moriador

Yep, I was wondering what was causing this. But hiding objects one at a time showed that it's clearly a case of some meshes not converting properly. Not an issue with CK.

Users like the OP are exactly why I never upload any of the mods I make -- anywhere. I don't really care about all the details of what was said before this thread was made. But this thread itself and the entitled view of the OP are extremely discouraging to potential mod authors. In that regard, Dark0ne was totally in the right to respond the way he did. I like the idea of "mods as GIFTS." It puts things in perspective. If someone knitted you a sweater and it didn't fit, would you drop off the sweater at their house with a note saying, "It didn't fit," and then start complaining if they didn't fix it in less than a day? Or accuse them -- publicly -- of being "unethical" because they didn't respond at all after that? I know there are some people out there who would. But, please, for the sake of people who are considering making their mods public, let's not defend these folks. -- Indeed, as someone else already pointed out, when you're unhappy with the "product" or the "service," you are ALWAYS entitled to a full refund -- guaranteed, no time limitations, no questions asked, no receipt or personal information required. That's a hell of a lot better deal than you'll get at any retail operation on the planet. :D

Awesome! I have a pretty good idea of what you mean now. I certainly can't promise that what I come up with will actually resemble any of those women in particular. But I have a much clearer idea of the sort of woman you're talking about. Plus I've always been very fond of Bothela myself. Now, I'll be honest: since I haven't done this before, it will take me some time. Several weeks, probably. Though, who knows? Maybe it will turn out to be easier than I think it is. For my own playthroughs, I'm looking forward to roaming around Skyrim with my posse of Golden Girls -- or Silver Wenches, as the case may be. :D :D

Hot old women? How old? And what counts as hot? Current Susan Sarandon? Candice Bergen? Or an 80 year old Bette Davis? Give me something to work with and I'll give it a try. I've never made a follower mod before, so it would be a great learning experience. :) I may even do a custom voice, given that I'm no spring chicken myself.

Collision plane covers the trigger box? Triggers not linked? In any case, while it's definitely useful to know how to make a bookshelf from scratch, it's much easier to copy-paste an already working one. There are several mod resource files on Nexus under the Mod Resources category that include "warehouse" type mods full of already set up bookcases, weapon racks, mannequins, etc. I use one of those.

My favorite mods are usually made by mod creators who wanted something changed when they played the game themselves. They weren't purposely searching for ideas for "cool mods". They just played the game and saw something that they wanted to change. I make mods for myself only (much less frustrating). Sometimes I just play with the CK because I enjoy building things. But when I'm making something for myself that's for my game, I definitely want to complete it because, well, every time I load up the game to play, I'm reminded that I don't have this thing -- whatever it is -- that I decided I really wanted. And the more I'm itching to play, the more urgent it becomes that I finish whatever I'm working on first.

I think the best tutorials for getting started and then gaining more experience are: Darkfox127 TES Alliance (What I really appreciate about Darkfox127's videos is that he sticks to the topic, doesn't repeat himself unnecessarily, and doesn't chatter on and on about irrelevant things. A 10 minute video by him actually has 10 minutes of useful information.) Bethesda's tutorials are very useful, but I find that they are much better for helping you cope with specific issues than as a general introduction.

In response to post #43223160. #43223235, #43225810, #43226065, #43226570, #43226580, #43226675, #43226930, #43227145, #43227835, #43229000, #43229600, #43229700, #43231180, #43250055, #43250125 are all replies on the same post. @elezraita, Thank you. That's a very full and descriptive answer! :) I don't know why finding the information I need on how to get MO to work for me is so hard for me, but I read a lot of forum threads and watched more than a few tutorials. Almost all of them repeated the same information -- and not a single one explained how to use MO and the CK together. On the contrary, everything I read indicated that they didn't work together at all. To be sure, I couldn't find much anyway because almost all threads and tutorials seemed to assume that all you wanted to do was download and install mods. I found nothing specifically by or for mod authors EXCEPT the posts that said how using MO in conjunction with the CK was a royal PITA. If the problem is that the info about MO is just disorganized and mostly outdated and sometimes simply incorrect, then the software is definitely worth looking into! But -- seriously -- I've installed and used thousands of complex programs over the last four decades, so it's not as though I give up on software that easily. I shall definitely give it another try!! (While waiting for the new mod manager to be developed.)

