Suspense & Decision Magazine issue 17 is out, and I have an article in it!

Suspense & Decision is a free web-published magazine dedicated to play-by-mail gaming.  Play-by-mail is an old school style of gaming.  Flying Buffalo, publishers of Tunnels & Trolls, started out as a play-by-mail company and is still running games today.  If you want to gain some insight into the current state of the play-by-mail hobby, Suspense and Decision is a great magazine to read.  Issue 17 is out and I have an article in it.  It is a review of Duel2, a pbm game run by Reality, Inc.

You can download the latest issue, or any of the back issues, from suspense-and-decision.com.  You can read my review of Duel2, which is a great game for people who have never tried play-by-mail.  Personally, I am intrigued by the ad on page 27 for something called Dark Commonwealth.  It appears to be a pbm role-playing game in supernatural Olde England.  Go grab a copy.  It's free!

State of Gaming: Play-by-Mail

I have been very busy.  Real life events are drastically cutting into gaming time.  I would love to have 3-4 hour chunks of time to dedication to a board game or an rpg session.  Instead, I am getting 15 minute chunks of time sandwiched between frantic activity and exhaustion.  I began some play-by-mail games in order to get my gaming fix while real life devours my time and energy.  They work well because in my 15 minute chunks of free time I can prepare my turns, send them off, and then all I have to do is wait for my turn results to arrive.  I am currently playing two games and I signed up for a third.

"Your play-by-mail turn has arrived!"

Duel2

Duel2 is a game of gladiator combat run by Reality Simulations.  In the game you have a stable of five gladiators in a fantasy world.  There are elves, orcs, and other fantasy races but magic and spells do not factor into the gameplay.  Each turn you pick one to five of your gladiators that you wish to fight.  You arm them and pick their fighting strategy.  You can also challenge warriors and avoid challenges, which adds some strategy to the game.  Each turn you receive a print-out describing the fights.

I like the game.  It is simple and fun.  I have graduated from the newbie arena and am currently fighting in Aruak City.  I plan to write up a review of this game soon.  If you are new to play-by-mail Duel2 is a a great game to start with.

Hyborian War

Hyborian War is a war game that is also run by Reality Simulations.  As the name suggests it takes place during the Hyborian Age created by Robert E. Howard.  Each player controls a kingdom, and you have the choice of playing a large, medium, or small kingdom.  I am currently ruling Punt, a small kingdom.  This game is a grand simulation.  You engage in diplomacy, spying, and warfare.  When battles occur you decide how to line up your troops, what strategy to use, and what spells to cast.

The big draw for this game is that it takes place in the world of Conan.  According to the rules Conan wanders around the map and can show up in your kingdom.  The game is a good low-fantasy wargame.  I have the found the rules to be a tad confusing but I am having fun with the game.  If you sign up to play I recommend the site warbarron.com.  It has forums for people playing Hyborian War and is full of advice and strategy tips.  You will need to register for an account to view anything.

Starweb

Starweb is a science fiction exploration/wargame run by Flying Buffalo.  I have read the rules and signed up for a game.  That brings me to one of the downsides of play-by-mail, waiting for games to start.  It can take months for companies to have enough players sign up before they can start a game.  I encourage anyone reading this to try a play-by-mail game if only for the reason that we can get some games started faster!

Starweb is a game in which space travel takes place through a series of warp gates.  You spend your time exploring gates, taking over planets, and battling and trading with other players.  There are different roles, for example you can play a race of killer robots or a group of religious fanatics a la Dune.  There is an interesting game mechanic where each player bids a certain number of points at the beginning of the game.  Those numbers are averaged and then the game's stopping point is set from that average.  When the game starts I will post more about my experience with it.

I have been happy with my play-by-mail experiences.  If you want to learn more about the state of play-by-mail gaming check out the following resources:

playbymail.net

Suspense and Decision

Adventures in Play-by-Mail Gaming

The summer drags on with heat and tedium and I look for new gaming pursuits.  I am joining a play-by-mail game.  For those who do not know, play-by-mail is just what it sounds like; opponents playing a game by submitting their turns through the mail.  One of the first play-by-mail games was chess, as it is easy to write down a chess move and send it to an opponent.  Soon, more complex games were played through the mail.  The board game Diplomacy was played with nations mailing their turns to a referee, who would then adjudicate the moves and mail the results back.  Later on, games were designed for the play-by-mail format.  A play-by-mail game could accommodate many players at once, and the game rules were taken care of by a moderator (often a computer).  Play-by-mail exists today, although many companies use email for turns and some are experimenting with browser based games.

What do you get from the play-by-mail experience?

I love all types of games.  I play rpgs, wargames, board games, and card games.  I enjoy them all.  I love to figure out strategies of conquest and then implement them on the battlefield.  I love to match wits against an opponent who is trying their best to beat me.  Play-by-mail offers the chance to engage in games with many opponents.  Play-by-mail games can offer huge simulation games where  opponents control various nations at war.  Because the game is moderated by someone else, I only have to focus on my strategy.  They also have a temporal quality to them.  Orders are submitted and then I have to wait to see the results of my planning.  The wait time brings about anticipation.

The game that I am trying is Duel II.  The concept of the game is that you own a stable of five gladiators and each turn you fight them in the arena.  You decide which warriors to fight, how to equip them, and what strategy they should adopt in the ring.  You fill out a turn sheet for each fighter, slip it into an envelope, and send it off to the company.

A turn sheet for Duel II.

One of the reasons that I chose Duel II is that the company that runs the game still uses actual letters and sends your turn results in the mail.  Many play-by-mail companies have moved to accepting turns by email and emailing you the results.  I wanted to have the tactile  experience of filling out a sheet, as well as the thrill of ripping open an envelope to see my results.  Electronics and computers have provided a lot of innovation for gaming, but there is something special about holding a sheet of paper and inking a plan of action.

Recommended Resources

Reality.com is the company that runs Duel II.  They run two other play-by-mail games which are wargames that take place in the Hyborian age and Forgotten Realms.

Playbymail.net is a website devoted to play-by-mail games of the past and present.  They have a list of active games and the publish a free pdf magazine, Suspense and Decision, that is dedicated to the play-by-mail hobby.

I will bring more resources to your attention in the future!