I'd like to hire a professional DM. I'm a professional and don't have either the time or gifts to be a DM. I've experienced some amazing DMing so I know it takes substantial intelligence and talent at storytelling to truly immerse your players into a game world and it's NPCs. I don't know anyone who plays anymore so I'm interested in a professional because I'd like to recruit some of my friends into DnD and I'd want them to have a great time with a great DM and I know that it takes a LOT of time in preparation.
How/where do I find a paid DM?
Thanks,
HbN
Are you looking for someone local for a face-to-face game or an online venue like Roll20, Discord, or here on Beyond, etc.?
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"The mongoose blew out its candle and was asleep in bed before the room went dark." —Llanowar fable
Is this a full time thing for you or a side job? I'm just wondering seeing as I love the game and the possibility of making a decent income via this route.
I have a group of 6-8 people, ages 25-50 something in a professional setting looking to hire a pro DM for a series of sessions probably about once a month.
We are located in the Empire State Building in NYC and are interested in in person DM only. Please private message me if you are in the area and would be interested: DoomJ@aol.com
My first session of D&D was at a local game shop where they charged us $10 each, with a cap at 6 people. It was like two hours long and we used Adventure League pregen characters. On the 4th of March, it was exactly two years ago. Within a few weeks, I was DMing at my college. On International Gaming Day I DMed for my college friends. My best friend since high school brought a friend to play that day. who was an experienced DM and had been playing since 3rd Edition. I had convinced my old friend to bring this person that day because I wanted a ringer to help out the newbies & more players. I met that player that day and we became friends on the spot and we just started dating last month.
"Paid DMing... Yes, No, Maybe?"
My answer is OH HELL YES!
Needless to say, it was the best $10 I ever spent. I learned a new game, reconnected with a friend from high school, made new friends. Became great friends with coworkers who either played D&D before or who had me as their first DM. I even met my soul mate thanks to ten bucks. Also, my partner and I are trying to start a game day at our local book store and will be hosting D&D workshops and lessons. I found this thread because I was trying to figure out how much we should charge the book store or newbies. Wish us luck. Paying a DM has come full circle for me.
I've been playing D&D and other tabletop settings for over 25 years, most of it as a DM/GM. When I first read an article about a paid GM, I was impressed and definitely intrigued. I know how much work goes into the process, and I have heard countless laments from people about, "how hard it is to find a quality DM!" I agree it's very challenging. I went down that rabbit hole and now, currently, I am a paid DM running 3 different games online via roll20. I am also a player in a paid game on Roll20. I have been participating in paid games for over a year now. On both sides of the DM screen I have noticed the following trends, which I believe are created by the paywall effect:
It's a higher quality game. Experienced DMs, better improv and storytelling, better maps and handouts. Have I DM'd better games over the last 25 years for free? Maybe? But with the dues paid for sessions, I am able to buy all the books, maps, and special extras that really improve the quality of life in the games. As a player, have I ever had a better DM than my current paid DM.. in 25 years? Of course, but they were few and far between. Being an excellent DM is not easy. Finding an excellent DM is not easy.
The players (and DM) are invested in the game. No one shows up late, no one is distracted on their phones, no random tangents about out of game humor and stories. It is a focused and fun game session, every time. The players know their game time has a real value a fixed to it and want to make the most of that time. The DM knows the session needs to be well run, fun, and organized, it's the product they are selling after all.
Professionalism. Campaign details, house rules, and player/DM expectations are spelled out in black and white up front. Bickering, real-life baggage, DM favoritism, inappropriate interactions, and so on are all managed and dealt with professionally, because, the DM is a professional.
Again, I have been playing for 25 years. I've been in, organized, and run many different groups. I know that you can find all these things listed above "in the wild" "for free." And if you have, you are very fortunate. You should be thankful, and take good care of your group, because what you have is very rare and very special.
I also know that it is OK to have a casual D&D group of friends; goofing and joking and casually playing the game.
Here's the thing though. Sometimes, people want to do things in a more organized way.
Often, these people hire professionals. Guides for vacations, tutors for music, planners for weddings, caterers to feed guests at a big event, Artists to create art, coaches for sports...
