Striker879

Re-running the A-Bomb fix is something you will always need to do periodically if you are like me and play a character for a long time. Whenever I see that the flames from the Legion rider's torches are getting a bit funny (trailing a bit of flame behind them) I run OAF on my most recent save. The loot in chests that are filled using leveled lists for random loot like the skill books are filled when you enter the cell they're in, hence you don't get the same loot when you go back to a save from before you entered the cell. I know it's a pain to find the right balance between saving often enough and enjoying an immersive gameplay ... there is no such thing as a perfect balance. In my experience the skill books aren't very commonly found in random loot. You can have a look at the UESP Wiki page Oblivion: Skill Books if you want to find the best place for a particular book. When I installed Oblivion on my current gaming machine I didn't install Shivering Isles even though I had the expansion ... I didn't want to play SI on my first playthrough and didn't know you could just ignore quests until you felt like doing them. Once you update the non-SI game to version 1.2.0416 you can't install SI until you completely uninstall the game so I've just left it for my next gaming machine build (maybe this winter I'll get around to building it). Personally I thought that the Knights of the Nine made more sense after you've completed the main quest, but again it's a DLC that I've not installed even though I own it. On both my current character and old guy I've installed Frostcrag and Theives Den after I've gotten up in level (both offer perks that seem a bit "cheatish" to me for low level characters). Mehrunes Dagger is another I've not installed even though I have it. My first guy never has joined the Dark Brotherhood even though he's got well over 1200 hours on him. He went Mage's guild then Fighter's guild then Theive's guild, with the Arena between Mage's and Fighter's if I recall correctly. My current guy hasn't joined any guilds but got into the DB via some "collateral damage" while saving Darma in the Hackdirt quest. I installed Frostcrag a bit earlier on his game so that I could enchant things without using Sigil stones (but he was about level 10 or more first). My biggest OCD tendency runs with the need to close all 60 Oblivion gates ... I get tired of some of the larger Oblivion planes and so I need to save before entering a gate and reload when I get an Oblivion plane that I don't feel like doing (Oblivion world 5 and 6 are my favourites). The Unofficial Oblivion Patch is your best bet for avoiding glitches in the vanilla game. My first guy was seriously addicted to the permanent bound armor glitch so I didn't use the UOP on his game. I made my own patch for some of the glitches myself and used that on my second guy, so even he doesn't use the UOP. My next guy will use the UOP though, as it fixes so many more things than my own (and I've gotten over the permanent bound armour addiction). The modular design of the game and quests makes it so you have the freedom to do what you want when you want ... Tamreil suffers through the Oblivion crisis a lot longer than needed while I get through the 60 gates for instance, as I take breaks and just wander when I get tired of the planes of Oblivion. If you have a save from before you decide to try something you can always go back for a redo.

You'll need to browse through the OCOv2 mod comments then. I'm not at my gaming computer for a few more days so don't have anything else I can suggest off the top of my head.

If you're using the Steam version of the game you'll need to click "Update BSA Timestamps" as well (if you are using OBMM to take care of archive invalidation).

What form of archive invalidation are you using (BSA Redirection is the recommended method)?

Nexus Mod Manager (NMM) is the newcomer on the block (Oblivion and Oblivion Mod Manager (OBMM) have aged gracefully together for years now). Unfortunately when NMM was released the decision was made to turn on the "Download with Manager" for all mods, whether NMM would actually be able to successfully install a particular mod or not (they left it up to whoever was taking care of a mod to turn that option off). Many Oblivion mods haven't been updated in years, hence the abundance of Oblivion mods that specify "Install with OBMM" but still show a "Download with Manager" green button. You can try installing Oblivion mods with NMM ... some will work and others won't. Your other option is to read the mod's install instructions and follow the mod author's advice (and yes I know many mod's install instruction leave much to be desired ... leave those for when you become an expert mod installer). - Edit - As for differences, the most important one is NMM is totally incapable of reading OBMM install scripts ... if a mod has an OMOD Conversion folder you'll just find script erros reported by NMM. Some of those mods can be installed with NMM if you delete the OMOD Conversion folder, providing the install script doesn't walk you through various options available in the mod (NMM won't have a clue what to do with all the various optional folders).

Construction Set Wiki, Nexus Wiki: Oblivion, Nexus Wiki: TES4 Construction Set and TES Alliance: Oblivion School ... should get you started.

