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| PBM Rulebook Library (Under Construction) |
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Posted by: GrimFinger - 01-13-2024, 05:54 AM - Forum: PBM List and PBM Rulebook Library
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This PBM Rulebook Library is currently under construction!
Adventurer Kings
"Adventurer-Kings" is a game set in a medieval world filled with magic, treasure, monsters and armies. There are 8 to 12 players in each game. A player controls one King, his armies and treasures, and any Heroes which he hires to serve him. Each turn, a player sends in a set of moves for his "Adventurer King" (or Queen, for that matter) and his Heroes. These moves cover the King's activities for one year in the medieval world.
Alamaze
A multi-award-winning fantasy war game that promises an unparalleled multiplayer strategy experience. Choose from 32 distinctive kingdoms, each with its own strengths, weaknesses, and engage in a battle of wits against eleven human adversaries. Your arsenal includes magic, military might, economics, politics, and covert tactics, as you issue commands to nobles, wizards, armies, and agents, all in pursuit of territory and alliances.
Ancient Empires
The setting for Ancient Empires is at the dawn of time where you, a second son or lone adventurer set out to find your fortune.
With control of a small cluster of villages it is up to you to lead your forces to dominance of the area around you and to create an Ancient Empire.
Starting with very low tech units you will need to expand as well as study to make more effective weapons for your military.
Atlantis Miskatonic
Atlantis Miskatonic is version of Atlantis, a free open-ended multi-player computer moderated fantasy turn-based strategy game for any number of players.
Atlantis: New Origins
Atlantis is a play by email game.
Austerlitz
Austerlitz is the premier PBeM Napoleonic Wargame, and has won awards all over Europe and in the UK. The realism is unparalleled, and the accurate representation of the armies of 1808 make this a thrilling simulation of Napoleonic conquest.
Battle Plan
Do you have the ambition, the skill, and the insidious single-mindedness necessary to conquer all of Europe? War (and lots of behind-the-scenes intrigue) takes place on a map of Europe, among 4-8 players all trying to conquer 29 countries. With the technology of the latter-half of the Twentieth Century, you can build Army, Navy, Air Force, Missiles, Anti-Missiles, and even more industry with which to build. You can spend your cash on research, spy networks, counterspies, or propaganda. To win you'll need all of them - the question is how much of each
The object is to occupy or conquer all 29 countries, or otherwise eliminate all the other players from the game. This is an area movement strategic game (each "space" on the map is generally an entire country), with production a very important part of the game.
Boldhome Heroes
The game is set in Glorantha, specifically in the city of Boldhome in the Kingdom of Sartar in Dragon Pass. Argrath is King of Dragon Pass after marrying the Feathered Horse Queen. As such, he is also the City Rex of Boldhome. Below him the player characters maneuver to increase their personal power.
Players can join at any time.
The game is turn based. Players submit orders for four weeks per game round. The GM processes all players' orders and, when done, publishes game reports and sends updated character sheets to all players.
Player characters are Sartarites trying to increase their Charisma and move up the hierarchies of Boldhome.
There is nothing like "game balance" in this game. New characters can be destitute cottars or the children of very rich tribal queens, or anything in between. Their starting opportunities will vary greatly.
Clash of Legends
Clash of Legends offers free and fully automated, turn based multiplayer games that have strong elements from war games with an interesting economic side to it and some RPG elements added to the mix.
Another way of explaining it, is that Clash of Legends is a computer moderated, turn based multiplayer game similar to a board game.
Company Commander
Although the original Company Commander was designed at the height of the Cold War it represented a chaotic vision where a Third World Country is fragmented into many factions struggling to gain control. Today that chaotic vision has moved from the imagination of the game's original designer to the nightly news on our TV screens.
The design now mimics the international reality of today, making Company Commander as relevant today as it was in first days of the game design process. The design of Company Commander has come a long way from design to current version 13. In those years, the nightmare has become more real and current, not less.
Continental Rails II
Continental Rails simulates the great railroad expansion in America during the 19th Century. This is a game of fierce economic competition in which you are one of 15 railroad tycoons seeking fame and fortune. There can be up to 6 winners in each game, so you can select which goals you wish to pursue. The game begins in 1841 after the first railroads were established.
Each game turn represents 1-2 years of time. The game has 2 phases, an eastern rail building phase during the first 10 turns, followed by a western rail building phase after turn 11. Each game will last over twenty turns, which provides plenty of time to recover from setbacks. If you don't do well in the first phase, then look ahead to the next phase.
Covert Operations
* Link to the rulebook is broken.
Designed by Charles Gaydos, this game simulates the struggle for control of the world by international megacorporations. An unknown number of players, each representing the head of an international corporation, incredibly wealthy family, or secret organization, vie for domination over all the others.
Each player has a minimum income per turn, no matter what happens during the game, so you cannot be eliminated as long as the game lasts. You may submit a turn every day, or you may submit many orders in advance (to be processed, seven orders per day). It is not necessarily fatal to miss a turn.
This game is played entirely by email,
and you will receive an email "result" every day except major holidays. You are not told the names of the other players, or even how many there are, but you are allowed to send your email address to another player as part of the game, after which of course, you may communicate as much as you wish.
The object of the game is to get control of a majority of the countries on the map, by bribery, assassination, revolution, or force of arms. When that happens, you become Master of the World and have won.
Dark Age II
When the Romans left Britains, they turned out the lights. This is what happened next.
Dark Age is a game of power and conflict in Dark Age Britain. The game system is simple and straightforward, with plenty of scope for skill and skullduggery, combining the finesse of Diplomacy and the fluidity of Risk. To win the game you must expand your population to become the dominant kingdom of Britain. Only warfare will provide the room for your population to grow, but only peace will allow you to secure your gains. Wars must be decisive, and your diplomatic efforts may be the key to victory.
Duel2
Duel2 is a Play-by-Mail game of ancient gladiatorial combat. If you're new to Play-by-Mail gaming, just think or it as a chance to play some of the most realistic and exciting games you will ever come across. Every two weeks, you'll be matching your skills and ingenuity against players from all across the North American continent and beyond.
Empires
Empires is a game of diplomacy, conflict and conquest. It’s designed to have the maximum of action with the minimum of fuss. There are currently four different versions with different maps and slightly different rules.
En Garde!
Like d’Artagnan, each player in En Garde! starts as a young man arriving in Paris. Now he must find his feet in Parisian society. En Garde! characters may be noblemen, gentlemen or peasants. They may have lots of money or none. They may be accomplished swordsmen or not know which end of a sword to hold.
