AS OF U8.4 BETA, THIS MOD HAS BEEN PARTIALLY INTEGRATED INTO THE VANILLA GAME. It no longer works from U8.4 BETA onwards. See stickied post in POSTS tab for more details.

The other mod on the Nexus called "Ragdoll Overhaul for 8.4" is NOT authored by me and has nothing to do with this mod.

-------- DESCRIPTION --------

This mod adjusts the flexibility of the NPCs' limbs to achieve more natural physics and avoid ridiculous poses. It also comes with several optional features that I'll detail below.

This YouTube playlist showcases the mod's features and the changes in every update. Versions 1.4 and 1.5 don't have videos because they are simply ports from U7 to U8.

As of version 1.5, the mod comes in five versions.

STANDARD - Only the flexibility of the ragdolls is changed. Absolutely everything else, including the weight, is the same as vanilla. This is the version you download by default if you use Vortex. All the other versions can also be downloaded with Vortex, but you have to choose them in the "Files" tab.

NO DEATH ANIMATIONS - Same as Standard, but death animations are disabled. Very rarely, a death animation may occur, because the method I use isn't infallible (see the FAQ section for further clarification). But most of the time, NPCs go straight to ragdoll.

NO DEATH ANIMATIONS AND DOUBLE THE WEIGHT - Same as No Death Animations, but ragdolls are exactly twice as heavy and their animations are twice as rigid to compensate for the added weight. This makes the ragdolls weightier and less floppy, but also makes it harder to lift NPCs and throw them, either by hand or with telekinesis. If you want the added weight WITH death animations, just delete the "Brains" folder from the mod folder, but I don't recommend doing that due to the extra rigidity of the death animations in this version.

NO DEATH ANIMATIONS DOUBLE THE WEIGHT REDISTRIBUTED - Same as above, but I've changed the weight of individual limbs to better reflect real life. The vanilla weight distribution is extremely top-heavy, which leads to NPCs very quickly falling to the ground in a way that is more repetitive and predictable. In this version, most of the weight is in the torso and the thighs. This is essentially the 1.3 version of the mod from U7. Again, if you want the added weight WITH death animations, just delete the "Brains" folder from the mod folder, but I don't recommend doing that due to the extra rigidity of the death animations in this version. This version has heavier .JSON editing than the others, but it should remain compatible with mods in general, including dismemberment mods.

BLENDED DEATH ANIMATIONS - Same as Standard, but all the animations are "weakened" to blend more with the ragdoll, so death animations no longer overpower the player's input so much. However, this leads to all animations being a bit wobblier and slightly slower. It's mostly noticeable when NPCs are on sloped surfaces (their feet can sometimes look weird) but other than that, the difference isn't as stark as you'd expect.


-------- COMPATIBILITY GUIDE --------

As of version 1.4 (and in U8), the mod should be compatible with pretty much anything. I only change the parameters I have to in every .json file, so my mod only overrides what it absolutely has to. Therefore, it should be compatible with dismemberment mods and AI mods such as PaceAI. Before U8, this level of compatibility wasn't possible.

Make it the last (lowest) mod in your load order. The "ZZZ" in the mod folder's name is meant to help with that, since it makes the folder come alphabetically last. If you have to change the mod folder's name, you can change it to anything, so add an extra Z in there if you have to. Just don't change the name of any folders within the mod folder.

For those of you still in U7 and using versions prior to 1.4:

If you're using any mod that changes the ragdoll file, my mod HAS TO completely overwrite that specific file. This is because U7 did not allow direct editing of that file, so an annoying workaround was required. U8 allows direct editing of the ragdoll file, which is why the mod is more compatible with other mods now. I can overwrite only the parameters I need.

So let's say you're still in U7 and a certain mod has extra files in the "Creatures" folder (as is the case with The Outer Rim, which adds new kinds of NPCs). By default the ragdoll overhaul won't affect them, but it's very easy to make them compatible: you'll only need to look for "ragdollID" in each of the files and change that whole line to this, exactly as written:

  "ragdollID": "Overhaul",

That's it. This will redirect the file to my ragdoll file, thus ensuring that new NPCs will be affected by it. Again, in U8, with version 1.4, none of this is a problem anymore.