You went fishing with some friends and it was fun. The next time, you paid a professional guide to take you out in his pro fishing boat with all the best gear, to the best secret spots, to catch the best and biggest fish and it was also fun. Neither way was wrong. But the professional fishing guide was correct to place a cost, and a value, on their skills, experience, and equipment. Maybe that pro fishing guide takes their friends and family out for free, sure, but not 5 random people they just met online. A paid DM is no different, they have skills, experience, and equipment that are currently in demand. If you have the money and the time and are looking for a group, don't be afraid to give something like this a shot. There is no shame in hiring a professional, even, when you are having fun.
It's a higher quality game. Experienced DMs, better improv and storytelling, better maps and handouts. Have I DM'd better games over the last 25 years for free? Maybe? But with the dues paid for sessions, I am able to buy all the books, maps, and special extras that really improve the quality of life in the games. As a player, have I ever had a better DM than my current paid DM.. in 25 years? Of course, but they were few and far between. Being an excellent DM is not easy. Finding an excellent DM is not easy.
Although I'd love to see this quantified.
For example, concepts like price-quality signaling and the notion that paying more makes us enjoy the product more lead to me being skeptical--not disbelief, just skepticism--that paid DMs really are better. What seems to be the case is that by simply charging money, where another DM is free, a paid DM will create a belief in her players that she is a better DM. And in fact that people will already start believing that before they play her game.
It's two psychological effects at work. We see a service for a fee that others give away for free, and the immediate assumption is that the paid service is better. And then, once we have gone ahead and paid for the service, we strengthen our perception that it is better--regardless (to a certain extent) of the actual quality. A crappy DM can't skate by, but if you take two relatively similar quality DMs, and have one charge money, my expectation is that people would rate the paid DM as significantly better.
None of that to say that people shouldn't charge, or shouldn't pay. I know a guy who pays local PhDs to come to his house for dinner and discussion with his family. I'm just curious about whether the claims of a higher quality product really bear out, given that we deceive ourselves about such things when money is in play.
All great points. But then your experience is how you perceive it to be. Does bottled water taste better? Do you think it does?
But in counterpoint. I know excellent DMs running free games, and I know of paid games with terrible DMs hoping to skate by on the rep built by good, paid DMs. My own experience with paid games as both a DM and player, have been positive and have been better quality games (from my perspective). If you find an excellent free GM, hold on to them. If you try a few games with a paid DM and don't feel like it is worth it, move on.
Aren't you agreeing Brotherbock with and contradicting your point #1?
He's saying that "paid is better quality" - your point #1 - is unproven, and that anecdotal evidence is suspect because we bias our evaluations to justify our expenditure of resources.
You appear to be agreeing that perceptions are skewed ( your bottled water example ), that there are both good and bad DMs in both camps - and then go on to try and justify your assertion anecdotally, which we all seem to agree is a flawed way to evaluate.
While your point #2 about focus might hold true - I believe that comes at a cost. Part of the appeal for many is the relaxed social aspect of getting together with friends, and hanging out. The game is important, but by no means the only draw for them. This casual relaxed connection with the other Players isn't likely to materialize, unless you happen to all be friends outside the game and have hired a DM. Even in that case, the easy social connection with the DM is lost - unless there's a social connection the DM outside the game - in which case why is this a paid relationship? I don't invite people over for dinner, and then charge them, no matter how good and professional grade a cook I am.
As for professionalism - there is nothing in your list which I don't work damn hard at, every session. My session zero is pretty exhaustive, and I maintain ongoing - low key - email conversations with all my Players via email. Not a huge volume, but the communication channels are always open. I am not a professional ( in that I don't get paid ), but I strive for professionalism, as do many DMs out here who I have come to respect.
I'm not against paid DM'ing - although it's not for me either as a DM or a Player - and I think for people trying out games at game stores and conventions, it's a great way to get their feet wet with a system, or TTPRG as a hobby in general - but I think your claims that paid DM'ing is inherently better by your 3 assertions is suspect at best.
Money changing hands does not mystically "bless" the quality of the paid DM.
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Part of the consideration needs to be a bit like considering the placebo effect--if I am enjoying the paid game more than the free game, to some extent I might not care exactly what is causing my perception of quality :) If someone flat out told me "these two DMs are the same quality, but if you pay $10 you'll enjoy this one's game more", I might agree just so I do get more enjoyment.
I don't think it's that big a deal in the end, up until the hypothetical point where free DMs start not being able to draw players because of a perceived lack of quality. And that could happen--I used to teach some martial arts classes on my college campus in grad school, for free. Had fairly sparse numbers. As soon as I instituted $25/semester dues, suddenly people started showing up. More people showed up for first classes, and more kept showing up after they'd paid (first class free). I didn't change a thing in the instruction.