What characters have in common is their main goal in En Garde!. They try to increase their standing (‘Social Level’) and climb the greasy pole of Parisian society. They do this by gaining status: being seen in the right places; cultivating friends in high places; joining the right regiment or club; and, of course, winning duels!
Dueling is the usual way of settling disputes in En Garde!. Two characters face each other over the affections of a woman, to settle questions of precedence – or simply because one belongs to the Cardinal’s Guard and the other to the King’s Musketeers. Then it’s down to the skill and strength (and cunning) of the two protagonists.
Eressea
Eressea is a multiplayer turn-based nation-building 4X fantasy game with hundreds of simultaneous players and thousand of individually controlled units.
If you enjoy simulations like Sid Meier’s Civilization, and fantasy games of the D&D variety, Eressea is a mix of both: Each unit in the game is a fantasy character with their own skills, and your goal is to build a viable civilization in competition with hundreds of other players.
Eressea is a very low-tech game. There are no 3D graphics, no online play, and turns take an entire week.
Feudal Lords
Designed by John Van De Graaf, this game simulates the struggle for kingship in a mythical period of English history. Up to seventeen players, each representing the head of one of the more active noble families, vie for the throne which has been left vacant by the death of King Arthur. Only by building both economic and military strength can one prove himself worthy of the mantle of King (or Queen).
Players must feed their peasants, tax townsmen, train and pay knights, hire mercenaries, buy & sell livestock, improve their castles, dabble in foreign trade, and go on military campaign. They may conquer neighboring fiefs, forcing them to swear fealty to another player. Names & addresses of all players are given at the start of the game for easier diplomacy.
The object of the game is to get a minimum number of other fiefs to swear fealty to you (at the same time) by force of arms, persuasion, or bribery. When that happens, you become king and have won.
Forgotten Realms: War of the Avatars
War of the Avatars (WA) is set in the Savage Frontier region of the TSR's Forgotten Realms setting. This is a land of fearsome monsters, rampaging humanoid hordes, and battle-hardened humans, elves, dwarves, and halflings.
If you are familiar with the AD&D® game, it will be easier to understand how to play War of the Avatars. The creatures you'll meet here will be familiar if you've ever played a fantasy role-playing game. Instead of playing a single character, however, in War of the Avatars you control an entire realm in the Savage Frontier. Thousands of characters and creatures will jump to obey your every whim. It's the sort of thing you could really get used to.
Each player controls communities of various size, armies, magical items, and perhaps even an avatar, the awesome manifestation of an extra-dimensional being on the Prime Material plane.
The game is played on a huge, 50 hexagon by 100 hexagon map--5,000 locations in all! Over 150 different types of units may join your armies as you march across this vast territory, spreading fear and flame among your rivals. Dozens of magical items can be found to further enhance your power.
War of the Avatars is played in turns. One turn takes one month of game time. Each turn, you give orders to your subjects, writing them down on the Order Sheet. After you mail your orders in to RSI, we process your orders (and those of the other players in the game), then we mail the results back to you. The Turn Results Sheets you receive show the effects of all these orders. With the results comes an Order Sheet for you to fill in your orders for the next turn.
Up to 50 players compete in each game, called a campaign. There are many campaigns going on simultaneously, each completely separate from the others.
Galac-Tac
Galac-Tac entry is incomplete.
Heroic Fantasy
* Link to the rulebook is broken.
You direct a party of up to fifteen fighters and magic users (humans, elves, dwarves, fairies, gremlins, leprechauns, hobbits, goblins, even a troll, ogre, or giant) through a dungeon maze killing monsters, gathering treasure, and hunting for magical prizes.
You get to decide what kind of adventuring party you want to go with. The maximized constitution and strength would be a party of 5 human magic users and 5 human fighters. But some of the other combinations are even more fun. An Ogre magic user, an elf magic user and a dwarf magic user make a 3 character party that uses up all 100 of your points. You only get three characters, but they are tough. One that I think is fun is a giant fighter, and fourteen fairy magic users! The fairies fly around and put monsters to sleep, then the giant comes in and squashes them!
There are currently four levels (ultimately there will be a special fifth) and hundreds of players already exploring the depths. You may meet some of these players in the maze, and there is no certain way to determine at first meeting whether these are player characters or computer-run "NPCs" (non player characters). The object is to get your characters through all four levels alive, and get them into the fifth or "outdoor" level. After each level, there is a chance to get your characters entered into the "Hall of Fame" of adventurers which will be printed in our magazine. This game has been extensively play-tested, and has been running since 1982.
The per turn fee is only $3.00 and for this one fee you get to move all 15 of your characters. They can stay together or split up into as many as 15 parties moving in different directions, all for one single turn fee! No "extra action fees" ever.
Each level adds new things to the game. Be aware that the first couple turns are somewhat boring as you get your party started in the safe "entrance room", prepare your first spells, go into the store and buy your initial weapons and/or potions, and decide which direction to explore first. This is not just a "go into the room, kill the monster, take the prize" game. There are a lot of subtleties built into the game that you might not notice unless you pay careful attention to everything that is going on!
Hyborian War
Hyborian War is a game of imperial conquest in the age of Conan. You will wield the power of command over the destiny of the kingdom you have chosen, charting a course of battle, intrigue and diplomacy over the centuries of the Age. Virtually every tool of statecraft is at your disposal. These rules will give you an idea of the many options available. How you use them--even how many of them you use--is up to you.
Ilkor: Dark Rising
* Rulebook link is missing.
Needs text entry.
It's A Crime
New York in the 21st century is a city on the edge of collapse. The mobs are about to take control. To survive you have to become the leader of the meanest, toughest, gang ever.
Away from the main streets and boulevards, in the narrow alleys and derelict tenements the street gangs have taken control. Illegal weapons and incendiary bombs are the tools of their trade as they fight each other and the woefully undermanned New York Police Department.
The Gangs are winning!
Protection rackets, drug pushing, muggings and robbery are common place, even the mob are taking an interest in Gang activities.
Do you have what it takes to survive?
As a player you are the leader of a small street gang. Your gang consists of approximately 20 members. A few will be street wise pro's, the backbone of your gang. The other members are punks or 'cruits, the kids recently initiated. Your gang's turf consists of a single city block.
Your task is to become the meanest, biggest, toughest gang in the city. Eventually you may even join organised crime and compete to become Godfather of the city - before someone else does.
KnightGuild
* Rulebook link is missing.
The world that the game is set in is large and earth-like, with a number of continents and all divided into 30 x 30-mile squares (sectors). Each sector has a terrain type, and may contain man-made features such as settlements (Cities, Colonies), canals, roads, etc. The game world has a fantasy medieval flavor, but it is neither a high-fantasy setting nor a medieval simulation… it's somewhere in the middle.
