1

Written and Designed by: Paul-Thomas Parnell and Dumaresq de Pencier

Proofing: Blaise Marcoux
Art Direction: Paul Parnell
Layout: Todd Crapper and Niaz M.
Art: Beny Maulana and J. Danis
Cover Art: J. Danis
Cover Colors: Wilson Anthony Go
Special Thanks:
Are in order to Michael Yatskar, Jonathan Vuytecki, Blaise Marcoux,
Preston Parnell, Josh Scaggs and Ryan Mulder.

Development Support: Tanner Adams, Frank Half Red, Blaise Marcoux

Dust World created by Paul-Thomas Parnell and Michael Yatskar

Published By The RPG Empire

The text and artwork are copyright © 2017 by Paul-Thomas Parnell. All rights are reserved.

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior express
permission of the publisher.

That said, if you’re doing it for personal use, knock yourself out. That’s not only allowed,
we encourage you to do it. For those working at a copy shop and not at all sure if this means the person
standing at your counter can make copies of this thing, they can.
This is “express permission.” Carry on.

This is a game where people make up stories about wonderful, terrible, impossible, glorious things. All the
characters and events portrayed in this work are fictional. Any resemblance to real people, real terrors, real
monsters, or other horrifying realities of your home dimension is purely coincidental, but kinda hilarious.

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33
 ABOUT THIS QUICKSTART
This document is a heavily condensed and summarized version of the
basic rules needed to play the Dust World tabletop role-playing game
(TRPG). It contains everything needed to generate characters and
locations, telling a coherent story over a few sessions. Dust World is
a Powered by the Apocalypse game, based on the Apocalypse World
system created by Lumpley Games. These rules may be more familiar to
those who know Apocalypse World, Root, Monster of the Week or other
PBTA titles.

WHAT ARE TRPGS? In a TRPG you can be whoever

you’d like, tell any kind of story.
A TRPG is make-believe with dice.
Acting in-character can feel a little
It’s a game where you and your
weird or uncomfortable at first,
friends act out characters you’ve but you’ll find that it’s an awesome
created, working together to tell a way to tell funny, interesting and
story. You use dice to make things memorable stories like the ones
unpredictable and add tension you might see in the various anime
and random chance to the story. and movies that inspired this
game. This document has all the
bare-bones rules and explanation
of how to play that you need.

4
 WHAT YOU NEED THE DUST
To play Dust World, you need this Centuries ago, the brutal war
document, at least two six-sided between the king of machines
dice, a copy of the Playbooks with and the king of sand tore
the basic moves, and something civilization apart. Atomic fire
to write with. Whoever plays the reduced the ancient cities to
Keeper will want some of the rubble, and the nightmarish
other supplementary worksheets, White Horse bioweapon killed
but they’re all optional. billions, coating the land in
a thick layer of psychic soul-
WHAT IS DUST matter, the Dust.

WORLD? Scrabbling for purchase in

Dust World is a game of an unforgiving, broken land,
superpowered nomads, Humanity and its descendants,
wandering the fringes of a Wild still exist. They are driven by
West society. Beneath their the desperate needs of survival,
feet lies the scorched ruins of but also by the ancient call
a hypertech past, filled with of adventure. The desert is a
the haunted dust created by an dangerous and exciting mystery,
ancient and all-consuming bio- full of powerful secrets waiting
weapon, White Horse. to be unlocked. It is an age of
exploration, of lawlessness, of
In Dust World, you play the heroes. Dust World is waiting.
Drifters, a posse of adventurers,
heroes, scavengers and ne’er- THE DRIFTERS
do-wells, wandering the world The wasteland is filled with
in search of fame, fortune and settlements and cities brimming
excitement. with all kinds of folks, but some
This game focuses on over- stand a cut above the rest with
the-top adventures in the same the metal to wander these
vein as classic anime like Trigun, dangerous lands. These are the
Fist of the North Star or Naruto. Drifters, nomads, wanderers and
You’ll travel to strange and excitement-seeker who roam
unusual places, vanquish hordes from settlement to settlement,
of heinous foes, and discover looking for work. Some Drifters
a world of ancient secrets and are humble mercenaries, some
forgotten technology. are dangerous criminals, some
bringers of truth and justice, but
all are tough, resilient individuals
with special powers and skills that
keep them alive in a hostile world.

