Skyrim V: Skyrim

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Yeah, uninstall sounds right, especially because I was also having problems with parts of dungeons disappearing and falling through the floor...

[VanBuren]

With E3 officially concluded, we've taken the chance to round up some more coverage for Skyrim's first DLC (or maybe we should call it expansions?) Dawnguard, in the form of two previews and one video interview with art director Matt Carofano.

RPGFan:

Vampires play a little bit differently than regular characters; you'll obviously get more powerful at night, and there's no access to your human inventory or your dragon shouts. To compensate, vampires have quite a few abilities, both magic and melee attacks are available, and swapping between the modes is as simple as clicking your analog stick. There are abilities like Mist Form, which makes you temporarily invulnerable as you regenerate health, magic, and stamina, as well as abilities like life drain and vampiric grip, which allows you to grab enemies telekinetically and throw them quite a ways away. It ends up being a great ability for crowd control, even if it doesn't do much damage.

We didn't get to dig deep into the story of Dawnguard, but the combat is certainly entertaining with the new additions. Alongside the new abilities is everything you'd expect in an expansion pack – more environments, more armor, and even an entirely new weapon type: the crossbow. New content in Dawnguard will seamlessly integrate into Skyrim, and you'll see new vampiric creatures as you explore the core world of Skyrim.

Destructoid seems fairly negative about it and worries about balance:

The third-person view of Skyrim was a vast improvement over previous Bethesda games, but you’d still be hard-pressed to find players who prefer it to first-person. It’s baffling to me, then, why the vampire form restricts the player to third-person combat. When I asked the developers about the decision-making process behind this, they sheepishly replied, “Well ... it’s what we did for the werewolf in Morrowind.” Making the same mistake twice is a defining trait of Bethesda, so maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised.

No matter what, third-person will be less immersive than first-person, but that doesn’t mean it has to be bad. Dawnguard is bad because the animation, combat, and movement of the vampire is incredibly awkward -- a few steps back from what Bethesda achieved in Skyrim. The vampire shuffles forward with his hulking body obscuring most of your view; his hand-to-hand combat has a considerable amount of lag on it; and transforming in and out of vampire form is awkward. Then there are other annoyances, like losing the ability to check out your map or manage inventory in the form. Because, you know, vampires are just too evil to stop and read maps.

Finally, GameSpot has a "stage demo" (essentially a community interview with footage being played) with the title's art director, who delves into the newly introduced mechanics and content. Among other thing we learn that Bethesda has apparently went back to touch up on all the vampires already present in Skyrim with this DLC, giving them new abilities and changing their look. Nice.

[Triaxx]

Yeah, they always complain about the camera, but the thing is, that for something like the Werewolf, it's hard to maneuver in first person. I've taken to staying in third person unless I'm in a dungeon, because otherwise I spend all my time running off cliffs.

Of course since this new Vampire can FLY I suspect that won't be such a problem.

[karpik777]

Originally Posted by Triaxx

Of course since this new Vampire can FLY I suspect that won't be such a problem.

From what people (ie. the team and journalist who got to play) it is more like hovering above the ground, not true flying - I'm not sure if it would help when falling off a cliff...

[Beowulf DW]

I just hope that they don't make the vampire more powerful than the werewolf. Because cliche as it is, vampire vs. werewolf battle would be awesome, and fights are best when the combatants are evenly matched.

[Luzahn]

Originally Posted by Beowulf DW

I just hope that they don't make the vampire more powerful than the werewolf. Because cliche as it is, vampire vs. werewolf battle would be awesome, and fights are best when the combatants are evenly matched.

When did that become cliche, by the way? The first time I remember it happening was the Van Helsing movie.

[Lamech]

So dawngaurd looks awesome! Also PC's are clearly better because they have the console.

[Beowulf DW]

Originally Posted by Luzahn

When did that become cliche, by the way? The first time I remember it happening was the Van Helsing movie.

