Session Zero Report: The Solo Pathfinder Experiment Begins!

2 hours ago

Hey everyone,

We’re doing a Solo Adventure. One GM. One Player. No meat-shields, no dedicated healer bot, no wizard to sleep the encounter while everyone else beats on them. Just one hero against a very uncaring world.

How do we make sure this doesn't end in tragedy in the first 10 minutes? Session Zero.

If you think Session Zero is important for a group, it’s mandatory for a solo run. We sat down to hammer out the expectations, build the hero, and set the stage.

The Workshop: Building the Hero

Level 1 in PF1e is lethal. A stiff breeze can knock over a wizard. When you're solo, you don't have the "action economy" on your side, if you get stunned, paralyzed, or even just tripped, it’s probably game over.

@ecoinstant came to the table with a solid concept: He wanted sustainability. Medium armor, a shield, someone who could take a hit but wasn't just a dumb brute.

We batted around a few ideas, Paladin (great saves), Ranger (tough, versatile), Bard (jack of all trades) but we landed on the undisputed king of survival: The Cleric.

But not just any Cleric. We looked at the domains and realized that when you are alone, mobility is life. If you can't outrun what you can't kill, you're dead.

Enter the Travel Domain. The ability to ignore difficult terrain and a base speed boost? That’s gold dust for a solo adventurer.

We built a character who is tough, self-sufficient, and genuinely believes in the sanctity of the open road. It’s a fantastic concept that we tailored together to ensure he has the tools to survive without a party.

House Rules: The "Don't Die instantly" Minimums

Pathfinder 1e isn't balanced for one player. A CR 1 monster is meant to challenge four people. If I run the game "rules as written," the first time an orc crits with a falchion, the campaign ends.

To make this fun (and fair), we agreed on some specific solo-play house rules.

1. Max HP at Level 1

Standard practice at my table anyway, but essential here. You need that buffer.

2. Hero Points are ACTIVE

We are using the Hero Point system. The player gets 3 points to start. These are "get out of jail free" cards. Reroll a natural 1, force an enemy to reroll a crit, or take an extra action when it really counts. When you don't have backup, you need a narrative safety net.

3. The The Fairness Loadout

Instead of standard starting gold, the character is being outfitted with a specific "survival kit" tailored to the adventure. We started with Masterwork chain-mail, a good bludgeon weapon, his deities weapon of choice (a short ranged throwing weapon) and a deluxe adventurer's kit with a weeks worth of rations and some basic necessities. Just the chain-mail would normally take all the starting gold, but we wanted to make sure the character was prepared for the fight.

The goal isn't to make them overpowered; it's to give them a fighting chance.

Ready to Roll

The character sheets are dried, the dice are chosen, and the gloomy forest of Darkmoon Vale awaits.

We’ve done the prep to make sure the game is tough but fair. Now, it’s up to the dice gods. Stay tuned for the actual play report to see if our brave Travel Cleric can reclaim the road, or if they just become another statistic in the woods!

As always,
Michael Garcia a.k.a. TheCrazyGM