Posted by Kromey at 7:14pm Jan 12 '12Once Bethesda finally releases the CK, I've already got a few ideas for some mods I want to make:
Mudcrab Merchant:
Fun little mod that should be trivial to implement. He'll probably be along the side of a road somewhere with his wagon. I could probably do this with the current third-party tools, really, but something this simple (and this small) should prove to be an excellent means of learning the CK.
Playable Mudcrab Race?
Not even sure I want to do this one, to be honest, but again it shouldn't be hard to do (well, except the fact that there are no models for mudcrab armor or weapons...). Still, not sure I'll even ever do this one, but it's an idea nonetheless, and if people voice an interest in it I may go ahead and do it anyway.
New Conjurations:
My mage is only level 22, and she's gone as far as she can go in Conjuration. (Okay, not strictly true -- there's still some bound weapon perks I haven't bought yet, but then again I rarely use bound weapons anyway.) So, I plan to make a few new Conjuration spells, such as Dark Seducer* Thrall (Master-level spell, a summon roughly equivalent to the Dremora Lord, but permanent like the other Thrall spells), Magic Campsite (summon a tent, bedroll (or two?), campfire, and cooking spit), Magic Chest (summon an extra-dimensional treasure chest that can safely store your loots even after being dismissed and re-summoned later), Magic Door (same basic idea as Magic Chest, but a door that opens into a player-owned home -- complete with the Magic Chest inside?). Maybe even work up some Bound Armor and Bound Shield spells -- loved those guys in Oblivion.
*Speaking of the Dark Seducer, anyone played Shivering Isles? Can you tell me about the Dark Seducer in that game? Specifically, what kind of weapons/attacks did they use, what kind of armor did they wear, and how would those best translate into Skyrim? I'm trying to make something lore-friendly here...
Player-Owned Stronghold/Fort:
This is a biggie! Currently envisioning this to be Fort Amol, between Whiterun and Riften, mostly just because it was the first fort I really dealt with at all in the game, but open to other ideas (the ideal location should be a run-down/ruined fort with flat, open (trees are okay) space around it). The basic idea would be this:
1) Player clears the fort.
2) Once it's been cleared, an NPC in the capital city of the relevant hold will have a conversation option allowing you buy the fort, much like a player house (but of course quite expensive -- 25,000 (the cost of the player home in Solitude) at the absolute minimum). [Alternative: Add a unique loot to the fort that initiates a mini-quest to bring it to said NPC and, upon completion, allow you to buy it -- but this would not remove any enemies you haven't yet killed!]
3) The fort is now treated as a player-owned house, complete with safe storage and everything else. Additionally, a new NPC will appear in the fort allowing you to purchase upgrades for your shiny new fort.
Upgrades would include things like a blacksmith's hut (complete with forge, workbench, and grindstone), hunter's camp (located just outside the walls, and featuring cooking spit and tanning rack), repair the walls, repair the gate (making it openable and closable like a normal door), upgrade the keep (taller tower? player's bedroom), guard barracks, marketplace, etc. Upgrades would definitely not be cheap, however each one would add one or more NPCs that would move into the fort and could give the player new quests. Additionally, each upgrade would add a small house or two and/or market stalls just outside the walls, where one or more NPCs would live, making a small town spring up and grow as you upgraded and repaired your fort; eventually, you'd have the option to buy a new wall that would protect your new town.
Eventually I may add some elements of factional warfare, such as bandits trying to sack your town, or even the friends of the mages you killed to get the fort originally seeking revenge. It would also be awesome if your influence could grow enough that your city could become the capital and a whole new hold! As with the new conjurations, I want to try to keep this lore-friendly, and also not make it game-breakingly over-powering.
Underhold:
If you're familiar with the Underdark of Eberron, Forgotten Realms, or Greyhawk, then you already have a good idea of what my goal here is. Far grander than the player-owned fort, the idea is to add huge caverns with populated cities underneath Skyrim, with cave tunnels connecting them. These would not be well-off (nor well-to-do...) people, but rather the poor, the downtrodden, the run-down, and even the just plain nasty.
Initially there would just be one city, reachable only via a long tunnel filled with all kinds of vile nasties, which itself would probably be accessed via the end of an existing dungeon, cave, or mine; I want to make it a lot darker and a lot more dangerous than the typical dungeons, however, making it quite a difficult journey to reach the city. NPCs living there could give the player quests, and there'd be the whole law & order thing of guards patrolling the city and throwing the player in jail for committing crimes, although I do want to see if I can somehow make it so you only get in trouble if a guard actually sees you, rather than allow witnesses to rat you out, since it is a pretty seedy place. Also, merchants down here would act just like fences, buying the player's stolen goods just like regular items, regardless of the player's affiliation (or lack thereof) with the Thieves' Guild, or their Speech perks. It would also be neat to have scripted events where nasty little critters spawn outside the city and try to invade it, with the guards (and potentially the player) fighting them off. The local "jarl" would likely offer a quest chain to the player, with the end result being the awarding of the title of Thane and the option to buy a home in the city.
Once this first city is complete, I'll begin adding tunnels and more cities and towns. Fast travel would of course be disabled, however the player would be able to purchase safe passage rather than walking the dangerous tunnels (much like the wagons you can hire in the overworld). As it grows, more access points to/from the surface will be added.
It makes sense to me that falmer would be one of the predominant NPC races down here, however kajiit could also find refuge from the constant harassment and prejudice they face on the surface. Humans, argonians, and the other mer races can also be found down here. Again, the idea is to be lore-friendly, so races like the high elves would probably be quite rare.
