The Nordic Hero armor looks good on Aravi.

Aravi took care of that first Necro quite handily with her bow.

That rattling of bones says skeleton. Good eyes to see that trap on the floor! I did not know you could shoot the traps to set them off! neat!

Cool use of Aura Whisper to spot the necrodudes up on that balcony, then shooting the fire pot to light them up! As usual, once those two swords came out, they did not last for long!

Aravi got a kill cam twice for the same guy! Just love how they only kick in when it kills them... That is interesting though, because when I do the same with either archery or magic, the game does not switch to third person. It remains in first person, and instead of getting the camera footage, it just leaves me locked in place unable to move. I guess it must be broken. I was never sure how it was supposed to look until now.

That flame astronaut was an unpleasant surprise. Especially with all that oil. Thank goodness Aravi was able to get out of there before she starting slinging fire.

So Aravi got a Sun Fire Breath word? What does that one do? Sunlight damage to vampires? Oh, I see, it is just the regular fire breath. That should come in handy!

Luvs how Aravi puts on her little blue feets to go into the dungeon!

Very nice bow work and she sure has good eyes for traps and baddies. I’m glad to see her getting a little help locating foes with the pink glow magic.

Once she gets outside, she checks out her new mojo by yellin’ at the rocks! Lol.

I LOVED the opening shot of Aravi !! I am always amazed by Aravi's thinking to take cover when being cast at or shot at with arrows! That is such quick thinking! Aravi's sneak must be Awesome, she crept right up on that conjurer!

Another impressive thing is how Aravi switches from shouts/magic/bow/sword constantly as she goes through these dungeons. She is Awesome !!!

Holy Cow, I have never seen a skeleton throwing fire like that before! She must be at a very high level!
GAAAAH! She didn't loot those last two on the altar!

That fire shout was really cool, glad she didn't cook those hunters she camped with accidentally, lol.

Totally AWESOME vid !!!

Because Bethesda said so .

Where did I leave off? Oh yes, Aravi and Septimus! Sorry, I've been extremely busy lately and seldom visit these parts.

Onto to Septimus! I find Aravi must of been extremely uncomfortable in that frigid territory. No warm sands for her . I see Kharjo made use of his familiar doggy against that skeleton! You did good to skip the dialogue of Septimus. As much as I hate dialogue skipping in videos, I didn't mind in this one since I have done this quest countless times for the Ogma Infinium glitch . Plus, Aravi was in a hurry.

That Reach picture is lovely and Aravi is as cute as ever . . .can I pet her? The location of the Reach is splendid, and has a High Rock style to it, very unique.

J'zargo is a mess. I had a small grudge on him ever since he blasted away a companion with his experimental scrolls near an oil puddle. If Aravi is smart, she'll stay clear of his troublemaking magics. He's a conniving fellow.

Woah, I gotta love Aravi's armor in the hunter's camp! Khajiiti Aela anyone? Loved the use of her bow to take out those baddies! That's our girl!

@Grits: It’s nice to be somewhere that isn’t freezing! Glad you like her sword.

She wasn’t expecting that atronach to pop up at all. I don’t think the oil would have killed her but… That’s her favorite shout, so I was pleased she got the last word of it! Thanks Grits!

@SubRosa: I made a version of the armor to be light instead of heavy. Those necrodudes almost weren’t spotted, but the one leaning against the door gave them away. I wonder why your kill cams aren’t working right? I actually don’t mind the cam playing even on a miss at times.

With the last word, her fire breath is quite a bit stronger and has a small knockback effect. Very handy. Thanks SubRosa!

@Acadian: Her little blue feet help her sneak better! Thanks Acadian!

@mALX: Those spells and arrows hurt, so of course she’s going to get out of the way if she can!

She’s been using less magic than I’d like, but I’ve been trying to work on that. Don’t worry, she looted everything that was there to be looted. Thanks mALX!

@DE: Glad to see you back!

In the ice fields, Aravi had to stop several times and get a fire going to warm up. Pet her? I don’t think she’d let you… Oh no! I think Aravi was on her own when she tested J’zargo’s scrolls. Another fan of the Ancient Nord armor eh? She wears it for a little bit I think. Thanks DE!


