I?m actually positively impressed. I ran around with a highway man after me, and I just couldn?t get away from him, he fought me on the highest rocks I was able to jump on, I kept bashing and kicking him down and he always came back.


I have no jump altering mods, and I have something like 50 acrobatics on my char, and he was JUST able to jump to all places I was able to. Seems pretty perfect height to me, anything less and the player holds too much an advantage, anything more and and it will cause problems in caves, as the vertical movement is scripted, as in no collision.


Really this is nothing like with DR v3, the NPC never jumped when he didn?+t need to, and he always jumped when in trouble getting fast forward. Should be stable as well, I?m very very wary about activators and spells nowadays, too many hidden engine bugs, but this should be fine.



The good news is it?s a standalone mod, not tied to DR. So I can release after tweaking it a bit. I used globals to control what?s minimum speed the NPC must be advancing forward (when running forward), otherwise he jumps. Also the time delay he needs to keep running in place is a global (this small delay is needed as when the NPC starts running, there is an initial moment when he?s advance speed is 0 but the animation reports to be playing already).

The values I used was that the NPC had to advance forward less than 30 units/s for 0.2s (units is something like ~0.5m or ~6 feet) when running forward in order to jump. So it?s really not oversensitive yet it worked robustly, also the reaction time of 0.2s seems practically instant.


I could make the jump height a variable as well, so anyone can adjust it how they like. :foodndrink:

Instant download from me once you finish it. NPC's that jump?! That is just greatness!

Wow... I've heard OB AI would be very difficult to improve and just assumed NPC jumping over obstacles would be a AI thing (I have only ever used DR5). Will this jumping mod effect NPC's not in combat? If so, this would remove one of the two obstacle that interfere with my enjoyment of adventuring with a companion. :celebrate:

I wonder if you have any tricks that would create an option to stop allies from attacking the PC's current target (the other obstacle)?

Added: What you say ^ hints that you have made the bash/kick mechanics into a fair deal between PC and NPC's! Again, :celebration: !

Thank you so much for all this, Skycaptain... I can't wait to see how it turns out. I've got huge amounts of pleasure from DR5, I used to end every Arena win with a decap, or a hemiectomy (yes, that is a word, but I doubt I spelled it right) and then take a screenshot of it, treat it in GIMP, frame it and put it on my wall in my custom CHeydinhal home Great mod. My breath is most bated.

Wow, I am glad I brought this issue up in this thread. Way to go Skycaptain! :celebration:

I'm just checking this forum every day lolz. I forgot to ask Skycaptain, do you have plans in the future to be able to cut off arms and legs, or things like that?

Nice, instant download for me also. Finally i cant just stand on top of a rock and shoot at my enemy anymore

Well, from an earlier version I was trying to mod in more helmet types there was, if I remember correctly, an added bone to put the texture that blocked certain part of the sight. Then you had to add these new helmet types to the Kf files that activated the Helmet fov. The compounded experience with trying to understand parts of Blender and Gimp made me use up my curse vocabulary for that year

Awesome to see you back Skycaptain. I'm eagerly awaiting DR 6.

thanks for working on it.

It would be nice if someone with that mod would simply take my shieldbash anim and set the bone priorities for the head/camera to 0, and then tried if the problem persists.

I mean, given someone has both mods it?s a 5s job (entering one or two numbers) in nifscope.

Well if nobody else does it I will try (and use up this years curse words....). I am working this weekend though so; and seems like I first have to extract the kf files from the mod to enter it into nifskope right?

Looking forward to your release - and the jumping NPC's will be nice too!

Er... I would but I really don`t have a clue how to. If Locksley can than that would be great... hope it isn`t too hard to do. I`ve been wearing the Dwemer helm and wow - that limits your view, but I like it, primarily cos I wore a re-enactment medievel helmet with a similar slot and, yep, it`s like looking out of a Letterbox.

Really, I mean really only it requires is that you


1. Download and install nifscope

2. Doubleclick blockattack.kf that?s in your meshes\characters\_1stperson folder

3. See http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/5650/nifscope.jpg - you click the first thing on the left, you see "controller blocks" in the bottom view, and then click (expand) for example "bip01 head" to see the priority number. Set it to 0.