So there's the personal perception, and then there's the possible effect on other DMs, if and when paid DMing becomes a big thing. At that point, the causes of the perception of quality might become directly important. I'm not so much 'worried', as 'interested' in things like paid DMs, the popularity of Critical Role, etc. Will free DMs find it hard to find players--or maybe worse, find it hard to satisfy players--if the expectation becomes 'if you want a good game, you have to pay for it'?
That raises a question that I don't honestly know the answer to - is there a shortage of Players out there, or a shortage of DMs, or are they pretty balanced? I'm under the impression that the shortage is on the DM side, although I don't have any data, so I must admit that I just don't know.
I think that until there is a Player shortage, the specter of paid DMs scooping up all the good Players is theoretical at best.
As for the " I might agree just so I do get more enjoyment" approach - if I found myself doing that, I'd probably try and alter my perceptions rather than cater to them, since I can see rationally that they're skewed. Not everyone wants to do that, however.
As for the "Matt Mercer Effect" - where Players want to sign on for the "Critical Role Experience" - I think paid DMs are in a worse situation than casual DMs. As a casual DM, I can honestly say to my Players - I'll strive to be as good as Matt Mercer, if you'll honestly strive to be as good as Liam O'Brien ( and hey, if we can make that agreement, and try to be the best damn DM or Player that we can be, I'm all for that - the results would be awesome ) - while a paying Player might make the argument "Hey, I'm paying you good money here. Make it happen for me".
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That raises a question that I don't honestly know the answer to - is there a shortage of Players out there, or a shortage of DMs, or are they pretty balanced? I'm under the impression that the shortage is on the DM side, although I don't have any data, so I must admit that I just don't know.
I think that until there is a Player shortage, the specter of paid DMs scooping up all the good Players is theoretical at best.
As for the " I might agree just so I do get more enjoyment" approach - if I found myself doing that, I'd probably try and alter my perceptions rather than cater to them, since I can see rationally that they're skewed. Not everyone wants to do that, however.
As for the "Matt Mercer Effect" - where Players want to sign on for the "Critical Role Experience" - I think paid DMs are in a worse situation than casual DMs. As a casual DM, I can honestly say to my Players - I'll strive to be as good as Matt Mercer, if you'll honestly strive to be as good as Liam O'Brien ( and hey, if we can make that agreement, and try to be the best damn DM or Player that we can be, I'm all for that - the results would be awesome ) - while a paying Player might make the argument "Hey, I'm paying you good money here. Make it happen for me".
Agreed that free DMs may not have the same expectations. The concern is they may have worse, and self-fulfilling expectations placed on them :/
I don't think there's a problem here at the moment. But things change rapidly. I run LARPs at GenCon, and in the matter of what seemed like the blink of an eye (from the perspective of living it), we went from being one of the few groups doing so, to having to compete with a lot more groups, and many of them charging $40, $50, $60+ for a 4 hour game. We charged the minimum GC ticket price, as had pretty much everyone early on. Not sure if that affected anything in terms of drawing players and such. But it was a change that happened in a relatively short ten years or so. I wouldn't be terribly shocked if in five or ten more years, the bulletin boards at LGSs and the forums here are more like Amazon, where you're signing on and paying for your slot at the same time. I won't predict that. But it wouldn't shock me.
Care to elaborate on the "worse, and self-fulfilling expectations placed on them"? Not trying to quibble here - just want to know what those expectations are likely to be?
I don't think I'd argue that CR and the sudden upswing in TTRPG popularity hasn't raised the demand, and that price has risen to match the demand. That just seems to be the way of the world. I suspect it's a bubble, that will pop eventually, but I'm no soothsayer.
I'm not sure - apart from the pricing changes - what the other changes mean - nor what the move to an Amazon style purchasing model actually means, since I have next to zero Con experience.
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Aren't you agreeing Brotherbock with and contradicting your point #1?
He's saying that "paid is better quality" - your point #1 - is unproven, and that anecdotal evidence is suspect because we bias our evaluations to justify our expenditure of resources.
You appear to be agreeing that perceptions are skewed ( your bottled water example ), that there are both good and bad DMs in both camps - and then go on to try and justify your assertion anecdotally, which we all seem to agree is a flawed way to evaluate.
