From: chuahl@ocf.berkeley.edu (Chua HakLien)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,rec.games.frp.dnd
Subject: The Totally Harmless Internet Guide to PBeM's [ Version 0.9 ]
Date: 13 Jan 1993 00:19:56 GMT
Organization: U.C. Berkeley Open Computing Facility
NNTP-Posting-Host: whirlwind.berkeley.edu


              The Totally Harmless Complete Guide to PBeMs
              +=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+

[ Version 0.9 ]

    Once in a while, one will see a post in the rec.games.frp.** 
nesgroups about a PBeM game being started by so-and-so. So you might be
asking? What is a PBeM? How does one take part? How does one start one?
    Well, this article attempts to answer some of your questions. So
read on, pilgrim...

I. What is a PBeM?
+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
    PBeM stands for Play By Electronic Mail. Basically, in the context
of RPGs, this means that the game is played with players and Gamesmaster
communicating and sending moves to each other via email. ( Now, wasn't that
enlightening? ) It is a good compromise for those GMs and players who cannot
afford the time to play face-to-face or can't find a game in their area, and 
who don't want to resort to a PBM, or a play by mail, game. 
    The advantages of a PBeM include:
[a] The players  won't call out for pizza and make you pay the delivery boy 
    for it.
[b] Your mom won't come in and ask about the female wearing the chain mail
    bikini on the cover of the module you're running.
[c] No little kid sister breaking into giggles just as Zorkath, Lord of
    Darkness, prepares to scarifice the party to the pit of Infernal
    Dimensions.
[d] You won't have to clean up your house afterwards.
[e] No more Born Agains protesting outside your home.
[f] No more struggling with names like 'Rl'yeh', 'Drizz't', 
    or 'Nyarletheop'.

II. How do I get to play in one?
+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
    Hang out night and day in the rec.games.frp.* newsgroups, watch
out for a PBeM post to appear, and send out a reply immediately. It would
be good if you had a character prepared, but the most important thing to
do is to reply AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, because spots for PBeM games are likely
to fill within 24 hours of the posting, if not much shorter.
    Sending out a post requesting that someone take you in for their PBeM
is not likely to work. The likelihood of getting a reply is probably about 
the same as that of getting viciously maimed by a group of grenade-launching 
hamsters while jogging.

III. How do I run one?
+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
    Ahh.. now we're talking.
    Firstly, you have to be willing to put time into your PbeM campaign.
How often do you want your moves to be? Once a week? Once every two days?
The length of your moves should be proportional to the time you want the
players to reply back by.
    Next, ask yourself, do you REALLY want to run a PBeM? Spend long
thankless nights sifting through moves and answering questions, and roll
dice all alone in your cold dark room. A lot of PBeMs go belly-up even
before the first move is sent, mainly because someone just like you thought
that they did want to play, but lost interest after a week. Make sure
you'll willing to commit the time involved. It will be just as much as
that for a face-to-face RPG, I assure you.
    So you decided to run your own PBeM. Well, good. Here are some 
guidelines so that you can preserve your sanity. 

[a] Decide on the game system and milleu.
    Sounds easy enough. Keep in mind that for the most part, you'll
want the game to flow pretty quickly. Avoid rules-intensive games, and
consider using a system with little combat. Combats are difficult to run
in PBeMs, and the faster they can be resolved, the better. Also
decide what supplements or rules-additions will be used.
    Of course, the player should have the basic set of rules that 
you are using, as well as know the background to the milleu,
if you're using a commercially availabe product. If not, you'll have to
spent a few hours every night sending out dossiers on why the Quorantigas
of the Land of bani-Wani stuff crickets up their nose, and other background
info.

[b] Decide on the number of players.
    How many players do you want? The best number is around 4 to 7.
Any more and you'll be getting a headache. Also, you might be asking, so
should all the players be in only one group?
    The answer to that is an emphatic YES. With multiple groups running
around, you'll be facing the possibility of a brain haemorrage trying to
remember who did what to whom, when and how. Stick to ONE group at a time,
and if you're thinking of running a tourament like game, in while several
solo players run around in a dungeon or similar setting, TRASH IT! You'll
never be able to find the time to write out all the moves!

[c] Decide on how the players will generate their characters.
    For games with point allocation systems, this is fairly straightforward.

