What You Should Know Before Becoming a Pro GM

How much does a Professional game master or dungeon master make? What are the costs? How much time does it take? All these questions and more answered by a Pro GM... me :)

Get your tickets to my table for D&D in a Castle now! It'll be an experience you won't forget!

Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:23 Average rate
02:40 Entertainer GM
03:23 You need rules
04:07 Start and finish
04:37 Outside of game chat
05:05 You have to know a lot
05:46 GM ranking system

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[HowtobeaGreatGM]

*Thanks for watching!* Is there anything I missed? What else do you need to know before becoming a Pro GM?

Get your tickets to my table for D&D in a Castle now! It'll be an experience you won't forget!

Find each chapter of the video easily by clicking on the timestamps in the description.

[razorboy]

I've been running paid games for three years now, mostly advertising on Roll20, StartPlaying and facebook groups. Mostly D&D, some Alien RPG and Forbidden Lands. It has mostly been a very fun and rewarding (financially too) experience. The advice I would give is:
1. Carefully interview and screen players before the game, even before session zero. Just because a player is willing to pay doesn't mean they are a good fit for you or for the other players.
2. Be very upfront that even though it's a paid game I am the DM and there will be no favouritism or "going easy" just because the players are paying.
3. Post a clear campaign primer and character creation guidelines for everyone to see before they decide whether to join or not.
4. You really do NOT need miniatures, music, etc. for a great paid game. I've run paid sessions ($15 per player per session) with pure theater of the mind and the players really enjoyed it. What you need is consistency, good pacing, listening and communicating with the players, and being "on" 100% of the time - no phoning in a session!

[goontubeassos]

I charge $5 per player prepaid in advance and only 5 players. I use the money for D&D supplies, but more importantly the money provided me a sense of urgency to be a better DM or provide a better story/game experience and the players get unlimited excess to the full D&D Beyond digital library. My sessions are on Sunday 12-1ish we cook dinner too as a group game lasts till 6-9pm

Bottom line, charge money but don’t do it for the money. The money is used as a collective respect, it represents each person’s time and reminds us of our value.

A game players pay for, they respect more, and show up for.

[carsonm]

I GM professionally full-time using the StartPlaying platform. These are generally good guidelines. I have a code of conduct and terms of service that all newcomers to my table have to sign in order to protect myself and the other players at the table and make sure everyone is on the same page. I'd consider this sort of thing vital when providing a service like this. Also use safety tools—for real, people, use safety tools.

[CmckayRulz]

I started DMing for local kids in my town around... 2 years ago now? And just this year got a physical studio to run games out of! It's different from what I run for my friends, not least because they're all so young, but it's been the best job I've ever had. We have a website now and everything; it's really been taking off!!

[DougCoughler]

I started DMing for a Community Center late last year (hourly wage). It's a challenge because on top of everything you've listed, I'm also running for kids age 9-14, so you have to factor that in as well. They've paid the community center and the community center pays me, so I can't just boot a problem player out. It is definitely fun and rewarding though.

[madjarov]

So I've been a full-time pro DM in Namibia for 2 months now, since quitting my soul-crushing bank job. I charge 300 Rand (~20USD) per month for a weekly 4h game. It's been fantastic. I knew nothing about D&D in the beginning of last year. I've learned a lot, and still am. But players are having fun and so am I. Here's some basic things I do:

- Monthly payment upfront, regardless of showing up. Free session, zero, then 50 bucks a session if the first month is not full. If I can't make it, 50 bucks refund per session. I print character sheets and keep them there.
- Session begins when the players who are present decide. It ends 4 hours later, give or take 30 minutes. One 15-minute break in the middle, and max two tiny 2-minute short breaks (but usually none).
- Food and drink allowed, snacks for the party earns inspiration.
- Sharing session notes before the session earns inspiration.
- I run modules, mainly WD:DH, supplemented with AI, WD:DMM adding stuff from DMsGuild and Alexandrian, and my own tidbits. Also currently working on a flowy, streamlined, grand mega Waterdeep complilation campaign book which I'm not sure how I'd release or if it's even legal. It's mainly for me anyway.
- I use FoundryVTT with many modules, Winamp for sound (many owned videogame OSTs, Tabletop Audio, other free stuff online), smart bulbs for atmosphere, and a wall-mounted 4K screen.
- I own all D&D Beyond content, to which all players have access as soon as they join a campaign.
- I run 5 weekly games at 18:00-22:00 for adults, and have just started running afternoon games at a high school.
- Group size: 4-6. 3 is too little income; 7 is too chaotic.
- If you're in 2 of my campaigns, subsequent monthly fee is at a 33% discount.
- I sell dice and have just started making T-shirts.

If you guys have any questions, hit me up here. I'd be happy to answer them.

[williamcanavan]

I was hired by a local game store to run games for anyone who happened to come in. I got paid $11.00 and hour by the store. I was NOT paid by the players, and they were NOT my friends. I had a full table of 7 players and the game ran for 3-4 hours once a week.

[I.Re-em]

fastest click in the west! will soon be running my first dnd game in an official yearly event in my country, and your channel helped me a lot

[JCQuickDIY]

I am part of a group of 4 dms each with our own campaign; players can pay per session on a Pay What You Want basis, with no obligation. The whole group are friends and it doesn't feel like being paid to entertain, but rather being appreciated for the work that goes into DMing.

[nomiss]

I have a specific mentality about "being a pro __". I don't want to be a professional, but I want to be the best I can. And if I can make a bit of money, that's nice. But the enjoyment and improvement must prevail to me

[YaMaToVir]

That can be my life saving route (in the war situation going) and can bring me smth to live on. Im trying to improve my quality as best as i can. Hope i could achieve it.

[teddymasters]

I'm thinking of starting a service where I gm for children, as a hybrid babysitting ans creative exploration setup. The formula changes a bit, but is still similar in many ways

[brentconaway]

Great informational video. Lots to consider before ever heading down that road.

[captainthorrek]

Great topic! Another thing to consider when quitting your day job for this is taxation. The government might want to get a slice of that pie if it's considered professional

[DM-CW]

I pay $30 a person to go to the movies for 2 hours. $20 for 4 hours of d&d I am more than down for.

[Wolfog_]

Hey Guy ide really be interested to see a video about what to expect or whats expected of players at a paid game in comparion to a regular game, just a video idea that could tie neatly to this one

[hasturnz]

All good and useful. I'd never consider charging anyone actual money for me to run a game; same goes for my friends who also run games. We do it because we love being the DM, we love the prep work. We get "paid" at the table, by everyone else bringing the snacks / drinks, maybe providing a venue, a ride to and from, etc. The actual costs incurred for content, are NOT always tied to the DM; basically players might own a book or a few depending on how much enjoyment they get from hardcopy, then I've got two friends who have purchased a lot of content on DnD Beyond and they can share that with whoever is the DM, for use by everyone in that campaign.

[RIVERSRPGChannel]

I have never paid or been paid for gaming. I think it’s an interesting concept. Luckily our gaming group has 6-7 GMs/DMs.
Thanks for the information

[reiteration]

I've never attempted paid DMing, nor do I intend to, but I found this an interesting video nonetheless.

Honestly, I think if all paid DMs actually did all (or at least, the majority of) the stuff you mentioned in this video, I probably wouldn't mind joining a paid campaign.