I readily concede that perspectives can and are skewed by expectations and outside influences. I also, within my first point concede I have run and been in games that were as good or better as paid games, but they were simply not as easy to find as a paid game (free games fill up very quickly, schedules are hard to sync, IRL games even more so). I can't and don't speak for all players and GMs. I am also only presenting my own experiences with paid games, players, and DMs and in my own experience, I found those 3 things to be consistent.
Regarding number 2. It's great to strive for a level of professionalism with the work (even hobby work) that you do. Though, I feel people are more likely to behave in and strive to maintain a professional manner if they are treated like professionals and have those expectations associated with the task at hand (AKA being paid for it). Also, as I said, casual games are cool, but if you want a more formal, focused game; in my experience paid games offer that more readily. For me, I enjoy the game itself, I have plenty of other venues to casually hang out and joke around with friends.
Excellent points are being brought up about the expectations popular streams and paid games are having on the hobby.
Care to elaborate on the "worse, and self-fulfilling expectations placed on them"? Not trying to quibble here - just want to know what those expectations are likely to be?
I don't think I'd argue that CR and the sudden upswing in TTRPG popularity hasn't raised the demand, and that price has risen to match the demand. That just seems to be the way of the world. I suspect it's a bubble, that will pop eventually, but I'm no soothsayer.
I'm not sure - apart from the pricing changes - what the other changes mean - nor what the move to an Amazon style purchasing model actually means, since I have next to zero Con experience.
On the self-fulfilling comment, I just mean that, in a projected scenario where paid GMing takes off, if it holds that both expectations and actual experiences of value are in part determined by price, then free GMs would likely be facing both lowered expectations and lowered actual player satisfaction. At least on average trends.
Right? If the prevailing mindset when a new player asked for advice became at some point "Find a paid game, they are much better", then when that player saw a free game, they'd think "Hmmm, must not be as good" (generic 'Sugary Flakes' are not going to be as good as Frosted FlakesTM). And, if they played in the game anyway, their experience won't (again on average) be perceived to be as enjoyable because they didn't pay for it.
There are tons of factors that could intervene. I like NPR a lot more than any Sirius station I could pay for :) But those phenomena would be a concern.
It's not GenCon moving towards a new purchasing model. That was just an example of really dramatic changes happening. The dramatic change to D&D DMing that I was hypothesizing was for example an Uber for D&D. You are looking for a game, so you pull up the app (struggling for a good name here...wait for it...wait for it...Ogur. There you go.) and you punch in your location and it says "4 DMs in your area", or more if you're willing to play online. You click a DM, it lists their campaigns, it lists open seats in the campaign. You select one of the seats, click the Sign Up button, Ogur charges your credit card, and you're in the game.
That's not really all that shocking of a future development, I don't think.
Compare it to a college campus where you used to be able to find ridesharing posted on bulletin boards. "Driving to Chicago this weekend, looking for passenger to split gas costs." Now ridesharing is a paid app/service.
To be clear, it's also perfectly possible that another MtG comes along and kicks tabletop RPGing to the curb once again. The change in the number of TTRPGs, and the number of people playing them, between 1993 and 1994 was shocking. TTRPGing just fell off a cliff. And we all know why, don't we WotC? :/
If people are willing to pay, and the DM is willing to take it, I see no harm. and seemingly 70%+ seem to agree.
I haven't played D&D since AD&D when i was a young teen and even back then I only played as one character to level 6 for about 3 months, then got on with doing but have recently begun DM'ing for a couple of groups in my local area in Perth Australia.
I love the challenge, I also love crafting which I have spent countless $$ on just in Crafting the Tiles, Scenes, Dungeons, Caves Buildings, etc... the list goes on, I have bought almost all the source books on here, some of the modules, I invest in Kickstarters and contribute on Patreon. In my games I provide the Hand Crafted 3D scenes, Sound effects, Lighting, and Props. I even ensure there are snacks at the table. I do my best to provide the story and improvise when needed and an overall pleasurable experience, i'm not a great voice over guy, i'm not an attractive actor. I like to think that I provide a "Pro DM" experience to my players. And for now I do it all for free.
But in the poll i voted YES.
This is because I do intend to turn my skills and significant investment into a paid service soon, and here is the reason why, I just want to get paid to do something I love, instead of being paid to do something I hate. I am good enough, I have all the tools, I have the confidence, And supply and demand is there in spades, in fact when I post that i'm looking for a group I have to turn away so many interested people it makes me feel bad for those missing out. Sure some people will turn there nose at paying, and that's OK i'm happy for them, because there are people out there that are more than happy to pay for the service. and from my experience so far, there are far more players than available DM's by a huge margin.
