NPCs in dungeons not moving, arrows go through them

[jlackey]

Before I start uninstalling mods one at a time to figure out what's causing this, I thought I'd post and see if any old Oblivion vet can help.

 

The symptoms: I play a stealthy archer, so in the dungeons/forts/etc. I see an NPC and shoot and kill them from a distance. However, recently, I have run into a situation in which I can see an NPC from a distance, and shoot them, and the arrow goes right through them as if they weren't there. I can sneak up quite close, with the same problem. They are just standing still, as if the NPC hasn't been "activated" by the game. But once I get close enough, sometimes very close, and the start moving or talking, I can then shoot them. Again, it's as if they are waiting to be activated by the game.

 

I don't play with a lot of mods, compared to many. I suspect it may be Thieves Arsenal causing this but haven't had a chance yet to test it ( I suppose I need to get to a point in a dungeon where this is happening, save, disable the mod, then restore, but I don't know if that would actually work.)

 

Anyone else ever see this behavior and can give a tip where to look?

 

Thanks

[Vagrant0]

It could be due to several things. Most likely it is something related to processing (too many script-heavy mods, too many things running in the background, unusual game settings). But it could be from any number of things, including game setting changes, what mods you're using, what changes you've made to your ini, what your system specs are.

How close roughly do you need to be before that NPC get working? Have you tried using a target spell to see if the story is the same? What mods do you have currently running?

[jlackey]

It could be due to several things. Most likely it is something related to processing (too many script-heavy mods, too many things running in the background, unusual game settings). But it could be from any number of things, including game setting changes, what mods you're using, what changes you've made to your ini, what your system specs are.

How close roughly do you need to be before that NPC get working? Have you tried using a target spell to see if the story is the same? What mods do you have currently running?

 

Yeah, target spells also do not work. It's as if the NPC is a placeholder figure until it somehow gets activated by me getting close enough. NPCs that are already moving or active behave as normally.

 

How close - pretty close, unless I go out of sneak mode.

 

Mods - Francescos, mainly for leveling, but a few of the other tweaks too. Always have run it in the past, no problem. Natural weather, also always run it, never before a problem. Other mods are more things like better books, just some graphic tweaks, no psychic guards, etc. And all the Bethesda DLC.

 

The only things I'm testing out new now is Sonia II, never tried a companion mod before and wanted to see how that works, and Thieves Arsenal.

[Vagrant0]

Try disabling thieves arsenal. Although it is based around stealthy characters, it might have some scripting on NPCs which is causing a conflict. It might also be forcing actors beyond a certain distance to go into a low processing mode. If not that, it has to be something ini or setting related. Your best bet is to try disabling one thing at a time to see if there is any change. When you cast target spells, like fire, does the bolt impact/explode on any of the walls or anything? Or is this purely an NPC issue. Your arrows should also be sticking into wood and the like... After you've pinned down the rough distance, try shooting at a wood door or something moving into, and out of that distance.

[SubGum]

It's been well over a year since this thread was started, but was a solution ever found? I'm running into the same problem now. I think it has to do with the companions mods "Red Sonia" and "Rhianna II." I was hoping some could shed some light on the matter.

[Vagrant0]

The answer is the same, it all boils down to processing. Oldblivion might make some changes which decreases the amount of background processing so that older computers can run the game. Some of these changes may affect the distance before NPCs react to anything. Arrows are particularly tricky in that if the arrow moves faster than the game can register, it can often ignore NPCs, walls, or other objects. The changes Oldblivion makes may conflict with some of the more script heavy mods which were not designed for use with Oldblivion, or the features of those mods may not be affected by the handling of Oldblivion, so may have much higher system requirements for their use.

 

The bottom line is this; Oldblivion was never meant to be a long term solution for people who have older computers. It was merely meant as a way for people with older computers to play the game, possibly using "some" other mods. As most mods were not made by Oldblivion users, and were likely only tested on their own systems, many newer mods will undoubtedly cause problems due to trying to use them on a lower end system. As is almost always the case, once you start noticing that your computer can no longer handle the load of what you are trying to do, it's usually a good idea to start considering a new system.

[SubGum]

Interesting. I'm actually not even sure what Oldblivion is. I don't use it, that's for sure. I have a fairly nice machine for Oblivion.

 

Here are my specs:

CPU: Core 2 Duo P8400 @ 2.26ghz

GPU: nVidia GeForce 9800M GTS

RAM: 4gig DDR3

HD: 200gig 7200rpm

 

By testing a bit, I discovered that this problem only happened with Rhianna II and/or Red Sonia Compaion mods enabled.

Is there any way to tell Oblivion to increase the allowed processing?

[Vagrant0]

Interesting. I'm actually not even sure what Oldblivion is. I don't use it, that's for sure. I have a fairly nice machine for Oblivion.

 

Here are my specs:

CPU: Core 2 Duo P8400 @ 2.26ghz

GPU: nVidia GeForce 9800M GTS

RAM: 4gig DDR3

HD: 200gig 7200rpm

 

By testing a bit, I discovered that this problem only happened with Rhianna II and/or Red Sonia Compaion mods enabled.

Is there any way to tell Oblivion to increase the allowed processing?

Nope, pretty much all you can do it try and reduce the number of background processes, and try to track down the conditions which are causing your slow down. Companion mods, especially those with nice interactivity tend to be one of the more process hogging kinds of mods. It could simply be a case of being too much at once, or some conflict which is preventing scripts from finishing right.

[SubGum]

Darn. That's too bad. I wouldn't even know where to begin there, so I'll just not do any stealthy stuff with companions around. Thanks for the replies.