We just started our first long-term campaign for the podcast and part of the preparation for that was a fairly in-depth session zero. We knew a few details about the setting – it was a post-post apocalypse in which monsters from beyond space and time wiped out most sentient life on the planet several hundred years ago – but beyond that, every other detail was left open for the players to fill in.

To facilitate that, I came up with a list of questions to help them flesh out their starting location and the immediate areas around them. Here are the questions I asked – some are specific to my setting but with a little work, they could be tailored to fit your homebrew world instead.

1. People starting coming together to form villages again about 50 years ago. How long has this town been settled?
2. Why did people choose to settle here?
3. What’s the climate like? What natural disasters (blizzards, mudslides, etc.) happen?
4. Who was the first family to settle here? Are their ancestors still in town?
5. What’s housing like in the village? What are homes made of?
6. Since this town was founded, what’s the best thing to happen to it?
7. The worst?
8. Who has power here?
9. What’s something the town has in abundance?
10. What’s something rare in town that people need more of?
11. There’s another village within a few days travel. Aside from distance, what separates it from your village?
12. Who was the latest person/group to settle in town? How did integrating them into the town go?
13. What’s a place nearby that no one wants to go?
14. After the Fall, the old gods died or abandoned the world. What do people believe in now?
15. Are there any holidays? How does the town mark time?
16. What’s the biggest threat in the region?
17. What’s the economy like? Do you have a currency of any sort?
18.  When someone gets sick or injured, who do you turn to?
19. What do you want your character to achieve?