Roaming the map are player-run clans, player-run expeditionary forces, and some NPC forces. These can be traveling either on land or across water sectors.
At the start of the game some cities are run by players, though most are not.
Player-run positions (clans, expeditionary forces, cities) can be affiliated with one or two factions that are pre-defined in the game, or they can choose to stay
independent. Being affiliated with a faction will usually give a player position access to resources, support and a factional ability that independent positions can't.
All players run one or more clans, and each clan can potentially have a single city attached to it for the
player to also run. Each of a player's clans can have its own faction affiliation(s), but a player has to
nominated one clan as their 'main' clan, and only the player's clans with the same primary faction
affiliation as the 'main' clan can be promoted to rank 10 or higher.
Legends
Legends is possibly the most in-depth fantasy game on the market today, combining powerful game mechanics with vibrant and original game worlds.
The Legends game system is rich in both complexity and potential, allowing thousands of different stratagems and options, so that one can play for years and only begin to scratch the surface of the possible. The various modules each offer an entirely new world to be explored and conquered, all with their own unique races, monsters, histories and politics.
Explore on your own, or work as part of a larger faction. Roam the land as dragon-slayer, hero or sword for hire; lead a group of mercenaries or clan of orcs; command cities, armies, fleets. Rise to power through the use of steel, magic, politics, or perhaps a little of each. The worlds of Legends await you; what you do in them is down to you.
Our games are not simple ‘coffee break’ games. You can expect to spend hours exploring your position, weeks thinking about your tactics, and years becoming an expert. In fact, many of our players have been playing our games for decades, and are still discovering new things to explore!
So if you are looking for something that is quick, mindless, and easy to play, then our games are not for you. But if you are want something a little more challenging, then read on…
Les Petites Bêtes Soyeuses
Les Petites Bêtes Soyeuses is a game of En Garde! (the swashbuckling role-playing game) using a turn-based or
Play-By-e-Mail format. Each turn is a month in the game. Players negotiate with each other and then send orders for their character to the GM (me!). I adjudicate what happens (which is not necessarily what the players intended!) and produce a narrative report for all players.
Liminal En Garde
* Needs link to rulebook!
A Play By Email Game (PBEM) set in a fictional 17th century France.
Follow in the footsteps of d’Artagnan and Cyrano de Bergerac as you make your mark in the Parisian social scene! Court the fair ladies of Paris, carouse in the gentleman's clubs and give your enemies the thrashing they so sorely deserve.
You could start as a peasant or a nobleman, but whatever your background Paris holds delight and danger in equal measure.
The game is played through a combination of email and this forum as players give in orders to tell the GM what their character is doing each month.
Lords of the Earth
Lords Of The earth (LOTE) is a play-by-(e)mail war game. Basically, you’re the king or queen of a medieval (or Renaissance or Classical or Fantasy) nation and struggle to better your own realm, usually at the expense of other
nations (and players). This is a turns-based game, so you have to wait
for your results, fretting and biting your nails.
Middle-earth PBM
We run turn-based, strategy games inspired by The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, including elements from ICE's Middle-earth Role Playing.
Play as either the Free Peoples or the Dark Servants, and work together with your team-mates to take control of the lands of Middle-earth.
Earn your victory through a combination of martial strength, magical prowess, and economic power.
Nuclear Destruction
Nuclear Destruction is a game for any number of players and a computer. Each player will have a country with a population between 25 and 99 million people. There will also be a number of minor countries (minors) with a population of 20 million each. The object of the game is to destroy the population of all the other players, while keeping at least one million of your own alive.
Quest of the Great Jewels
* Link to the rulebook is missing.
Quest of the Great Jewels is a computer-moderated play-by-mail
game. It is a "closed ended wargame" with turn times of about three weeks for regular games and slightly longer for team games
Quest of the Great Jewels involves twelve players, each of whom could can one of four races, each of which had different objectives and powers:
Azoni were fighters who bred slowly and earned victory points by building citadels.
Quntag were empire builders who earned victory points by controlling territory.
Rilris were treasure seekers who earned money by hoarding money and magic treasures.
Slenth bred at a prodigious rate, and although they were the weakest fighters, they earned victory points by destroying and ravaging.
The four races are well-balanced, with no race offering an advantage over the others.
REN1493
*Missing link to the rulebook.
The historical simulation game of strategy designed by Constantine Xanthos.
Renaissance
*Missing link to the rulebook.
Needs text entry.
Rome Is Burning
Need text entry.
Scramble For Empire
Scramble for Empire is set in the 19th century, with one game turn representing a month and players taking on a variety of roles. Typically you play as the head of a country, for example the President of France, the Kaiser, or Tsar, or the head of an expansive merchant company with global positions, or a VIP (like the Mahdi, Sherlock Holmes, Dracula, or Charles Hadden Spurgeon!).
Each game turn is run approximately once a month in real life, and each turn you receive details of your own position details, hopefully letters from others, the in-game newspaper, and a map (they are updated frequently).
The game is not strictly historically accurate, but a pseudo-Victorian world with Steampunk elements so all sorts of oddities such as marvellous machines and the odd vampire nun are possible (without turning the game into farce, of course, the atmosphere and believability of the whole thing is marvellously Victorian!).
Turns cost £12 each, with one played every four to six weeks.
The Glory of Kings
The Glory of Kings is set in the days of the 18th century, with one game turn representing a month and players taking on a variety of roles. Typically you play as the head of a country, for example the King of France, a German prince, or a Chinese or Indian lord. Smaller positions, such as a notorious pirate can be taken on instead if you prefer.
Each game turn is run approximately once every five weeks in real life, and each turn you receive details of your own position, any letters from others, and the in-game newspaper. The game has won multiple awards over the years, and is a firm favourite amongst our players. Standard turns cost £12 each.
The Isles PBeM
The Isles is a hand-moderated Play By Mail game run via either the postal system or via eMail. It is set in a fantasy world where trade and commerce are held in higher regard than Lords and Kings and where life can be brutal, terrifying and often short for those who do not belong.
Players take on the role of an Outcast, someone who is newly released from Prison with only a few possessions, little money and no tangible memories of who they are, what their past life was, or why they were imprisoned for so long.
Throne of Cofain
Four nations struggle for control of the island of Cofain in this fantasy wargame. Do you have what it takes to build your nation's strength, tame the wilderness, crush your rivals and ultimately put yourself on the Throne of Cofain?
