ChewNTobacca

After a long time put off, I decided to update SSE and the Creation Kit to the Anniversary Edition. I am using Skyrim SE/AE 1.6.640 and CK version 1.6.438. Everything seems to (mostly) function as I recall, with a few changes. But now I get a bunch of new editor warnings, all of which are approximately the same. An example: MASTERFILE: LOCALIZATION: Lookup failed for ID: 0x000116A2 from strings file: STRINGS/Update_English.DLSTRINGS There are about a hundred (100) of these, all appearing similar. I did some looking on the good ol' internet, and anything I could find for these dates back to circa 2014. I am just wondering, should I just ignore them? Or is it something that needs fixed? If so, how does one fix them? I've used CK for years and never had these. I also completely understand how loaded with errors the CK is, and most of them can just be ignored. Thanks for any clarification. -Chew

I am wondering how badly the most recent Skyrim SE/AE update to version 1.6.1130 messed with stuff. I finally broke down and did the update via Steam from 1.5.97 (I know that's a big jump) and got SKSE64 working with version 2.2.5. However... I no longer have controller support in-game. Also, I have no FPS counter any more. And the "dark face bug" is present while there are no mods installed or active, except the script extender. Yes, my game was moderately modded with about 55 plugins. In addition to all that, the game would not launch from the Steam launcher, even before installing SKSE64. It immediately crashes back to desktop. Did I just choose a bad time to update? Or am I missing something, or doing something horribly wrong? Please keep in mind that I am seasoned in using and creating mods, so the ongoing changes are nothing new. Thanks for any feedback, -Chew EDIT: I couldn't figure out how to respond to my own post, but after a little research I answered my own question: I chose a bad time to try to update. Though following the sticky post here I got it reverted back to where I expected it to be in the first place.

You are both correct. Thank you, Sovrath, once I saw you say "lot of shiny things", I knew exactly what to check. Sadly, it was an item I made with a custom texture. I removed the item from one location, repacked my archive and tested. No more crash when entering that interior cell! I did discover that I still experienced the same crash while in 1st person ( I always play in 3rd person, so it never occurred to me). Then I removed the item from the other problem cells, and now they all load perfectly every time (so far). Thank you for the suggestions. I appreciate it very much. I think I can put on the finishing touches. Thanks again. -Chew

I've been putting the final testing on a village I've been working on (for over 2 years now). I use a separate PC for testing, and until recently I haven't had any probles. There are 6 buildings, and now I'm getting CTD when entering 4 of them on the test PC. Ideally I would have the exact same setup for testing, but here's the differences: The design rig is Windows 10 running SSE prior to the anniversary update (1.5.97). The test rig is on Windows 7 with the anniversary update (1.6.64). I suspect that this may have something to do with the problem. On the test rig, I checked for any conflicts in SSEEdit and LOOT, none found. Then I disabled every mod except the one in testing, and the problem persists. Some people say that it is a texture mod, but I have none installed. I would love to get to the bottom of this, as once I do my village will be ready for release. Any suggestions are welcome and appreciated. Thanks, Chew

I've got an ongoing mod to change appearances of vanilla NPC's that I started some three years ago. Until recently I had successfully changed the appearance of 63 NPC's, but this last go-round has got me stumped. A few days ago I went to modify two more people, and after adding them to my archive I get no changes to them except two black faces (while the others still are great). Maybe I should mention that the last time I changed my mod was back in May of this year. I use two separate computers for design and testing. On the machine used to design, everything worked out great; it's not until I pack up the archive with the textures, meshes, and .esp that I run into problems. In fact, I regenerated and replaced all the characters' facegen data and still encounter the same result. Yes, I have double- triple-checked that all my meshes and textures are in the right spots, changes made accordingly in Creation Kit, etc. Remember that I have successfully done this dozens of times over the years, and this is the first time I've encountered this. From past experience, if there was a mistake with a texture or mesh, then other issues would be afoot-- usually a purple outline of improperly textured meshes. All this leads me to believe that something has recently changed in the way certain things are handled within the Creation Kit. If anyone can set me straight, I am always grateful. Thanks, Chew Edit: I know that now it is not until the plugin is saved that the face generation occurs.

