Wizards of the Coast launches Dungeon Masters Guild

Dungeons & Dragons fans, take note: Self-publishing has just come to Forgotten Realms. Wizards of the Coast has just announced the “Dungeon Masters Guild,” an e-publishing site for self-publishing D&D adventures and other content set in the Forgotten Realms.

There’s a new way to buy and share D&D adventures. With the Dungeon Master’s Guild, you’ll be able to self-publish material set in the Forgotten Realms using monsters, spells, characters, and locations.

The Dungeon Masters Guild is a collaboration between Wizards Of The Coast and  OneBookshelf, (The folks behind Rpgnow/Drivethrough Rpg/DndClassics) You can self-publish D&D materials, and buy, sell, and share it. and they take 50% of the revenue.

For the first time ever, you’ll be able to self-publish material set in the Forgotten Realms. Set your side trek in Neverwinter or Baldur’s Gate, have your characters go toe-to-toe with the Xanathar, the beholder crime lord of Waterdeep, or fall in with some traitorous drow in Menzoberranzan. With some exceptions noted on the DMs Guild website, the Forgotten Realms is at your fingertips.

Those exceptions are as follows

• You get access to WotC’s IP, including brand names and other vital stuff.
• There are resources – templates stock art, et. you can use.
• Your work has to be set in the Forgotten Realms. Additional settings may open up later.
• You have to agree to a Community Content Agreement
• You cannot sell your stuff elsewhere. It’s an exclusive deal.
• You keep ownership of your own IP, but others can use it.
• Your work might be selected for use in an official D&D product or video game.
• There’s no approval process, but they reserve the right to withhold payment and pull your content if you break the content guidelines.

With this they also released The Systems Reference Document (SRD) which contains guidelines for publishing content under the Open-Gaming License (OGL). You can find that HERE.

Why should you participate in the Dungeon Masters Guild?

• As part of the Dungeon Masters Guild, you have access to a select body of Wizards of the Coast IP for use in your original adventure design. In short, this is an opportunity for creators outside of Wizards of the Coast to engage with the Forgotten Realms to inspire and elevate their own work.
• The Dungeon Masters Guild provides an easy-to-use, push-button service that allows you to publish your work quickly and easily, without printing costs or other unnecessary overhead, so you can focus on what you do best… designing great adventure content.
• The content you create and submit will be published in a central, online marketplace hosted by OneBookShelf, making it available for sale to D&D fans everywhere, while fostering an active and growing community of creators and consumers.
• The Dungeon Masters Guild is an opportunity to share your original adventures with the rest of the Dungeons & Dragons community, while you make money at the same time. You set the price other fans will pay for your DMs Guild title. You then get a 50% royalty whenever your title sells.
• Your content is rated and reviewed by fans who purchase your adventures, allowing you to improve as a designer, and allowing Wizards to easily identify the best creators for additional publication opportunities. The best work will also be eligible to be selected by the Dungeons & Dragons team at Wizards, to provide our digital partners with salable, downloadable content (DLC) for games such as the Neverwinter MMO and Sword Coast Legends.

Wizards of the Coast loaded a handful of D&D Adventurer’s League adventures into Dungeon Masters Guild, and authors are already reporting earning royalties through the program.

Since the DMs Guild opened today, I have officially made more than $10. Who needs the lottery!?!??!?!

— Greg Marks 🔜 Polar Vortex Con (@Skerrit7h3green) January 12, 2016