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Just a note, this update occurs a bit out of order. I want to share it none the less, because it showcases some screenshots I took last week, and I do not want to forget about them by waiting to post this later.

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Aravi and Kharjo had been walking for several hours now. Their journey began in Markarth and curved north from there. A dragon forced them to abandon the main road and they picked a path through the hills instead. They eventually ran into the ancient, overgrown road that they were following now. They had been steadily gaining altitude as they followed the old road, and the weather had turned from pleasantly crisp to cold with gusts of freezing wind.

The crumbling paving stones were cold underfoot, and Aravi pulled her cloak around herself tighter as the wind tugged at it, seeking entrance. As they trudged onward, the grade started to level off and they soon found themselves staring at a massive Nord ruin. Aravi’s first thought was to avoid the ruin and continue onward, however, a familiar feeling stopped her in front of the massive doors.

“The old Nords sure did love their stonework,” Kharjo commented absently.

“There is a Word in there,” Aravi said.

Kharjo sighed and gripped the haft of his axe. “At least this one will be out of this cursed wind then.”

~~~~

“Something smells foul.”

“I don’t like this, Kharjo.”


Attack!


Take aim!


A dragon priest!


****

Unrelated to the others, but pretty.

White world

I actually tried doing a clean reinstall and update to 1.7 yesterday. But the magic and archery kill cams still do not work. Neither does mounted combat. Oh well.

That Dragon Priest looks really creepy, floating up there in the air like that. Have you found them to be more dangerous than the actual dragons? That is what I hear people say, and what I recall from the characters I did the civil war with (as you have to kill that first dragon at the western watchtower to do the civil war).

White World is my favorite of all. That soft smile of Aravi's face, combined with the brilliant white snow on the trees, just makes it all work.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Aug 11 2012, 10:01 PM

Oh I’m so glad you shared this! I love your little scene-setting explanation so we have a nice context for the screens!

I love the one of the pair back to back. “Khajiit got your back.”

Beautiful action shots. Is that dragon priest showing off his big. . . well, you know.

You need to save that gorgeous screenshot in the snow and have it made into Aravi’s Saturalia greeting cards this winter!

Aravi looks so beautiful in White World! I love her expression, and the setting is so pretty.

Aravi and Kharjo look like such a great team in these. Take Aim is my favorite in the ruin, they look awesome and deadly!

I love the intro you wrote to set the scene for the pictures. It makes perfect sense that the Dragonborn would feel drawn to Words. And Kharjo has such a positive attitude!

The lead in to the screens was Awesome! I like that Aravi could feel the word wall within the ruin, that was cool! Gotta love "White World" best, but that shot of the Dragon Priest was totally Awesome! Look at the size of his bow and how high he floated up! Urk! Loved this update!


Edit: Urk...yeah, I know they hurt. But some (cough cough) characters aren't quick thinking enough to do that, lol.

This post has been edited by mALX: Aug 12 2012, 01:38 AM

@SubRosa: That dragon priest was not more difficult, but that could have been because he was within easy reach of Aravi’s swords. He may have been if he was at range.

White World is spending time as my desktop image. Thanks SubRosa!

@Acadian: Hah! The back to back one was kind of difficult to get because Kharjo moves away when you get too close to him.

Ok I’ve heard it several times, but never knew what it was. What is Saturalia?

Thanks Acadian!

@Grits: I love spontaneous screen shots like White World, they turn out to be the best ones.

It’s hard to see him due to the darkness and his coloring, but Kharjo is right behind Aravi with his bow. Kharjo’s getting used to the unusual whims of Aravi. Thanks Grits!

@mALX: The intro was easy to write, and I tried to write the scenes to go with the screen shots… let’s just say I ended up tossing that lol. Whenever I try to write action, it never turns out. White world is just too good to not be the favorite. Thanks mALX!

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Aravi is traveling to Riften now. Normally, unless Aravi has a reason to go inside of a cave or a fort, she passes it by. Why risk the danger? She was much more curious this time, and all along the route, she entered caves and forts just to see what was inside. One such cave is Lost Knife Hideout.