In response to post #43228135. #43228440, #43228710, #43228800, #43229750, #43229950 are all replies on the same post. Well, it is very refreshing to see that the developer is reading the comments! We all know that there's an enormous divide between those who want the software to do it all (and who -- rightly, I note -- demand that such software work as perfectly as possible) and those who insist on getting their hands dirty and hate to have anything stand in their way. If you can bridge that gap, you'll have done something very worthy indeed. I look forward to what you can come up with.

In response to post #43228135. #43228440, #43228710, #43228800, #43229950 are all replies on the same post. @archerarcher, Control. Precisely. The more lines of code that come between me and the stuff I want to use, the more difficult it becomes to fix what ought to be minor problems. Instead of simply locating the problem file or reference and fixing it, you have to contend with the installation software and all of its quirks. Instead of replacing a single bad mesh, for instance, you may end up having to uninstall an entire mod, create a new mod archive with the new mesh, and install it all over again. The more control you take away from users, the more those users have to rely on mod authors (and mod manager programmers) to fix every single little problem. But there seems to be a trend in software to create bigger and bigger walls of code between the user and the actual assets/files that user wants to use. I see it in 3D render software, image editing software, anything that relies heavily on user created content really. Which is completely backwards, IMO. The more imperfect the assets, the more DIRECT control the user needs to have in order to fix those imperfections. And the more an industry relies on user generated content, the more imperfections there will be. The idea of creating code that allows a user to click a single magic button is great indeed! But only if that code depends on assets that have been through a very rigorous quality assessment process which requires very strict standardization. If those assets are potentially riddled with bugs, as any user created content will be, then you can't wall the user off from direct control or their only option when things go wrong will be to scream at the developers. I see a lot of screaming at mod authors and mod manager programmers going on in Nexus comments (and the forums of many other industries). But I guess that's the price you pay when you try to make things *too* easy for the user. Not too long ago, when you wouldn't even think of assembling a bookcase without having some basic tools on hand, if the predrilled holes didn't line up, you drilled new ones in the right place, and screwed the bits together. Now that you've been led to believe that everything you will ever need comes in one single box, you swear loudly, pack your Ikea shelves back into the torn up bits of cardboard, take the whole thing back to the store for a refund, and post a nasty product review on a website while sitting angrily among your still unshelved piles of books. Given how much incredibly detailed information is available about how to fix innumerable kinds of problems, it seems that people are becoming more personally helpless than ever.

In response to post #43223160. #43223235, #43225810, #43226065, #43226570, #43226580, #43226675, #43226930, #43227145, #43227835 are all replies on the same post. So, NMM uses "a type of virtualization system" already? I don't know whether it does or not, or whether it's an option you have to enable in NMM. All I *do* know is that when I install a mod with NMM: its assets are available when I load the CK to mod and when I load a game to play; moreover, I can easily locate those assets in my data folder, should I need to unpack/change/adjust/alter/move/rename/overwrite or delete them. Last I checked, this was not the case with MO, since it was impossible to load a game without starting MO. And MO's file virtualization wasn't recognized by the CK. With MO, if a mod had a single and simple problem, such as missing mipmaps for a few textures or an incorrect file path or even a single messed up mesh, it was not clear to me how to fix it. Whereas right now, I just fix them the straightforward and obvious way. I have no idea if that's the case now -- or whether I'm simply totally wrong about MO -- because the description of the implementation was too confusing for me to really grasp fully. Forum threads and tutorials didn't help. At the moment, with NMM, if I find that my data folder has unwanted stuff in it, I delete that stuff or manually shove it into a different folder. If I want a completely "clean" data folder, I unpack a backup archive of a vanilla install. I'm not sure what could be simpler than that. Ultimately, for me, nothing beats actually looking at mod archives to see what's in them (and where) before installing anything into my data folder. I actually read the readme's. :D

In response to post #43210430. #43215310, #43215490, #43215920, #43216655, #43217565, #43217935, #43218210, #43222660, #43225585, #43227190 are all replies on the same post. Yes, exactly. There doesn't seem to be much point in using a file virtualization system if the CK can't see it.