TribeNet
TribeNet is an open-ended, play-by-email (PBEM) game of growth and management, where you are the leader of a Clan. Your people build, trade, farm, sail the seas and explore, and, as with all growing and expanding populations, there is a need for diplomacy and negotiation.
Your people start off in the middle of nowhere as a nomadic tribe. You know nothing about your environment and you have but a handful of skills. You explore your world and build skills and resources.
TribeNet simulates a nomadic and growing tribal life and lets you choose where it may lead. There are components of TN that allow you to become Builder, Trader, Fighter, Sailor and Explorer. The potential and possibilities are endless.
Can your clan survive and become a civilisation? It’s up to you.
War of the Dark God
"War of the Dark God" is a strategic fantasy wargame in which 16 nations in two teams battle for control of seven vital power spots which will either be instrumental in allowing the minions
of the great Dark God to call their master into the world or conversely
allow the followers of the Old Gods to deny the Dark God entry.
The game is played over 24 turns unless one side can manage a run-away victory. The two teams of 8 nations are fixed from the start and teammates must work together to further the overall goal of their side. Even though an individual winner will be found in the end, the success of the team is more important than just building your own position.
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| Issue #5 - My Learning Games of Alamaze - Charles Mosteller |
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Posted by: GrimFinger - 01-06-2024, 06:19 PM - Forum: Articles that appeared in issues of PBM Chaos
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My Learning Games of Alamaze
Charles Mosteller
Game 5663 - Dwarves
Turn #7 - This game is plodding along. My Dwarven kingdom gained control of a new village, this turn, via usurpation.
The Lizards kingdom was dropped from the game, this turn. That makes what? Four kingdoms, and we’re only in Turn #7? Man, that’s crazy! This is what happens when new players don’t know how to play, and aren’t firmly invested enough, interest-wise, in learning the game. But the flip side of that coin is, for Alamaze to acquire new players to grow its overall players base, you run the risk of players dropping out or being dropped (by not issuing turn orders for three turns in a row). The risk of players dropping goes hand-in-hand with the reward of growing the Alamaze player base. Drops are nothing new to PBM games. Heck, even chess has to deal with the occasional problem of players flipping the board (I’m looking at YOU, Wayne Smith!).
Wayne doesn’t really flip chess boards. He’s too busy collecting his safe driver awards.
As this game of Alamaze is but one of several Learning Games for me, even with player drops considered and taken into account, this game is still useful, from a learning perspective. Hey, maybe I’ll finally managed to gain control of a second region in a game of Alamaze, finally. I am playing around with the game interface and issuing various orders. Right now, this game is a stress-free environment for me, so the learning has a very casual feel to it, right now. No pressure on the Dwarves, at present, in game 5663 of Alamaze.
Game 5684 - Underworld
The damned Elementalist kingdom has been defeated, at long last. Yeah, sure, it was mostly the handiwork of Alamaze player (and new owner) Brekk Firestarter (or is that one of my character’s names? I forget), but somebody had to plant the seed of progress, and that somebody in this particular game of Alamaze was me. After all, ‘twas I who initiated communication with the Lycans (werewolves). And if you’re thinking that this is a roundabout way of me saying that Alamaze’s new owner has fleas, I assure you, nothing could be further from the truth.
The death blow for the Elementalist player was likely the Lycan’s military conquest of that kingdom’s last population center, which probably resulted in the elimination of any remaining Elementalist political figures/characters. I know that all of my sleep spells cast and attempted assassinations and kidnappings of Elementalist characters, this turn, ended up being of no efefct - for the battle for control of that last Elementalist population center took place before my assassins and wizards got a chance to stir the pot, this turn.
That accursed Elementalist really should have not messed with my town. That’s what brought this whole chain of events that led to his kingdom’s demise into existence. Don’t tell me that a new player can’t have an impact of a game of Alamaze.
Overall, my Underworld kingdom in this game of Alamaze is in pretty decent shape (famous last words, huh?). But what kingdom will next rise to oppose my kingdom’s greatness?
Game 5693 - Underworld
Turn #20 - This game had really grown fairly boring for me. The last two turns, it has begun to pick up a little bit. Of course, I’m being militarily and diplomatically invaded by two kingdoms, now, but what the heck? Nobody lives forever, right?
My Amazon and Forgotten enemies, being the naturally obedient creatures that they were destined to be, are nonetheless “teaching” me certain aspects of how to play Alamaze. My coming defeat at their combined hands will ultimately yield a victory for me, all my own - in the form of acquiring a better understanding of what Alamaze is like, when you’re on the losing end of things.
From my current perspective, my kingdom has no realistic way of fending off these two invading interlopers, but perhaps there’s a chance, yet, to bleed them a little. I pondered dropping the game, just to tweak them and to deny them the true thrill of victory, but nah. I won’t learn as much, that way. Besides, it always kind of sucks, when players drop games, just to deny their fellow player the good feeling that goes along with a genuine win.
My real concern isn’t losing this game of Alamaze. Rather, it’s whether as my kingdom’s population centers get conquered (or razed to the ground, as in one recent case) and the amount of gold that my kingdom takes in, my remaining kingdom assets will be able to function effectively to any real degree. This is one of the true risks that go right along with crafting a character system that is gold-dependent. If your characters can’t work, because you lack gold, then what’s the point of continuing to stick things out? Winning is its own reward and incentive, but what is the incentive for losing kingdoms’ players to continue on. That’s what I aim to find out.
Game 5703 - Demon Princes
Turn #13 - Talk about a hell of a development, I usurped control of three Giant-held towns, this turn, in the Giants’ starting region of Mythgar. Mwahahahahahahaha!
I can’t really say that I was surprised by this tasty development, seeing as how i’m the one who planned it, but even still, it’s nice to see one’s plans come to fruition. Not that all of mine do.
This particular one did, though, and that’s exciting for me. And did I mention, that a Giants’ village is going to follow suit, next turn? Yep! My Demon Prince character is already there.
Also, I had my king character to issue a #355 – Relocate Capital command, this turn. What that translates into, for better or for worse, is that my kingdom’s new capital is now located in far away Mythgar - and the way that things work in Alamaze, is that a number of my kingdom’s characters that were stationed in my old capital have made the move right along with the capital, itself. Ooh, the possibilities!
This is a trick that I learned recently in Game 5684, my first real game of Alamaze, which helped facilitate the Elementalist kingdom’s very recent demise in that game.
At present, I can neither confirm nor deny that character Lucifer Morningstar is on the move in game 5703. He’s definitely there, somewhere. It’s just a question of where. Rumor has it that he’s literally an agent - an agent of Hell!
