Play by post
On a whim I just jumped into my second-ever PBP RPG on Discord. Playing Cairn again. I love the potential of the format, since the finitude of time is always an issue. I also like how people have developed conventions for playing on Discord: communications conventions, specialized channels, user groups, dice bots.
With one finished crawl under my belt, it's still too early to come up any definite conclusions or bright thoughts about PB. I did find it enjoyable and rewarding, although not quite a substitute for in-person play. I'm curious to discover what kinds of play really shine with PBP, as I suspect some do more than others.
It also strikes me that the players have to do more heavy lifting and coordination to move the story forward. This was very apparent in the first game where players instantly launched into the interacting with the DM's prompts only (à la star pattern per Ben Robbins) rather than making any attempt to interact with one another, despite the presence of a dedicated planning channel. It was a little chaotic and I think some the players felt alienated and dropped off pretty quickly. I wonder if its incumbent on the GM to have a come-to-Jesus moment with the players to make sure they know to engage with one another actively and well -- especially with a group of randos.