Skyrim is worse than Oblivion in every way

[Manjuice Nutella]

That Interesting NPCs mod is actually surprisingly great.

Even the simplest quest is integrated into gameworld and out of sight, some npcs are, well, interesting, there is no handholding, while questline chains are so obscure I couldn't believe what I was reading in changelog.

There was an amazing mod for Oblivion that handled custom content similarly. It was called Integration: The Stranded Light. Anybody played that?

 

[DraQ]

There's a problem in that NPC archers are inhumanly accurate, even at the highest inaccuracy settings (nice AI codeing Bethesda!) which kind of kills the point of light armor allowing you to dodge..

Effectiveness of dodging is not a function of enemy accuracy.

Dodging relies on moving out of the way of projectile that would hit you.
If you're already doing it the only difference inaccurate enemies can make is allowing you to dodge into a projectile that would have missed you.

The problem with Requiem is that almost all projectiles are 2x faster, but that only makes dodging non-cheesy.

The inaccuracy is based on degrees it can deviate, but at close range, what matters is an enemy's crazy tracking.

OTOH enemy can't predict intent in movement the way human can so it evens out - crazy tracking VS knowing where your enemy might actually want to be.

 

[deuxhero]

At long range, sure, but even then, in Skyrim, the max range of projectiles (they just disappear) is actually noticeably less than the max range the game will render NPCs and creatures, so "long range" is pointless.

 

[DalekFlay]

Yes, much like pickpocket and speechcraft. They shd just merge Speechcraft - Lockpicking - Pickpocket together into Streetwise skill. When 90% of the content is combat - I fail to see how these perks are actually worth plunging points into - especially when the extreme difficulty mods are installed. Unless you limit yourself to thieves break in missions .

Speech offers some nice benefits like bartering does in New Vegas... more money, convenience stuff, etc. Pickpocketing is actually awesome and overpowered if nothing else, you can take a boss' weapon right off them before the fight. Also, more to my point, while lockpicking is pointless because you can unlock every chest at level one without it the other two's benefits cannot be obtained without the perks.

 

[RK47]

Well, while playing Requiem, my Speechcraft is well ahead of everything else.
And unless you invest on the perk I don't see a difference on prices.
I tested this with Amulet of Dibella and Beggar's blessing that adds a whopping total of 30 Speechcraft.

Tried selling something - and got the same price regardless.

 

[DraQ]

At long range, sure

At short range. At long range you just see incoming projectile and move somewhere else than where it will hit, so neither tracking nor anticipation matter much.

 

[deuxhero]

That's the problem though, there's no time to move out of the way, and the AI follows you before it shoots exactly to a stupid degree (if you are behind cover, it knows if you are going to come out the right or left)

 

[Commissar Draco]

Good Heavy armor and shield skill will help you deflect/absorb the arrows then you bash mage/archer face and gut him. And I didn't even used any special gear just upgraded legion armor, shield and short sword.

 

[DalekFlay]

Well, while playing Requiem, my Speechcraft is well ahead of everything else.
And unless you invest on the perk I don't see a difference on prices.
I tested this with Amulet of Dibella and Beggar's blessing that adds a whopping total of 30 Speechcraft.

Tried selling something - and got the same price regardless.

Yes, the perks are needed to change prices. Also to invest. Similarly the perks are required to pickpocket equipped items or really have much of a success percentage.

Lockpicking though, the perks are pointless, they just make the minigame slightly easier when it isn't hard in the first place.

 

[DraQ]

That's the problem though, there's no time to move out of the way

At short range there isn't. That's when you need to move in a way that throws their leading off - basically don't move in straight lines at constant speed and get behind cover whenever possible. They may have perfect tracking, but they aren't psychic.
It works for me so it should work for you.

Also, this:

Good Heavy armor and shield skill will help you deflect/absorb the arrows then you bash mage/archer face and gut him. And I didn't even used any special gear just upgraded legion armor, shield and short sword.

If you want to assault a bunch of archers frontally, then you'd better be prepared for tanking their arrows (although HA doesn't work so well against mages - you can get the Spellbreaker from Peryite's quest, though, if you want to tank wizards spectacularly well).

Lockpicking though, the perks are pointless, they just make the minigame slightly easier when it isn't hard in the first place.

Not with Requiem. Requiem makes perks essential if you want to pick anything.

 

[DalekFlay]

Lockpicking though, the perks are pointless, they just make the minigame slightly easier when it isn't hard in the first place.

Not with Requiem. Requiem makes perks essential if you want to pick anything.

I'm not sure that's the answer either, since 95% of the good loot comes from locked chests. I'd have to make lockpicking a priority in my perk choices and that would feel a little weird in that game. Just my opinion.

Has to be a happy medium. Maybe they'll think of it for the next TES game.

 

[DraQ]

You can count on followers for most of your legit lockpicking, though. It's just they can't handle some containers and doors, can't reach some chests in tricky places and generally aren't helpful in robbing people blind.

 

[RK47]

eh, since requiem isn't level scaled - quicker leveling playstyle is definitely encouraged. I already felt the combat difficulty dropping when I unlocked my Fire Atronach. I spent around an hour clearing Whiterun's homes of valuables - selling them away to Riften's fence, leveling up from Speechcraft, Alchemy crafting potions for sale. Even took the haggling perk cause more gold = more training. Hiring a merc didn't hurt too, since an extra aim-bot on your side proved crucial. Not to mention the extra decoy they provide.

Level 11 now and just finished the Eldergleam quest - those spriggans - lol. Conjured fire atronach and just jump down the topside cliff to safety exit. Some mobs are just not meant to be taken on at level 11. Had fun going against 4 mages and a Hagraven too. All spell effect going - one got close enough to electrocute me, the bow shook like crazy - luckily the merc made her shot and took that bitch down.

