I know it isn't something that everyone agrees with, but it is something that I've had suggested to be several times. This question is mostly for those that would be willing to pay for a dm. I've seen a huge variance in the amount that people are charging for the service and wanted to know what was comfortable on average. I had considered charging around $15 per person per session with an average of 4 hours per sessions and a typical party being 4 people($60 per session). I would include in my services a free session 0, the option of choosing to do a homebrew campaign/one shot, run a campaign book(if able to be obtained), and quality game with fun experiences.
My experience with DMing is being the permanent DM for multiple groups over several years dating back to pathfinder days. I tend to stay to 5e as of recent, both because it is easier to use and newer. I've done lots of roleplaying on forums, mmo's, and some mild larping. I have a flair for the dramatic when it comes to my stories, often hearing that they are some of my players most fond memories when playing. I wouldn't claim to be the best, but will confidently state I am far from the worst.
Do you think my considered pricing is fair? Would you be willing to pay more? Less?
I'd love to hear your reasoning.
EDIT: For clarification, any one person would be paying $15 per session.
I have definitely considered paying to have someone DM for me for a couple of different reasons.
1. I am an outcast in my group of friends as far liking D&D goes so I don't a lot options to get into a game.
2. I want a good experience when I play and I consider D&D a form o entertainment so I am definitely willing to play for things that keep me happy and entertained.
I personally think the $15.00 per session price point is a little high. I'm already spending a lot of money on this hobby on a monthly basis and adding another $60.00 can often be a breaking point for me. I would consider paying $15.00 per session under great circumstances, but would be a lot more inclined to pay some where between $5-$10 per session.
All opinions on this are very helpful. I could understand feeling it is too high, which is something I'm trying to find the right balance for. I imagined that if people want one session on a weekly or biweekly basis, $15 wouldn't be too much. The $60 is me thinking each party will have an average of 4 people. I suppose some people could pay for their entire party and then $60 a week would be a bit much. $10 still seems very fair and something I wouldn't mind doing as well.
I have definitely considered paying to have someone DM for me for a couple of different reasons.
1. I am an outcast in my group of friends as far liking D&D goes so I don't a lot options to get into a game.
2. I want a good experience when I play and I consider D&D a form o entertainment so I am definitely willing to play for things that keep me happy and entertained.
I personally think the $15.00 per session price point is a little high. I'm already spending a lot of money on this hobby on a monthly basis and adding another $60.00 can often be a breaking point for me. I would consider paying $15.00 per session under great circumstances, but would be a lot more inclined to pay some where between $5-$10 per session.
I hope this was helpful.
Cheers!
He wasn't carging 15 er session, it was per hour of a session, so you are looking at 60 per week - which is simply a ridiculous amount, especially as it is per person.
I have definitely considered paying to have someone DM for me for a couple of different reasons.
1. I am an outcast in my group of friends as far liking D&D goes so I don't a lot options to get into a game.
2. I want a good experience when I play and I consider D&D a form o entertainment so I am definitely willing to play for things that keep me happy and entertained.
I personally think the $15.00 per session price point is a little high. I'm already spending a lot of money on this hobby on a monthly basis and adding another $60.00 can often be a breaking point for me. I would consider paying $15.00 per session under great circumstances, but would be a lot more inclined to pay some where between $5-$10 per session.
I hope this was helpful.
Cheers!
He wasn't carging 15 er session, it was per hour of a session, so you are looking at 60 per week - which is simply a ridiculous amount, especially as it is per person.
Just to clarify, any one person would be paying $15 per session. I will add that clarification to the main post. If everyone was paying $60, that would be insane to me.
As I've stated pretty much every time this gets brought up: the first thing to ask when you're planning to do paid GMing is "what is it that I am providing here that will cause people to want to pay money for an experience that they normally would be getting for free?" How many sessions are you planning on having for a campaign? How much content are you planning to provide each session? What's your ability to actually provide content like that on a weekly basis? I'm not trying to discourage you from doing this, but there is an entirely different dynamic and set of expectations when people are paying for gaming.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
As I've stated pretty much every time this gets brought up: the first thing to ask when you're planning to do paid GMing is "what is it that I am providing here that will cause people to want to pay money for an experience that they normally would be getting for free?" How many sessions are you planning on having for a campaign? How much content are you planning to provide each session? What's your ability to actually provide content like that on a weekly basis? I'm not trying to discourage you from doing this, but there is an entirely different dynamic and set of expectations when people are paying for gaming.
