How the heck do you keep NPC followers alive??

[Gomezy3k]

"Unfortunately I have tried several times to download the 7-zip file archiver and keep getting an error message:

 

"The installer you are trying to use is corrupted or incomplete. This could be the result of a damaged disk, a failed downlaod or a virus.

 

 

You may want to contact the author of this installer to obtain a new copy.

 

It may be possible to skip this check using the /NCRC command line switch (NOT RECOMMENDED).

 

I have tried several times to download it and get the same error every time. I am hesitant to end up with a screwed up program on my computer... Already have too many of them now LOL"

 

Try downloading 7-zip from Sourceforge instead. I suppose it is possible that the version you are downloading is corrupt in some way (though it seems unlikely). If the Sourceforge download doesn't work either, then you might have a computer problem.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/sevenzip/

 

EDIT: I forgot to ask: are you using Vista or XP?

 

Unfortunately Vista :wallbash: Words do not exist to express how much I loathe that operating system. I loved XP which was on my old computer that died.... sigh...

 

Downloaded it from Source Forge... (think I got the right one...that site seems to be for computer geeks who know what they are doing)... LOL Got the same stupid error so it has to be my computer sigh...

 

Thanks for the info

[roquefort]

Yeah Vista and Oblivion are a combination not made in heaven.

 

User (and moderator) bben46 produced some advice about running Oblivion in Vista. I couldn't find the original thread, though I found it on Google, so I copied & pasted it:

 

Vista has some special considerations when you want to play with mods. After you get around them once, it's no different than XP.

 

 

Vista Problems

 

You MUST be signed on as an Administrator to do any of this.

 

If you have downloaded and installed a mod, and the mod is appearing in your Data Files List, but not in your game And you are running Vista, you have run into a security feature of Vista called User Account Control. Or more simply, UAC.

 

Quoted from the Oblivion Mods FAQ WIKI

 

Alternate Install Directory

If you install your Elder Scrolls game into any directory OTHER than the default, none of these problems occur. Thus, you can "Program Files" root directory (such as "C:\Games").

 

Run as Admin

Another way to fix it is to right-click the ".exe" file and click properties, then check "Run as administrator". Then click OK. Do this for both the "oblivion.exe" and TESConstructionSet.exe", and any programs you are using that copies files to protected directories (such as WinRAR, 7z, or WinZip).

 

Disable UAC

Windows Vista users who are fairly confident in the security of their computers might also consider disabling UAC altogether. This will allow all programs writing privileges to the Program Files directory. Although this obviously creates a state of decreased security for your PC, it is a very helpful one-size-fits-all solution to a number of compatibility issues with the Vista OS.

 

Look here for instructions on how to turn UAC off. http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vis...-windows-vista/

 

Of these, solution #1 is STRONGLY PREFERRED. Solutions 2 and 3 (running as admin and disabling UAC) remove important safety features of the OS. In contrast, installing Oblivion elsewhere resolves the problems with Oblivion without reducing your overall security.

Wiki entry on installing Oblivion in Vista: http://cs.elderscrolls.com/constwiki/index.php/Windows_Vista

 

Note that unless you opt to reinstall the game in a different location (option 1) when you start trying to make your own mods using the construction set, you will run into these problems again.

 

You might find some of that helpful.

[Oruboris]

If you just install Oblivion to c:\games\oblivion, it will run outside of the user account controls and can be modded etc. just as if you were running XP.

[wolfdogelite]

7z files don't need winrar, or winzip or 7 zip, they are prepared for obmm already, just go into the obmm, click the create button on the bottom right, it will open a new window and and in the middle it will have three buttons: load files, load folder and load archive, click load archive, then navigate to where you downloaded the file, load it up, and then it will have a place to name the mod at the top left, put its name there, you don't really need the description or author if you know where you got the mod, then click the create omod button and it will start up. once it finishes double click the mod with the green square next to it on the right, it will ask you if you want to activate, yes, then start the game, no need to check data files, already done.

 

 

 

EDIT: btw, i'm using vista and windows 7, (not too many problems with 7, none with vista). if you need help with the run as administrator stuff let me know, i could walk you through it.

