Oblivionauts Release Plan

Release Plan:

The Oblivionauts v1.0 release is going to be staggered through a separation into two parts: the Foundation Release, and the Citadel Release.

The first part of the v1.0 release is planned for completion in May-April. Hopefully it will be complete in May, but I am setting mid-April as the expected release time because software always takes longer to make than expected. More info on a specific release date will be given when it is available.

Foundation Release:

The Foundation Release (v0.5) will include everything required for modders to create maps for Oblivionauts. It will feature a hub, from which the player can travel to other realms of Oblivion by choosing a map from a list. At the hub you can heal, rest, trade and upgrade your equipment, as well as interact with the characters in that hub. The hub will include some pre-written and voice-acted characters that help you progress your character and travel to other realms. A unique background story is included, but you will not be required to learn about or participate in it to use the features of Oblivionauts. The primary goal of the Foundation Release and its hub is not to tell a story and quest, but rather to provide provide a way for modders to make their own without worrying about conflicts and incompatibilities with vanilla Skyrim or other mods.

Citadel Release:

The Citadel Release (v1.0) will be the release of the first complete Realm for Oblivionauts. It will include a new Worldspace for you to explore and vanquish. I don't want to reveal too many details or plans for the Citadel yet. However, we will post an update when we are ready to reveal our designs for the map.

Current Progress:

Currently, the Foundation Release is about 1/3 - 1/2 complete. Before this ModDB page was created, most of our work was conceptual and primarily included drawing up designs and plans. Since the creation of the ModDB page, the more visual work in the Creation Kit has been the center of focus.

Scheduled family visits have taken place on my weekends during the past two weeks, and my work hours have been irregular, keeping me from modding as much as I would like. However, it appears as if I will be able to get back on track in the following weeks.

How to help:

In previous articles I told you to apply on the forums to join the team. I am going write a news article soon detailing changes for the contribution system soon. The article will show you how you can actively contribute to the project with art, designs, and level-designing through the Creation Kit without committing to the project. The biggest barrier to people interested in helping with a project is the committal which they have to make to the team. I want to avoid that need to commit, so I am working on setting up a system that makes our project open-source. This will make Oblivionauts more accessible to modders who wish to contribute their work and time to Oblivionauts without having to officially become part of the team. Details will come soon, so read the following section on how to stay tuned if you want to be updated.

Stay Tuned!

Watch our ModDB page!

Follow me on Twitter!

Modders Wanted for Oblivionauts!

In order to create Oblivionauts, our team needs help from you and the Skyrim modding community. If you want to join our team, or know of someone you think would be of help to us, then please read below for more information.

Positions:

• Level-Designers: Current members of the Oblivionauts team are capable of level-creation but do not have the experience that is needed for this project. To create the Realms, we are in need of level-designers who can create Interiors or Worldspaces. Experience in the creation of either one will help us, but a Worldspace designer will be needed for the Realms. Level-designers will work with the artists and story-designers to create the maps, and integrate their details. Dearthwit Spire and the Citadel's (read the Release Plan section of the mod's description) maps, characters, and stories have already been largely designed, but their locations have not been created.
• Artists: Concept artists are of great value to a project like this. They allow writers and story designers to put their ideas into a visual format, and help level-designers implement them into the game.
• Modelers: Like artists, modelers are of great value. New meshes and textures add fresh content to the world that makes it feel unique to the player.

In the future, we may also have positions available for voice-actors, quest-designers, and scripters. We are not quite at the stage where we are ready to recruit those types of moddders yet. When we are, then we will post a news update.

 Apply:

When applying, please provide us with examples of previous work (mods, art, team projects, etc.), your contact information, and some basic information about yourself and your skills.  Level-designers need to have experience with the Creation Kit and example mods to show us.

To apply, please post in our ModDB forums.

If you do not feel like you are qualified or do not have the time to help us directly, then please feel free to suggest modders for us to ask to join our team. If we know of a great modder that we would like to have on our team, then we will invite them. We know that modders have their own projects and ambitions, though, so we will do our best to not pester good modders or interfere with their own plans. 

If we like your work and if you seem like a nice person, then we will send you an invitation to become a member of our wiki. This will allow you to see the hidden development section of our wiki, and to post in the development forum. Because of this, you must make sure to provide us with your e-mail address.

Feel free to apply, ask for more information, or suggest modders. We look forward to working with you and with the community to create Oblivionauts. :-)

New ModDB page for Oblivionauts!

A new ModDB page has been created for Oblivionauts! On it are new details and art for our upcoming Skyrim modding Project. Please feel free to check it out, read about it, visit our links, see our concepts, and let us know what you think!

