As a promotion for the NetBattlers TTRPG system and a generalist example of how to run a ‘Session 0’ for a tabletop RPG camapign, we livestreamed the Session 0 for a private campaign I am running, The Strange Tales of Mainframe City Academy.

What is a Session 0?

As the name suggests, the Session 0 is a gathering of the players and game master (GM) in advance of main gameplay. It gives the GM the opportunity to explain the themes and tones of the game ahead, and allows the players to state if there’s anything they’d be uncomfortable with during play, as well as any hopes for what they’ll encounter over the course of the games.

This avoids unfortunate situations where players might expect a combat-heavy game but instead get something slow and social. Or, in a more extreme case, encounter a topic or event that would be upsetting or triggering.

The Session 0 document I wrote for this recording can be found here.
The article about mystery writing in TTRPGs I mentioned in the session can be read here.