These are all very valid things to mention for anyone looking to do it. Personally, I wouldn't have considered doing it myself. It's been the players I've had mentioning this several times over years and different parties that made me curious. I would imagine the biggest draw is that a paid dm is someone more confident in their ability to provide a worthy experience. A paid dm, at least to me, needs to be able to give a cohesive story, fun mechanics, and consistency we often struggle to get in our regular searches for games. As I have multiple games during a week previously, I don't imagine it would be too different than what I'd normally do. If anything, I'd feel that I must do more and would go beyond my norm for the paying players.
... I had considered charging around $15 per person per session with an average of 4 hours per sessions($60 per session). I would include in my services a free session 0, the option of choosing to do a homebrew campaign/one shot, run a campaign book(if able to be obtained), and quality game with fun experiences. ... Do you think my considered pricing is fair? Would you be willing to pay more? Less? ... EDIT: For clarification, any one person would be paying $15 per session.
I think $15 per session is fair when compared to other entertainment/leisure options, especially if it can last up to four hours. A movie at the theater lasts around two hours and costs around $15. A meal at a regular diner can be anywhere from $10 to $25, and it takes around an hour or so.
As 6thLyranGuard has said though, to be able to charge that premium, from the customer's perspective, you need to be to offer something extra that a free GM might not be able to consistently provide. Theaters can command a premium since viewers can watch the latest movies that are not going to be available anywhere else for a while. The price of a meal at a restaurant not only covers the food, but it also covers the convenience of not preparing your own food and washing the dishes.
In regards to GM services, some example selling points could be: - GM experience (e.g.: a decade of experience; experience in other TTRPGs; offering an experience similar to what you see online) - Gameplay enhancements (music; props; minis and terrain; drinks and snacks; private room at a game store) - Convenience (access to a VTT; own most/all 5e books in print and/or on D&D Beyond; own third party books; in person or online)
Just as a point of reference, I've been to some Adventurer's League games where the cost is only $5 per session (not per hour per session, also Canadian Dollars since I'm in Canada. So that's like $3.75USD). Usually these will last about 3-4 hours. Of course these sessions are ran in a more simplified method and would definitely never have a full homebrew campaign or tailored storylines. So $15 per session, or $60 per session is extremely high, so you'd better have a lot to deliver (minis, maps, personalized storylines, and other props).
But in my opinion, I wouldn't charge much more than that for a session, especially if they are friends of mine. I've seen some people post on facebook for DM'ing services and it would of course depend on the quality of work that everyone is receiving. As annoying as it is, it's best to come up with a formal terms with yourself and all of your players so they know exactly what they can expect from your sessions and from each other. Too often these games can fall apart, not just from the DM, but also from other players.
For myself as a DM with my friends, I've considered asking my friends to pitch in for some things like the annual DNDBeyond subscription, but otherwise I'm happy to DM for them. The prep work is a hobby for me and I enjoy running the games for my friends. We take turns bringing snacks in and just enjoy together.
roll20 seems to have $10 per session as a common price, so I would assume that for your $15/session you are definitely including top quality VTT support?
... I had considered charging around $15 per person per session with an average of 4 hours per sessions($60 per session). I would include in my services a free session 0, the option of choosing to do a homebrew campaign/one shot, run a campaign book(if able to be obtained), and quality game with fun experiences. ... Do you think my considered pricing is fair? Would you be willing to pay more? Less? ... EDIT: For clarification, any one person would be paying $15 per session.
I think $15 per session is fair when compared to other entertainment/leisure options, especially if it can last up to four hours. A movie at the theater lasts around two hours and costs around $15. A meal at a regular diner can be anywhere from $10 to $25, and it takes around an hour or so.
As 6thLyranGuard has said though, to be able to charge that premium, from the customer's perspective, you need to be to offer something extra that a free GM might not be able to consistently provide. Theaters can command a premium since viewers can watch the latest movies that are not going to be available anywhere else for a while. The price of a meal at a restaurant not only covers the food, but it also covers the convenience of not preparing your own food and washing the dishes.
In regards to GM services, some example selling points could be: - GM experience (e.g.: a decade of experience; experience in other TTRPGs; offering an experience similar to what you see online) - Gameplay enhancements (music; props; minis and terrain; drinks and snacks; private room at a game store) - Convenience (access to a VTT; own most/all 5e books in print and/or on D&D Beyond; own third party books; in person or online)
The selling points you've listed are things that I was weighing when it came to the price. I believe I have the DM experience. The gameplay enhancements would be more geared towards an online experience, so that shouldn't be terribly hard to take care of. I tend to use music, make custom maps, and tokens for my games. When I ran games in person before covid hit, I did also provide snacks for the table. It's just a mindset to making the game more enjoyable overall. The convenience should also take care of itself, but I do have a question regarding the ownership of the books. Would it be alright for the DM to have all the source media, but only purchase modules and the like when it is requested by a party?
