Heya guys'n'gals,
due to a hardware failure I'm currently bored. I'll use the extra time to do some writing on my future plans for Skyrim Redone and/or the other stuff that will likely emerge in the near future and is more or less related.
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But first of all - advertising!
Those of you that have been following SkyRe for a longer while might know that I repeatedly stated that I'd go for feature completeness first, and once that is out of the way, I'll try to optimize compatibility.
With version 1.0 not being tooooooooo far away anymore, a first, MAJOR, step in terms of compatibility has recently been made public - the ReProccer. It's a java-based, automated compatibility patcher for armor, weapons, alchemy ingredients, ammunition and projectiles. It's powered by SkyProc, an amazingly powerful and fun to use library by Leviathan.
Those times where people were forced to look for compatibility patches, blowing up their load order and devouring time, and for mod authors to be constantly asked for patches should be over now. At most, a few lines of XML are necessary to configure any mod to be processed properly. A public google doc exists for users to share their additions to the config file easy and fast.
And that's not all - with some more XML editing, one can adjust pretty much all the stats used in patching, to suit many individual definitions of a "balanced" game. The ReProccer is very powerful, simple to use, compatible with almost anything, and...
...
... since I'm bored for reasons already mentioned, I spent a surprisingly large amount of time drawing comics some consider funny. So check that page out. :P
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For SkyRe's main module, only a few minor additions, and a few (minor? Not sure) balancing adjustments are planned. One future addition, however, is beyond "minor".
In collaboration with Chesko, who brought to you quite a few great and well-known mods centered around immersion and realism, an optional new module is on its way - SkyRe-Survivalism.
This module will allow you to replace the Wayfarer perk tree with "Survivalism", a skill that revolves around the content of Chesko's Frostfall and the upcoming Last Seed hunger/thirst/sleep mod. Perk-supported needs and survival skills - that's not only an unique combination in Skyrim for now, but it'll also bring all the mods involved to a whole new level.
Stuff like that is precisely why I prefer my holistic approach over mods that avoid touching "too much" - it opens up possibilities that are just not available when editing perks only.
(And by the way, thanks to Chesko for contributing a lot of work - I originally just asked for a permission to do a elaborate patch, and never expected him to offer anything beyond that. Now he seems to like the idea just as much as I do. :D)
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Beyond that, I've been thinking about some stuff. Witnessing the fun and power of SkyProc, I'd like to replace/enhance some functions currently in SkyRe.
Check the "encounter zones" module. As you likely know, all it does is assign higher minimum levels to enemies, based on location. I originally did that because I wanted to add a nice twist to exploration - do hard zones early for good loot, run for your life if necessary, overcome stuff you weren't able to do immediately later.
However, once you figure out where to go early and what to avoid, routine comes back, and stuff gets boring. I think the only way to really keep stuff interesting is, you're probably expecting it, a patcher. Specifically a patcher that randomizes encounter zones to some extent. Run the patcher, start a new game, don't know what to expect this time around. Old dungeons become interesting again, and each playthrough turns out different. Sounds fun? It probably is.
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Other stuff that is decent work for a patcher is the "enemy scaling" module's main task - applying a wider level range to enemies. Instead of a fixed level, each enemy varies between a minimum and maximum level, with high tier enemies scaling up to level 100. In addition to that, many enemies gain adjusted base stats, coming closer to the player.
Sounds like another task for a patcher? Yup yup. That module also adds SkyRe spells and perks to enemies, but to be frank, ASIS by Plutoman does that job a LOT better, so providing a custom ASIS config is likely the smarter way to do this.
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It has even been suggested that I should turn my "races" module into a patcher. Might happen, though no guarantees. It would allow it to work with all those mods that look like pure mesh/texture replacers, but really modify races directly. It would also provide additional customization and control over racial abilities.
So, depending on how motivated I am, this might or might not happen. The future will show. ;)
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Anything else? Oh yeah, more random ideas for patchers I've had for a while. If you have the skills, feel free to pick them up. Saves me some work. ^^
- Create enchanted variants of any armors and weapons, and distribute them across leveled lists
- Create staves that hold mod-added spells, and distribute them
- Create scrolls that hold mod-added spells, and distribute them
That levels of integration would be awesome to achieve. So far, no mod author I know of has considered doing this (because it's hilariously annoying and brain-melting in the CK), but a patcher should be able to handle it well.
Cool stuff, right?
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Heh, enough writing. Back to creating crappy comics that fit my derpy sense of humour.
Regards,
T3nd0
25 comments
What do you need to release a finished, non-beta Ver. 1.0?
I love what you’ve done so far. Everything you’ve touched makes the vanilla game better in every way…
…but the minor bugs are killing me!
SkyRe is remarkably bug-free, but they are in there. The problem is that there is nothing more frustrating that something that is CLOSE to perfect. If SkyRe was a mess, it wouldn’t bother me, but because it is so well done, little bugs stand out like a sore thumb.
So what do you need in order to make SkyRe perfect?
I'm having a hard time finding the old ones, such as summon Flame thrall as I was only able to get Dead Thrall from whatever his name was at Winterhold
We Survived
Still awaiting mighty Chthulu's arrival.