PBEM Fanzine v94 n05 From: gl8f@fermi.clas.Virginia.EDU (Greg Lindahl) Date: Thu, 01 Sep 1994 02:43:29 +0000 ====================================================================== @@@@@@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@@@@@ @@@@@@@@@@@@@@ @@ @@ @@``````````@@ @@``````````@@ @@`````````````` @@@@ @@@@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@``@@ @@ @@`` @@@@@@@@@@@@ `` @@@@@@@@@@@@ `` @@@@@@@@@@@@ @@`` @@ ``@@`` @@```````````` @@``````````@@ @@```````````` @@`` `` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@`` @@@@@@@@@@@@ `` @@@@@@@@@@@@@@ @@`` @@`` `` ```````````` `````````````` `` `` ====================================================================== A Fanzine for Free Computer-Moderated Play-By-Electronic-Mail Wargames ====================================================================== volume 94, number 5 august 29, 1994 ====================================================================== Greg Lindahl, Editor gl8f@virginia.edu ====================================================================== World Wide Web: http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/pbm.html ====================================================================== Table of Contents: Opening Stuff o The Editor's Corner o Short Summary of Available Games Articles o So you want to run your own PBM game... Greg Lindahl Regular Features o Game Descriptions & Information o Archives and subscriptions by email o Hints regarding sending electronic mail to other networks o What's this "ftp" thing anyway? ====================================================================== The Editor's Corner ====================================================================== No one commented on the possibility of expanding PBEM to cover either free non-wargames, or perhaps all email games (which mostly means adding sports-related games, of which there are quite a few), or perhaps covering commercial and snail-mail games as well. Apathy is rampant. However, since I'm not getting enough articles with the current format, I'll have to expand. If you have any thoughts, or are interested in writing an article for one of the above categories of games, drop me email. -- g ====================================================================== Short Summary of Available Games (full information down below) ====================================================================== Atlantis 1.1 --- open-ended strategic fantasy game, with 109 players. Celestial Empire --- a more complicated space-opera game. There are 2 games running. New games start occasionally. Dougal Scott is looking for a moderator to take over running these games. Diplomacy --- Play Avalon Hill's Diplomacy boardgame by email. On August 15, there were 1000+ players involved in 277 games, with new games starting frequently on several fully automated email servers. Galactic Conqueror (German language) --- An economic/strategic space-opera game, with fancy interface programs available for PC's and Atari ST's. Galaxy / Galaxy/2 / Galactica / Blind Galaxy --- An economic/strategic space-opera game. There are 200+ players involved in a twenty or so games. New games start occasionally. Republic of Rome --- Play Avalon Hill's Republic of Rome boardgame by email, using an automated server. Star Empires --- A simple strategic/economic space-warfare game. Fly around the galaxy, maim your enemies, capture their planets, and produce more ships to maim the enemy with, etc. Sports Simulations --- a variety of different electronic leagues are available. Each game generally has one or two seasons per year. Decentralized games --- a couple of games are available which are designed for a few players, and the moderation programs are available so you can run your own games. For more information on any of these games, please wade through the "Game Descriptions and Information" section below. It lists ftp sites and the addresses of the moderators. The sports simulations and decentralized games descriptions are located in the "PBM List", which is a separate document available at the FTP sites. ====================================================================== So you want to run your own PBM game... Greg Lindahl ====================================================================== Most people who play play-by-mail games have probably considered running their own game at one point or another. Old-timers in the snail-mail industry are famous for the fact that all of us are actually working on games and have plans for commercial success someday. I call my game GLUG, which stands for ``Greg Lindahl's Ultimate Game.'' I don't expect to actually finish it anytime soon, but there's always hope that it will see the light of day this century. At least I'm not working on a novel or play. In the free PBEM industry, though, we actually have a lot more opportunity to run our own games. First off, many of us can actually run such a game without spending any money, because we're lucky enough to have a free net connection, paid for by work or tuition, or we have a fixed-price net connection already installed to feed our net.addiction. Second, there are existing, tested games which we can use. What kind of skills and qualities does it take to make a good gamemaster? On the technical side, you will have to know how to program. Even if you pick up source code for an existing game, game programs always have bugs, and the GM ends up fixing them. Next, you will need a sufficient amount of wizardry to run the game in whatever fashion you decide. The largest free games