Questions about updating my mods

[VIitS]

I actually have two questions here:

For my looks menu (character customization) mod, I finally got around to adding the rest of the mods I had permission to include (in particular, the roughly 150 facepaints by TarienSoul, which first had to be resized). Before, it had around 20-30 new options, plus a few hair and skin colors, so this is a significant increase in scope (I also made sure to manually change the index id's so it would be compatible with other such mods for users of LooksMenu). I probably wouldn't have released it when I did if not for the fact that I had figured out how to add them using FO4Edit (before release of the CK), and I kind of wanted to brag about it. Currently, I have around 1000 downloads for it. My first question is:

1) Should I just release it as an update, or should I release it under a new mod id for better exposure?

 

For my Repaired Red Rocket mod, I have multiple options available. Currently, I have the options available as seperate downloads (there are 4 effected nifs and 8 total options, so a combined download would be around 20mb vs 2mb). The only real bug I ever get reported is the missing texture bug (not sure of the source of the problem, as I made sure to properly format the file paths for the textures and material files), although it works fine for most people. My question here is:

2) Should I bother packing them all together in a fomod, ba2-packed option, or would it likely be more work than it's worth?

 

And something I just thought about:

Would anyone who has spent the time figuring out how to use Bethesda's 3ds max plugin mind creating a new collision mesh for my tweaked Red Rocket mesh? Failing that, is there any negative impact in-game from having a mesh with a few dozen collision meshes? The individual parts that were used to create the building mesh are complete, with collision, so I could piece it together that way, but (in addition to being a pain in the ass to manage) it would result in my mesh having probably 2-3 dozen collision meshes.

[Ethreon]

Regarding the collisions - while not detrimental, could possibly be an issue for PCs already struggling to run the game. I will have a collision for it soon enough and I can share it with you.

 

The rest are up to you.

[EmissaryOfWind]

Regarding the first mod you've mentioned, are you certain changing the editor IDs is enough to make them compatible? I'm asking because I'm working with AGCP on his Customization Compendium and I only partially understand how race conflicts work. I do know they're different from, say, a conflict on a consumable, but if someone can enlighten me it would be cool.

[VIitS]

It's only enough if you use Looks menu. There is a comment in expired's mod where he said he made it so multiple char custimization mods could work together as long as they had unique identifiers (not editor ids, these are within the race record, and are used by the game so it knows what to put on what character/npc).

 

Without Looksmenu, they will still most definitely conflict. It's why I wish Bethesda did tint groups (the name they give for facial custimizations like facepaints, tattoos, scars, etc...) the same way they did hair styles or eyes. It's also why I'm thinking about making a compatibility patch with the one you mention (no textures included, obviously, so they would still need that mod), so the weird people who don't like F4SE can still use both. With the way .ba2 files work, console users would still be s*** out of luck, and that's if I was even able to get additional permission from the mod authors whose work I am compiling so I could upload it on bethesda.net for consoles. Seriously, making it so a mod can only use a .ba2 if it has the right name is the worst possible thing they could have done for mod compatibility.

 

edit: Thanks Ethreon, you are awesome. And I know it's up to me, I was mainly looking for opinions. Right now I am thinking I'll probably release it as a new mod, with a message on the old so people who used the old version know about the new. Doubt I'll pack the options together into a fomod, but I might make a .ba2 verison of the windowed version, just to see if it will fix the missing texture issue a few people are still getting.

[EmissaryOfWind]

I wish Bethesda did tint groups (the name they give for facial custimizations like facepaints, tattoos, scars, etc...) the same way they did hair styles or eyes.

 

Don't we all :rolleyes:

[VIitS]

Regarding the first mod you've mentioned, are you certain changing the editor IDs is enough to make them compatible? I'm asking because I'm working with AGCP on his Customization Compendium and I only partially understand how race conflicts work. I do know they're different from, say, a conflict on a consumable, but if someone can enlighten me it would be cool.

Update on this topic: looks like I misunderstood expired. You must use different identifiers for them to be able to be compatible, but more is required (rereading his post on the subject, I'm guessing a .json file I will have to make). I imagine he will make a guide/tool for it in the future, and the lack of such is why it isn't mentioned anywhere outside that comment (if you are curious, it's on the main comments page now since I just asked for clarification on what all is required). Giving them unique identifiers now is still a good idea, since it will mean you won't have to do it in the future when it is fully implemented. Annoyingly, the only way I know of to set it is in xEdit.

 

If you are curious, my workflow for adding all 154 TarienSoul facepaints was:

 

 

1) Create new category in the CK

2) Create a single new entry in the CK, setting everything but the color options. Save and close CK

3) Open in FO4Edit, scroll to top of Tint Groups sub-record.

3) Right click -> Add, as many times as there are new records I am adding

4) Drag and drop the entry "template" to all the empty ones I just added

5) Change the Name, file path*, and identifier (last two hex pairs of the TETI field, IIRC). Save and close xEdit

6) Open it back up in the CK. Copy the new group to the other sex. Save and close the CK.

7) Open in FO4Edit, and change the TETI values for all the new options (I think they can be the same as long as it is the same texture, but I did different just to be safe). Save and close xEdit.

:cool: Repeat 2-7 for the second group (because 154 options in one category is just excessive)

9) Select all new options at once (that require color options, which was all in this case). Add all the color options you want.**

10) Set None to default option, with a value of 0. Select all the color options at once, and set value to 1.

 

Pretty sure doing it that way saved me a boatload of time. Even if you aren't adding tons at once, I'd recommend waiting to add any color options until after you change the identifier, or you'll be doing a lot of scrolling.

 

On a side note, I was able to quickly add the entries from AGCP's mod to mine by marking it as an esm, changing the formid for the race record, then copying the groups into the human race record in mine, so I'll probably add a patch as a downloadable option on mine. For the ones added to vanilla categories, I just do the same, then select all the new ones and move them to a new group, then delete the duplicate entries. Have to delete the duplicate category in xEdit though, since trying to delete a category (even an empty one) causes the CK to crash.

 

 

*Setting the filepath might be quicker in the ck if you don't have the same name structure as the TS textures (just had to increment a number in the file name).

**Considering how much else sucks with the CK's race editor, I'm somewhat surprised you can add color options in batches like that.

 

Edit: The post where he talks about making two race-editing mods compatible using LooksMenu is here.