Part One

8:13

Nice cave! It was beautiful with the waterfalls! Poor Kharjo with that arrow through his head! Urk, and he ran from Aravi when she tried to heal him, at first I wondered if she had the right spell loaded, lol. Loved all the looting !!! Awesome Vid !!!!!

Saturalia is one of the ES holidays. It seems to be directly copied in pasted from the IRL Roman holiday Saturnalia. It went through a lot of changes during the Roman Republic and Empire, starting with a celebration in honor of Saturn (Cronos) on December 17th, which grew into a week of festivities. After a while it turned into celebrating the birth of the Sol Invictus (the Sun), on December 25th, which was the Winter Solstice at that time.

Lost Knife Hideout. I wonder if Aravi will find the knife?

That second bandit in was tough. Most people never survive more than two seconds against Aravi's twin swords.

I remember this one now. This is a neat cave. Bendis did it a few weeks ago. I love the big central chamber with the waterfalls and the underground lake.

That bandit high up on the catwalk was one tough customer. That was very clever to hide, and then get him with some sneak shots.

Loved Aravi chasing the heavy antelopes in the opening scene. Then she gets to a cave and puts on her little blue quiet feets. Bring up the nighteye. Oh cool – an underground river! That waterfall just outside the cave should have been a clue.

Yikes! Aravi declares herself to those first two goons. I’m glad she’s got twin blades, big stones and the K-kat behind her. I was glad to see those first two bandits dissuade her of announcing her presence to others.

Ouch! Kharjo caught an arrow to the face! And of course, Aravi heals her man cat. It is so neat to see Kharjo fighting with dual staffs from range. He is SUCH a keeper!

And Aravi was doing some very fine distant shooting. I’m surprised Bethesda went with splattering blood on your monitor when you get hit – a great way to break immersion and remind the player it is only a computer game.

What a neat romp through a wonderful waterfall-filled cave! Thanks for sharing!

I love this place!

Wow, that first Bandit Plunderer hit harder than the usual riffraff. I guess you never know when a tough guy is going to come out and chat with the door guard.

That was neat to see Kharjo switch from staves to axe plus I’m guessing he had his summoned wolf ready to cast from the right hand. Aravi has trained him well. Then when he switched back to staves while Aravi was chasing him down to heal that arrow wound (ouch!! ), it made me think he saw another bandit up on the walkways. And he had! And Aravi got him! This was so fun to watch!

@mALX: I love that cave, there’s so many cool things inside of it! There are a couple of hidden chests, one that I will show, and one that I will not show. That was really scary to turn and see Kharjo with an arrow going through him mouth like that. Thanks mALX!

@SubRosa: So in TES, Saturalia is the celebration of the birth of Magnus then? I like how Christian holidays got plopped down on top of other existing holidays, I suppose it was the smart thing to do.

Aravi’s armor is pretty weak so it’s good that most people don’t last long with her.

I didn’t realize that walkway was up there, so Aravi knew there was someone around, but coming from where? She checked low, thinking someone fell off the walk way and was standing in a shallow spot or something. Then she looked up! Thanks SubRosa!

@Acadian: Heh, glad you liked the opener. Those were mountain goats! There are a lot of caves in Skyrim that have some flowing water in them, very cool.

Aravi just wanted to make sure she wasn’t going to shoot anyone that didn’t deserve it. She could have backed off and got her bow out again, but her preference for her swords made her engage then.

Kharjo loves his staffs! Aravi had to heal him after seeing that arrow.

I can take or leave the blood. I hardly notice it when I’m really into the game. I think they put it there because many shooters put it there, and they wanted the familiarity with that for people. That’s my guess anyways. There are mods of course to remove it. Thanks Acadian!

@Grits: I really like the mix of the fighters in this game. You can run into some really weak guys, and then there are others that are tough!

It’s fun to have Kharjo with those staffs as long as Aravi doesn’t try to engage in melee. It works out much better when she stays back. Kharjo is really versatile, which makes him the perfect companion for Aravi! Thanks Grits!

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Aravi continues through Lost Knife Hideout. Part Two

