D&D Session Zero Checklist (Free, Printable)
A session zero is the meeting before the campaign starts where the group agrees on tone, boundaries, rules, and schedule, and builds characters that belong together. This free D&D session zero checklist walks through all of it: the pitch, safety tools like lines and veils and the X-card, table expectations, house rules, scheduling, and character ties.
The Template
# Session Zero Checklist: [Campaign Name]
Date: ___________ Players: _____________________________________
## 1. The Pitch
- [ ] Setting and premise in two sentences
- [ ] Tone: (heroic / gritty / horror / comedy / mix) ______________
- [ ] Rules edition: 2014 / 2024 / mixed ______________
- [ ] Starting level: ___ Expected end level: ___
- [ ] Campaign length: one-shot / short arc / open-ended
- [ ] Combat vs roleplay vs exploration balance the group wants
## 2. Safety Tools
- [ ] Lines (content that will NOT appear in the game):
____________________________________________________________
- [ ] Veils (content that can happen, but off-screen / faded out):
____________________________________________________________
- [ ] X-card (or another signal): anyone can tap it to skip or
change a scene, no explanation needed
- [ ] How to raise a concern privately (DM, message, after session)
- [ ] Check-in point: revisit lines and veils after session ___
## 3. Table Expectations
- [ ] Phones and distractions during play
- [ ] Player vs player conflict: allowed? Stealing from the party?
- [ ] Character death: how likely, and what happens after
- [ ] Split-party scenes: OK, or keep the group together?
- [ ] Rules disputes: DM rules now, discuss after the session
- [ ] Spotlight: how we make sure quieter players get scenes
- [ ] Recording sessions or taking notes: who, and is everyone OK with it?
## 4. House Rules
- [ ] Ability scores: point buy / standard array / roll ______
- [ ] Allowed sources (books, homebrew, third-party):
____________________________________________________________
- [ ] Healing potions: action or bonus action?
- [ ] Critical hits: ______________________________________________
- [ ] Inspiration / hero points: __________________________________
- [ ] Encumbrance and ammo tracking: yes / no
- [ ] Leveling: XP / milestone
- [ ] Other: ______________________________________________________
## 5. Scheduling
- [ ] Day and time: ______________ Length: ______ hours
- [ ] How often: weekly / every other week / monthly
- [ ] Minimum players to run a session: ___
- [ ] What happens to absent players' characters
- [ ] Where we coordinate (group chat, Discord, calendar)
- [ ] Cancellation notice: at least ___ hours
- [ ] Food, location, and hosting (in person) or VTT and voice (online)
## 6. Character Creation and Ties
- [ ] Why does each character join the party? ______________________
- [ ] Each character has a tie to at least one other character
- [ ] Each character has a tie to the world (a person, place, or debt)
- [ ] One secret or goal per character, shared privately with the DM
- [ ] Party role check: do we have healing, a face, a scout?
- [ ] Party name (optional): ____________________
| Character | Player | Class / species | Tie to party | Tie to world |
|-----------|--------|-----------------|--------------|--------------|
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
## 7. Before Session One
- [ ] Characters finished and shared with the DM by: ___________
- [ ] Opening scene agreed (start together? meet in play?)
- [ ] Everyone has the schedule and the safety-tool list
Plain markdown: pastes cleanly into Notion, Obsidian, Google Docs, or a Discord channel. Free to use and share.
How to Use It
- Send the checklist to players a few days before session zero so they arrive with ideas, especially for lines and veils.
- Go through it in order. The pitch shapes everything else, and safety tools work best when agreed before characters exist.
- Collect lines and veils privately as well as out loud. Some players won't say a hard limit in front of the group.
- Write the answers down and share them after the session. A house rule nobody recorded becomes an argument in session 4.
- Leave time to build characters together. Ties between characters are much easier to make in the same room.
Tips
Lines vs veils
A line is content that never appears in the game. A veil is content that can happen but stays off-screen, the way a film cuts away. Write both down.
The X-card needs no explanation
Anyone can tap the X-card (a card on the table, or an emoji or message online) to skip or change the current scene. The group moves on without asking why.
Revisit it
Session zero is not a contract. Check in after the first few sessions and update lines, veils, and house rules as the campaign finds its shape.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should you cover in a D&D session zero?
The campaign pitch and tone, safety tools such as lines and veils and the X-card, table expectations like phone use and player-vs-player conflict, house rules, the schedule, and how the characters know each other and fit the world.
What are lines and veils in D&D?
Lines are hard limits: content that will not appear in the game at all. Veils are content that can exist in the story but happens off-screen or fades to black. The group agrees on both before play starts.
What is the X-card?
A simple safety tool. Anyone at the table can tap or hold up the card (or post a signal online) to remove or change the current content, and the group moves on without asking for a reason.
How long does session zero take?
Plan for about the length of a normal session. If characters are built at the table, it can run longer. Splitting it into two shorter meetings also works.
Should session zero be a separate session?
It usually works best as its own meeting, though some groups do a short session zero and then play a first scene at the end once characters are ready.