I believe I have achieved acceptable results, though I have not done extensive testing. After looking things over carefully, I noticed that when I created the alias for the corpse, I did not check the "allow dead" box. After that, it all worked. Somehow that prevented the script from running and the quest starting. (Chewy scratches head) Once again, I thank you Ishara for the input and knowledge. I've learned quite a bit through this, and discovered that I'm not really a quest designer by nature. Thanks again.

I decided to rethink my method, and instead of adding the key to an existing container, I decided that I would try to use a dead NPC for the container. So I set up an Alias for the NPC, placed him in the world (set to initially disabled and starts dead) and placed the key's alias in the NPC alias. Then later I could enable the dead NPC and disable him again when the quest completes. However, using the same trigger box and the same startup script that I mentioned creating a few posts ago, I cannot get the quest to fire. I kept the startup stage and first objective the same, and I simply cannot get the trigger to initiate the quest. I even deleted the trigger box and activator, and recreated them both after restarting the CK.

Still no success on the outcome. Using the quest "DA09ChangeLocation" as a template, I have created a second quest intended to start using a "change location" event, created the aliases, compiled the scripts and fragments, set the variables in CK, and added the quest to the story manager (FWIW, the only time I've used the story manager is for Actor Dialog Events). For the location alias, I set it to use the change location event by utilizing the keyword "LocationHasRefType" of "BossContainer" just like they did, as it is very much fitting for my situation. Both the new scripts compiled successfully (on my first attempt, actually :) ), but I still see no evidence that my key was placed in the container. I also added a 'debug.notification' to the fragment forcing the aliases to the main quest to tell me when it is added, which I never see. The quest itself is set to a priority of 0 and has a single stage of "0" containing nothing more that a script fragment. The fragment is as follows: ;add key to container Alias_Container.GetReference().AddItem(Alias_Key.GetReference()) kmyquest.ClearpineQuest01ContainerLocation.ForceLocationTo(Alias_Location.GetLocation()) kmyquest.ClearpineQuest01Container.ForceRefTo(Alias_Container.GetReference()) debug.notification("Adding key to Container") ;calling stop on script stop() I still don't know where I'm going wrong. I assume this is intended to "start()" by the usage of the change location event. I remain stumped.

Seems like you're onto it, as I dissected the "break of dawn" quest as you suggested, and it's almost like you mentioned in option 2 in your previous post. They have a second quest that places the beacon in a random boss container as soon as the player enters a cell with such container in it, using a 'change location' event. I'm going to study it a bit more when I get the chance. Once again, thank you very much. I sure appreciate the wealth of knowledge. I will report back with the results.

Another good point. As it sits, (assuming I understand correctly) the key is added to the container alias when the quest starts. Until the quest triggers, there is no key to be found. Which seems to be part of my complication. I'd like to have the key placed BEFORE the quest starts, for the interest of realism. Is there a better way to accomplish the placement of the object alias (key) into the object container alias (Boss container)? Maybe I'm just not thinking outside the box. I have looked to make sure there are no duplicate/overlapping containers, and there does not appear to be any issues there. My apologies, I meant to put a link to the other topic. Not that it goes into greater detail, per say, but does include most of the events leading to this point. It can be found here: https://forums.nexusmods.com/index.php?/topic/11479183-questdialogue-help/ . Being the first quest I've created, naturally I've had to do a lot of reading, watching, and trying. I may also remind that I do have decent Creation Kit experience, as I have been making mods for Skyrim for several years. I've made followers, merchants, spells, items, equipment, etc. and have always been able to overcome obstacles, but this one is driving me crazy. What I thought to be a minor detail has become a big hinderance.

