ABSTRACT:

The Deus Ex Spread Mod is designed to model weapon spread mechanics after those in the game Deus Ex (2000) or Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011).  Vanilla FNV's random accuracy penalties are mitigated so that bullets actually hit where weapons are pointed; however, weapon wobble is enhanced by movement, limb condition, and (optionally) character skill, so that your weapon is not necessarily pointed toward your cursor.  The intent is to put weapon accuracy solely in control of the player while encouraging the player to take tactics and environment into account when engaged in combat.




VERSION HISTORY:
v1.06b
- Hotfix to address errors in the optional ballistics system (sorry!)
v1.06
- MCM configuration added (with built-in preset manager)
- Fine tune adjustments available for shotgun spread, scope time, and VATS chance to hit
- Optional ballistics model to enable "bullet drop" effects for all firearms (experimental)
v1.05:
- ini configuration file allows for menu-less setup and cross-campaign migration of settings
- All weapons, vanilla + DLC + modded, are now initialized on game load
- Impact of running on wobble can be player configured
v1.04:
- The JIP NVSE Plugin is now required for this mod to function
- Automatically adjusts spread of multi-projectile weapons when loading alternate ammo types
v1.03:
- Projectile spread is restored to shotguns and other multi-projectile weapons
- Optional handicap to make NPCs fire more randomly
- Fixed a bug pertaining to crippled limbs
- In-game reset of settings (press and hold Ctrl-Space in PipBoy menu for a few seconds to activate)
v1.02:
- Run-time script mitigates all weapon based accuracy penalties.
- New "Jensen Mode" removes intrinsic wobble, for more of a shooter-like experience.
v1.01:
- Skill level now only halves, rather than eliminates, the penalty from having crippled limbs.


MOD EFFECTS:

Weapon Inaccuracy: In vanilla New Vegas, every weapon has a minimum spread penalty that randomly changed the vector of your shots regardless of your skill level.  This mod mitigates that penalty so that all of your bullets go where they're supposed to, as long as no other penalties are in effect.  Because the mod uses a run-time script, all weapons the player uses will be affected, including those from DLC and mods.

Game Modes: The Deus Ex Spread mod provides two modes for a varying gameplay experience.  "Jensen Mode" only applies movement penalties to accuracy while "Denton Mode" applies both movement and skill based penalties.  Pick Jensen Mode for a shooter experience and Denton Mode for a more challenging RPG experience.

Player Skill:
The character's weapon skill impacts all other factors. Characters with a low score will experience the full impact of the new spread mechanics while improving these skills will gradually reduce weapon spread. If the player has a score of 100 spread will be almost completely negated, causing the game to respond like a traditional shooter.

Intrinsic Wobble: (Denton Mode only)
So long as the PC's skill is below 100, the player will always experience some degree of wobble, even when no other penalties are being enforced.

Movement:
As you move you gradually build up a spread penalty, which then dissipates as you remain still. This process takes a few seconds depending on skill level. The penalty is very high to discourage run-and-gun tactics but can be somewhat mitigated by walking or crouching. Overall it's best to remain still if you want to hit where you're aiming.

Crippled Arms:
When using a two-handed weapon, the player will experience a significant penalty if either arm is crippled. When using a one-handed weapon, the penalty will only occur if both arms are crippled. Players are encouraged to keep a pistol on hand as a secondary weapon. The penalty, when applied, is the same regardless of whether one or both arms are crippled.

Iron Sights:
Using iron sights no longer reduces wobble. This means that as far as spread mechanics are concerned, a snap shot is treated the same as an aimed shot. This has implemented because iron sights already imparts a bonus in that it enables you to pinpoint your shots.

Crouching:
Likewise there is no benefit to spread imparted by crouching. Your accuracy will be the same crouching as standing. This means you can be crouching behind chest-high cover, stand up to fire off a few rounds, and the crouch back down without suffering a penalty to spread.

Scope Wobble:
Because of the conditions listed above, the player will almost always experience some degree of wobble when using a weapon's scope sight. This means players with a low Guns score can't rely on the Ratslayer for easy sniping. The time to enter and exit scope view has also been lengthened, depending on skill.

