I have some big news about the future of The Brotherhood of Old. I'm mostly writing this as a commitment to myself so that I actually do it, and also as a rallying call to those who may be interested in helping out. Feel free to read along as I think aloud. This will be a long read, so buckle up.
I have decided to cancel development of version 1.2 and shift my focus to developing version 2.0. This will obviously push any updates outside of 2023.
What is version 2.0?
As stated in the previous announcement for version 1.2:My main objective is to completely remake and restructure the final few quests, mainly "The Cults of Darkness" and "The True Brotherhood" as these are the most complicated and complex quests in the mod and often have issues running properly.
That will no longer be the main focus. What I aim to accomplish with version 2.0 is something I've been wanting to do for many years but have not had the time to do until recently... So now you're probably saying "Come on man, get to the point!" So, without further ado:
Version 2.0 at its core, will be a complete rework of the entire mod. While not rebuilt from the ground up, sweeping and extensive changes will be made.
Making all of this happen will be no small feat, so I would like to take this opportunity to open things up to the community. I would like for this mod to turn into something made by a team. It would be great to have a team with diverse skills and ideas all contributing to it, rather than everything coming from the vortex that is my head. I am looking for talent in writing, level design, quest development, Papyrus, and 3D modelling.
If you are interested in signing up, please fill out this form.
Here are some of the main things you can hope to expect:
A rewrite/revision + extension of the main story.
More focus will be spent on player choice and freedom, rather than a story involving you basically babysitting the chosen one. While Vala Amatius will still be a key part of the narrative, it will no longer be strictly centered around her. Additionally, this will no longer be a story that assumes you played through or remember the events that happened in Oblivion, but it will reward those of you that have/do.
It will dive into exploring the history of the Dark Brotherhood and how it got to the point where it is presently in the original Skyrim story. You, the player, will have first-hand experience figuring out what exactly happened, how to prevent it from ever happening again, and how you plan on rebuilding the Brotherhood. Will you recruit new assassins first? Will you have new Sanctuaries opened? Will you restore the Black Hand, or operate on your own? Will you drive it all into the ground? The choice will be yours. You as the Listener will take a more active and hands-on role in how everything plays out. The story will no longer force you in any one direction, and you will have choice and agency at every turn. The decisions you make will play a pivotal role in how the story plays out and subsequently ends. While the Night Mother will still offer you suggestions on what to do and where to go, the final decision will always rest in your hands.
There will be a handful of interesting and fleshed out characters for you to choose from when recruiting. You will have freedom to choose among the characters you like, and will no longer be forced into selecting the ones that the mod chooses for you.
Each character introduced, which will include existing ones like J’Zakar, M’Jirra, Undil, Azuk and of course, Vala, will all have “loyalty missions” similar to how it’s done in Mass Effect. For those of you who don’t know what that means… Essentially, you will have the option to talk to each of these characters about their backstories, which will lead to you going on a little personal adventure with them if you so choose. By the end of these loyalty quests, you will be able to take each of them as a follower and companion who will also be marriageable if you want that.
Who are we up against?
The Crimson Scars, who are the primary antagonist of this story, are an ancient splinter group of the Dark Brotherhood made up entirely of vampires. They believe that Sithis has ordered them to extinguish all non-vampires from the Dark Brotherhood and will stop at nothing to see this become a reality. In the original mod, they only show up near the tail end, and are basically shoe-horned in without much explanation. This will be changed in a big way. You will now encounter them much earlier on and they will be an active threat you experience throughout. Rumor has it that you may be able to join them, but that’s just hearsay.
Subsequently, the Morag Tong will no longer be a part of this story and will be removed from it entirely unless there is a good reason for them to be involved.
New Sanctuary and location overhauls:
All of the new locations added by the mod will receive complete overhauls and will look far better than they do currently.
New items, weapons, and armors:
In addition to the bonus rewards you receive from quests, there will be new unique weapons and armors that any self-respecting Listener would enjoy.
So that’s basically it. It’s a very lofty and ambitious goal, but it is one I am committed to bringing to life. Again, if you are interested in helping me make this happen, please sign up by filling out this form.
Thanks for reading,
Tom Tesoro
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6 comments
I thought I saw if you have any suggestions post here but I must’ve of dreamed it but still got
some ideas if any poke an interest by all means use it.
awesome mod and an awesome author.
BooHave quests where you can capture or kill the vampire underlings(unique characters)Have a choice if you’re a vampire you can join the vampire assassins and start targeting the different sanctuaries.Once done you can fill them with vampire characters and turn who surrendered or you haven’t recruited yet (werewolf Exception)If you capture you eventually can recruit them to the brotherhood once you’ve completed the main story A few more unique characters and stories.A more personal story with each assassin where they have their own history and you help on a personal mission.A plot with werewolves getting the scent of assassins and you have to defend each sanctuary. They kidnap 2 assassins and you choose who to save.There’s also a locked up man who’s secretly a werewolf who can be recruited. Make anyone who isn’t a speaker travel in and out of the sanctuary. You can cross their paths in random cities and find out an interesting story on their current assignment.(Very rare occasion you can do another personal quest with them) There’s a fake dark brotherhood trying to start up and stealing contests and you choose how to handle it. Kill them all (their leader will escape)Torture them to find the leader Defeat and speak to him.Choose to recruit or kill him Find a diary in a wall talking about an old sanctuary.( it’s a dark brotherhood ruin with dead assassins and traps and puzzles but it contains something incredibly cool and worth while, nothing boring or generic at the end Some more unique solo contracts with different back stories where you have cool characters you have to assassinate. You have to actually locate where they are and such Have a close follower die and you can choose to share a body with them and summon them whenever you want. A ritual with the lich to do this Have an absolute maniac completely unhinged guy killing and slaughtering everything and potential recruit him but have the risk if you do he’s likely to kill other characters (including Cicero if alive) but he’s strong and funny