Hammerfell Wilderness ver.06252016 (June 25th, 2016)
For Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion

By DogOnPorch (Rolf K)

Includes work/items by:
jefe323
Yevic1992
WillieSea + design team
Xiamara
Oblivimonk

+ any I missed!
(much thanks!)

Description
===========

Happy 10th, Oblivion!

This is Hammerfell. Well...not the lore friendly Hammerfell. But rather, the Hammerfell as seen in the distant LOD in the stock Oblivion. A grassy forested collection of mountains and valleys. So don't expect any of the lore locations to exist. As this Hammerfell occupies the same world space as the rest of Tamriel, other Hammerfell projects that use a separate world space can likely run alongside this one without much conflict. Eastern Grasslands for example.

Hammerfell started as a personal project to join two mods I was using...Hammerfell Beach House by Yevic1992 and The Adaman Fortress by jefe323 (both in Hammerfell). I began, rather innocently enough, filling in the space between the two distant mods...not aware of the MASSIVE job ahead (probably for the best!). So these two mods are the initial core of the Hammerfell mod and are built right into the esp. But it became much, much more than that...

It includes dozens upon dozens of locations both marked and unmarked and spans the entire Hammerfell map right up to the edges...don't fall off. It has a complete path grid for both interior and exterior locations. Monster spawns...sounds...etc, etc. It should be more or less a complete landscape with lots of spare room for extras. Interiors besides the beach house and keep are copies of stock interiors with some changes here and there. Note that the landscape extends north and west quite a ways past the edge of the in-game map (F4). Spawns are generally handled by percentage. So what was an empty area once before can be overrun with critters next time you visit. Many spawns are NOT leveled. So, low level characters can encounter big monsters and high level characters can encounter wolves and other low end spawn. Plus there are plenty of cells that could be used by other modders for their own locations...you house builders, dungeon masters and quest makers out there.

A wizard ended-up losing all his luggage at some point flying over Hammerfell, so many Easter eggs also exist for those that look closer than others.

There are two main entry points...but, I'm sure there are more that can be wiggled through. One is north of Anvil and the other is at the far end of the road leading west out of Chorrol (more difficult). The landscape itself is based on what was already there plus what I learned as this project moved forward. It took roughly two years of on and off work. Basically, you'll be in a HUGE wilderness with few signs of what passes as civilization in Tamriel. As you move north, the season(s) turns to fall with forested snow capped mountains dominating the terrain. For those with hunger/thirst mods...there are some chests/sacks/etc that hold wine & food dotted across the map. Camps are frequent for those with sleep-mods. But, they are not always unoccupied!

Regions include 'Goblin Country'...you'll know it when you get there...lol. The Shattered Land...big magic go bad. Giant redwood forest...both the forest and the trees. Plus, a lot, lot more...best find it yourself. A special thumbs-up to those who can guess what was on the TV late at night when I was up putting in a few hours on this mod...

It should be a challenge to characters of any level. Okay...downright dangerous for low level characters. Most locations with beds have two (for a companion). At times, large numbers of spawn can be encountered...be warned.

Terrain height editing was kept to an absolute minimum...so flat terrain is a rare thing. Nor did I carve out any lakes or rivers. Terrain texturing was a nightmare as most cells had to be done from scratch....especially up north. Generally, I started this mod in the south and moved north as I built. (see online map) http://www.uesp.net/maps/obmap/obmap.shtml

I stuck mainly to the Gold Coast and Autumn pallet of terrain types. This makes for a very grassy (forested) landscape that's in late Summer to early Fall. Distant LOD matches fairly well...but the snow caps on the mountains are somewhat smaller up close in person.

The Oblivion crisis is a distant rumble in this version of Hammerfell. However, Dremora have penetrated even deep into the wilderness of Hammerfell. So beware of sudden (un-leveled) encounters. Even after the Oblivion crisis is solved back in the main region.

I went overboard with the sound...but it just makes this place noisier than most. I plan on adding a version that uses Sounds of Cyrodiil for the beach regions ASAP. Update: unfortunately, this wasn't as easy as I expected as SoC does not use an ESM for its resources. On hold for the moment.

