Session Zero and How to Run It
Picture this: you’ve gotten a group together for a game of Dungeons and Dragons. It’s your first time in the DM seat, and you have a campaign idea ready (be it homebrew or prewritten), and you’re at the point of needing all the details on your players’ characters. Not only that, but you need to go over the details of your campaign, and see what content everyone is comfortable with, plan when and how often you’ll meet to play. You have reached the point of essential communication: the Session Zero.
It’s likely, even if you’re just starting out playing Dungeons and Dragons, that you’ve heard of Session Zeroes. If you haven’t, this is a good place to learn all about them! A Session Zero is a preemptive meet up with your group to go over important info on the campaign, expectations, comfort, consent, and any other nitty gritty you need to get out of the way before playing. This can also serve as a good vetting process to ensure everyone is getting along.
That said, it can be overwhelming to figure out what exactly needs to be discussed during these meetings, especially if you’re new to the game. So, in no particular order, I’ve put together a handy guide of possible talking points. You certainly don’t have to touch on everything on the list, but it’s a good idea to keep at least some of the things mentioned in mind! Some things really are essential for ensuring a fun experience for everyone.
General Vibe and Tone of Your Campaign
Whether you’re running a prewritten game or a fully originally written one, you’ll want to go over the content and general vibe you’re going for. D&D groups vary wildly among one another – some prefer silly, chaotic games that don’t lean into the rules much, while others are stringent followers of the rules and maintain a consistent and serious tone. Note that both these extremes are totally valid, and the space between these extremes is a spectrum. There is no wrong way to play D&D, however, there are personal preferences.
If half your group wants a silly, rules abstaining game, and the other half wants a moody, serious game, then you may be running into some issues. While it’s not always fun, as the DM, you are the one setting the tone. You have to consider your own preferences just as much as the players have to consider theirs. Trust me when I say that setting these expectations from the beginning will save you a lot of heartache. I have personal experience with trying to gel with a group that wanted something completely different from the game then I wanted, and while some compromises can be made, some can’t, and that’s okay.
D&D takes a lot of time, energy, and commitment, and also can be a bit of an intimate experience in terms of how close you feel to the game. No one likes to spend hours doing something they don’t enjoy. Be willing to have frank discussions with your group about what will and won’t work, and be prepared for the chances of expectations shifting in the case of new players getting into the game. I recall, when I first started playing, preferring chaotic games with lots of joke slinging and Rule of Cooling. However, as I got more experienced, I started to prefer games with more structure and less silliness (though I’m not all the way on the far extreme - still like to pull off some crazy feat every once and a while!) This fluidity is common, and as you grow as a DM, you’ll learn how best to address it.
So! Make sure to set these expectations out as well as you can at the beginning, so anyone who does not like the vibe can step away early before investing too much time in. Additionally, consider which parts can be compromised and which parts absolutely cannot be changed. Your happiness is important, too, but you also have to be willing to part with your ideal scenario.
Content Warnings and Safety Measures
This section is likely where the idea of Session Zeroes may have entered your subconscious. One of the best things you can do to ensure comfort and consent in the game is by going over triggers and content warnings that may occur in the game.
Dungeons and Dragons can contain a lot of potential triggering themes, including slavery, torture, brutal violence, religious zealotry, and death. Of course, these themes can be avoided, but some prewritten campaigns have them, and in other instances, you may want to explore these themes to some extent. Understand that D&D is a game where players (and yourself as the DM) are very close to the action, and that can create an intimacy with the subject matter that isn’t as easy to escape as shutting a book or turning off a movie. It’s important to consider the sensitivity of these themes, how they can affect the players and yourself, and whether or not they have to be implemented at all. Remember: the game is supposed to be fun, not something that leaves anyone in out-of-character tears or in panic.
Luckily, there’s a ton of things you can do to reduce or completely eliminate the chances of discomfort. Here’s a few:
Utilize a Consent Sheet. Plenty of groups employ a RPG Consent Form to help inform on common and known triggers. Having each party member fill out the sheet and hand it back can also prevent anyone from having to openly discuss their sensitivities, and you could potentially have it filled out ahead of time.
