WHAT IT DOES

1. It replaces the "machete gladius" in the game with an actual Caesar-era gladius. (Though I haven't seen any NPC in the game actually using the gladius machete, to be honest.)

This is the early "Gladius Hispaniensis" model, used until around 20 BCE or so, i.e., the gladius Caesar's actual legions would use. It is a little narrower and longer than the later Mainz model, and slightly waisted.

The blade in the mesh is 24 inch long measured from tip to hilt. It's about 2.1 inches wide at its widest, and is sharpened on both edges.

The debatable part is the hilt: nobody dug up a hilt from that era, so it's anybody's guess what they looked like. The general consensus seems to favour wood or leather-wrapped wooden handles, and that the carved handle of Pompeii models was not yet in use, so I went with leather-wrapped wood. The guard is pretty much the stereotypical gladius handle. The pommel is the same as for later models.

It will not change any stats for these. It'll still be the same good weapon, and cost exactly the same as ever, and everything.


2. It adds a unique weapon: the Crocea Mors. I.e., "yellow death", a.k.a., the fabled personal sword of Julius Caesar himself, according to medieval historian Geoffrey of Monmouth. The sword was fabled to be extremely lethal: everyone wounded by it would surely die.

Supposedly he lost it in Britain when he stabbed the Celtic chieftain Nennius in the head with it, and it got stuck in his shield or possibly in his helmet. Nennius actually pulled it out and continued to fight with it, but died of the wound a couple of days later, thus proving the fabled lethality of the blade. (Though some would say that dying after being stabbed in the head doesn't need a special sword as an explanation.;)


OPTIONAL

I also included a separate file that changes all normal machetes to gladii too, since most Legion soldiers in game actually have the normal machetes. Note that only the appearance will be changed, and nothing else. They will even still be called machetes. It's just a hack to make the Legion soldiers look more authentic.

Note that this is optional. If you think that's a bad idea, don't download it. If you do, however, the version must match that of the main file, or it'll look funny.


HOW TO GET IT

I gave a normal gladius and the Crocea Mors to Chet in Goodsprings to sell. They can't be stolen, and they ARE very expensive.


HOW TO INSTALL IT

Extract the archive, with directories, in your "fallout new vegasData" folder. Select it in the list of plugin files in the launcher.


HOW TO UNINSTALL IT

Delete the .esp file from your Data directory.

Delete the gladiusmachete.nif from your Data/Meshes/Weapons/1handmelee directory.

Delete everything that starts with "Gladius" from your Data/Textures/Weapons/1handmelee directory.


CONFLICTS

It will conflict with anything that changes the gladius-machete mesh, but not with anything else. It is compatible with mods which just change the machete's damage or speed or who has one.


VERSION HISTORY

1.03:
Ported the latest HD mesh and textures from the Skyrim one.

1.02:
Resized the blade to the stated size (meh, I had forgotten again that 1 unit is 0.6 inch not 0.5)
Reworked the hilt a bit to fit the new size and look more natural when held in both first and third person

1.01:
Reworked the UV mapping of the blade, since it seemed to be disliked by normal people ;)
Reworked the blade texture of both blades
Gave it a nicer wood after all
Edited the mesh a bit

1.0:
First NV Release