Keith Baker along with Monte Cook Are Teaching Workshops at Dungeon Master Academy

Beginning in 2018, a specialized event organizer has been organizing immersive events where expert DMs lead fantasy roleplaying games in ancient fortresses in England and at an American castle venue. These all-inclusive trips are highly favored among career game masters who rarely get the opportunity to actually play themselves, and they often look for guidance from experts on topics ranging from improvisation and crafting riddles to managing conflicts at the table.

In response, the planners began designing a organized method to address these questions, which led to the establishment of the Dungeon Master Academy. The debut workshop is set for early January 2026 at an Atlanta campus.

“You can watch thousands of YouTube videos on almost every theme and gain significant knowledge, but the philosophy was that nothing truly replaces face-to-face interaction in the company of fellow DMs, where there’s live engagement with expert teachers and your peers likely in comparable situations and also want to enhance their abilities,” explained the dean of Dungeon Master University.

Available Classes and Pricing Tiers

Dungeon Masters can opt for packages ranging from just under $1,000 to $2.5K, according to the amount of contact they desire with the professionals. The base tier includes one of four courses:

• Skill Building: Focuses on the basics of managing a session.
• Long-Term Game Planning: Centers on designing extended campaigns.
• Worldbuilding: Concentrates on the crafting of environments.
• Industry Advancement: Designed for game masters who aim to explore more about the tabletop profession.

All workshops includes multiple sessions of instruction split over 48 hours.

“The classes are created so that you walk away with immediate practical outcomes, enhanced belief in your abilities, and a lot of usable tools,” Carl said. “These aren't simple talks and they’re not just static videos. These are sessions that you can join, gain knowledge from, and then go right back home the following week and apply in your home campaign.”

Seasoned Educators

Many sessions are led by duo of instructors. Setting design is guided by an industry veteran and the creator of Eberron, jointly leading the skill of universe design.

Career building presents several experts, such as Elisa Teague, Clint McElroy, and an early professional game master. The expanded teaching staff is intended to deliver focused advice to attendees with definite objectives.

“Various attendees aim to start their own D&D actual play and share their stories with the world, others aim to release and create new material,” Carl stated. “Others simply wish to ask, What does it take to be a DM at an event like a castle event? What capabilities that I need? Can anyone do it?”

Advanced Options

A $1.5K enhanced option includes access to a introductory event, a starter kit, and a 30-minute office hour appointment with an instructor. This constitutes the inaugural DMU session, though the organizers has previously run Castle Days during breaks between adventures at their immersive experiences.

“It would be possible to organize an full two days just on office hours for professional dungeon masters,” Carl mentioned. “I don’t know if that’s the most effective utilization of all participants' schedule – In my opinion the formal instruction and the practical exercises is too valuable – but I believe it’s going to be one of the most popular parts of the program.”

The twenty-five hundred dollar premium option includes an hour of one-on-one time and the opportunity to lead a session for five players plus one of the faculty members, who will then provide notes and coaching.

“The goal is for the faculty member to review any element is interested in: Hey I don’t do well with improv or I encounter obstacles in this kind of combat situation. Could I demonstrate a scenario for you and obtain advice on what my strengths and weaknesses are?” Carl explained. “Alternatively they want to obtain critique and information on a particular setting that they’ve been creating.”

Next Steps

Responses from the first event will help determine subsequent DMU events. Carl said that potential adjustments could include adding more office hours, lengthening the event to three days, or testing alternative workshop formats.

“I hope that we do this very often,” Carl expressed. “I really want to see multiple Dungeon Master Universities in a given year, in different cities, and in multiple countries. The response has been really terrific. We're quite pleased with current developments and I believe it would be fantastic to be able to do this in collaboration with big conventions.”