Have a look at this post. If that doesn't help go to the Advanced Search screen (small flower looking icon at the right of the search box at the top of any Nexus Forums page) and put Xonar in the Find Words field and then change the Find in Forum selection box to Oblivion. Click Search Now and you'll have a pretty long list presented that offer other ideas. - Edit - Another possibility is use one of the quiet feet mods ... search on Oblivion Nexus for quiet feet in the File Name box.

Before you start adding mods the vanilla game has all of it's meshes in a compressed file named Oblivion - Meshes.bsa (as shown in your Windows Explorer list). Replacement meshes like your skeleton.nif replacer and mod added assets will create the required Oblivion\meshes folder and subfolders (e.g. skeleton replacers will go in Oblivion\meshes\characters\_male and Oblivion\meshes\characters\_1stperson). One thing to note about replacers ... they will all need archive invalidation to direct the game to use the replacements rather than it's original assets found in the vanilla BSA files. The simplest way to achieve that is using Oblivion Mod Manager (OBMM). Click the Utilities button and select Archive Invalidation from the menu. Click on BSA Redirection, leave everything else at default and click on the Update Now button. Close the archive invalidation dialogue and then OBMM (it doesn't commit the changes until closed). BSA Redirection is a do once and forget about it forever solution. If you use the Steam version of the game click on Reset BSA Timestamps before clicking the Update Now button (Steam re-dated all the vanilla game BSA files, thus breaking archive invalidation ... that fixes it).

I use the right mouse button click menu myself. The rule of thumb when copy and pasting is always paste into one level higher than you copied when dealing with FOLDERs (it's paste into the same level for individual files). Thus, it's right click on the extracted OBSE download's Data folder and select Copy from the right click menu, then navigate to your game's install folders in Windows Explorer and find your game's Oblivion folder. Right click on Oblivion and select Paste from the right click menu. You will get the Windows warning about there already is a folder named Data ... select Yes to All. As a note, if you don't get the folder warning you've pasted into the wrong folder (and when you look you'll likely see a Data folder inside of your game's Data folder).

Most of the vanilla game assets are found in the BSA files (e.g. Oblivion - Textures - Compressed.bsa) and are accessed by the game from there. That's where you'll find your vanilla birthsigns.

I saw a report that the game engine doesn't even render the ears using the same lighting as the rest of the body. I don't actually know enough about that stuff to confirm or disprove it, but I think it's safe to say there are game limitations (neck seam is another example). Hats, helmets, wigs and neck seam concealing necklaces.

Some further info on OBSE's Data folder ... if you look at the contents of the extracted download's Data folder you'll see that it only contains another folder named OBSE (which contains a single file named obse.ini). If you had never installed OBSE before your game's Data folder wouldn't contain a folder named OBSE, so the copy/paste command would only add the contents of the source Data folder to your game's Data folder (thus creating an OBSE folder and it's contents in your game's Data folder). If you had a previous version of OBSE installed before your game's Data folder could possibly already contain an OBSE folder (plugins for OBSE require you to create a folder Data\OBSE\Plugins). In that case, even though the OBSE folder already existed there was no file named obse.ini in it (the obse.ini file is new for version 21), so still nothing gets overwritten, merely added to your Data\OBSE folder. To confirm that OBSE is working afterwards use OBSE Tester. After you have confirmed OBSE operation you can safely disable OBSE Test Plugin.esp and then delete it.

Make sure you have the DLC Vile Lair patch BELOW the DLC Vile Lair esp in your load list. Wrye Bash is the best way to post a load order (but only really useful if you are also using WB to create a bashed patch). Here's a wiki link on OBMM load list as a text file.

The mod comments don't raise any red flags, and it looks like the mod author upgraded the mod with ideas from some of the early adopters. The mod requires OBSE but I believe we got you up and running with that for TQP. I don't tend to pick up many books beyond skill books as I've found that with a bit of patience my guy is invariably swimming in gold with nothing left to spend it on by level 15 or 20. Earlier in the game, when money is tight, I tend to look for the biggest bucks with the lowest weight. Before I even buy a house I save up for one of Emma's excellent Packdonkeys and once I can afford two they are always with me. You'll need to pick one version of Pick Up Books Faster ... from what I can see the version 3 is the only one with an INI file allowing you to select options without needing to switch versions. As far as installation goes it's pretty simple ... extract the downloaded ZIP to the same folder you downloaded to, copy/paste PPPickUpBook.esp (and PPPickUpBook.ini if you decide on version 3) from the extracted download to your game's Data folder. Remember to use the non-OBSE shortcut (or the Start button shortcut if you went that way) to bring up the vanilla game launcher to activate PPPickUpBooks.esp in Data Files, but don't launch the game ... just click Exit after clicking OK in the Data Files dialogue then launch the game with your OBSE shortcut.

