Keith Baker along with Monte Cook Will Lead Workshops at Dungeon Master University

Beginning in 2018, Tabletop Vacations has been organizing deeply engaging experiences where experienced game masters manage Dungeons & Dragons games in old manors in England and at Landoll’s Mohican Castle. The full-service getaways are especially popular among career game masters who infrequently find the chance to actually play themselves, and they often look for guidance from seasoned professionals on topics ranging from improvisation and crafting riddles to dealing with tough scenarios at the table.

In response, the organizers began developing a organized method to address these questions, which led to the founding of DMU. The debut workshop is planned for the start of 2026 at a university in Atlanta.

“There are countless online tutorials on any topic and acquire valuable insights, but the idea was that nothing truly replaces face-to-face interaction together with other dungeon masters, where there’s live engagement with seasoned educators and your peers likely in the same boat and aim to level up their game,” noted Jason Carl.

Course Offerings and Pricing Tiers

Game masters can choose from options ranging from nearly a thousand dollars to $2.5K, depending on the amount of contact they desire with the instructors. The entry-level option includes a choice of four workshops:

• Skill Building: Focuses on the fundamentals of leading a game.
• Campaign Building: Is dedicated to designing extended campaigns.
• Worldbuilding: Concentrates on the art of setting design.
• Industry Advancement: Designed for dungeon masters who want to learn more about the tabletop profession.

Each course includes eight hours of instruction divided across two days.

“The classes are designed so that you walk away with tangible results, enhanced belief in your abilities, and numerous applicable methods,” Carl explained. “They’re not just lectures and they go beyond recorded content. These are sessions that you can join, learn from, and then head back to your table the following week and implement in your local game.”

Professional Teachers

Many sessions are led by two professors. Worldbuilding is taught by the founder of Monte Cook Games and the creator of Eberron, together instructing the art of worldbuilding.

Industry advancement presents four different teachers, such as a puzzle design specialist, a podcast co-host, and a pioneering DM. The additional faculty is designed to deliver focused advice to students with specific goals.

“Some of them want to launch their own live gameplay show and share their stories with the world, others plan to produce and develop fresh ideas,” Carl said. “Others simply wish to ask, What does it take to be a DM at something like an immersive experience? What capabilities that I need? Is this achievable?”

Premium Packages

A $1,500 gold tier offers access to a opening gathering, a welcome gift pack, and a 30-minute office hour appointment with one of the faculty. This constitutes the debut of the program, though the team has previously run comparable workshops during breaks between game sessions at their immersive experiences.

“You could almost run an entire weekend just on office hours for expert DMs,” Carl said. “I'm not certain if that’s the optimal application of all participants' schedule – I think the coursework and the hands-on activities is extremely important – but I suspect it’s going to be one of the most popular parts of the program.”

The twenty-five hundred dollar top package includes an hour of one-on-one time and the chance to lead a session for five players plus a teacher, who will then give comments and coaching.

“The purpose is for the teacher to assess any element is focused on: I have difficulty with improv or I get blocked in certain battle scenarios. May I present a scene for you and get feedback 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 building.”

Future Plans

Input from the debut workshop will help shape upcoming academy workshops. Carl mentioned that potential adjustments could include adding more office hours, making it longer to three days, or trying out alternative workshop formats.

“I hope that we host such events regularly,” Carl stated. “I really want to see several DMU sessions in a single year, in different cities, and in multiple countries. The response has been overwhelmingly favorable. We're extremely satisfied with what we’re seeing and I believe it would be amazing to be able to conduct this in partnership with major events.”