There are no quests other than the one to obtain the Adaman Fortress. Just pure adventure and loot. There are a few inns...the beds are free. NPCs have complete AI...usually daily routines. Most are friendly...shepherds, farmers and such. The majority are Redguards (hey...lore) but the Imperium has a bit of an occupation going on in some areas.

If I had to do it all over again, I'd do it all differently...lol. But, learning is a process. Play-testing has been minimal as of release due to the usual reasons of time and space...very large space. This was made with the non-super computer in mind. So frame rates should be quite acceptable even with the large number of trees etc. Some slow-down's might occur in regions with large numbers of NPCs and/or creatures. Most lights and some fires use the streetlight script to keep them out of the way during daylight hours.

Conflicts
==========

Few...but there are some obvious ones. Any mod that alters Hammerfell...no brainer. Any mod along the Hammerfell border...best look-see yourself. The Unique Landscape Brena River Ravine, for sure (I had no choice)...but other mods might be okay...or easily patched by an interested party. From what I've been able to observe, UL Colovian Highlands blends quite nice. Sutch is okay...and this mod was designed with it in mind. Sutch should be above Hammerfell in the majority of load orders if using. UL Colovian Heights below Hammerfell.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/40882/?
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/15511/?


At this point, this esp *has not been cleaned*. I'm sure there a number of wild/dirty edits seeing the very nature of this esp being joined from other esps. But you can let Hammerfell ride near the top of your load order, so I doubt they'll be of much issue. Seeing nearly EVERY stock tree in Hammerfell needed to be properly planted, it might be a chore deciding what was a bad edit as opposed to good. Perhaps an expert at cleaning esps can investigate and get back to me via PM @ TESNexus.

Install & Requirements
===========

The DOPHammerfell3.esp plus Mesh, Textures and Sound folder should be dragged to your Oblivion Data folder. Load order shouldn't matter (other than in regards to Sutch and other terrain altering mods in the border area) so keep it high on your list. If you are upgrading, you might get away without making a fresh save. Try it and see. If there are any issues...suspected or otherwise...use a fresh/clean save.

The DOPHammerfell3 esp is a biggie as they go...it might affect load times on some systems. When activating this mod, try to do so between the hours of 2AM to 6AM game time (0200-0600). Oblivion seems to like to drop NPCs meant for an exterior cell near the Hammerfell border rather than their intended location. Most will be indoors between the hours of 2-6. Your experience may vary...it's Oblivion.

-Border Regions must be disabled (see below for how-to).

-Having Clocks of Cyrodill installed is the only other real requirement I can think of.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/11778/?

-Oblivion should be patched. Shivering Isles might be required though I don't recall using any of SI's resources.

-Adaman Fortress by jefe323
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/24831/?
-Hammerfell Beach House by Yevic1992
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/20999/?

Both these fine modders seem to have moved on from Elder Scrolls as PMs go unanswered. If you use either of these mods in your load order, you'll no longer need to have their esps active. However, any personal loot/NPCs/etc you might have in each will need to be moved out. Then deactivate the mod(s), make a fresh save game and activate Hammerfell as instructed (2am-6am game time). Both will be back in your game at that point.

I tried to set all trees a bit deeper than usual for those that use mods like 'Natural Environments' by Max Tael which scales-up tree sizes. This should prevent most trees from 'floating' or showing their bases....annoying.


============
Uninstall:
============

Just deactivate the esp and delete it. Leaving the few resources behind is not a problem and best left alone if your Oblivion is heavily modded. You never know what other mods use the same resources. Various utilities can be used to handle your mods which many old salts (the majority of Oblivion players, I assume) are already well aware of. If you toggle mods on and off as some do, this can be done safely as far as I can tell...no trouble here.

Suggested:
============

-Replacement Distant LOD textures...use *both* to avoid seems.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/2182/?
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/2210/?

-A mod that makes Lilly of the Valley and Pitcher Plants give ingredients (missing in Oblivion) is a good idea. I use this one by EggDropSoap:
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/15609/?

-A mod to add new distant LOD is suggested. I use this one. Run it as instructed to get the new features at a distance.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/15781/?

-A mod that allows more actors/creatures in a complex scene or fight. Many mods do this, but this one is stand alone. Mass-AI
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/8158/?