-------- MANUAL INSTALLATION --------

No need to overwrite any files. Just unzip your chosen version in Blade & Sorcery\BladeAndSorcery_Data\StreamingAssets

For the versions of the mod that disable death animations, you can always re-enable them by deleting the "Brains" folder from within the mod folder. The "Damagers" folder has .JSONs that are meant to avoid enemies being pushed back by blade penetration when death animations are disabled. If you delete that folder, you'll be pretty much reverting to version 1.5 of the mod. See FAQ below for more info.


-------- EXPLANATION OF FILE STRUCTURE BEFORE VERSION 1.4 (FOR THOSE OF YOU STILL IN U7) --------

The "Ragdolls" folder contains the main ragdoll file. It's named differently from the vanilla ragdoll file, because changing THAT file too much breaks the game. Creating a whole new file with a different name is, unfortunately, a necessary workaround.

The "Creatures" folder is there only to redirect the NPCs to my ragdoll file, since it has a different name than the vanilla ragdoll file. The .JSONs in the folder only change this parameter: "ragdollID". All others are not even included as of version 1.2, in order to avoid overwriting anything that doesn't need to be overwritten.

The "Materials" folder only exists in the No Death Animations version. The .JSONs in that folder determine whether or not NPCs have death animations. Again, as of version 1.2, the .JSON files only change what has to be changed. There's two parameters in there that I want to get rid of, but for some reason they break the game if I try. I'll see if I can figure it out in the future.

The "manifest.json" is a requirement so the folder will be recognized as a mod.


-------- EXPLANATION OF FILE STRUCTURE FOR VERSION 1.4 ONWARD (FOR U8) --------

The mod only needs to edit the ragdoll file from U8 onwards, as well as some minor edits to files in the Brains and Damagers folder. So only the Ragdolls folder and (in some versions) the Brains and Damagers folder are required, and the .JSON file only edits the ragdoll-related parameters in order to ensure compatibility with other mods such as dismemberment mods. The "manifest.json" file is a requirement so the folder will be recognized as a mod. That's it, much simpler than in previous versions.

I should stress once more: if you're using another mod that edits those same files, don't worry. My mod should still be compatible. See the Compatibility Guide section above.


-------- FAQ --------

Q - The game has been updated but this mod hasn't. Is it still compatible?
A - If it's a minor update, such as 8.1 to 8.2, then yes, it's probably still compatible. It's only likely to break after major updates, such as U7 to U8. If the mod stops working, let me know in the Posts tab and I'll fix it.

Q - Is this mod compatible with other mods?
A - Yes, as long as it comes last in the load order (the ZZZ in the mod folder's name is meant to ensure that it comes last alphabetically). When you edit a .JSON file, you can edit only the parameters you need and delete all the others. The game will look for the deleted ones elsewhere (in another mod or in the vanilla files). So if my mod and another mod are editing the same .JSON files, that doesn't mean they're incompatible. Dismemberment mods, for instance, are perfectly compatible because I didn't edit dismemberment parameters. I only edited the parameters I had to edit in every .JSON. So this mod should work with pretty much any other mod. If not, let me know in the Posts tab and I'll see what's going on.

Q - Is the mod exactly the same in U8 compared to how it was in U7?
A - Depends on which version you pick. Back in U7, the 1.3 version of the mod made a lot of very intrusive changes to weight, making it more difficult to throw NPCs. So if you wanted the ragdoll overhaul, you had to accept the weight changes as part of the package. I've come to realize this was really goddamn stupid on my part, so as of 1.5, the main version of the mod maintains vanilla weight and only changes limb flexibility. If the player feels that this isn't enough, they can try other versions until they get to No Death Animations Double the Weight and Weight Redistribution. That extremely long-named version is the U8 equivalent of version 1.3 and the most realistic. So now the mod should be suitable to all preferences.