55
 THE PLAYERS The Grave Doctor: A
master of forbidden science,
Each player in Dust World creates
inhabited by a parasitic being.
a Drifter of their own using a
Playbook. Playbooks represent The Heavy Hitter: A tough
different types of Drifters, and martial artist whose fists are
their unique powers and abilities. formidable weapons.
You can use this Quickstart with
The Master Mind: A powerful
any Dust World Playbook, but
psychic skilled in telekinesis
we’d recommend starting with the and mind control.
options from the core book:
The Shifter: An ever-changing
The Dust Caster: A creative creature who can assume a
combatant who can command powerful alternate form.
and control the Dust.
The Shootist: An expert
The Elementalist: A psychic marksman, bounty hunter and
with influence over the vehicle specialist.
cataclysmic forces of nature.
The Sword Monk: A blade-
wielding martial artist of
supernatural skill.

6
 The playbooks are filled with THE KEEPER
many different options, though
(OF CREATURES & LEGENDS)
some players may still want
One player in every game of Dust
even more choices. The core
World takes on the role of the
book is full of even more genetic Keeper, the storyteller who takes
Heritages and backgrounds on the role of every character
as well as a ton of equipment, besides the Drifters. The Keeper’s
weapons, and armor options. job is to breathe life into the
Wasteland, the people who live in
it, and the threats that confront
the Drifters, while telling an
interesting and fun story with the
players in the process.

77
 MAKING DRIFTERS
THE POSSE
Posses are a way to give your group of Drifters a purpose or a reason for
existing. At the start of the game, all the players should pick one Posse
option they like and build their Drifters around it. Posses provide certain
bonuses, including an extra Drive which can be used to gain Experience.

Explorer Society
Your Drifters are a party of bushwhackers, trail-setters and cartographers,
venturing out into the unknown for the thrill of adventure.

Quest for Knowledge: The Drifters have access to maps, notes, diaries,
ancient texts and exotic artifacts of the old world which can provide
them with useful information on forgotten places, areas needed
exploring, or the techniques needed to survive in unfamiliar lands.

Drive: Clear a trail or open a way that was once blocked.

Lawbringers
The Drifters are a band of sheriffs, judges or other people fighting to
uphold a code of laws, rooting out criminals or bringing order to chaotic
lands.

Shield of Humanity: The poor and downtrodden trust the Drifters

implicitly, and will provide them with food, shelter and basic
services at no cost. Low-level criminals are absolutely terrified of
their presence, while stronger ones may try to hunt them down.

Drive: Protect the weak and innocent.

Raiders
The Drifters are a loose-knit band of travelling anarchists, smashing the
system and fighting anything and everything.

Road Warrior: Every Drifter in this posse who does not get a mount
or vehicle from their playbook can begin play with one of the
Example Vehicles in the Equipment section. Shootists who are
members of this Posse gain 2 extra Perks for their vehicles.

Drive: Burn something down.

8
 THE PLAYBOOK
Playbooks provide all the rules you need to run a unique Drifter, but also
act as a guide to creating one. Playbooks are more of a framework than
hard or fast rules; if you don’t like the options on a Playbook or want to
try something different, talk to your Keeper and they can help out.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS Looks: How physically

This section suggests how your pleasant and persuasive you
character might look and their are.
general aesthetic. Don’t take it as
a hard and fast definition- your Quick: The steadiness of your
character’s appearance is entirely hands and the speed of your
up to you! reflexes.

Brains: Your observational

RATINGS skills and intelligence.
Ratings range in strength from
-3 to +3, with 0 representing Muscle: Your strength and
generally average skill in that
Rating. Your Playbook will give physical prowess.
you a set of starting Rating
Instinct: Your degree of
options to choose from.
insight into the world around
These are an abstract way of you, or your gut feelings.
showing what your character is
Grit: Your connection to the
good at. The ratings are:
world - how much you want to
live, and keep living.
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 BRANDS DRIVE
These represent your character’s Drives are those goals and
past, what Territory of the achievements that motivate your
wasteland they come from. character and guide their path
Brands give you an ability, but in life. If you complete a session
also affect your relations with having completed one of your
characters from other Territories. Drives, you gain Experience.

GENETIC HERITAGE STARTING GEAR

Not all the people of the You’re not going to be exploring
wasteland are human; some the Dust World naked, unless you
are Warbred, ancient living really, really want to. For more
weapons created in the last war, information on gear and how to
while others are Mutants, the get it, see the Equipment section.
byproducts of the weapons that
destroyed the world. Your Genetic INTRODUCTIONS &
Heritage gives you powerful new
options and abilities. STANDINGS
Once you’ve made your Drifter,
EXPERIENCE & it’s time to introduce them to the
rest of the Posse. To figure out
ADVANCEMENT how well everyone gets along,
Experience can be spent to gain you have Standings. These are
new abilities and develop your a numerical value of how much
character’s strengths. You gain 1 someone likes you. A person with
Experience: +3 Standing loves you to bits. A
person with 0 doesn’t know you. A
When you roll a modified 6 or person with -3 Standing hates you
below on the dice.
to death.
When you complete a Move
You begin with one +1 Standing,
which tells you to gain
Experience. one -1 Standing, and one 0
Standing to assign to the other
Once per session when you Drifters in the Posse. When you
complete the Drive from your give positive or negative Standing
Playbook. to another Drifter, they record
your Drifter and the value of
Once per session when you
the Standing in the “Standings”
complete the Drive from your
portion of their Playbook. You
Posse.
should also record any Standings
Whenever you’ve filled out you got from your Brand.
five boxes on the Experience
track, you level up. Pick a new
Improvement from your Playbook,
adding its effects.
10
 PLAYING DUST WORLD
DICE & ROLLING
Dust World uses two 6-sided dice to determine the outcome of a
Drifter’s actions, called Moves. Each time you want to use a Move, roll
two dice and add any Ratings related to it; every Move will tell you what
to add to the roll.

