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Visual Enhancements

General visual enhancements including new meshes, and texture replacement packs.

7 files

  1. Really AEVWD

    A modest approach to distant viewable objects, aka VWD.
    You're all familiar with the various VWD packages, right? Some provide more than others. Some are geared specifically toward super-high end machines. One isn't even designed to be played and will cripple anything currently on the market today. For the rest of us, myself included, we'd just like to enhance the visual experience without crippling the game. None of the available packages has been fully optimized, usually with large amounts of unnecessary data still attached.
    In order to address these issues, I've decided to compile into one source as many useful VWD objects as can be reasonably applied to the game from the following sources:
    AEVWD Large: Enhanced lowres textures.
    UOMP: Battlehorn Castle (requires the official DLC to be activated).
    Oblivion: City wall meshes only.
    Brumbek: VWD illuminated windows, optimized lowres texture pack, optional QTP3 lowres texture pack, as well as several mesh and texture fixes.
    Me: Machine regenerated all architecture, Ayleid ruin, and Imperial fort meshes for better quality and lower polygon counts. UOP corrected versions were used for the reductions wherever possible.
    The overall goal is to provide enhanced VWD visuals while also trying to preserve performance as much as possible. This all stems from my realization that even with a high end graphics card, full detail VWD meshes and textures are simply out of the question. The VRAM usage is causing large amounts of stuttering when trying to swap out the memory and not even Streamline 3.1 can keep up. This package has brought the VRAM usage under control and has had a huge impact on overall lag and stuttering.
    All of the meshes have been checked and had the following done:
    Collision data removed. If actual collision grids were still present, the branches have been deleted entirely. It's impossible to collide with a VWD object.
    Animation controllers removed. It is impossible to animate a VWD object, so this data is bloat.
    Geometry morphers removed. If a mesh had these, they've been removed, as they are only useful in animation.
    All NiStringsExtraData blocks removed. These are nearly always associated with collision.
    All BSX Flags removed. These are nearly always used for collision and animation.
    All NiSpecularProperty blocks removed. Leaving these in place causes visual anomalies, most notably the "every VWD turned yellow" issue.
    All NiBinaryExtraData blocks (tangent/normal spaces) removed. This data is not required for VWD meshes and helps tremendously in reducing memory usage.
    All parallax flags turned off. The distances involved make this useless anyway.
    All meshes have been assigned lowres textures instead of hires ones.
    Nearly all NiAlphaProperty blocks removed. If the mesh required it for transparency, it was kept. If this is left on a mesh that does not require it, visual anomalies can result.
    All NiVertexColorProperty blocks removed. These lead to some cases of black VWD objects.
    Optimization using PyFFI after the above has been done.

    In addition to mesh work, all VWD normal maps have had their alpha channels removed since it serves no purpose. This will help some with VRAM, and eliminate issues with sparkly objects.
    The typical VWD mesh comes out the other end of this process losing up to 75% of the data it was carrying with no loss of function. A fully optimized and functional VWD mesh will have only the NiMaterialProperty, NiTexturingProperty, and NiTriShapeData/NiTriStripsData branches left in its NiTriShape/NiTriStrips branches, and will have only NiTriStrips or NiTriShape branches attached to the scene root.
    Compared with all of the other VWD options available, this is the most optimized, game friendly set of VWD objects there is.