Q - The No Death Animations version still has death animations sometimes.
A - Yes, that's because (as far as I know) the .json files in U8 no longer have a clean toggle for death animations. I had to think outside the box for this one. Turns out there's a parameter that decides whether or not a death animation will happen based on how powerful the player's input is. It's called "maxVelocity" and it's on all the .json files in the "Brains" folder, in the "actionDying" section. I decreased that value from 3.0 to 0.0 in all the files, so even a weak amount of force will bypass death animations completely. However, every now and then, it doesn't work. It's rare, though.

Q - I'm a modder. How did you disable death animations?
A - See above. Check out the files in the Brains folder to see the minor edits I've made in each and feel free to copy the whole thing for your mod.

Q - Enemies are being pushed back when pierced with blades. What's with that?
A - This has been fixed as of 1.6. The .json files in the Damagers folder contain a value called "penetrationDurationToFullDamper" which by default is set to 0.2. It adds resistance to penetration, so that by the time the blade goes in, the enemy is in the process of being pushed back. I set that value to 0 when it comes to daggers and swords, and that eliminated the pushback problem. I changed only that value, so this change will not make the mod less compatible with other mods. It does make it easier to penetrate skin, but to a degree that I don't find unrealistic at all, and armor seems unchanged. Versions of the mod that keep death animations enabled are unchanged because the death animation itself keeps the enemy in place, so I felt it would be better to stick to vanilla there.

Q - I'd like to mix and match some features, such as reenabling death animations on some versions or adding the new penetration values to other versions. How do I do that?
A - Go to the mod folder (which is located in Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Blade & Sorcery\BladeAndSorcery_Data\StreamingAssets). In the mod folder, the Brains folder disables death animations, and the Damagers folder fixes the pushback issue. The standard version of the mod contains neither of those folders, so look for them in other versions. If you remove the Brains folder, death animations will be re-enabled. If you delete the Damagers folder, you will restore the vanilla penetration values (which will lead to the pushback problem). If you ADD the Damagers folder to a version of the mod that doesn't have it, you'll be adding the modded penetration values to that version. It's just a matter of moving those folders around; no need to edit the .JSON files themselves.


-------- CHANGELOG --------

• Version 1.7
  • Fixed the "sticky sword" issue that made it difficult to remove blade from NPCs on versions 02, 03 and 04 of the mod. No changes to version 01 and 05 as they were not affected.
    
• Version 1.6
  • Fixed the pushback issue on all version of the mod that disable death animations (versions 02, 03 and 04). Enemies will no longer be pushed back when penetrated by a blade.
  • No changes have been made to versions that keep death animations enabled (versions 01 and 05 of the mod). See FAQ for how to mix and match features between different versions (if it's not updated, give me 10 mins to do it)
    
• Version 1.5
  • - Version with no death animations has been added. The method by which they are removed is now different and not infallible. Ocasionally a death animation will occur, but it's very rare. See the FAQ for more info.
  • - Version with no death animations and twice the ragdoll weight has been added. It doesn't have the weight redistribution of 1.3 because that's buggy for some reason. It just doubles the weight exactly and doubles the animation springs to compensate for it, so animations don't look wobbly. If you want death animations in this version, just delete the "Brains" folder from within the mod folder. I don't recommend it, though: the stronger springs make the death animations too rigid.
  • - Version with blended death animations has been added. Same thing as before: all animations get wobblier, but the death animations aren't as rigid and as unresponsive to input.
  • - No changes to standard version compared to 1.4, I just included it to make everything tidier.
  • (JUNE 18th 2020) Added a new version that is the equivalent of how the mod was in 1.3. It's called No Death Animations Double Weight and Weight Redistribution. Yes, I know, very concise. If you liked the exact feel of 1.3, this is the version for you. The mod is now fully ported to U8 with no lost features.
    
