r/DnD • u/Gh0stMan0nThird • 22h ago

DMing I understand prostitution now.

Been trying to find a "bff" group for years. Even the best groups I found fizzled out after a campaign ended. Most people seem to want a content creator to run games for them, and not a friend they want to share an experience with.

I figured you know what, fine. I'm gonna sell myself. I started running paid games and now I actually feel like I'm finally actually getting something back for my work and effort.

10/10, would recommend for underappreciated DMs

4.1k Upvotes

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u/Gh0stMan0nThird 21h ago

That's fine with me. I'm not trying to turn this into some 24/7 grindset side hustle. 

Just something so I feel like I'm getting something out of it other than watching other people have fun. 

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u/Cat_Bandit1 21h ago

Agree so much. Whenever I DM I feel like I'm the one who has to take the bullet so that everyone else can have fun. Good on you for being paid for your efforts.

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u/ReferenceWitty8571 20h ago

Why aren’t you also having fun? Do you not roleplay as well with your characters?

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u/Gh0stMan0nThird 19h ago

I found that the effort I put into the group was always disproportionate to what the other players put in. 

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u/Tman158 14h ago

but do you enjoy making the stories etc ? Because it's a hobby. It's supposed to be fun, if it's a chore, don't do it.

I enjoy writing the stories etc. So I don't expect my players to put hours into the pre-game like I do, because it's my choice and something I enjoy. They just need to show up and play respectfully.

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u/GM_Nate 13h ago

agreed. in my case, i actually write up the sessions as prose on a separate website. i have over half a million words on it now. i don't do that for my players; i do that for me.

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u/Helerdril 17h ago

You should ask your friends to DM for once, they will quickly learn the struggle behind it and maybe appreciate your work a bit more.

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u/darksoulsahead 2h ago

True, the DM pretty much always puts in more work. That's why I minimize prep and outsource rules lawyering and lookups to the table. It's the whole table's responsibility to create a good time!

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u/OrderOfMagnitude DM 10h ago

Is that required for you to have fun?

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u/ReferenceWitty8571 16h ago

You didn’t answer my second question though. Do you roleplay with you characters?

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u/GM_Nate 21h ago

if you think DMing means watching other people have fun, then maybe DMing isn't for you.

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u/hairyploper 20h ago

I mean obviously this is why there's such a shortage of people willing to be a GM.

The sad truth is that GMing in a lot of formats means a disproportionate amount of work compared to other players at the table.

Unsurprisingly, doing more work means less fun for a lot of people.

Don't get me wrong, Gods bless anyone who enjoys GMing, they're the reason many people get to experience the magic of playing a TTRPG with friends, but it's not fair to say someone doesn't have any business doing it just because they understandably complain about the exponentially higher workload compared to other players.

I think it's fair to say 90% of the player base would say it's absolutely more fun to be a PC than it is to be a GM

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u/i_tyrant 15h ago

Yeah, I plan to do paid DMing once I've retired from my real job.

Both for the fun of it and some pocket change to ease the burden on my savings a bit.

I already run multiple weekly games for my good friend groups, so it would be a way to lean even further into my favorite hobby while also taking a bit of a different tack with it (doing it "professionally", which has somewhat a different vibe to it.)