Stay tuned for further developments.
Game 5705 - Warlock
Turn #9 - Looks like somebody built a Legendary castle at Stormgate, but it wasn’t me.
Instead, I’ve barely looked at my turn results for this game of Alamaze, and my next set of turn orders for this game is due, again, when? In a few hours, by the looks of it.
: igh:: I guess that I had better get with it, then. Too much stuff going on in life to fully concentrate. Yet, I’m not really having this problem with my Demon Princes game. So, something about this particular game of Alamaze is lacking, compared to that one. Oh, that’s right - it’s the excitement, dummy!
This is where flavor of a kingdom comes in, and why flavor is imperative to longevity in the playing of a game. I am playing the Warlock kingdom, but I have no actual warlock, only wizards. Which begs the question, why is this kingdom called the Warlock kingdom? Is this false advertising? Or is the warlock flavor supposed to originate from certain spells that this kingdom is capable of casting? So, basically, is this the Will-Someday-Be-The-Warlock kingdom?
Flavor, flavor, flavor. One can never have too much of it in a game, but one can frequently not have enough.
Looks like my kingdom neither gained nor lost any population centers, this turn. I am pursuing my ESO (Early Strategic Objective) in this game, a 5-pointer rather than a 3-pointer. Will I achieve it by next turn, though? You have several turns to claim your ESO rewards, after you accomplish your Early Strategic Objectives (that you set for your Alamaze kingdom no later than Turn #3).
My kingdom’s Early Strategic Objectives for this particular game are:
Control a region [worth 2 points]
Have an influence of 17+ and 2 Princes (not Demon Princes) [worth 2 points]
Have at least 3 Wizards, power 4 or higher [worth 1 point]
From the looks of it, I won’t have three wizards of Power Level 4 or higher, by next turn. Ack!
I have until Turn #15 to meet these objectives and claim their associated rewards, so I am very hopeful that I will achieve my kingdom’s Early Strategic Objectives, yet.
Game 5712 - Cimmerians
Turn #4 - Not a bad turn for me. Not a bad turn, at all. This turn, my Cimmerians accomplished several different things. A Cimmerian governor usurped control of a village in the Crown Islands from the Humans (non-player kingdom). In the process, he was also promoted to the rank of baron, it seems. A Cimmerian ambassador usurped control of a Neutral village. Meanwhile, a minor city in this region of the Crown Islands was successfully usurped by a Cimmerian Duke, who was aided by a Cimmerian count via his stirring of unrest in that city.
Additionally, a Cimmerian military group launched an attack upon a Neutral village, with all Cimmerian military leaders and wizards surviving the battle. All three of my military leaders on hand for this battle earned promotions.
I decided to try my hand, this turn, at Searching for Encounters. It’s easy as pie to do, and there’s no reason reason why I shouldn’t have attempted this command before. I assigned two different agents to this mission of searching for encounters, and lo and behold, I lucked out and found two of these unusual sights to explore.
Because I am an idiot, apparently, I waited until last turn (Turn #3) to issue my Kingdom Customization order for this kingdom. Really, that’s something that any player should do on Turn #1, because there are real, tangible benefits to doing so. One of the items that I claimed for the customization of my kingdom in this game of Alamaze was +1 added to my kingdom’s influence. I could have really used that, when I first began to try and usurp control of population centers. This oversight can clearly be chalked up to human error on my part.
I will be trying to transfer an artifact from a population center to a character in the coming turn, Turn #5. In order to accomplish this, I will be using the #910 command.
#910 – Transfer Artifact
This order allows you to move artifacts from place to place under your control. An agent/fanatic may pick-up an artifact from a group, population center or emissary and deliver it any of those possible targets. Only the pick-up point must lie within the agent's range.
I’ll be using an agent to carry out this artifact transfer. But does the agent stay at the location of the artifact’s intended recipient? Or does he automatically go back to where he started, this turn, which is my kingdom’s capital? The rulebook doesn’t actually say (at least, not where this command is listed in the rulebook, so I’ll have to pose that question to either Alamaze support or to an experienced player of the game.
All things considered, Turn #4 turned out to be a confidence builder for me for this kingdom of the Cimmerians. I’m feeling pretty good about how I’m doing, right now, all things considered. Maybe this kingdom will grow on me, yet.
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| Issue #5 - PBM Editorial - Charles Mosteller |
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Posted by: GrimFinger - 01-06-2024, 06:17 PM - Forum: Articles that appeared in issues of PBM Chaos
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My recent plunge into the realm of Alamaze has resulted in me talking a lot about Alamaze, of late. I invite you to write in, and tell us all what PBM games that you are playing (or reminiscing about), these days.
When I think about Alamaze and about playing Alamaze, my mind and my memory wanders to Hyborian War and to Middle-earth PBM. These three PBM games that all originated decades ago actually have a lot in common, even though at first glance they may each appear to be quite distinctive things. And for certain, they each are quite distinctive from one another, in their own way.
All three of them are wargames. All three of them places characters and armies and troops at the player’s disposal for waging war upon one another with. Each game features an economy and economic aspects. And each game features artifacts, of sort, though Hyborian War’s in-game artifacts take a much more subdued form (magic weapon, magic armor), one which players have far less control over, compared to Middle-earth PBM and Alamaze.
Which of these three PBM wargames is perfect? None of them. They each have their pluses and their minuses, they each have their strengths and their weaknesses. Back when all three of them were still fairly young (back in the 1980s), I tried all three of them. And of the three of them, I ended up playing Hyborian War the longest, and Alamaze the least. Middle-earth PBM, I only played in a couple of games of it - but that was twice as many games of it that I played, compared to the Alamaze of back then.
To a degree all three of these PBM games are team games, in that players almost always tend to end up working together, in various ways and to varying degrees. Middle-earth PBM, however, is the true purist team game of the three. It trounces the other two hands down, in this regard - but it isn’t as though Alamaze and Hyborian War can’t be played with true teams, because they can be played that way, and in fact, they have been played that way, before.
In their design and mechanics, Alamaze and Middle-earth PBM are the most alike. There are numerous similarities, but the actual feel of these two PBM games is quite distinct from one another. Even decades later, I can still recall how it feels to begin a game of Middle-earth PBM. You’re immediately transported to the realm that is Middle-earth. This is due primarily to two things - the characters and the map.
Interestingly enough, it was the military side of Middle-earth PBM that I wasn’t particularly fond of, way back then. The character side of the game always commanded very strong appeal. For who doesn’t want to be Er-Mûrazôr, the Witch-king of Angmar and Lord of the Nazgûl?
