The Elder Scrolls XV: This is my Thu'um Stick

[Caelestion]

Oh yes, being a 'Batman' wizard in Morrowind was ridiculously easy, given the sheer amount of magical doodads that one would accrue. I just found it much easier to be a pure mage (and an archer, for that matter) in OB than I did MW, even though the actual mage play in MW was more rewarding.

[veti]

Mages in Morrowind do rely heavily on items and potions - that's simply understood as what the word means in that world. Complaining about non-regenerating magicka makes about as much sense to me as complaining about the lack of machine guns.

[Spore]

Complaining about non-regenerating magicka makes about as much sense to me as complaining about the lack of machine guns.

I disagree. People can have their gameplay preferences. Though I wished Morrowind gave mages enough Magicka so they had a bit of freedom choosing their birthsign.

And please, don't come up with the moot mod argument. I played Morrowind on the Xbox back in the day for one, and the balance of the base game should be so you don't have to heavily skew your build towards magicka to have a decent caster.

I was lucky I wanted a Dunmer Mageblade (yea, like many teenagers back then I had my "drow phase") so I could supplement my lacking magicka with blades (and robes, and heavy armor).

[veti]

I disagree. People can have their gameplay preferences.

Right. Like machine guns - you can "prefer" anything you like. You can choose whether to play the game, and you can decide how much you enjoy it, but neither of these decisions puts any obligation on the game designer to accommodate your preferences.

Edit: Sorry, that was unnecessarily confrontational. Let me rephrase. The game developers created a world in which that is the way magic works. Maybe it's not the way you would have created it, or I, but it's what they came up with. And unlike us, they had the talent and the tools and the resources to develop their concept into - the game they made. I'm sure we can all come up with ways in which we wish it had worked differently, although I think we should also acknowledge the hindsight at play in those suggestions - but none of that means there was anything "wrong" with the game as published, or that they "should" have done it differently.

Mages in Morrowind use items. And carry weapons, and very likely armour as well. That's just how magic works in that world. It's not just the PC, every NPC mage faces the same situation, and it shows in their equipment and fighting styles as well. Why is that so hard to accept?

[DigoDragon]

Isn't that true for most games? Don't pay attention to the dialogue/exposition and you can only blame yourself when your character gets eaten by pillows.

Where can I get a hold of these killer pillows? :3

(yea, like many teenagers back then I had my "drow phase")

I had more of a King Arthur kind of phase in my teen years playing these kind of games and D&D. Many of my friends had the Drow phase though, so teaming up was... interesting.

[Talion]

Where can I get a hold of these killer pillows? :3

Try asking Drarayne Thelas in Balmora. If anyone knows anything about pillows, it's her.

[Spore]

I had more of a King Arthur kind of phase in my teen years playing these kind of games and D&D. Many of my friends had the Drow phase though, so teaming up was... interesting.

You don't understand the suffering I've gone through, white knight!

Joking aside, I had a very emotional phase where I felt very misunderstood as a teenager. Naturally I was happy to find characters in my hobby of RPGs, who could defeat their enemies just by their minds alone. I played a sorcerer in Baldur's Gate and a wizard in Neverwinter Nights. But Morrowind put you as a Dunmer as a default (Jiub is the first person you see and he is a dark elf, your default race is on dark elves, and they get boni to Destruction and Blades). I wasn't even that emotionally and edgy but I knew a few people like that over early MMOs.

When I got over my issues, my preferences shifted to support characters, healers and knights too. In multiplayer I often go the healer route but in singleplayer this means often clerics, paladins and knights too. Who else would be so mad as to risk their lives for the better of mankind?

[Vinyadan]

Where can I get a hold of these killer pillows? :3

That reminds me of when I tried to sell Clagius Clanler his own pillow. "Hey, that's my pillow!".

[Caelestion]

Given how vanilla MW works, it's entirely possible that you were selling him one of Drarayne Thelas's pillows, but he couldn't tell the difference (as neither can the game).

[factotum]

Given how vanilla MW works, it's entirely possible that you were selling him one of Drarayne Thelas's pillows, but he couldn't tell the difference (as neither can the game).

Yeah, I remember encountering that little issue when I tried to sell some diamonds I'd stolen from an entirely different shop to a shopkeep and got accused of stealing them from her!

[Caelestion]

I'm told that OpenMW has fixed the issue, but it is possible to clear out the STLN tags from a vanilla savefile, though it does take a bunch of work to do so.