So I developed a custom script to initiate my quest through the trigger box, set my variables in the CK, and it seems to work thus far. Here is my script attached to the trigger: Scriptname ClearpineQuest01Script extends ObjectReference {main script for ClearpineQuest01} Int RunOnce quest property ClearpineQuest01 auto {reference to quest} key property QuestKey auto {reference to Quest object} Actor property PlayerREF auto {only player can activate trigger} Event OnTriggerEnter(ObjectReference akActionRef) If akActionRef == PlayerREF If RunOnce == 0 ClearpineQuest01.Start() ClearpineQuest01.SetStage(5) RunOnce = 1 EndIf EndIf EndEvent When loading my clean save, all is well; the trigger fires as desired. I've only done minimal testing so far, but I have noticed a pattern in terms of functionality. I shall do my best do explain. I set the 'ObjectLocation' alias to a boss-type chest ('ObjectContainer' alias) of random location based on keywords. It would seem as though if the ObjectContainer' has been looted, with the plugin inactive, the trigger will not fire. I have confirmed this through different save stages with the plugin inactive. For simplicity of testing, I temporarily narrowed down the potential locations of the 'Object' alias ('key') to only six options, and have made five more clean saves to test with. From one save to the next, where the ONLY difference was clearing two more of the six dungeons. In this case, three of them were cleared on save 97, and five were cleared on save 98. So the only variable is having cleared those two dungeons and looted the chests where the key may possibly reside. In short, if the containing chest has been modified before the plugin is activated, the quest does not start. This makes me believe there is something with the script I'm using attached to the 'Object' alias (key). The script I have now is the "defaultSetStageAliasScript", as mentioned in the original post. Also, FWIW, in stage 10 of the quest (after speaking with the NPC and accepting the quest), I have a fragment to run a check to see if the key has been found. Currently the fragment in stage 10 is: SetObjectiveCompleted(10, 1) SetObjectiveDisplayed(20, 1) Alias_MapMarker.GetRef().AddtoMap() ;check if player has obtained key, advance to next stage If Game.GetPlayer().GetItemCount(Alias_Object.GetReference()) >= 1 SetStage(20) EndIf I don't know if it has any impact or not, but by using 'Alias_Object.GetReference' is the only way I could get the fragment to compile. But by reverse-engineering the game, it looks like the item being counted should be called by, in my case, 'QuestKey'. No matter what I do it gives me an error stating that the 'QuestKey' variable is undifined. I mentioned the details on this in a separate post. Seems like maybe I'm missing something else, or need to write another script?

I sure appreciate you steering me in the right direction, Ishara. You're awesome as always. I admit my lack of scripting knowledge, but I am learning the language. You are correct; nowhere in there do I have a 'start' function. But I think I have a decent feel for what I need to do now. I will develop a new script based on what I know, and report back. Thanks again, -Chew

Thanks for your detailed reply, and for the awesome info. What I'm looking for is to set the trigger box to start the quest when the player passes through. In detail, the trigger box is placed in an exterior cell at the entrance to a house, so that in attempt to enter the house, the player discovers that it is locked and requires a key. It is then that the quest is started and the first objective (speak to the NPC) is displayed in the quest log. This is functional when loading a clean save and testing. More details on that... As for the success and failures, yes the successful attempts only occur when loading and immediately testing. The failures, though, don't add up in my mind. I've made a point to stay away from the cell where the trigger is (the trigger is in Haafingar hold near solitude, and I don't think I've left Whiterun hold). The save point in use was created before the plugin was created. Yet if I disable the plugin and proceed with the game and re-enable the plugin on a later save, the trigger will not fire and the quest cannot be started (while again going nowhere near the trigger). As for the test PC, I know the plugin is active and functional, since the people and structures are there. If I am doing something horribly wrong I would like to know what and how to fix it. Thanks again, -Chew