FORWARDS HOLDS
When a Move or the Keeper Some Moves will tell you to
tells you to take “+1 forward” “hold” a number (hold 1, hold 3,
or “-1 forward”, that means you etc). That means you now have
get a +1 or a -1 to your next a limited number of uses of an
roll. ability- like asking a series of
questions or acquiring time-
ONGOING limited bonuses. A hold doesn’t
When you get “+1 ongoing” or run out — you can save it for as
“-1 ongoing”, that means you long as you like. You can’t stack
get a +1 or a -1 on every roll, holds from the same Move.
until the Keeper or the Move
tells you the ongoing ends.

1111
 COMBAT When you finish dealing with
In combat, the Drifters and the a dangerous situation, you can
Keeper take turns making Moves catch your breath. If there is no
to collectively build the narrative chance to rest, you heal 1 harm. If
of the fight. the Posse is actively dealing with
a threat, getting a full night’s
When you hit someone with a sleep will also heal 1 harm. If you
Move that involves attacking, you have plenty of time to recover
inflict harm on them depending without any imminent danger,
on the weapon or gear you’re you can heal all of your harm.
using. If you have no weapons or
gear, basic punching, kicking and ARMOR
biting inflicts 0 harm, but can still Most Drifters begin play with
inflict harm moves. some kind of armor. All armor has
a point value, usually between 1
INJURY AND HEALING and 3; armor reduces incoming
All Drifters start play with a harm by an amount equal to its
certain amount of Harm; this is point value, to a minimum of 0,
how much punishment they can unless overcome by certain tags.
suffer before they bleed out and For more information, see the
die. Equipment section.
The more harm an injury does, the
worse it is: WILD CARDS
Wild Cards represent a Drifter’s
0-harm wounds are considered
healed the moment a threat unusual good luck. You begin
has passed. play with 5 Wild Cards available,
though for shorter games the
1-3 harm wounds can be Keeper might decide that you
healed by first aid, or by have just 1.
resting.
You can spend them at any time
4-7 harm wounds are serious, to turn the result of a roll to a 12
and will get worse unless or avoid all harm from one attack.
you treat them. Mark the
“unstable” box on your
playbook if you take 4 harm REGAININGWILD CARDS
or more. The Keeper will tell Each playbook’s Wild Cards carry
you when you take more harm. with them a specific downside
Resting doesn’t cure being
or negative effect you will have
unstable.
to confront when you use one.
8+ harm will usually kill all but At any point, you may remove 2
the most resilient of Drifters. Experience from your track to
regain one of your Wild Cards.
You can never have more than 5
Wild Cards.
12
 FLASHBACKS
You can also spend a Wild Card
to invoke a Flashback related to
any NPC with whom you have
+1 Standing or more. Describe
a memory of a conversation
or interaction you had with
that NPC that’s relevant to
the current situation, even if it
happened “offscreen.” You then
gain one of the following:
A new perspective on the
situation.

A valuable fact or piece of

data.

A new understanding of what

motivates someone.

A small but useful item you

earned, won, bought or stole.

The knowledge of how to use

something you didn’t know
previously.

The strength to ignore one

thing that is making your
situation difficult.

The NPC shows up to help.

1313
 THE MOVES
Moves are how your Drifter’s stats affect the world and the story being
told. Each Move comes with a description of when it is used, what Ratings
are used with it, and a list of results or outcomes a relevant die roll might
produce

You divert them for the

BE A HERO moment.