5:24

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Some screens!

Fishing
Kharjo enjoying a mug of ale
Distant

I am so torn between "Fishing" and "Distant" as my favorite - can't choose between them, so I have two favorites in this group of screens! Both are awesome for different reasons, but in both you captured a mood, her expression in both was fantastic. Both left an impression of that mood behind and the desire to click the screen open again and keep viewing it.

I am loving this cave! What a great place this would be to CK to a Player base! I love Kharjo's wolf, love hearing it howl on after the fight! Kharjo has stopped liking being healed, he acts like she is doing something to him instead of enjoying it like he used to. What is up with that? Great vid! LOVED this update!

When that bandit archer said: "What 'chu gonna do?" I heard the theme from Cops in my head. "What you gonna do when they come for you?"

I love how Kharjo clipped her with those ice spikes just after she stepped out of the room. Followed close behind by his summoned Familiar!

That first screen was my favorite. The expression on Aravi's face reminds me of my own cat as shes stares intently at the birds on the porch railing.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Aug 17 2012, 11:00 PM

What fun screens! Fishing is hilarious, plus I love Aravi’s intent expression. That fish has no idea! The light on her back is so pretty in Distant, and she has another lovely expression. And of course it’s nice to see Kharjo relaxing!

Now when Aravi asks Kharjo to wait, I think she might be planning to wolf it! Of course not, though. But it was funny to hear J’Renrij after I was thinking that.

I do not want to know what those bandits were up to with the bloody rags, flute, and skooma. I like the way this hideout is structured, with the areas inside the old fort as well as the excavated and cave parts. It makes a fun setting for Aravi’s adventure!

Thanks for the heads up, I would have been somewhat confused at the out of order part in the first update. Back from the busy weekday and now had a weekend full of reading. Let me begin the continuation of Aravi's adventure.

“I don’t like this, Kharjo.”

Badass back to back scene! Oh how I love the action. Something smells foul, eh? I am quite sure it is the walking dead Nords they are about to face. Speaking of face, I love Kharjo's face he makes when the Dragonpriest is levitating into the air. The "Oh hell no!" expression, haha.

Next one was amazing. Hunting goats from time to time is a good hobby and a natural impulse for large cats.

So, our male feline gets an arrow to the head, eh? At least it wasn't an arrow . . .nevermind. Aravi shows some skill with the bow, and an even greater showing with the sword. Good thing she has her healing powers to help out her buddy, Kharjo, otherwise things would have been tragically worse.

It was refreshing to see the fishing scene . . .cats love fish, haha and it is good to see some peaceful parts aside from all the battle!

@mALX: I think that he is programmed to back off if you get too close to him. He doesn’t move away as long as you give him some space. I think the cave would be too big for a player home; you would have to do a lot of walking to get anywhere. A cave home would be neat though for another character. Aravi isn’t much for underground. Thanks mALX!

@SubRosa: I’m glad he didn’t hit Aravi with those ice spikes. One down side of letting him use staffs is that it’s difficult for Aravi to close in for melee without getting hit at times.

I loved the way that screen turned out. Thanks SubRosa!

@Grits: Distant is my favorite. I feel like in that screen, we are looking through Kharjo’s eyes. Aravi’s full of mystery still despite all she’s told him.

I can see why you would think she might have been planning to go wolfy, but Kharjo would have been waaayyy too close for that. She would only leaves him in a camp or a town if she’s planning on doing that, anywhere in the wilderness is too close. She’s learned that if the beast starts hunting, it can go very far. Thanks Grits!

@DE: I’m so glad someone likes that back to back screen as much as I do!

Thank you for controlling yourself and not making a terrible guard joke. Aravi’s always been best with the blade, with less skill in other combat areas. That fishing screen just came out perfectly. Thanks DE!

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Aravi gets herself into a lot of trouble. Final Lost Knife Hideout.

6:19
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Some old screens from Oblivion. Aravi had a much different look.

Disagreement with a Nord

Outside an Ayleid Ruin

Deep in thought (No, she’s not bottomless)