physical copy of the book despite it saying it was shipped
Aaron Scott (verified owner) –
The best D&D content publisher and support I have found.
Corby Gray (verified owner) –
Chris (verified owner) –
Mark (verified owner) –
Jonathan Gerolami (verified owner) –
Very creative and detail set of rules to give DM endless option ideas to make the under dark not just challenging due to the creatures encounter but the environment itself. If you are looking for rules on mapping, limited air supplies, traveling and factors to think of when developing, any type of encounter be it combat, non-combat, campsites etc. this is a book will be a great help for your campaign
john (verified owner) –
Anonymous (verified owner) –