You prepared for the hit (-1

When you show your true colors harm).
protecting others, roll +Muscle.
On a 7+: You get between them
On a 10+: Pick 1 Extra and take and their attackers, taking the
+1 Standing with them: damage meant for them.
You’ve been noticed and they
On a 12+ (Advanced): You are a
are all looking at you.
true hero, you’ve single-handedly
You get them back. (Deal your turned the tide of this encounter.
harm) Both you and the people you’re
protecting are out of danger, and
you take +1 Standing with them.
If you were protecting a settler,
they also become your ally.
14
 CLASH DIG DEEP
When you get into a scrap with When you focus on overcoming
someone or something in any a problem with willpower, self-
range using fists or weapons, roll reflection or an inspirational
+Muscle. monologue, roll + Grit. You must
explain your character’s thoughts.
On a 10+: Do your harm and
pick one: On a 10+, It inspired the heck
out of you, hold 2
You do something showy: +1
forward, to you or another
On 7-9, It was mildly
inspirational, but still helpful,
drifter.
hold 1.
You aim for the weak spot (+1
Become stable.
harm).
Heal 1 harm or restore 1 Ki,
You force them where you
Power or Sanity.
want them.
You have a small, useful item.
On a 7+: Pick 1:
You’ve been practicing. (+1
They inflict harm on you.
forward)
You find yourself in a bad
You remember an escape
spot.
route. (+1 forward to escape)
On a 12+ (Advanced): Instead
pick an enhanced effect: On a Miss, you’ve actually made
things worse.
You do something epic! All
On a 12 (Advanced):
drifters get +1 forward.
A valuable secret is revealed.
You take something of value.
Invoke an Ally or Rival
Your attack inflicts double the
normal harm. Flashback.

Your attack drives the enemy Use one move from any
away in a rout. playbook, once.

On a hit, you get -1 Standing

with the Drifter or character you
scrapped with, if you have any.

1515
 FACE DANGER READ A TELL
When you scrutinize a person or
When you act in the face of try to glean insight, roll +Instinct.
danger, surprise or ambush a foe
or when failing could be a real On a 10+: Ask two questions
problem, roll +Quick. from the list below.

On a 10+: You show your skills, On a 7-9: Ask one question

spring your trap or avoid the from the list below.
danger.
What secrets are they hiding?
On 7-9: You try but you What’s the most dangerous
miscalculate, overestimate or thing about them?
flinch: the Keeper gives you a
worse outcome, tough decision, What hidden valuables do they
have?
or price to pay.
How can I pressure them to
On a 12 (Advanced): You do ______?
something crazy. Choose to do
what you wanted and something Whose pocket are they in?
epic on top, or do what you
What do they intend to do?
wanted to the max.
What do they want?
LEND A HAND On a 12+ (Advanced): You may
ask any question about the person
When you help another Drifter, you are trying to scrutinize. The
roll +Instinct. Keeper must tell the truth.

On a 10+: Your help grants

them +2 to their roll. +1 Standing
with them.

On a 7-9: Your help grants

them +1 to their roll, and you’ve
messed up somehow, drawing
attention or getting into danger.

On a 12+ (Advanced): You help

them amazingly well. They take a
12, regardless of their actual roll.
+1 Standing with them.

16
 SURVEY YOUR
SURROUNDINGS
When you try to spot something
useful, navigate difficult terrain
or study a threatening foe or
situation, roll +Brains.

On a hit: Take +1 forward

when acting on the answers.

On a 10+: Ask two questions

from the list below.

On a 7-9: Ask one question

from the list below.

What happened here

recently?

What is about to happen?

What is my best way to

traverse, break in, or escape?

What is of use or valuable to

me here?

What here is not what it

appears to me?

On a Miss: Tell the Keeper one

unfortunate truth.

On a 12+ (Advanced): You may

ask any question related to your
surroundings, not just the ones
listed. The Keeper must tell the
truth.

1717
 SWAY SOMEONE OTHER MOVES
When you persuade someone These moves are situational,
through seduction, promises, or and will come up less often.
threats, tell them what you want of
them and roll +Looks +Standing.
(Base Standing is 0.)
HANG IN THERE
For a normal person: When you are overcome by
violence and pain and bleed out,
On a 10+: You’ve convinced
roll +Grit.
them.
On a 10+, The world may have a
On a 7-9: They ain’t sure, you’d
use for you yet. You’re a mess but
better prove it.
you’re still breathing with 3 harm
On a miss: They don’t trust you restored.
and might turn on you.

On a 12+ (Advanced): You’ve

TELL OFTHE
really impressed them. They’re LEGENDS
happy to help and they want to be
your ally. Add them to your sheet.
When you consult your
+1 Standing with them.
accumulated knowledge about
For a Drifter: something, roll +Brains.

On a 10+: If they do what you On a 10+, The Keeper will ask

want, they mark experience and you what you know about the
get +1 forward. subject and tell you if it’s true.

On a 7-9: They mark experience On 7-9, The Keeper will only tell
if they do what you want. you something interesting, it’s on
you to make it useful.
On a miss: That Drifter decides
how much they want to hurt you. On a Miss: The Keeper will ask
-1 Standing with them if you have “What terrible fact do you know
any. about it?” It’s true!

