Although player characters most often start at first level, they do not have to appear from nowhere. By the time characters reach first level, they may already have studied for years and made the choices which mold their lives. Instead of skipping this constructive period, players may color their characters by beginning at zero level without the skills of any character class. This allows players to design exactly the characters they want, even if these are sword-wielding wizards or thieves who can turn undead. Few adventures could be more exciting than these first ones, where the PCs, as ordinary, inexperienced people, must discover power within themselves, survive, and become strong.
When characters are created, their abilities are feeble, their strengths are undefined, and their only advantage is tremendous curiosity and enthusiasm. When first creating a zero-level character, rolls are not made for any characteristics except those which are completely predetermined, that is: height, weight, social status (if this is used). The standard attributes (strength, dexterity, constitution, intelligence, wisdom, and charisma) are recorded, but at preliminary values of three. The character also starts with three hit points.
Zero-level characters do not have experience points and cannot gain them at this level. The only real resources zero-level characters have are aptitude points (AP), which are spent to create other abilities. Each character begins the game with 90 + 1d20 aptitude points.
Characters will very soon need higher attribute scores. Once per game week, a player can assign one to eight AP to a single attribute score or hit points. The points are instantly subtracted from the total AP and added to the attribute. That attribute is never decreased while at zero level. (In theory, the character always had a latent talent and suddenly developed it.) Attributes still require a long time to mature to their full potential. Therefore, characters can never spend more than eight AP per week in this manner.
Demi-humans must raise all their attributes to their racial minimums before entering the game. They spend the AP before play begins, to reflect the experiences of their long childhoods. A zero-level demi-human has all the natural features of his or her race, including bonuses to attribute scores. Attribute penalties, however, such as a halfling’s - 1 on strength, never cause a score to fall below three. They become effective only once these statistics are raised above three. A newly-created dwarf, for example, has a charisma score of three (the -1 penalty cannot be applied yet) and a constitution score of four (one bonus point). The character must immediately spend eight AP on constitution to reach the racial minimum of twelve. When this dwarf decides to improve his charisma, it will cost one AP to overcome the racial penalty before the score can be raised above three.
No amount of aptitude can give a zero-level character more than 18 hit points, or an attribute score above the racial maximum. Gray elves can have intelligence scores of 19, but all other characters are limited to attributes of 18 or less. The exceptional strength of fighters can only be achieved with special training. Characters should be careful not to spend too many AP on any one attribute, since they will need aptitude to learn other skills.
Attribute scores have all their usual effects at zero level. Characters who neglect their strength suffer penalties in combat; those with low dexterity cannot use thief skills. Since characters can instantaneously raise any attribute, they will seldom be forced to suffer penalties. However, wise players may neglect some attributes in order to concentrate on others.
Hit points are very special to a zero-level character. These points have nothing to do with skill, luck, or innate hardiness. Each of these points represents sheer youthful exuberance and vitality. The initial total of three hit points represents body mass. Characters who raise their constitution are entitled to the usual hit point bonus, as if they were fiist level. The ability to gain three hit points for constitutions of 17, or four at 18 is a special ability of fighters, just like exceptional strength, so zero-level characters aren’t eligible for the special bonus. A zero-level character can never have more than 18 hit points at one time. When the character finally becomes a first level character, the player must reroll for hit points in the normal fashion.