So the next time I advertise LFG, its going to be $$ per game session. This is definitely not about getting rich, id just like to be able to cover the basics and spend more money on the Tabletop Crafting community, Kickstarters and Patreons to help them out while enriching my players paid experiences.
I do not think that there is anything wrong with DM's getting paid. The majority of the prep is on them. Players are not always as dedicated to the game, they show up if they want. Some won't even invest in a Player's Handbook or things that they need for their characters (dice, etc). Time is precious for everyone but DM's have the majority of the work when it comes to keeping the game going. If they don't prepare people don't play. And usually DM's end up running a game and not being able to play in any.
I dont think that there is anything wrong with it. I myself have never done it nor do I think I ever will. You defiantly want to make sure that the players are getting what they payed for, and them some. You are getting paid for it so you should be putting a good amount of time into you game prep. Not just overall but after each session while events are fresh in your head and also before the game session. You will want to make sure that there is a good amount of content and then some for when the players do something you did not expect. I think it would be ideal to charge per session and prices could vary depending where you play. Face to face or online for example. Just try not to make it feel like a job and ruin the fun for yourself.
Our DM normaly gets paid in food, sweets and drinks. I saw someone offering DnD games on Meetup for like 10 Euros. I think he was booked preety much every week. Tbh if you want a more realistic survey you shouldn't ask this question in a DM only subforum.
Are you looking for someone local for a face-to-face game or an online venue like Roll20, Discord, or here on Beyond, etc.?
Is this a full time thing for you or a side job? I'm just wondering seeing as I love the game and the possibility of making a decent income via this route.
Hello All,
I have a group of 6-8 people, ages 25-50 something in a professional setting looking to hire a pro DM for a series of sessions probably about once a month.
We are located in the Empire State Building in NYC and are interested in in person DM only. Please private message me if you are in the area and would be interested: DoomJ@aol.com
Thanks!
Now I sort of wish I lived in New York. Gaming in the Empire State Building would be fun.
My first session of D&D was at a local game shop where they charged us $10 each, with a cap at 6 people. It was like two hours long and we used Adventure League pregen characters. On the 4th of March, it was exactly two years ago. Within a few weeks, I was DMing at my college. On International Gaming Day I DMed for my college friends. My best friend since high school brought a friend to play that day. who was an experienced DM and had been playing since 3rd Edition. I had convinced my old friend to bring this person that day because I wanted a ringer to help out the newbies & more players. I met that player that day and we became friends on the spot and we just started dating last month.
"Paid DMing... Yes, No, Maybe?"
My answer is OH HELL YES!
Needless to say, it was the best $10 I ever spent. I learned a new game, reconnected with a friend from high school, made new friends. Became great friends with coworkers who either played D&D before or who had me as their first DM. I even met my soul mate thanks to ten bucks. Also, my partner and I are trying to start a game day at our local book store and will be hosting D&D workshops and lessons. I found this thread because I was trying to figure out how much we should charge the book store or newbies. Wish us luck. Paying a DM has come full circle for me.
Thank you, D&D.
I've been playing D&D and other tabletop settings for over 25 years, most of it as a DM/GM. When I first read an article about a paid GM, I was impressed and definitely intrigued. I know how much work goes into the process, and I have heard countless laments from people about, "how hard it is to find a quality DM!" I agree it's very challenging. I went down that rabbit hole and now, currently, I am a paid DM running 3 different games online via roll20. I am also a player in a paid game on Roll20. I have been participating in paid games for over a year now. On both sides of the DM screen I have noticed the following trends, which I believe are created by the paywall effect:
Again, I have been playing for 25 years. I've been in, organized, and run many different groups. I know that you can find all these things listed above "in the wild" "for free." And if you have, you are very fortunate. You should be thankful, and take good care of your group, because what you have is very rare and very special.
I also know that it is OK to have a casual D&D group of friends; goofing and joking and casually playing the game.
Here's the thing though. Sometimes, people want to do things in a more organized way.
Often, these people hire professionals. Guides for vacations, tutors for music, planners for weddings, caterers to feed guests at a big event, Artists to create art, coaches for sports...