Anyone else have mods they want to make for Skyrim? Or have any thoughts to contribute to my plans here?
Mudcrab Merchant:
Fun little mod that should be trivial to implement. He'll probably be along the side of a road somewhere with his wagon. I could probably do this with the current third-party tools, really, but something this simple (and this small) should prove to be an excellent means of learning the CK.
Playable Mudcrab Race?
Not even sure I want to do this one, to be honest, but again it shouldn't be hard to do (well, except the fact that there are no models for mudcrab armor or weapons...). Still, not sure I'll even ever do this one, but it's an idea nonetheless, and if people voice an interest in it I may go ahead and do it anyway.
New Conjurations:
My mage is only level 22, and she's gone as far as she can go in Conjuration. (Okay, not strictly true -- there's still some bound weapon perks I haven't bought yet, but then again I rarely use bound weapons anyway.) So, I plan to make a few new Conjuration spells, such as Dark Seducer* Thrall (Master-level spell, a summon roughly equivalent to the Dremora Lord, but permanent like the other Thrall spells), Magic Campsite (summon a tent, bedroll (or two?), campfire, and cooking spit), Magic Chest (summon an extra-dimensional treasure chest that can safely store your loots even after being dismissed and re-summoned later), Magic Door (same basic idea as Magic Chest, but a door that opens into a player-owned home -- complete with the Magic Chest inside?). Maybe even work up some Bound Armor and Bound Shield spells -- loved those guys in Oblivion.
*Speaking of the Dark Seducer, anyone played Shivering Isles? Can you tell me about the Dark Seducer in that game? Specifically, what kind of weapons/attacks did they use, what kind of armor did they wear, and how would those best translate into Skyrim? I'm trying to make something lore-friendly here...
Player-Owned Stronghold/Fort:
This is a biggie! Currently envisioning this to be Fort Amol, between Whiterun and Riften, mostly just because it was the first fort I really dealt with at all in the game, but open to other ideas (the ideal location should be a run-down/ruined fort with flat, open (trees are okay) space around it). The basic idea would be this:
1) Player clears the fort.
2) Once it's been cleared, an NPC in the capital city of the relevant hold will have a conversation option allowing you buy the fort, much like a player house (but of course quite expensive -- 25,000 (the cost of the player home in Solitude) at the absolute minimum). [Alternative: Add a unique loot to the fort that initiates a mini-quest to bring it to said NPC and, upon completion, allow you to buy it -- but this would not remove any enemies you haven't yet killed!]
3) The fort is now treated as a player-owned house, complete with safe storage and everything else. Additionally, a new NPC will appear in the fort allowing you to purchase upgrades for your shiny new fort.
Upgrades would include things like a blacksmith's hut (complete with forge, workbench, and grindstone), hunter's camp (located just outside the walls, and featuring cooking spit and tanning rack), repair the walls, repair the gate (making it openable and closable like a normal door), upgrade the keep (taller tower? player's bedroom), guard barracks, marketplace, etc. Upgrades would definitely not be cheap, however each one would add one or more NPCs that would move into the fort and could give the player new quests. Additionally, each upgrade would add a small house or two and/or market stalls just outside the walls, where one or more NPCs would live, making a small town spring up and grow as you upgraded and repaired your fort; eventually, you'd have the option to buy a new wall that would protect your new town.
Eventually I may add some elements of factional warfare, such as bandits trying to sack your town, or even the friends of the mages you killed to get the fort originally seeking revenge. It would also be awesome if your influence could grow enough that your city could become the capital and a whole new hold! As with the new conjurations, I want to try to keep this lore-friendly, and also not make it game-breakingly over-powering.
Underhold:
If you're familiar with the Underdark of Eberron, Forgotten Realms, or Greyhawk, then you already have a good idea of what my goal here is. Far grander than the player-owned fort, the idea is to add huge caverns with populated cities underneath Skyrim, with cave tunnels connecting them. These would not be well-off (nor well-to-do...) people, but rather the poor, the downtrodden, the run-down, and even the just plain nasty.
Initially there would just be one city, reachable only via a long tunnel filled with all kinds of vile nasties, which itself would probably be accessed via the end of an existing dungeon, cave, or mine; I want to make it a lot darker and a lot more dangerous than the typical dungeons, however, making it quite a difficult journey to reach the city. NPCs living there could give the player quests, and there'd be the whole law & order thing of guards patrolling the city and throwing the player in jail for committing crimes, although I do want to see if I can somehow make it so you only get in trouble if a guard actually sees you, rather than allow witnesses to rat you out, since it is a pretty seedy place. Also, merchants down here would act just like fences, buying the player's stolen goods just like regular items, regardless of the player's affiliation (or lack thereof) with the Thieves' Guild, or their Speech perks. It would also be neat to have scripted events where nasty little critters spawn outside the city and try to invade it, with the guards (and potentially the player) fighting them off. The local "jarl" would likely offer a quest chain to the player, with the end result being the awarding of the title of Thane and the option to buy a home in the city.
Once this first city is complete, I'll begin adding tunnels and more cities and towns. Fast travel would of course be disabled, however the player would be able to purchase safe passage rather than walking the dangerous tunnels (much like the wagons you can hire in the overworld). As it grows, more access points to/from the surface will be added.
It makes sense to me that falmer would be one of the predominant NPC races down here, however kajiit could also find refuge from the constant harassment and prejudice they face on the surface. Humans, argonians, and the other mer races can also be found down here. Again, the idea is to be lore-friendly, so races like the high elves would probably be quite rare.
Anyone else have mods they want to make for Skyrim? Or have any thoughts to contribute to my plans here?
Skyrim mods I plan to make - Kromey