Oblivion General Technical Issues Thread, What’s buggin’ yas? Options

[Lena Wolf]

I think we have a little confusion on how to attach scripts to quests, and I fear Khajiit is going to run away screaming. The thing is, Renee and I are describing two different ways to attach a script to a quest. So I'll try to sort it out.

Method 1 - create the script from the Quest window. This is what Renee is saying. When you open the Quest window and click your quest (or make a new quest and click it), you can attach a script to it. But what if you haven't made that script yet? Well, then you can click the three dots near the "Script" drop-down box and it will take you to the script editor where you can enter and save your script. Then you return to your Quest Window but your script is not in the list... because it hasn't caught up with you yet. I find that you actually have to click another quest first, then come back to your original one, and then your script will be in the list.

For this reason I do it differently.

Method 2 - create the script first. In the CS there's an icon with a pen on it - that's the script editor. You can also open it from the menus. Click it, and select "New script". Copy-paste the script above (or write your own, hehe), and save. Make sure that the script type is set to "Quest" rather than "Object" (it is "Object" by default). In the standard CS this drop-down is on the bottom of the window, but in the CSE it's on the top.

Now open your Quest window, go to your quest and you will find your script in the drop-down box. If it isn't there, then you didn't make it a Quest script.

Once you set the script to your quest (or do any other thing, like give your quest a name or something), make sure to click another quest or at least one of the other tabs of the same quest. THIS IS WHEN YOUR DATA GETS SAVED!!! If you close the window without doing this, you may find that your changes weren't saved! This is a problem that I encountered on every tab!! You think you've done something, you're sure you weren't drunk, but you go back in and it's not there! So I now have a rule to always click on another quest before exiting.

But it isn't all that complicated, really. It's a bit scary at first, but you soon get the hang of it.

This post has been edited by Lena Wolf: Sep 16 2024, 07:07 PM

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

See, and that's something I've completely ignored during my years messing round in these editors: meshes and textures! I haven't got a clue how they're made. But it's mostly because so many modders are already excellent at those facets of our games.

Quests & scripting though, those are things I wanted to learn. Because I can make my character's stories actually happen.

Subbie helped me a lot with learning how to create simple new items using standard BGS meshes and custom textures. I took the quilted doublet, one of the skirts (can’t remember which), and a pair of one of the common shoes and gave them dark greyscale textures. Pic of my work below.

Dark Doublet, skirt, and shoes.

And wouldn’t you know, I think I accidentally deleted this mod

[SubRosa]

That is a nice, simple goth outfit for people who don't want something extravagant.

Ope! The computer ate it!

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

That is a nice, simple goth outfit for people who don't want something extravagant.

Ope! The computer ate it!

Thanks, that’s exactly what I was going for! I probably should have done something to break up the black a little bit, but as this was a retex to use for learning how to make items, I kept the retex as simple as possible.

This post has been edited by TheCheshireKhajiit: Sep 16 2024, 09:01 PM

[Renee]

Correct, I hardly ever use the pencil icon method; only if I need to quickly find a script which I know has already been written will I go for that. Sorry for confusion.

Edit: that's beautiful work, Khajiit.


Edit 2: I'm still in the process of rebuilding Oblivion. Up to the Ds, doing the "Dwelling" folder now: Settlements of Cyrodiil, Abandoned Mountain Shack, Aleswell Cottage, and so on. I can remember back in 2014 when I first got my gaming computer, replacing my original (non-gaming) computer. Rushed home, drove @40 minutes from Micro Center, and then got the gaming computer plugged in and set up. And then I sat there, 8 hours straight, installing Oblivion! All in one sitting. Well, I would've had to get my controller working and so on. But still... 8 hours.

In comparison, I've lost count how many hours it's taking me this time. Probably up to 9 or 10 so far, and I'm not even in the Es yet. It'll be worth it in the end.

This post has been edited by Renee: Sep 17 2024, 12:27 AM

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

Correct, I hardly ever use the pencil icon method; only if I need to quickly find a script which I know has already been written will I go for that. Sorry for confusion.

Edit: that's beautiful work, Khajiit.


Edit 2: I'm still in the process of rebuilding Oblivion. Up to the Ds, doing the "Dwelling" folder now: Settlements of Cyrodiil, Abandoned Mountain Shack, Aleswell Cottage, and so on. I can remember back in 2014 when I first got my gaming computer, replacing my original (non-gaming) computer. Rushed home, drove @40 minutes from Micro Center, and then got the gaming computer plugged in and set up. And then I sat there, 8 hours straight, installing Oblivion! All in one sitting. Well, I would've had to get my controller working and so on. But still... 8 hours.

In comparison, I've lost count how many hours it's taking me this time. Probably up to 9 or 10 so far, and I'm not even in the Es yet. It'll be worth it in the end.

No worries, I haven’t been able to look at the scripting yet. I did download a few mods.

