Writable Books as Enchanted Items (Possible Workaround?)

[SentientBagel42]

I'm new to modding, and have little to no understanding of Papyrus yet, but I'm wondering if it's possible to make writable books.

 

The answer I got when I Googled it was no, as it's impossible or nigh impossible to create/edit items in-game.

Other people have made mods/tools in which you write the books in text files and then import them, but that breaks immersion. Another has been made that is a journal, but is not really a book you carry around (rather, a menu you open up).

 

I thought about it a while, trying to think of a workaround. Could it be possible to treat books written in as enchanted items? I should elaborate... The idea: Make a new enchantment that runs a script that connects with/creates a text file for a book, accessing a different file based on the book title.

Can this be done?

[Mattiewagg]

It might be possible. SkyUILib allows for writing, though only in certain menus:

 

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/57308/?

 

It's the issue of writing for the main part. Taking the text of the player and inputting it onto a page is difficult, nigh on impossible.

[sLoPpYdOtBiGhOlE]

Books in skyrim really are not that flexible with filling them with text dynamically on the fly.

As far as I'm aware you can not just put text into a book while in game.

You can use a form of text replacement via <Alias = xxxxxx> but it's not like you edit raw text in a book on the fly in game.

 

For example: I wanted a book to show all the npcs that my mod has had forced into an alias, and I also wanted that npc's location also listed in the book.

 

It was easy enough to do using alias refs and alias ref locations.

But I basically have to have all the empty alias's listed in the book to start with.

I couldn't just dynamically add an alias to the book as it was filled.

 

The simplest of things like just trying to add a Count of how many npcs my mod is managing and keeping it updated as npc's are added or removed took some working out since you can't just use a variable in text page of a book.

Nor can you call functions from the text page of a book.

 

What your after could possibly be done, but I would not expect to be able to add big blocks of text to a book dynamically on the fly in game.

 

A small line of text you can add quite easily, but adding multiple lines of text as needed on the fly takes a fair bit of effort.

 

You can place a object you've creted in a cell that the player never enters.

Create a quest with an Alias that points to the object.

 

In the Book text field add <Alias=YourObject>

 

Then use a script to change the name of the object as events unfold in your game.

So when the book opens the name of the object shows in the book.

 

For example:

YourObject.GetBaseObject.SetName("My adventure started in Helgen.")

 

Now when the user opens the book they see "My adventure started in Helgen."

 

Edit: This where I worked out most of what I've done in books

Book information / formatting: http://www.creationkit.com/Book
Text replacement: http://www.creationkit.com/Text_Replacement

Edited March 15, 2015 by sLoPpYdOtBiGhOlE

[SentientBagel42]

Thanks for the quick replies.

 

One more question, is it possible to add an enchantment in-game, or does that fall under the same restriction as adding an item? (As I know you can make new spells, so I don't know where the line is drawn)

Edited March 15, 2015 by SentientBagel42