    12334 downloads

    1 comment

    Updated

  2. Really AEVWD: SI Edition

    A modest approach to distant viewable objects, aka VWD. Lord Sheogorath will be pleased. Or throw pie at you. Depends on his mood.
    This package performs a similar service for the Shivering Isles as the regular RAEVWD. The main difference is that all of the VWD objects are additions to the process. SI only included a very limited number of distant objects. The city walls around Bliss, Crucible and The Fringe, and the New Sheoth palace. Anyone who has played through SI knows though that there are a lot of large ruins, settlements, and mushroom trees all over the landscape. Not one of these has a distant object provided by Bethesda. So you run into a great deal of "pop-in" as the closeup versions load. So with that in mind I spent a few days generating low-poly meshes out of the missing pieces.
    All of the meshes have been hand checked and had the following done:
    Collision data removed. If actual collision grids were still present, the branches have been deleted entirely. It's impossible to collide with an VWD object.
    Animation controllers removed. It is impossible to animate an VWD object, so this data is bloat.
    Geometry morphers removed. If a mesh had these, they've been removed, as they are only useful in animation.
    All NiStringsExtraData blocks removed. These are nearly always associated with collision.
    All BSX Flags removed. These are nearly always used for collision and animation.
    All NiSpecularProperty blocks removed. Leaving these in place causes visual anomalies, most notably the "every VWD turned yellow" issue.
    All NiBinaryExtraData blocks (tangent/normal spaces) removed. This data is not required for VWD meshes and helps tremendously in reducing memory usage.
    All parallax flags turned off. The distances involved make this useless anyway.
    All meshes have been assigned lowres textures instead of hires ones.
    Nearly all NiAlphaProperty blocks removed. If the mesh required it for transparency, it was kept. If this is left on a mesh that does not require it, visual anomalies can result.
    All NiVertexColorProperty blocks removed. These lead to some cases of black VWD objects.
    Optimization using PyFFI after the above has been done.

    In addition to mesh work, all VWD normal maps have had their alpha channels removed since it serves no purpose. This will help some with VRAM, and eliminate issues with sparkly objects.
    The typical VWD mesh comes out the other end of this process losing up to 75% of the data it was carrying with no loss of function. A fully optimized and functional VWD mesh will have only the NiMaterialProperty, NiTexturingProperty, and NiTriShapeData/NiTriStripsData branches left in its NiTriShape/NiTriStrips branches, and will have only NiTriStrips or NiTriShape branches attached to the scene root.
    Compared with all of the other VWD options available, this is the most optimized, game friendly set of VWD objects there is. And the only one covering Shivering Isles at all.

    3598 downloads

    0 comments

    Updated

  3. Improved Waterfront Ships

    Improved Waterfront Ships
     
    Ever get tired of seeing the same old ships everywhere you go in the game? Did you find it
    odd that all of them were built with the same wood, using the same colors, and none were
    really unique? I did too, and so decided to do something about it.

     
    Details
    The purpose of this mod was too bring a little color and diversity into the ships of Cyrodiil.
    While there are other ship mods which add new models, they still use stock vanilla textures.
    There are also texture replacers out there such as Qarls and Grumblepunks Shipyard. The
    limitation is that you end up with nice looking ships that still all use the same textures.
    So I've tried to give each of the named vanilla ships a look which suits a) their name b) their
    role in the game c) the description given by npcs in the game.


    Future Updates

    Due to real life issues at the time, I never completed the lower decks interiors for any of the
    ships. The first level interiors are all that was finished. Also it was my intention to implement
    AWLS compatibility. Once I wrap up some other projects hopefully this can be finalized.

     
    Known Issues
    Not a true issue but....If you install this after you have entered Serpents Wake or Clarabella, the
    doors will once again be locked. This shouldn't really be a problem. You get a key for Serpents
    Wake at the start of the quest. Also, before attempting Clarabella, you should have a high lock
    pick skill anyway. As the door is set at the highest lock level by default. At worst you may need
    a few more lock picks to get back inside.
    I hope you will have as much fun using this as I had creating it!


    Locations
    1. Imperial City Waterfront: Marie Elena is now the "damn fine ship" that First Mate Malvulis 
        brags about. She is dressed in richly colored hardwoods with engraved mahogany trim.
    2. Anvil Docks: The Sea Tub Clarabella is dirty and downtrodden. Decks soiled, wood cracked,
        and paint peeling. 
    3. Anvil Docks: The Serpents Wake sports rich oak siding, beech timbers, and engraved ash 
        trim work.
    4. Imperial City Waterfront: The Bloated Float is indeed the finest Floating Hotel in all of Cyrodiil. 
        She sports a vivid display of browns and green.
    5. Panther River: The long lost wreck Emma May is decayed and verging on collapse. Are you
        brave enough to risk going in? 