Use WASD in Menus

Alternate Start- Arrive by Ship

Natural Faces

Just the addition of the WASD mod is a big improvement when using a controller. The Natural Faces one I have apparently downloaded before and it really does a lot to clean up some of the weirdness with faces. Most of my gaming time this morning was spent getting my dlcs, unofficial patches, the dlc delayer mod, and the bashed patch sorted out. In the end I decided to just activate all of the dlcs and install the delayer mod esp that covers all of them. I don’t have a lot of interest in KotN and the delayer mod makes it so you have to read a certain book and then 5 game days later the Chapel of Dibella gets attacked. I originally didn’t plan on even activating it but it was more work not to apparently.

Oh and thanks for the compliment!

This post has been edited by TheCheshireKhajiit: Sep 17 2024, 02:52 PM

[Lena Wolf]

Use WASD in Menus
Just the addition of the WASD mod is a big improvement when using a controller.

Yes, that's what I use as well. I wasn't sure what you meant by "make it work like on Xbox", but it could well be that this mod is all you need. The scripting can be seen as "extras".

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

Use WASD in Menus
Just the addition of the WASD mod is a big improvement when using a controller.

Yes, that's what I use as well. I wasn't sure what you meant by "make it work like on Xbox", but it could well be that this mod is all you need. The scripting can be seen as "extras".

Well on the Xbox, the menus are programmed so that you can just hit buttons to do different things. For instance, you equip items and spells with a “A”, you switch between stats, inventory, spells, and journal with the triggers, and you move between tabs in those categories with the left thumb stick. You can drop items from the inventory with, I think, “Y”, and exit with “b” instead of having to click the exit button on screen. The persuasion many game is also controlled using the left thumbstick and “a” (I think) instead of having to move the mouse over the option you want to select and then hitting left click on the mouse. Take all is “X”, I believe.

[Lena Wolf]

Yeah, if you wanted all of that as well, you need the scripting.

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

Yeah, if you wanted all of that as well, you need the scripting.

I’m going to try the scripting thing, but honestly, just being able to control what page you are on without having to move the mouse to and fro is a big help.

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

So on the video settings, how do the sliders for things like object fade, tree fade, etc, work?

[Renee]

Are you asking for how they work behind the scenes? Like scripts, maybe?

Otherwise, those sliders just configure how soon you're able to view trees, grass, NPCs, and so on. But I think you're asking something other than that.

[Lena Wolf]

There are no scripts, the functionality is built into the engine. But yeah, as to what they do, it's simple - it's the distance at which you stop seeing objects, trees, grass, etc., respectively. It's the same as what Renee said, just worded differently.

Oh, perhaps I should add: these are settings written into Oblivion.ini.

This post has been edited by Lena Wolf: Sep 18 2024, 04:41 PM

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

Sorry, my bad, unclear. Specifically I was wanting to know if you slide the slider all the way to the right on the “[x] fade” options, what exactly is it doing?

This post has been edited by TheCheshireKhajiit: Sep 18 2024, 06:08 PM

[ghastley]

If my memory is still working, there is no actual fade involved. Things are rendered, or not, depending on distance. The max and min values aren't 0 and infinity, but something more like 20 feet and 600 yards. I.e there's a point at which you'll always see it, no matter what the slider setting, and a point at which it will always disappear. The meshes have a transition to a LOD mesh, and the textures and billboards get the 'fade slider' method.

I think Skyrim added a fade at the view distances, so that things no longer just pop into visibility, but in Oblivion it's on/off.

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

If my memory is still working, there is no actual fade involved. Things are rendered, or not, depending on distance. The max and min values aren't 0 and infinity, but something more like 20 feet and 600 yards. I.e there's a point at which you'll always see it, no matter what the slider setting, and a point at which it will always disappear. The meshes have a transition to a LOD mesh, and the textures and billboards get the 'fade slider' method.

I think Skyrim added a fade at the view distances, so that things no longer just pop into visibility, but in Oblivion it's on/off.

So say I’m messing with the “Item Fade” setting. If the slider is all the way to the left, are you saying that would be “off”, and if it was all the way right it would be “on”?

[ghastley]

No I'm saying that all the way to the left, things will still be a minimum distance from you when you first see them, but the transition from invisible to visible as you approach is sudden appearance, rather than a fade in. And all the way right is not 'always visible' but a preset maximum that may depend on size.

[Lena Wolf]

Yes, the usage is slightly arcane. But I must say that with NPCs and creatures you do get a fade effect. I even get it with objects... Although officially it is on/off, and may be it is my graphic card doing it, but I definitely have fading in and out rather than popping in.

[TheCheshireKhajiit]

No I'm saying that all the way to the left, things will still be a minimum distance from you when you first see them, but the transition from invisible to visible as you approach is sudden appearance, rather than a fade in. And all the way right is not 'always visible' but a preset maximum that may depend on size.

Ok got it. Thank you for explaining that!