ModDB page

Wiki:

In addition, we have a wiki that we are using to develop the mod and store information. When the mod is released, it will also act as the main website for Oblivionauts. If you want to learn more about the mod's details, you can visit it at the link below. The hidden Development section contains the majority of our details for now. When pages are finalized, then they will be moved out of the hidden section. Please keep in mind as you view the wiki, that it is everything on there is subject to change, and not everything is visible to non-developers.

Wiki

Winter Break Modding Project

I'm thinking about working on a Skyrim modding project over winter break. Unlike my previous projects, this one would involve storytelling and quests rather than gameplay recoding. Are there any of y'all that would be interested in working with me for a few weeks between semesters to create an interesting and unique modification to Skyrim? I am looking for people with any of the following skills:

Story/quest writing
Character design
Art/3d-modeling
Programming
Level design
Voice Acting
Fictional worldbuilding
Game testing

The concept for the project has already been developed some, but I would like input while developing the rest of it and help with creating the actual mod. For those of you who have played Skyrim but do not have a PC copy, I may consider PAYING to get you a copy of the game for your PC.

Obviously, you will need to have a PC capable of running the game if you are going to work on the coding, modeling, or level design. You would also need to be willing to work with me and any others on the team, as well as be able to devote some time each week during the break to the project.

If you are interested, then please message me and I can give you more details on the project. I can guarantee that you will find plenty of interesting work if you do join. :-)

Once the project is complete then it would be released for free online for players to download. A donation link would be available for fans, and any donations would be split with you.

If you are interested in my previous modding work, you can check out the following pages:

Skyrim Nexus: http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/users/1266423
Steam Workshop: http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198008458024/myworkshopfiles
Modding Blog: http://tesmods.blogspot.com/


My mods have been downloaded over 40,000 people and viewed by likely 300,000.

1.5 Changelog

1.5 Changelog

Here (finally) is the changelog for the 1.5 update for the Skyrim mod "Way of the Monk":

+ Improved appearance of the Pillars locations
+ Fixed the requirements for Irons Fists 3
+ Fixed issue for some NPCs where they would appear naked
+ Replaced Cultist Follower with a voiced follower
+ Added a quest to find all of the Pillars, with a reward for finding all of them. Start the quest by reading the book, "The Pillars".
+ Fist weapons are now affected by OneHanded Perks. The Claws, Talons, Punch Daggers, and Katar are affected by the sword perks; the Ulaks are affected by the War Axe perks; and the perferators and Burning Fists are affected by the Mace perks
+ Increased base damage of Steel Punch Daggers by 1
+ Created more Cultist NPCs
+ The new follower now levels with you up to level 60
+ Unarmored now does not level when you are a werewolf
+ Fixed issue where the OneHanded Unarmed Weapon was doing more damage and affected by more perks than it was supposed to.
+ The Deadly Blows perks no longer stack
+ Fixed menu issues with the Silent Movement and Padded Movement perks
+ Corrected information in the menu for the Wielder Pillar
+ Added visual effect to Whirlwind Attacks from the Wielder Pillar
+ Fixed the menu issues with acquiring the Vitality perks
+ Fixed the conditions for the Vitality perks

I apologize for the delay. I've been pretty busy and tired recently because of the new school semester. I will start work on version 1.6 soon.

Way of the Monk can be downloaded at the following locations:

Skyrim Nexus

Steam Workshop

1.4 Changelog

This is a complete changelog for the 1.4 beta update to Way of the Monk. If more changes are made in the release edition of 1.4, then they will be added to this list.

You can download the beta version of 1.4 here.

Changelog:

+ Evasion and Escape enchantments can now be put onto other robes
+ Fixed requirements of the Rapid Fists 2 perk and the Rending Strikes 2 perk
+ Added a Perk Requirements book that tells you the requirements for every perk. It has been added to the table at the Pillars of the Way.
+ Changed Soft Resistance to apply to all weapons
+ Created two more levels of the Unarmored Stance perk and changed its requirements
+ The Whirlwind effect now only works on the Unarmed weapon
+ Created the Unimpeded Combat perk, with three levels, that increases your attack speed when you are unarmored
+ Created the Endurance perk that increases your health regen in combat
+ Created the Vitality perks, which lets you choose the Stamina or Magicka attribute. Which ever one you choose will have its regen fortified in combat.
+ Created the Silent Movement perk that reduces your movement noise by 50% when you are unarmored
+ Created the Padded Movement perks that make you harder to detect when sneaking and unarmored
+ Created the Chokehold perks that increases your sneak-attack damage with the Unarmed weapon and with the Monk weapons
+ Created the Knockout Punch perk that allow you to knock out your enemies when sneaking, undetected, and using the Unarmed weapon
+ Created the Martial Master perk that reflects 10% of damage when you are unarmored
+ Split the Unarmored perk category into two subcategories: Defense and Combat. The perks have also been re-organized.
+ Changed the menus and functions of the Progress, Choice, and Rewalking Pillars to reflect changes

