Players Handbook
Cover of the 8th printing
The Player's Handbook is a book of rules for the seminal role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. It does not contain the complete set of rules, but only those concerning players of the game (as opposed to Dungeon Masterss, who run a game). It actually does not contain all the rules for players; rules for extremely high-level players, and some of the more obscure spells are found in other sources. Also, details of less commonly played classes such as druids are found elsewhere.
The Player's Handbook has gone through several versions through the years.
The Player's Handbook contains tables and rules for creating characters and lists the various abilities of the different classes of characters. It contains tables of the costs of the sundry items needed to equip a character. It also contains a complete list of spells that certain classes of characters (such as magic-users or clerics) may cast. For Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, this manual, the Monster Manual and the Dungeon Masters Guide were referred to so often that some players wore out many copies of the volume over the years.
See also: Deities & Demigods