You went fishing with some friends and it was fun. The next time, you paid a professional guide to take you out in his pro fishing boat with all the best gear, to the best secret spots, to catch the best and biggest fish and it was also fun. Neither way was wrong. But the professional fishing guide was correct to place a cost, and a value, on their skills, experience, and equipment. Maybe that pro fishing guide takes their friends and family out for free, sure, but not 5 random people they just met online. A paid DM is no different, they have skills, experience, and equipment that are currently in demand. If you have the money and the time and are looking for a group, don't be afraid to give something like this a shot. There is no shame in hiring a professional, even, when you are having fun.
Currently Running:
Odyssey of the Dragonlords | Skull & Shackles | Mythic Odyssey | West Marches of Paradise Vale
Currently Playing:
Rime of the Frostmaiden
Find out more.
Although I'd love to see this quantified.
For example, concepts like price-quality signaling and the notion that paying more makes us enjoy the product more lead to me being skeptical--not disbelief, just skepticism--that paid DMs really are better. What seems to be the case is that by simply charging money, where another DM is free, a paid DM will create a belief in her players that she is a better DM. And in fact that people will already start believing that before they play her game.
It's two psychological effects at work. We see a service for a fee that others give away for free, and the immediate assumption is that the paid service is better. And then, once we have gone ahead and paid for the service, we strengthen our perception that it is better--regardless (to a certain extent) of the actual quality. A crappy DM can't skate by, but if you take two relatively similar quality DMs, and have one charge money, my expectation is that people would rate the paid DM as significantly better.
None of that to say that people shouldn't charge, or shouldn't pay. I know a guy who pays local PhDs to come to his house for dinner and discussion with his family. I'm just curious about whether the claims of a higher quality product really bear out, given that we deceive ourselves about such things when money is in play.
Looking for new subclasses, spells, magic items, feats, and races? Opinions welcome :)
All great points. But then your experience is how you perceive it to be. Does bottled water taste better? Do you think it does?
But in counterpoint. I know excellent DMs running free games, and I know of paid games with terrible DMs hoping to skate by on the rep built by good, paid DMs. My own experience with paid games as both a DM and player, have been positive and have been better quality games (from my perspective). If you find an excellent free GM, hold on to them. If you try a few games with a paid DM and don't feel like it is worth it, move on.
Currently Running:
Odyssey of the Dragonlords | Skull & Shackles | Mythic Odyssey | West Marches of Paradise Vale
Currently Playing:
Rime of the Frostmaiden
Find out more.
Aren't you agreeing Brotherbock with and contradicting your point #1?
He's saying that "paid is better quality" - your point #1 - is unproven, and that anecdotal evidence is suspect because we bias our evaluations to justify our expenditure of resources.
You appear to be agreeing that perceptions are skewed ( your bottled water example ), that there are both good and bad DMs in both camps - and then go on to try and justify your assertion anecdotally, which we all seem to agree is a flawed way to evaluate.
While your point #2 about focus might hold true - I believe that comes at a cost. Part of the appeal for many is the relaxed social aspect of getting together with friends, and hanging out. The game is important, but by no means the only draw for them. This casual relaxed connection with the other Players isn't likely to materialize, unless you happen to all be friends outside the game and have hired a DM. Even in that case, the easy social connection with the DM is lost - unless there's a social connection the DM outside the game - in which case why is this a paid relationship? I don't invite people over for dinner, and then charge them, no matter how good and professional grade a cook I am.
As for professionalism - there is nothing in your list which I don't work damn hard at, every session. My session zero is pretty exhaustive, and I maintain ongoing - low key - email conversations with all my Players via email. Not a huge volume, but the communication channels are always open. I am not a professional ( in that I don't get paid ), but I strive for professionalism, as do many DMs out here who I have come to respect.
I'm not against paid DM'ing - although it's not for me either as a DM or a Player - and I think for people trying out games at game stores and conventions, it's a great way to get their feet wet with a system, or TTPRG as a hobby in general - but I think your claims that paid DM'ing is inherently better by your 3 assertions is suspect at best.
Money changing hands does not mystically "bless" the quality of the paid DM.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
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Part of the consideration needs to be a bit like considering the placebo effect--if I am enjoying the paid game more than the free game, to some extent I might not care exactly what is causing my perception of quality :) If someone flat out told me "these two DMs are the same quality, but if you pay $10 you'll enjoy this one's game more", I might agree just so I do get more enjoyment.
I don't think it's that big a deal in the end, up until the hypothetical point where free DMs start not being able to draw players because of a perceived lack of quality. And that could happen--I used to teach some martial arts classes on my college campus in grad school, for free. Had fairly sparse numbers. As soon as I instituted $25/semester dues, suddenly people started showing up. More people showed up for first classes, and more kept showing up after they'd paid (first class free). I didn't change a thing in the instruction.
