Need more salt?

[gigantibyte]

So I'm just trying to come up with an idea for my first skyrim mod, based on observations made while playing the game and what kind of project I think I can handle. Imo, there is not enough salt in the game. It can be used in alchemy and almost every cooking recipe calls for it. I buy up all I can get from vendors, search every barrel, and even steal it when possible. Still, I never have enough salt. To fix this situation, I propose adding a salt mine (unless I missed one that already exists) with an accompanying simple quest: Salt mine owner is out of business because monsters have taken up residence in the mine, and you are tasked with cleaning it out. Reward: Vendor who specializes in salt, and possibly more salt available from other vendors.

 

Perhaps you can help me decide:

 

- what kind of monsters/beasts would like a salt mine?

- how much salt the vendor should have available every week?

- where the salt mine should be located (for the least likely conflicts with other mods)?

 

I'd also like to add "salt rocks" in the mine, that the player can use his pickaxe on to get the salt himself, so I'll definitely need someone who can help with texturing.

[Roltak]

To the monster question I would say Spiders, since salt mines are dry most of the time and I can imagine them liking dry places. Or perhaps trolls, they always reminded me of apes and there at least some apes really love salt crystals.

Another possibility would be kajiit bandits that try to control the salt market in Skyrim by controlling the different salt mines(or the one salt mine).

 

Another possiblity would be some story about salt(and other stuff) deliveries getting robbed all the time so you get sent into several small dungeons to whipe out the bandits, perhaps hire some guards etc. for a share of the profit (100 gold per 48 hours or something small like that) and a higher spawn rate of salt at merchants.

 

The place is tricky since no mods like that are available right now but the general rule of thumbs would be, stay away from cities and other landmarks. Just do it like I normaly do when I do stuff like that, randomely pick some cell out of the Tamriel worldspace and search around till you find some hill, mountain or something where you can place it and try to make as few changed to the worldspace as you possibly can.

 

But for something small like your idea I wouldn't think so much about compatiblity .. the world is gigantic so the change of you conflicting with another mod is pretty small as long as you don't build it right next to a popular town.

Edited December 14, 2011 by Roltak

[PaladinRider]

I think a salt mine is a good idea. I also think someone should make a stone ore texture and have stone mines.

[SkjoldBjorn]

That is one of the best and mod ideas i've heard of! Great idea, although im not the best alchemist, i like to cook food and you are totally right, salt is something we need more of! Edited December 14, 2011 by Sk8on

[gigantibyte]

The bandit angle opens up all kinds of possibilities. :thumbsup:

 

Great! Now where do I download the CK? (lol)

[sputnik421]

I would have thought that a seawater salt evaporation plant could be a better salt producer than a mine. Underground salt deposits are produced when a sea gets uplifted by plate tectonics. The water is then removed by evaporation and the salts crystallize out, just seams easier to just evaporate sea water directly. Good luck with the mod.

[gigantibyte]

I would have thought that a seawater salt evaporation plant could be a better salt producer than a mine. Underground salt deposits are produced when a sea gets uplifted by plate tectonics. The water is then removed by evaporation and the salts crystallize out, just seams easier to just evaporate sea water directly. Good luck with the mod.

 

Does evaporating sea water for salt work in arctic conditions? Guess it could be boiled, but that would not be easier or as cost effective as just digging up readily available salt. Nor would it make much sense to transport the sea water south without an aqueduct system. And a million years ago, Skyrim could have been a tropical zone and under the sea, unless there's some creation lore that make that impossible.

 

But then again, fighting though an evaporation plant may be more unique. Would need all kinds of new models though.

[Sunnie]

I would have thought that a seawater salt evaporation plant could be a better salt producer than a mine. Underground salt deposits are produced when a sea gets uplifted by plate tectonics. The water is then removed by evaporation and the salts crystallize out, just seams easier to just evaporate sea water directly. Good luck with the mod.

 

Does evaporating sea water for salt work in arctic conditions? Guess it could be boiled, but that would not be easier or as cost effective as just digging up readily available salt. Nor would it make much sense to transport the sea water south without an aqueduct system. And a million years ago, Skyrim could have been a tropical zone and under the sea, unless there's some creation lore that make that impossible.

 

But then again, fighting though an evaporation plant may be more unique. Would need all kinds of new models though.

 

Not really, make it a Dwemer evaporation plant. You get salt and a reason why you would have to fight through it (falmer/bandits/cultists/rogue mages). Problem solved!

Edited December 15, 2011 by Sunnie

[sputnik421]

Does evaporating sea water for salt work in arctic conditions? Guess it could be boiled, but that would not be easier or as cost effective as just digging up readily available salt. Nor would it make much sense to transport the sea water south without an aqueduct system. And a million years ago, Skyrim could have been a tropical zone and under the sea, unless there's some creation lore that make that impossible.

 

But then again, fighting though an evaporation plant may be more unique. Would need all kinds of new models though.

 

Not really, make it a Dwemer evaporation plant. You get salt and a reason why you would have to fight through it (falmer/bandits/cultists/rogue mages). Problem solved!

 

I like the Dwemer evaporation plant as you would then be able to have a small world space footprint and a complex underground maze to fight in. Most of the machinery would be able to be used from the parts in the game, those that are needed could be remodelled from stuff pulled out of the game. So less hassle for modellers like me to sort out. I'm not sure I have the time to do any modeling at present but will see how it goes my driving jobs normally die at the start of the year.

[Sunnie]

You should be able to do a Dwemer plant with the assets already available, not sure why you would need new models for anything. Theres a lot of Dwemer machinery assets in the data.