Thank you for your input. It help shed some light on what is expected.
Nobody is going to pay $60 ($240 for a group of 4) to listen to a DM over the internet unless it is Matt Mercer and proceeds are for charity.
I would never expect anyone to pay $60 per person unless it is a celebrity charity game as you said. The pricing I listed is $15 per person. If the party is at least 4 people, that would be $60.
Just as a point of reference, I've been to some Adventurer's League games where the cost is only $5 per session (not per hour per session, also Canadian Dollars since I'm in Canada. So that's like $3.75USD). Usually these will last about 3-4 hours. Of course these sessions are ran in a more simplified method and would definitely never have a full homebrew campaign or tailored storylines. So $15 per session, or $60 per session is extremely high, so you'd better have a lot to deliver (minis, maps, personalized storylines, and other props).
But in my opinion, I wouldn't charge much more than that for a session, especially if they are friends of mine. I've seen some people post on facebook for DM'ing services and it would of course depend on the quality of work that everyone is receiving. As annoying as it is, it's best to come up with a formal terms with yourself and all of your players so they know exactly what they can expect from your sessions and from each other. Too often these games can fall apart, not just from the DM, but also from other players.
For myself as a DM with my friends, I've considered asking my friends to pitch in for some things like the annual DNDBeyond subscription, but otherwise I'm happy to DM for them. The prep work is a hobby for me and I enjoy running the games for my friends. We take turns bringing snacks in and just enjoy together.
I've played in some of those games as well. I think a $5 USD price point is fair for those games because they are more simplified. I'd imagine if $15 is too high, that $10 would be a safer amount. I still run games for my friends and help other DM's with creating their games or situations in them. I do enjoy this as a hobby, but things we enjoy often make the best work. I'd hope that the games wouldn't fall apart(I've also seen many games do this). However, with it being a paid thing, that's the protection on time invested from the DM side. Obviously I can't exactly show my work or provide customer reviews at the moment, but I'm only exploring this option due to people that know of my DMing expressing that I could. This is the research phase for me.
roll20 seems to have $10 per session as a common price, so I would assume that for your $15/session you are definitely including top quality VTT support?
I've seen this as well and agree as above. I think $10 would be the safer route for someone starting out until they are known as a quality service provider.
Your pricing scheme seems fair to me. If you haven't done so already, you may want to look off this board (where I've heard hit and miss things about the paid DM marketplace) and look at some of those DM hiring services and look at the common rates, and then adjust price accordingly, if you become a "break out" you can raise your fees per the laws of supply and demand.
Another idea I've thought insofar as pricing is somehow creating a parallel to paid convention/tournament play. Twenty something years ago, some conventions had a general admission fee, then event tickets (usually about $5, so adjust that by twenty years a person). Of course those are one shots. One thing to also think about is a one shot rate vs a campaign rate where you'll have a lot more administrative overhead in terms of your time spent being consulted on character generation and scheduling and the like.
I think due to a typo combine with "paid DM NEVAR!" outrage, you're getting more flack than your post is warranted. Late to the game and post-edits your pitch seems to me to a be a modest proposal.
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
From a buyers perspective 15$ per session is a bargain if the quality is good. In Norway where I live that is very very low. A one hour massage costs like 40$+, not that I ever pay 40$ for massage or a dnd session.
As what you speak of is internet based you can considder the world your stage, and since you can only provide services for a few people at a time you just need a few paying clients. That means you can target those with wallets.
depending on the quality, i would not be surprised if some people would pay 40$ per session per head globally, and I would personally pay around 20$ per session if they were good. Time is precious!
All that said, with a four hour session even 20$*4players is 80$ per session, for an høurøy rate of 20$ Before taxes, expenses and preparations etc. As a business that is pretty shit, bit as a hobby it may be a great supplement :)
Your pricing scheme seems fair to me. If you haven't done so already, you may want to look off this board (where I've heard hit and miss things about the paid DM marketplace) and look at some of those DM hiring services and look at the common rates, and then adjust price accordingly, if you become a "break out" you can raise your fees per the laws of supply and demand.
