I confirm, the issue seems to be fixed.

Unfortunately I spotted 2 other problems:

Problem 1: when using group teleport, companions do not use the casting animation anymore. They just disappear, as if disabled through the console. It looks? weird.

Problem 2: After convincing a new companion to join, she just vanished in thin air as soon as I closed the dialog windows! Later, I found her in the 8 Plates in Balmora, which happen to be the destination of the last group teleportation. I deduced it was caused by not using the "reset teleport" dialog option after I retrieved my companions.

Is it possible to force "reset teleport" the first time the PC talks to a companion (or a potential companion) after a teleportation?

Oooops! I just found the link to beta3 in my PM box.
Horny_Buddha, my previous post concerns beta2.

Problem 1 should be fixed in Beta 3.

Problem 2 is definitely a bug. I'll have to work on it.

Alright, I'm back.

HB, the glitch you mentioned in a previous post (spastic episodes) is not fixed. I encountered the issue several times during my testing of beta3. It seems to be a random occurrence.

Interestingly enough, Mog is affected too, although I never use the group teleport command on him (only the default "meet somewhere" dialog option).

Also, the controller keeps working inside the inventory. The issue with new companion teleporting away after joining is still there too. (Note that using the "prepare to teleport" dialog before talking to them prevents them from doing this.)

And yes, the casting animation is back! :goodjob:

Sorry. Double post.

2 things:

. I just realized that the "Use magic" option http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/8793/fightingstyletweak.jpg is not a feature of default MCA companions. Yet, it's very useful ingame. It would be great if you could add it to all companions.

. Do MCA companion have some kind of auto-regenerate feature?
Though I've been in dozen of fights, I've never had to heal them. I've never seen them use their healing potions either. However, when checking their health after a fight, they are always at full, no matter how many times they have been hit by enemies.
If it's not a bug and they actually have auto-regenerate abilities, it should be removed, IMO.
(Note that they get illnesses from diseased creatures every now and then, and accordingly use their cure disease potions. No problem on this side).

I consulted with melian over in the Construction Set subforum. It would seem my scripts are similar to the standard teleportation scripts currently in use. I may have uncovered a new bug by having multiple companions teleport. I think I have achieved a reliability of over 99% by implementing a delay between the companions teleporting. When using group teleport, you will see the first companion teleport, a slight delay then the next companion teleports, and so on until all companions have teleported. I've also tried to make the group teleport compatible with other mods that control NPC movement, such as NPC Commands and Give Your Orders. As a result of this a teleport reset occurs more frequently and the "prepare for teleport" option should come up less often. It depends on how you play. So far I haven't found a way to cover every situation, but the unexpected teleportation of a companion should be minimal.

I tweaked the controller script again and buying should stop when it's in inventory.

I've sent you a link to the Beta 4 version.



The "Use magic" option sounds good. I'll try and add it along with a "Don't use magic" option. It always bugs me when warriors use magic instead of drawing their weapon.

I believe the base MCA companions have a Restore Health ability added to them. This mod should replace that with my own version of companion abilities. I'll have to review it though because I'm still finding routines that interfere with my level up routine.

It would be helpful if someone tells me what mods I need for the MCA Mog add on.

http://marbred.fliggerty.com/MCAmogAddon.html only requires Ian McConville's http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=536 and, obviously, http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=mods.Detail&id=5047.
Marbred released it as a beta-ish version of sorts, so some meshes and textures were missing from the archive. I'm not sure if this has been fixed on the download page. Anyway the missing files can be retrieved from previous mog mods (http://modhistory.fliggerty.com/index.php?dlid=5328 and http://modhistory.fliggerty.com/index.php?dlid=2913).


Ha ha! The same here!

Something I did not mention in my previous reports (not sure if this is actually a bug): modifying a companion's inventory after using the "remove armor/clothing" command automatically re-equip said armor/cloth. This done, the companion do not respond to the "remove" order until ordered to re-equip THEN to remove the apparel. Were you aware of that?

That's a feature of the game engine. Changing their inventory causes the game engine to process their inventory and re-equip the most expensive items.


I wasn't completely aware of that, but it makes sense since resetting the companion's "action" doesn't take place until another "action" is chosen. Even the bowls wouldn't help in this case.

