Monte Cook and Monte Cook Are Teaching Sessions at DMU
Beginning in 2018, a specialized event organizer has been hosting deeply engaging experiences where professional dungeon masters manage D&D games in old manors in the UK and at an American castle venue. These all-inclusive trips are widely appreciated among forever DMs who infrequently find the moment to join in the game themselves, and they often seek advice from seasoned professionals on topics ranging from spontaneous storytelling and creating challenges to managing conflicts at the table.
In response, the planners began developing a structured way to answer these inquiries, which led to the creation of DMU. The inaugural event is scheduled for early January 2026 at Oglethorpe University.
“It's possible to view countless online tutorials on any topic and learn quite a lot, but the philosophy was that nothing truly replaces an in-person experience alongside peers in game mastering, where there’s live engagement with seasoned educators and other game masters who are probably in comparable situations and seek to improve their skills,” stated the program's dean.
Workshop Options and Ticket Packages
Game masters can opt for tiers ranging from just under $1,000 to $2,500, according to the level of access they desire with the professionals. The base tier includes a choice of four workshops:
- Foundational Skills: Focuses on the fundamentals of running D&D.
- Story Arc Development: Centers on building persistent adventures.
- Universe Design: Emphasizes the development of worlds.
- Industry Advancement: Designed for DMs who seek to understand more about the tabletop profession.
All workshops includes two days of training split over 48 hours.
“The courses are created so that you walk away with immediate practical outcomes, probably greater confidence, and a lot of usable tools,” Carl noted. “These aren't simple talks and they exceed pre-recorded material. These classes that you can join, absorb insights from, and then return to your group the next week and apply in your local game.”
Seasoned Educators
The majority of workshops are taught by a pair of experts. Universe creation is led by an industry veteran and a renowned campaign designer, jointly leading the craft of setting creation.
Industry advancement presents four different teachers, such as an author on gaming puzzles, a podcast co-host, and a pioneering DM. The additional faculty is intended to deliver focused advice to participants with specific goals.
“Certain participants want to launch their own live gameplay show and display their adventures with the world, others aim to release and write original content,” Carl explained. “Some just want to ask, What's the path to be a DM at a program like D&D in a Castle? Which abilities that I need? Is this achievable?”
Premium Packages
A fifteen hundred dollar premium package offers access to a introductory event, a welcome gift pack, and a 30-minute office hour appointment with a teacher. This marks the first Dungeon Master Academy, though the team has previously run similar events during breaks between campaigns at their premium gatherings.
“One could practically host an entire weekend just on office hours for expert DMs,” Carl observed. “It's unclear if that’s the optimal application of all participants' schedule – In my opinion the formal instruction and the lab work is too valuable – but I suspect it’s going to be one of the most popular parts of the program.”
The $2.5K premium option offers an extended personal consultation and the chance to run a game for five players plus an instructor, who will then give comments and instruction.
“The purpose is for the faculty member to evaluate any element is focused on: I have difficulty with improvisation or I feel stuck in certain battle scenarios. Could I demonstrate a scenario for you and obtain advice on my areas of proficiency and challenge?” Carl detailed. “Alternatively they want to obtain critique and advice on a definite universe that they’ve been developing.”
Coming Developments
Input from the first event will help determine future Dungeon Master University sessions. Carl mentioned that potential adjustments could include increasing consultation time, making it longer to three days, or testing different seminar structures.
“I expect that we host such events very often,” Carl stated. “I really want to see several DMU sessions in a given year, in multiple places, and in various nations. The response has been really terrific. We're quite pleased with the results so far and I feel it would be amazing to be able to organize these in conjunction with large gatherings.”
