New DLC Dragonborn announced!

We're going back to Solstheim with the new Skyrim DLC Dragonborn.  From the video I notice a return of Morrowind's Telvanni Towers and Redoran's crab carapace buildings.  I can't wait!

Read the Bethblog post about DLC Dragonborn.

WIPz CEO and Hearthfire Conflicts List

Hearthfire has some conflicts with my work-in-progress mod Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul.  This is a list of those conflicts and some ideas to resolve them for the Hearthfire version of my mod.

Retextures:
Hearthfire includes retextures of most of the soups and stews.
Apple Cabbage Stew
Beef Stew
Cabbage Potato Soup (uses same n-map as Apple Cabbage Stew)
Elseweyr Fondue
Horker Stew
Tomato Soup
Vegetable Soup
Venison Stew (uses same n-map as Beef Stew)
Notes: Cabbage Potato Soup uses an n-map that doesn't match.  Cabbage Soup is not retextured at all, nor is the stew in the Cooking Pot.
My plans:  My retextures will be released in an optional addon.  Cabbage Soup and Cooking Pot retextures will be part of the main mod.  Create proper n-map for Hearthfire's Cabbage Potato Soup, probably don't need one for Venison Stew since it is nearly identical to Beef Stew.

New Foods:
These new foods duplicate ones that I have already created.
Flour (mine is an ingredient)
Milk
Butter
Clam Chowder
My plans: Remove these changes to the CEO esp file.  My meshes and textures can be an optional addon.

New Recipes:
These are new recipes that conflict with recipes that I have created for the same items.
Apple Pie (this pie is the one USKP renames Meat Pie, I have recipes for both kinds of pie)
Bread (this is bread01A the whole loaf bread)
Clam Chowder
Flour
Sweet Roll
My plans: Change Apple Pie recipe to make my Apple Pie.  Keep my Meat Pie recipe as is.  Remove the rest of the changes from the CEO esp file.

New Crafts:
Conflicting new crafts.
Milling
My plans: Remove this from CEO esp file.

New Crafting Stations:
Conflicting crafting stations.
Grain Mills
Butterchurn (Hearthfire's churn is Flora, rather than Furniture)
My Plans: Remove Grain Mill changes from CEO esp file.  Replace Hearthfire's Butterchurn with my Butterchurn.

Other Things:
Not necessarily conflicts, but things to consider anyway.
Salmon Steak (now there are two kinds, you can now only cook the Hearthfire steak)
Baking Oven (for Hearthfire version of CEO, I will need to change some recipes to Baking craft)
Grain Mills (non-Crafting station type, found as Activators in vanilla Skyrim)
My plans: Make the old Salmon Steak craftable, maybe rename it (Smoked Salmon?).  Change my baked goods recipes from Cooking Pot to the Oven.  The non-crafting Grain Mills, if not being used by the game for any purpose then I will replace these with the crafting Grain Mills.

DLC Hearthfire released!

Skyrim's new DLC Hearthfire has finally been released on PC for only $4.99.  I'll be downloading it in the next few minutes.  Soon we'll see what conflicts between Hearthfire and my mod CEO there are.  UESP has already given me some ideas on their list of Hearthfire Items.  It isn't just new items, they have retextured most (if not all) of the soups and stews.  So far the retextures, some of the new items, and new Milling craft are all conflicting with CEO.

The plan for CEO is to do a vanilla and a Hearthfire version.  The vanilla version will be for players that do not have Hearthfire installed, since it will conflict.  The Hearthfire version will resolve those conflicts.  I think that for the conflicting retextures, that maybe I will release an optional retex-pack to let players pick their preference.

In the near future, I will post a list of conflicts and how they will be resolved for Hearthfire.

Clear Bottle!

Problem solved.  Now I can apply the same technique to the Oblivion Beverage Replacer.

New Job and Modding Updates

Good news!  I started a new job today.  Everything seemed to go really well.  It is full-time, so no extra days during the week to mod.  Just evenings and weekends now.  But that's fine.  Working full-time means less worries for me, which means I will be more focused on modding in my free time.  The creative juices flow better when there is nothing to worry about.

Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul is going great.  Took the weekend off to get ready for the new job, but I'm ready to get back to modding.  Some fun developments in the works that I can't talk about quite yet.  Basically, some help from a few other talented modders.  Will announce that in the next month or so.  In the meantime, I'll continue to update on my progress.  Milk, Cream, and Buttermilk models are done.  Next on my list: new model for Butter, new textures for for metal shavings, new recipes for Mortar & Pestle, and whatever else feels good.  ;)

Also, I may have solved an issue that caused me to shelve my Oblivion Beverage Replacer.  There was a problem where the new bottles glowed ingame.  Everything was setup correctly in NifSkope, the emissive property was off.  I couldn't figure it out and neither could my forum friends.  Well, the glowing issue reared its head again in Skyrim with some new meshes!  I was hoppin' mad!  But after some fiddling around I did something different.  I imported the new models over models in an existing nif, replacing them instead of importing it into a new nif.  Somehow that did the trick.  I may revisit Oblivion Beverage Replacer in the future...

Milk Drinker

Phew!  I am still able to model and UV map.  Here is the Milk Jug.  Almost done, next step is importing it into NifSkope.

Grind gems like a real alchemist!

Finished creating new ingredients, gem shards, for Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul.  Here is a screenshot of Amethyst Shards.  Note the bowls have a new texture too!  You will be able to make these with a Mortar & Pestle.

Modeling and Scripting Tutorials

Lately I've been needing to refresh my memory or learn new things.  So I want to share some useful tutorials.

Modeling
This something that I've needed a little refresher on.  Both modifying existing meshes and creating new ones.  My friend and fellow modder, Vince Bly, created some lessons that are easy to follow and very informative.  They were originally created for Oblivion, but I have used the knowledge gained for Skyrim as well.

This first one, taught me a lot about how to use NifSkope.

The House Modder's Tool Kit by Vince Bly - The House Modder's Tool Kit (HMTK) provides a way to create new content for Oblivion without having to master a 3D modeling program like Blender.

I wrote a follow up, mainly to help with the math part of HMTK.

House Modder's Tool Kit Explained by Phaedra - This tutorial is a further explaination of how to use HTMK by Vince Bly.

With this one, I learned how to create new models, including how to texture, add collision, and import them into a game.

Wings3D for Oblivion by Vince Bly - Wings3D for Oblivion (W3D4O) is a tutorial that provides the 3D modeling and NifScope procedures needed to create new 3D content for Oblivion.

Scripting
Scripting in Skyrim is done using a language called Papyrus.  I've done a small amount of scripting in Morrowind and Oblivion, mostly modifying existing scripts to fit my needs.  But now I want to create my own scripts for Skyrim.  Here are a bunch tutorials that I've found and will be studying.

TES Alliance's Papyrus 101 forum - There are 3 Classes stickied at the top of the forum, the first teaches the basics of scripting.  You can also post questions if you need help.

Cipscis' Skyrim Tutorials - There are 4 Papyrus tutorials on his website.

Creation Kit Wiki, Category: Papyrus - A lot of information on Papyrus created and maintained by the modding community.

Modding Once Again!

The result of one of the new recipes:

Roast Dog Ribs
Better than eating them raw!



After not modding since March, I needed to figure out where I left off...  So here is a basic update, in depth details are now on my website.  Honestly, I wasn't going to start modding or playing again until after finding a full-time job, but I can't put it all on hold forever.  I'm still job hunting and just had a promising interview today.  Hopefully something good will come soon.  In the meantime, I must mod!

Done:
New Craft: Milling
3 new Milling Recipes
1 new Alchemy Ingredient
1 new Raw Food
5 new Cooked Foods
10 retextured pre-existing Foods
1 retextured pre-existing Alchemy Ingredient
14 new Cooking Recipes for pre-existing Foods (not able to cook previously)
5 new Cooking Recipes for new Foods

Pending:
More (at least 4) new Foods
More (at least 7) new Alchemy Ingredients
More (at least 1) retextures of pre-existing Foods
Ideas: Milking, Brewing, Cooking morbid ingredients, Food effect changes/balance, Add staples to vendor list... ???

New WIPz Page for CEO

Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul now has its own webpage.  I can keep track of what I'm doing easier and so everyone else can see the mods current progress.  Currently working on food, check out my progress.  Hope you like what you see.

Skyrim: Dawnguard

Dawnguard is finally available for PC today!  Sounds pretty interesting.  Hopefully, I can get it soon.

The Vampire Lord Harkon has returned to power. By using the Elder Scrolls, he seeks to do the unthinkable - to end the sun itself. Will you join the ancient order of the Dawnguard and stop him? Or will you become a Vampire Lord yourself? Featuring an all new faction questline and locations, the ultimate choice will be yours.

