BlueBooking

[Lancer]

BlueBooking: who has done it, what were/are your experiences with it and how to do it, i.e. what are the do's and dont's of it?

As you might have guessed from my asking for this info, I intend to introduce it to my gaming group. Any input welcome.

[Michael Barratt]

Question:

"Bluebooking?"

Thanks,
The Doc

[Dan Gurden]

Bluebooking is the type of game where you go back and play out events in an established characters past... Sort of like a flashback sequence...

Works best for solo advantures when only the one player shows...

I must admit to not having done much of this but plan on making it work in my LUG PBEM...

[ghosty]

Blue booking was an invention of veteran game designer/author Aaron Allston and the first time I heard of it was in his classic Strikeforce sourcebook for HERO Games.

It started as what AA called "paranoia notes" you know the notes you passed to the GM when you didn't want the other players to know what you were doing. But AA's group went beyond that and started using blue notebooks for that task (hence the name).

But ultimately it evolved into a method for players to conduct off-screen (so to speak) private conversations. It then evolved into behind the scenes roleplaying between players, the GM and NPCs.

The 3 main purposes of bluebooking as described by AA are:

[list=1][*]Privacy - for PCs to conduct lengthy conversations/activities with other PCs/NPCs but don't want other PCs to know what they are doing.[*]Permanence - notebooks store well and you won't accidentally throw them away. It keeps a good record of all activities and most of my players use their bluebooks as game logs as well. Good way of record keeping IMHO.[*]Breaking down of inhibitions - the most important use for bluebooks IMHO to conduct game activity during active game play. Good for when male GMs are playing female NPCs who are having passionate relations with a PC. Its tough uttering words of high romance to a room full of gamers so bluebooking allows for this sort of thing without overt embarassment.[/list=1]

Bluebooking (or even e-mailing) is a good way to keep up the game even when the gamers are scattered to the four winds during vacation times. It allows for updates and for tying up campaign subplots that require roleplaying and no die roling.

It is a good means of resolving small subplots like relationships etc. and keeps the bordem level down especially when two PCs are carrying on a romance which might slow down the rest of the game for the others. They can bluebook their relationship whilst the game goes on.

So far we've not had any problems with bluebooking and they have helped my various campaigns imensely and when I get confused with some odd thing that happened in the past, I call for a review of all the players' bluebooks and they give me a rapid access file to how each previous adventure went.

The only problem I can foresee is that it can get addictive to the romantics and deep builder type players (ie. those who love to build their characters up with tonnes of background) especially with the advent of e-bluebooking. Blue booking is fine and fun but it should not be used to interrupt real roleplaying.

Bluebooking has one other use. It gives the players a forum to critique the game which they may not feel so inclined to do in front of others. It is also a forum for them to suggest changes and improvements to the campaign.

[Captain Zymmer]

Wow...Bluebooking

What a question

It is the salvation of the larger game (5+ players) when you can't have each episode focus on each player's life.

It allows them to build their characters on the side and have a "life" outside the other players and the standard session.

BE WARNED!

Never, ever allow Blue Booking to drastically affect the universe for the other players, as they will feel resentment showing and finding out because player X did such-&-such, now their lives or universe or what have you has changed.

Keep Blue Booking focused on developing character backgrounds, relationships, etc...IMHO

Oh and BTW, the reason they called it "Blue Booking" is because they kept their "Paranoia Notes" in blue universtiy scribblers ( note books for the Americans in the audience )

[Michael Barratt]

Ah okay. I do something like this already in my tabletop game: at the end of every session, I ask them a question about their past or the like, and the next session they bring me no more than a page of writing in answer.

I keep those in a big divided binder, and they can look up their own information at will.

Comes in really handy when I need to draw someone into a quest or mission and I've got some tid-bits on how something similar took the life of their parents - now they're in it, and it's personal - regardless of if it turns out to be the same person.

I only use it to explore the past though. In-game, if they want to do something sneaky, they a note which they give me, I read, and then eat. I kid.

The Doc

[redwood973]

Originally posted by Captain Zymmer

universtiy scribblers ( note books for the Americans in the audience )

You got to love Quebec; a place an hour from New York City where the people speak French, and have the Queen of England on their money.

[Lancer]

Thanks to all for your answers.

Somehow I had a feeling ghosty and Zymmer would show up to answer that question.

In a way I have been bluebooking myself on-again off-again for some time now, with writing background stories for my some of my characters, but I never tried to introduce it for general campaign use.

But you bet I will now.

[Captain Zymmer]

Originally posted by redwood973

You got to love Quebec; a place an hour from New York City where the people speak French, and have the Queen of England on their money.

Well scribbler is from the Queen's English you know

Originally posted by Lancer

Somehow I had a feeling ghosty and Zymmer would show up to answer that question.

But of course good Ser, we are the most twisted relationship narrators around these parts afterall

[ghosty]

Originally posted by Captain Zymmer

But of course good Ser, we are the most twisted relationship narrators around these parts afterall

Sir I resemble that remark. But then I am a relationship junkie and if I don't get my fix on a regular basis I go into withdrawal.