BETTER DESCRIPTIONS
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for Skyrim Special Edition

WHAT THIS MOD DOES

This mod adds on-screen information and more precise names to various objects, containers, clutter and misc items and activators, such as:


SHRINES & BLESSINGS



Inspired by mods like BLESSINGS - Altar Descriptions for old Skyrim or Shrine Blessings for Skyrim SE, now you know what each shrine of the Divines actually does. It also gives you more accurate on-screen information about the blessing you've chosen, keeping the original text and adding the exact effect and duration.

It covers the shrine of Auriel from the Dawnguard DLC, as well as the 3 Solstheim Temple shrines from the Dragonborn DLC.

Last but not least, it also gives detailed on-screen information for the 'Gift of Charity' blessing you get for giving money to beggars.

Descriptions have been verified and compared to the information available on the uesp wiki (source).

A patch for Your Own Thoughts SE or any similar mod is also available.



BARRELS & URNS



Like Improved Container Names from old Skyrim, now you have a clue about what is inside barrels: fish, food, common and uncommon alchemical ingredients.

It also covers the ash yams and food urns you find on Solstheim.

Burial urns you find inside nordic ruins now are either 'small' or 'large' rather than the generic 'urn' or 'burial urn' term from vanilla Skyrim.



FURNITURE



There are 3 types of furniture quality: 'Common', 'Upper Class' and 'Noble'. But default Skyrim never refers to them by their standing and quality, only by their generic names: 'Wardrobe', 'Cupboard', 'End Table', 'Dresser' and so on. With my mod,  an upper class wardrobe will be called 'Upper Class Wardrobe'. A noble dresser will effectively be called 'Noble Dresser'. You get the picture.

Also includes some specific unique furniture names, like Kodlak's End Table which is now properly named 'Kodlak's End Table', rather than simply the generic 'End Table'.



CORPSES



There are many inert draugr corpses in nordic ruins, all called 'draugr' in vanilla Skyrim. Now this mod renames them to either 'Draugr Corpse', or 'Wrapped Draugr Corpse'. There is also a third type you will have to discover by yourself.

Two different models for the 'Desecrated' corpses exist in vanilla Skyrim and both are simply named 'Desecrated Corpse', despite being either imperial or stormcloak. This mod changes their respective names to 'Desecrated Imperial Corpse' and 'Desecrated Stormcloak Corpse'.

Also renames two specific Markarth Dwemer coffins to 'Markarth Coffin' instead of just 'Coffin'.

Same thing for two dead mammoth models, named 'Mammoth' in vanilla Skyrim, and now renamed to 'Mammoth Corpse' and 'Frozen Mammoth Corpse'.



CHESTS



Why are almost all the chests called 'Chest' in Skyrim, despite using different models ? Well, this mod also renames many generic chests (and a few specific non generic ones). Dungeon boss chests are now 'Treasure' chests. They have names according to their origin and architecture: the ones you find in cairns and nordic ruins are 'Nord' chests, the ones in dwemer ruins are 'Dwemer', and so on. Both features are combined, so a boss chest in a nordic ruin will be called a 'Nord Treasure Chest' while a dwemer ruin boss chest will be a 'Dwemer Treasure Chest'. Bandit chests are now 'Rusty' chests. Why not 'Bandit' chests ? First, they do look rusty. Second, they are present in non-bandit areas and in some towns and villages houses.

Riften's Temple of Mara Charity Box has also been renamed.

There are a few other changes you will find by exploring Skyrim.

Note that I did not change every chest name.



SKILL BOOKS, QUEST-STARTING BOOKS, MAP MARKER BOOKS



I added skill names to each skill book so you know which skill will be upgraded by simply looking at the book. This is similar to Better Skill and Quest Books Names SE with one difference: all skill books are properly numbered. This can be helpful if you are going for the full collection.

The few books that trigger quests now also have more precise names that mention the quest name. Same thing for books that add map markers on your map.

Now compatible with Book Covers Skyrim ! Grab the patch in the files section. Also compatible with Unread Books Glow, no patch needed.



BOUNTY NOTES



There are four types of bounty notes (well, actually more if you count the ones that concern your character when he or she breaks the law). They are all called 'Bounty' in vanilla Skyrim. Now each note name starts with the [Bounty] tag, then the type of ennemy you are after (Dragon, Bandits, Fornsworn, or Giant), and the exact location where you are supposed to go to.