Twilight used it. Underworld used it. Dance in the Vampire Bund uses it, too. It may not b cliche yet, but it's getting there.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Yay, fixed the problems I was having!
Clearly this means I must install EVEN MORE MODS.

[Luzahn]

Originally Posted by Beowulf DW

Twilight used it. Underworld used it. Dance in the Vampire Bund uses it, too. It may not b cliche yet, but it's getting there.

Hm. Had forgotten about Underworld. Also, Twilight doesn't count. That's just a guy that turns into a wolf, if that movie ad that I saw was accurate.

[Tergon]

Replace Twilight with Van Helsing, then. And then add a few billion internet memes and fanfictions, stir until boiling, and finish by shooting yourself.

Really, if Skyrim's going to power up both of the "monster" races, I'd much rather see them twist the theme by making them allies. Honestly, it makes so much more sense, don't you think? Yes, okay, they are noncompatible monster races who are stealing each other's food, but still. They're pretty equal in power, equally despised and killed on sight, and complement one another well with their abilities. An alliance against the mortal races just makes so much more sense.

[Triaxx]

Wouldn't happen in Skyrim, though for good reason, instead of just because it's awesome to watch. If I'm recalling correctly, Vampires and Werewolves are the provences of two seprate Daedric Lords, and thus aren't excatly going to be acting together.

Of course, I could be wrong. I was expecting Hammerfell instead of Skyrim, so...

[Grue Bait]

Originally Posted by Triaxx

Wouldn't happen in Skyrim, though for good reason, instead of just because it's awesome to watch. If I'm recalling correctly, Vampires and Werewolves are the provences of two seprate Daedric Lords, and thus aren't excatly going to be acting together.

Of course, I could be wrong. I was expecting Hammerfell instead of Skyrim, so...

So, I know that werewolves are Hircine's, but who has the vampires? Namira? Also, why wouldn't they get along?

[Dhavaer]

Originally Posted by Grue Bait

So, I know that werewolves are Hircine's, but who has the vampires? Namira? Also, why wouldn't they get along?

Molag Bal, I think.

[Landis963]

Originally Posted by Grue Bait

So, I know that werewolves are Hircine's, but who has the vampires? Namira? Also, why wouldn't they get along?

Originally Posted by Dhavaer

Molag Bal, I think.

Which, to answer your question, is why they don't get along, in a nutshell. Molag Bal doesn't play well with others.

[Lamech]

Wait, so this means that they never got along... hmm... So TES had vampires vs werewolves before it was cool?

[Beowulf DW]

Originally Posted by Landis963

Which, to answer your question, is why they don't get along, in a nutshell. Molag Bal doesn't play well with others.

He enjoys dominating pretty much everyone else, and even tries to claim the soul of a priest of another daedric lord. So yeah, even other daedra hate him.

Being called the King of Rape isn't helping him, either.

[Tergon]

That's assuming that they're all still faithful. Skyrim gives us a group of Vampires who want a cure so badly they'll go behind Molag Bal's back and entreat with Clavicus Vile, and a Werewolf who hates what he is so badly he steals Hircine's Ring. Just because you're a creature who falls under a Daedra's dominion doesn't mean you're necessarily a worshipper.

There's lots of ways it could work. One group (either the Vamps or the Wolves) could have captured and enslaved the other, which fits both Molag Bal and Hircine's modus opperandi. Or, both groups could have turned their back on their Daedric Lords and begun an alliance under their own power - it could even be one of the two Lords who employs you to wipe them out. Or perhaps the two Daedra Lords are allied out of necessity, hating each other but knowing they need to work together to take down another enemy. Jygallag, perhaps, who's decided that he wants revenge on those who betrayed him and finds the Corruptor and the Hunter far too chaotic for his tastes, but easier targets than the other Daedric Lods.

[Grue Bait]

Originally Posted by Landis963

Which, to answer your question, is why they don't get along, in a nutshell. Molag Bal doesn't play well with others.