    Requirements
    Oblivion patched to 1.2.0416


    Install
    1. Extract to your Oblivion Data folder either manually or using the mod manager of your choice.
    2. Set load order and play.
    There is an optional VWD folder available as a separate download. This is for the people who want
    to see the new ships in the distance and to have them reflected in the water. Install the meshes and
    textures from the "Optional VWD" folder into your Oblivion/data/meshes and Oblivion/Data/textures.
    Then run TES4LODGen to generate the distant view in game.


    Load Order
    Suggest using BOSS to set load order. These files are already recognized. Specific Load Order
    instructions are included with each read-me file as well. 


    Compatibility
    May conflict with other mods and patches which alter the named vanilla ships. A compatibility patch
    is available for Open Cities Reborn. 
    This mod CAN be used alongside ship texture replacers such as Grumblepunks with no ill effects.
    All of my meshes and textures are unique so texture replacers will not override them.


    Credits
    Bethesda                   - for Oblivion and the CS
    Nifskope and Gimp    - for the tools that made this possible
    Tes4Edit                    - for cleaning the inevitable dirt from my mods
    LHammonds              - for the read-me generator this file was based on
    Bond123                    - for the "Bonds Skyship" which inspired me to start down this path
    Vorians                      - for the help with sorting out my door issues
    Grumblepunk             - for allowing use of the Moretta textures
    Deathless Aphrodite   - for allowing use of the Cybiades textures
    Arthmoor                    - for use of his VWD meshes, and the tutorial which taught me to make my own
    SkandarGraun            - for the "Nolda Renovated" mod which inspired the Bloated Float design.
    Nephenee13               - for being so darn quick to respond every time I post a cry for help


    Legal Stuff
    Please do not upload these files to any other sites without my express consent. With the exception
    of two, all of the textures used herein are my personal work, and they represent a significant
    investment of my personal time. So if you wish to use any of them, you need to ask first. If you
    wish to use the borrowed resources contained in this package, you will need to contact the authors
    listed above for their permission. 

    306 downloads

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  4. Wolf UI and Tamriel maps

    This is a collection of UI tweaks, map handling and Tamriel maps. All modules are independent of each other, but please still read the descriptions below. The overall look and feel remains vanilla, in particular icon size and font is unchanged. If you want smaller icons or a Skyrim feel, use one of the many other UI mods instead.
    You will find a number of zip files under the Downloads button. Each addresses a single aspect of the UI that is being changed. Most of them have no ESP, this is just configuration to be copied to your Oblivion\Data folder. Make sure to back up your original files before unpacking the zips!

    Just a bigger map
    This module enlarges the map window. It overwrites the layout of the pages under the "map" tab: the local map, the world map, and the three log pages - the log pages will be returned to vanilla, also in fonts! This is because of how Oblivion menu files are set up, I could not change only the two map pages, the logs have to come along too.
    Map zoom is set with map configuration. There are three zoom levels to choose from - vanilla, 0.75 of vanilla and 0.5 of vanilla. You can only have one zoom level at a time! The files overwrite each other.
    If you want variable zoom, use Dynamic Map. This module is compatible, and it doesn't really matter which zoom level you choose as the default.
    This module requires OBSE.
     
    Borderless map marker icons
    Changes the look of map markers making them borderless in silver and gold. Silver is for undiscovered markers, gold is for discovered ones. I tried to make a set that would be clearly visible on coloured maps like terrain or Elven maps. Golden icons are very similar to vanilla ones for discovered markers, while silver icons are unobtrusive, yet still visible both on dark and light background.
    This is a complete set that includes all vanilla icons and all extra icon types added by the Map Marker Overhaul by the Nice One.

    Borderless compass
    This module makes the compass borderless and 50% wider than the original.
    Because the entire HUD configuration is stored in one and the same file, you get all the rest of your HUD modified as well - it is returned to vanilla. This includes your status bars, your weapon and spell icons, your current magic effect icons and the descriptions of things you are looking at. Unless you have a clever UI mod that can inject components into the HUD, you will have it all reset to vanilla.

