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Truly Madly Deeply—Level Zero to Hero
Truly Madly Deeply: Level Zero to Hero is a mini-campaign arc for 4 players with characters beginning at level 0 and carrying them on through level 3. It is designed to teach young players who know little to nothing about RPGs. It begins with character creation through role-playing. Players will guide their characters through training by a Harper named Adoward Axeager, aka “The Baker” to become full members of The Harpers themselves.
Character Creation Through Role-Playing
The first module in this campaign gets players going quickly by letting them explore their character concept through actively role-playing. By the end of this section, players will have completed their character sheets. This isn’t a how-to guide for completing a character sheet. Instead, it helps players know what they want their characters to be and flesh out those characters through role-playing.
Fight Club
The next module presents fun opportunities for the players to get some action with their characters while learning the basic mechanics of 5E. They will learn about their available actions, ability checks, ranged attacks, and cover. By the end of this section, the characters will be unofficial members of The Harpers.
Hama Said Knock You Out
At this point, the players get their first taste of adventuring outside a controlled and simulated environment, all while trying to maintain a timeline to not be late to their own graduation and initiation into the Harpers. They begin this section setting out to meet the High Harper in Berdusk to be entered into the “official” record. There will be ample opportunity to interact with several NPCs and strange encounters. Resource and time management will be crucial if they want to successfully make their way to Berdusk without being late and without neglecting their calling of helping those in need.
Heaven is a Place on Faerûn
The honeymoon is over. Adoward gives the new Harpers their first official assignment. A mining town near the Sunset Mountains, called Heaven, has reported bizarre attacks and has asked for help. It will be up to the party to make their way there and to remember that even though they’re unsupervised, they still must conduct themselves as Harpers and sometimes exercise restraint when it would be easier to give in to questionable practices if they believe the end justifies the means.
Originally published in serial form beginning in February 2016, I’m re-releasing it as a single document. While it’s okay to skip the first section, skipping more of the arc will lead to a less fulfilling experience. In fact, Level Zero to Hero is the consolidation we should have done from the beginning. The consistent formatting and consolidated storyline capture the original vision of the series: teaching young players Dungeons & Dragons by getting them to the gaming table as soon as possible. Expecting them to read and comprehend a 320-page rulebook can be a bit much. By the end of this campaign, the players will feel confident to sit and game at anyone’s table.
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