The Dragon and the Thief

Do your PCs spend a lot of time in taverns drinking and gambling? Do you want to role-play the games perhaps as a change of pace or as a prelude to a cracking barroom brawl?

By Bradley K. McDevitt
By Bradley K. McDevitt

 

The dragon and the Thief is a perfect game for PCs to play when relaxing in their favourite tavern. They can play it among themselves or try to win coins from the locals. Unlike some gambling games, a single round of Dragon and the Thief can go on for some time, but large amounts of money are rarely won or lost as each player usually only puts down or picks up one coin at a time.

A game of Dragon and the Thief is a great way to introduce new NPCs – either normal locals, rival adventurers, thieves, rivals or even potential employers. A game of Dragon and the Thief is also the perfect backdrop for some impromptu information gathering.

How to Play

To play, Dragon and the Thief, each player needs two six‐sided dice and a game board. The game is best played with three or more players.

Game Board by Matt Morrow
Game Board by Matt Morrow

Start: Before play begins, the players must decide what denomination of coin (copper, silver, gold or platinum) to wager. All players start by placing a coin of the relevant value on the number 7.

Who Goes First: The players all roll their dice. The player with the lowest score goes first. Thereafter, play passes to the left.

Playing: Each player rolls his dice. The result determines the player’s action:

  • 2 (The Thief): The player takes all the coins except those on number seven (The Hoard).
  • 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 or 11: The player checks the number for a coin. If a coin is there, the player takes it. If there is no coin the player puts one down on that number.
  • 4: The player does nothing.
  • 7 (The Hoard): The player puts a new coin on that number.
  • 12 (The Dragon): The player takes all the coins on the board.

Play continues as long as the participants want to play; players can join or drop out at any time.

Get it Free

This is an extract from a Raging Swan Press product released as a special Christmas gift. It’s still available as a free download and contains several different printable game boards along with lists of players and in-game events designed to spice up the PCs’ gambling session. You can grab a copy at RPGNow or DriveThruRPG. Get your copy today!

 

 

Published by

Creighton

Creighton is the publisher at Raging Swan Press and the designer of the award winning adventure Madness at Gardmore Abbey. He has designed many critically acclaimed modules such as Retribution and Shadowed Keep on the Borderlands and worked with Wizards of the Coast, Paizo, Expeditious Retreat Press, Rite Publishing and Kobold Press.

7 thoughts on “The Dragon and the Thief”

  1. What happens if you rolled a one? Do nothing like 4, or is it a re-roll? Or do you have to have a special 11 sided dice with numbers 2 through 12?

  2. I’ve actually used “3 Dragon Ante” and “Gambling? I’m In!”
    What’s funny is the priest actually beat the rogues… 🙂
    I want to try this now too. It reminds me of a game I played that originated in Ancient Rome. Can’t remember the name of it to save my life, but remember how to play it.

  3. This game looks like it will be a lot of fun! I can’t wait to try it out on some P.C.’s. I’ll make a game board on Tuesday, (Monday is a holiday around here).

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