Monday, June 10, 2013

Into Oblivion

Today I got my hands on the latest version of Skyrim, the Legendary Edition. So what's the logical thing to do now? Well, play Oblivion of course!

I've spent the last two weeks working to get my current install of Oblivion into a heavily-modded state that I'd be satisfied playing an actual long-term campaign with, so despite the allure of another shiny new Elder Scrolls game this afternoon I decided to start an Oblivion campaign from scratch.

The first companion I picked up was Svatava, who was originally a CM Partners companion until I decided to graft her onto one of the popular GGC Companions (minus the face paint you'll see in the last screenshot of this post). I like the scripting of these companions so I thought this time around my followers shouldn't be exclusively CM Partners. However, once I had taken Svatava through Vilverin (fully enhanced by Martigen's Monster Mod and Francesco's Creatures and Items Mod) I decided that, despite the increased number of enemies, she was just a bit too powerful for me to be traveling with so early in the game. So, on the fly, I polished up one of my Ainmhi works-in-progress and added her to the game. (That's one of the great things about CM Partners: you can pretty much add new characters or remove them whenever you want without worrying that it might bork the game.)
In full sunlight Frona is a bit paler than I'd prefer, but I used a pale freckled skin texture to begin with and it seems to fit well with the whole pink motif she seems to have fallen into.

I'm also unusually satisfied with how my player character has evolved. Usually she looks a bit more rugged and butch, but this time she ended up looking a bit more glamorous somehow. Doesn't seem to be a bad thing, though.
So anyway, that's what I've been up to.

I'll leave you now with this last, older screenshot that's a nice example of how things can change as my creative process runs its course:

4 comments:

  1. So, Skyrim is finally done and over with, so, maybe it is finally safe to get a copy? I noticed that it is not a "Game of the Year" edition, so that says something to me. That said, the only thing that really caught my eye about Skyrim (beyond being "pretty") was the Dawnguard DLC.

    I had to click the link you posted for the GGC Companions to find out what that was, and discovered that It was for a newer version of a companion I have in my collection: Valeria. That is also the basis for one of the versions of the Vailena vampire companion, done by ladyvailen on the Nexus.

    You have yourself a rather cute avatar for your current play through. I noticed the eyes right off, but almost missed the ears. I have to ask, does she have a tail as well?

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    1. Does she have a tail? Why, of course! A nekomimi cat-girl without a tail would be like a cheerleader with no pom-poms!

      I also noted the lack of the GOTY acronym in the title of this version of Skyrim, but I'm hoping this "Legendary Edition" does indeed mean that they're done cranking out DLCs. (This version also includes the Official High-Res Texture Pack BTW.)

      Did Fallout New Vegas ever reach GOTY status? I remember there was a version labeled "Ultimate Edition", but I don't recall seeing a GOTY version.

      I'm still trying to decide if I prefer the individualized companions like the ones based on the GGC scripts or the mass-production method of CM Partners. At this point I have enough add-ons for CM Partners (or NPCs in general) that I can make a CM Partners companion do almost everything one of those GGC companions can do (thanks in part to our friend Nos).

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    2. Okay, I rather thought she would have a tail, but I thought I would ask just to verify. Cheerleader without pom-poms...*ponders, then bites tongue* Ahem! Continuing on...

      As far as a FNV GOTY edition is concerned, no, I do not believe it reached that status, unlike its predecessor. I couldn't say way, but maybe not being as innovative or engaging as other games that came out around the same time may have something to do with it. Mass Effect 2, for example.

      In regards to companion "system" preference, I use both the stand alone types, as well as the CM Partner based ones in Oblivion. I find that each "system" has its advantages and disadvantages that mixing them in my party can occasionally cancel each other out. For Fallout 3, RR Vault characters take top spot, with SCC and standalone vying for second place. I have found that if I am making a character just for screen shot purposes, SCC works best. NCCS characters are my exclusive choice in FNV, with my using only one standalone at all, and that would be Willow.

      Okay, I'm done rambling for now. XD

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