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

Beginning in 2018, a specialized event organizer has been hosting immersive events where professional dungeon masters manage Dungeons & Dragons games in historic castles in the UK and at a U.S. castle resort. These all-inclusive trips are widely appreciated among long-time dungeon masters who rarely get the moment to actually play themselves, and they often ask for tips from experts on topics ranging from improvisation and crafting riddles to handling difficult situations at the table.

In response, the coordinators began developing a systematic approach to answer these inquiries, which led to the creation of the Dungeon Master Academy. The debut workshop is set for early January 2026 at Oglethorpe University.

“You can watch thousands of YouTube videos on virtually any subject and gain significant knowledge, but the concept was that nothing compares to a live, hands-on session alongside peers in game mastering, where there’s live engagement with faculty instructors and your peers often in comparable situations and seek to level up their game,” noted the dean of Dungeon Master University.

Course Offerings and Cost Levels

Dungeon Masters can choose from options ranging from just under $1,000 to two thousand five hundred dollars, depending on the amount of contact they desire with the professionals. The base tier includes selection from four classes:

• Skill Building: Focuses on the essentials of running D&D.
• Story Arc Development: Focuses around crafting long-running games.
• Setting Creation: Concentrates on the art of setting design.
• Industry Advancement: Aimed at dungeon masters who want to learn more about the tabletop profession.

All workshops includes eight hours of classwork spread over two days.

“The classes are structured so that you walk away with usable skills, probably greater confidence, and numerous applicable methods,” Carl explained. “It's more than presentations and they’re not just static videos. These classes that you can join, gain knowledge from, and then return to your group the next week and apply in your home campaign.”

Expert Instructors

Most classes are led by two professors. Setting design is taught by Monte Cook and a renowned campaign designer, together instructing the craft of setting creation.

Industry advancement features several experts, such as an author on gaming puzzles, an entertainment professional, and an early professional game master. The expanded teaching staff is intended to offer targeted guidance to attendees with definite objectives.

“Certain participants aim to start their own D&D actual play and share their stories with the world, several plan to produce and develop fresh ideas,” Carl said. “Others simply wish to ask, What does it take to be a DM at a program like an immersive experience? Which abilities that I need? Is this achievable?”

Higher Tiers

A $1.5K premium package offers access to a opening gathering, a welcome gift pack, and a half-hour consultation appointment with one of the faculty. This constitutes the first Dungeon Master Academy, though the organizers has previously run comparable workshops during breaks between campaigns at their castle events.

“You could almost run an complete event just on one-on-one meetings for career game masters,” Carl observed. “I don’t know if that’s the optimal application of everybody’s time – I think the structured learning and the hands-on activities is extremely important – but I think it’s going to be one of the most popular parts of the program.”

The twenty-five hundred dollar platinum tier provides an extended personal consultation and the possibility to lead a session for several participants plus a teacher, who will then offer feedback and guidance.

“The purpose is for the faculty member to assess whichever aspect is interested in: I have difficulty with improv or I feel stuck in certain battle scenarios. Could I demonstrate a scene for you and receive input on where I excel and need improvement?” Carl explained. “Alternatively they want to receive input and advice on a specific world that they’ve been developing.”

Coming Developments

Responses from the debut workshop will help guide subsequent DMU events. Carl said that potential adjustments could include increasing consultation time, making it longer to three days, or trying out different seminar structures.

“I expect that we conduct these regularly,” Carl expressed. “I really want to see multiple Dungeon Master Universities in a given year, in various locations, and in different countries. The response has been overwhelmingly favorable. We're extremely satisfied with what we’re seeing and I think it would be wonderful to be able to conduct this in collaboration with big conventions.”