Artificial Intelligence:
Since the AI operates under many of the same conditions as the player, opponents with a high weapon score are going to be crack shots with this mod while NPCs with a low score are more apt to spray and pray. Snipers are deadly and, if you use an increased damage mod like I do, are liable to kill you in one or two shots. Just like Deus Ex!

Handicap:
For players who find that the NPCs are too accurate and deadly, the option to apply a handicap is available. This will randomize the firing vector of all weapons but apply a bonus to the player that cancels it out. The stronger the handicap, the greater variance in the vector arc and the less deadly the AI will be at range.


BALLISTICS: (experimental)

The Deus Ex Spread Mod offers the option to enable a scripted ballistics model that will implement "bullet drop" for all firearms in the game, vanilla, DLC, or modded.  It will affect most weapons that use the Guns skill.  It functions by adjusting the velocity and gravity pull of projectiles based on the properties of the firearms that use them.

From the MCM, three values can be adjusted to affect ballistics: "Min" speed, "Max" speed, and "Gravity".  The Min projectile speed determines the velocity that low powered firearms will push bullets while the Max projectile speed affects high powered, long range firearms.  The Gravity value determines how quickly a projectile will be pulled to the ground.  Setting high speeds and low gravity will make bullets fly relatively straight while low speeds and high gravity will force you to adjust aim for more arcing trajectories.

This system is experimental and should be Used at Your Own Risk!  Adding physics to every bullet fired in New Vegas can be painful to your CPU.  Adjusting properties to extreme values may also yield unexpected results.


KNOWN EXCEPTIONS:

- Weapon modifications that affect weapon spread now only affect VATS chance to hit. Technically the modifications still function, but because this mod reduces weapon spread to almost zero, they have no appreciable impact on real-time combat.  Traits, perks, and consumables that affect wobble will function as normal.

- When loading a game, you may experience a period of exceptionally bad wobble. I'm not sure what causes this but for some reason New Vegas seems to want to take this moment to apply all penalties at once, even when not applicable. The wobble dissipates as per normal so this should never actually be a problem unless it happens when you load a save in the middle of a combat situation.

- When changing ammo types, the mod will adjust the weapon's spread based on whether or not the ammo has one or more projectiles. Since the mod is making a change to all weapons of that type based on the PC's ammo type, it means that all NPCs will receive the same effect. e.g. if you are using a shotgun with slug rounds, all NPCs using that same type of shotguns will have their spread treated as if they were using slug rounds, even if firing buckshot.


INSTALLATION AND NOTES:

Simply extract Bash_Spread.esp and the \Config\ folder to the FalloutNV\Data folder and apply to your load order. To uninstall, simply remove the \Bash_Spread.esp and \Config\Bash_Spread.ini files. The New Vegas Script Extender as well as the JIP plugin are required for this mod to function. If for whatever reason you are unable or unwilling to use the JIP plugin, version 1.03 and earlier of this mod are compatible with base NVSE.

If you wish to adjust mod settings but can not access the MCM, you can restore the in-game configuration menu by bringing up your PipBoy and typing into the numberpad the following sequence of numbers: 55739. A window will appear letting you know that the mod will be reinitialized. Then exit the PipBoy and wait several seconds for the initialization menu to appear.

Special thanks to ddguy71 for noting the problem with shotguns not firing in a cone and Wooph for helping to fix it. Thanks to xax34hah for noting a problem where changing ammo type would not affect weapon spread when it should have and suggesting a way to initialize all weapons on startup. Thanks to mastahbossu for noting an oversight that made hidden perks appear in the level up menu and also helping to implement the ini configuration file, and to Dasmart88 for providing feedback on it.  Thanks to Hackbrah for pointing out a design flaw in movement spread mechanics.  Thanks to Fkyx for helping me notice a stealthy script error.

Thanks to Marmonator for the Realistic Lead - Bullet Ballistics mod that provided an inspiration for the Ballistics system implemented here.