Yet, here we are, almost forty years later, and yours truly has begin to play Alamaze in earnest. No doubt, my old friend, Rick McDowell, the designer of Alamaze, would likely be pleased that, at long last, I have “seen the light.” Too bad that it had to be after Rick sold Alamaze to someone else and went on to other things in his life. As the old saying goes, though, better late than never!
And do it is hard for me to play Alamaze without thinking of Middle-earth PBM, and all of the wonderful lore that goes along with it. But how much more amazing it is, then that I am discovering that Alamaze is growing on me. Middle-earth with its high fantasy lineage and Hyborian War with its sword and sorcery lineage, but where does Alamaze properly fall? Probably somewhere between the two, but leaning more on the high fantasy side of things. Both Hyborian War and Middle-earth PBM adhere more strongly to cartographic certainties than does Alamaze. Alamaze suffers from having a literary heritage to attach itself to and to ground itself in, whereas Middle-earth PBM has Tolkien’s writings to fall back upon, and Hyborian War has Robert E. Howard’s writings to cling to. Where is Alamaze to find a similar Rock of Gibraltar in literary form to ground itself in?
But the games are not like the books. The games are not the stories. Try as they may, apples will ever be apples, and oranges will ever be oranges. Books and movies and games, at best, only borrow from one another. They are never truly one and the same. But then again, how could they ever hope to be?
On the programming end of things, Hyborian War is the least-changing of the three. In recent years, which of these three games do I think has shown the most progress on the programming end of things? To me, it’s a no-brainer. It’s Alamaze. But that should not be taken by anyone for me to mean that Middle-earth PBM has made no programming progress in recent years. New modules have appeared. But Alamaze has truly undergone some wholesale programming changes, both in recent years, and since Alamaze first appeared on the play by mail gaming scene several decades ago.
Of the three of them - Hyborian War, Middle-earth PBM, and Alamaze - in my estimation, Middle-earth PBM has the strongest overall support staff. To its credit, Hyborian War has the longest serving intact support staff, by far. And Alamaze in its current form has a brand new owner aided by one who is, arguably, the most energetic programmer to be found at any of these games’ respective companies - UncleMike.
It’s just my gut instinct and nothing more, but the folks at Middle-earth PBM seem (and I stress the word, seem, here) to be constrained in their development of new games that sit atop their underlying game “engines” by licensing issues. Clint Oldridge and crew at Middle-earth PBM, feel free to write in and correct me on this, if I am wrong on this particular point.
Which of these three game “engines” do I think would be the quickest to adapt to growing their gaming legacy, if the folks behind them had the resources and the drive and determination to do so? Personally, I think that the Alamaze game “engine” would be the quickest to bring a new gaming product to market. For instance, imagine all three of these games’ underlying engines (programming/code) adapted to run, say, a World War II game. Or any other genre of game or game setting.
Can they even do that with the Middle-earth engine? The underlying programming, itself, I don’t think would be under licensing shackles from whomever controls Tolkien Estate licensing issues. Likewise, I don’t think that the underlying programming for Hyborian War would require approval from the Conan licensing folks. The underlying code for Hyborian War is old, and doesn’t seem to get updated with any real degree of frequency. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?
The lack of new games in PBM built atop the underlying programing infrastructure of existing games is one of the greatest deficits in all of PBM history. Proven and time-tested game engines relegated largely to single-purpose these and settings. Talk about missed opportunities!
As it relates to gaming, what is programming? In my own words, programming is the art of what’s possible. Lack of initiative, lack of time, lack or resources - these three things continue to hamstring PBM gaming. And PBM gamers are the worse for it.
How many different ways do you slice the same cake? Lee Kline at Reality Simulations, Inc. has already demonstrated that new possibilities exist for old PBM games, when she agree to run a Special Variant Game of Hyborian War that I concocted several years back. Same programming, but with some manual changes made at the beginning of the game. Fifty turns were ran, before any player started issuing turn orders to their kingdoms. A special character added to the game - Tsotha-Lanti (which in the game became Tsotha-lanti the Vulture).
Did it break the game? Yep! It sure did. But it proved to be nothing that Lee Kline and RSI couldn’t fix and overcome. Where before there was uncertainty, now Lee has acquired new experience. It just goes to show that where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Whether anyone fully realizes it or not, manual changes can inject a ton of flavor and excitement into new games of Hyborian War. Programming changes or additions hold no monopoly upon increasing the offerings available for PBM gamers to choose from.
Changing base data files is an option worth exploring more. Changing kingdom names, character names, adding new characters to starting positions - these are all things very much worth considering and trying. But if you can change the underling code, itself, if you can add to it, then the world is truly PBM’s oyster.
In a way, we are all running out of time. Time passes - steadily, methodically, unrelenting in its acquisition of seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, and decades. If not now, then when?
Jason Oates’ Games still runs Company Commander. What about Company Commander in a more updated setting? How about a NATO-Warsaw Pact conflict scenario? Or what about a Russo-Ukrainian War or individual fronts from that war replicated in game form for past (and future) Company Commander players? Or is that a licensing barrier, also? Maybe a programming one, as well. Who knows? I don’t - but I do wonder.
And the first step in getting gamers to try PBM games? Getting them to wonder. To wonder about the games, and to wonder about the possibilities.
Tell me this - does a willingness to bring more options into PBM gaming bring chaos with it? Or without such options, are we all left to languish in the chaos of old?
Think about it, but be sure to write in and let us all know what you think.
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| Issue #4 - My Learning Games of Alamaze - Charles Mosteller |
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Posted by: GrimFinger - 01-06-2024, 06:16 PM - Forum: Articles that appeared in issues of PBM Chaos
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My Learning Games of Alamaze
Charles Mosteller
Game 5663 - Dwarves
My Dwarven forces are currently invading the region of Pellinor. It;s an uncontested invasion, though, because the player who started in that region dropped (or more likely, was dropped by the system, for not issuing turn orders there turns in a row). Being as how all six of my current games of Alamaze are for the purpose of me teaching myself how to play Alamaze, I consider them all to be learning games. In other words, game splayed with the express purpose of learning how to play Alamaze, rather than playing to win, per se.
Of the Alamaze kingdoms that I have tried my hand at, thus far, the Dwarves are not my favorite kingdom - not by a long shot. They just don’t feel Dwarvish enough, to suit my taste buds, though certain things about this kingdom do have a very Dwarvish feel to them. A couple of examples are:
#650 – Create Special Location (various) (Gold Mine for Dwarves), (but I’m limited to just one, and you can’t issue this particular order until Turn #4, at the earliest).
