diff --git a/internal/conversations/conversations.go b/internal/conversations/conversations.go
index a7e8e7a84..ea8a09687 100644
--- a/internal/conversations/conversations.go
+++ b/internal/conversations/conversations.go
@@ -102,8 +102,13 @@ func AttemptConversation(initiatorMobId int, initatorInstanceId int, initiatorNa
 		MobInstanceId1: initatorInstanceId,
 		MobInstanceId2: participantInstanceId,
 		StartRound:     util.GetRoundCount(),
-		Position:       0,
-		ActionList:     dataFile[chosenIndex].Conversation,
+		// LastRound must start at the current round - the cleanup in
+		// getConversation treats rounds since LastRound as staleness, and a
+		// zero value makes a brand-new conversation look ancient and
+		// eligible for deletion before its first action fires.
+		LastRound:  util.GetRoundCount(),
+		Position:   0,
+		ActionList: dataFile[chosenIndex].Conversation,
 	}
 
 	return conversationUniqueId
diff --git a/internal/conversations/plugin_test.go b/internal/conversations/plugin_test.go
index a74e1459f..a621cc163 100644
--- a/internal/conversations/plugin_test.go
+++ b/internal/conversations/plugin_test.go
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/GoMudEngine/GoMud/internal/mudlog"
+	"github.com/GoMudEngine/GoMud/internal/util"
 )
 
 func TestMain(m *testing.M) {
@@ -119,3 +120,30 @@ func TestReadPluginConversationFile_KeyFormat(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("did not expect a file for mob 43")
 	}
 }
+
+// TestAttemptConversation_FreshConversationNotStale guards against a fresh
+// conversation being eligible for the random cleanup in getConversation. A
+// zero LastRound made new conversations look ancient (the round counter
+// starts above one million), so any lookup that won the 2% maintenance roll
+// deleted a conversation that was just created.
+func TestAttemptConversation_FreshConversationNotStale(t *testing.T) {
+	resetPluginState()
+	defer resetPluginState()
+
+	RegisterFS(newFakeFS(map[string][]byte{
+		`conversations/testzone/9001.yaml`: []byte(sampleConversation),
+	}))
+
+	convId := AttemptConversation(9001, 1, "goblin", 2, "rat", "TestZone")
+	if convId == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected a non-zero conversation id from plugin file")
+	}
+
+	c := conversations[convId]
+	if c == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected conversation to be stored")
+	}
+	if c.LastRound != util.GetRoundCount() {
+		t.Fatalf("expected fresh conversation LastRound to equal the current round %d, got %d", util.GetRoundCount(), c.LastRound)
+	}
+}