Introduction
Session zero is where the campaign becomes buildable. PF2e rewards coordination, so the table should agree on tone, safety, sources, rarity, party roles, variants, treasure style, and campaign scope before character choices lock in.
Use this with GM guide, rules, combat, skills, equipment, classes, ancestry guides, and archetypes.
Session Zero Agenda
| Agenda item | Decision to write down |
|---|---|
| Campaign pitch | What are the heroes doing, where does play begin, and what kind of stories fit? |
| Tone | Heroic fantasy, horror, intrigue, wilderness, dungeon crawl, war story, mystery, or sandbox. |
| Sources | Which books are open, which are case-by-case, and which are off the table for now. |
| Rarity | How common, uncommon, rare, and unique options are approved. |
| Variants | Free Archetype, Automatic Bonus Progression, stamina-style recovery, proficiency changes, or other house rules. |
| Party roles | Healing, front line, scouting, knowledge, traps, social scenes, ranged pressure, and downtime. |
| Content boundaries | Lines, veils, PvP limits, romance expectations, horror limits, and fade-to-black rules. |
| Table logistics | Schedule, absences, note taking, leveling pace, food, VTT, character sheets, and communication. |
| Reward structure | Treasure by level, item access, crafting time, downtime, and whether loot is tailored. |
| Conflict policy | How rules disputes, character conflicts, and retcons get handled. |
You do not need a corporate meeting. You need enough agreement that nobody discovers at level 4 that they built for a different campaign.
Player Core Foundation
Player Core session zero topics include ancestry, background, class, attributes, skills, feats, spells, equipment, deity, edicts, anathema, rarity, and party roles. Players should know whether the campaign expects healing, scouting, social play, survival, dungeon crawling, downtime, or heavy combat.
| Player Core choice | Session zero question |
|---|---|
| Ancestry and heritage | Does this ancestry fit the region, tone, and table expectations? |
| Backgrounds | Does the background create useful hooks without stealing the whole premise? |
| Class | What role does the character expect to fill in combat, exploration, social scenes, and downtime? |
| Attributes | Is the character built to do the things the player says they want to do? |
| Skills | Who handles medicine, traps, social pressure, knowledge, survival, and stealth? |
| Spells | Are casters prepared for the campaign's damage, support, utility, and counterplay needs? |
| Deity and sanctification | Are edicts, anathema, party conduct, and campaign themes compatible? |
| Equipment | Will the campaign support runes, consumables, tools, armor, shields, alchemy, and item access? |
PF2e is generous, but it is not build-proof. A character can be flavorful and still need enough mechanical focus to function.
Player Core 2 Updates
Player Core 2 makes source access a real conversation. Its ancestries are often uncommon, it adds new classes, rare backgrounds, versatile heritages, archetypes, feats, spells, and items. Decide which options are open by default, which need story permission, and which fit the region or campaign premise.
| Player Core 2 topic | Why it belongs in session zero |
|---|---|
| New ancestries | Several are uncommon or regionally specific, so decide how visible they are in the campaign. |
| Alchemist | Needs item access, formula expectations, crafting clarity, and patience for inventory play. |
| Champion | Needs deity, cause, sanctification, and party-behavior expectations. |
| Investigator | Needs clues, research, mysteries, and scenes where knowledge matters. |
| Monk | Needs movement, terrain, stance expectations, and encounter spaces that do not punish melee mobility constantly. |
| Oracle | Needs curse expectations and agreement that strange divine pressure is part of the character. |
| Sorcerer | Needs spell tradition, bloodline theme, and clear role in party casting. |
| Swashbuckler | Needs scenes where style, movement, skill actions, and social pressure matter. |
| Witch | Needs patron tone, familiar risk, and how much the GM will use the patron as a story lever. |
Hot take: if a campaign has no clues, social stakes, wilderness pressure, or downtime, half of Player Core 2 becomes a very handsome parking lot.
GM Core Procedure
GM Core session zero guidance covers campaign expectations, safety, first session prep, published adventures, variants, Hero Point tone, treasure assumptions, and how the group resolves disputes. Put agreements in writing so the table does not rely on memory at level 7.
The One-Page Campaign Contract
Write this down and share it.
| Field | Example decision |
|---|---|
| Campaign premise | "Urban occult investigation with dungeon sites and faction fallout." |
| Starting level | Level 1 unless the group agrees otherwise. |
| Books open | Core remaster books by default; later books by approval. |
| Rarity policy | Common allowed, uncommon tied to region/story, rare requires GM approval. |
| Variant rules | Free Archetype yes/no; Automatic Bonus Progression yes/no. |
| Tone limits | List hard no topics, fade-to-black topics, and expected genre intensity. |
| Party expectation | At least one reliable healer, one knowledge lead, one scout/trap lead, and a front-line plan. |
| Treasure policy | Follow treasure by level, with wishlist input allowed. |
| Hero Points | How they are awarded and what behavior they are meant to reinforce. |
| Absence rule | Who pilots absent PCs, whether they fade out, and how rewards work. |
| Rules disputes | Quick GM ruling during play, written follow-up after session. |
The contract is not a legal document. It is a memory aid with armor.