Ah okay. I was pretty confused as to why any daedra would hate another. Then you mentioned Molag Bal. Nobody likes him.

[Brother Oni]

Originally Posted by Lamech

Wait, so this means that they never got along... hmm... So TES had vampires vs werewolves before it was cool?

I think World of Darkness has it beat by a couple years. Checking wiki, the first TES game was '94 (TES: Arena) while the first oWoD publication was '91.

[Triaxx]

That and with a couple of exceptions Daedric Lords are known for occasionally just taking the Evil for Evil's sake knob and cranking it up to eleven, for no reason other than because they feel like it.

I don't think we'll get too much werewolves v Vamps though. Mostly because werewolves have a separate 'Destroy them all' group.

[Avilan the Grey]

Okay... I am going to start a new character this weekend. A female sneaker, again.

BUT, I have cleaned up the game totally, no mods. Anyone have a good mod list (mainly atmospheric mods)? Wildlife, Weather, maybe bows?

[TheEmerged]

So, for the record the patch cleaned up my "ribbing texture" problem, but actually made seeing underwater *worse*. Before I could 'peak' underwater while just below the surface at certain angles. Now, the moment I'm underwater the screen goes completely black. Before it was a kind of muddled grey; now it looks like the monitor went to sleep.

I've officially started the thieves' guild quests as part of operation "All 100".

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

*sigh*, I loaded too many texture mods, need to cut down on the prettiness a little. Taking out the clothes helped some, but Wrye Bash doesn't really help for most texture mods in my experience...
I should keep a log of which texture and mesh files are from which mods, for mods without ESPs, so I can delete those without breaking other things.

Edit: I haven't put any streamlining and performance mods in yet, though, one good performance mod should bring me back up to the level of performance I need. Also, I should update my video drivers, because I haven't done that in a little while.

[Avilan the Grey]

Okay, I found the Proper Aiming Mod, that basically improves the correctness of the aim by making arrows hit closer to the crosshair (they pull to the right otherwise, apparently).

I have also seen a mod on Youtube that gives archery more perks AND split bows into short- and longbows. I cannot find it though.

I also installed a lightmod, Dynamic Snow, More Birds and W.A.T.E.R.

Any more suggestions for atmospheric mods?

[Grue Bait]

So I was thinking of starting a new character. It'd be a mage of some sort, but beyond that, I have no clue. Does anyone have any suggestions on this? Race, style of play, best perks, etc.?

[factotum]

Originally Posted by Avilan the Grey

Okay, I found the Proper Aiming Mod, that basically improves the correctness of the aim by making arrows hit closer to the crosshair (they pull to the right otherwise, apparently).

I never noticed that, and I played the game as a ranged assassin (e.g. shoot from sneak)--I rarely missed, even at extreme range.

[Avilan the Grey]

Originally Posted by factotum

I never noticed that, and I played the game as a ranged assassin (e.g. shoot from sneak)--I rarely missed, even at extreme range.

I know; last sneaker I played (my avatar) had little problem too. But I want to try it out.

Also, More Farm Animals Mod is now installed.

Edit: I saw on a new let's play that the guy got critical animations with the bow. Is that in the new patch, or is that a mod?

[Tergon]

No, it's in the new patch. And it's AWFUL.

It triggers when you land a critical and your opponent is near death. But not always on the death blow itself. I often shoot my target and hit them, but they just keep charging at me. And because the critical animation means that I stand still, they can either get dangerously close, or if they have a ranged attack, they can fire back at me.
And that's just the opponent I'm hitting. If there's another opponent out there, they can attack freely while I'm busy locked into the critical strike animation.

As a mage and an archer, I've copped quite a few hits that way. Died more than once too.

[Avilan the Grey]

Originally Posted by Tergon

No, it's in the new patch. And it's AWFUL.

It triggers when you land a critical and your opponent is near death. But not always on the death blow itself. I often shoot my target and hit them, but they just keep charging at me.

So it is just like in FO:NV then