Open Discussion. If any fears or anxieties aren’t particularly sensitive / everyone is okay talking about it, you can always verbally discuss triggers and to what degree they need to be avoided. This can be a little bit easier than blanket banning. For example: a person may have a fear of fighting spiders, but is okay with them being mentioned, as long as they’re not fighting some giant ones in game. Remember: don’t use a discussion as a reason to argue about triggers. It’s okay to ask for clarification, but people do not owe explanations for their triggers, nor do you have to convince them to lighten their requirements.
Use X Cards. This is a more in-game solution, but still worth discussing at Session Zero in terms of usage. X Cards are slips of paper with an x on them that, when held up, silently indicate to the DM that the current session / scene / combat is triggering. This can allow the DM to transition out of the scene more quickly, or stop it entirely. X Cards aren’t for everyone – sometimes DMs may not see the card right away, or the act of holding up the card is no different then just verbally saying ‘I am uncomfortable.’ They’re still a well-used method worth considering.
One on One Discussion. You can always do this method if you want a personal discussion with each individual player about their triggers. This can be a good method for getting the full scope of sensitivities without the entire group needing to be present for it.
If you plan on incorporating potentially sensitive themes, be very clear about it. You may be comfortable exploring certain stories, but your players may not and vice versa. It’s also worth considering what parts of your plans can be removed for the sake of your group. While it is important to consider your own ideas of fun (and as I said – your fun is just as important as the players’) the game is also a collaborative experience. If you find yourself struggling to find players due to excessively dark content, it might be worth reworking that content and expanding what you’re willing to compromise. Of course, if you find players that are down for anything, then that’s great!
A final note on this section includes a few reminders, in case you’re new to addressing triggers:
You are not a therapist, and D&D is not therapy. While the game can have therapeutic elements, it is not a replacement for mental health treatment. If you find that a player has a lot of sensitivities that cannot be avoided in game, or, conversely, is trying to push for the game to include elements that they want to work through therapeutically, gently advise against it. In that same vein, don’t consider yourself a therapist and try to force your players to ‘confront their fears’ through the game. No matter how much you want to include a certain element, it’s not worth potentially sending a player into a panic attack.
Players can withdraw consent at any time, and so can you. Your players might be down for something then, in practice, find it’s unsettling, uncomfortable, or even panic inducing for them. Do not get frustrated when this happens – instead, be willing to stop at once and note the triggering element as something to be avoided in the future. Again, in that same vein, if a player does something in game that you find uncomfortable, you reserve the right to stop that action immediately.
Do not argue about or shame peoples’ triggers. Even if you can’t personally understand why someone feels a certain way about something, that doesn’t mean it’s okay to argue about it. If someone says they find dogs terrifying and don’t want to see any dogs in the game, that’s an easy enough element to remove. That being said, it’s okay to have a frank discussion with players about typical d&d content and whether or not it’s a safe game to engage in for them.
You will likely need to compromise somewhere. There are some instances where you find all the unicorn players you want and can do exactly what you intended, but that’s rare. Whether you like it or not, there will be times where your vision has to be adjusted for the safety and comfort of your players, and that’s okay. It’s good to expose yourself to a myriad of themes that you find enjoyable to explore, and not to cling to darkness all the time. If you absolutely cannot compromise certain themes, be willing to commit to a longer search for players who vibe perfectly with you.
Rules Exceptions and Adjustments
Some of this may be covered when you go over general tone and vibe for your campaign, but it’s good to get down to the nitty gritty in some cases. Plenty of DMs use alternate versions of (or completely remove) certain rules from the game, depending on their preferences. For example, I personally allow players to drink potions as a Bonus Action, and feed potions to unconscious party members as an Action. This deviates from the rules, but is important for consideration in the game. If you have players who have played before, this is especially important – if they assume a certain rule is being played as written, and it turns out you rule it differently, it can cause confusion and frustration.
Of course, there may be times you make a snap decision on a ruling that isn’t in the core rules, and that’s okay. It may be something to discuss after the session to address it more easily in the future. But if it involves any of the core rules, like Long Rests, attuning to magic items, the function of certain spells, etc, then that needs to be made open from the beginning.