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Quick Reference
| GM question | Use this when |
|---|---|
| Sources | Player Core, Player Core 2, GM Core, and future books |
| Rarity | common access, uncommon story access, rare case-by-case access |
| Variants | Free Archetype, Automatic Bonus Progression, Proficiency without Level |
| Tone | heroic fantasy, horror, intrigue, exploration, sandbox, dungeon crawl |
| Party roles | healing, scouting, knowledge, social play, traps, front line, ranged plan |
| Treasure | runes, consumables, staves, formulas, crafting, wishlist, and item economy |
| Campaign pressure | factions, villains, travel, horror, war, mysteries, downtime, or dungeon survival |
Party Role Questions
Ask who can heal, who can scout, who handles social scenes, who can identify magic, who handles traps, who fights in front, who fights at range, and who handles downtime. The answer does not need to be perfect, but if nobody covers recovery, knowledge, or hazards, the GM should know before designing the first dungeon.
| Role | Strong local links | Why the GM cares |
|---|---|---|
| Recovery | Medicine, Cleric, Druid, Champion | Encounter pacing changes if the party cannot recover between fights. |
| Front line | Fighter, Champion, Barbarian, Guardian | Monster targeting and map design depend on who can hold space. |
| Scouting | Stealth, Rogue, Ranger, Investigator | Exploration starts and ambush fairness depend on explicit activities. |
| Knowledge | Arcana, Nature, Occultism, Religion | Monster Core creatures are more fun when weaknesses, traits, and signs can be learned. |
| Social pressure | Diplomacy, Deception, Intimidation, Performance, social encounters | Social encounters need players who want to lead them. |
| Hazards and locks | Thievery, Crafting, hazards | Trap-heavy play is miserable if nobody opted into the job. |
| Gear economy | equipment, runes, consumables, alchemical items | PF2e assumes item progression. Pretending it does not is how math gets weird. |
Player Core 2 Access Checklist
Decide whether Player Core 2 options are fully open, story-gated, or case-by-case. Uncommon ancestries can fit beautifully, but the table should know how they appear in the region. Rare backgrounds should be discussed before they reshape the campaign premise. Archetypes should be clarified before level 2 if Free Archetype is in play. Alchemical items, formulas, and new equipment should be part of the treasure conversation if an Alchemist or item-heavy build joins the party. Session zero is also where the GM says which themes are central: dungeon survival, social politics, wilderness travel, heroic rescue, horror, or sandbox faction play.
| Access topic | Good default |
|---|---|
| Common options | Open unless they clash with the campaign premise. |
| Uncommon options | Usually allowed with a story reason, regional tie, teacher, patron, faction, or ancestry presence. |
| Rare options | Case-by-case because they often reshape the campaign's assumptions. |
| Free Archetype | Decide before level 1, because it changes build plans immediately. |
| Automatic Bonus Progression | Decide before treasure planning, because it changes how much item math lives in loot. |
| Variant rules | Use only if everyone understands what problem the variant solves. |
| Later source books | Allow by approval, especially if the book changes campaign technology, mythology, firearms, psychic themes, or item access. |
The best approval policy is boring and predictable. The worst policy is "probably yes" until one player builds around it and then discovers it is no.
Session Zero Questions To Actually Ask
Ask these directly. Which books are open? Are Player Core 2 uncommon ancestries allowed by default? Is Free Archetype active? Is Automatic Bonus Progression active? How lethal should the campaign feel? How often should social scenes matter? How often should downtime matter? Are we using horror, body horror, political betrayal, romance, or PvP boundaries? What happens when a player misses a session? How are Hero Points awarded? How strict is treasure by level? Which character choices need GM approval before level 1? The answers prevent later build resentment.
Tone And Safety
PF2e supports bright heroic fantasy, grim survival, cosmic horror, political intrigue, wilderness travel, dungeon logistics, divine drama, and tactical meat grinders. It does not support mind reading between friends. Say the tone out loud.
| Topic | Ask this |
|---|---|
| Horror | Are fear, possession, curses, body horror, insects, disease, or helplessness on the table? |
| Intrigue | Are betrayal, blackmail, secret loyalties, and legal pressure fun for this group? |
| Romance | Is it present, background-only, fade-to-black, or not part of the campaign? |
| PvP | Are theft, mind control, social coercion, and hidden agendas allowed between PCs? |
| Character death | Is death expected, rare, reversible, or a campaign-shaping event? |
| Moral pressure | Are villains simple, complicated, sympathetic, or genuinely horrifying? |
| Table correction | How can a player pause or redirect a scene without needing to argue in character? |
GM Core gives you tools for pressure. Session zero tells you which pressure is fun.
