Catacombs of Chaos

Catacombs of Chaos is a play-by-mail game that was published by Schubel & Son.

*Catacombs of Chaos*
Publishers	Schubel & Son
Years active	~1982 to unknown
Genres	role-playing, play-by-mail
Languages	English
Playing time	unlimited
Materials required	Instructions, order sheets, turn results, paper, pencil
Media type	Play-by-mail or email

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Gameplay

Catacombs of Chaos was a turn-based game where each player controls a party of characters exploring the catacombs formerly used by a wizard who has died.^[1] It was a dungeon-exploration game with a ratings system for players.^[2] The Catacombs held the treasure horde of Clanthor the Magnificent.^[3] Players advance though various actions including acquiring treasure.^[3] Players could choose from seven "quests": Cleric, Consumers, Hunters, Plunderers, Seekers, Terrors, and Undead, each with different character classes available.^[3] John C. Muir described those categories generally as "Magicians, Fighters, and Thieves".^[3] Parties could comprise up to ten customizable characters, using 100 points to allocate per party.^[3] Dungeons ranged from 160 to 600 rooms per game.^[4] Players had 19 actions available per turn, including: "Room Search, Rest, Take Item, Move, Defend, and Melee".^[4]

Players input orders on punch cards for scanning by the publisher.^[3]

Reception

W. G. Armintrout reviewed Catacombs of Chaos in The Space Gamer No. 57.^[1] Armintrout commented that "Catacombs of Chaos is an ill-explained and confusing game. The worst problem lies with the lack of information given to the players about such basics as character design, magic, and combat."^[1]

In the April 1983 edition of Dragon (Issue 72), Michael Gray found the game to be very similar to Heroic Fantasy by Flying Buffalo.^[5] A reviewer in a 1983 issue of PBM Universal stated that, other than no available special actions, "the game is fine".^[2]

John C. Muir reviewed the game in a 1983 issue of Nuts & Bolts of PBM. He characterized gameplay as "dull" due to the slow pace.^[4] He recommended playing only after a game revision.^[4]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Armintrout 1982. pp. 2–5.
^ ^a ^b Editors 1983. p. 28.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Muir 1983. p. 20.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Muir 1983. p. 21.
^ Gray 1983. p. 31.

Bibliography

Armintrout, W. G. (November 1982). "The Great Buffalo Hunt: Heroic Fantasy vs. Catacombs of Chaos Featured Review". The Space Gamer. No. 57. Steve Jackson Games. pp. 2–5.
Editors (November–December 1983). "Gamealog: Catacombs of Chaos". PBM Universal. No. 1. p. 28.
Gray, Michael (April 1983). "The PBM scene: Facts You Can Use When YOU Choose What Game to Play". Dragon. No. 72. TSR, Inc. p. 31.
Muir, John C. (1983). "Catacombs of Chaos". Nuts & Bolts of Gaming. Vol. 3, no. 14. pp. 20–21.