I'm the new guy, advice please

[Mongooseh]

Read the stickies.

Edit: And the announcements then ask questions we don't know what you want to know.  

[Southern Cross Nemesis]

The dm will ether make a map, steal one, or throw the map out the window and do his best to describe the scene...

Maps can look like

This: http://www.dndadventure.com/images/pt_dwarven_mine.jpg

they can look as simple as this text art... or they can be like

you enter a dimly lit small room, the smell of death emulates from the damp walls...  

[Keith Valken Lionheart]

Xing Lynx

Okaaay, first off, I viewed all of the announcements and the stickies. And none of them actually explain how you play a D&D game with a forum. I'll go one question at a time, I suppose, to make things simpler: what the hell do you use as a game board?

In this forum? DMs usually make a gridmap with coordinates, and players say to which coordinate they move. There's also programs like OpenRPG and MapTool to play in real time online.  

[Captain Ragnar Devonin]

Xing Lynx

...And frankly, it doesn't look very fun...

I'd say this right here says most of it. Play-by-post isn't for everyone, and it requires one thing in abundance more than anything else: patience. I'd say give it a shot regardless, but one thing I'd ask you to keep in mind - if it turns out it isn't for you, let the DM of the game you join know that. Don't just up and disappear on them. This might be only my preference, but I prefer a player tell me they've lost interest or can no longer continue as opposed to just disappearing, and I know quite a few DMs who feel the same way.

That being said...

Take a look through each of the subforums, and check their game threads. It should give an idea of how the game is played, more or less like roleplaying over a forum (certainly, you've done that if you've been around Gaia for a few years? I know RPing was pretty much the reason I joined Gaia back in 03') just with mechanics to back-up the fights rather than people throwing accusations of godmodding left and right. biggrin

The DM makes a post, the players respond when able (the benefit of play-by-post; people with scheduals horrible for IRL/real-time games can still enjoy the game), the DM responds to them, and so-on and so-forth until a given situation is resolved. Play-by-post tends to be more roleplaying oriented than combat, due to the fact that combat really tends to bog games down in play-by-post, but that isn't to say there isn't any - most games I've been a part of try to give a fair mixture of time to RP, and fights.

If you're considering the DM seat, something I'll say from my own personal experience: DMing play-by-post is A LOT different than a real-time game over something like AIM or IRC (which in itself is different from tabletop). I could provide some advice in this regard, but I'll save it for if it is actually necessary.

Back to the subject of patience (realizing I should have said this sooner) - an example of the key differences here, in speed, is that a game that can take 1-3 IRL/real-time sessions to resolve can take anywhere from a few months, to several, to a year in play-by-post (depending on player/DM post rates). This can be a big turn-off to some people, so I'm stating it up-front. As well, despite what you may see if you've been browsing the forums, play-by-post games do work, but I'd say you should focus more on the journey than the ending. I've only seen a few games actually reach what could be considered a 'campaign ending,' though plenty have reached the end of adventure arcs. Me? I find the journey the fun part, and I always hate when things end, so I'm happy to put that end off for years. biggrin

A new adventure every little bit helps too. Honestly, in play-by-post, I'd say any game that lasts at least 6 months is a good game (unless they're my games, then they need to last at least 2 years before I consider them 'okay'... )  

[Captain Ragnar Devonin]

If you had asked a week or two ago, I'd have said yes, but right now, unfortunately, no - my game is full. You also stated your preference for 4e, which isn't something I run/will be running for the foreseeable future (I'll probably be sticking to Pathfinder).  

[Southern Cross Nemesis]

Xing Lynx

Well if Pathfinder's your thing, great. But I only have 4e books so... That's what I'm willing/able to do

The only active 4e game, I know of...there are more, but I am like Captain, prefer pathfinder... is Merc Works It is largely rp driven, beyond that, I know someone is trying to start up a Colosseum game, which is mostly just fighting... from what I read on it.

pay attention to the main form, and sooner or later someone will always post a game idea for it. Or you can look under the sub folder section and any one that says [D&D 4e] ask the dm if he has room for one more player, which most likely will be the person with the most created threads in that folder....  

[Captain Ragnar Devonin]

The lovely thing about Pathfinder is that if you have access to the internet, you technically have access to all Pathfinder books printed; click here.

If you ever want to expand the amount of games available to you, there's one option. Although classes are done differently, among other things, the core mechanic (roll 1d20, add modifiers, etc) is the same.

For 3.5, which is more or less the same as Pathfinder, you can find a resource right ere.

There's a few more links for other systems in the SRDs sticky (as well as alternate links for some sites).