Skyrim Special Edition

File information

Last updated

Original upload

Created by

LeucisticDinosaur

Uploaded by

LeucisticDinosaur

Virus scan

Safe to use

About this mod

Buffs skooma to be more appealing, but in exchange adds an addiction feature which gradually reduces maximum magicka. ESPFE.

Permissions and credits
Changelogs
With this mod, skooma now lasts 3 minutes with the following effects:
  • Stamina regenerates 50% faster
  • You move 50% faster
  • One-handed and two-handed weapons deal 50% more damage
Items like Double-Distilled Skooma, Redwater Skooma, and Balmora Blue have been given similar effects with thematic variations-- double-distilled skooma is stronger but lasts for a shorter time, etc.  A brief 'drugged' tint and blur is shown after taking any variety of skooma, as used in vanilla for Sleeping Tree Sap and Redwater Skooma; there are also patches available to alter this effect visually or remove it entirely if you'd prefer.

In exchange, an addiction mechanic has been added that reduces maximum magicka.  Taking skooma temporarily restores all magicka, but increases your character's addiction, worsening the drain after the skooma's effect ends.  Addiction is raised more by taking skooma several times in quick succession than if only used occasionally.  Avoiding skooma will gradually reduce addiction instead: after your character hasn't taken skooma for two in-game days, the addiction will start reducing each time you sleep.  Recovery speeds up over time.

Generally speaking, taking skooma frequently or avoiding it entirely will increase or reduce addiction noticeably, while taking skooma occasionally won't affect it as much.  I tried to tune the default settings roughly so that taking skooma wasn't instantly life-destroying or even noticeably addicting at first, but could start to be a slippery slope if you're relying on it for tougher fights.

Moon Sugar's first effect has been replaced by 'Euphoria', which contributes slightly to skooma addiction and resets withdrawal but has no other effects.  Elsweyr Fondue and Lavender Dumplings haven't been altered because I don't want to have to make patches for cooking etc mods.  Let's just suppose the addictive compounds in moon sugar are at least somewhat heat-labile.

This mod can be configured by global variables including:
Spoiler:  
Show
  • __SkoomaVarAddictionAmtMin / __SkoomaVarAddictionAmtMax [4.0 / 8.0] - range of addiction amount added when taking skooma; this is a base value and can be magnified when taking skooma several times in quick succession
  • __SkoomaVarRecoverMinDays [2.0] - number of in-game days before addiction begins to reduce
  • __SkoomaVarRecoverMult [1.0] - a factor that scales how quickly recovery speed ramps up when avoiding skooma
  • __SkoomaVarWithdrawalDays [0.5] - magicka penalty begins this many in-game days after a skooma effect ends
  • __SkoomaVarVisualPersist [0.0] - set to 1 for the 'drugged' imagespace modifier to last as long as the skooma's other effects do.
  • Maximum magicka is reduced by the addiction amount divided by 10, rounded down.  (Fractional amounts aren't applied, so with default settings it may take a few extra days for your magicka debuff to start going down visibly when avoiding skooma.)

Should be fully compatible with anything that doesn't alter skooma and moon sugar.  I've gone ahead and hacked together quick patches for a few overhauls (Alchemy Adjustments, Apothecary, and CACO).  If you use a different alchemy mod, you can either make a patch in xEdit to reconcile changes to moon sugar's effects and/or any keywords etc added to skooma (should be straightforward if you're familiar with the program) or simply load this mod after the overhaul, which will work ok for most such mods (potions made with Moon Sugar may have different magnitudes or durations than those made with other ingredients).

As far as I can tell this mod should be compatible with Skyrim on Skooma (although the addiction mechanics of these two mods may be redundant ingame).  Skyrim on Skooma's addiction is more short-term and this mod's is more long-term, so it's possible they could coexist though I haven't played it out ingame myself.

May pair well with a mod like Drugs for Bandits, for increased accessibility of skooma.

Because of a limitation with how I implemented the addiction effect, if your character has more than 2047 magicka and a burning thirst for skooma, you'll see the reduction cap out at -2047 max magicka.  This shouldn't break anything, magicka just won't reduce further than that.