Ok, bleu planet came out a few years back, and for a while was a hottie. I tried to get in on some games of it at conventions and every frakking one was filled up, then, one year, no one was running it at all and I've never gotten to play in a game of it.

I never bought the stuff for it either, so I'd like to ask people here what they thought of it. I've heard it was a hard SF game, but I also heard it had "magic rocks" in it too.

It seems to me that the vast majority of people who like the game (myself included) have never run it.

I own everything for it except Ancient Echoes, which I hear is awesome.  

It's a hell of a cool world, mixing hard science fiction with the roughness of a frontier theme.  There's some cool stuff and some weird stuff, but mostly the hard scifi cancels out the magic rocks, which are actually alien tech.

Do you have any questions in specific?

I love the background, the Synergy system is pretty sound (it has a lot of similarities to SilCore), but I just can't find people that are interested in a hard science fiction game like BP.

The "magic rock" is called Long John and really what it's done is allow for much more extreme genetic manipulation than was previously possible, most notably as an anagathic treatment (theoretically someone who is on Long John therapy could live forever).

I'm not sure how the inclusion of Long John makes Blue Planet not hard science fiction or softer science fiction - it's no farther out there than many things featured in hard science fiction literature.

Quote from: joewolzIt seems to me that the vast majority of people who like the game (myself included) have never run it.

I own everything for it except Ancient Echoes, which I hear is awesome.  

It's a hell of a cool world, mixing hard science fiction with the roughness of a frontier theme.  There's some cool stuff and some weird stuff, but mostly the hard scifi cancels out the magic rocks, which are actually alien tech.

Do you have any questions in specific?

Well, what kind of magic rocks does it have?

Also, I've heard the 1e game system sucked, and that it was better to use BP as a sourcebook for other systems. How what it's system?

Did it have any intelligent aliens?  You mentioned alien tech, was it biotech or hard tech? I'd assume from "Ancient echoes" it might have aliens since the term "ancient" often gets applied to alien races.

Thanks for the info.

Quote from: Dominus NoxWell, what kind of magic rocks does it have?

Err...Wil's post above answered that question fairly thoroughly.

Quote from: ColonelHardissonErr...Wil's post above answered that question fairly thoroughly.

Yeah, I caught that, but was surprised to find that some people called it magic rocks. Someone else said it was alien tech. I may have to find a source for this and read it.

I did read a review of it on (ugh) the purple toilet and was somewhat dismayed to read that a gamer was condemning the game for predicting that oil and other natural resources would run out in the future, citing examples of them not running out after past predictions. That's a pretty stupid and destructrive attitude to take, i was disappointed to see a gamer being that stupid.

So the magic rock, or alien tech, allows advances in genetic manipulation. I do want to see the science on that plus the way it can extend life.

Just the bits I've read open some possibilities, like the 'abandoned' first colonists resenting the johnny come lateleys and such. If there's alien tech there have to be aliens, and my, isn't it conventient that this wormhole just happens to link the two planets?

I got the two core books in December (bless FFG's Holiday sale), but I haven't had the chance to run a game yet. Maybe later this year. :cool:

Quote from: joewolzIt seems to me that the vast majority of people who like the game (myself included) have never run it.

It's a hell of a cool world, mixing hard science fiction with the roughness of a frontier theme.  There's some cool stuff and some weird stuff, but mostly the hard scifi cancels out the magic rocks, which are actually alien tech.

Agreed.  I love it, but it's been a hard sell to players.  Unless they've read it, a frontier water world with an ancient mystery just hasn't appealed to folk I've met as much as something they're more familiar with.

Quote from: Dominus NoxWell, what kind of magic rocks does it have?

Well, like Wil said, the magic rock is called Long John and its actually compressed nanites that are designed for genetic manipulation.  The creators of Poseidon (the Blue Planet) are an alien race that gave the planet ecological wardens (Aborigines*) who are themselves expert genetic manipulators.  The Aborigines use Long John to further their own agenda.

Quote from: Dominus NoxAlso, I've heard the 1e game system sucked, and that it was better to use BP as a sourcebook for other systems. How what it's system?

I have the 2nd edition, which seems split up logically.  The Synergy system is fine.  It's fairly standard task resolution, you roll 1 to 3 d10 and take the lowest roll.  It's a roll under system.

Quote from: Dominus NoxDid it have any intelligent aliens?  You mentioned alien tech, was it biotech or hard tech? I'd assume from "Ancient echoes" it might have aliens since the term "ancient" often gets applied to alien races.

Yes, the Aborigines are intelligent aliens, and they're really really alien, their tech is biotech.  There's a theme to keep to, and biotech is part of it.  

Actually, Ancient Echoes is the book about cetacean characters.  It details how to play a dolphin or killer whale.

Quote from: Dominus NoxThanks for the info.

You're welcome!  The setting is very well thought out, but it should be.  The author/creator teaches Oceanography at some university somewhere.

*The Aborigines are tentacled manta-ray things as a baseline, but using the Long John and Creator technology "evolve" themselves at will into various functions.  They are less a creature and more a living machine...if that makes any sense the way I expressed it.