 

[DalekFlay]

You can count on followers for most of your legit lockpicking, though. It's just they can't handle some containers and doors, can't reach some chests in tricky places and generally aren't helpful in robbing people blind.

Ah... I never use companions, so I don't know how well that works.

 

[DraQ]

You can count on followers for most of your legit lockpicking, though. It's just they can't handle some containers and doors, can't reach some chests in tricky places and generally aren't helpful in robbing people blind.

Ah... I never use companions, so I don't know how well that works.

Companions are buggy but pretty useful, especially with Requiem.

They are useful as pack mules, they can be used to compensate for your own deficiencies (for example you can get a tank if you get creamed in melee, an archer or mage if you have to close distance, etc.) and they allow some basic tactical manoeuvring - for example you can pincer someone blocking or with ward up or stand side by side while meleeing in narrow coridor, with one blocking and the other exploiting openings.

Since the enemy typically has numerical advantage it's often the difference between a battle and a gangbang.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

I'm gonna give SkyRe a try later maybe. I see Requiem as 'people who want excessive challenge' kind of mod.
Its default setup of Player taking 300% damage while dealing 25% is honestly wtf. That's just way out of touch with fun.

Aren't those values adjustable at all? Not a huge fan of it either usually, but since the AI is so braindead and mods can't do much to fix that, what else is there.

Apparently not by default (the author says the difficulty is supposed to be static and he didn't want people experiencing a game that's way too hard or way too easy), but SkyTweak lets you adjust it.

I think it's playable with a pure warrior build, but as a beginner mage I couldn't even damage those bandits camping near Whiterun's walls, and those were about the weakest enemies I could find.

There was an amazing mod for Oblivion that handled custom content similarly. It was called Integration: The Stranded Light. Anybody played that?

I was interested, but it had several prerequisites. A racial rebalance, a spell rebalance, and some other stuff. You have to be really interested in playing it.

It's also completely finished, while Requiem is i.e. not updated for Dragonborn compatibility.

Well, for now there's this.

http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/38197/

edit: er, apparently the newest version requires you to download a big "resources" file (intended for the author's other mods) alongside the small compatibility esp. Shame.

 

[DalekFlay]

Companions are buggy but pretty useful, especially with Requiem.

I'm sure, they just tend to annoy me in 3D games like this. Probably because I play a sneaky range person, and they fuck that up half the time.

 

[DraQ]

Companions are buggy but pretty useful, especially with Requiem.

I'm sure, they just tend to annoy me in 3D games like this. Probably because I play a sneaky range person, and they fuck that up half the time.

Well, you can get sneaky companions. They will generally try to sneak whenever you do, and might succeed if they have good enough skill, but don't expect miracles.

I never said anything of the kind - as I said in the very first post, designing Skyrim so that settlements are constantly being ravaged by dragons and vampire packs constitutes a fundamental flaw in itself, and the use of essential tags was a bandaid for that original error.

Except, it was not so it was not.
The game already has another tag, existing and used in gameplay - not just some theoretical "could've-should've" - that works just as essential tag in terms of protecting NPCs from random deaths, but not from player's agency.
The fact they used the actual essential tag instead indicates that they first and foremost wanted to protect players from themselves.

Also, the fact that dragon attacks, vampire raids and whatnot actually kill people is not a fucking flaw. Lack of named NPC generator can be seen as flaw, but not people dying to stuff that is actually supposed to kill them.

Quit being obtuse.

 

[AW8]

The game already has another tag, existing and used in gameplay - not just some theoretical "could've-should've" - that works just as essential tag in terms of protecting NPCs from random deaths, but not from player's agency.
The fact they used the actual essential tag instead indicates that they first and foremost wanted to protect players from themselves.

I thought the Protected Tag didn't work as intended. When is it used in gameplay?

 

[Manjuice Nutella]

 

[Surf Solar]

What's that about?

 

[Manjuice Nutella]

This Requiem: Dragonborn mod. Looks fair to the player

New Vegas companions were great and useful as hell but in Elder Scrolls everyone is melee and gets in the way, and what casters know the most is some Firebolt and Ice Spike, completely useless. Wish they kept the Companion Wheel, but I guess dialogue is more "immersive"

 

[DraQ]

The game already has another tag, existing and used in gameplay - not just some theoretical "could've-should've" - that works just as essential tag in terms of protecting NPCs from random deaths, but not from player's agency.
The fact they used the actual essential tag instead indicates that they first and foremost wanted to protect players from themselves.

I thought the Protected Tag didn't work as intended. When is it used in gameplay?

Followers?

 

[deuxhero]

This Requiem: Dragonborn mod. Looks fair to the player

New Vegas companions were great and useful as hell but in Elder Scrolls everyone is melee and gets in the way, and what casters know the most is some Firebolt and Ice Spike, completely useless. Wish they kept the Companion Wheel, but I guess dialogue is more "immersive"

There's also the fact that New Vegas had passable enough area design instead of corridors so companions didn't get in your way.

 

[AW8]

The game already has another tag, existing and used in gameplay - not just some theoretical "could've-should've" - that works just as essential tag in terms of protecting NPCs from random deaths, but not from player's agency.
The fact they used the actual essential tag instead indicates that they first and foremost wanted to protect players from themselves.

I thought the Protected Tag didn't work as intended. When is it used in gameplay?

Followers?

But you can't kill your followers for as long as they follow you, you have to make them leave your service first (which they'll do if you hit them in the face a few times). And then anything can kill them (providing they're not essential to begin with).