On a 12+ (Advanced): They

must face danger to resist your
charms. If they do what you ask,
they mark one experience and
take +1 ongoing to complete
what you asked. +1 Standing with
them.

18
TREAT A WOUND STRANGENESS
AND SPIRITS
When you attend to a wound, roll
+Brains.
The handbook also has rules
On a 10+: Hold 1. for taking your game from Wild
West to Weird West, adding
On 7-9: Hold 1, and it takes a
a bit of supernatural flair with
long time.
magic, spirit summoning and
You have what you need to more. Make the Dust World as
close the wound. (+2 Harm) strange and spooky as you want
it to be.
You can stop the bleeding.
(Stabilized)

You take several tries but suck

out the venom.

On a Miss: It gets worse.

On a 12 (Advanced): Heal 3
harm and pick 1:

Your training is showing.

(Stabilized)

You are lightning fast! (They

take +1 Forward.)

1919
 EQUIPMENT
The wasteland is a hostile place, where you need specialized gear to
survive. Some settlements use barter, others have currency; regardless,
wealth in Dust World is represented by trading captured or scavenged
Loot.

LOOT & GIGS one-off jobs. The average Gig

Loot is any kind of valuable might pay 1-3 Loot depending
material found in old ruins or on the difficulty of work involved.
stolen from people, monsters, Drifters can start with between
or ancient repositories. Loot can 1-3 loot, depending on what
be traded away to get valuable makes sense for the character.
things; 1 Loot is equivalent to a
couple nights’ stay in a comfy inn, EQUIPMENT TAGS
while 3 Loot is enough to buy a Weapons and some pieces of
high-tech laser gun and 5 Loot equipment have “tags”, or lists
could buy an entire small town. of descriptions that define how
they work. Weapons will always
Most settlements in the Dust have a harm tag, which indicates
World maintain Gig Boards where how much damage they do, plus
people or governments in the a range tag, which indicates how
area spread news and request close a target needs to be for
20
the weapon to work. In the next Travel Packs:
page are some, but not all, of the These vital pieces of survival kit
equipment tags in Dust World. are always assumed to contain
the basic kit you’d need to live
EXAMPLE EQUIPMENT in the wasteland, like water
Here are just a few pieces of filters, a sleeping bag and tent, a
common weapons, armor and gas stove or fire-starters, water
survival gear the Drifters might bottles, rope, etc. Each also has
run into. three charges. You can spend 1
charge to get any one piece of
specialized survival gear you can
Medical Gear: think of.
Stempacks (heal 2 harm;
charges ) Examples: lantern, gas mask, or
climbing gear
Medical Supply (+1 to treat a
wound; charges )

Antivenom (Spend a charge to

ignore Poisoning; charges
)

2121
 Ranged Weapons: Armor:

Shuriken (1-harm hand/close Duster/leathers (1 armor)

quick hidden)
Hazmat Suit (1 armor air
Revolver (2-harm close reload supply)
loud)
Lizard-Bear Skin (2 armor bio)
Sawn-Off Shotgun (3-harm
close messy loud small) EXAMPLE VEHICLES
Vehicles and Mounts include a
Laser Rifle (3-harm far burning couple Equipment tags which
hi-tech) affect a Drifter using them, but
also a list of descriptors that give
Minigun (3 harm close/far area
an idea of how they look, work or
messy loud) behave.

Ordinary Horse
Melee Weapons:
(massive living)
Brass Knuckles (2-harm
Animal, Friendly, Workhorse,
intimate worn)
Hairy, Hungry
Sword/Big Knife/Katana (2-
harm hand) Mutant Mount
(massive living)
Whip (1-harm close flowing
restraining choking useful) Animal, Ferocious, Strong,
Scaled, Obstinate
Explosives:
Dune Buggy
Molotov Cocktail (3-harm (massive 1 armor)
hand area burning reload
Four-Wheeled, Wild, Off-Road,
messy)
Quirky, Hungry
Frag Grenade (4-harm hand
area loud reload messy) Armored Bike
(massive quick 2 armor)

Two-Wheeled, Aggressive,
Powerful, Hungry, Plated

22
 THE KEEPER
(OF CREATURES & LEGEND)
As the Keeper of Creatures and Legends, or just the Keeper, it’s your job
to guide the players through a fun, exciting story. Work with them to
make things as cool and exciting as possible.