COIN PURSES



There are 3 different types of coin purses in Skyrim. They are all named 'Coin Purse'. This mod renames them according to their size: small, medium-sized or large. Of course, the bigger they are, the bigger the reward shall be. This complements mods like Coin Purse - An Overhaul For Skyrim very well.



DISPLAY CASES



This mod renames display cases according to their actual size: either small or large.



THRONES



How comes only Markarth Jarl throne has an unique name ? Why are the other ones simply named 'Throne' despite having unique models ? Well, now they do have unique names. I also renamed a few other generic types of thrones.



GATES AND DOORS



As of version 2.0, my mod renames several types of generic gates and doors you will encounter, as well as 2 non-generic gates in Winterhold and Helgen.



(OPTIONAL) STANDING STONES



My optional Better Standing Stones Descriptions addon gives some hint about what each standing stone does.

If you use a mod that changes vanilla standing stones effects (like the excellent Aurora - Standing Stones of Skyrim) then you should NOT use the standard version of the addon, since the hints will be incorrect. Grab the Aurora-compatible version in the optional files section.

This addon is standalone and can be used even without the main file.



(OPTIONAL) SPELL TOMES



Now each spell book has been tagged so you know which school of magic it belongs to. A version which includes spells from Apocalypse - Magic of Skyrim is available as well. All the credit goes to EnaiSiaion for the original mod and spell names used in my patch.



(OPTIONAL) HORSES



This optional plugin renames the 5 types of horses according to their colour. Since it might give incorrect results when using a texture mod that recolours the horses, a version that renames the horses according to each city is also available.
 


(OPTIONAL) OPEN CITIES SKYRIM GATES



This standalone plugin simply renames the 5 main cities gates from Open Cities Skyrim, as well as the Riften Canal Gate.



COMPATIBILITY

This mod contains no scripts as it simply changes some text strings, therefore it should be safe to install or uninstall at any time.

Also includes fixes forwarded from the Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch, and from Cutting Room Floor.

The files have been cleaned with SSEEdit.

The only kind of incompatibility may come from mods that change the same text strings as this one. Load this mod very low to avoid that.

Mods that change loot and leveled lists are compatible as well. Load my mod AFTER any of those. My mod doesn't modify any of the leveled lists.



Patches are available for:

-Andromeda - Unique Standing Stones of Skyrim
-Apocalypse - Magic of Skyrim - only needed if you use that mod and want to use my optional Spell Books addon.
-Aurora - Standing Stones of Skyrim.
-Book Covers Skyrim.
-Book Covers Skyrim - Lost Library
-Legacy of the Dragonborn.
-Open Cities Skyrim
-Your Own Thoughts SE.

Always load my patches after those mods and Better Descriptions SSE.



Other compatible and highly recommanded mods that I use myself:

-Better Sacks Barrels and Urns: compatible, load my mod after BSB; however since that mod changes leveled lists, my barrel names might not reflect exactly what is inside.
-Cutting Room Floor: compatible. My mod forwards several changes from that mod.
-Coin Purse - An Overhaul For Skyrim: compatible, no patch needed.
-moreHUD SE: compatible, no patch needed.
-Morrowloot Ultimate: compatible, load my mod after Morrowloot.
-Unique Uniques SE: compatible. My mod doesn't touch any kind of weapon or armour.
-Rebalanced Leveled Lists: compatible, load my mod after RLL.
-Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch: compatible. My mod forwards several fixes from that mod.
-Unread Books Glow SSE: compatible, no patch needed.



Translations:

Feel free to translate my mod but only upload it to the Nexus and credit me for the original mod. And send me a message so I can add a link here.
It has come to my attention there is an unauthorized and outdated (v1.9) japanese translation there in xml format. That's fine but I won't offer any support for it.



