The Good, the Bad, and the Slightly Less Bad

As I previously warned, it's likely that these updates won't be every other Saturday as I originally intended. This is proof of that. However, even though these updates have slowed down, mod development has not.

Valion's mini-questline is finally almost complete. The remaining two or three bugs should be squashed within the next couple of days, as should the previously mentioned Dwemer Prison. Upon completion of these, I plan to finally implement our Dwemer warlord, and then move onto the first Snow Elf colony, Sepredium, while also adding a couple commoner NPCs here and there throughout Skyrim. I'm not sure if we'll have enough content, but perhaps I'll be able to put together a small teaser trailer once Sepredium is finished.

I've also come up with a new concept for the mod's super followers: Character Traits. Basically, to further set them apart from typical followers, the super followers added by the mod will have abilities exclusive to them, ranging from simple, yet unique, passives to conditional summons. So far, only one trait has been implemented, to Valion. His trait, Duelist, gives him a 15% damage boost when wielding a one-handed sword and no shield, as well as a 15% chance to negate all damage from an attack blocked with a one-handed sword.

As for Cepheus, I've decided to put it off until ZNPC is completed, or at least more developed than it is now. I haven't abandoned it, but knowing myself, if I continue to juggle multiple projects, one will end up abandoned.

On the bright side, I've decided to create a Discord server devoted to teaching people to make mods, while still acting as a reference for those who already have a decent grasp on it. If anyone who reads this is interested, comment on this and I'll link you to it once it's up!

The Dwemer Update (Part 2)

I've gotten a new job since the last update and they seem to enjoy scheduling me for the weekends, so these updates may not be exactly two weeks apart as I originally intended. So if a new update isn't posted on a Saturday, or even a Sunday, it doesn't mean the project is dead!

I've done some more testing of the existing two quests, and unfortunately had to rebuild Friends In Deep Places from scratch, and change some of the dialogue. On the bright side, both quests are now 100% bug free, and partially voiced, thanks to the talented Complete the Circuit! 

In the last update, I detailed a lot of the Dwemer stuff that ZNPC will add, but I barely mentioned anything about the followers. Unfortunately, Dwemer names are hard to come up with, so they don't have any at this moment, but I should have a decent Dwemer name generator sheet completed soon. Firstly, we can't just have Dwarves living without any explanation and still keep the mod lore friendly. Of course, I could use the Morrowind excuse of being in a plane of Oblivion at the time of the Dwemer's disappearance, but for seven or eight NPCs? I'll need more than that. So after a bit of thought, and a couple of Smallville episodes (I decided to rewatch it, it was such a great show), I came up with an idea: prison planes. Basically, unruly Dwemer prisoners would be thrown in these portals that led to an unknown plane, where they'd serve their sentences.

In ZNPC, the player will be able to encounter a couple of these portals in a creepy Dwemer prison, and if the respective activator is found, the portal will open up, and a prisoner will be released. One of the releasable prisoners is a Dwemer warlord with Dwarven metal arm, who will be available as a f ollower after completing his quest. Another follower will be a Dwemer scientist, who modified one of the aforementioned portals and sealed himself inside. Anyone who liked Arcade from New Vegas should like this guy. I'd go into more details about their quests and whatnot, but I don't want to spoil everything, so you'll have to wait until the mod is released and see it all for yourself.

Now, onto the Cepheus update. This week, we have the Jode stone, which is unlocked after completing 30 quests.

• Jode's Vigor - Choose one of three random buffs to apply for 120 seconds.

I made this power to parallel Andromeda's Ultimate Power. Instead of fortifying one of three schools of magic, it provides a buff that a warrior would find especially useful. The buffs are to:

• Weapon damage

• Damage resistance

• Block

• Power attack damage/cost

• Health

• Stamina

That's all for this stone. Next up is the Sithian Stone, which I'll detail in the next update!