Maybe we should document the dos and don'ts of PBEMs that we've experienced over the years. Specifically, there are some bugs that you need to take measures to avoid. As an aside, there are some useful threads floating around with technical/organizational advice to new players. E.g. how to set up a pbem tracker. Maybe a stickied thread with links to such useful threads would be a good idea.
Anyway, look out for these bugs:
1. The overwritten save bug
When you end turn in a pbem, an outgoing email named <gamename>_<turn>_to_<next player>.CivBeyondSwordSave, e.g. PBEM47_AD-0080_to_Team_Gaspar.CivBeyondSwordSave, is created in your My Games\Beyond the Sword\Saves\pbem\<gamename>\ folder. This is the save that you email to the next player. However, if the file already exists when you end turn, for example due to replaying a turn or because FFH names both the first and the second turn of the game "Turn 1", the resulting overwritten save game will not work for the next player. (He will get prompted for your password instead of his own.)
The solution is to make sure to delete any preexisting save file instead of opting to overwrite it. The game will prompt you if the outgoing save file already exists so you will be aware of the potential problem.
2. The popup bug
If you play with the "minimize popups" option enabled, you get a bunch of icons in the top right corner of your map, representing pending notifications, instead of the normal blocking popups asking you to pick builds, research projects, etc. If you save a pbem turn mid-turn, all the pending notfications will be saved to all the players' notification lists. If you subsequently load this save to continue playing the turn, the result is that other players will see your notifications when they play their turns. This is probably harmless in most cases, but it does leak information to other players, and it can cause a lot of confusion.
The solution is to play without the "minimize popups" option, or to resolve all pending notifications before saving a game (that you plan to load and continue from later).
My personal advise, to stay on the safe side, is also to never overwrite any pbem saves. I have no evidence that overwriting saves causes problems in cases other than when ending turn, but we do have bugs like the loading bug mentioned below whose causes are still not pinned down.
3. The loading bug
The exact circumstances required to produce this bug are not known, but it appears to be related to loading a game directly from being in-game in another (or another save of the same) game. The symptoms of the bug is that when the save gets back to you, you discover that some of your actions from your last turn have not happened, e.g. units that you moved out are unmoved when you get the save back. Sounds odd but it is a real bug and has been confirmed on multiple occasions. We've also seen players spontaneously adopting new civics, which might have been caused by the same bug.
The solution (it is hoped) is to always exit to main menu before loading a saved game.
Anyway, look out for these bugs:
1. The overwritten save bug
When you end turn in a pbem, an outgoing email named <gamename>_<turn>_to_<next player>.CivBeyondSwordSave, e.g. PBEM47_AD-0080_to_Team_Gaspar.CivBeyondSwordSave, is created in your My Games\Beyond the Sword\Saves\pbem\<gamename>\ folder. This is the save that you email to the next player. However, if the file already exists when you end turn, for example due to replaying a turn or because FFH names both the first and the second turn of the game "Turn 1", the resulting overwritten save game will not work for the next player. (He will get prompted for your password instead of his own.)
The solution is to make sure to delete any preexisting save file instead of opting to overwrite it. The game will prompt you if the outgoing save file already exists so you will be aware of the potential problem.
2. The popup bug
If you play with the "minimize popups" option enabled, you get a bunch of icons in the top right corner of your map, representing pending notifications, instead of the normal blocking popups asking you to pick builds, research projects, etc. If you save a pbem turn mid-turn, all the pending notfications will be saved to all the players' notification lists. If you subsequently load this save to continue playing the turn, the result is that other players will see your notifications when they play their turns. This is probably harmless in most cases, but it does leak information to other players, and it can cause a lot of confusion.
The solution is to play without the "minimize popups" option, or to resolve all pending notifications before saving a game (that you plan to load and continue from later).
My personal advise, to stay on the safe side, is also to never overwrite any pbem saves. I have no evidence that overwriting saves causes problems in cases other than when ending turn, but we do have bugs like the loading bug mentioned below whose causes are still not pinned down.
3. The loading bug
The exact circumstances required to produce this bug are not known, but it appears to be related to loading a game directly from being in-game in another (or another save of the same) game. The symptoms of the bug is that when the save gets back to you, you discover that some of your actions from your last turn have not happened, e.g. units that you moved out are unmoved when you get the save back. Sounds odd but it is a real bug and has been confirmed on multiple occasions. We've also seen players spontaneously adopting new civics, which might have been caused by the same bug.
The solution (it is hoped) is to always exit to main menu before loading a saved game.
I have to run.