[Balmas]

So, apropos of nothing:

It's been a bit over two years since I played Enderal, the awesome total-overhaul mod for Skyrim. It recently got a Steam release, which prompted a lovely burst of nostalgia. But, not wanting to play Skyrim, I said to myself, "Hey, wasn't there a comparable mod for Oblivion?" And yeah, there is! Same universe as Enderal, called Nehrim.

So, after a bit of faffing about, I got it installed.

Spoiler: Campaign Journal of Selene, peasant baker

Show

So, it turns out that following notes that random strangers leave on your bakery porch may, in fact, be a bad idea. In my defense, when you read a note with themes like "You're in danger, sorry about that, and ignoring won't make it better" kind of grabs your attention.

That doesn't mean my situation is any better. Stuck in the bottom of a mine, bumped on the head by who-knows-what, and now this stranger--Calemno? Corpero? Some C-name, I didn't ask twice--and I need to escape.

Which would be a lot easier if it weren't for the trolls. Over the course of the mine, Cormero becomes Corpse-ro at the hands of a troll that's bigger, stronger, more aggressive. Even with my little trick, I can only barely run away. Thankfully, the former inhabitants of the mine knew about the troll and its weaknesses to nearby fire sources--set up a few torches in its nest, and it'll just melt. Which means I just have to, you know, run around a troll's nest while it chases me and hope that the people running the mine were right. Given the number of skeletons here, I'm not too hopeful.

...Huh. It worked.

Too many trolls later, I'm finally close to the surface when a wall of flame descends from the ceiling. A blue-robed man tells me that he's the one who called me, Corpse-ro, and the others here. Whoops, didn't think there'd be trolls here, so sad that everyone but you is dead, and oh, yeah, we know you can do magic. Yeah, magic's illegal, big whoops, we're part of a secret mage society, and this is your recruitment. Please say yes, because if you say no, you now know about the order and therefore can't be allowed to leave here alive.

So, I say yes. Not many other options, but nothing says I actually have to go and do what they say: visit this tower in the middle of nowhere and sign up for the army as a cover for me being an illegal mage of the Order? I guess?

Seems like a lot of hassle when all I wanted this morning was to bake croissants.

[LibraryOgre]

Got Oblivion to work (I think the issue was Darnified, and I miss it). First thing I did? Switch the attack and block keys. I now attack with my right mouse button, which swings my right hand. I block with my left mouse button, which raises my left hand. I am content.

I DO wish Skyrim had implemented the "Casting Key", rather than binding it to the hand. It makes a sword-and-board or two-handed character more viable.

[Caelestion]

If DarN is the culprit, it's a font issue (as I thought). That can be sidestepped by manually setting the desired fonts in your user file.

[LibraryOgre]

If DarN is the culprit, it's a font issue (as I thought). That can be sidestepped by manually setting the desired fonts in your user file.

Just got rid of Darnified. I figure I'll get Martin to Cloud Ruler temple then slow the game down and do everything else.

[Caelestion]

Well, if you don't know how to fix it, that is your best bet, yes.

[LibraryOgre]

So, been playing a bit of Oblivion as my concept character (Cana, Altmer who is sort of a Healer, who, in theory, was the hero of Arena, Daggerfall, and Morrowind).

I REALLY wish I could sort alchemical reagents by known effects. There's simply a ton of Restore Fatigue items, and when you're looking for that secondary or tertiary effect, it's annoying to scroll through them and check everything. I really HATE console-first design.

I'm also holding off levelling until I get wifi back at home. I decided, rather than fight it, I'm just going to download a mod that makes every level up give me an option of 5s in all three, rather than try to strategically level. I want to play the game, not the game system.

[Lord Raziere]

hey does anyone else get CTD's around Skyborn Altar? it just seems like every time I go there, it randomly just closes and kicks me back to desktop out of nowhere, and I have to be careful not to get too close or it just can't work for some reason. despite two different quests sending me there.

also, I've had some freezing up issues recently, particularly after my character started using Vampire Lord form, but it seems to also happen when facing a lot of enemies?

I'm not sure if these are mod problems or a skyrim in general problem, I might have to go hunting for a mod that causing this, but there are some that I'm reluctant to get rid of because they are actually vital to make sure this or that works well.

[veti]

hey does anyone else get CTD's around Skyborn Altar? it just seems like every time I go there, it randomly just closes and kicks me back to desktop out of nowhere, and I have to be careful not to get too close or it just can't work for some reason. despite two different quests sending me there.

That usually, though not always, means one or more mods have changed the terrain around that area. Last time I had an issue like that, I solved it by disabling the mod in my load order that I knew made the most terrain changes. (Wintersun, in that case.)