Another idea I've thought insofar as pricing is somehow creating a parallel to paid convention/tournament play. Twenty something years ago, some conventions had a general admission fee, then event tickets (usually about $5, so adjust that by twenty years a person). Of course those are one shots. One thing to also think about is a one shot rate vs a campaign rate where you'll have a lot more administrative overhead in terms of your time spent being consulted on character generation and scheduling and the like.
I think due to a typo combine with "paid DM NEVAR!" outrage, you're getting more flack than your post is warranted. Late to the game and post-edits your pitch seems to me to a be a modest proposal.
I honestly hadn't considered charging differently for a one shot. My thoughts on the original pricing are around minimum wages for expected time spent. I'd be doing more work outside the game, but that should be a free/expected feature of having a DM. Things like making maps, writing the story, etc. I tend to do these things regardless, so I'd only expect players to pay for time played. With how one shots are typically done, I think dropping down to $5-$10 depending on player count would be very fair.
From a buyers perspective 15$ per session is a bargain if the quality is good. In Norway where I live that is very very low. A one hour massage costs like 40$+, not that I ever pay 40$ for massage or a dnd session.
As what you speak of is internet based you can considder the world your stage, and since you can only provide services for a few people at a time you just need a few paying clients. That means you can target those with wallets.
depending on the quality, i would not be surprised if some people would pay 40$ per session per head globally, and I would personally pay around 20$ per session if they were good. Time is precious!
All that said, with a four hour session even 20$*4players is 80$ per session, for an høurøy rate of 20$ Before taxes, expenses and preparations etc. As a business that is pretty shit, bit as a hobby it may be a great supplement :)
Exactly this is what I was thinking. I was considering it more of a supplement, at least for the time being. With the amount of time + resources invested, $15 didn't seem like it would be that much. I however wouldn't want to charge higher or not much higher personally unless people agree that I'm able to provide a worthwhile experience. May I ask what you would require for a session to be worth that $20 asking price? It can give me more of an idea of what's expected.
I honestly hadn't considered charging differently for a one shot. My thoughts on the original pricing are around minimum wages for expected time spent. I'd be doing more work outside the game, but that should be a free/expected feature of having a DM. Things like making maps, writing the story, etc. I tend to do these things regardless, so I'd only expect players to pay for time played. With how one shots are typically done, I think dropping down to $5-$10 depending on player count would be very fair.
Right, the reason I see one shot vs. campaign as priced different comes from a few factors. Sure, you need to do prep work for both one shots and a sustained campaign, but a one shot you can recycle for other customers (you may want to provide "bespoke" sessions to all your customers, but if you look at the DM services out there, a lot of providers doing one shots offers a handful. Saves you on some overhead there. A campaign just requires "more" work because on top of all the prep you have for a one shot, you have arcs and continuity and it's just a bigger project requiring a bigger investment of you time.
You'll also notice some paid DMs offer services to run off the shelf published adventures as campaigns or one shots. Those I raise my eyebrow at, but it's a thing. I get some people are isolated and it's the only way to play a new published adventure, etc. Price accordingly.
I know it isn't something that everyone agrees with, but it is something that I've had suggested to be several times. This question is mostly for those that would be willing to pay for a dm. I've seen a huge variance in the amount that people are charging for the service and wanted to know what was comfortable on average. I had considered charging around $15 per person per session with an average of 4 hours per sessions and a typical party being 4 people($60 per session). I would include in my services a free session 0, the option of choosing to do a homebrew campaign/one shot, run a campaign book(if able to be obtained), and quality game with fun experiences.
My experience with DMing is being the permanent DM for multiple groups over several years dating back to pathfinder days. I tend to stay to 5e as of recent, both because it is easier to use and newer. I've done lots of roleplaying on forums, mmo's, and some mild larping. I have a flair for the dramatic when it comes to my stories, often hearing that they are some of my players most fond memories when playing. I wouldn't claim to be the best, but will confidently state I am far from the worst.
Do you think my considered pricing is fair? Would you be willing to pay more? Less?
I'd love to hear your reasoning.
EDIT: For clarification, any one person would be paying $15 per session.
I have definitely considered paying to have someone DM for me for a couple of different reasons.
1. I am an outcast in my group of friends as far liking D&D goes so I don't a lot options to get into a game.
2. I want a good experience when I play and I consider D&D a form o entertainment so I am definitely willing to play for things that keep me happy and entertained.
