The game mechanics are pretty similar. I guess the forum allows anybody to tap in to the game we have underway and see what’s going on. I don’t think anyone could hack the game though. If I were well organized, I could analyze my opponent’s moves against other players and try to determine what he’s going to do in any given situation.
The forum, when it’s working correctly, prints out all of the unit buys, the moves, and new unit placement. With play-by-email (PBEM), you receive a file via email that shows the final situation. I haven’t figured out what I’m doing wrong, but when I play, the forum doesn’t capture all of the moves I make, so I include a brief summary of what I’ve done.
For me, the advantage to PBEM is that it’s easy to scan my email and see when the other guy has sent his move. With the forum, I have to go into this system and look for new moves in our game.
I will need your email address to initiate the game, as MARTI will send you the combat results.