LE Thievery overhaul?

[Swansonj]

Hello guys,

 

I was just wondering if anyone would care taking up the thievery overhaul mod? As it seems, the mod is dead, which really is a shame. It is so freaking awesome to wander around the roofs of houses and makes the thieving experience much more atmospheric. What could be stealthier than jumping from roof to roof in order to gain access to buildings? The idea of adding small structures to roofs and sewers that allow you to wander through cities is just so awesome. It would be great if structures like small boards and enterable windows would be added to the cities as you progress with rebuilding the Thieves guild. In addition to this, guards should however be aware of the guild's presence and try to keep an eye on the city roofs by positioning themselves on the city walls. Another great idea that was already taken up by Shenk Thievery overhaul are the sewer systems underneath big cities such as Solitude or Windhelm etc. These sewers should allow you to gain access to certain buildings without having to walk through the streets. However, they should regularly be guarded by torch-holding guards in order to keep it immersive and not game-breaking.

 

The thieving experience could be so much improved by doing this. The Shenk Thievery overhaul mod had a great approach, but it was just too buggy to keep it. However, it's still a shame it was abandoned.

 

Would be great if I got a response here because the idea has so much potential that has not been exploited yet.

 

How should it finally look like?

 

Well I think different structures (such ass small boards you can walk on) that are not too eye-catching should be added to different roofs. In order to access the city roofs in the first place, there should be a ladder at some specific buildings or you should simply be able to access to the roofs by jumping off the city wall. Once you are on the roofs, you should be able to access other roofs by jumping or by using structures "put in place" by the Thieves Guild.

 

The sewers of different cities should simply be accessible through sewer covers. These sewer covers should be spread across the city allowing you to access different corners of a city by simply walking through the sewers without having to walk through the city. The sewers should even sometimes be placed outside the city walls so that you can escape a city without having to walk through the main gate.

 

How do I access buildings?

 

You should be able to enter public buildings such as Temples or Jarl fortresses directly through the sewers by sewer covers placed inside these buildings. It is much more likely that public buildings such as these have access to the sewers than private houses.

Another possibility is entering through windows. I know there is a mod for entering windows, but I think it should be a bit more immersive. There should only be specific windows that you can enter, such as the ones that are higher and that are only accessible by getting to the roof of a building by using the structures or paths mentionned above. The windows should be enterable through lockpicking in order to make it more challenging and immersive. The lockpick level should depend on the house owner. The lock of a rich person such as a Thane's house should be harder to pick than the one of a poor farmer.

 

How can thievery still be challenging ?

 

Well first of all, the city guards should be aware of thievery happening in their city. Therefore they should regularly check the roofs by positionning themselves on the city wall or guard towers. The city sewers should be guarded as well. As these areas are dark, the guards should carry torches, making it harder to sneak by. They should as well be filled with some skeevers (not too many though) or spiders that may sometimes attack you or attract the guard's attention towards you.

The following elements have already been implemented in the Shenk Thievery mod. In order to protect their goods, shopowners should hire watchmen that guard their shop at night. Poor houseowners should own a guard dog and richer people should be able to hire a private mercenary to guard their property.

 

 

 

This mod would improve the thieving experience so much, making it much more immersive and still keep it challenging.

Edited June 1, 2012 by Swansonj