I have a bazaar issue I can't seem to find anything on. I've got a quest startup trigger in place and set up, but doesn't always work. Some details... There is an activator attached to the trigger box with a default script (defaultSetStageTRIGSpecificActor) to begin the startup stage of a quest. The defined properties in CK are "myQuest" (my quest, of course), "stage" (to be set), and "triggerActor" (player). The rest are left default, which default to where I want them to (disableWhenDone = true, onlyOnce = true, and prereqStageOPT = -1 (since it is the first and startup stage)). The quest itself is NOT set to be start-game enabled, and to only run once. A pretty simple quest similar to a "kill the bandit leader" quest, but rather a fetch object quest. There are 4 stages of the quest, and details are as follows: (5) startup stage (10) talk to NPC and accept quest (20) retrieve item from random location (defined by keywords) (30) return object to NPC and complete quest Stage 5 is set by the script mentioned above when entering trigger. Stage 10 is set through dialog after accepting quest from NPC. Stage 20 is set using a "defaultSetStageAliasScript" on the object's alias with the trigger being when the item is added to player's inventory (type 7). Stage 30 is set and completed at the end of dialog when returning to NPC. All appears to be solid, and when loading a clean save it is functional 100 percent of the time. But if I load the same clean save and go play a bit, the quest startup trigger stops functioning at some point. I can't seem to find any rhyme or reason as to when or why the trigger stops firing. I also have a separate test PC so that I can pack my plugins into a .zip or .7z archive and install them the same way a person would when downloading from the site. With this one, when I pack it up with all the meshes, textures, scripts, sounds, etc, the trigger does not work. Period. Any advice is very much appreciated. This is the final touch of a mod I've been working on for over a year and a half and plan to release upon completion. Thanks so much, -Chew

I did get the erroneous fragment to compile. I replaced this condition If Game.GetPlayer().GetItemCount(QuestKey) >= 1 SetStage(20) EndIf (and variations thereof) with this condition If Game.GetPlayer().GetItemCount(Alias_Object.GetReference()) >= 1 SetStage(20) EndIf and all was well. I think. However, during testing I unveiled another problem, which may be a whole different topic, unless there's an easy explanation... My trigger seems to be haywire. If I load up any of my 'clean' saves (before the plugin file was even created) and go right to the cell with the trigger, it works great and everything goes as planned. But after a short time of wandering around Tamriel, the trigger stops functioning. With or without this plugin active. For ease of testing, I disabled my plugin and did some exploring, cleared a few dungeons, etc. When I turn the plugin back on and load the later save, the trigger simply does not fire. Also, if I load the same clean save and do some things in-game, working my way to the trigger, it again does not fire when I get there. To be mores specific, I temorarily narrowed the options of location for the quest key (Alias_ObjectLocation) down to six dungeons. Then I disabled my plugin and went and cleared the remainder of the six and re-saved. Upon reactivating the plugin, the trigger doesn't fire.

Thanks again for your reply. I apologize for making your brain hurt! I have tried both ways in the condition line, and different methods of setting up the properties and property names. But I will try again, since I forget exactly what I've done when. The key is set up in the fragment script posted above, as ReferenceAlias Property Alias_Object Auto and is defined in the quest aliases tab in CK to point to the key. Again the quest is fully playable, unless the player finds the key before the quest giver NPC. Which is why I'm trying to add the condition to check player's inventory. I will tinker with it some more and post the results.