[David Brasher]

The AI for companions (and most NPCs) is really sad. Companions never make tactical withdrawals. They either attack like a berzerker, or flee like a lady in a horror movie until they get stuck in a corner and slaughtered. A PC on the other hand, attacks when strong, and retreats when weak. He or she will hit and run, and go hide to heal and regroup. A PC seldom gets stuck in a corner and slaughtered when fleeing. A PC knows how to use ranged attacks for long distance sniping and how to maintain a distance to use ranged attacks repeatedly. A PC also does not cast random spells on his or her spell list. (It is dumb to cast invisibility, and then to immediately perform an action which ends it.)

 

So how do we make companions survive? I think they have to have about twice as many health points as you currently do. They need to be self-healing. They need to be deadly in battle and able to kill off the enemies before they take too much damage. It is nice if you can make them wait, when you encounter a situation where you are sure they will die if they enter the battle.

[jimuno]

If you Have Oblivion Mod Manager OBMM installed, you can install the mod without the 7zip. Please note that you must get by the security feature mentioned earlier in thread, I have no comment on it as I have never ran Vista. Using this method without an Un-Archive tool does not allow you to read the readme file before installing.

 

1. Download the mod .rar, 7z, or other archived file

2. Of course you saved it, so remember where

3. Open OBMM

4. Select the Create Tab

5. Once the create box opens, Select the Add Archive.

6. A file selection box will open, Navigate it to the folder you saved the file into, then select the archived file

7. The Create Box will read the Archive and then display the .esp if any in the window (this is default), if you want to view data files, there is a click circle for this.

8. Once the box has loaded the archive, you can now fill in the fields. Give it a name, (I use the one from the esp file or the name of the mod), fill in the version, Author etc, if you wish. Also you can add notes if you desire.

 

IMPORTANT: Some Mods include copies of other mods esp or esm files, DELETE THEM BEFORE CREATING THE NEW OMOD. If you do not, when you activate the new mod, it will overwrite the existing .esp or .esm file. This is generally a very bad thing as the version included with the mod you are adding may not be the same version as the original mod.

 

9. Select the Create OMOD button, It will now create the OMOD. You do not need to create a script, If the mod was archived in standard formats, it will read them. If you did not Give an Author, it will give a message telling you that you did not, just click the yes to continue creating, It will also do this for the description if you did not fill it in. Again, just click Yes.

10. A processing Box will display showing progress, when it closes, you will get a message box OMOD Created Succesfully (or something similar) with an OK button, click the OK

11. Your Box showing OMODs will now show the OMOD you just created, Activate it and it will place the .esp and/or .esm file in the Data folder, update meshes, textures, sounds folders, it will add any BSA or other files to the Data folder.

12. Close OBMM, If you launched it from the OBSE Launcher, activate your new .esp or .esm files, Start Oblivion by preferred method, Mod should be installed and working.

 

Notes:

The Mod does not have to be "OMOD Ready" to do this.

 

This does not work if the data in the archive was packaged in non standard format. Standard format places the .esp, .esm, and readme files in the base or DATA directories of the archive. If they are in another folder, You will need the 7zip or similar un-archive tool to open, but you can still make it an OMOD by using the Add Files and Add Folders buttons in the Create OMOD box.

 

You can change the Default save path for where the OMODs are saved. Default is somewhere in MyDocuments, I created a folder in the OBMM folder in oblivion and store them there, It is up to you, but changing the save directory like I have and moving all OMOD files to it makes the available to all users on multi user systems.

 

Once the OMOD is created, You do not need to keep the original archived file that you downloaded, the data is now in the OMOD file.

 

I do not recommend putting more than one archive per created OMOD, I have tried combining Patches with the original archive and gotten very weird and conflicting results, My experience shows it is better to create an OMOD for each, then apply them in the proper order.

 

I use this method exclusively to install mods (unless they come as OMODS). It keeps them very well organized and makes un-install easier. While I have found a few mod archives that were packaged in non standard formats, I have, to my knowledge, never had it misplace a file.

 

Hope this Helps