When I look at a light in the GECK it really looks like the provision is there to create a light which the player can carry around. There is a whole section dedicated to this function. You can actually add a "light" to the player and it appears in the player's inventory with a certain name.

I don't quite see how to make it work, though. Adding the item to the player's inventory has it be a "Misc" class item, which does nothing when you try to activate it.

I have no examples within Fallout 3 of a carryable light so, I don't quite know where to go.

Can anyone direct me in what might be correct for this?

Emulating the pip-boy light has so far not helped me, it looks like parts of that are hardcoded so it is a different beast.

Here's your "carriable light" given a mesh, specifically the right leather glove...
http://webpages.charter.net/biscuit1/glovelight.jpg
I used a green 512 light so it does seem to affect things around it. Makes me wonder if one could use one of the light beam effect nifs (because they have a no lighting property already attached). Found out you can add them to form lists too, though I couldn't get an armor to see the custom list (probably the MISC type). It works to turn a regular beer bottle into a glowing nuka cola though lol.

hm ok .. that's a jpg but, what's technically behind making some equippable object do that?

I did some checking with JustinOther who's seen some sort of torch deal for Oblivion or somewhere... it seems taht some of the things which worked to allow equippable lights don't quite work the same in FO3. It looks like my experiments with making an equippable light were in the right direction BUT it just cannot work now, for one the thing will not actually equip even if you force from console.

So for now I guess you do have to script it all using an object which is not in fact a light (which I can do ) but yeah if there was a more-or-less right way to do it, I would have picked that.

how about creating a gun that has a "flashlight"attached to it kind of methode

That's what I'm doing, all scripted. It will be pretty decent when done.

it's not a PROBLEM for me to do it this way but if there was a three-click, Woo-I-Have-A-Light way to do it, I would have picked that. hehe.

So yeah.

I wandered over to the Elder Scrolls forum to ask for some guidance. Here's what came of it



Of course I do not have Morrowwind or anything to really look at. I doubt now that this helps us BUT... if it makes anyone think of an edit which would work for Fallout 3 (including maybe what FO3edit can do), there it is.

Hmm, I'm wondering...maybe some kind of helmet with a light, though this would need a mesh etc.

The only problem with the gun solution is that with a gun out you move slower. (Though a flashlight mounted on a gun could look cool in certain places).

Edit: scratch that.. was way off

Small flashlight on a gun instead of a scope seems kinda neat actually.

I'm making a high-powered, handheld spotlight though. It uses the mesh/texture of a mesmertron which is quite spotlight-like! I do mean for it to be equipped in place of a weapon and be bulky, but it's going to be a badass light, so yeah.

What's challenging is that the spotlight FX thingie meshes are all pre-rotated along several axes, but the player is not. That makes pointing the beam part of the light in the direction the player is facing kinda hard. The numbers are all weird and need to rotate in opposite direction from the player's rotation sometimes. I was not the Star Student in um... Trigonometry. Yeah. I think that was in college... something. I might end up posting for help on the last step of it, we'll see.

http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=9673
dunno if that is helpfull.

couldn't you make a copy of of the spotlight mesh and just rotate them in the NIF so you wouldn't have to compensate in the scripts?

I've heard that. I didn't want to distribute resources with this thing though, wanted to use pre-existing if possible.

We (Cipscis primarily) worked out in another thread how to make the light beam pivot and pitch properly with the player, it's here: http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1094282-mathematics-and-axes-that-are-offset-and-scripting-pivotting-pitching-light-beam/