    Remove fist icon
    Removes the fist icon that is shown when you have no weapon equipped. Technically the icon is overwritten with an "empty space" icon, so the structure of the HUD is preserved.

    Remove level up icon
    This module removes the level up icon that is shown when your character is ready to level up. The UI layout is unchanged, this simply makes the icon invisible. You'll have to check your logbook now to know when you're ready to level up.

    Reveal Map Markers Extended
    An extension of HunterZ's Reveal Map Markers mod to work with Shivering Isles and Morroblivion and to fix incorrect map marker status so that undiscovered map markers are still shown as undiscovered. Configurable per marker type, supports custom markers.
    This replacement is made with HunterZ's permission.

    Tamriel maps
    These modules have a map of the entire Tamriel based on TWMP geography. There are two types of maps here: a set of modules for the Dynamic Map and a static map to replace the default map of Cyrodiil.
    The static map has an ESP and a map graphic. Make sure that the ESP is all the way on the bottom of the load order, or it won't work. The only ESPs that are allowed to come after it, are ESPs for other static maps. This module requires MenuQ.
    Dynamic Map modules come in two variants: full resolution and half resolution. This is just the resolution of the graphics, the maps are the same otherwise. Some PCs have difficulties displaying full resolution maps, so then half resolution is here as a fall-back option. These modules require both Dynamic Map and MenuQ.

    Morroblivion Tamriel Rebuilt map
    A high definition map of entire Morrowind - Vvardenfell, Solstheim and mainland, with roads. Based on the geography of Tamriel Rebuilt, but does not require it.
    This map is for the Morrowind worldspace as used in original Morroblivion, this is not a part of the Tamriel worldspace used by TWMP. You can, of course, run Morroblivion while also running TWMP, but be aware that this is a separate map, so none of your Morrowind markers will appear on the large map of Tamriel.
    This version also includes the islands for Nebula Isles, Fort Pinewood and Solstheim Castle. If you are not using these mods, simply ignore the islands on the map - they are quite small.
    This module is a static map and will work with or without Dynamic Map. Make sure that the ESP is on the bottom of your load order. The only ESPs that are allowed to come after it, are ESPs for other static maps.

    33 downloads

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  5. AFK_PrayerIdles

    If you've ever been in a chapel, you've noticed characters standing at the altars, staring into space. Or maybe you've noticed the endless restoration sounds as characters lunge at the altars for hours on end. This mod aims to change all that.
    AFK_PrayerIdles ties idle animations to many of the vanilla AI packages for priests and worshippers in the great chapels of Cyrodiil. Now, when an NPC with the proper AI package approaches an altar, they will choose between kneeling and standing praying animations. The result of these small changes is a much more atmospheric, religious chapel experience.

    333 downloads

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  6. AFK_Map

    A fixed up version of the vanilla map in three versions:
     
    - Modified vanilla, showing a couple of roads that aren't in the stock version.
    - Lost Spires version, showing a small road added by LS.
    - New Roads and Bridges version, accurately showing all roads added by NR&B. This is the most accurate version available.
     
    Also includes all combinations of these versions. Also includes various GIMP files to make it possible to create and modify roads.
     
    The New Roads and Bridges part is included in TheNiceOne's Dynamic Map, which is more suitable for most people.

    133 downloads

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  7. Aurora in Motion Everywhere Plus

    Aurora in Motion Everywhere Plus
    v1
    ======================
    This mod tweaks laulajatars Aurora in Motion Everywhere to randomly show the two color variations of Northern Lights. While you had to decide for the purple or the green & pink version before, this mod gives both a chance of 50 % to appear.
    Requires OBSE.
    I only altered laulajatars script as per permission given on the mods Nexus page:
    https://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/48893
    Originally this was based on Elbethiens Realistic Aurora in Motion, who has kindly given permission for modders to use her beautiful models and textures:
    https://www.nexusmods.com/oblivion/mods/46917/
    Installation
    --------------
    Extract the files to your Oblivion/Data folder and activate with OBMM / Wrye Bash / ...

    39 downloads

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