I personally think the $15.00 per session price point is a little high. I'm already spending a lot of money on this hobby on a monthly basis and adding another $60.00 can often be a breaking point for me. I would consider paying $15.00 per session under great circumstances, but would be a lot more inclined to pay some where between $5-$10 per session.
I hope this was helpful.
Cheers!
All opinions on this are very helpful. I could understand feeling it is too high, which is something I'm trying to find the right balance for. I imagined that if people want one session on a weekly or biweekly basis, $15 wouldn't be too much. The $60 is me thinking each party will have an average of 4 people. I suppose some people could pay for their entire party and then $60 a week would be a bit much. $10 still seems very fair and something I wouldn't mind doing as well.
He wasn't carging 15 er session, it was per hour of a session, so you are looking at 60 per week - which is simply a ridiculous amount, especially as it is per person.
Just to clarify, any one person would be paying $15 per session. I will add that clarification to the main post. If everyone was paying $60, that would be insane to me.
As I've stated pretty much every time this gets brought up: the first thing to ask when you're planning to do paid GMing is "what is it that I am providing here that will cause people to want to pay money for an experience that they normally would be getting for free?" How many sessions are you planning on having for a campaign? How much content are you planning to provide each session? What's your ability to actually provide content like that on a weekly basis? I'm not trying to discourage you from doing this, but there is an entirely different dynamic and set of expectations when people are paying for gaming.
Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
These are all very valid things to mention for anyone looking to do it. Personally, I wouldn't have considered doing it myself. It's been the players I've had mentioning this several times over years and different parties that made me curious. I would imagine the biggest draw is that a paid dm is someone more confident in their ability to provide a worthy experience. A paid dm, at least to me, needs to be able to give a cohesive story, fun mechanics, and consistency we often struggle to get in our regular searches for games. As I have multiple games during a week previously, I don't imagine it would be too different than what I'd normally do. If anything, I'd feel that I must do more and would go beyond my norm for the paying players.
My recommendation comes from my experience as a contractor in other areas;
This alone, separate from all other considerations, would make me not want to do it.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
I think $15 per session is fair when compared to other entertainment/leisure options, especially if it can last up to four hours. A movie at the theater lasts around two hours and costs around $15. A meal at a regular diner can be anywhere from $10 to $25, and it takes around an hour or so.
As 6thLyranGuard has said though, to be able to charge that premium, from the customer's perspective, you need to be to offer something extra that a free GM might not be able to consistently provide. Theaters can command a premium since viewers can watch the latest movies that are not going to be available anywhere else for a while. The price of a meal at a restaurant not only covers the food, but it also covers the convenience of not preparing your own food and washing the dishes.
In regards to GM services, some example selling points could be:
- GM experience (e.g.: a decade of experience; experience in other TTRPGs; offering an experience similar to what you see online)
- Gameplay enhancements (music; props; minis and terrain; drinks and snacks; private room at a game store)
- Convenience (access to a VTT; own most/all 5e books in print and/or on D&D Beyond; own third party books; in person or online)
Check Licenses and Resync Entitlements: < https://www.dndbeyond.com/account/licenses >
Running the Game by Matt Colville; Introduction: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-YZvLUXcR8 >
D&D with High School Students by Bill Allen; Season 1 Episode 1: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52NJTUDokyk&t >
Just as a point of reference, I've been to some Adventurer's League games where the cost is only $5 per session (not per hour per session, also Canadian Dollars since I'm in Canada. So that's like $3.75USD). Usually these will last about 3-4 hours. Of course these sessions are ran in a more simplified method and would definitely never have a full homebrew campaign or tailored storylines. So $15 per session, or $60 per session is extremely high, so you'd better have a lot to deliver (minis, maps, personalized storylines, and other props).
But in my opinion, I wouldn't charge much more than that for a session, especially if they are friends of mine. I've seen some people post on facebook for DM'ing services and it would of course depend on the quality of work that everyone is receiving. As annoying as it is, it's best to come up with a formal terms with yourself and all of your players so they know exactly what they can expect from your sessions and from each other. Too often these games can fall apart, not just from the DM, but also from other players.
For myself as a DM with my friends, I've considered asking my friends to pitch in for some things like the annual DNDBeyond subscription, but otherwise I'm happy to DM for them. The prep work is a hobby for me and I enjoy running the games for my friends. We take turns bringing snacks in and just enjoy together.
roll20 seems to have $10 per session as a common price, so I would assume that for your $15/session you are definitely including top quality VTT support?
