Futurewolf’s D&D to Shadowdark Conversion Guide

Using the humble Lizard Man as an example.

These are suggestions for how to convert B/X, AD&D and 5th Edition stat blocks to Shadowdark. There is no objectively
correct way to do this, and any two people might do it differently. I think these guidelines are consistent with Shadowdark’s
rules and design intent. Use your judgment and do what works for you and your table.

Please let me know if you have any corrections, suggestions or feedback. I'm Futurewolf#5430 on Discord.

From B/X (or OSE, Labyrinth Lord, etc)

Lizard Man
AC 5, HD 2+1 (10hp), Att 1 × weapon (1d6+1 or by weapon + 1), THAC0 17, MV 60’ (20’) / 120’ (40’) in water, SV D12
W13 P14 B15 S16 (F2), ML 12, AL Neutral

Stats: First thing we need in Shadowdark are some stat bonuses. Three ways to generate these are: 1) steal them from a
Shadowdark monster that is similar, 2) steal them from a 5e monster that is similar, 3) make them up using your best
judgment. I’m going with #2 - S +2, D +0, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -2.
AC: To convert to ascending AC, subtract the B/X value from 19. In this case, for Shadowdark it becomes 14. For
humanoids with armor and shields, I would just calculate what the AC should be based on the Shadowdark rules.
HD & HP: HD is equivalent to “Level” in Shadowdark, so he will be LV 2. It also tells us how to calculate HP, which is 4.5 x
HD + CON bonus. Note that in Shadowdark, the CON bonus is only added once. In this case it’s 4.5 x 2 +1 = 10 hp.
Att: We can carry the number of attacks and the damage die straight over. For Shadowdark, STR is not added to damage
rolls so in normal circumstances we will drop any damage bonuses. It becomes 1 weapon (1d6).
THAC0: Instead of THAC0 we need to determine an attack bonus. As a baseline it’s the STR or DEX bonus (depending
on the type of attack). We can also add another attack roll bonus dependent on level, but the total should not exceed the
monster level (per the Monster Design advice in the core rules). Since our Lizard Man already has +2 due to STR and his
level is 2, in Shadowdark that becomes +2. Combined with the damage from above, it becomes 1 weapon +2 (1d6).
MV: Virtually every monster in Shadowdark has a speed of “near”. We also make a note that the Lizard Man can swim
twice as fast as it can walk, so it becomes near (swim double near).
SV: Saves are rolled into stats in Shadowdark, so we can ignore these.
ML: Morale is a Wisdom check in Shadowdark, so we can ignore this.
AL: Alignment carries straight over, so for Shadowdark it is also N.

The final stat block is:

Lizard Man
AC 14, HP 10, ATK 1 weapon +2 (1d6), MV near (swim double near),
S +2, D +0, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -2, AL N, LV 2
From AD&D (or OSRIC, etc)

Lizard Man
Intelligence: Low (5-7)
Treasure: D
Alignment: Neutral
No. Appearing: 8-15 (1d8+7)
Armor Class: 5
Movement: 6, Sw 12
Hit Dice: 2+1
THAC0: 19
No. of Attacks: 3
Damage/Attack: 1-2/1-2/1-6
Special Attacks: Nil
Special Defenses: Nil
Magic Resistance: Nil
Size: M (7' tall)
Morale: 14

Stats: Same as above. At least AD&D gives us a guideline on INT. I’m going with: S +2, D +0, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -2.
Treasure: Ignore this. Shadowdark has its own treasure tables based on level.
AL: Alignment has two axes in AD&D instead of one. For Shadowdark just stick with the first one (so “chaotic good”
becomes simply “chaotic”). Our Lizard Man is still N.
No. Appearing: Nice for reference but not part of the Shadowdark stat block. Ignore.
AC: To convert to ascending AC, subtract the AD&D value from 20. It uses a different scale than B/X. In this case, for
Shadowdark it becomes 15. As with B/X, for humanoids with armor and shields I would calculate what the AC should be
based on the Shadowdark rules.
HD & HP: Same as B/X above.
THAC0: Same as B/X above.
No. of attacks/Damage: As above and for the most part, we can carry the number of attacks and the damage die straight
over. However, I think it’s tedious to roll three attacks for my one Lizard Man. Also, it doesn’t really jibe with other LV 2
monsters from Shadowdark to have three attacks. So I would drop both the 1-2 dmg attacks and just make it 1 weapon
+2 (1d6).
MV: Same as B/X above.
Special Attacks/Special Defenses/Magic Resistance: Luckily our Lizard Man has none. One of the most common is
“Hit only by silver or +1 or better magical weapon” which translates directly to Shadowdark.
ML: Same as B/X above.

The final stat block is:

Lizard Man
AC 15, HP 10, ATK 1 weapon +2 (1d6), MV near (swim double near),
S +2, D +0, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -2, AL N, LV 2
From 5th Edition

Lizardfolk
Armor Class 15 (natural armor, shield)
Hit Points 22 (4d8 + 4)
Speed 30 ft., swim 30 ft.
STR 15 (+2) DEX 10 (+0) CON 13 (+1) INT 7 (-2) WIS 12 (+1) CHA 7 (-2)
Skills Perception +3, Stealth +4, Survival +5
Senses Passive Perception 13
Languages Draconic
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +2
Hold Breath. The lizardfolk can hold its breath for 15 minutes.
Actions
Multiattack. The lizardfolk makes two melee attacks, each one with a different weapon.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Heavy Club. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) bludgeoning damage.
Javelin. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 30/120 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing
damage.
Spiked Shield. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.

AC: No conversion necessary, for Shadowdark it’s also 15.

HP: The number of dice used to roll HP x ½ is equivalent to “Level” in Shadowdark, so he will be Lvl 2. So the calculation
is now 4.5 x 2 +1 = 10 hp. 5e has different HP dice for different sized monsters, but in Shadowdark it’s always a d8.
Speed: Unlike his forebears our 5e Lizardfolk can’t swim twice as fast as he can walk, so it becomes near (swim).
Stats: We can carry these straight over - S +2, D +0, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -2.
Skills/Senses/Languages/Challenge/Proficiency Bonus: We get to ignore all these.
Actions: What a bloated mess this is. The 5e stats tell us the Lizardfolk attacks twice and lists 4 different attacks that all
do the same damage. I’m just going to roll all those up under “weapon”. As above, we can carry the damage die straight
over and STR is not added to damage rolls. I’m going to give him a +2 to hit based on his STR and the max limit equal to
his level per Shadowdark monster design guidelines. So it becomes 2 weapon (near) +2 (1d6). You decide what weapon
he’s attacking with. The “near” indicates that he can throw one.

The final stat block is:

Lizardfolk
AC 15, HP 10, ATK 2 weapon (near) +2 (1d6), MV near (swim),
S +2, D +0, C +1, I -2, W +1, Ch -2, AL N, LV 2