#599 – Dwarven Defenses (Dwarves only)
Because of the Dwarves great ability in working with stone, they may use this special order that will increase the defenses of a given Dwarven controlled population center by 4,000 at a cost of 10,000 gold. May only improve a pop center's defense through this order once a turn.
Headed into Turn #7.
Game 5684 - Underworld
My first real game of Alamaze, the game where things really started to click after about a half-dozen turns or so. Now headed into Turn #18. I’ve assassinated. I’ve kidnapped. I’ve executed prisoners. I’m in cahoots with the werewolf (Lycans) player, and I’m at war with the Elementalist, who just enjoyed the good fortune of having three of his kidnapped characters escape from my kingdom’s dungeon, before they could be executed a little later that same turn. Did I guard the prisoners? Nope, I failed to do that. ACK!! Headed into Turn #18.
Game 5693 - Underworld
Headed into Turn #20. I started a war with the Amazons, and both the Amazons and the Forgotten have declared me an enemy. The Amazons just took a town from me. The bastards! In the same turn, I sent Level 20 agents to assassinate four of that kingdom’s characters - a Duchess, two Baronesses, and a High Priestess. While I was at it, I also assassinated a Level 9 Free Traders agent on the same turn. I don’t know what that scoundrel was up to, nor do I really care. I wasn’t in the mood to be merciful, this most recent turn. They had better pray that I never figure out the military side of this game!
Game 5703 - Demon Princes
My favorite Alamaze game of the bunch, thus far. I flubbed one of my opening gambits with this kingdom, and I felt like a fish flopping out of the water. That was a few turns ago, though. Now, I’ve begun to unleash my kingdom’s most powerful characters against the Giants kingdom. Via demonic gates, the Demon Princes teleported into a Giants’ minor city. I rebelled it out of the Giants’ control, one turn, and the next turn, I usurped control of it.
Then, I built a castle there, this last turn. I also caused a Giants’ town to rebel, to aid my Atlantean ally’s emissaries in regaining control of that town that the dastardly Giants had previous invaded and seized. This isn’t the Jolly Green Giant that you might already be familiar with, depending upon your veggie preferences.
Having met my Early Strategic Objectives (ESO), my kingdom recently gained a fourth demon prince character. Yep, his ass is already deep in Giant territory. Let’s see how the Giants player deals with three more of his population centers being ripped from his clutches in the coming turn. Right now, fun as fuck is how I would describe playing the Demon Princes kingdom in Alamaze to be. I’m laughing my ass off, I’m having so much fun! We’re headed into Turn #13 with this game - and 13 sounds like it just might be my lucky number!
Game 5705 - Warlock
At the moment, this one is kind of a ho-hum game for me. I liked it, at the start, but circumstances and certain decisions on my part placed my kingdom in a state of relative poverty very early on. We’re heading into Turn #9 in this game, and I finally managed to gain control of the major city in my region, and control of my region, also. This one has been a casebook study in how NOT to play Alamaze, for me. But it’s all good and useful stuff for learning. I’m my own worst enemy in this one.
Game 5712 - Cimmerians
My newest game of Alamaze to start, we are heading into Turn #3. I’m making good use of my military groups to explore. All five of them have been moving around and searching for population centers. There’s been no real action in this game, yet.The next turn or three, most of my attention will likely be focused on gaining control of some Human-controlled and Neutral population centers, so that I may begin strengthening my kingdom’s economy with the gold and food produced by those towns, villages, and a minor city that are scattered throughout the region that most of my kingdom’s forces and assets start in.
I picked the Cimmerians kingdom to play in this game, to force myself to begin to come to terms more with the whole military side of the game. Unlike before in other games of Alamaze, in this game as the Cimmerians, I’m getting much better at transferring characters and troops (brigades) between military groups, at creating patrols, and generally just getting a better feel for what I can do with military groups. That said, I am still woefully lacking in skill on the combat end of this game. I’m learning, though. All of my learning games of Alamaze combined considered, I’m steadily progressing with my learning of the game.
This game of Alamaze, I also intend to begin focusing on learning first-hand more about recovering and using a wider range of artifacts that Alamaze features for players’ entertainment. What I have found, thus far, is that being in multiple games of Alamaze, simultaneously (it’s free to play Alamaze, after all), greatly accelerates my learning of the game. Primarily, this is accomplished by facilitating my familiarization with the game interface, which is the real key to learning how to play Alamaze, in my considered opinion. Once you understand how the game interface works, it becomes noticeably easier to learn how to play the game, and to get better at the game.
Familiarization is the key to fun! Once you grasp how the interface works (give yourself six turns or so for it to start dawning on you, using myself as an example), that’s when you really start having fun playing Alamaze. It’s hard to have fun, if you don’t know what the hell that you’re doing. And nobody wants to read a bunch of documentation, in order to learn how to play a new game. I sure don’t, anyway. That’s why I decided to chart my own path forward into Alamaze, and so far, I think that my approach is the best - and easiest - way to learn Alamaze.
NOTE: Be sure to check out this checklist, of sorts, that I made for myself, to help me to keep track of what all that I’ve tried to do in Alamaze, thus far. It lists things that I’ve tried, as well as things that I haven’t tried. Right now, there’s still a lot of both on this list.
[Create Alamaze Player Account] [Sign In to Join a Game]
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| Issue # 4 - PBM Editorial - Charles Mosteller |
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Posted by: GrimFinger - 01-06-2024, 06:14 PM - Forum: Articles that appeared in issues of PBM Chaos
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Compared to the original Suspense & Decision magazine years ago, and to the PBM Unearthed newsletter, more recently, these PBM Chaos e-mail mailings are more akin to PBM stuff in microdoses. Less stuff, but a more frequent pace. It’s not a set pace, but at the moment, it’s looking like a couple of times a week. I don’t know exactly where I’m going with the PBM Chaos series, so nothing about it is set in stone, yet.
I, myself, am a source of PBM chaos. The natural instinct is to crave order. Order allows one to make better sense of life, and all that goes with it. Just look at Carol Mulholland’s long and unchallenged reign as editor of the old PBM magazine, Flagship. Yet, if she were here, today, Carol could tell you, herself, that publishing and editing a PBM magazine is anything but an exercise in never-ending order. Missed deadlines, having to continuously nudge people for articles or other input, trying to round up advertising - I can’t help but to laugh, as I sit here writing this, the day after Chaos Issue 3 was sent out.
