Alternate Starts (and my Mod-in-Planning)

[Morrovvind]

Hey everybody!

 

I've been looking at all the alternate start mods, and they look great, especially the two most popular ones: Alternate Start Live Another Life by Arthmoor and Random Alternate Start by Cyclonix. They both greatly reduce the amount of time needed to start a new game, which seems like a common want/need from the Skyrim community that I've seen in the comments section.

 

However, in my own personal opinion, both of these handle starting the game very differently (let me add to this by saying that I don't have my gaming PC yet and this is all based on the descriptions of the mods). Live Another Life seems to spawn the player in a jail cell with choice of where to start after that, and Random Alternate Start seems to spawn the character somewhere randomly after character creation. There's no inherent problem with either of these, but I feel like there could be MORE alternate start mods to be made that could address some personal issues that I may or may not have in common with others: namely, that I do not want to spawn in a jail cell as it seems to assume my character is at least a little bit bad, AND that I might want BOTH a choice of where to start and a choice of a random location.

 

Which leads me to my next questions: Is there any more need from the community for different Alternate Start mods? and What would you want from an Alternate Start mod if you wanted something new/different?

 

This whole train of thought leads me to my brand shiny new Mod that I have in the planning stages (no gaming PC yet, but this is not a request it's my own mod I'm going to make): Before Helgen! Before Helgen is an Alternate Start/Quick Start mod that takes the player one step back from the Helgen cart ride intro sequence to keep the player fully immersed in the Skyrim timeline and story. This would be in a new confined, separate outdoor cell that would contain 3 paths: a path on a well traveled road that you could choose to go to any of the main cities, a forested path that leads to a random location in the wilderness, and a path that leads to the Stormcloak camp that gets ambushed and leads into the original cart ride intro sequence.

 

What the previous description does is as follows:

1. Keeps the player immersed in the Skyrim timeline and story without dumping them somewhere unrelated

2. Allows the player the choice to start quickly OR to choose original start (I believe LAL does this too)

3. Allows the player to choose where to start OR to start in a random location

4. Makes as little assumptions about the player as possible (no jail cell start or being a cannibal)

 

Now, there would be a few issues I'd have to get settled to fully immerse the player such as removing any and all dialogue referencing the player's presence at Helgen whether they were there or not (really, who would notice a lowly captive when a HUGE DRAGON is attacking and chaos ensues?). I'd also like to include compatibility with other mods such as Frostfall and Realistic Needs mods by including things such as a wood chopping block with a woodcutting axe, an abandoned cart with bags of produce, a dead deer or sabrecat for meat and furs, a pond for water, some dead bandits, with various types of beginner gear, killed by the Stormcloaks before they set up camp down the road. All this would not feel out of place in an outdoor cell (ideally small and cut off from the rest of the world to load more easily).

 

So what does my mod sound like so far? I'm aware there's a lot more to the mod-making process than just my simple plan, but once I get my gaming PC I'm ready to train and practice to do it right. I think my mod concept is different enough from Alternate Start: Live Another Life and Random Alternate Start to merit its creation and submission to the Nexus (when I finally get my gaming PC and get the mod made haha). I'm just wondering if there's anything I'm overlooking or is there something else I could add or change? I'm trying to go for something Lore Friendly, Quick, and Unassuming.

 

Thanks for any constructive criticism, ideas, or discussion you provide.

[ArtMurder]

I would love it if the alternate start mod itself would let you go through the helgen bit somehow. The problem with this is, if you actually visit helgen before this scene, it would still be destroyed.. Though helgen is undestroyed at the begging of this, so I am sure there is a work around.

 

But other then that Alternate Start does about everything. It doesn't just "plop" you somewhere. You do start in a non-existent cell, but it's really more of a pre-game dream state, that lets you pick what your character looks like and what you want their life to be before ever entering the game. (which is quite immersive, as it also gives you time to set up all your mods before diving into the game) Wherever it plops you is always handy, for example, if you pick "camping in the woods" it gives a you a tent, chopping block + ax, a fire, and a bag of decent low level goodies, including food, and it's not that far from a stream for water.

[Pevey]

Live Another Life puts you in a small cell to start, but it's not really a jail cell. It's just sort of a character generation cell where you create your character and choose your start.

[calfurius]

What LP1 and Artmurder said is true, but i would be open to having a new alternate start mod. Sometimes live another life can be somewhat repetitive if you make a lot of new characters (which I do)

[Morrovvind]

Live Another Life puts you in a small cell to start, but it's not really a jail cell. It's just sort of a character generation cell where you create your character and choose your start.

 

Oh, like I said I haven't built my gaming PC yet so I haven't tried it out, I've only seen a video review where the quest mentions "being left in this cell to rot" or something of that nature, and having written a note about having to eat the flesh from the skeleton nearby to survive. Then the Mara statue appears to save you.

 

I want to make a character generation cell that doesn't remove my character from the story. The original start did this extremely well, although it was very time consuming to actually create a new character, and it sort of forced the main quest upon you immediately.

 

What if you "rewind" the story from the beginning of the game? All I know is being loaded into a wagon with hands bound with a bunch of Stormcloaks. Taking it one step back, your character must have been near or in a Stormcloak encampment which is ambushed by an Imperial Legion party, where you get knocked unconscious and your hands are bound. Taking it another step back, your character hasn't even gone near the Stormcloak camp yet and is simply traveling or crossing the border into Skyrim, which is where my new outdoor cell comes into play. Instead of having character creation start after the cart ride, it makes a new space that happened before the cart ride and before the ambushed Stormcloak camp.

 

There would definitely be issues I'd have to sort out, such as how to change the beginning of the main quest in such a way that whether you choose the original start or not, there would be an immersive way to continue on about the main quest. Then there's the issue of sometimes wanting to choose where to start, and sometimes being spontaneous and wanting to be plopped somewhere random; I definitely would like both options.

[Pevey]

It's not a bad idea, but it's quite ambitious for a first mod. That said, I say go for it.

[nonoodles]

You haven't yet got your gaming pc and you want to make an alternate start mod? I like your guts. : D

 

Those are both great mods that practically anyone would have tried by now. I'll tell you briefly what I liked about them and what I felt were (slight) drawbacks.

 

Alternate Start - Live Another Life:

 

Pros -Provides you with a solid character background for role-playing that makes it easier to connect with what you're going to be. For e.g., choose to start off as a Vigilant and you'll find yourself staying in character for the rest of the game.

 

Cons - The above is also its slight weakness, in a manner of speaking, as it does make you feel rather restricted. I hate maces and yet found myself having to constantly swing one because I was a Vigilant and Vigilants use maces etc etc.

 

Random Alternate Start:

 

Pros - As random as it promises and with Character Creation Overhaul, it really does bring back a sense of class, race ability and so on. Also, survival.

 

Cons - the opposite of LAL, it doesn't 'ground' you enough in your character, so even if you start off as an archery-specialising Agent, you might find yourself destructo-magicking all over the place by level 5.

 

Personally, rather than a rewind, I'd love more starts like LAL's proerty owner. Start as a blacksmith apprentice, meadery owner etc. But it would entail a lot of scripting, the very thought of which gives me a Nirn-size headache. : ) Good luck, in any case.