Speaking of bowls, I came up with a great(?) idea for another mod. I'm going to call it the Dishwasher mod. :lmao: The player will have to wear the Ring of the Dishwasher and drop bowls into water and then pick them up.

Thanks for the info on Mogs. I'll look into adding support for them.

That's an?er, interesting idea. But I'm not sure the Morrowind community is ready for such a groundbreaking concept. Not to mention the sophisticated scripting it would involve?

Hey! What about making it an Oblivion mod??


:run: :intergalactic: :dmc: :celebration: :woot: :clap:
and :bowdown:


Alright. Back to beta 4.

One of my companions now has her maximum http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/4994/permanentlyburdened.jpg (instead of 210). Any idea about what could cause this?

(I test all versions of AMC with the same old savegame: a level 5 Redguard Archer with only a CM Partner and Mog as companions. 255 mods loaded and savegame synchronized & repaired with Wrye Mash.
First thing I do ingame is drop the CM partner in Seyda Neen then I go and fetch the same set of companions, I mean http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/2713/1myteamofbetatesters.jpg. This done, we just basically teleport around, buy stuff and kill critters.)

The issue never occurred with the previous versions of Advanced Morrowind Companions.

I'll keep the idea on the back burner. Maybe the community will luck out and it will dry up from the heat before I get to it.


I think it's because I finally removed all references to the MCA script that sets companion stats to the player's stats. That's what Neoptolemus used in place of a level up routine. It also gave them regenerative abilities. I can't find the companion, Thaeleril, in the MCA V5.2 master, nor in any of the addons I use. So I can't check her stats. Encumbrance is usually 5 times strength unless changed by a mod. You can check her stats via dialog and use the console to find what mod she comes from. (Open the console, click on her so that her ID appears at the top of the console window and type ORI. The mod that spawned her should be listed.)

It turns out that the "Use magic" option in the "fighting style" topic is base MCA. We don't see it very often because it only shows up if the NPC's class is Sorcerer. I've added the choices "Use magic" and "Don't use magic" to the "fighting style" topic for all companions.

Ah yes, I should have precised. She's from http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=6214? sort of. I changed her name, face, hair and location. Her original name was Rusalka. No wonder you couldn't find her.

I did check her stats. Her strength is 20, so everything is in order. False alarm.

I use that addon but she's customized so that explains it.



The only thing I've thought of so far is a dialog topic like "discuss common interests" that would randomly increase / decrease disposition by 1 to 3 points.

Does anybody have other suggestions to increase their disposition?

Works for me, as long as this "randomness" relies heavily on the player's personality and speechcraft skills.



Well, actually I have a few ideas? but it might be well beyond the scope of what you're willing to do.

Here it is anyway:

Ideally there would be three possible ways to recruit a companion:

1) Raising the NPC's disposition through dialog choices, as in http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=2779, http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=815 and http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=4650. Again, this option will be heavily dependent upon the player's personality and speechcraft skills. As in the mods mentioned above, the companion will be more or less inclined to leave you depending on the way you treat him.

2) Hiring the companion as a merc, as in Baratheon's http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=2005.

Chosing this option would make the 2 other choices definitely unavailable for this companion, but it would have the advantage that the companion will never leave you, unless you fail to pay him or you betray (=attack) him.

The NPC's disposition would influence his flee probability during fights, as a simulation of morale (provided the game engine allows it. Not sure about that)

3) The good ol' MCA way: by providing him food and booze. :shrug:

But unlike the current system, whether the food and drink raise the NPC's disposition or not will also depend upon the player's personality and speechcraft. And getting the companion drunk will lower his disposition.

Oh, and while we're at it? :whistling:

4) A specific script for the evil companions! :celebration: (Erik the Rotten, Pharakhor, Shareel and such?)

They would act as hostile creature by default and attack on sight. Once killed (and all other hostiles in the cell dead), their bodies get replaced by a copy of the NPC which would get up, forces dialog and offer his services to the player.


And, uh, should you feel brave enough to tackle implementing such features, I'd suggest you wait till after the release of Advanced MCA Companions V1 Final. :hehe: :whistling:

?Now that I think about it, you will probably also have to rename it MCA Companion Overhaul, or something along the lines?


