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Hello there :happy:

 

I've noticed that many people have been having problems with absorbing dragon souls, so I thought I'd end it here.

 

You see; the problem is caused by the corruption of 2 script files; dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex ...

This corruption is mostly due to:

  1. Mods.
  2. or The Dragonborn DLC.

There are actually a number of working solutions for each cause;

Lets start with the Dragonborn cause, because that one's more common according to what I've seen:

 

These solutions are Dragonborn Specific:

  1. Making sure your DLCs and your USKPs are in the correct load order; (Fixed the load order, thanks Hyacathusarullistad).


     

    Skyrim.esm

    Update.esm

    USKP.esp

    Dawnguard.esm

    UDGP.esp

    Hearthfires.esm

    UHFP.esp

    Dragonborn.esm

    UDBP.esp

    [mod .esm files]

    Official High Resolution 1

    Official High Resolution 2

    Official High Resolution 3

    UHRP.esp


  2. Use this fix; http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/31685/?

My problem wasn't caused by Dragonborn, so I can't confirm these solutions, please help me confirm.

 

As for the general solution that should work for both Dragonborn and Mod caused problems;

  1. Use this Mod; it adds a spell that allows you to absorb Dragon souls: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/31909/?
  2. Get an undamaged copy of dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex; it's been confirmed that you can't acquire these files through an Integrity Scan by Steam. So the only way to do this is by compiling the .psc files, as shown bellow.

This is a last resort, only use this method if the Spell won't work for you:

 

Compile dragonactorSCRIPT.psc and MQKillDragon.psc that are usually found in the Script folder.

This can be done by removing the damaged dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex from your Script folder (Just incase, don't delete them, just Cut them and paste them outside; on the Desktop for example...), then opening Creation Kit, and clicking Gameplay>Papyrus Script Manager, and searching for MQKillDragon.psc and right click > compile, then going to dragonactorSCRIPT.psc and right click>Compile.

 

PS: You must run CK in Administrator mode, and you must compile MQKillDragon.psc before dragonactorSCRIPT.psc, as the second relies on the first.

 

I very much hope this helps all of you who have had this problem. Cya later :smile:

 

EDIT: Don't lose hope if the last soulutions don't work at first, If you're infront of a dragon and you were hoping these would work, and you load the save infront of a dead dragon, it most likely won't get its soul absorbed. You have to resurrect it with the console command "resurrect", and kill it WITH YOUR OWN HANDS. (Not with a console command). If like me, you have mods like Deadly Dragons on and can't handle killing a dragon twice, you can use the console command "tgm", but I prefer to kill it twice tbh, more fun :smile:

 

EDIT 2: Scratch that resurrect part, a dragon killed twice CANNOT get its soul absorbed, if you killed a dragon and saved, you've gotta load an earlier save or, if it's Mirmunlir, use the console command to skip that part of the quest (Sorry, can't recall the command).

Edited by Legalus
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I realize you are only trying to help, but the information you provided isn't really doing that...

 

 

Make sure your load order is right!

 

Skyrim.esm

Update.esm

Dawnguard.esm

Hearthfires.esm

Dragonborn.esm

[Other ESMs]

Official hi-res DLC

Unofficial Skyrim Patch

Unofficial Dawnguard Guard Patch

Unoffical Hearthfire Patch

Unofficial DragonBorn Patch

Unofficial High Res Patch

[Other ESPs]

 

 

That load order is outdated. The unofficial patches have been 'esmified' and should not be loading in that order in relation to the default game and DLC esm's if you have the latest versions. If they are loading in that order after running BOSS, you need to update your version of the unofficial patches.

 

 

 

 

  1. Get an undamaged copy of dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex; you might be able to acquire these by running an integrity scan through steam, but I doubt it, as these - according to what I've seen - Are not essential Skyrim files (neither is any of the Script folder, according to Vanilla users).

​If these files cannot be acquired through Steam, you can, and this is a last resort; compile dragonactorSCRIPT.psc and MQKillDragon.psc that either come (I think) with the Creation Kit, or are found in the Script folder.