We also got Skyrim Patch 1.7 recently.

Release notes below:
Update 1.7 (all platforms unless specified
BUG FIXES

• General memory and stability optimizations
• Fixed crash related to new water shaders
• Fixed rare crash related to dragon landings
• Fixed logic error with loading screens from add-ons (Xbox 360)
• Using vampiric grip and swimming no longer prevents swimming animation from playing afterwards
• Improved recognition with Kinect voice commands (Xbox 360)
• Kinect-enabled dragon language shouts for French, German, Italian and Spanish work properly (Xbox 360)
• Fixed issue with Dawnguard Kinect-enabled dragon shouts for French, German, Italian and Spanish (Xbox 360)

Updated Mod Links and Current Events

TES Nexus has split into Oblivion Nexus and Morrowind Nexus so I have updated the mod links on my website.  All should be functioning properly now.

TES Online is looking interesting.  At least I'm really fond of the concept art, it is gorgeous.  I haven't had time to watch the videos or read much.  Mostly just look at the pictures.  Wondering about monthly fees and game mechanics.  And feeling nostalgic.

I'm really needing some play/mod time.  Even the old hanging lights in the courthouse remind me of AST IC Library Chandelier - Modder Resource by Aisis.  I have a few of those in Guild Benefits.  But rather than modding, I'm still applying for jobs and putting my resume out there.  Also having to commute to Seattle for the part-time job.  So it eats most of my free time.

Oh!  Big news!  I'm going to be an aunt for the first time.  Sometime later this year, my brother and his gal are going to have a baby.  How exciting is that?!

Temporary hiatus...

Since April, things in my life have been a bit hectic.  So I am on a temporary hiatus from modding and gaming.  I am still active on Facebook if you want to get in touch with me.  Basically, my job status has changed and need to focus on that right now.

In more detail: I work for a small business and until recently was the office manager one of their two small offices.  My office space was reclaimed by the building that owned it and my company had to close it.  My position as manager no longer needed and "due to loss of revenue" I was laid off.  The manager of the second office convinced the boss that my skills were still very much needed and boss decided they could keep me part-time.

This whole time I've been looking for another full-time job.  So far nothing has panned out, but I check the job postings everyday and keep submitting my resume to the ones that fit.  Something will come along eventually.  At least I have a part-time job in the interim and my wonderful fiance for support.

When things settled down, then I'll get back to modding.  My two WIPz Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul for Skyrim and Guild Benefits for Oblivion are still a go, just on hold while I get my professional life together.

Much love to everyone, friends and modding colleges!  I will be back and everything will be OK.  Don't worry!

Yummy Food for CEO

Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul's food textures are coming along nicely. Thanks to Scot for Alternative Soup Textures - Modder's Resource for providing most of the default soups. The only ones left are beef stew and horker stew. I might do a cheese fondue instead of chocolate for the Elsweyr fondue since the recipe uses cheese.

Any other textures either I will find free images online or take pictures myself. I've completed two food textures tonight. Added Scot's soups and my two foods to the mod. I have a couple more food related ideas that I plan on adding, just need to figure out implementation. One of which will be a craft, easy to do. The other quite a bit more complicated, but will be so rewarding if I can pull it off!

Working Mill Stones

Not just a useless animation prop any more. Milling is a new craft that allows you can grind wheat into flour, bone into bonemeal, and more. I really needed flour as an ingredient for my WIPz Crafting Enjoyment Overhaul for some of the recipes (i.e. bread, apple pie, etc.)

My First Skyrim Mod Released

Yep, a campsite called Waterfall Ridge. Its tradition to always make a camp. And I'm going to build another... I just feel like it. This time it will be a little more than basic, but still more so than a real house. It will be one of those big fur tents up in the snow near Helgen. It will have everything Waterfall Ridge has, plus wood cutting and leather working. I haven't decided on much else as it will just come to me as I work.

Creation Kit soon! The anticipation is killing me...

The latest news from the Bethesda Forums:

Gstaff said on Friday, January 27, 2012 at 11:52 am:

We really appreciate the feedback from our Steam Beta. We anticipate the 1.4 update going live next week for all on the PC and being sent to the console manufacturers. The Creation Kit won’t be far behind.

Using saves we’ve collected from the community, we’re really seeing some great results with the 1.4 update. Thanks to everyone!

Info on the Beta Patch 1.4 can be found on the Bethblog.