:bolt:

Ooops. Double post again. :blush2:


Regarding beta4 :

. The "spastic bug" and the issue with companions teleporting after joining seem to be fixed.
(Just curious: how did you fix the teleportation glitch? I don't even see the "prepare to teleport" option anymore. :goodjob: )

. Companions now are actually wounded after getting hit in a fight. I have yet to see them quaff healing potions in the heat of the battle though, as they do with cure potions. What are the conditions?

. "Please restore yourself" (under "additional requests") has no effect. NPC answers with appropriate dialog and casts magic, but when asked about her health later, her HP is the same as before.

. Issuing "restore yourself" and "cure yourself" orders should remove the corresponding potions from the NPC's inventory. It doesn't.

(I'm not home currently, and I just realize that I forgot to check what happens if companions have no potion in inventory when asked to cure themselves. Hopefully they won't summon potion out of thin air. That would ruin the whole purpose of the potion controller. I'll check this when I'm home.)

. The more I play, the more I think that ammo/arrow controller you mentioned in your first post will come in handy? :whistling:

Possibility 1: If I add schmoozing, I'll base it on the PC's personality and speechcraft.

Possibility 2: I'm not opposed to it, but I think it's too much of a change to the flavor of the companions. Maybe it will make it into version 2.

Possibility 3: I agree, continue to use what Neoptolemus provided. Along the same lines I was thinking of maybe adding a topic called "give a gift" where you could give them an inexpensive game world item, like a spoon, tankard or better yet a bowl. :goodjob:

Possibility 4: Nice idea, but beyond the scope of what I currently want to do. I'll keep it in mind for version 3.

With the dialog changes I've had to make, this mod already seems like an overhaul. However, the added functionality is definitely worth it.



I discovered that the "spastic bug" is technically called an AI glitch. I did two things to fix it. I added the commands "StartCombat player" followed by "StopCombat" to the teleport script. This is the standard fix for AI glitches and is known as a combat reset. (If needed, it can be done using the console. But, you need to close the console in between commands.) The second thing I did was to add a delay between companions teleporting. By increasing the length of the delay most of the AI glitches have been eliminated. I don't guarantee 100% though.

The "prepare to teleport option" was significantly curtailed because I now do a group teleport reset whenever any companion goes from wander mode to follow mode. This covers most situations but not all and the option will still pop up when needed. It's still possible to have unexpected teleportation when using some other teleportation mod along with group teleport.

Quaffing healing potions is handled by the game engine. I don't recall what the conditions are that trigger it. 10% health maybe?

I'll look into what's going on with the "restore yourself" and "cure yourself" choices. They are part of Grumpy's template and I threw them in without paying much attention to them. I'm pretty sure they are spell based and aren't concerned about potions in the companion's inventory. I can change the cure disease to look for a potion but I think the "restore yourself" is too complex to be anything other than a spell.

Adding the ammo/arrow controller is on my list. I've decided to drop the buy enchantments controller though. If anybody wants them, use http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=1966 and buy the items at an enchanter near you. I modified my copy though because there are a few constant effect enchantments that will kill you, like the enchantment on the "Hair Shirt of St. Aralor".

It's just ideas. Feel free to use whatever fits your project, and discard whatever doesn't.



Definitely.
Before your mod, I didn't really use MCA companions (Mogs put aside. I like Mogs as much as other players like, say, bowls. Or rings with weird magical properties.) You just made MCA companions as enjoyable and useful as any other companion mod, and features such as group commands and potion buying are great additions.



If so, better leave "cure yourself" alone. It wouldn't make much sense to have "restore yourself" use spells and "cure yourself" use potions.

By the way, a typo slipped into the "additional requests" menu. "Cure your self" should be "cure yourself".



I won't miss the enchantments controller. :wink_smile:


Edit:
I just found another flaw in the group teleportation command: after a teleportation, you need to tell companions to follow you before asking them to teleport elsewhere. Else, they just stare blank at you and do nothing.

There were bugs in the "restore yourself" and "cure yourself" choices. I fixed them.



Yes, they will only do the group teleport if they are in follow mode. That feature allows you to keep some companions with you while sending a group of them away.

Ah yes, you mentioned this earlier.
It looks like I'm running short of bugs to report. I'm reduced to submit minor cosmetic improvement.

