Session -1: Dawn of Worlds

Ironically, the very last thing I did at Tabletop Scotland 2024 was Dawn of Worlds. Shouldn’t that have come first?

I nearly got up and left. I had signed up for a role-playing game, but when I got to my table, I found a map, tokens, boat minis, village minis, a point cost sheet, and board game rules. I was shattered and had zero spoons for a strategy game like Risk.

Weirdly, there was also a GM.

I nearly made apologies and left. I’m glad I didn’t, though.

Dawn of Worlds worldbuilding

Dawn of Worlds is about twenty years old and free to download (PDF link). It’s by lawyer Bob Pesall and based on 15 years on playtesting.

If you’re not 35, then Dawn of Worlds is older than you.

In the game, played over three ages, players are gods who use turns and points to build the world geologically (I was a sun god and spread desserts with abandon), then people and finally, trade, technology and war.

The GM is the actual moderator who steps in when catastrophes occur, helps balance the geographies, and guides the rules.

Dawn of Worlds can be as cooperative or as competitive as you want.

Dawn of Worlds as Session -1

In tabletop role-playing games, Session 0 is designed to set the tone of the interactions, perhaps introduce characters, and reach a real-life agreement on the play style.

Perhaps the tone/play style should be before worldbuilding, in which case Dawn of Worlds and its clones/evolutions should come second. On the other hand, perhaps if you’re building a world together, you already trust the players, and the details of the character and mood of the story can come later.

There are games where creating the world in story terms is also part of character generation. It’s an idea I’m fond. Dawn of Worlds is different; this is not a theatre of the mind world. As you play through Dawn of Worlds, you’ll get the names of gods, peoples, technology levels and a complete world map.

Importantly, Dawn of Worlds isn’t just about points and tokens. It’s about adding flavour to the world you’re creating (or destroying) together.

Therefore, the Dawn of Worlds or Session -1 plan means two sessions before your first scenario even starts!

• Session -1 = Gamify the world creation story.
• Session 0 = Character flashbacks/history, maybe characters meet, tone and mood set.
• Session 1 = Drama relating to individuals happens.

Final thoughts

I think the main caveat is that the GM draws the initial world map – they split the empty canvas into land and sea, albeit blank.

I bet you’ve tried something like this already. How did it go?

Quick Links

• Dawn of Worlds (PDF link)