Session Zero — Heretics of the Old Gods
CATS Method
Concept
Heretics of the Old Gods is about what mortals become when the gods have left. The divine framework that organized society, morality, and meaning is gone — and in that vacuum, despots rise, survivors scrape by, and people are trying to figure out who they are without them. It’s a world still going through the stages of grief at the death (or abandonment) of the gods, and your characters are living in that mess and trying to carve out something worth having.
Aim
The aim is for everyone at the table to feel something. I want people to feel connected to their characters, to the other characters in the group, and to the story. That means everyone at the table needs to be invested in the story and have meaningful (to their characters) connections in the world. I want things in this story to have stakes and consequences and I want it to be shaped by your choices and directed by where you want to go inside the story. That means we all need to be each other’s biggest fans and really dig into and figure out how your characters relate to and care about each other. In the past we’ve glossed over this but we have an opportunity to do it the right way from the start this time.
Character Death & Backup Characters
Death is on the table. It won’t be casual — if it happens, it has weight and meaning. Resurrection exists in this world but it’s difficult, costly, and complicated by the setting. Everyone should come to session one with a backup character ready — not just a stat block, but a fully realized person with their own loved ones and rivals. Don’t skimp on it.
Tone
My thoughts for the tone are that it will be fairly dark. There will be room for character moments and weird, eccentric characters but overall, the atmosphere and backdrop is very dire. Survival is hard, and people live with a lot of fear, uncertainty and doubt. There will be horror elements but it’s not a horror campaign per se. There will be a fair amount of religious themes, religious persecution, evangelism and zealotry as a central theme to the story. Underneath it all is the idea of: what does civilization look like when the industrial revolution ran on magic and that magic is now dried up? The world should feel grimy, uncertain and strange, more post-apocalyptic sci-fi than traditional fantasy.
Subject Matter
This campaign will explore dark and heavy themes including grief, religious persecution, zealotry, labor exploitation, political violence, fear, uncertainty, and dread. Horror elements will appear. Players should expect to engage with content that is emotionally challenging by design.
What’s Off the Table
Sexual content will be faded to black. Body horror will be avoided. Beyond that, this is a conversation — if there is anything a player is not comfortable engaging with, that needs to be on the table before we start.
Safety Tools
We use X and N cards at the table. These are physical cards:
- X Card — hard stop. If a player flashes the X card, we cut the scene immediately, no questions asked.
- N Card — warning. If a player flashes the N card, we fade to black and move on.
No explanation is required. No one has to justify using them. They exist so everyone can stay in the game safely.
We will also discuss Lines and Veils as a group. Lines are hard limits — content that will not appear in the game at all. Any player can name a line and it goes on the list without debate or justification. It is not a vote. Veils are softer limits — content that can exist in the story but happens offscreen, depicted only as a cut away. The list is built together at session zero, written down, and kept as a reference document (see Lines and Veils). Any player can add to it at any time during the campaign — it is never locked in. If something comes up during play that needs to be added, that is always okay.
Table Culture
Above-table collaboration is encouraged and expected. Character intentions, goals, and objectives shouldn’t be hidden from other players — open communication makes for a better story. This isn’t a competitive game. The more we work together as players to shape the narrative, the better the experience is for everyone at the table.
Character Creation Exercise
Before session one, every player needs answers to the following:
Someone you love — another character (PC or NPC) that your character would do anything for. Who are they? Where are they? What is your relationship and how are you connected?
Someone you’re running from — an enemy or rival. What happened between you? How far would they go to track you down? How dangerous are they? What was your relationship?
A connection to the group — every PC should have an existing relationship with at least one other PC going into session one. Talk to each other before we play.
Every player should also have a backup character ready with the same level of investment — loved one, rival, group connection, the works. Don’t treat it as an afterthought.