This can be done removing the damaged dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex from your Script folder, then opening Creation Kit, and clicking Gameplay>Papyrus Script Manager, and searching for MQKillDragon.psc and right click > compile, then going to dragonactorSCRIPT.psc and right click>Compile.

You cannot download individual script files from Steam. Steam will repair modified default game files but the default game scripts are packaged into the game BSA's. The average user should NOT compile those two script files in the CK. If the reason they have issues absorbing dragon souls is because they

 

1) have loose file version of either of those two scripts modified and installed by a mod,

 

2) have a mod that has packaged modified version of those two scripts into a BSA and the mod's plugin is loading after the unofficial patches, thus overriding their changes to those two scripts,

 

they should find out which mod it is that has installed the modified version of those two scripts, and is causing the issue with dragon soul then uninstall the mod (so all its resources are removed).

Edited by ripple
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I realize you are only trying to help, but the information you provided isn't really doing that...

 

...

 

That load order is outdated. The unofficial patches have been 'esmified' and should not be loading in that order in relation to the default game and DLC esm's if you have the latest versions. If they are loading in that order after running BOSS, you need to update your version of the unofficial patches.

 

Well, like I said, I don't use Dragonborn so I couldn't confirm that part. Could you please post the updated load order?

 

 

 

 

 

  1. Get an undamaged copy of dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex; you might be able to acquire these by running an integrity scan through steam, but I doubt it, as these - according to what I've seen - Are not essential Skyrim files (neither is any of the Script folder, according to Vanilla users).

​If these files cannot be acquired through Steam, you can, and this is a last resort; compile dragonactorSCRIPT.psc and MQKillDragon.psc that either come (I think) with the Creation Kit, or are found in the Script folder.

This can be done removing the damaged dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex from your Script folder, then opening Creation Kit, and clicking Gameplay>Papyrus Script Manager, and searching for MQKillDragon.psc and right click > compile, then going to dragonactorSCRIPT.psc and right click>Compile.

You cannot download individual script files from Steam. Steam will repair modified default game files but the default game scripts are packaged into the game BSA's. The average user should NOT compile those two script files in the CK. If the reason they have issues absorbing dragon souls is because they

 

1) have loose file version of either of those two scripts modified and installed by a mod,

 

2) have a mod that has packaged modified version of those two scripts into a BSA and the mod's plugin is loading after the unofficial patches, thus overriding their changes to those two scripts,

 

they should find out which mod it is that has installed the modified version of those two scripts, and is causing the issue with dragon soul then uninstall the mod (so all its resources are removed).

 

Well, about the steam bit, I did say "I doubt it, as these - according to what I've seen - Are not essential Skyrim files (neither is any of the Script folder, according to Vanilla users)."

 

And Uninstalling mods won't solve the problem - I've tried -, as that would remove the files of the mod, but the Script files would still be damaged. Or, if those Script files were overwritten by a mod, removing the mod would delete the Script files Altogether.

 

I do enforce users to compile those Script files, but only as a last resort, if the Spell doesn't work for them.

 

I'll edit the main post to include the main points of your post. Thank you very much for helping out :happy:

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WIth all due respect, you clearly don't know how modding Skyrim works well enough to be trying to teach other people to do it.

 

Uninstalling mods does not remove or damage vanilla files, because installing mods does nothing to change vanilla files. All a mod can do is redirect the game to a different set of files. It can't actually physically replace vanilla files. The game's data is contained in .bsa archives for that very reason. That's why the Scripts folder is unnecessary for an unmodded game - because any scripts the game itself uses are contained in the .bsa archives. The only way to actually properly touch that information is if a mod actively replaces said .bsa archive. Which no mod does - and if it did it would be noticed and the author called on it almost instantly. And if you're using a mod manager, uninstalling this mod will simply remove the modded copy and restore the original. Problems only arise when you try installing mods manually and don't keep track of files well enough, or when you're using outdated/unfixed versions of NMM that crash during an un/installation, leaving files behind it no longer wishes to take responsibility for. This isn't a problem with current versions of NMM, and can't be a problem with MO because of the virtual file system it uses.