KEEPER AGENDA Play to see what happens:

The story develops on its own.
You should aim to use these four
What happens next isn’t just
points to guide you as much as dictated by the Moves or rolls
possible. of the dice. Plan things based
on what the Drifters say and
Make the world crazy, epic do.
and lived in: Build a setting
that fits the weird, high-tech Make the Drifters’ lives
Wild West aesthetic of Dust dangerous and epic: The
World. Drifters are the heroes, the
troublemakers, the spark that
Drive Drifters toward sets off the fires of conflict.
conflict and drama: They should always be putting
Advancing the story should events in motion.
always be your first goal.
Downtime and low-stakes
events have their place in the
story, but they should not be
the focus.

2323
 THE PRINCIPLES
These ideas will help you stick to the Agenda.

Make the world grand and epic.

Address the drifters, not the players: Call your players by their
Drifter’s names.

Use the Keeper moves, without names: The list of Moves you’ll see
below provide you with suggestions and options for advancing the
narrative, but don’t call them that.

Be a fan of the drifters: You’re not playing against the Drifters.

You’re putting challenges in their way so they can overcome them and
be awesome.

Build a coherent mythology in play: The story you tell should make
sense.

Set big things in motion: You can use Dust World to tell small,
personal stories, but these should be part of big, crazy stories.

Nothing is mundane: Dust World is a weird Western filled with

ancient secrets. Even a trip to the water pump or a day at the beach
should be wild, weird and interesting.

Name anyone important: If a character has relevance to the story,

they should have a name, and that name should be used regularly.

Don’t decide who’s important in prep: The Players will choose

which characters matter the most to their Drifters, not you. Be willing
to tweak the plot importance of characters depending on what the
Drifters do.

Ask questions and build on the answers: You don’t tell a story
knowing all the details. The Players can help you fill them in.

Complicate their lives: A story where everything is resolved easily

isn’t a very fun story. Try to keep the Players on their toes; throw
unexpected twists at them whenever you can.

Don’t always decide what happens: You might not be sure how
to progress the story, or a character might act in a way you hadn’t
planned for. Let the Drifters choose their next path, or reconsider the
situation from the point of view of a character.

Everything is a threat, clue or opportunity: Not everything in the

Wasteland will immediately try to kill the Drifters, but everything can
slow them down, block them, or make their lives difficult.
24
 KEEPER MOVES HARM MOVES
Just like the players, you have These effects come into play when
Moves you can use whenever you a Drifter is hurt.
see fit. You can either make them
soft Moves, in which case the
1-Harm or more:
Drifters have a chance to use their
own Moves to avoid them, or hard They stumble or they’re
Moves, in which case the Drifters
distracted.
have to accept the consequences.
They take -1 forward.
Split ‘em Up

Hint at badness 2-Harm or more:

Hurt ‘em They drop something
they’re holding.
Make them survey
They lose their balance or
Make them get stuff
trip and fall down.
Tell ‘em consequences 4-Harm or more
and ask if they want to go (they’re unstable):
ahead
They take +1 harm in
Guide ‘em, but not for addition to another effect.
free
They take -1 ongoing.
Take away their stuff
They pass out and can’t
Put someone they care keep fighting.
about in trouble
They’re stunned, woozy,
Make a Boss or or in intense pain. It’s hard
Henchmen Move for them to focus.
Ask, what do ya do next?
8-Harm or more:

They’re dying or dead.

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 Did we save someone from
EXPERIENCE & certain death (or worse)?
ADVANCEMENT
Did we kill someone who
Remind players to mark
deserved it?
Experience when a Move tells
them to or when they roll a Did we become legends?
modified 6 or below. At the end
of session, if a Drifter completed Did we learn something new
a Playbook Drive, they get 2 and important about the
Experience. If they completed world?
a Posse Drive they get 1 Did we learn something new
Experience. Next, ask the Drifters and important about one of
the following questions: the Drifters?

Did we conclude the current If the answer to one or two of

trouble? these questions is yes, everyone
gets 1 Experience. If the answer
Did we start some new
to three or more is yes, everyone
trouble?
gets 2 Experience.

26
 TROUBLES
In Dust World, anything that threatens the Drifters is called a Trouble;
this can include dangers in the environment, rival wanderers, monsters,
robots or what have you. You can use the attached Trouble Sheets to
quickly and easily generate Troubles which can effect your Drifters.

All Troubles have a Motivation or Type, which gives you an idea of

what that Trouble exists to do or accomplish. You can read more about
Motivations and what they mean in the Keeper Reference.