So there's the personal perception, and then there's the possible effect on other DMs, if and when paid DMing becomes a big thing. At that point, the causes of the perception of quality might become directly important. I'm not so much 'worried', as 'interested' in things like paid DMs, the popularity of Critical Role, etc. Will free DMs find it hard to find players--or maybe worse, find it hard to satisfy players--if the expectation becomes 'if you want a good game, you have to pay for it'?
Looking for new subclasses, spells, magic items, feats, and races? Opinions welcome :)
That raises a question that I don't honestly know the answer to - is there a shortage of Players out there, or a shortage of DMs, or are they pretty balanced? I'm under the impression that the shortage is on the DM side, although I don't have any data, so I must admit that I just don't know.
I think that until there is a Player shortage, the specter of paid DMs scooping up all the good Players is theoretical at best.
As for the " I might agree just so I do get more enjoyment" approach - if I found myself doing that, I'd probably try and alter my perceptions rather than cater to them, since I can see rationally that they're skewed. Not everyone wants to do that, however.
As for the "Matt Mercer Effect" - where Players want to sign on for the "Critical Role Experience" - I think paid DMs are in a worse situation than casual DMs. As a casual DM, I can honestly say to my Players - I'll strive to be as good as Matt Mercer, if you'll honestly strive to be as good as Liam O'Brien ( and hey, if we can make that agreement, and try to be the best damn DM or Player that we can be, I'm all for that - the results would be awesome ) - while a paying Player might make the argument "Hey, I'm paying you good money here. Make it happen for me".
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
Agreed that free DMs may not have the same expectations. The concern is they may have worse, and self-fulfilling expectations placed on them :/
I don't think there's a problem here at the moment. But things change rapidly. I run LARPs at GenCon, and in the matter of what seemed like the blink of an eye (from the perspective of living it), we went from being one of the few groups doing so, to having to compete with a lot more groups, and many of them charging $40, $50, $60+ for a 4 hour game. We charged the minimum GC ticket price, as had pretty much everyone early on. Not sure if that affected anything in terms of drawing players and such. But it was a change that happened in a relatively short ten years or so. I wouldn't be terribly shocked if in five or ten more years, the bulletin boards at LGSs and the forums here are more like Amazon, where you're signing on and paying for your slot at the same time. I won't predict that. But it wouldn't shock me.
Looking for new subclasses, spells, magic items, feats, and races? Opinions welcome :)
Care to elaborate on the "worse, and self-fulfilling expectations placed on them"? Not trying to quibble here - just want to know what those expectations are likely to be?
I don't think I'd argue that CR and the sudden upswing in TTRPG popularity hasn't raised the demand, and that price has risen to match the demand. That just seems to be the way of the world. I suspect it's a bubble, that will pop eventually, but I'm no soothsayer.
I'm not sure - apart from the pricing changes - what the other changes mean - nor what the move to an Amazon style purchasing model actually means, since I have next to zero Con experience.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I readily concede that perspectives can and are skewed by expectations and outside influences. I also, within my first point concede I have run and been in games that were as good or better as paid games, but they were simply not as easy to find as a paid game (free games fill up very quickly, schedules are hard to sync, IRL games even more so). I can't and don't speak for all players and GMs. I am also only presenting my own experiences with paid games, players, and DMs and in my own experience, I found those 3 things to be consistent.
Regarding number 2. It's great to strive for a level of professionalism with the work (even hobby work) that you do. Though, I feel people are more likely to behave in and strive to maintain a professional manner if they are treated like professionals and have those expectations associated with the task at hand (AKA being paid for it). Also, as I said, casual games are cool, but if you want a more formal, focused game; in my experience paid games offer that more readily. For me, I enjoy the game itself, I have plenty of other venues to casually hang out and joke around with friends.
Excellent points are being brought up about the expectations popular streams and paid games are having on the hobby.
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On the self-fulfilling comment, I just mean that, in a projected scenario where paid GMing takes off, if it holds that both expectations and actual experiences of value are in part determined by price, then free GMs would likely be facing both lowered expectations and lowered actual player satisfaction. At least on average trends.
Right? If the prevailing mindset when a new player asked for advice became at some point "Find a paid game, they are much better", then when that player saw a free game, they'd think "Hmmm, must not be as good" (generic 'Sugary Flakes' are not going to be as good as Frosted FlakesTM). And, if they played in the game anyway, their experience won't (again on average) be perceived to be as enjoyable because they didn't pay for it.