Final 1.4 update (after beta):
+ Created a chest to contain the books and items at the Pillars of the Way
+ Added a Hooded Robes of the Way at the Pillars of the Way for those who are playing at high difficulties
+ Update the Choice power with the menu changes
+ Update the Progress power with the menu changes
+ Corrected Unarmored Stance description
+ Fixed the misdirecting buttons in the Progress menu
+ Slightly increased base damage of Orcish claws for balancing
+ Slightly increased base damage of Daedric claws for balancing
+ Slightly decreased base damage of Elven Glaive for balancing

Poll: What Feature Do You Want?

If you've been following the comments on the Skyrim Nexus page for Way of the Monk, then you probably read me talking about a poll for new features. The gist of that discussion is this: Because I only have a limited amount of time to focus on modding, and because I want to please as many of my players as possible, I have been gathering a list of requested features to be added to the next version. Feel free to continue suggesting additions. Each of you get 3 votes for what you want to see in the next version. You can spend all of those votes on one feature, or spread them out. Post below in the comments with your 3 votes, along with any areas that you want me to work on (they will be added to the list).

• Chi system (needs a minimum of 20 votes) [4 votes]
• Improved aesthetics
• More perks [3 votes]
• More enchantments
• Perk transparency/improvement (making it easier for you to know the requirements) [2 votes]
• Improve unarmed stealth combat [3 votes]
• Food/alchemicy buffs for unarmed combat
• More armor (only I only have spellweaver armor approved so far)

The five features with the most votes will be added to the next version of the mod, as long a they have a minimum of 2 votes each. Feel free to suggest more!

Suggestions can include having specific mods incorporated into this one, but you MUST have gained permission from the mod author beforehand. I won't add a mod unless I have permission from the author.

Skyrim Monk Let's Play #1 - Intro

I have uploaded a new video for the Way of the Monk mod to Youtube. This video describes how the mod works, and introduces my upcoming Let's Play series for it.

If you'd like to be notified when I post more videos, then feel free to subscribe to the channel.

Video Updates

If you've been reading the comment sections of either the Steam Workshop page or the Nexus page, you might have noticed me posting about video updates.

In fact, I have created a new Youtube channel for my modding projects. So far, I have created three videos to provide you with news. These videos will be coming out fairly regularly. I expect to be making at least one a week, and will also upload them whenever I have important information to give to ya'll.

The latest one can be watched below, which talks about the damage bug with the Unarmed weapon. In it, I also talk about how to fix the issue and discuss what will be in the next update. Feel free to subscribe to the channel if you would like to recieve notifications when I post modding updates and the occasional gameplay footage of Skyrim or other games that I run across.

Version 1.3 Changelog

I have completed most of the work on the next update and will post the final version as soon as I can on the Nexus and the Workshop. I am also going to release a temporary beta version tonight for those aching to play it. That way, some of ya'll get to go ahead and play it, and the others get to play a more polished version when it is released tomorrow or the day after.

As for the changes, there are quite a lot. Most of these changes required numerous other changes to code and systems that I do not even mention. If I make any more for found bugs by beta-testers, or if I add something new, then I will add that work to the list below. The most important changes are listed in the Highlights section.

Highlights:

• Savegame bloat issue has been eliminated. It might still bloat a little more than without any mods, but no more than is expected. I have not done extensive testing on this, but it appears that you might even be able to use a character from a bloated save. Load the save with the new version and create a new save when you are done playing. Basic testing seemed to indicate that the fix eliminated or at least reduced existing bloat.
• A level cap of 100 on both skills has been added
• A large set of ingame help and troubleshooting files has been added to the Pillar of the Way
• You can now disable either of the skills at the Pillar of Rewalking
• Many of the menus have been either improved or mostly recreated to be easier to use and less buggy
• The perks have been rebalanced so that you can specialize in using the "Unarmed" weapon or using the monk weapons (more details to come in a blog post)

Efficiency/Coding-improvements:

• Removed some calculations from leveling scripts to improve speed
• Changed a number of debug notifications to use message notifications with flags to insert variables
• Perk Points Earned is only calculated when neccesary to reduce the amount of math on each Event, changed the Pillars' scripts to account for that
• Changed some variables to integers rather than floats
• Changed the way that the Level progress is calculated to use integers and be more efficient
• Eliminated some redundant Objects that are not used by the mod, but were added during creation
• Eliminated Unarmored scaling script (got rid of the savegame bloating)
• Eliminated the non-functioning Unarmed scaling scripts
• Elemental perks are now removed when you choose a new Path
• Corrected the conditions for a number of perks and messages that were not working

Gameplay:

• A level cap of 100 has been added to both skills
• Both skills take more time to level
• The teleportation ability and a number of spell have been removed from Apostate Elders
• Savegame bloat issue has been eliminated
• Removed Unarmed and Unarmored scaling scripts. They weren't working properly and were causing the bloat

Menus:

• Help menus added to the Pillar of the Way for the Pillars, Monk weapons, Leveling system, equipment, and Player Guides
• Troubleshooting menus added to the Pillar of the Way
• A 'Give Unarmed' Button has been added to the Pillar of the Way so that you can get another "Unarmed" weapon if you need one
• A Settings menu has been added to the Pillar of Rewalking that lets you disable either of the skills
• The 'Update' option has been removed from the menus
• The Stats menu has been improved and the Level Progress is now displayed as a whole number
• Changed the perk system so that the categories are broken down into branches
• Eradicated the bug where clicking 'Ok' when there were not perks available would take you to a message for a perk
• Added some 'Return' and 'Close' buttons to various menus for navigation ease
• Cleaned up the text for some menus to improve their appearance and readability
• Changed the content of a number of menus to be updated to the current system and be more informative

Perks:

• Damage bonus for The Shadow Pillar now properly works and adds an extra 20% chance to crit when sneaking and using either the "Unarmed" weapon or the
• Perk names now follow a format. Those with "Fists" in the name work for the "Unarmed" weapon. Those with "Strikes" in the name work for the Monk weapon. And those with "Blows" in the name work for both.
• Bleeding Hands renamed to Rending Strikes
• Renamed Quick Blows to Rapid Fists
• Renamed Tiring Blows to Draining Fists
• Renamed Critical Blows to Iron Fists
• Renamed Weak Points to Penetrating Blows
• Renamed Vitals Shot to Critical Blows
• Renamed Fist Stabber to Puncturing Strikes
• Changed weapon requirement of Rapid Fists to only work with the "Unarmed" weapon
• Rending Strikes now only works on Monk weapons and the effect does not stack
• Fixed the conditions of Critical Blows so that it now works properly
• Draining Fists now only works with "Unarmed" weapon
• Unencumbered perks do not stack
• Puncturing Strikes no only works on Monk weapons
• Changes Unarmored Stance so that you need at least the second level of one of the previous perks, rather than the final level

Thanks to Kibaken on the Nexus for helping me rebalance the perks!

Way of the Monk - Part 1.2: Update Changes

If you've been reading my comments on the Steam and Nexus pages, then you know that I've been redoing a lot of my code. Much of my code was slow, over-complicated, and bloated the savefile. Because of that, I have been spending my time studying Papyrus and rewriting my code, rather than add new features. These changes will be compiled in the next update that will be uploaded later today or tomorrow if I find more changes that need to be made. The list of changes may be edited if I make more modifications between now and the time I upload the update.

List:

• Levels and perk points are now displayed as whole numbers without a ton of 0's trailing after the first digit
• Fixed and improved the leveling system and the way that it calculated perks
• The Pillar of the Way now includes some information about the managing powers that are given to you
• Adding an "update" function to the Pillar of Rewalking that updates your perk points to the new, improved system
• Added the update function to the Choice power
• Increased Burning Fists basedamage from 12 to 14
• Burning Fists can now be smithed
• Fire Atronach claws can now be smithed
• Modified the Pillar of the Choice to warn the player that they should update their stats
• Added 'Return' option to many of the menus for improved navigation
• Fixed Burning, Freezing, and Electric robes so that they now work properly
• Cheating with the Pillar of Rewalking now changes the speed at which you level as if you had leveled normally
• A warning message is shown when trying to reset your perks so that you do not reset them accidentally
• Added warnings about the 'no perk bug' to the Pillar of the Choice
• If no perks appear when choosing a new one, but you click 'Ok' and the description for a perk appears, you will not be able to add the perk if you already have it. This is to avoid accidentally using up your perk points. The 'no perk bug' will be fixed in Part 2
• Savefile bloat has been reduced
• Menus should load faster
• Simplified the scripts for the Pillars without changing the way they work

EDIT: Update has been uploaded to the Nexus! I am working on getting it uploaded to the Workshop.