-Natural Environments which will make Hammerfell even more wilderness-y. The weather part has been upgraded by newer mods. But it's still beautiful if a tad buggy.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/2536/?

-If frame rates are an issue for you...when aren't they?...I highly recommend using Low Poly Grass so you can enjoy Hammerfell in 'full grass'...so to speak.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/5434/?

-Experiencing tears and gaps in your landscape from too many mods playing with the terrain? Try this little marvel out by DarklyDreaming. Land Magic... Dog swears by it.
http://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/30519/?


Common Complaints:
==================

Hey...none of my NPCs/critters are moving!

This is common in many modded Oblivions where some script is getting in the way *or* some large number of spawn is going over the limit set in Oblivion. In Hammerfell's case, it's the latter. The Oblivion game engine will ~eventually~ get around to issuing them orders. See: Mass-AI in the suggested section if you run into issues.

I can't see some map markers!

I know...Hammerfell extends beyond the map edges (F4) for many cells. I figured this out at some point and stopped marking them...lol. You won't be able to travel to a few locations that are marked unless you have a modded map that allows you to see them.

Versions:
============

Changes: Initial public version (ver.05092016). I'm likely to release updates on occassion to fix errors like any floating trees I missed. As well, more work on interiors is likely to occur with a possible attempt to build the rest of the Adaman Fortress...minor towers, etc. We'll see...it's freaking huge already.

-ver.05112016: removed Clocks of Cyrodiil resources that were unneeded. Esp updated to work with Camps of Cyrodill.

Changes to original mods:
-AI path grid added to interior of the beach house.
-Furniture on the deck was rearranged to assist with exterior AI pathing.
-Some lighting removed and some added to beach house to improve frame rates.
-A door in the beach house (of all things) that gave odd errors in the CS was *deleted*.
-Some unneeded guards were removed from the walls of the Adaman Fortress to avoid AI lock-up in certain exterior cells. They still exist in the CS...but not the game.

-ver. 06252016: Reblended terrain; Finished-off AI path grid in Adaman Fortress; Added upper floor to Godfrey's Last Stand; Thousands of rocks, trees, shrubs and flora added; new NPCs added; new locations added; more Easter-eggs added; numerous fixes. Sounds of Cyrodiil on hold...it doesn't use an esm...doh!

Future versions: the sky is the limit...the hard stuff is done.

Possible Future Projects:
=========================

Black Marsh is the other obvious candidate...it goes for many cells past the edge of the map...F4. The good news is that it wouldn't take two years to build knowing what I know now. :)

Adding/finishing the road from Sutch to the Hammerfell bridge.


Credits: Clocks of Cyrodiil
----------------------------
WillieSea - The Clocks of Cyrodiil mod.
Always Z - Clock face, Post and hands NIF's (Initial support and help
with mod, without whom this mod would never have gotten off
the ground. I thank you "Always Z" for your generous help!)
jackmix69 - Static Gear NIF
JDFan - Fixing active Gear NIF's, Deer Antler NIF, General Help
Phitt - Efficient starter clock script, Animated Pendulum NIF w/sound
MaRzY - Animated Gear Rods, IC Arcane University Plaza NIF
Xiamara - NIF help
mikejonesuk - Several good ideas during playtesting!


Playtesters: Clocks of Cyrodiil
----------------------------
Corepc
mikejonesuk
MorrowindFan
Doctor Cox
Smash
invader13
Chaos 303030
Laneyfamily
Floydian1
Asesino

******IMPORTANT*******:

In order to reach Hammerfell, you need to disable "Border Regions".

Head to your Documents / My Games / Oblivion Folder.
Look for the "Oblivion.ini" File. Double Click it, and it will open in Notepad.
Press Ctrl+F to open the "Find Dialouge".
Type bBorderRegionsEnabled and press "Find".
Once it's found the line, head to the end of "bBorderRegionsEnabled=1" and change it to: bBorderRegionsEnabled=0

Legal Mumbo-jumbo
================

Anybody wishing to use this mod in their own project is free to as long as proper credit is given to all the involved parties. Commercial use is forbidden. If for any reason there are objections to Hammerfell Wilderness, please contact me and I'll see what I can do to rectify things. I aim to please.

Cheers and Enjoy!

Rolf (DogOnPorch)