on the Internet have automated email servers. There are no existing idiot-proof servers that you can use, and modifying an existing one or writing a new one requires a fair amount of knowledge of and experience with mail protocols and the like. Alternately, a GM might decide to not use an automated email server at all. In that case, a GM might acknowledge all the turns by hand, saving them from their mail program into files. The second method is more time-consuming, but is much better for a GM who either doesn't know or has no desire to know about the inner (gory) details of email. Once the technical details are overcome, a few more traditional skills and qualities rear their heads. Volunteering to GM a game can be a long-term commitment, depending on whether the game is closed-ended or open-ended, and can require a considerable amount of tact and social skill. A GM must be fair, which also means that GM should not play in their own game. You might find this to be an obvious rule, but some GMs still break this elementary rule, including a few commercial GMs. A good GM must make few careless errors, because fixing errors is difficult, and must be able to placate an angry player without giving away unfair rewards. Now that you've gotten a few of the technical and game-masterly details out of the way, what game should you run? Some prospective game masters have their own ideas for great systems. Many of these turn out to be failures, for one reason or another. I have participated in several play-tests for systems where the design itself turned out to be bad, or boring, or both. I have participated in other playtests of systems which were very interesting, but the GM became bogged down in the process of moderating the game, and quit. No matter what, designing and writing a game will take you far longer than you imagine. If you're more interested in moderation than designing and writing, you have many choices for existing games. Unfortunately, you will still have to have some knowledge of programming, since none of these programs are finished, bug-free products. Among the choices you can find on the PBM List are Atlantis, Celestial Conquest, Galaxy (available in a normal and a ``blind'' variant), and Judgment Day. Three of these games were written by Russell Wallace, who has shown himself to be a good game designer over the years. As far as I know, very few Celestial Empire or Judgment Day games are currently running. Both of these games would be suitable for processing by ``hand,'' instead of by email server. Several people are already moderating Galaxy games, mostly by hand, but there is a large, unmet demand for Galaxy games. Before you rush out to start writing or moderating some games, I would suggest looking closely at past issues of this fanzine, and at a couple of the more successful, large Internet games such as Diplomacy and Galaxy. Forewarned is forearmed. ====================================================================== Game Descriptions and Information ====================================================================== Note: This information grows old. If you are looking at this issue from an archive, consult the file "PBM.list.gz" in the ftp archives for more up-to-date information. ====================================================================== All of these ftp sites are mirror copies of each other. Please use the closest one. FTP Site: ftp.erg.sri.com username: anonymous Directory: pub/pbm FTP Site: ftp.funet.fi username: anonymous Directory: pub/doc/games/play-by-mail FTP Site: ftp.cp.tn.tudelft.nl username: anonymous Directory: pub/pbm Gopher Site: gopher.cp.tn.tudelft.nl World Wide Web: http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/pbm.html ====================================================================== Game: Atlantis 1.1 Type: strategic economic/military, fantasy setting Duration: open-ended Turns: one per week GM: jjc@mpa15c.mv-oc.unisys.com Status: up and running, accepting new players Description: Atlantis 1.1 is an upgrade of Russell Wallace's original Atlantis 1.0 system. Atlantis features multiple faction types, a mostly player-run economy, simple economics, and a simple combat system. The major changes are increased movement for ships and mounted forces, and reduced taxation income. About 109 players are participating as of August, 1994. The rules are available from the ftp sites, as are back-issues of the player newsletter. If you would like to join, read the rules and then send email to the GM. Russell has written about half the code for 2.0. If you are interested in completing it, write him at rwallace@vax1.tcd.ie. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Celestial Empire Type: strategic economic/military space-opera Duration: close-ended, 30+ turns Turns: one per week GM: Dougal.Scott@fcit.monash.edu.au Status: occasionally starting new games Description: Players compete to capture worlds which produce many different types of resources, of which different amounts are needed to manufacture various items. The author, Dougal Scott, is running several games, and he periodically starts new ones. The rules can be ftped from yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au in the directory /pub/celemp. After you have read them, if you still want to join a game, send your name to Dougal at the address above. He is also looking for a new moderator to take over running his games, because he is graduating. