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Complete User Guide

Charles Gantt edited this page Aug 13, 2026 · 1 revision

Complete User Guide

What the Add-On Does

Andy's Explorer's Notebook provides a deliberate, survival-friendly way to record important places. Instead of saving arbitrary coordinates from anywhere, the player builds a permanent Survey Marker and records it through the marker's Lodestone.

Every site belongs to the player who recorded it. The data is stored persistently in the world rather than inside one physical Notebook item. A replacement Notebook therefore repopulates with the player's complete log.

Requirements and Installation

  • Minecraft Bedrock 26.40 or newer
  • Behavior Pack and linked Resource Pack active
  • No experimental toggles
  • No cheats for normal gameplay
  • No external dependencies

Import the .mcaddon, activate the Behavior Pack, confirm the Resource Pack is active, and completely leave and reopen the world after updating an existing installation.

Crafting the Notebook

The shapeless Crafting Table recipe uses:

  • 1 Book & Quill
  • 1 Compass
  • 1 Lodestone

The resulting item is a leather Explorer's Notebook with a compass on its cover. It does not stack.

Building a Survey Marker

Every marker uses four required pieces:

Position Piece
Top side Any normal wall sign attached to a horizontal side face
Top Chiseled Stone Bricks
Middle Lodestone
Bottom Stone Bricks

The column must be exactly vertical. The sign belongs beside the top Chiseled Stone Bricks, not on top of the structure or beside the Lodestone.

The add-on checks the completed structure whenever a required part is placed. The individual blocks may be placed in any sequence, but the finished arrangement must match the table exactly.

Successful validation produces a green confirmation and a randomized vanilla Amethyst Bud break sound unless the world owner disabled either form of feedback.

Recording a Site

Hold the Notebook and interact directly with the marker's middle Lodestone. The registration form records:

  • Site name, up to 36 characters
  • Category
  • Field note, up to 180 characters
  • Optional Waystone Present status
  • Exact Lodestone coordinates
  • Dimension
  • Current Minecraft day
  • Verified Survey Marker status
  • Explorer identity

Select Record Site to save it. Using the Notebook on the same marker again updates the existing entry instead of creating a duplicate.

A marker already registered by one explorer cannot be overwritten by another player.

Reading and Navigating

Use the Notebook while pointing into the air or at a block other than a marker Lodestone or Archive Bookshelf.

The first open spread places Notebook information on the left and records on the right. Later spreads use both pages. Each paper page displays up to two compact records, with up to four records on a later two-page spread.

Each record shows:

  • Category symbol and color
  • Site name
  • Survey day and dimension
  • X, Y, and Z coordinates
  • Verified or Needs Repair status
  • Optional Waystone notation
  • Field note

Use the folded-corner arrows to turn spreads. Use the small gear to open personal settings.

The custom Notebook is not a 49-page signed book and is not limited to 49 entries. It continues through additional generated spreads as the player records more locations.

Categories

Built-in categories are:

  • Landmark
  • Structure
  • Portal
  • Village
  • Place of Interest
  • Cave Entrance
  • Home
  • Farm
  • Base
  • Illager Outpost

Each player can configure five additional Custom Categories when the world owner allows them. Every Custom Category receives a player-chosen name and readable color and uses the shared custom wind-charge-style symbol.

Waystone Notation

Waystone Present is an informational field. It allows a player to mark that another add-on's or system's Waystone exists at a recorded location. It does not create, move, link, or operate a Waystone.

The world owner can allow or disable Waystone notation. When allowed, each player can show or hide the field from the Notebook's personal settings gear.

Damage and Repair

Breaking any required part of a recorded marker changes its entry to Needs Repair:

  • Stone Bricks
  • Lodestone
  • Chiseled Stone Bricks
  • Attached wall sign

The entry is never deleted by marker damage. Restore the exact structure to return it to Verified. Repair validation uses the same enabled chat and sound feedback as first-time validation.

Physical Archive System

The Notebook already preserves every location. The Archive system is optional and exists to create physical signed copies.

Craft the Explorer's Archive Bookshelf with:

  • 1 Chiseled Bookshelf
  • 1 Compass
  • 1 Ink Sac

Carry the Notebook and enough Book & Quill items, then use the Notebook directly on the Explorer's Archive Bookshelf. The preview reports how many new entries exist, how many volumes will be created, and how many Book & Quill items are required.

Each volume:

  • Is a signed physical book
  • Contains a title page
  • Holds up to 49 entries
  • Uses two compact entries per record page
  • Consumes one Book & Quill
  • Receives the next sequential volume number

The add-on remembers the final printed sequence and next volume number. Future print sessions include only newer entries. Reprinting never removes an entry from the custom Notebook.

Using the Archive Shelf as Storage

The Dark Oak Explorer's Archive Bookshelf has six storage positions. It accepts:

  • Printed archive volumes and other Written Books
  • Books
  • Book & Quills
  • Enchanted Books

Use a book on the shelf to insert one. Use an empty hand to remove the most recently stored book. The front texture visibly fills as books are added. Breaking the shelf returns its contents.

Printed archive volumes can also be stored in regular vanilla Chiseled Bookshelves or handed to another player.

World and Player Settings

The Behavior Pack settings gear controls world-wide availability of:

  • Waystone notation
  • Custom Categories
  • Signed archive printing
  • Validation and repair messages
  • Amethyst validation sound

The Notebook's small in-book gear controls personal Waystone display and Custom Category names, colors, and enabled states. World permissions take precedence without deleting personal saved choices.

Commands

No custom commands are added. Optional vanilla operator commands are:

/give @s andys_explorers_notebook:explorers_notebook
/give @s andys_explorers_notebook:explorers_archive_bookshelf

There is no supported command for clearing, editing, or transferring persistent Notebook records.

Multiplayer and Persistence

  • Records are stored per player within the world.
  • Another player does not receive the original explorer's private living Notebook log.
  • Signed archive volumes are physical copies and can be shared.
  • Recrafting a Notebook restores the same player's records in the same world.
  • Records do not automatically transfer to another world or player identity.
  • Breaking a marker or losing printed volumes does not erase the master log.

For known problems and corrective steps, see Troubleshooting.