PBEM RPGs -- Questions

[Belegbeth]

Salutations,

On these boards (and others) I have sometimes heard mention of campaigns run by e-mail. The idea has always struck me as rather strange (in that I have no idea what it could be like; my experience with RPGs has always been as lengthy social events involving friends, etc., or Neverwinter Nights online), but nonetheless intringuing (in a "slacker, wear my pajamas all-day," kind of way).

So, preamble aside, some questions:

What is it like to play a RPG by E-mail?

What kinds of options are available?

How do the different PBEM styles actually *work*?

Why do people do this?

Curious...

 

[Mordane76]

What is it like to play a RPG by E-mail?

Slow. I ran a campaign using the Storyteller system via Email for about 2 years, and had five players. I think we made it about half-way through the story I had intended before we simply had to stop because of the length of time it took to resolve things. Combat is ESPECIALLY slow.

What kinds of options are available?

There really aren't any 'options' that I'm aware of for different ways to go about PBeM. I'd say that things like WebRPG and OpenRPG, which are basically programs designed to handle chatroom-style gaming, or mIRC, which is a basic Internet chat program, are far faster and more involving that PBeM has options for running a game.

Why do people do this?

I know I did it because I moved away from my group, and we decided to try and keep a story we'd done at the table going. That's about the only reason I can think someone would be so desparate as to use PBeM -- to game with a particular group of people, without having to wade through a messageboard everytime you wanted to reply to something.

 

[Belegbeth]

There really aren't any 'options' that I'm aware of for different ways to go about PBeM. I'd say that things like WebRPG and OpenRPG, which are basically programs designed to handle chatroom-style gaming, or mIRC, which is a basic Internet chat program, are far faster and more involving that PBeM has options for running a game.

Thanks for you reply. It seems PBeM is not that great.

Is WebRPG or OpenRPG worth playing? They sound like much more attractive options, compared to PBeM. How would they compare to "normal" games?

 

[Storminator]

Thanks for you reply. It seems PBeM is not that great.

Is WebRPG or OpenRPG worth playing? They sound like much more attractive options, compared to PBeM. How would they compare to "normal" games?

Allow me to disagree. PBeM is a very different gaming experience, but it can be quite satisfying in its own way.

It's still a social event, as we get nearly as much OOC posting as in game. (one of my players is taking a break because his daughter was just born! I remember when his first kid was born too...) One of my games involves a bunch of my highschool buddies, and as a consequence, I hear from them at least twice a week each. I moved across the country 6 years ago, so it's nice to keep in touch with them.

As a game, PBeM has its strengths. I'm never surprised as a DM. If I don't know what to say, I simply wait until I figure something out. I make things up all the time, without having any idea where it's going. The game is slow enough that I have plenty of time to come up with something.

It also gives me a chance to stretch my writing skills. The players have nothing else to go on, so I try hard to make my prose both interesting and accurate. I make sure to avoid rules discussions in the game posts, but if you know the d20 rules you can recognize them in my posts.

As a specific counterpoint, I find combat to be the quickest part of my game. People might take some time getting a post out if we're just chatting at the tavern, but once someone breaks a chair over someone's head, everyone posts in a hurry. Dungeon crawling is much slower, as folks want to agonize over every fork in the halls, and stop at every door, etc.

I prefer PBeM to WebRPG (et al), as I don't need to get everyone together at once. I have gamers in 3 timezones, and lurkers in three continents (and Hawaii). Everyone checks when they want to.

The last thing I'll mention, is that PBeM means I'm gaming all the time. This week was slow, but I have 25 game posts. Last week was nearly 50, and in 3 years, it's over 7000 posts. When threads ask "how often do you game?" I'm tempted to answer 6+ days per week.

PS

 

[Blue_Kryptonite]

I have to voice a dissenting opinion here. I think PBEM can be a LOT of fun, but only as a side game. I've run some great PBEMs that would never have worked with my usual group at the table. Its a lot of fun, and can be great to re-read the logs of years later.

 

[masque]

What is it like to play a RPG by E-mail?

Why do people do this?

I don't have much on the way of mechanics, since other people have answered that.

Ive found that unless the group of people already knows each other, the sense of comraderie is somewhat lacking. While you also have the time to think things through, you lose a lot of the funny one liners that I think makes tabletop gaming fun. Like, "Well, I should save my first level spells, but on the other hand, I really like killing things."

You get roleplaying every day in small chunks, but my personal preference is large chunks every week or so, even if I can't think very quickly and never come up with funny one-liners. That, and no people that I can communicate effectively with in my area play D&D or any other game.

 

[dreaded_beast]

I don't doubt that this can be a rewarding experience for people who enjoy this type of gameplay.

However, for myself, coming from the Nintendo generation, I need my instant gratification.

My only experience with a PBeM was that it was too slow for my taste. I wanted an immediate response to my actions and to discover what happens next.

I ended up getting dropped because my descriptions and responses were not descriptive enough or well-written.

 

[Storminator]

I don't have much on the way of mechanics, since other people have answered that.

Ive found that unless the group of people already knows each other, the sense of comraderie is somewhat lacking.

I think this is very true. I think the success of my PBeMs was cemented before I even started, but a careful selection of players. I was fairly active on WebRPG's forums, and I chose players that I liked to read. I also added in old friends. I definitely feel I have comraderie in my games, but that's a deliberately nurtured trait. I've played in other games that had open casting calls that were dreadful failures because the players didn't mesh.

PS

 

[Ottergame]

I perfer to play chatroom style. PbEM is just sooooo freaking slow as to be not worth it.

 

[Storminator]

I perfer to play chatroom style. PbEM is just sooooo freaking slow as to be not worth it.

But for a chatroom game you all have to be there at the same time. But yeah, you can't have PBeM be your only gaming fix.

PS