Post PBEM Campaign Thoughts

Having just finished my first PBEM campaign, I thought I'd take a few moments to reflect upon how it went, what worked, what could have been improved etc. So in no particular order:

The KISS Principle. I know it sounds pretty obvious, but don't go too large or too complicated. Keep it a manageable size so that you and the other players can feel in control of things. I found that 3 Divisions per side worked well, with each Division of 3 Brigades. The Divisions are large enough to allow for detachments to be made, if required.

Be Flexible. You will not be able to cover every conceivable situation that might occur. Have some good basic guidelines, such as road versus off road movement,  how far Divisions can 'see' in terms of map squares. When  a situation occurs that is not covered, simply work out what would be the most reasonable outcome, bearing in mind the orders from either player, the terrain involved etc.

Map Area Size. With the WarPlan maps I was kindly given by a fellow Blogger, 3 maps x 3 maps worked well, with each map having 25 squares. This enabled plenty of room for pre-contact manouevering, but not too much that both players would get bored before the real action started. I found that by Campaign Turn 3, both sides had started to 'see' the other, but still not have a complete picture of overall dispositions.

Fog of War. Directly linked to the above, both players enjoyed this aspect and found it a nice challenge, although obviously daunting at times. Where were the enemy? From my perspective, it was fascinating seeing the action unfold before my eyes.

Help The Players. Fog of War is all well and good, but you don't want to be blundering about clueless as it's no fun for anyone. So I fed snippets of intel to both sides based upon what they might be able to glean from the local populations etc. This helped in 'directing' their broad lines of advance, but not revealing too much inforamtion.

Rules. Make sure you play with a ruleset that you know well and ideally the players do too. You don't want to be learning new rules in the midst of a campaign. Also keep things fairly 'vanilla' and only add 'chrome' where appropriate, such as making one unit 'Stubborn' as I did in this campaign to reflect their determined resistance in one game.

Have Fun. It sounds obvious but make it fun for the players but also you as the umpire and player on the table.

Orders. Possibly one of the most important things to consider is how you handle information out to the players and the orders you receive in return and how you execute them. Clarity both ways works well and avoids those Captain Nolan moments, but should they occur, than can be fun.

Common Sense. Another blindingly obvious statement, but I often found myself looking at the campaign map and the orders from both sides, thinking what makes the most sense? I then went with the one that did make the most sense, sometimes reflecting upon it overnight.

Play Both Sides Equally Fairly. Yet again another obvious point but I would set up the game up as best I could based upon both sides orders. I would then play the game from either table edge, so I felt I was playing that side each game Turn. It is too easy just to sit in one place but that movement really helped me play each side fairly.

Post Game Campaign Movement. So after each game, I would look at what had happened to either side, then think what would be the most likely lin of retreat or advance, given orders received, the terrain being moved over, the general Campaign situation. Mulling things overnight often helped clarify things.
 

Time. I was surpised at how long it took to make the maps moves, relay, receive and implement orders then play the game. Broadly each Campaign Turn took about a week to complete. Because of this the whole KISS principle really helps in keeping the whole thing manageable.

It's Fun! It certainly was and a very different experience for all involved. I particularly enjoyed implementing both sides orders when the game hit the table. The campaign also through up many 'scenarios' that i would not normally play, which was a pleasure and often a challenge, but a good one.

Different Periods. My campaign was set mid-19thC and I felt worked well for this period. There is no reason why it could transfer to say a SYW setting or WWII, with some tweaks here and there. In fact I am mulling over an idea of a WWII campaign and how to fit in the aerial and communication aspects of this conflict.

I hope the above might have been of use and I found it useful to reflect upon how the whole campaign played out. Hopefully I will get another one up and running soon, but I don't want it to become onerous for anyone involved.