Because the Frilond campaign is generally a long-distance game with only infrequent live sessions, we try to keep the game moving forward by using regular play-by-mail (or, more accurately, play-by-email) installments.

The following procedures are given to new players in the campaign. Points 1, 2, 3, 6, and 9 were adapted from Mark R. Kehl's "Perils and Postage: How to Run Your Favorite Role-playing Game by Mail," which appeared in Dragon Magazine #197.

1. Combat will be of two basic types. Simple fights in which your course of action are completely obvious (fight or die, using your strongest attack) will be resolved by me. I will base reactions on PC intelligence, level, personality, and past procedure. I will never choose spells for spellcasters, unless established procedures dictate otherwise (For example, a player might write "If we're ambushed tonight, I'll immediately cast web across the ravine mouth").

   For more complete fights, I will describe the situation and end the move, so that your next instructions will include how you want to deal with the combat situation. For instance, I might write: "A crowd starts to gather in the street; the black-armored knight seems to take exception to your refusal to get out of the way. He reigns in his horse, and barks some orders to his lackeys. A couple of men-at-arms in padded armor advance on foot, leveling their long spears at you. While this happens, the knight sits in his saddle and laughs. What do you do?"

2. Based on your current situation, for each move you need to supply your character's immediate long- and short-term goals. For instance, suppose you're in the situation described above. Your long term goals may be to prove you did not murder Baron Harold's forester. Your short-term goals might be something like "Throw my cloak at the men-at-arms, hoping to buy a couple of seconds. Then I'll try to escape through the crowd. If the spearmen pursue, I'll throw my daggers at them, and continue running. Once I'm out of sight, I'll run straight to the inn. There I'll grab my stuff and get out of town, making my way for the village of Hardby. There I'll try to find someone who can teach me how to use a longsword. Also, I'll be checking for rumors about Baron Harold."
3. Your move should take into account as many contingencies as you can think of. If you are locked up in someone's dungeon you cannot simply write, "Escape." You need to do something like "Try to pick the lock with nail from my boot" or "Search for secret doors" or otherwise outline some definite course of action.
4. Exploit the written medium. When writing out your move, feel free to be as descriptive and "novelistic" as you like. You are adding a chapter to a collaborative story. Invent dialog and improvise reactions, if they seem logical; if you want to "borrow" another player's character for some detail, feel free—but use your discretion. For example, if you want your character to make a joke at an NPC's expense, and you think that Susan's thief, Elsbeth, would probably find such a joke funny as well, you should be able to write something like "Elsbeth laughs at my comment on the bailiffs immense girth."
5. Feel free to consult with other players before responding to any single move. This will allow your characters to coordinate an attack, establish group procedures, and so on. For the bulk of player interaction, I don't need to be directly involved (for example, if two players want to role-play a debate between their characters over the merits of Harpish ale). I do need to be notified if some significant game effect arises from PC interaction (for example, if a wizard PC allows another PC wizard to copy a spell from his spellbook).
6. Overall party actions will be determined by a majority, with me, the DM, as final arbiter. I'll do my best to integrate your moves and come up with acceptable compromises when they conflict.
7. The play-by-mail narratives are not all-encompassing and do not cover every possible detail—this leaves plenty of gaps or openings. If there is some detail that you want to insert into an existing narrative, please let me know: we should be able to work it in—as long as we do not blatantly and irreparably contradict established continuity.
8. You should establish Standard Operating Procedures for your character; these will help me determine outcomes more quickly and efficiently. For example, SOPs within town: what does your character normally carry while within town? What places would your character frequent? What would your character's daily routine be like?
9. All Play by Mail Installments are archived for your future reference. They may hold clues and other information that will come in handy for understanding plot lines.
10. A modified experience system will be used for the PBM; this system awards role-playing and puzzle solving more heavily than combat. All experience is awarded at the end of an adventure, and not at the end of every PBM move.
11. Loot will be divided by you using whatever scheme the party agrees to: equally, by level, equal shares plus bonus, etc.