I've been using NMM for years without any substantial problems. I also used MO for a while. To be honest, I can't remember exactly why I stopped using MO, but something about it really annoyed me, and I went back to NMM. Recently, I decided to try MO again. But after reading in the comments that some mod *authors* were having trouble figuring out how to get their changes in the CK to work seamlessly with MO, I decided against using MO. I make mods for myself. I have an enormous (but very well organized) data folder of mod resources (textures, meshes, scripts, sound files, etc) along with a folder of meshes/textures that I've created myself. I also have a very long list of half-finished ESPs that are not activated. And I tend to tweak -- sometimes completely overhaul -- most of the mods I download. Also, since I'm not making mods for distribution, I often use assets from downloaded mods without installing the mods themselves. Or I install the mods temporarily (to make putting those assets in my own mod easier or just to take a look at how a mod author did something) and then simply deactivate/delete/move/rename the ESP and/or unused assets when I'm done. After watching several tutorials, I still couldn't for the life of me figure out how to get this style of modding to work with MO. But with NMM (and Windows Explorer), it's simple and obvious. So... please... when creating this new mod manager, please consider making it simple for mod authors to use in conjunction with the CK. And especially for those who tend to use bits and pieces from mods (such as resource mods) without wanting to have those mods active in a playthrough nor always visible and cluttering up the UI in a mod manager. TL;DR I'd really like a profile system that makes mod creation, mod testing, and mod tweaking simple and straightforward -- with options to 1. keep a mod and/or its assets completely separate and 2. integrate a mod and/or its assets in a playthrough. If I have to watch a dozen tutorials to figure out how to do this (and still not quite sure at the end of it), I'd rather spend the time learning more about how to actually CREATE MODs than about how to use a MOD MANAGER.