ENEMIES Henchmen Moves:

Troubles which are intelligent, and Try to Attack
which can attack on their own,
are called Enemies and divided Attack as one
into two types. Boss Enemies are
Take something, or someone
big, serious threats, as tough as
a Drifter or tougher. Henchmen Reveal a secret
Enemies are weak, but can attack
in big numbers. Deliver things or people to the
boss
Like Drifters, Enemies have a
Give chase
Harm track, Moves they can use,
and certain attacks. Make a threat or demand for
the boss
Boss Moves:
Run away
Lurk offscreen
Show Force
Show force
Have Doubts
Appear suddenly
Screw Up or Disobey
Attack Overwhelmingly

Take something or someone

Attack cleverly

Order underlings to do bad

stuff

Chase ‘em

I’ll Be Back

Villain Speech

Why aren’t you dead!?

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 ENVIRONMENTAL COUNTDOWNS
Every Trouble which will get
TROUBLES worse if the Drifters don’t
The wasteland is a harsh
place, full of threats that come stop it has a Countdown,
from bad weather, unstable which is your guide to how
ground, or ancient and broken that Trouble escalates.
technology. Environmental Countdowns are also a way
Troubles represent all of of keeping track of what that
these non-living threats. As Trouble is doing off-screen,
with Enemies, Environmental when the Drifters aren’t
Troubles have a Type and dealing with it. Countdowns
Motivation which govern how are divided into 6 sections,
they function. Some may showing how the Trouble gets
also have an Attack which is
worse, and a Hook, which is
triggered by the Trouble’s
how the Drifters hear about
Moves.
the Trouble.

Example Countdown:
This Countdown (below) has
been prepared for the Spirit of
Revenge Boss on page 29.

28
 SETTLEMENTS
As wanderers, the Drifters will often stop in at many different
Settlements along the way. Dust World allows you to quickly generate
towns and farmsteads with their own unique characteristics and
problems. This section is a basic summary, with a few examples of
options available to you; you can find more on the Settlement Creation
Worksheet.

CREATING Its Bonus, which provides

extra utilities to the Drifters,
A SETTLEMENT usually at a cost.

A Settlement is defined by Its Motivation, which defines

several different factors. what its inhabitants are trying
to do, and what motivates
Its Territory, the land and them.
culture it belongs to.
Its Size, which defines how
Its Features, basic descriptors many people live in it, the
that give you and the Drifters number of Unique and Useful
an idea of its mood and locations that the Drifters can
aesthetic. find there, and any Hazards it
presents to the Drifters.

2929
 TERRITORIES
The wasteland is divided into many Territories, semi-organized nations
which all compete for resources and land. Pick one for your Settlement.
Each Territory has distinct Features and a bonus which affects its
Hazards or Unique and Useful locations. The following are some sample
Territories; there are more, and in more detail, in the Dust World core
book.

Red Earth Sparse

An aggressive and militaristic A barren, barely-inhabited land
land ruled by a Mad King and his with few resources to offer.
9 Devil Generals. Settlement Features: Caves,
Settlement Features: Castles, flats, canyons, mud traps,
crystal caves, labs, military hidden settlements
bases, armed militias Settlement Bonus: All
Settlement Bonus: All Settlements in this Territory gain
settlements in this territory have +2 Unique and Useful places if
“Barracks” and “Defences”, and the Posse includes a Stray.
+1 Hazard.

Death Valleys Other

A burned wasteland filled with A seemingly-prosperous land
Dust, inhabited by mutants. in the West full of strange
Settlement Features: salt flats, mysteries and ancient secrets.
repurposed silos, radioactive Settlement Features: Military
mud, gigantic skeletons, bone bases, quaint town, ranches,
fields high-tech farms
Settlement Bonus: All All Settlements in this
settlements in this Territory have Territory have “High Tech”,
“Haven”, and +2 Hazards. “Communications Network” and
the “Conspiracies” Hazard.

30
 SETTLEMENTMOTIVATIONS & SIZE
All Settlements have a Motivation, the reason for which the Settlement
exists. It’s safe to say that everyone in a Settlement will be working
towards this goal, or trying to help it.
Here are some examples:

Boomer: To expand its borders, increase its population, and control

new lands.

Cipher: To guard something precious and secret from the outside

world.

Extractor: To mine, farm, ranch or dig for valuable resources.

Mercantile: To make money off of travellers and their goods.
Supporter: To support and equip an external force.

Settlements also come in a huge range of shapes and sizes; the table
above will help you figure out how big the settlement is and what’s in it.

3131
 UNIQUE & USEFUL SETTLEMENT
These are specific locations within
a Settlement that the Drifters HAZARDS
might find useful. For instance: In the wasteland, even the
most well-defended and secure
Armorer: Someone in this Settlements have their problems
settlement makes and sells or threats. These are things
weaponry and armour. that make life in the Settlement
complicated; they might also
Communications Network: be Troubles of the Enemy or
This settlement has built or
Environmental variety as well.
has access to a way of getting
messages quickly to other Addiction: Something about
settlements, and lots of people this Settlement is addictive,
willing to deal in information. or many of its inhabitants
are addicted to something
Farms: This settlement
dangerous.
produces a substantial amount
of food. Hostile Tech: This Settlement
is built near Old World
Transport Network: This
tech that threatens its very
settlement has built or has
existence.
access to a way of getting
people and goods quickly to Iron-Fisted Rule: The
other settlements, and may be leadership of this Settlement
a stopping-point for people doesn’t deal with dissent
from all over the wastelands. and rule-breaking well, and
will react with violence and
oppression.

