Game Mastering 101
Date: Sat, Jul 25, 2026
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Venue: South Regional Library – South Meeting Room, Durham
Price: Free
Category: Community
<p><strong>Due to a scheduling conflict, this program series has been moved to July 25 - August 22. </strong></p> <p> </p> <p>Are you interested in becoming a game or dungeon master but don't know how? Maybe you're scared you'll mess up or maybe you don't have a group of players to GM for. Either way, this is the place for you! Become a master game master in this program series with experienced GM and game studies professor DA Hall!</p> <p>Throughout the series, participants will learn the basics of GMing, get comfortable with collaborative storytelling, practice running their own one-shots, learn how to homebrew their own campaigns, and more.</p> <p> </p> <p><b>July 25, 2 - 2:30 p.m.</b></p> <p><b>GM Fundamentals Interactive Lecture</b></p> <p>This first session is an interactive lecture that will cover GM fundamentals such as basic terminology, collaborative storytelling, story hooks and worldbuilding, challenges and progression, game balance and random chance, and managing players before, during, and after the play session. </p> <p> </p> <p><b>August 1, 2 - 5 p.m.</b></p> <p><b>Guided Wanderhome Play</b></p> <p>In this session, participants will be split into groups of 3-4 and will play Wanderhome, a system without a primary GM, to get a feel for collaborative storytelling and worldbuilding, as well as playing different characters. Each group will have a veteran player to gently guide them.</p> <p> </p> <p><b>August 8, 2 - 3:30 p.m.</b></p> <p><b>Workshop on Running a D&D Campaign</b></p> <p>This workshop will cover how to structure single play sessions, structuring full campaigns, planning vs prepping, timing, improvisation, and more.</p> <p> </p> <p><b>August 15, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. OR 2 p.m. - 5 p.m.</b></p> <p><b>One Shot Playtest</b></p> <p>In this session, participants will get the chance to playtest the first session of their campaigns and receive gentle, constructive feedback from experienced players. Ex