Recurring NPC Relationship Agreements
A recurring NPC can be a practical contact, friend, rival, business partner, or romantic interest. Before that relationship becomes a campaign thread, agree on what the group wants to explore. No participant should be pushed into romantic roleplay, and a relationship procedure should never measure a player's feelings.
| Relationship question | Agreement to record |
|---|---|
| Scope | Is the relationship background color, an occasional scene, or a continuing campaign thread? |
| Detail | Is it fade-to-black, lightly described, or played out in more detail? |
| Agency | Who is comfortable making choices in the scene, and what themes are off limits? |
| Check-ins | How can anyone pause, redirect, or revisit a scene, including in the moment? |
Use social encounters for a single conversation or social scene. If a recurring individual NPC needs a multi-session relationship track, use the Connection guidance in GM subsystems; that track represents the NPC's changing stance, while the PC's feelings remain roleplay. Revisit the agreement after a rejection, betrayal, sudden intimacy, or any scene that affects people at the table more strongly than expected.
Treasure And Item Expectations
PF2e's math expects gear. Session zero should decide how the party gets it.
| Item topic | Session zero decision |
|---|---|
| Fundamental runes | Will the GM provide expected weapon and armor progression, or should players shop and craft actively? |
| Consumables | Are scrolls, talismans, potions, ammunition, alchemy, and tools commonly available? |
| Formula access | Especially important for Alchemist, Crafting, and item-heavy campaigns. |
| Staves and wands | Important for Bard, Cleric, Druid, Sorcerer, Witch, and Wizard. |
| Firearms and gadgets | Decide whether firearms, gadgets, and technology fit the setting. |
| Wishlist | Let players name items they want, then place them in-world instead of making the market feel like a vending machine with elves. |
Use equipment, runes, magic items by level, staves and wands, consumables, and treasure by level.
Campaign Shape Questions
| Campaign shape | Session zero warning |
|---|---|
| Dungeon crawl | Healing, scouting, light, Bulk, traps, marching order, and rest pacing matter. |
| Wilderness travel | Survival, mounts, weather, supplies, and exploration mode matter. |
| Intrigue | Social skills, secret factions, reputation, downtime, and noncombat objectives matter. |
| Horror or occult | Consent, tone, Occultism, curses, mindscapes, and investigation matter. |
| War campaign | Leadership, troops, siege gear, battlefield scale, and downtime consequences matter. |
| Monster hunting | Recall Knowledge, tracking, weaknesses, terrain, and Monster Core behavior matter. |
| High magic | Spell access, countermeasures, teleportation-style logistics, and magic-item availability matter. |
| Low item access | Consider Automatic Bonus Progression before the math starts limping. |
What The GM Should Prepare Afterward
| Prep item | Why it follows session zero |
|---|---|
| First-session hook | Built around the party's agreed tone and roles. |
| Starting settlement or base | Gives source access, shopping, rumors, downtime, and NPC ties a home. |
| First three threats | One combat, one social or exploration pressure, and one campaign clue. |
| Party-specific clues | Each character should have at least one reason the campaign notices them. |
| Treasure plan | Enough expected gear that players trust the system math. |
| Rarity notes | A clear list of approved unusual options. |
| Boundaries note | A private GM reminder of lines, veils, and tone limits. |
Example Session Zero Summary
| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| Pitch | "Level 1 city-and-ruin campaign about occult disappearances, public faith, and old monster pacts." |
| Tone | Heroic investigation with horror edges; no graphic torture or PvP theft. |
| Sources | Player Core, Player Core 2, GM Core, Monster Core, and approved topic books. |
| Variants | Free Archetype on; Automatic Bonus Progression off. |
| Rarity | Common open; uncommon allowed with story tie; rare by approval. |
| Party needs | One Medicine plan, one knowledge lead, one scout, one front-line defender, one social lead. |
| Treasure | Rune progression supported; player wishlists welcome; crafting downtime appears between arcs. |
| Disputes | Fast ruling during play, rules check after session. |
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Treating the rule as isolated math | Connect it to character choices, scene stakes, and consequences. |
| Ignoring Player Core 2 options | Check whether new ancestries, classes, archetypes, feats, spells, or items change the party's tools. |
| Hiding every procedure | Keep mystery in the fiction, not in the basic rules the players need to make decisions. |
| Overbuilding the scene | Use the lightest GM Core procedure that creates useful pressure. |
| Skipping rarity discussion | Decide common, uncommon, and rare access before someone builds around a no. |
| Approving Free Archetype late | Decide before character creation, not when level 2 arrives with a tiny paperwork explosion. |
| Ignoring party recovery | PF2e expects recovery planning; pretending otherwise makes encounter pacing brittle. |
| Treating safety as anti-fun | Boundaries let the GM push harder inside the agreed space. |
| Forgetting treasure math | If gear progression falls behind, combat difficulty gets distorted. |
| Letting one player build a solo premise | Tie backstories to the party and campaign, not to a private novel. |
Best Links
Use the PF2e hub, GM guides, beginners, beginner guide, character creation, starter classes, starter ancestries, classes, archetypes, free archetype, variant rules, Automatic Bonus Progression, Hero Points, treasure by level, and first session.
Hot Take: Session zero is cheaper than fixing six incompatible character fantasies at level 5. It is also faster than pretending the party has a healer, a trap plan, a shared tone, and a treasure policy while everyone silently hopes someone else packed those things.