On the one hand, it’s important (I guess - you tell me what you think) for PBM gaming to have some kind of PBM-oriented “media.” Ideally, there would be several different ones, from several different sources. If you ever want to create your own PBM-oriented magazine, newsletter, podcast, vlog, mailing, etc., just keep in mind that there are no guaranteed sources that will go out of their way to provide to you material for inclusion. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Nada. None.
People are busy. They’re focused upon their thing, and not upon your thing. Which probably a large chunk of what drives within me to just do my own thing, regardless of what the status quo is, or what PBM gamers and GMs grew accustomed to in the old days. By doing my own thing, I am free to do whatever I want, whenever I want, and as much or as little as I want. Yep! Chaos.
If these PlayByMail.Net mailings ever get to be too much for you, you can always unsubscribe (there’s always a link at the bottom to do that), or you can just not open the e-mails, or just open and read these mailings whenever you take a notion or get around to it. There’s certainly no obligation on your part to read all of it, nor even any of it - unless you want to, of course, but always at your schedule and convenience, not mine.
I like PBM gaming, and I like to write, so I kind of merge the two interests, and you and others with a shared interest in PBM gaming end up getting to be witness to my PBM parade of horribles. David Webber had Paper Mayhem, and Carol Mulholland had Flagship, and Rick Loomis had Flying Buffalo, and I have first one thing and then another, it seems. You know, nothing requires any of us to love PBM gaming, forever. Nothing compels us to participate in any aspect of PBM any longer than we really and truly want to. You can’t force anyone to love PBM. No one should ever feel a burden to be a part of play by mail gaming any longer than they actually prefer to.
Me? I just prefer to, I guess. Be a part of PBM, that is. Trying to cover PBM, and in today’s environment and with prevailing attitudes, is a goad-awful thankless task with no real hope of succeeding. Me? I much prefer to just talk about PBM, than trying to cover it and bring the so-called “PBM news” your way. Sometimes, the “P” in PBM feels an awful lot like “pulling teeth.”
At various points in time, I’ve considered going the audio route, and if I did, then the “P” in PBM would likely stand for podcast. What happened to David Oliver Kling’s Combat Conditional: A Turn Based Podcast, though? It’s still stuck at just four episodes released, with the last of those four episodes being published (is that the right word?) almost a year ago. But who am I, of all people, to complain, huh?
Even at just four episodes, I consider David’s podcast to have been a seminal event in PBM gaming’s history. Is it completely dead, though? That, I just don’t know - which is why I am asking that question here and now. I invite David to drop me a note, and give us all an update.
I’ve even considered going the video route with my PBM interests, but were such a curse to ever strike the whole of PBMdom, I suspect that the “P” on PBM might end up standing for “profanity.” And who needs that, right? Guilty as charged, but to me, words are words, and while there are things that I do view to be profane, words aren’t one of them. Feel free to feel otherwise, though. To each their own, where the words that comprise human languages are concerned.
Al things considered, the “P” in PBM has long been viewed by myself to possibly stand for “promote.” Promoting PBM has nothing to do with just endlessly singing the praises (another “P” word) of play by mail gaming. Even criticism of PBM helps to promote it. Not everyone may realize that, of course, though. What’s far, far worse is for no one to be talking about PBM, at all. That’s what I think, anyway.
Wat about you, though? What do you think? Be sure to write in and let us all know. The e-mail address to write to is right below.
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| Issue #3 - PBM Editorial - Charles Mosteller |
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Posted by: GrimFinger - 01-06-2024, 06:13 PM - Forum: Articles that appeared in issues of PBM Chaos
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Contrary to what you might be tempted to think, trying to track down and to keep up with all manner of things PBM in nature has gotten harder, not easier, as time has trekked onward. Yet another form of chaos manifesting itself in and across the play by mail gaming realm!
In an act that can only be considered blatant defiance, PBM gaming refuses to die. It’s just a fact. The digital star killed PBM gaming, my ass! Didn’t Bob McLain also say, “Now almost everyone owns a PC equipped with plenty of memory and plenty of speed.” Plenty of memory and plenty of speed, eh? Then why do we always crave more of both, where our computers and computerized phones are concerned?
What we do have plenty of is chaos! Boy, we have it in spades, huh? And then some.
Pure PBM, I guess, is what old school play-only-via-paper-format-and-the-postal-service PBM gaming is. Is it on life support? Maybe. Is it growing? Maybe. Talk about a PBM paradox.
Nonetheless, as near as I can tell, it’s the truth.
People are always tinkering with stuff. That’s how we got a great many of our play by mail games, way back in the old days, back when a postage stamp would kick your ass. Not all of you are old enough to remember that.
It was rough back then. Now, life is so much easier. Or is it? Gotta be real careful, whenever people try to sell you a bill of goods. That’s equally true, where PBM games are concerned.
Are there a lot? Are there hardly any? Well, part of the answer lies in how you choose to look at things. What do you count as a PBM game? Is it just and only a game played in paper format with turn orders and turn results sent back and forth via the postal service? Or does it include games where you can send turn orders in via e-mail, but still receive turn results back in paper format via the postal service? These days, all kinds of games seem to get categorized and classified as PBM games. But are they? Are they, really?
Way back when it was theorized by Bob McLain that digital killed the PBM star, could it possibly be that his prediction could fail to have taken into account that PBM just might choose to reinvent itself, along with so many other things in life?
Actually, he did predict it - in his own way, of course. He clearly said, “Play-by-mail, play-by-modem; it's all the same - so PBM doesn't have to die. Maybe it can change its spots to avoid the new predators. Dare we say it: play-by-mail is dead, but PBM lives on.”
Part of the problem is, I think, that we want to see progress happen in play by mail gaming very quickly, almost overnight. Yet, PBM gaming has been going through a transition that doesn’t happen in the blink of an eye. Consider, if you will, the chaos that has torn through other sectors of the entertainment industry. Beta. VHS. Heck, let’s just toss the whole Blockbuster cow onto the fire, while we’re at it. HOW the public chooses to receive its entertainment, along with advances in technology, allows entertainment and the gaming sector of entertainment to reinvent itself, continuously. PBM gaming doesn’t in a void separate and apart from technological advances.
Why should PBM be any different?
Advances in technology bring chaos with them. Changes in mediums of delivery for entertainment also visits chaos right on top of our heads. If it weren’t for technological advances, you wouldn’t be reading this, today. All advances in technology don’t always strike us as “progress,” though.
If you’re working on a new PBM game, or just trying to rework an old one, be sure to send me an e-mail about it, and tell me how your are progressing (or not). Even if I have heard from you before, write to me, again, so that I might provide an update to our readers.
Until next time, try to not let the chaos of everyday life get to you!
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