• Version 1.4
  • - Mod is now much more compatible with other mods (including dismemberment mods), because U8 allows direct editing of the ragdoll JSON, so now I only edit the parameters I have to. Just make sure the overhaul comes last in the load order (the ZZZ on the mod folder's name is meant to do that automatically). This lighter editing also improves the chances of the mod not breaking after updates to the main game.
  • - Flexibility of limbs is exactly the same as in 1.3 and works quite well in U8. Female ragdolls are very wonky but that's because of a bug in vanilla. The developers have acknowledged it and a fix is underway. The male ragdolls are a correct representation of the mod's alterations.
  • - Other features have reverted back to vanilla settings to prevent incompatibilities with U8's new features (such as the gravity spell and the new geometry on the NPC models). I intend to reimplement those features once I better understand how everything works in U8. For now, the mod no longer changes weight, weight distribution, angular drag or the size of physics capsules. This "lite" version of the mod will continue to exist as an option in future updates, since some of you prefer the vanilla weight.
  • - There is no version without death animations for now because the parameter for that has disappeared entirely, so right now I don't know how to turn them off. If I find out how to do it, I'll make that version available. If you happen to know how, please leave a comment in the "Posts" tab.
  • - There is no version with blended death animations because it'll have to undergo further testing, but I plan to add that in the future.
    
• Version 1.3
  • - Decreased flexibility of legs at the waist and knee, because their resting poses looked weird in 1.2. Since Blade & Sorcery does not simulate muscle tension, limbs go as far as they can go without resistance, so flexibility has to be set lower than it would be in real life in order to make ragdolls animate properly and end up in believable final poses.
  • - Decreased angular drag on most limbs. It was set too high in all previous versions and preventing "bounceback" and jiggling upon impact with the ground.
  • - Fixed a mistake that led to one hand having way less flexibility than the other.
    
• Version 1.2
  • - Complete weight redistribution. NPCs are as heavy as before, but weight percentages were adjusted for every body part. In vanilla, the arms are much heavier than the torso, which leads to weird behaviour. In the mod, the torso is now the heaviest body part, as is the case in real life.
  • - Adjusted arm and knee flexibility to be more realistic.
  • - Added angular drag to shoulder-arm joints so arms won't flail around as much.
  • - Further reduced size of physics capsules on upper arms. The weird gap between the arms and torsos of female NPCs is now eliminated.
  • - .JSON files have been cleaned up for greater compatibility with other mods. My mod only overwrites what it has to now. Any parameter not included in my .JSONs is NOT erased. The game looks for them in the previous mod in the load order. If there are no other mods, it looks for them in the vanilla files. Unfortunately, I could not clean up the main ragdoll file because it breaks the mod to do so. All other files are cleaned up as much as possible without breaking the game.
  • - Mod description now has a compatibility guide and an explanation of the file structure, as well as better formatting.
    
• Version 1.1
  • - Changed the size of physics capsules on shoulders and upper arms. In vanilla, the capsules are too big for female NPCs and cause their arms to stick out to their sides and end up in weird poses on the ground. In the 1.1 version of this mod, arms stay closer to the torso. More so on male NPCs, but female NPCs have also been improved. Since both use the same physics capsules, I can't change one without affecting the other.
  • - Tweaked the flexibility of some limbs in order to remove the excessive stiffness of 1.0. There's a better balance now.
  • - Removed the "Materials" folder from the standard and blended versions of the mod, which increases their compatibility with other mods. The No Death Animations version requires the "Materials" folder to disable death animations, so in that case it had to stay.
    
• Version 1.0
  • First version.
    
  
  

-------- SPECIAL THANKS --------

Slugga17, creator of Slugga's Combat Overhaul, made this mod possible thanks to the framework provided by their own. The vanilla ragdoll file cannot be edited without breaking the game. Slugga's copy of the ragdoll file, contained within their mod folder, can be edited with no problems. I did not use their parameters (they're all vanilla except for the ragdoll parameters) but the overall framework allowed me to change the values and to package the mod for Nexus. Also thanks for telling me which files were edited to make everything work. Please go check out Slugga's Combat Overhaul, it's really good. :)