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Diplomacy Type: email version of Avalon Hill's pure strategy game Turns: frequency varies from one per day to one per 2 weeks for different games. Email Server: judge@morrolan.eff.org HELP in body of message; the subject is ignored. Description: The Diplomacy Adjudicator is a fully computer-moderated gamemaster for Avalon Hill's Diplomacy boardgame. To get more information from the moderator, send email with the word "HELP" in the body of the message (the subject is ignored) to judge@morrolan.eff.org. There are also other judges available, but most games are run on the EFF judge. The diplomacy Hall of Fame is available via ftp from ftp.netcom.com, directory /pub/starkey. Diplomacy is probably the biggest PBEM game out there, with 277 games going as of August 15, 1994. I'd estimate at least 1,000 players are active in one or more games. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Galactic Conqueror (German language) Type: strategic, economic/military, space opera setting Duration: typically 25-30 turns Turns: typically 1 per week GM: hz@zardoz.ruhr.de (Harry Zimmermann) Description: Galactic Conqueror is strategic SF-PBeM-Game for up to 50 players. Each player starts the game with a small fleet of starships and is the owner of one of several hundred planets. The winner is determined by an point system which gives points for specific actions each turn. The first player who reaches a pre-set winning score will be the winner of the game. Since there are almost no trade options in the game, player interaction mostly concerns negotiations about borders and coordination of attacks or defense. Players can: o invest in science o build industrial facilities and strongholds on planets o build ships (26 different classes) o attack enemy or neutral planets o engage in espionage or corruption o and much more... At the start of the game, each player can see only 4-10 planets, whose coordinates are given relative to his own starting-planet. Every time a new planet is conquered, all planets up to a given distance from this new one are revealed. The rules and an Atari ST and PC Clone client can be ftped from ftp.cp.tn.tudelft.nl, in the directory /pub/pbm/Galactic_Conqueror. The clients are graphical point-and-click interfaces to the game. You could play without a client, but this is not recommended. An X11 client is in the works, as is an eventual translation of the rules into English. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Galaxy Type: strategic, economic/military, space opera setting Duration: typically 50-80 turns Turns: typically 1 or 2 per week Email Server: galaxy@acca.nmsu.edu, Subject: HELP GM: bampton@cs.utk.edu (Howard Bampton) GM: rwallace@vax1.tcd.ie (Russell Wallace) Description: The game typically takes place on a 100x100 2D map, with a few hundred planets and 20 to 50 players. Players compete to capture planets, which can be used for economic expansion. You can purchase technology in several different areas, allowing your ships to fight harder and move faster. Galaxy turns range in size from 10kbytes early in the game to 100-200kbytes late in the game. NOTE: The email server games have not been run since May. Contact the humans for possible game openings. The rules and source code are available for ftp, or via the email server, whose address is galaxy@acca.nmsu.edu. It takes commands in the subject line. Start with "help". There is also (at the moment) a separate mailing-list server at galaxy-request@acca.nmsu.edu, which has mailing lists with game announcements and discussion of code development. There are 17 games running on this server as of May 11, 1994, with about 200 different players participating. You can write to humans who run games; they start games occasionally and also have standby positions. They are: bampton@cs.utk.edu rwallace@vax1.tcd.ie Howard Bampton has a variant called "blind" galaxy. You can ftp the source for it from cs.utk.edu:/pub/bampton. It features a wraparound map, a double-blind mail-forwarding system, and you received only limited information about other players other than what you can observe at systems where you have ships. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Judgment Day Type: strategic economic/military, present day setting Turns: one per week GM: rwallace@vax1.tcd.ie (Russell Wallace) Status: beta-test finished, looking for a moderator Description: Judgment Day is a game for up to 25 players. Each player controls an empire which can build weapons and attack each other. When the nukes start flying, remember to duck and cover. The source code is available at the ftp sites or from Russell. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Republic of Rome Type: Historical (Roman Empire) Turns: player-paced Email Server: ror@hpeswlw.fc.hp.com HELP in body of message, the subject is ignored Description: RoR is an email adjudicator for Avalon Hill's game Republic of Rome, a cutthroat game of politics set in ancient Rome. All aspects of play are fully automated; there is no human GM. Players control factions of Senators; each turn they must elect officers and vote to raise and deploy forces to fight the many wars that arise; they work to increase the influence and popularity of their own Senators but must also work together to prevent destruction by war or by popular revolt. If Rome falls everyone loses. To get started, buy a copy of the board game, read the rules, then send email to the address above with the word "help" in the body of the message. