D&D 5E Zero Level Suggestions

[Oofta]

I've done this a few times. It depends on how old the PCs are, in my case they were 10-12 years old. IIRC my last set of rules were

All stats -4 with a min of 6 (based on what they meant to be when they were 1st level)
No classes or proficiency bonuses
Pick 1 skill you're proficient in

Nobody picked classes until they hit first level and the biggest threat they it (other than other kids) was a dog. A big, scary dog. Named Fifi. Before they went to 1st level they were allowed to change their mind of what classes they wanted and what their stats were.

It was mostly RP and introduction to the world/city they were in but it was a blast playing kids.

 

[CTurbo]

In my party's first level 0 encounter, they fought a lone Gnoll. They raided a woodshed to find weapons previously and they came out with a sickle, a club, a broomstick(quarterstaff), some medium size rocks, and a hand crossbow with just 3 bolts. I allowed proficiency for everything but the crossbow. Made sense. The farmer used the sickle. The chick stood way back and used the crossbow hitting 1/3. I made them roll fear checks upon visual of the gnoll since nobody had ever seen anything like it before. It was a very tough fight but they did win without anybody dying. 2/5 got hurt pretty bad in which I made healing take a long time. I actually made one of the guys use an arm sling while he healed haha. None of that sleep for 8 hours and that nasty gnoll bit that took 3/4 of his health being magically gone haha.

 

[plisnithus8]

So we played last night: a bureaucrat, a cowboy (mastodon actually), and a carrot farmer. They were attacked by a pair of orcs and somehow survived - though one hit eith sn axe and another with an arrow dropped both PCs to less than half their hit points (the bereaucrat hid in a river). The cowboy however later attacked a pair of armed guards and once he regained conscious found himself working in a spice mine. Most of the night was spent roleplaying the reading of a will that brought them together and gaining inheritance. I'm making them find the rare someones that have class to apprentice with. I think we all had fun with it.

 

[Tony Vargas]

So we played last night: a bureaucrat, a cowboy (mastodon actually)

So is that a mastodon who rides heard on cattle, or a boy who rides heard on mastodons? ;P

... once he regained conscious found himself working in a spice mine...

On Dune or Kessel?

 

[plisnithus8]

So is that a mastodon who rides heard on cattle, or a boy who rides heard on mastodons? ;P

On Dune or Kessel?

The mastonboys ride horses, herd mastodons. The native orcs occassional raid these.

The spice is consumed - mostly in the Moist Ivory Pub which has a dripping mastodon skull painted on its sign - in milk, turning it blue.
The player's have rooms in the local inn which is slightly burned, run by the Lars family.

 

[Illithidbix]

In the last campaign I ran the players started off as 0-level teenagers from a mountain goat herding village who stumbled across the tomb of some ancient heroes and after being killed by the resident wight (they got better) they were infused with their power, knowledge and on occasion memories via flash backs and dreams.
This granted them their class abilities, proficiency in skills and weapons they had never seen in their lives.

They had their proper ability scores but just 4+Constitution modifier hitpoints, proficiency in two skills and weapons like “wooden sword”
So basically ability scores and background.