LE Replacement Animations are breaking functionality (bow not firing, bow doesn't unequip)

[Fosellar]

I am currently attempting to create an archery animation replacement (no new idles) mod for Skyrim. Let's call it, "Archery Aim and Aesthetics" The goal is to provide bow animations that function better alongside "Immersive First Person". It will also correct for the bow shaking that occurs while your character is moving, as that effects the trajectory of the arrow (arrow is released from where it connects to the players animation).

I have already gone through the effort of acquiring the half dozen programs needed for animation in Skyrim (including Havok Content Tools, which may or may not be hosted on an obscure Chinese file hosting site) and have produced a test animation to make sure I'm animating correctly. My test animation (character jumping in place) works in game perfectly, but only when it replaces animations with no functions. By functions I mean firing the bow, equipping the bow, etc. When I replace the bow release animation "bow_release.hkx" the character no longer fires an arrow in game when when should (the bow and arrow are still oddly stuck the the players hands though...). Why is this? Are those functions controlled by the animation somehow?

My question is this:
1) How can I successfully replace an animation in Skyrim that has a function (arrow firing, un-equip bow, etc) without breaking its functionality? I know it's possible, as there are one or two bow animation mods that have done this. Could this possibly have to do with behavior files?
2) Is it possible to edit the timing of those actions (when the arrow fires/bow sounds play), and if so, how? If this second question is not possible, or too difficult, I can always work around the existing timing of the actions.


I greatly appreciate modders who take the time to pass on their knowledge and experience to those who are still learning. Without you, Skyrim would not be what it is today. Thank you in advance!