 

Bottom line: if you've got these scripts in your Data folder with no mods installed, delete them and your soul absorb issues will be resolved - though you might want to do a clean install anyway, in case there's any other errant mod files left behind for some reason. If they were installed by a mod that you're currently using and you can't absorb souls, check your load order (information on proper order for the Unofficial Patches below). If that's correct and you're using Dragonborn, then either you're not using the UDBP or said mod is not carrying forward the necessary changes to these scripts. If you're not running Dragonborn and still can't absorb souls even with a correct load order, then chances are you've installed a Dragonborn version of the scripts by mistake.

 

Unless you're creating a mod that requires edits to them, there is never any need to compile these scripts yourself. Ever. Because the actual last resort for any mod user should be to uninstall Skyrim, manually delete the Steam > SteamApps > Common > Skyrim folder, and re-install the game fresh - not from Steam backups (which any sensible player disables anyway), but an actual clean install, either from disc or the Install button in Steam. This will resolve any issues with errant scripts, no ignorantly messing with the CK required.

 

As for load order of the Unofficial Patches, the newest versions (2.2.0 or newer) of BOSS will sort them automatically, flagging them as .esm files despite their .esp file extension. You want the patch loading immediately after its associated .esm file. So the proper order would be as follows:

 

Skyrim.esm

Update.esm

USKP.esp

Dawnguard.esm

UDGP.esp

Hearthfires.esm

UHFP.esp

Dragonborn.esm

UDBP.esp

[mod .esm files]

Official High Resolution 1

Official High Resolution 2

Official High Resolution 3

UHRP.esp

 

If BOSS is putting them in any other order than this then you need to double check you have the newest versions of both BOSS as well as the patches themselves.

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@Legalus

 

1) The unofficial patches have been 'esmified' even though they retain their naming schemes (so that mods which utilize these plugins as masters would not need to be updated merely because of that). The only way the unofficial patches can load after other esp's, as indicated by the outdated load order you provided, would be if the user is still using versions of the unofficial patches that are old and have not been 'esmified' (because the game will always load esm's before loading esp's, even if someone, somehow, managed to position an esp above an esm in their load order management tool or by manually altering the dating of the plugins). If the loading order of the unofficial patches in relation to the DLCs you listed appear in another user's BOSS log, this is a clear sign that user is still using outdated, pre-'esmified', versions of the unofficial patches. If your version of the unofficial patches are updated, and you are using BOSS or LOOT, their load order position will then correspond to the correct one posted by Hyac.

 

2) Although the 'no dragon soul absorb' issue is often associated with 'MQKillDragon.pex' and 'dragonactorscript.pex', there are actually different possible causes to why a user would experience that issue. The reason the issue is most commonly associated with those two scripts is because they directly control dragon soul absorption (for those you kill as part of the main quest and as part of dynamic spawns). During a brief period immediately after the release of the Dragonborn DLC, before the Unofficial Dragonborn Patch was released, the version of the (pre-'esmified') USKP available at the time edited those two scripts (to fix bugs) but had not been updated for the changes made by the Dragonborn DLC, thus causing quest-breaking conflicts. The temporarily 'work around' at the time was to rebuild the Dragonborn DLC version of those two scripts--not the default game version--and keep them as loose files in the script folder (thus overriding the USKP changes). This is no longer necessary since the release of the Unofficial Dragonborn Patch, so users were then advised to manually delete the loose file versions of those two scripts if they generated them as part of the 'work around.'

 

Because this is the interwebs, the spread of this temporary 'work around' for one very specific cause of the 'no dragon soul absorption' issue, somehow became convoluted and spawned countless, lengthy message threads where it became listed as a 'catch-all solution' to all 'no dragon soul absorption' issues. I've seen various attempts by a number of modders and more experienced users to clarify the misinformation, but they usually just end up getting buried, such that whenever a hapless user Googles for information about the 'no dragon soul absorb' issue, it's usually the 'just delete those two scripts' thread that they find, rather than the more detailed clarifications.

