In Dungeons & Dragons, there is a meeting before the first round, and this can save you a lot of frustration

Those who already have experience in Dungeons & Dragons may know the so-called Session 0. This important session and how it was effectively utilized is illustrated by the example of a player who protected his group from a bothersome player.

What does the player report? On Reddit, the user and player Zestyclose-Sound9854 writes that he left his D&D group after agreeing to the so-called “Session 0”. During this session, it became clear that the planned campaign of his friend who was the DM simply wasn’t for him, although all the other players were totally excited.

The player was disturbed by the size of the group, the (not quite defined) vision for the story, the choice of races by the other players, and a lot of homebrew elements (self-created elements outside the official rulebooks) that would not be enjoyable for the player.

The player adds that there is no “right” way to play D&D, but that he prefers a somewhat more traditional fantasy story, which simply isn’t offered by his friend’s campaign. Since all the other players are looking forward to the planned campaign and he is the only one dissatisfied, he left the group, despite the understandable disappointment of the DM.

But he himself and many others in the community emphasize in this case that this is a perfect example of a “successful Session 0” (Proper-Bedroom4668 via Reddit).

Here you see the presentation of the role-playing game “Daggerheart” by Critical Role:

Session 0 brings joy and avoids frustration

What exactly is Session 0? Session 0 refers to the meeting and discussion before the first “real” session 1, where the campaign starts. Therefore, Session 0 is not used for playing, but for joint planning and communication between players and the DM (Dungeon Master).

Also on D&D Beyond, the DM James Haeck explains how to properly utilize Session 0 and describes it as “the difference between a long-lasting campaign with friends and a faltering campaign that drags on for a few uncomfortable weeks.”

The following points should be discussed in a Session 0:

• What kind of campaign do the players want?
• How often, where, and how do people want and can meet?
• What genres do the players like?
• How much roleplay is everyone willing to engage in?
• Which rules will be used?
• Which characters, races, and classes do the players want to play?
• How will leveling be handled?
• What limits need to be considered?

In summary, Session 0 is for communicating expectations. When the expectations of each individual player are clearly communicated and a common plan can be established, the likelihood of someone being disappointed by the D&D experience decreases.

How to deal with disagreements? It is rather unlikely that all players at the table will bring exactly the same ideas. With Session 0, it can then be checked whether compromises can be found or whether the ideas of a group are too far apart. Of course, it’s a shame when it doesn’t work out, but it saves from several weeks, months, or years of a disappointing campaign.

The Reddit user also had to realize that it makes no sense to find a compromise when he is the only dissatisfied player in the group.

“Everyone else at the table loved it – I was clearly in the minority here,” the player must admit on Reddit, “I would honestly tell [the DM] that, even if compromises are made, D&D/TTRPGs are one of the few areas where compromises don’t always have to be a good thing. It requires so much time, energy, and commitment, and when this commitment wanes in one person, it affects all the others too.”

The player was able to recognize early on through Session 0 that he would have had a bad time in the group as the only player and that they would have a better time without him. Even though the DM is disappointed, she can continue playing with the rest of the group, all of whom chose rather unconventional races that were not classic enough for the author of the post. If you also prefer rather atypical or underrated races in D&D, you might be interested in this list here on MeinMMO: Here are 7 underrated races from Dungeons & Dragons if you don’t want to play boring humans or elves