But on the same theme of "does anyone else..." - Does anyone else find that as you travel into the mountains south of Helgen, there's a place on the road where your vision goes all blurry - as if spat at by a frostbite spider - for no obvious reason? It clears after a minute or so, but the sheer inexplicability of it gets to me.

[Lord Raziere]

That usually, though not always, means one or more mods have changed the terrain around that area. Last time I had an issue like that, I solved it by disabling the mod in my load order that I knew made the most terrain changes. (Wintersun, in that case.)

Unfortunately, my problem is different: I'm pretty sure its mod called Colorful Magic I have downloaded, given that it doesn't crash around Skyborn Altar or Mehrunes shines when its not activated, but does when it does, but I can't just get rid of colorful Magic because its too fun and gives me too many cool spells and artifacts to play with, so I kind of have to just hope that by wandering off and doing something else for a while I can come back and try again without the crash or use console commands to bypass the stuff involved so I don't have to go back there ever again. stupid Gamecrash Mountain.

(don't ask me how the "wander off for a while then try again" method works, it just does.)

[NEO|Phyte]

(don't ask me how the "wander off for a while then try again" method works, it just does.)

IIRC what's going on there is that if you leave a map cell alone for long enough, it resets, so if the crash was from a corrupt spawn of some sort, that'll clear it.

[Keltest]

That usually, though not always, means one or more mods have changed the terrain around that area. Last time I had an issue like that, I solved it by disabling the mod in my load order that I knew made the most terrain changes. (Wintersun, in that case.)

But on the same theme of "does anyone else..." - Does anyone else find that as you travel into the mountains south of Helgen, there's a place on the road where your vision goes all blurry - as if spat at by a frostbite spider - for no obvious reason? It clears after a minute or so, but the sheer inexplicability of it gets to me.

Do you have some sort of alternate start mod? Doesn't the vanilla game start on the road south of helgen with a vision blur effect of some kind?

[veti]

Do you have some sort of alternate start mod? Doesn't the vanilla game start on the road south of helgen with a vision blur effect of some kind?

By Akatosh, you're right. That makes perfect sense. (Well, except for the bit where someone put a trigger on the road to cause that blindness, rather than simply forcing it as part of the scene, but who knows, perhaps it really was the simplest way.)

[Kesnit]

I just reinstalled Skyrim and all of my mods. (My old HD died and I had to download everything again.) Since then, I've run into a weird bug. Some creatures (mostly wolves, though it happens occasionally with NPCs) are immune to damage. I see it most often with wolves, but it's happened occasionally with bears, bandits, and (weirdly enough) Grelod the Kind. It doesn't affect all wolves/bears/bandits (though I haven't been able to hurt Grelod with either PC that I'm playing), but sometimes a creature will get a pale green glow, and nothing I do to it will hurt it. (Any creature affected can be killed using the console.) Grelod does not get the pale green glow until I draw my hands out to attack her. (I can crawl around her room and she looks normal. But when I pull a weapon or magic, she starts glowing. If I put my hands away, the glow goes away.)

It's happening with 2 separate saves using different (though similar) mod set-ups. I have other saves, but have not played them enough to see if they have the same problem.

[Lord Raziere]

I just reinstalled Skyrim and all of my mods. (My old HD died and I had to download everything again.) Since then, I've run into a weird bug. Some creatures (mostly wolves, though it happens occasionally with NPCs) are immune to damage. I see it most often with wolves, but it's happened occasionally with bears, bandits, and (weirdly enough) Grelod the Kind. It doesn't affect all wolves/bears/bandits (though I haven't been able to hurt Grelod with either PC that I'm playing), but sometimes a creature will get a pale green glow, and nothing I do to it will hurt it. (Any creature affected can be killed using the console.) Grelod does not get the pale green glow until I draw my hands out to attack her. (I can crawl around her room and she looks normal. But when I pull a weapon or magic, she starts glowing. If I put my hands away, the glow goes away.)

It's happening with 2 separate saves using different (though similar) mod set-ups. I have other saves, but have not played them enough to see if they have the same problem.

thats weird, I've never heard of that.

okay step one: did you sort load order?

Step two: have you tried googling your problem?

step three: is there a mod that has something to do with alteration armor spells or enemies? because that sounds as if its randomly casting some powerful armor spell on enemies when it happens, it might be the cause.

Step four: if all else fails, start disabling one mod at a time, if problem persists with mod turned off, its not the culprit and you can turn it back on again and disable another, if problem goes away you've found your problem mod. generally start with the most recent mods you got and work your way down.

[Rynjin]

Yeah, what's your load order and mod list? We can't really help without specifics like that.