If you plan on implementing a major rule change, clear it with your group first. As I’ve mentioned a few times, it’s good to be willing to compromise and adjust rules based on how the party feels about them. Be transparent with everything you will change to avoid confrontation when the scenario you changed inevitably comes up.
Rolling Characters and Introductions
Some groups will roll the stats for characters in person, while others will have them built beforehand. Either is fine, and the same applies to character introductions. I’ve known some groups that will just say what and who they’re playing, down to talking about their backstory, while others will keep the details secret (from the other players, not the DM) until Session One. Both are totally fine, but it’s good to check in and make sure whatever you decide is what people want to do. I know I faced some bamboozlement when I was briefly in a group where the DM, without warning, just told everyone my character was a Dhampir, despite me wanting to keep that detail a secret from the group. All character details should be known by you, the DM, though.
That being said, some groups do like knowing about everyone’s characters beforehand, because it allows them to plan their class better, or to plan interactions and dynamics roleplay wise ahead of time. I’m not a personal fan of this method (I prefer the improv and surprise of discovery in game) but it can be a brilliant solution for those who struggle with or are new to roleplay to have more time to think about the relationships they’ll have in game.
In terms of rolling stats – agree on a rolling method beforehand, whether the characters are rolled at Session Zero or beforehand. This’ll minimize confusion and keep everyone’s stats consistent.
Group Meet-Up Times and Length of Sessions
Scheduling a bunch of people to come together at the same time consistently gets harder the older you get and the more responsibilities you have. It can be such a pain that it’s one of the biggest memes in the D&D community that sessions are constantly being delayed, canceled, and rescheduled. While this can be an arduous process, it’s essential when determining if the group works well together.
While it may be adjusted and vary on the day, coordinate what days of the week work best. If you can pick one day in particular that works for everyone, that’s great! If the day has to change (like to accommodate work schedules, for example) then make a point to always plan the next session at a certain time, like directly after a session is played. I play my games online, and have a dedicated channel in Discord for scheduling. This prevents any confusion or lost messages regarding what days do and don’t work. If you’re meeting in person, coordinate where you’ll be meeting.
D&D session lengths are very customizable by group availability. However, typically, a session is between three to five hours on average. I do not recommend sessions that are less than two hours – that gives very little time to accomplish much of anything in the game, which can notoriously take time to do anything meaningful with how long it takes to have conversations in character, do combat, etc. That said, sessions longer than seven hours can be very difficult to commit to. If you do advocate for lengthier sessions, make sure you’re taking breaks to stretch and ease your mind.
Personally, my sessions usually last around six hours on average, but I also run my session bimonthly. This gives a lot more flexibility to my group of busy adults. Discuss with your group on what works best, and know that it can always be adjusted in the future if need be.
General Tips
Above are the major subject matters to go over. In regards to actually running a session zero and parsing all the info, here’s a few tips:
Write a list. Having down what you want to go over will help keep your thoughts organized. If you’re more the type to fly by the seat of your pants (like me) it’s still good to have a little bullet list or sticky note of talking points.
Give time for players to ask questions. You may have not thought of something to go over. Having time at the end of the session for the players to ask questions and make comes can be helpful in case something isn’t clear!
Have a group chat. Whether you’re playing with friends or total strangers, having a chat for everyone to communicate can help facilitate group conversation.
If you’d like, designate a loremaster. While I, personally, encourage everyone to take notes during sessions, sometimes it’s nice to have someone who is extra diligent about it. Have at least one of the members (ideally, a volunteer) keep track of events during sessions and potentially deliver recaps. If multiple people want to complete this task, have them interchange each session.
Be Open and Listen – it’s Supposed to Be Fun!
The main purpose of a Session Zero is to create an open dialogue with your group and prevent any nasty arguments or misunderstandings in the future of your gaming together. There will be plenty of people who scoff at these measures and think they’re fluffy and unnecessary, but these preemptive measures have really saved a lot of groups from heartache and frustration. It doesn’t have to be super robust either – if you really know your group well and know what makes them tick, then some of these measures are extraneous. But if you’re gaming with strangers, this can get you off on the right foot.