Here we go. I've created the trigger box in the area of desire and attached the script "defaultSetStageTRIGSpecificActor" with the variables defined in the Activator. In the 'scripts' tab of the 'Quest' dialog, I have the following two scripts: Scriptname ClearpineQuest01Script extends Quest key property QuestKey auto {reference to Quest object} and ;BEGIN FRAGMENT CODE - Do not edit anything between this and the end comment ;NEXT FRAGMENT INDEX 16 Scriptname QF_ClearpineQuest01_052B4AA3 Extends Quest Hidden ;BEGIN ALIAS PROPERTY QuestGiver ;ALIAS PROPERTY TYPE ReferenceAlias ReferenceAlias Property Alias_QuestGiver Auto ;END ALIAS PROPERTY ;BEGIN ALIAS PROPERTY MapMarker ;ALIAS PROPERTY TYPE ReferenceAlias ReferenceAlias Property Alias_MapMarker Auto ;END ALIAS PROPERTY ;BEGIN ALIAS PROPERTY ObjectContainer ;ALIAS PROPERTY TYPE ReferenceAlias ReferenceAlias Property Alias_ObjectContainer Auto ;END ALIAS PROPERTY ;BEGIN ALIAS PROPERTY Object ;ALIAS PROPERTY TYPE ReferenceAlias ReferenceAlias Property Alias_Object Auto ;END ALIAS PROPERTY ;BEGIN ALIAS PROPERTY ObjectLocation ;ALIAS PROPERTY TYPE LocationAlias LocationAlias Property Alias_ObjectLocation Auto ;END ALIAS PROPERTY ;BEGIN FRAGMENT Fragment_2 Function Fragment_2() ;BEGIN CODE ;key has been found, return to questgiver SetObjectiveCompleted(20, 1) SetObjectiveDisplayed(30, 1) ;END CODE EndFunction ;END FRAGMENT ;BEGIN FRAGMENT Fragment_0 Function Fragment_0() ;BEGIN AUTOCAST TYPE ClearpineQuest01Script Quest __temp = self as Quest ClearpineQuest01Script kmyQuest = __temp as ClearpineQuest01Script ;END AUTOCAST ;BEGIN CODE ;player has spoke to questgiver and is asked to retrieve key SetObjectiveCompleted(10, 1) SetObjectiveDisplayed(20, 1) Alias_MapMarker.GetRef().AddtoMap() ;END CODE EndFunction ;END FRAGMENT ;BEGIN FRAGMENT Fragment_14 Function Fragment_14() ;BEGIN CODE ;quest startup stage, player has discovered the cabin, now speak to questgiver SetObjectiveDisplayed(10, 1) ;END CODE EndFunction ;END FRAGMENT ;BEGIN FRAGMENT Fragment_4 Function Fragment_4() ;BEGIN CODE ;key has been returned and quest is complete SetObjectiveCompleted(30, 1) Stop() ;END CODE EndFunction ;END FRAGMENT ;END FRAGMENT CODE - Do not edit anything between this and the begin comment Obviously the first is the one I created to reference the key, and the second is the one created by the CK. I've double-triple-checked to be sure the properties are defined in the same aspect as the trigger script. Everything is functional and playable. I just want to add the detail of the probability that the player has found the key before locating the cabin or speaking to the quest giver (due to the nature, this would be likely). I want to add a check after the player has spoken to the quest giver NPC during stage 10 (at the same point where the map marker is placed), by using the following command: If Game.GetPlayer().GetItemCount(ClearpineCabinKey) >= 1 SetStage(20) EndIf and that's where I keep running into the same compiler error of the key being undefined: Starting 1 compile threads for 1 files... Compiling "QF_ClearpineQuest01_052B4AA3"... D:\Steam\steamapps\common\Skyrim Special Edition\Data\Source\Scripts\temp\QF_ClearpineQuest01_052B4AA3.psc(54,33): variable ClearpineCabinKey is undefined No output generated for QF_ClearpineQuest01_052B4AA3, compilation failed. Batch compile of 1 files finished. 0 succeeded, 1 failed. Failed on QF_ClearpineQuest01_052B4AA3 Remains to be where I'm stuck, no matter what I try. Thanks again for trying to help.

So, after some more reverse-engineering, I think maybe I have identified the issue this whole time, I'm just not sure how to fix it. I've got the startup script attached to a trigger I created around a specific area. When the player enters the area, the quest begins and is properly playable through the stages. So I know the quest is functional. However, all the vanilla quests I have looked at have the script attached to the quest. To clarify, in the object window in CK I go to "World Objects -> Activator -> (MyQuestStartupTrigger)" and open the edit dialog box to access the script and its properties. But when I look at some of the 'factory' quests, the only place I can see where they have the script is in by opening the actual quest dialog (i.e. "Quest -> MISC -> MS01 -> Scripts Tab" (The Forsworn Conspiracy)). Based on that discovery, I wonder: do I have the script in the wrong place? If so, do I simply add it to the quest and define its properties there, or do I link them somehow? Pardon my ignorance, that's why I'm here for help. :) Thanks, Chew

Another question: I was doing some more research, and one of the forums I was looking in mentioned that the object to be referenced back to (in my case, "questkey") needs to be a placed object in game, and not just created in the object window (so that CK will recognize a usage count of >0). Is this true, even though the object is an alias? FWIW, I've also tried using the alias in the 'GetItemCount' fragment: If Game.GetPlayer().GetItemCount(Alias_Object) >= 1 SetStage(20) EndIf ...and the compiler returns a handful of errors, rather than just the 'property undefined' message.