There are tons of factors that could intervene. I like NPR a lot more than any Sirius station I could pay for :) But those phenomena would be a concern.
It's not GenCon moving towards a new purchasing model. That was just an example of really dramatic changes happening. The dramatic change to D&D DMing that I was hypothesizing was for example an Uber for D&D. You are looking for a game, so you pull up the app (struggling for a good name here...wait for it...wait for it...Ogur. There you go.) and you punch in your location and it says "4 DMs in your area", or more if you're willing to play online. You click a DM, it lists their campaigns, it lists open seats in the campaign. You select one of the seats, click the Sign Up button, Ogur charges your credit card, and you're in the game.
That's not really all that shocking of a future development, I don't think.
Compare it to a college campus where you used to be able to find ridesharing posted on bulletin boards. "Driving to Chicago this weekend, looking for passenger to split gas costs." Now ridesharing is a paid app/service.
To be clear, it's also perfectly possible that another MtG comes along and kicks tabletop RPGing to the curb once again. The change in the number of TTRPGs, and the number of people playing them, between 1993 and 1994 was shocking. TTRPGing just fell off a cliff. And we all know why, don't we WotC? :/
Looking for new subclasses, spells, magic items, feats, and races? Opinions welcome :)
If people are willing to pay, and the DM is willing to take it, I see no harm. and seemingly 70%+ seem to agree.
I haven't played D&D since AD&D when i was a young teen and even back then I only played as one character to level 6 for about 3 months, then got on with doing but have recently begun DM'ing for a couple of groups in my local area in Perth Australia.
I love the challenge, I also love crafting which I have spent countless $$ on just in Crafting the Tiles, Scenes, Dungeons, Caves Buildings, etc... the list goes on, I have bought almost all the source books on here, some of the modules, I invest in Kickstarters and contribute on Patreon. In my games I provide the Hand Crafted 3D scenes, Sound effects, Lighting, and Props. I even ensure there are snacks at the table. I do my best to provide the story and improvise when needed and an overall pleasurable experience, i'm not a great voice over guy, i'm not an attractive actor. I like to think that I provide a "Pro DM" experience to my players. And for now I do it all for free.
But in the poll i voted YES.
This is because I do intend to turn my skills and significant investment into a paid service soon, and here is the reason why, I just want to get paid to do something I love, instead of being paid to do something I hate. I am good enough, I have all the tools, I have the confidence, And supply and demand is there in spades, in fact when I post that i'm looking for a group I have to turn away so many interested people it makes me feel bad for those missing out. Sure some people will turn there nose at paying, and that's OK i'm happy for them, because there are people out there that are more than happy to pay for the service. and from my experience so far, there are far more players than available DM's by a huge margin.
So the next time I advertise LFG, its going to be $$ per game session. This is definitely not about getting rich, id just like to be able to cover the basics and spend more money on the Tabletop Crafting community, Kickstarters and Patreons to help them out while enriching my players paid experiences.
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I do not think that there is anything wrong with DM's getting paid. The majority of the prep is on them. Players are not always as dedicated to the game, they show up if they want. Some won't even invest in a Player's Handbook or things that they need for their characters (dice, etc). Time is precious for everyone but DM's have the majority of the work when it comes to keeping the game going. If they don't prepare people don't play. And usually DM's end up running a game and not being able to play in any.
I dont think that there is anything wrong with it. I myself have never done it nor do I think I ever will. You defiantly want to make sure that the players are getting what they payed for, and them some. You are getting paid for it so you should be putting a good amount of time into you game prep. Not just overall but after each session while events are fresh in your head and also before the game session. You will want to make sure that there is a good amount of content and then some for when the players do something you did not expect. I think it would be ideal to charge per session and prices could vary depending where you play. Face to face or online for example. Just try not to make it feel like a job and ruin the fun for yourself.
I say yes but I say no.
First off... the no... there’s tons of GMs out there that would love to get paid for DMing. So why you?
ultimately my answer is yes but if you think your worth it then prove it. Be a cut above the rest? How do you do that? Idono.
Our DM normaly gets paid in food, sweets and drinks. I saw someone offering DnD games on Meetup for like 10 Euros. I think he was booked preety much every week. Tbh if you want a more realistic survey you shouldn't ask this question in a DM only subforum.