Nobody is going to pay $60 ($240 for a group of 4) to listen to a DM over the internet unless it is Matt Mercer and proceeds are for charity.
The selling points you've listed are things that I was weighing when it came to the price. I believe I have the DM experience. The gameplay enhancements would be more geared towards an online experience, so that shouldn't be terribly hard to take care of. I tend to use music, make custom maps, and tokens for my games. When I ran games in person before covid hit, I did also provide snacks for the table. It's just a mindset to making the game more enjoyable overall. The convenience should also take care of itself, but I do have a question regarding the ownership of the books. Would it be alright for the DM to have all the source media, but only purchase modules and the like when it is requested by a party?
Thank you for your input. It help shed some light on what is expected.
I would never expect anyone to pay $60 per person unless it is a celebrity charity game as you said. The pricing I listed is $15 per person. If the party is at least 4 people, that would be $60.
I've played in some of those games as well. I think a $5 USD price point is fair for those games because they are more simplified. I'd imagine if $15 is too high, that $10 would be a safer amount. I still run games for my friends and help other DM's with creating their games or situations in them. I do enjoy this as a hobby, but things we enjoy often make the best work. I'd hope that the games wouldn't fall apart(I've also seen many games do this). However, with it being a paid thing, that's the protection on time invested from the DM side. Obviously I can't exactly show my work or provide customer reviews at the moment, but I'm only exploring this option due to people that know of my DMing expressing that I could. This is the research phase for me.
I've seen this as well and agree as above. I think $10 would be the safer route for someone starting out until they are known as a quality service provider.
Your pricing scheme seems fair to me. If you haven't done so already, you may want to look off this board (where I've heard hit and miss things about the paid DM marketplace) and look at some of those DM hiring services and look at the common rates, and then adjust price accordingly, if you become a "break out" you can raise your fees per the laws of supply and demand.
Another idea I've thought insofar as pricing is somehow creating a parallel to paid convention/tournament play. Twenty something years ago, some conventions had a general admission fee, then event tickets (usually about $5, so adjust that by twenty years a person). Of course those are one shots. One thing to also think about is a one shot rate vs a campaign rate where you'll have a lot more administrative overhead in terms of your time spent being consulted on character generation and scheduling and the like.
I think due to a typo combine with "paid DM NEVAR!" outrage, you're getting more flack than your post is warranted. Late to the game and post-edits your pitch seems to me to a be a modest proposal.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
From a buyers perspective 15$ per session is a bargain if the quality is good. In Norway where I live that is very very low. A one hour massage costs like 40$+, not that I ever pay 40$ for massage or a dnd session.
As what you speak of is internet based you can considder the world your stage, and since you can only provide services for a few people at a time you just need a few paying clients. That means you can target those with wallets.
depending on the quality, i would not be surprised if some people would pay 40$ per session per head globally, and I would personally pay around 20$ per session if they were good. Time is precious!
All that said, with a four hour session even 20$*4players is 80$ per session, for an høurøy rate of 20$ Before taxes, expenses and preparations etc. As a business that is pretty shit, bit as a hobby it may be a great supplement :)
I honestly hadn't considered charging differently for a one shot. My thoughts on the original pricing are around minimum wages for expected time spent. I'd be doing more work outside the game, but that should be a free/expected feature of having a DM. Things like making maps, writing the story, etc. I tend to do these things regardless, so I'd only expect players to pay for time played. With how one shots are typically done, I think dropping down to $5-$10 depending on player count would be very fair.
Exactly this is what I was thinking. I was considering it more of a supplement, at least for the time being. With the amount of time + resources invested, $15 didn't seem like it would be that much. I however wouldn't want to charge higher or not much higher personally unless people agree that I'm able to provide a worthwhile experience. May I ask what you would require for a session to be worth that $20 asking price? It can give me more of an idea of what's expected.
Right, the reason I see one shot vs. campaign as priced different comes from a few factors. Sure, you need to do prep work for both one shots and a sustained campaign, but a one shot you can recycle for other customers (you may want to provide "bespoke" sessions to all your customers, but if you look at the DM services out there, a lot of providers doing one shots offers a handful. Saves you on some overhead there. A campaign just requires "more" work because on top of all the prep you have for a one shot, you have arcs and continuity and it's just a bigger project requiring a bigger investment of you time.
You'll also notice some paid DMs offer services to run off the shelf published adventures as campaigns or one shots. Those I raise my eyebrow at, but it's a thing. I get some people are isolated and it's the only way to play a new published adventure, etc. Price accordingly.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.