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Message: <blockquote data-quote="fuindordm" data-source="post: 2076344" data-attributes="member: 5435">I've only played one PbP game, but have been in a PBEM (e-mail) game for going on about 3 years now.We started at 7th level, and most of us are at or near 9th level, and although there's one main DM a coupleof other people have run 'guest adventures' in the world.  We've gotten through four full adventure scenarios in all that time.If everyone posts once a day, things are going well.  If someone drops out for a couple of days at a time, keep things moving without them.It is easier to RP, although conversations with NPCs are more along the lines of alternating monologues than real discourse, it's still fun to be able to write 2-3 paragraphs in your character's voice.  This is really hard to get across in tabletop gaming.Combats should be rarer but more challenging, because they do take a lot of time to resolve.  They'd better be worth it.  Players should have full control over their actions in combat, round by round, otherwise the game loses a lot of fun.  A final showdown that leaves the characters nearly tapped out and with one or more KOs will usually net about 50% of the xp needed for the next level; this way the rate of advancement remains reasonable.Typically posting rates go up and get more reliable when a combat is going on--if you're all in the same time zone you can probably count on getting through 2 rounds a day.Mapping helps a great deal.  We use Cyberboard (google it), a free WIndows program designed for wargames.  ASCII maps can also work, but they look funny because the grid units aren't square.All in all, I think they're a great alternative.  Everyone can put a lot more care into the story, the DM doesn't need to make snap (and sometimes ill-considered) judgements or rule calls, and some aspects of the game are more satisfying.  It's also a great way to stay in touch with old friends.Of course, as always it's all in who you play with.  It's easy to get people to sign up for a game, but impossible to know who will be committed to it.Ben</blockquote>

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