Spoiler

Lohn John's actual name is xenosilicate. It is a substance found in nodules throughout Poseidon's crust. It is actually a form of organic nanotechnology created by a race called the Creators. When the Creators terraformed Poseidon they left behind caches of technology, as well as the genetically engineered beings that the humans call the Aborigines, to maintain Poseidon's terraforming. Long John is a grade of xenosilicate that was used for regulating biochemistry and genetic sequencing. Since xenosilicate is not naturally formed, there is no rhyme or reason as to where it can be found - making xenosilicate harvesting and extremely expensive proposition for humans. As humans try to find more and more of it, they also encroach more and more on the aborigines who are just now starting to realize that humanity may be a threat to them and the whole planet. For anyone who complains about science fiction games not having alien aliens Blue Planet is the place to look. The Aborigines are very well thought out and not human in any way.

Quote from: joewolzWell, like Wil said, the magic rock is called Long John and its actually compressed nanites that are designed for genetic manipulation.  The creators of Poseidon (the Blue Planet) are an alien race that gave the planet ecological wardens (Aborigines*) who are themselves expert genetic manipulators.  The Aborigines use Long John to further their own agenda.



I have the 2nd edition, which seems split up logically.  The Synergy system is fine.  It's fairly standard task resolution, you roll 1 to 3 d10 and take the lowest roll.  It's a roll under system.



Yes, the Aborigines are intelligent aliens, and they're really really alien, their tech is biotech.  There's a theme to keep to, and biotech is part of it.  

Actually, Ancient Echoes is the book about cetacean characters.  It details how to play a dolphin or killer whale.



You're welcome!  The setting is very well thought out, but it should be.  The author/creator teaches Oceanography at some university somewhere.

*The Aborigines are tentacled manta-ray things as a baseline, but using the Long John and Creator technology "evolve" themselves at will into various functions.  They are less a creature and more a living machine...if that makes any sense the way I expressed it.

Oh it makes sense, the abos exist as a race of organic machines to oversee the planet's development, so while they may be made of flesh they're stil acting like intelligent machines with a programmed directive, yes?

Do humans realize that this long john is artificial? If so you'd think some might realize it was created by a race way haead of them and that monekying around with their creation may invite consequences.

And why, one wonders, does this wormhole lead so conveniently from the terran system to posideon? I suppose there may be some hint that tne aliens may have something to do with atalantis, at least I'd expect that meme in the game.

Sounds like a decent premise, too bad it plopped after a brief success.

Quote from: Dominus NoxOh it makes sense, the abos exist as a race of organic machines to oversee the planet's development, so while they may be made of flesh they're stil acting like intelligent machines with a programmed directive, yes?

Exactly, kind of. They are capable of learning and adapting - they just may not necessarily have free will as we would recognize it.

QuoteDo humans realize that this long john is artificial? If so you'd think some might realize it was created by a race way haead of them and that monekying around with their creation may invite consequences.

There are quite a few corporations and possibly even the government that suspect it.

QuoteAnd why, one wonders, does this wormhole lead so conveniently from the terran system to posideon? I suppose there may be some hint that tne aliens may have something to do with atalantis, at least I'd expect that meme in the game.

I've never seen anything about Atlantis - the Creators in all likelihood left the wormhole network as they travelled from system to system (please note the Creators and the aborigines are not one and the same). If human beings and life on Earth are a result of a similar process to Poseidon's the Creators began the process and disappeared billions of years before humans even existed. My impression is that if Earth had anything like the aborigines, human beings hunted them to extinction a long time ago without realizing what they were.

Also...IIRC Poseidon is an older planet than Earth so that means its ecosystem has had a lot longer to stratify and diversify.  I could be mixing it up with something else though.

The thing about the wormhole is: It doesn't matter in the game. All adventuring is done planetside, so it's easy to forget it even exists.

Of the games I *haven't* played, BP (besides Tribe has got my favorite chargen. Creating PCs just makes you want to play them immediately. I set out to create a kind of underwater Indy, an a) marine biologist, who b) could steer his own mini-sub, yet c) hold his own in a firefight--and I *could*. The BP template system is flexible without being bland. It creates truly individual, competent PCs.

Some people swear by 1E, rules-wise, but I don't know their criteria.

Quote from: Pierce InverarityThe thing about the wormhole is: It doesn't matter in the game. All adventuring is done planetside, so it's easy to forget it even exists.

Of the games I *haven't* played, BP (besides Tribe has got my favorite chargen. Creating PCs just makes you want to play them immediately. I set out to create a kind of underwater Indy, an a) marine biologist, who b) could steer his own mini-sub, yet c) hold his own in a firefight--and I *could*. The BP template system is flexible without being bland. It creates truly individual, competent PCs.

Some people swear by 1E, rules-wise, but I don't know their criteria.

Well, the wormhole may be a background item, but in the full context of the game peeps have to realize the imlications of it, especislly if it's artificial. I mean, I'd bet pundit's life that if such were found some earth governments would be setting up defenses around it to attack anything trying to jump into the terran system.

The implications of something like that, especially if it's clearly artificial, are mind boggling if for no other reason then it proves the presence of alien intelligence, and one that's more advanced than humanity. It would have to have a major impact on the game world for there to be any consistency.

Nox,

The game talks about the implications of the wormhole, including fierce academic arguments about whether or not it is artificial (and I find it perfectly credible some would argue it was natural, even though it seems pretty clear in the game it's an artefact).

The key problems with the game were a dense background that would require player buy-in for effective play, really the players all need to know the setting and the tech fairly well, and a lack of obvious things for characters to do.

Tons of stuff they potentially could do, but not a lot of help in creating actual campaigns or showing what typically they would do.

Lots of GMs bought it, but fewer played it.