?s on Search & Replace and XMarkers

[Rhojagr]

Hey gang,

 

I've been a big fan of ES since the Morrowind days and dabbled in the CK back then. I really want to learn more about modding for Skyrim and I have been researching a lot on the web. I acknowledge there are many great resources on ES modding (the CK Wiki, YouTube, Google searches and these Nexus forums), but I'm having trouble finding some answers on what I assume are basic questions and I hope some of you modding vets will be kind enough to advise me and help clarify my interpretation of the tutorials and forum posts I've found.

 

My current project is a rebuild of Breezehome to my tastes. (Yah, I know..... the millionth noob trying to improve his first house.) I haven't found a mod that I really like and I just want to do so some simple changes on this first version by upgrading and moving the furniture, replace that damn fire pit with a wall fireplace and adding a bit more storage, plants and an enchanting table. I may add a few bookshelves, weapon racks/plaques and mannequins after I have a successful mod and a better understanding of modding. I've discovered I've made some errors already that can be easily avoided (i.e disable unwanted items instead of deleting them) and I'd prefer to learn the proper techniques from the start to reduce mistakes and dirty edits. I hope to make a solid mod to post on Nexus.

 

I understand Breezehome has i's XMarkers which spawn and remove items after you purchase a house upgrade so I assume these questions may be a little more specific to the Breezehome vanilla cell then creating a new house in an empty cell. Any help on these questions would be greatly appreciated.

 

1. 
    
   
2. When I replace one piece of furniture with another (via the Search and Replace function), will this create or have a potential to create a dirty edit ? Or when I replace a static item (basket) with a chair? Would it be better to disable the basket and drag a new chair over from the Object window and assign it to the related XMarker instead?
    
   
3. Just for my education; if I did replace the basket with a chair, what would happen if someone removed that basket from the cell prior to installing my mod? Would the chair still spawn in Breezehome?
    
   
4. Would it cause a problem/dirty edit if I were to reassign an item to another XMarker under the Enable Parent tab of the edit window of that item? (i.e. move a chair assigned to the Loftdecoration XMarker to the Bedroomdecoration XMarker).
    
   
5. Lastly, if I add a new item (i.e. enchanting table to the Alchemy Lab upgrade), will I need to do anything more than dropping it in the cell and assigning it to the XMarker for the Alchemy Lab in the Enable Parent tab to ensure that is spawns on that house upgrade?
   

 

 

 

Again, my goal is to learn how to mod properly, create the cleanest mods possible and understand how changes can affect something further into the mod. I've read dirty edits always creep into mods and must be cleaned before release. I will do this, but I want to be aware of as many if/then scenarios as possible. I hope you can help me build my knowledge.

 

Thanks all.

Edited February 3, 2013 by Rhojagr

[David Brasher]

Mod dirt is kind of a misunderstood thing. If something is an intentional edit, then it is not mod dirt. But it can still cause mod conflicts. But maybe it is supposed to conflict. It depends on the intent of the mod.

 

If you want to change the base game and have your mod win conflicts, then it will need to load after conflicting mods and you can more frequently do things such as use search-and-replace.

 

If you want to avoid more mod conflicts, then you will more frequently disable and replace conflicting objects.

 

If you delete conflicting objects rather than disabling them or moving them under the floor, then you will cause CTDs when conflicting mods are running. (This is the rational behind the misnamed TESVEdit UDR references.)

 

If you really want to avoid mod conflicts, then don't be editing Breezehome. Get a new cell, even if it is a replica of Breezehome.

[Rhojagr]

"If you really want to avoid mod conflicts, then don't be editing Breezehome. Get a new cell, even if it is a replica of Breezehome. "

 

Does this mean I should duplicate the Breezehome cell, rename the new cell and use that for the mod? Won't I have 2 cells for Breezehome then? the original and the duplicated cell in my mod?

[elanaagain]

maybe, if yes then just change the doors and have the town door teleport player to your new version of breezehome.(and back)