 

3) Here is what I advise users to do as a proper 'fix' to 'no dragon soul absorption' issues:

 

First, determine if the cause of the issue is one of script conflicts that everyone is talking about. The two script files could be in loose file format, in the game's script folder, of they could be packaged into a mod's BSA (in which case, the user would have to use a BSA browser and look through all the mod BSAs). If the scripts are compressed into a mod BSA, looking for them could be time consuming--and this is where a mod manager like the Mod Organizer really shines, since it is capable of displaying duplicates and conflicts between loose files and BSAs (so you just have to drop a dummy dragonactorSCRIPT.pex and MQKillDragon.pex into your script folder if you don't have them, and MO will show any mod BSAs that has packaged their own versions of those two scripts).

 

If you determine that there are different verions of those two scripts added by mods (other than the unofficial patches), whether the scripts are in loose file format or packaged into a BSA, I advise not simply deleting them, but finding the mod that is associated with them, so you can uninstall the entire mod and all associated resources--because there is no telling what other default game script those mods may have edited which may also be outdated or faulty.

 

If you can't find any loose dragonactorSCRIPT.pex and MQKillDragon.pex, and you are sure no mod BSAs contain those scripts (except the unofficial patches), then your 'no dragon soul absorption' issue is caused by something else, and would not be helped by all the 'just delete those two scripts' threads. Instead other methods would have to be deployed in order to correctly diagnose the cause of the issue (and thus, the proper fix for it).

 

The 'dragon soul absorption spell' mod is a 'work around.' It doesn't fix whatever is causing the 'no dragon soul absorb' issue, but allows your character to absorb dragon souls in spite of the lingering bug(s) in your modded set up. -That- is the real 'last resort' (when you've pretty much given up troubleshooting the issue).

Edited by ripple
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WIth all due respect, you clearly don't know how modding Skyrim works well enough to be trying to teach other people to do it.

 

Uninstalling mods does not remove or damage vanilla files, because installing mods does nothing to change vanilla files. All a mod can do is redirect the game to a different set of files. It can't actually physically replace vanilla files. The game's data is contained in .bsa archives for that very reason. That's why the Scripts folder is unnecessary for an unmodded game - because any scripts the game itself uses are contained in the .bsa archives. The only way to actually properly touch that information is if a mod actively replaces said .bsa archive. Which no mod does - and if it did it would be noticed and the author called on it almost instantly. And if you're using a mod manager, uninstalling this mod will simply remove the modded copy and restore the original. Problems only arise when you try installing mods manually and don't keep track of files well enough, or when you're using outdated/unfixed versions of NMM that crash during an un/installation, leaving files behind it no longer wishes to take responsibility for. This isn't a problem with current versions of NMM, and can't be a problem with MO because of the virtual file system it uses.

 

Bottom line: if you've got these scripts in your Data folder with no mods installed, delete them and your soul absorb issues will be resolved - though you might want to do a clean install anyway, in case there's any other errant mod files left behind for some reason. If they were installed by a mod that you're currently using and you can't absorb souls, check your load order (information on proper order for the Unofficial Patches below). If that's correct and you're using Dragonborn, then either you're not using the UDBP or said mod is not carrying forward the necessary changes to these scripts. If you're not running Dragonborn and still can't absorb souls even with a correct load order, then chances are you've installed a Dragonborn version of the scripts by mistake.

 

Unless you're creating a mod that requires edits to them, there is never any need to compile these scripts yourself. Ever. Because the actual last resort for any mod user should be to uninstall Skyrim, manually delete the Steam > SteamApps > Common > Skyrim folder, and re-install the game fresh - not from Steam backups (which any sensible player disables anyway), but an actual clean install, either from disc or the Install button in Steam. This will resolve any issues with errant scripts, no ignorantly messing with the CK required.

 

 

First off, thanks a lot for the correct load order.