Irradiated: The air, water or

ground in this settlement is
loaded with harmful radiation:
staying here for any length
of time is a death sentence
unless you’re a mutant.

32
 EXAMPLE SETTLEMENTS
& TROUBLES

This section includes a couple sample Settlements, with Troubles and

NPCs to go with them, that you might include in a game.

GREENSHADOW Motivation: Cipher (To guard

A settlement of reclusive martial something precious and secret
artists hidden away in the from the outside world.)
depths of the forest. Despite Unique and Useful: 4
its sleepy appearance, it is Hazards: 2
rocked by the ongoing struggle Bonus: Teachers, Spring
between a clan of ninja and a
Steel Clan Dojo (Armorer):
clan of samurai. If the Drifters
This well-armed clan of
become involved, they may
samurai sell excellent
discover that the clan war is the
weapons to the highest
result of darker, more sinister
bidder.
forces at work.
Size: Town The Twelve-Gate Forbidden
Territory: Green Isles Palace (Prison): Something
Features: Rice Fields, Jungle, evil and sinister lurks in the
Dojos depths of the subterranean
Palace.

3333
 The Twelve-Gate Sages Jonin Walking Dusk
(Mystics): This ancient (NPC, Righteous)
order stands apart from The elderly head of the Shadow
Greenshadow’s internal Clan is a capable ruler and
strife, and have dedicated genuinely wants the best for
themselves to protecting the
his city, but is too blinded
Forbidden Palace.
by his personal dislike of the
Endless Rice Fields (Farms): leader of the Steel Clan to want
Rice is a staple food here, to countenance peace. If he
and can be easily purchased could be persuaded to admit
from farmers. his foolishness, he might back
down.
Shadow Clan Dojo
(Teachers): The ninja of the
Shadow Clan are always Daimyo Cold Gleam
seeking new recruits in their (NPC, Victor)
endless street fighting with This proud, up-and-coming
the Steel Clan. Steel Clan Samurai has seen his
organization go from strength
The Great Falls of to strength. He is entirely
Greenshadow (Spring): This
ignorant of why the leader of
massive waterfall dominates
the Shadow Clan dislikes him
the center of town.
so much, and sees the ninja as
The War of Steel and another foe to be conquered.
Shadows (Gangs): The ninja
and samurai clans have been
Miko Thirteenth Orchid
(NPC, Victim)
rocked by feuds for years,
The junior-most of the Twelve
but the violence has only
Sages, Thirteenth Orchid is
escalated in recent years. still a novice priest and doesn’t
fully understand the evil that
An Ominous Influence
her order is willing to contain.
(Gloom): It is whispered that Unlike her superiors, however,
the seals on the Forbidden she’s willing to attempt
Palace are cracking, and that unconventional or untraditional
whatever inside is seeping methods to restore order and
out to corrupt the minds of balance to her city.
the residents.
Hook: Rumors abound in town
that strange noises and bizarre,
shadowy forms have been seen
in the alleys near the Forbidden
Palace, but the Sages refuse to
let anyone investigate.

34
hostile

3535
36
 Dust World: What to Expect
Looking for more Dust World? Here’s what to look forward to in the
Dust World Player’s Handbook, coming soon!:

Twelve different Posse concepts, to customize your gang of

Drifters in new and exciting ways.

A massive Advanced Character Creation system that lets you

tweak, refine and upgrade your Drifter to new heights of skill
and ability.

Detailed Move and Playbook breakdowns, to help you get the

most out of your character.

A massively expanded Equipment Tag system, plus more than

200 pieces of gear, weaponry, armour and equipment, including
weapon mods and upgrades, custom ammo, riding mounts,
vehicle construction, and more!

A detailed Keeper guide, helping you to make new custom

content, including Settlements, Threats and even new Playbooks
for your own Dust World campaigns.

Three fully-fledged Settlements, with their own mysteries,

Troubles and Threats.

Nearly 50 pre-made Threats, NPCs, Bosses and Henchmen to

populate the Wasteland and pit against the Drifters.

A detailed Enemy Drifter system, for creating recurring enemies

who can match the Drifters strength for strength and grow
along with them.

A ton of pre-made gigs to get your posse working for loot in

every corner of the wasteland.
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