Really it took about 10 times longer to type these simple directions not to mention take a pic and upload it, so please consider giving it a try, you can only win when you see how simple it is, and realise what kinda power such a simple interface offers. I mean I can do it, and no one ever thought me how.

Right - I'm on it.

Be right back...

EDIT - Okeeey... So I set the Bip01 head at the blocking kf (that's the right one right?) and tried first priority 30 then 0. When bashing the helmet Fov disapears and does not reapear whether you take on/off helmet or change cell.

I'll go back and check if it might be some other file - tried to be quick, got a big slow Oblivion install. END EDIT

Thanks, helps a lot if someone can run this test for me. :foodndrink:




In the meantime, I started wondering how to make the NPCs TRY and run against the objects they would then decide to jump over. I mean at first, especially when it?s a "problem", it seems they do that alot, just running against the obstacles, but in the end if the AI happens to re-evaluate the path or something they never even try, they simply stand there below the rock. Would be nice to know they always try at least once to climb the obstacle, so that when they fail my script can detect that and make them jump.

So I tried out "setallreachable" command, which basicly renders the AI unable to understand there in an obstacle in their way. This works perfectly, they never give up, always running against the obstacles and then jumping over them. The command is autocleared every frame by the game, so there is no risk that the setting sticks.

So I think that if I use it when the NPC is in combat, the target is player and the NPC is standing still, not attacking -> he thinks he?s stuck, setting that flag up for, say, 5 seconds every 15 seconds shouldn?t cause any side effects, but would allow the NPC to try and reach the player?s position every 15 seconds (in most cases, and this means the initial attempt failed, setting the flag up for the first time is enough for the NPC to reach player).




EDIT: Locksley, it?s "blockattack.kf". If my version is causing it, you have it in the folder I mentioned. If you don?t have it (it wasn?t included in 5.0, by accident, never got to fixing that as there?s a vanilla anim for that as well) then the animation is not the problem.

Solved.
Went back and checked on Helmet FOV.
It adds alot to the camera position so I went in and edited your camera prio to 0 - now it works :foodndrink:

EDIT - can I go to bed now.... pretty please :snoring: END EDIT

Ok, I will try. But this will be the first modding ever. Just hope I don`t break something.

Just appreciate that i`m no expert. I`m a paid Illustrater\artist and I know that other people who can`t draw would find it hard to draw a face, even if it is dead simple for me.

Now to find nifscope, wherever that is.

This wouldn't cause them to jump off a cliff trying to get to you, would it? Or if he's searching for you (or is he out of combat while searching)?

I found something called `nifskope` (as opposed to nifscope). Is this the same thing? I download it, but I don`t see any installer, just a lot of files. I will look again.

Apparently I have to install QT4 sources...

nifskope should have an installer. Make sure you didn't get the source files by accident.

Use this link: http://sourceforge.net/projects/niftools/files/nifskope/1.0.20/nifskope-1.0.20.4748-windows.exe/download

Thankyou, Showler for the link.

Oh no no, http://www.softpedia.com/get/Multimedia/Graphic/Graphic-Viewers/NifSkope.shtml just grab this one!

EDIT: Ok just use the link showler gave it?s the official download page.




Sorry I didn?t follow close enough, but you really only need this one simple download and all the .kf files and .nif files should be associated with it. If not, just launch the program and use it to open the file.


I really meant it when I said it?s simple, I for one can?t model or draw to save my own life, so I definitely know what you mean. But this one, this is simple, you don?t need to understand a thing, and as reported, it works! :celebration:

It would, it?s a risky command. I can make it toggleable.


But, the conditions are the key - the NPC needs to be in combat with you, not moving for a period of time but not knocked out, not attacking, not casting. So really it should only take place when an NPC you are fighting doesn?t know what to do since he cannot reach you.

Thanks. I`ve got the nifskope up, but for some weird reason the list at the bottom isn`t there. Trying to enable it. I feel i`m very close...

See the highlighted parts in the pic. First click the "NiControllerSequence" high on the left (it?s the "root node"), then the bottom view shows what it controls etc, and you can expand the "controlled blocks".