Thanks a bunch for your help and feedback. Actually I lied, the script header has 'extends ObjectReference'. I just went back and double-checked my work; recompiled the startup script (successfully), re-checked the appropriate properties, and tried again, with and without parentheses. I still get the same error when trying to compile the fragment. I feel like there's got to be something I'm missing or unaware of. I assume the property (key property questkey auto) needs to be in the startup script, and not the fragment script? By now I have looked at more forums, tutorials, and YouTube videos than I can count, including the link you posted above. Thanks again, Chew

Yes, I did that, exactly as you have it written. When I went to add the properties in the script in CK, it was already there (?). I wonder though, my script header is "scriptname myquestscript extends quest". Again I am no expert, but shouldn't there be an "ObjectReference" in there somewhere? If so, how do I accommodate for both?

Still at it... I feel like I'm making progress. I restructured my quest to have a trigger to initiate the quest, rather than being start-game enabled. I've got a script attached to the trigger, and is functioning (almost) as desired. The trouble I'm still having (refer to original post) is in the event that the player finds the key before the quest begins. I've put a reference to the key in the startup script, but when I try to enter a condition to run a check to see if the player has obtained said key, as follows: If Game.GetPlayer().GetItemCount(QuestKey) >= 1 SetStage(20) EndIf ...The compiler complains at me stating that "variable 'QuestKey' is undefined". Although I've seen this in use by other quests in the vanilla game. The alternative solution of keeping the key disabled until starting the quest is also not working for me. Again I am no master of Papyrus. In fact, the 30 years of HTML are probably interfering with my ability to learn. Still in appreciation of any assistance.

Update. Still seeking advice. I've got the quest going and able to be played and completed. However, there's still one thing I can't overcome: If the player has already found the key before speaking to the quest giver NPC, it skips the beginning dialogue that initiates the quest and is broken at that point. The dialogue option to complete the quest is available, but does not complete the quest. What I'm after now is one of two things: 1. Disable the key until the NPC has been spoken to and the quest is accepted; or 2. Allow the quest to play out even with the key already obtained. I've tried several attempts at both options and can't get either one to initiate properly. For option 1, I set the alias ("Object") to "initially disabled" and put a script on stage 10 to enable it. But going in-game, it can still be found before encountering the quest giver NPC. For option 2, I've tried a number of different script fragments in a number of different places, but to no avail. I have now spent many hours trying to reverse-engineer some of the game's quests and still can't achieve proper results. (Instability of the CK is not any help!) I feel like either way should be pretty easy to accomplish. If someone can set me straight, I would be grateful! Thanks, Chew

Looking for a little assistance with quest stages and dialogue to advance the question stages. Let me start by mentioning that I have used the creation kit for years and have moderate experience with dialogue, but never actually set up a quest until now. Yes, I have read and watched tutorials etc. A brief description of the quest stages in progress, as listed by stage: (10) set to "start game enabled"; talk to NPC to receive quest to find key at [random location]. (20) key has been found, now return to NPC (30) returned to NPC to complete quest. From testing, stage 10 works fine. I can talk to NPC to receive quest (or tell him no). Log entry is created and map is updated with the objective's random location. Then things are broken from there. I can't get the quest to advance past stage 20 with the next dialogue topic. I have the dialogue set up with scripts to advance the quest to the final stage, but when I change the conditions to display the player response only after finding the key (set up with "GetStage -> MyQuest -> == 20"), that makes none of the dialogue appear for the entire quest. Now the only way I can get the quest to begin is if I remove the quest stage condition. Then comes the next issue: creation kit crashes the instant I try to look at the dialogue view. I can look at all the dialogue in the player dialogue tab, but crashes every time I try to open the dialogue view. However I can still open any dialogue views from any other quest with no problem. I know the creation kit is kinda wonky, but it seems there's something wrong with my quest. Any advice would be appreciated! I can post screen shots if that's helpful. Thanks, Chew

I have answered my own question. Apparently creating an enchanting recipe is not necessary and results in the above issue.