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Game: Star Empires Type: strategic empire-building, space setting Turns: one per week, 60+ turns per game GM: rhl@jambo.mitre.org (Roger Lincoln) Status: occasionally starting games; watch rec.games.pbm Description: Star Empires is a very simple game which is very addictive. Players compete to control planets, which produce resources which can be used to build various types of ships. There is generally a large amount of diplomacy, and the GM encourages humorous player press releases. The rules are available for ftp from the Dutch ftp site. ====================================================================== Archives and subscriptions by email ====================================================================== PBEM is archived at the ftp, gopher, and WWW sites mentioned earlier. I have a mailing list that distributes the magazine, but I prefer that you obtain it via Usenet or other means instead of asking to go on the mailing list. ====================================================================== The remainder of this magazine does not change, and is not of interest to most readers anyway. Skip it. ====================================================================== Hints regarding sending Electronic Mail to other networks ====================================================================== OK, so now you're wondering, "I'm using FidoNet or CompuServe or FoobieBlech and those email addresses he keeps on talking about sure look funny to me!". Welcome to the modern world of networking. See, there's this big amorphous network called the Internet that lots of other networks and services, like FidoNet, CompuServe, DELPHI, America Online, GEnie and Prodigy are hooked up to. And you can send email between all of them, if you know the right incantations. Sometimes size or cost limitations will keep you from being able to play games on another network, but at least you can send me letters to the editor or articles. If your Compuserve ID is [76515,1122] then your canonical Internet address will be "76515.1122@compuserve.com" -- notice that the comma has become a period. To send mail from CompuServe to the Internet, you use this sort of address: >INTERNET:gl8f@virginia.edu Compuserve users have to pay extra for mail to or from the Internet. If you're a flat-fee user, the cost is 5 cents per 2500 characters, minimum 15 cents, but the first $9 per month is free. This can add up to a bit of money if you send frequent messages, or get into a Galaxy end-game where your turns are large. In addition, the maximum size for a given message is 50kbytes, and most Internet games do not split their game turns into pieces if they are too large. Diplomacy and Arena, for example, generally don't have large turns. Diplomacy games with no press don't send that many messages. America Online does not charge any extra fee for Internet email, and has recently removed their limit on message size, so they are perfectly adequate for playing Internet games. Their addresses look like "username@aol.com" Delphi addresses look like "username@delphi.com". Internet access costs $3/month extra, but that gets you access to email, ftp, irc, gopher, etc. at their normal hourly charge. Prodigy has finished their gateway. I don't know how much they charge for sending messages to the Internet. They do have a charge for sending large numbers of messages inside of Prodigy. Their addresses look like "username@prodigy.com" GEnie's addresses look like this: username@genie.geis.com. The maximum incoming message size is 900kbytes, but the biggest outgoing message is 50k or 2500 lines, as limited by the GEnie message editor. These sizes are big enough to play all games. GEnie doesn't charge extra for Internet email. FidoNet addresses, such as "Dale Webber at 1:105/55.0", look like dale.weber@p0.f55.n105.z1.fidonet.org in Internet form. To send email to the Internet from FidoNet, send normal netmail to the user UUCP, and then on the first line of the message, put the line: To: gl8f@virginia.edu Unfortunately, unless your FidoNet BBS is hooked directly to the Internet, they ask that you keep email under 10kbytes and only occasional. Ask your sysop for more information. ====================================================================== What's this "ftp" thing anyway? ====================================================================== ftp is an acronym for "file transfer protocol", and it is only directly available to the privileged few who are directly hooked to the Internet using heavy-duty hardware. There is a way to use ftp via email, and if you can get email to me, I will send you a document explaining how to use it, or send email to ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com, with an empty Subject: line, and the word "help" in the body of the message. The Dutch ftp site, ftp.cp.tn.tudelft.nl, has a way for you to retrieve any of its files via email, either by sending it mail or telneting to it. To get the helpfile either : telnet ftp.cp.tn.tudelft.nl 2001 MAIL <your mail address> HELP (for small help file) or SEND HELP (for big help file) or INDEX (for the index) QUIT or mail to pbm-server@cp.tn.tudelft.nl with the following body : BEGIN HELP or SEND HELP or INDEX END ====================================================================== PBEM is published monthly. Please redistribute it far and wide, but do not modify or delete any articles. Write me if you want to redistribute it in other forms; such permission is easy to obtain. For example, some old articles are being translated into German. PLEASE CONTRIBUTE! Our focus is primarily on free wargames, but we're interested in articles about anything relevant. Up