UPDATE HISTORY

v1.0: only changes shrines and blessings.

v1.1: also adds more detailled description of the Gift of charity blessing you get when you give money to the beggars.

v1.2: now the furniture description indicates if it is Common, Upper Class or Noble. Kodlak's end table is called, well 'Kodlak's End Table'. Also, you can guess what is inside barrels (fish, food, common ingredients, uncommon ingredients) and Solstheim urns (NOT the nordic ones!).

v1.3: Nordic urns now are either large or small. Includes some special Markarth & Windhelm urns and coffins. Draugr corpses (not the actual ones you fight, the ones that never wake up) description added (standard 'Draugr Corpse', but also 'Wrapped Draugr Corpse' or 'Sitting Draugr Corpse'). Desecrated corpses are now Nordic or Imperial. There are 2 different dead mammoths models that simply had the generic term 'Mammoth' attached to them. Changed that to  'Mammoth Corpse' and 'Frozen Mammoth Corpse'.

v1.4: generic chests now have a more fitting description. By default, most of them are simply named 'Chest'. Now you will have more variety, with Nord, Dwemer, Rusty, or Treasure Chests, to name a few. Check out the latest screenshots for good examples of what this update does.

v1.5: Skill books have been added. They now have the name of the skill improved appended to them. They also are numbered. Useful if you intend to get the full set.

v1.6: Updated and forwarded one change made by Cutting Room Floor. Added more precise quest books and map marker books descriptions. Added more precise bounty notes descriptions. Added unique names to one barrel and one knapsack you encounter during the Halgen prologue.

v1.7: Renames the 3 different types of coin purses and the 2 different types of display cases.

v1.8: Now all Jarl thrones have unique names. Includes a few other generic thrones too. Also uploaded an optional spell books addon with vanilla and Apocalypse - Magic of Skyrim versions. Patch for Book Covers Skyrim added.

v1.9: More furniture renamed: beds, chairs, benches and tables. Added french patch for Apocalypse - Magic of Skyrim.

v2.0: Renamed some doors, gates, dead NPCs you encounter in dungeons and the Altar of Molag Bal. Added Horses optional plugin. Added patch for Your Own Thoughts. 22/10/2017: added a patch for Legacy of the Dragonborn and updated the Apocalypse patch to reflect the changes from Apocalypse 942SSE (2 books were missing from my patch).

v2.1: Fixed master files load order in the main module as well as the Apocalypse optional file. Thanks to mikeprichard for spotting that problem. Cleaned up files names from many of the optional files by removing their EN and FR tags (esp file names only, there are no in-game changes). Renamed the Standing stones esp to something more logical. Added file versions to all optional files in the download tab since this is now required by the Nexus.
10/01/2018: added 2 alternate versions of the standing stones addon, one with the Aurora mod in mind, the other for Aurora + Your Own Thoughts.
14/01/2018 update: Updated & fixed Legacy of the Dragonborn patch.
15/01/2018 update: Added french translations of the 2 Aurora/YOT optional addons.  Renamed extra skill books added by Legacy and fixed 1 of them not having any skill attached to it (original v3.2 Legacy of the Dragonborn mod issue). Added untested temporary fix for that mod as well (not needed if you use my mod + my patch) - STANDALONE FILE REMOVED AS IT HAS BEEN STATED ON LEGACY OF THE DRAGONBORN FORUM THAT IT WAS MEANT TO BE LIKE THIS. I'll remove that skill book change from my patch if needed. In the meantime, if you use my patch you'll have one extra skill book.

v2.2: This update brings new tags to many books, depending on their value: Cheap, Common, Religious, Rare, or Valuable. Added a patch for Open Cities Skyrim. Added a patch for Book Covers Skyrim: The Lost Library. Updated the Legacy of the Dragonborn patch. Updated the Book Covers Skyrim Patch. Added a modular version of the main mod.
28/01/2018 update: added patch for Andromeda - Unique Standing Stones of Skyrim.
09/04/2018 : updated the patch for version 4.0 of Legacy of the Dragonborn.



INFORMATIONS IMPORTANTES CONCERNANT LA VERSION FRANCAISE

En plus de tous les changements communs à la version anglaise, ce mod corrige des erreurs de traduction présentes dans la version française et pas encore corrigées par le PNO:

-les pommes de cendre sont de nouveau appelées ignames des cendres (comme dans Morrowind);

-le pouvoir nommé dans la version originale "The gift of charity" obtenu notamment auprès des mendiants affichait un message "Don de parole ajouté", ce qui ne correspond ni à la traduction du terme d'origine, ni au terme français qui apparaît dans l'écran des effets actifs. Maintenant le terme "Don de la charité" apparaîtra quand vous obtenez cette bénédiction;

-les "cadavres brûlés" sont désormais des "corps calcinés".

Merci à Irwine pour l'autorisation d'utiliser les noms de sorts de sa traduction (sa version française est également disponible sur la Confrérie des traducteurs) et à SmaugNogardeht pour le patch ainsi que pour celui de Book Covers Skyrim !