    For games which depend on random generation for ability scores or
stats, come up with a fair system. For AD&D, I use a 80 point system to be
divided between the six ability scores. For scores below 16, the point 
conversion is on a one-to-one basis. ( A score of 14 requires 14 points. ) 
For a score of 16, 16.5 points are required, a score of 17 requires 18.5 
points, and a score of 18 requires 21.5 points. In the case of Charisma, 
the point cost is only 75% of normal, as most players will try to shave 
off points from this score. Any additional points left is converted to 
XP ( 100 xp per .1 ) or gold ( 100 gp per .1 ). Example: Krag the
Dwarf has these abilty scores: Str: 16 Int: 10 Wis: 11 Dex: 14 Con: 17
Cha: 10, which makes 16.5+10+11+14+18.5+(10*.75), or 77.5 points. He spends
2 points on XP, and the rest on gold, giving him 2000 xp to start with,
and 500 extra pieces of gold to spend.
	See, wasn't that easy???

[d] Post to the appropiate rec.games.frp.* group.
    So now you're almost ready! The big moment! Now you can actually
POST and declare to the world that you are starting your very own PBeM!
Give yourself a congratulatory shake, a pat on a head but not at the same
time, of course...
    The content of the post should say:-
    i. The rules you are using.
    ii. The movement rate.
    iii. The power level of the characters.
    iv. And some brief background of the game world, if you're feeling
egoistic and want to show your works to the whole of USENET.
    So post, and prepare to be deluged with mail. You will probably
find your game oversubscribed and you should savor the moment, because you'll
probably never ever receive as much email in such a short span of time ever
again.
    But of course, you might want to stop the flood. So 
do the following.
    i. Send out another post saying you have enough players.
    ii. CANCEL the article with your PBeM announcement.
    The latter should do the trick, but folks from Northern Europe
will probably still be mailing you for the rest of the week. Anyway...

[e] Decide who to take in
    Yes, this is the hard part. Send your intro to those who have replied 
to your email, and ask them to start sending their characters. You'd probably
want to include additional material on the tone of the game and the background
of your world, so that players don't wind up sending Stimpy the clown 
characters for your Neuromancer-inspired universe.
    Not everyone will reply to you. A 50% attrition rate at this stage
is common, as repliees decide they have better things to do like decorating
the lawn and watching the goldfish. But don't be disheartened, you've gone
too far to back up now! Pump out your chest and thumb your nose at those
who have deserted you, pitying them for missing out the game of a lifetime..
    And now sift through the characters of those who have remained loyal
and are actually interested. Decide who to take in. Look for good background
and effort in characters, and who will make DMing interesting for you as 
well. You'd probably want a good spread of characters; not just in terms
of profession, but in personality as well. Else you may wind up with a
whole bunch of 'dark, dour men' who clamber with each other to grab that 
unlit spot at the corner of the tavern.
    Avoid characters that hint of munchkinism. Out. No. Ah-ah. Sorry.
Twelve year old child geniuses with PhD's in Molecular Cell Physics and
Biology, as well as a black belt in karate, as an example.

[f] Send out acceptance and rejection mail
    So make your choice, and mail to those lucky individuals who have
been selected to participate. Keep a waiting list as these few may 
decide they want to mow the lawn or watch the goldfish instead and 
drop out.
    Then, prepare the rejection slip. For your convenience, I have
included this form letter which you may freely use:-

Dear [insert name here],
    I am sorry to inform you that despite the wonderful character you
have sent me, I am unable to find space to fit him into my game.
    I hope you will be able to find another PBeM campaign as good as 
mine will be to play in. Thank you for your interest.
                       Yours Sincerely,
                       [ Insert your name here ]

    Avoid the temptation to gloat. It makes for bad public relations
on the net and high medical insurance.

[g] Finalise the characters.
    Ask your players to finalise the characters, and make them fit into
the background of your campaign world. 
    Then, you are ready to begin!!!!

[h] Format for Moves and Mails
    It is advisable to you a standard format for replies to posts.
First or Third Person, and it's also best that the other players be able
to read each other's move, so you don't have to spend your time relaying
mail between players. Third person is best, as it makes it easier to
read.
    In the subject line of the post, ask the players to tell you
the name of the character as well as the subject. You may want to number
moves as well. 
Eg:
Subject [ Krag: #4 ] At the F.O.U.L Scharwz 

    You may also want to have players send their moves in a special
format, so you can easily read what they want to do. An example would be the
use of '<...>'s to denote actions, '"..."'s for speech, and '[...]'s for
questions to the GM. You may want to use '{...}'s for 'if this happens, then
the character does that moves.' For example:-

< Krag the Bloody draws out his Battle Axe +2, +3 against plush beings and
chops at the giant animated Undead Gund Squirrel >

"Take THAT, you ball of fluscious, fragrant fur!"