Check and you'll probably see that the mod requirements for those clothes/armor are BBB enabled skeleton.nif such as Coronerras' Maximum Compatibility Skeletons or the more recent Universal Skeleton Nif (and if you decide to go for the more recent one make sure to use the ControlableSkeleton version, unless you know that you have a mod that requires the TotalControlableSkeleton version ... in which case be aware of the limitations and workarounds required for that version).

When she goes hunting she'll often get killed by the bandits at the unmarked camp just west of Dasek Moor (the bandits are just off the road as you go up the hill where you can turn off towards Kvatch or continue to Anvil). From my experience if you don't go close to an area nothing bad happens to NPCs in that area (if you aren't in one of the cells nearby none of the bandit or Alawen AI packages run). What I do is make certain to kill the bandits every time I'm anywhere close to that whole area, even if I have no intention of dropping by to see Alawen. To get her back you'll need to open the console and then: prid 3c160 resurrect 1 if she doesn't appear nearby it means that her cell has reset since she died. In that case it's: prid 3c160 enable resurrect 1 The Unofficial Oblivion patch makes her essential until you have first got her to agree to train you (after that she's changed back to unessential I believe). If you want to make her essential after getting her back then in the console: setessential 3c15f 1 Note that resurrect and enable use her referenceID while setessential uses her baseID (hence the different IDs used).

- Edit - Didn't read all of your original post before jumping to conclusions ... you already tried OAF.

Might get more views by the ones who may know on Oblivion Mod Detectives.

You'll need to run each individual NIF file through GlossMax.

Can you successfully download large archives from other sites?

That other games aren't affected tells me that hardware isn't the likely culprit. One of our returning longtimers MarkInMKUK suggested something to me ... do you have any other programs running in the background while playing, especially web browsers such as Chrome? Oblivion's not very good at sharing.

If it's only faces you want tattooed you can use the age maps I think. Have a look at what Nuska has done in Oblivion Character Overhaul version 2 and Troll Berserker in Unique face features for OCO 2.

A Google search on both doesn't bring up much in the way of reported problems. You say the keyboard is old so I'm going to suggest a test to see whether or not there is a problem with your WASD keys themselves (of all the keys on a keyboard those do take a beating from us gamers). Using the game Controls menu (accessed from the main menu ... Options -> Controls -> Controls) change your forward, back, slide left and slide right keys to UJHK instead of WSAD (yes it will feel uncomfortable, but those won't interfere with the other game keys making the switch back painless). Using those keys see if you can reproduce your problem. If the problem goes away see if you can borrow a keyboard to use for a test. Even if the problem remains with the keys remapped you could still try a different keyboard, but I think the problem would be with something other than hardware. Another question ... do you see anything similar in other games that use WASD for movement?

Ya, you lose +4 every time you level Luck instead of something else because you can only advance it one at a time. I never add to my starting 50 luck until I've got everything I want maxed. While Luck does factor into the formulas for fighting and armor skills I find it's not a very noticeable effect overall. In fact the only place I've noticed much impact for Luck is in Merchantile ... especially noticeable after Spriggans arrive in the game and they damage your Luck. Chapels or Wayshrines take care of Spriggan damage to Luck and if I want I usually have an enchanted boost for Luck in a ring or amulet I can switch to while bargaining. I seldom bother because I find that by level 15 to 20 my guy has gold out the wazoo and not much left he hasn't bought. I don't "train" many skills beyond the vanilla game trainers plus what happens as I play the game. I keep track of my skills at level up so that I know which fighting style to work on most. About the only thing I "train" is Restoration and that is primarily so that I can max Intelligence (for max Magicka), so I'll spam a weak restore life spell while going from point A to point B when I need those last couple of skill points before level up. Yes the vanilla system has flaws.

I use No persistant enchantment glow fix, but there are others as well.