It's not rocket science, but a bit tedious. First question: Do the mods you want to take the pieces from use loose files for textures and meshes or do they come with bsa's? If they are loose files, then all you need are the textures and meshes that pertain to the particular pieces that you want. If they are packed in bsa form, you'll need to get BSAopt from Nexus so you can unpack them and get those assets. There are two ways to do what you want. Which way you choose is a matter of preference. It also depends on whether you already have the mods installed. 1. Do as described by poster above, especially if you don't ever want to or haven't installed the mods whose assets you're using. Or 2. Assuming you've unpacked any bsa's if necessary, if the mods are already installed, then fire up the CK and check (include) those mods' plugins to load. Then look for the following files in the object window: Every piece of craftable armor needs 4 files associated with it: a. The Armor Addon, which tells the CK which meshes to use and which races to fit them to, etc. (Found under Items>ArmorAddon) b. The Armor, which tells the CK the stats and properties of the armor and links to the ArmorAddon. (Found under Items) c. The Recipe that indicates how and where the armor is created and what perks/items are needed to create it. This file links to the Armor file. (Found in Items>Constructible Object) d. The Tempering recipe that indicates how and where the armor can be tempered and what perks/items are needed to temper it. This file links to the Armor file. (Also found in Items>Constructible Object) If the mods you've loaded permit the armor to be crafted, then these 4 files will already exist. If the mods don't allow crafting, then you will need to create the Recipe if you want to craft the armor (Most mods should at least include Tempering recipes.) You should be able to find a tutorial that explains this. But once you've looked at some Recipe files, they should be pretty self-explanatory. Just pick a vanilla one and duplicate it for any pieces that are missing a crafting recipe. Then treat the vanilla duplicated file as though it were added by one of the mods you're using. Locate the 4 files for each piece that you want and duplicate each one.* You will need to change the ID on every Constructible Object file otherwise they will not link to each other. The easiest way to keep things organized, I think, is to rename all 4 files by simply adding a prefix to the ID that isn't already being used, but which puts those files close to the top of the list. Something like: 000MyMod, or AAAMyMod. (If you add a prefix like this, you can get rid of the DUPLICATE001, etc that gets added when you duplicate a file). But you can name them whatever you want, as long as you can keep track of which is which. Note: Since you've already duplicated these files, when the CK asks you if you want to create a new form after you've renamed them, say NO. It will then ask you to confirm that decision. Say YES.* *You don't actually have to duplicate files if you plan to rename them. You can just change the ID name and the CK will ask you if you want to create a new form. In this case, say YES!. However, I find that this can become messy if I'm doing a lot of files from different sources. Duplicating a file generally puts it right underneath the original in the list, and therefore makes it easier to find. Or if I can't find the files I need to work on, I can just search for "duplicate". If you haven't saved already, now is a good time to save your file and give your mod a nice unique name. Now you need to link the renamed Recipes and Tempering recipes to their respective renamed Armor. When you edit the Recipes/Temper recipes, there's a dropdown menu in the top right that refers to the Armor being created/tempered. Search the list in that dropdown for the renamed Armor that goes with the Recipe (Do the same for the tempering recipe) and save your changes. Repeat for all four pieces of armor. You also need to link each renamed Armor file to its renamed ArmorAddon. When you edit an Armor, there's a box in the bottom center (just above the "cancel" button) that should have something in it such as: DaedricBootsAA. That's the ID of the ArmorAddon which pertains to this armor. Delete the old one and right click in the box, choose "new" and add the renamed ArmorAddon. Save your mod. Exit the CK and reload just your mod. You should find that you've only added the 16 files that you duplicated and nothing else. If that's the case, right now the mod is usable as is. But if you want to change the armors so that they benefit from the Matching Set perk, you'll need to edit the Armor files so that each piece is made from the same material. In the Armor files, on the right, there's a box that contains info such as: ArmorBoots, ArmorHeavy, ArmorMaterialDaedric, VendorItemArmor. If you need to change the Armor Material, just delete the old one, right click inside the box and choose "Add", then search for the correct ArmorMaterial from the very long list of options. (I type the material name or begin with the words ArmorMat, to get the list a lot shorter). Once you've done that to all four pieces, you're good to go. But if you want to adjust the stats, price, or add/remove an enchantment, you can do that in the Armor files as well. So if you want these pieces to be Light Armor, you need to change "ArmorHeavy" in the list already mentioned to "ArmorLight". And on the far left, next to "Weight", you should have the choice of "Heavy", "Light", and "None." You might also want to adjust the actual weight and ratings of the Armor pieces to be more appropriate for Light Armor. To find the appropriate settings for Light Armor, you can look at some vanilla examples by finding the Armor file and doubleclicking it to edit (or right click, choose "edit"). But remember, even if you do not make any changes, you must exit from the edit box by clicking CANCEL -- NOT OK. If you click OK, even though you made no changes, I believe the CK will consider this to be a change to the vanilla status, and if you have any other mods that change this, their changes will be overwritten by yours. You can fix these things in TES5Edit pretty easily. But it's best to avoid them altogether. Or if you don't want to mess with clicking on a whole bunch of light armors in the CK to see their stats, you can just go to UESP and search for Skyrim light armor (Google: UESP Skyrim light armor). You'll find info on weight, rating, etc there. Might not be a bad idea to go there before you even load up the CK and decide what stats, etc, you want each piece to have. That's it. If I've missed anything or got something wrong, please correct me. I'm working from memory while waiting for coffee to brew! Mistakes are too easy to make in this state. :D :D Edit: Oh, and if you're not going to keep the original mods installed, then you'll want to find the meshes and textures that pertain only to the four pieces you are using and makes sure you don't remove those. (You will find that info in the ArmorAddons and Armor for each piece). Or copy them before you uninstall those mods, and then paste them back in -- using the exact same file and folder names as the original -- into the exact same locations in the data folder.

Skooma should be addictive after a certain number of uses. Once addicted, you should suffer withdrawal when you don't consume it for a while. Of course, you'd also need a way to cure that addiction. I'm thinking of something like Felldew in Shivering Isles.