{ If Krag kills it, he will draw out his crossbow and start shooting at
those monkeys with the unicycles zipping above him. }

{ If Krag is just about to get killed, he will fall down onto the floor,
twitch his feet and play dead. }

[ Are the Barbie Dolls attacking Mikhol the Magnificent? What weapons
are the Ken dolls holding? ]

[i] Format for GM's posts
    Of course, you can do whatever you want with your posts.
    But do not abuse your powers. Do not make the players address
you as 'God'; 'Your Highness' should suffice.
    To make life for your underlings better, however, it is suggested
that you also use a nice format for your subject line, as in:-
Subject: [ Nordok, Move # 5: At the F.O.U.L. Schwarz ] or
	 [ { Krag : Move # 4 } Answers to questions ]
    ( Where Nordok is the name of the game world in this case. Oh? It's
not as good as Oerth or Greyhawk or Glorantha. Well, sue me! )
    As the GM, you also have to answer questions that the players ask you,
stupid as some of them are. Use a format that makes it clear that you
are doing so, such as :-

{{{{ The Barbie Dolls are running towards Mikhol. The Ken dolls brandish
the hardest known substance in the universe! French bread! }}}}

    For your main post, you might want to write up in the third person 
a story detailing the results of all the PC's actions, like so:-

Krag's axe bites deep into the fur of the Gund Squirrel. Coughing up
a hairball, it falls to the floor and dissolves into a pile of nylon.
Then the dwarf draws out his crossbow and begins to shoot at the unicycle
riding monkeys.

Mikhol the Magnificent casts a spell on the Barbie dolls, changing them
to Cabbage Patch Kids. They all head off in search of a good plastic
surgeon.

Toghar bonks the head of the Furry surf Troll with his baseball cap of
homerun hitting. He then takes out his lasso to foil the escape of the
windup elephant.

< ZAT! > Krag's first bolt just nicks the head of the monkey. The hairy ape
hurls a coconut at Krag in return, hitting the dwarf squarely on his
helmet and stunning him. Krag falls to the ground, unconscious!

Then from the gateway appears the two enemies your party has hunted for
all this while! You see a man in brown robes holding a packet of french
fries, next to a huge cat in metal sheet armor spewing dirt from it's mouth.

"Oh no!" Cries Princess Elyria, the maiden you have just saved from 
suffocation from the giant Goofy doll. "It .. it is... the fiendish
Chip Monk and the Muck-Filled Plated Puss! Oh.. what will we do????"

The Chip Monk raises the bag of fries and casts a spell on Tohgar, changing
him into a pig even before any of you can act. His lasso drops down and
the porkine entangles itself in the coils of the rope with it's futile 
struggles.

"Hah! He isn't nothing but a bound hog now!", laughs the Chip Monk.

{ Will our heroes survive? Tune in next time and send in your moves by
Tuesday, or else they won't. }

Postscript: Note the nice use of threats. Use sparingly, but with style.

Postscript II: Also note that in PbeM's, one cannot hear the players groan.
No more will you hear the comments of philistines who are unable to appreciate
the greatness of your creations.
 
IV: Troubleshooting
+=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=+
[a] Combat
    In two words, FORGET IT. Detailed combat is going to take too long,
and you'll probably be asked to draw ASCII maps to show the layout of the
scene as well. Try to avoid combat as much as possible. PERIOD. PBeMs are 
better suited for role-players and problem-solvers than
hack and slashers.
    If you do need to resolve combat, try to do at least 3 or 4 combat
rounds per post, or even more. Your characters may quibble, but try to
come to a compromise which everyone can agree upon, and stick with it.

[b] Rewards / Power gain
    You may want characters to ascend in power faster than in a face-to-
face game. Give more experience points if or more character points. In 
addition, give points for role-playing and smart moves. 

Hmm.. that's about it for now. I'd definitely like to hear comments and
additional advice so that we cover almost everything next time around.
I might want to make you suffer through version 1.0 as well...

Chua
+==+
Copyright 1993    
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc