dare-to-dm:

Speaking of character creation, I got really sick of having players randomly roll up stats.  I found that most of my players fell into 2 camps with this process:

1) Yeah, I can’t believe I rolled three 18s at level one either!  Just lucky, I guess.

or

2) I keep dying because I don’t have any ability scores over 11 and I’ve only got 20 hitpoints at level 6.

Either extreme is frustrating for me to deal with as a DM.  So now I just give everyone the same array of stats at level one: 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18.

Experienced players will probably recognize those as being pretty heroic stats.  I like that array though, because it reins in the munchkin power gamers a bit, and ensures that everyone starts out with one dump stat and one stat at the highest.

Also it means I can plan for nice and challenging encounters, just the way I like them.  I also usually just automatically have all players gain 75% max hitpoints for their class when they level up.  I like big bad monsters, but killing a PC in one shot tends to dampen my fun.  

What are your preferences for character stat generation?

dare-to-dm:

@trevel: “

How do you run a session zero?”

A Session 0 is basically a meeting you have with your players before your campaign starts where you explain/discuss what your expectations for the game are going to be.  It’s a great way to get your campaign started off on the right foot.

So, for the campaign I’m about to run, I explained the concept of the campaign (fairy tale inspired story/setting) and outlined rules for creating their characters (CR 4, must not be humanoids, max HP, etc.).  

After discussing and approving various character concepts, I then asked my players to consider the following questions.

1) How did your character acquire an invitation to the king’s feast?  

2) Why have they chosen to attend?

Thanks to this meeting, I’ve now ensured that everyone has a character concept they’re happy with that fits well for the adventure.  And asking them to think of those backstory hooks ensures that they’ve created characters who will want to go on this adventure, which is also important.

It’s also a good time to explain any game mechanics/house rules/etiquette expectations with players who are unfamiliar with your style of gaming.