Best Rules Systems for PbP?

[Andostre]

I love Pathfinder, as I'm sure we all do. However, I'm not against considering other rules systems that work best in a play-by-post environment. I know that there are games out there that don't rely quite so much on, for example, action economy or battlefield positioning to run smoothly. Those sorts of considerations might make the game run more smoothly, or at least faster.

So, I have a two part recommendation:

1. What rules systems do you think work best for pbp?
2. What rules systems based on d20 work best for pbp? (This question is for GMs who have players used to Dnd 3.5, Pathfinder, etc. that don't like having to completely re-learn a new set of mechanics every game.)

[Jiggy]

I have a good feeling about 5E. I joined a more-or-less weekly face-to-face game, and noticed that in 5 sessions we hadn't busted out a grid a single time, despite 1-3 combats per session. I've now started a 5E PbP, and the first combat was a breeze. I'm currently applying to be a player in another 5E game, which should provide another perspective.

That's where I'd recommend you start. There's a free "basic rules" PDF you can download to give it a trial run and see what you think.

[Andostre]

That's actually really interesting. 5E hasn't been on my radar, so I'm not that familiar with it. What makes combat good for PbP?

[Jiggy]

Andostre wrote:

What makes combat good for PbP?

The fact that it doesn't assume a grid, and therefore isn't built to have mechanics/class features that rely on it. It treats the grid as an optional variant rather than a default assumption. As such, mapless combat is a real possibility for 5E, which in turn makes PbP combat easier (logistically).

[Headfirst]

For a while, I was toying with the idea of writing a setting-neutral RPG system specifically for Play-by-Post gaming. I might dig up those notes and look into it again.

The core premise was to reduce the back-and-forth needed to complete basic actions and to capitalize on the differences between tabletop and PbP games. For example, PbP games have much more time available for downtime actions, individual gameplay, and secret interactions (between players and/or the GM). The system would rely heavily on those traits.

[137ben]

Another thing to watch out for is immediate-interrupt abilities, or 'make an enemy re-roll' abilities. If you have a limited-use ability which can be used during specific circumstances on someone else' turn, you need to be watching the thread to say whether you are using it. If you can't log on for several hours, the next turn might already have passed by the time you see you could have used your ability!
How does 5e handle those sorts of abilities? Are there a lot of immediate/interrupting actions you could use in combat that come up in pbps?

[Jiggy]

137ben wrote:

Another thing to watch out for is immediate-interrupt abilities, or 'make an enemy re-roll' abilities. If you have a limited-use ability which can be used during specific circumstances on someone else' turn, you need to be watching the thread to say whether you are using it. If you can't log on for several hours, the next turn might already have passed by the time you see you could have used your ability!

How does 5e handle those sorts of abilities? Are there a lot of immediate/interrupting actions you could use in combat that come up in pbps?

Two immediately come to mind: the Lucky feat, and the Shield spell.

Lucky gives you a daily pool of Luck points, which you can spend to either roll an extra d20 on either your own or your opponent's roll, and pick which gets used. Shield is a 1-round bonus to AC and immunity to Magic Missile, but can be cast as a reaction when you either would be hit with an attack or are targeted by MM.

I have consciously avoided taking Lucky. I have one character with Shield.

No other such abilities come to mind.

EDIT: Wait, does Feather Fall count?

[Deranged_Maniac_Ben]

Jiggy wrote:

EDIT: Wait, does Feather Fall count?

Eh, not really. The situations where you'd want to cast Feather Fall are relatively rare, and when they do arise, the DM and all the other players are likely to know you'd want to cast it. Shield and Lucky sound more like the kinds of abilities I was referring to. If those are the only two things, it sounds easier than many other systems.

As another example, I have a pathfinder pbp character now with Warning Roar (Golden Lion maneuver), and didn't think about how it would be hard to use in a pbp format. I've frequently missed opportunities to use it as a result.

[Jiggy]

As a disclaimer, I've hardly played any 5E beyond about 3rd level, so there could be more stuff further in, but so far I've yet to encounter anything but those two that I can remember. "The interrupt issue" hasn't really been a thing yet for me.

[kyrt-ryder]

The very best rules system for PbP is diceless. In PbP you lack the magic of rolling dice at a table with friends, it's just a digital random number generator. Besides that, with a dice-based game like Pathfinder you have to wait until dice are rolled to know how you should RP your turn.

Whereas in a diceless game, you can use the roleplay [along with logic and reasoning and tactics and whatever rules the game has- rules you might have written yourself] to determine which hits connect and what effects they have and when a victor has been determined.

[Jiggy]

kyrt-ryder wrote:

In PbP you lack the magic of rolling dice at a table with friends, it's just a digital random number generator.

I'm a little confused. Are you saying that the only reason you include randomized resolution mechanics in an RPG is because you like throwing pieces of plastic on a table? I'm very curious about that notion, as to me the primary role of dice in an RPG is literally just to serve as a random number generator for resolving actions when success/failure is unclear. I'd love to hear more.

Quote:

Besides that, with a dice-based game like Pathfinder you have to wait until dice are rolled to know how you should RP your turn.

That's a simple matter of hitting "Preview" then typing up your post. Honestly, given that the roller can do the math for you, I find that "waiting until the dice are rolled" is often shorter in PbP than how long I usually wait for someone to resolve an action in face-to-face. I honestly have no idea what significant delay you're seeing here. Could you elaborate?

[kyrt-ryder]

Heh, it's just something special to me sitting around a table with a group of friends slinging dice and playing make believe. When I roll dice online I don't get that feeling, it's just a computer to me.

As for online play, my original roleplaying background [nearly a decade before I picked up Tabletop] is in semi-freeform Play By Post, with varying degrees of rules and no RNG. The focus is pure story and tactics [affected by whatever rules are in place] with no outside element, so long as the character has sufficient resources to do something they succeed unless their opposition can successfully prevent them from doing so. Etc.

[Jiggy]

I'm following you on the difference between sitting with your friends versus sitting in front of a computer, but the notion that dice are a meaningful element of that same dichotomy is hard for me to wrap my head around. So if you had a face-to-face game but replaced the dice with some other resolution mechanic, the experience would be diminished?