[Kesnit]

thats weird, I've never heard of that.

okay step one: did you sort load order?

Yes, I had.

Step two: have you tried googling your problem?

I just did. I found a lot of threads on a lot of forums. One even described my exact problem - except that was determined to be a mod I don't use. However, I think I did find the problem. One person wrote about script lag, and said if you don't let Alternate Start fully run when you start the game, it can cause script lag and cause enemies that cannot be damaged. Given that the saves that are having problems are new ones I made after reinstalling and I was anxious to get into them*, it would make sense that I didn't let everything load. That kind of glitch is not fixable.

For now, the glitch is annoying but not game-breaking. I'm willing to run from wolves or use the console to kill enemies if I have to. If it ever becomes a major issue, I can ditch the saves.


* Both saves are based on PCs I made and played a lot before my HD died. I loved the way they played, and wanted to rebuild them and get back to playing them.

[Yuki Akuma]

So in the Andromeda mod by EnaiSiaion, the Ritual stone has three powers that function automatically:

• The Ritual Listens stores a copy of any corpse within a few feet of you.
• The Ritual Avenges summons a spectral copy of any corpse the Ritual Listens has scanned when you enter combat.
• The Ritual Remembers ocassionally will summon a corpse you've slain in combat. This can recharge The Ritual Listens and is also useful for necromancer builds.

Today, I was visiting High Hrothgar. The Ritual Listened to the corpse of the frost troll I had to kill on the way. While talking with the Greybeards, the Ritual Remembers summoned a... naked bandit corpse next to me. Then, a few minutes later, the bandit was joined by the corpse of a frost troll.

What must the Greybeards think of me...

[Spore]

What must the Greybeards think of me...

I actually like the idea of star signs not necessarily being a blessing but a curse. Imagine a character with the Snake sign kissing someone only for them to fall to the floor unconscious. And you pop out undead if you are stressed (i.e. in battle).

It's actually the drawbacks of star signs but with more story emphasis and less mechanical disadvantage. I like it.

[veti]

So, I just finished playing Rigmor of Cyrodiil.

While the author undoubtedly has a talent for storytelling, and the sheer amount of work that goes into this piece of worldbuilding is pretty breathtaking - it's still sadly flawed.

I have no problem with playing second fiddle to the title character most of the time. I can ignore the huge volume of typos. I can live with the extreme linearity of the story, and the thinness of the world. (Indeed, once you get used to the fact that money and materials have no use in Cyrodiil, it's very liberating. No more looting, no more encumbrance.) I can get over the occasional bug and CTD. For the sake of the story, I can even forgive the way the mod completely takes over my character and the world, making everything else seem simply impossible.

No, my deeper issue is with Rigmor herself. Unfortunately, to explain why, I'm going to need...

Spoiler

Show

Fans of this mod - and for the record, I can completely see where they're coming from, there is a lot to love about it - like to talk about the depth of Rigmor's character, the strength of her relationship with the DB. But it seems to me that this is, in fact, alarmingly weak.

First, there's the sheer inconsistency of her character. One minute she's surlier than a hungry teenager, next she's utterly submissive. I get that she's a vulnerable young woman putting on a brave face - but the private mood swings, from devoted to suspicious to independent, are extreme and with no apparent causes. Pick a personality, girl.

This could be intentional, in which case it's just a rather disappointing "feminine volatility" trope. But I get the feeling it's more about careless writing.

What's more - I can treat her the same way.

Whenever a dialogue gives me any choice about what to say, there's usually an option labelled "(lover)". At first I thought this was a somewhat simplistic way to signpost the route to pursue a romantic relationship. But the truth is much more disturbing:

If I choose the (lover) option, she'll respond as a lover. If l choose another option, she won't. And that choice has absolutely no repercussions beyond the present dialogue. She literally has no memory of our relationship - it gets redefined every time we speak.

Even the one decision that really feels like being offered a significant choice - concerning, of all trivia, her hair - has no actual effect. Whether I choose to do the sidequest or not, the next time it's mentioned - it turns out, I did.

So through this epic adventure, while rewriting the history of Tamriel itself, battling armies and daedra and ancient evil, I actually have no impact on the one person who's closest to me. She changes, and so does the world - but it's hard to persuade myself that these changes have anything to do with me.

Which makes it all the more annoying, the extent to which the girl has gotten under my skin. Without her, my new character feels lonely. I know there are many fine companions to choose from, many of them better written and nearly all of them more consistent than Rigmor - and yet I miss her. And I'm downright eager to play the promised final instalment of her story, if it ever gets released.