Secondly (@ripple too); I've seen in many other threads that users with this issue would have their issue resolved by correcting the load order of the DLCs and USKPs. I'm guessing those users had the problem before the release of the latest version of BOSS, or they just don't use it.

 

Thirdly, and with no offensive intent whatsoever, I think you've strayed away from what I said in that first paragraph (in blue); I never said that uninstalling mods would remove vanilla files, in fact, I said that those script files Were not vanilla files.

 

I'm not exactly sure where those files originated from; they're not part of Vanilla (confirmed by Vanilla users), They're not Dragonborn files ( I confirm this, I don't use Dragonborn), And they're not part of a specific mod either (Confirmed through different users with small amounts of mods that don't affect dragons have the Absorption problem), And yet, the game goes by them...Weird. The one possibility I see is that some sort of program that apparently everyone uses unpacks the .bsa, allowing files to be easily edited and used for modding... idk about you, but I'm thinking SKSE/Script Dragon or maybe CK might have a role in this.

 

But let me tell you this; as soon as those files are loose from the .bsa, Skyrim goes by them. And as soon as they're overwritten by a mod or deleted, the game will neither go back to read the bsa, nor will the files be restored after uninstalling the mod. This might be me being inexperienced and/or manually installing mods though.

 

As for the line in yellow; the compiling is just to get a clean copy of the loose scripts, it's an easy solution for the users that couldn't get the spell to work with them. It's pretty simple and straight forward, but I say it should be used as a Last resort before forfeiting to re-installing; So even if it goes wrong, the re-install should solve the problem.

 

 

The 'dragon soul absorption spell' mod is a 'work around.' It doesn't fix whatever is causing the 'no dragon soul absorb' issue, but allows your character to absorb dragon souls in spite of the lingering bug(s) in your modded set up. -That- is the real 'last resort' (when you've pretty much given up troubleshooting the issue).

 

True, it isn't a fix, but it's for those who've tried so many unsuccessful attempts to solve it, that they just wanna continue with the game. I would call that a last resort if it worked for everyone. But for others, (like me :dance: ) that couldn't get the spell to work for them, they should get clean copies of the scripts either through compiling the .psc files, or un- and re-installing Skyrim.

 

Sorry, I would've replied to more of your post, but after going through 2 family sized posts and attempting to uncover the origin of the loose script files, I'm too distorted to keep going :psyduck:

 

Thanks a lot, to the two of you, for helping :happy:

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I'm sorry, but haphazardly going into the CK and compiling scripts and such with little to now knowledge of what you're doing is reckless and stupid, and advising people to do so even more so. If you delete the loose script files from your Data folder and still have issues absorbing dragon souls, another mod remnant is causing issues and more troubleshooting is needed. And the last resort of any troubleshooting with Skyrim modding is reverting to a completely clean vanilla save. There is no reason to compile these scripts yourself unless you've edited them for a mod of your own creation.

 

The spell you're pushing was created as a temporary stop-gap measure before the Unofficial Dragonborn Patch (June of 2013) resolved the core soul absorb issues. It's entirely unnecessary now in 2014.

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  • 6 months later...

Hi all,

 

Just wanted to contribute to this thread since the info here helped me resolve my absorbing dragon souls problem.

The problem was caused by the "Dragon Stalking Fix" mod:

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/54274/

 

The mod contains modified dragon scripts and, like people have mentioned in this thread, those problematic scripts take priority over the (correctly-working) ones in the unofficial patch.

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  • 2 years later...

I just had to wade in and say that I simply deleted dragonactorscript.pex and MQKillDragon.pex.
This solved my "No Absorb" problem.
Note: I am in Skyrim using the Legendary Edition Patch (And all DLC's). - The "No absorption" started right off the bat with the Dragon at the Western Watchtower.While I agree that messing around in the scripts folder is not for the uninitiated: The simple deletion of those two files worked for me.
Was fighting my toon's second Dragon and just kept saving and checking all the suggestions...this worked. Thank the Gods!

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