Monte Cook and Monte Cook Are Instructing Classes at DMU

Beginning in 2018, a specialized event organizer has been organizing deeply engaging experiences where experienced game masters run D&D games in historic castles in England and at Landoll’s Mohican Castle. The full-service getaways are highly favored among forever DMs who seldom have the opportunity to join in the game themselves, and they often look for guidance from experts on topics ranging from improv and creating challenges to handling difficult situations at the table.

In response, the planners began designing a systematic approach to answer these inquiries, which led to the creation of the Dungeon Master Academy. The first session is scheduled for early January 2026 at a university in Atlanta.

“It's possible to view numerous digital guides on almost every theme and gain significant knowledge, but the idea was that nothing compares to an in-person experience together with other dungeon masters, where direct communication with expert teachers and your peers often in a similar position and aim to level up their game,” stated the program's dean.

Course Offerings and Pricing Tiers

Dungeon Masters can select tiers ranging from nearly a thousand dollars to two thousand five hundred dollars, depending on the degree of interaction they desire with the experts. The base tier includes one of four courses:

• Skill Building: Teaches the basics of running D&D.
• Campaign Building: Centers on designing extended campaigns.
• Setting Creation: Concentrates on the development of worlds.
• Career Building: Aimed at DMs who aim to explore more about the gaming industry.

Every class includes two days of instruction divided across two days.

“The courses are created so that you depart having immediate practical outcomes, probably greater confidence, and a lot of usable tools,” Carl explained. “It's more than presentations and they go beyond recorded content. These classes that you can participate in, gain knowledge from, and then go right back home the next week and implement in your regular session.”

Professional Teachers

Most classes are taught by a pair of experts. Worldbuilding is guided by the founder of Monte Cook Games and a renowned campaign designer, both teaching the craft of setting creation.

Industry advancement features multiple instructors, such as a puzzle design specialist, Clint McElroy, and an early professional game master. The additional faculty is designed to provide specialized information to participants with particular aims.

“Various attendees plan to create their own real-play series and display their adventures with the world, others want to publish and write original content,” Carl said. “Some just want to ask, What does it take to be a DM at something like a castle event? Which abilities that I need? Is this achievable?”

Premium Packages

A fifteen hundred dollar premium package includes access to a welcome reception, a welcome gift pack, and a half-hour consultation appointment with an instructor. This marks the inaugural DMU session, though the company has previously run similar events during breaks between adventures at their immersive experiences.

“You could almost run an entire weekend just on one-on-one meetings for professional dungeon masters,” Carl mentioned. “It's unclear if that’s the best use of each attendee's hours – In my opinion the coursework and the lab work is highly beneficial – but I suspect it’s going to be among the most sought-after parts of the program.”

The twenty-five hundred dollar top package includes an extended personal consultation and the chance to lead a session for a small group plus a teacher, who will then give comments and guidance.

“The goal is for the faculty member to review whichever aspect is focused on: I struggle with improv or I get blocked in this kind of combat situation. May I present a scenario for you and receive input on my areas of proficiency and challenge?” Carl detailed. “Alternatively they want to obtain critique and information on a definite universe that they’ve been developing.”

Coming Developments

Feedback from the inaugural session will help guide upcoming academy workshops. Carl mentioned that likely modifications could include increasing consultation time, extending the program to three days, or experimenting with alternative workshop formats.

“I anticipate that we conduct these very often,” Carl stated. “I would love to see multiple Dungeon Master Universities in a single year, in multiple places, and in various nations. The response has been overwhelmingly favorable. We're extremely satisfied with the results so far and I believe it would be fantastic to be able to conduct this in conjunction with big conventions.”