Game Masters seeking to become D&D in a Castle Dungeon Masters will need to meet a high standard of excellence in their craft, in their ability to work with a diverse team of industry professionals, and to consistently exceed the expectations of international D&D aficionados. 

Please read these Dungeon Master Mission Standards to familiarize yourself with the task before you before completing the application below for consideration.

D&D in a Castle Mission: 

To provide players with a lifetime “high water mark” for an ultimate D&D Vacation Adventure. At the center of this vacation experience is the D&D Campaign, and at the center of the campaign, is the Dungeon Master. 

Key Dungeon Master Qualities:

Great Dungeon Masters come in all shapes, sizes and styles, but to be a great DM for D&D in a Castle, there are a few common elements we look for.

Perception/ Empathy: 

Reading the room, sensing the beat and vibe of your players, making everyone feel special at various moments in the campaign. A great DM learns to read his players either through subtle cues or honest and open communication. In any case, our DM’s need to aspire to having their finger on the pulse of their players and receiving that input in real time and using it to guide their game.

Pacing: 

Great DM’s have great timing. Running a campaign that hits the right notes at the right time most of the time is key. It’s OK to run long, it’s ok to spend extra time on key (but unplanned) moments… see Empathy above… but in general a great DM adjusts their prepared content on the fly to fit a great story into the time available. If a DM does go into overtime it’s with the end in mind and the buy in of their players. 

Rules Foundation: 

Not every great DM is an encyclopedia on all of the rules and exceptions. But at a minimum our DM’s need to be well versed in things like: action economy, all basic combat rules and maneuvers, timing and use of reaction abilities and spells, the abilities of any monsters they’re using in the campaign, rests (short and long) and hit dice use, unconsciousness and death saves. 

End State: 

Great campaigns end with each player feeling like their characters have closure. This closure in the form of an epilogue/ narrative is part of a player's journey to feeling that their time was meaningful, valuable, well spent, hard to repeat, etc… In short, great DM’s stick the landing. 

Accessibility and Inclusion:

Ensuring Accessibility and Inclusivity: Outstanding DMs ensure that their games are accessible to and enjoyable for every player, regardless of their background or needs. This involves preparing sessions that are mindful of various accessibility considerations, striving to accommodate all players in a manner that allows full participation. By adopting flexible gameplay methods and inclusive storytelling, they foster an environment where everyone feels welcome and valued.

Diversity into Campaigns: Great DMs recognize the power of diversity in enhancing narratives. They carefully craft worlds populated with a broad spectrum of characters and cultures, and handle themes with sensitivity and respect. This approach not only deepens the game's immersion but also ensures that the adventure reflects the richness of our diverse world, making every player feel represented and connected to the story.

Secondary Dungeon Master Qualities: 

Few DM’s have all of these qualities, but all great DMs are good at at least a subset of them. This is by no means a complete list, but these are the common secondary skills that we’ve seen with many of our exceptional DMs.

Exciting combats:

Many DM’s stage elaborate and varied combats that allow players to run their characters through a “tour” of environments, game rules and conditions that make the act of combat varied and exciting. These usually are accompanied by miniatures.

Voice/ NPC work: 

Voice acting, accents, diverse NPC personalities add tremendous depth to the play experience when done by an experienced DM.

Puzzles / Mysteries: 

Not every challenge needs to involve Hit Points. Some can involve theater of the mind, puzzled, investigation and exploration. Again good empathy (above) helps a great DM read the room and deliver more of the content his or her players are looking for. 

Plot / Intrigue: 

Complicated / nuanced plots that players can follow create “ah ha” and “wow” moments in a campaign and are often one of the emotional anchors players will talk about for years to come. Great DM’s who have good plot architecture skills deliver these moments in spades. 

Original Creations / Craft:

Some DM’s provide players with original content whether it’s a character sketch, on in-game discoverable assets (like a family will), these types of crafted real world artifacts can be meaningful both in game and beyond. 

Home Brew:

Original content, items, feats, spells, crafted by a DM with a game design foundation can make a D&D in a Castle game special and one of a kind. Especially when these items can be tied to a character’s background or in play choices.

Campaign Types:

The result of a DM’s prep should be a great and memorable campaign. In general we look for our DMs to run one of the following:

Custom Campaign:

Crafted for this player group at this event, the DM runs a unique campaign designed around the character backgrounds and player decisions/ input on the flavor of D&D they like to play.

Original Content:

Slightly different from a custom campaign, this is content the DM has crafted themselves and either self published or kept “in the can” for professional DMing. In either case the content has been created by the DM and can only be experienced by playing with that DM. 

Next Level Modules:

It is acceptable for a Castle DM to run a published module, if (and only if) they can deliver a next level play experience. In this case we are looking for DM’s to know the module inside and out. Deliver the scenes and narrative in their own voice and words (ie - not read straight from the book). The module should exist as a guideline/ roadmap, but not a technical specification or an exact recipe. In other words, the qualities that we want DM’s to bring to their campaigns (listed above) needs to take precedence over a published module. Players need to have agency and their character’s actions need to be able to change the course of the story, if appropriate.