Mhmm, what about changing "meet at" into "meet at?" (under group commands)? :hubbahubba:

One of my companions leveled, so I have some new screenies for the curious:

Before:
http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/3985/05thaelerilstats.jpg
http://img704.imageshack.us/img704/9223/06thaelerilskills.jpg

After:
http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/7121/05thaelerilstats1.jpg
http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/2019/06thaelerilskills1.jpg

Thanks for the screenies. They will help me refine my level up routine. It looks like your companion is unarmored with a marksman's weapon and your player character also uses a marksman's weapon. I'm going to lower the maximum magic skill increase to 2 instead of 3. I'll also change the stat increases for Luck and Personality to 1. The only bug I see that I don't understand is the Personality increase. It should only happen when the Illusion skill of the NPC is 15 or greater. I'll have to look into that.

Yes, she's currently unarmored (though according to her stats I should give her medium or heavy armor). She sometimes uses marksman weapons but most of the time she uses her staff.

And yes, my player character (female Redguard, Level 5, Class: thief, Sign: The Shadow) is currently practicing her marksman skill. Her stats:

Strength: 42, Intelligence: 38, Willpower: 33, Agility: 56, Speed: 53, Endurance: 47, Personnality: 44, Luck: 41, Security: 38, Sneak: 39, Acrobatics: 36, Light Armor: 43, Short Blade: 49, Marksman: 29, Speechcraft: 21, Hand-to-Hand: 20, Mercantile: 37, Athletics: 28, Block: 9, Armorer: 13, Medium Armor: 11, Heavy Armor: 10, Blunt Weapon: 10, Long Blade: 21, Axe: 12, Destruction: 6, Conjuration: 6, Restoration: 6, Unarmored: 10. All other skills: 5

She's currently wearing a CE item which adds security +2, Intelligence +2 and Axe +2.



I went through my loads list looking for mods which could potentially interfere with NPCs stats. The more plausible suspects: NPC Enhanced and (less likely) Improved Followers.

I also use Wakim's Game Improvements and GCD's Better Balanced Birthsigns which both modify initial racial and sign bonuses.

Hope this helps.

Yes, it's helpful. Thanks.

I tweaked the level up routine. Ability and skill increases are more reasonable.

I also looked into what happened to the speechcraft boost used to resist bribes. I found that MCA companion add on mods leave out the speechcraft boost and the drunk animation. I can't do anything about the drunk animation, but I put in a check for the speechcraft. Since I use a fortify spell, a companion's speechcraft can be over 200.

I'm working on the ammo controller. What I've found is that the prices for arrows, bolts, darts, and stars of the same material vary wildly in the base game. I'm not sure if I should go with those prices or charge the companion a discounted price or premium price as needed to balance the costs. I can't retrieve the object price in a script. So, the price will be whatever I decide.

For throwing weapons I have a choice of darts, stars, knives, axes, and javelins. I was going to use stars, but I am open to changing that.

I am only using items made from chitin, iron, steel, bonemold, or silver. I will cap the quantity of each item at 25, buyable in lots of 5. The companion could have a maximum of 29 of each item in inventory after going on a shopping spree. I was going to control the purchase by what weapon the companion is using, i.e. bow, crossbow or throwing weapon. However, it could also be done by dialog choice, "Buy arrows", "Buy bolts", "Buy stars", "Don't buy ammo". Any preference?

Determining the choice by what weapon the companion is using sounds good to me. This would prevent cluttering the dialog box with too many choices.

On the other hand, if using dialogs is an alternative to the controller, I'd definitely go for it.

(Yes, another double post? :shrug: )

Hi, HB

As usual, my random suggestions/questions of the day:

1) Reading http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1082670-companion-mods/ reminded me how neat a feature Neo-Daigo's http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=4695 is. Do you think it would be a good idea to add it to your mod?
According to CI Global's readme, implementing it is just a matter of adding a few lines of code to the companion script.
In Advanced MCA Companions it could be an optional esp, as not every player uses MWSE. For load order sake it may be needed to turn the CI_Global.esp into an esm.

Your thoughts about this idea?

2)

Again, just curious: how does your level-up routine determine which skill/attribute will be updated?
And what will happen if my PC is, say, level 20 and she persuades a level 4 NPC to join?

Hi AfroKing,

Yes, I can look at adding support for CI Global and automatically adding or removing a companion from CDCooley's and Melian's teleport mods.

The level up routine checks what weapon the companion is using and raises the corresponding skill by 1. For marksman it also requires the skill to be less than 100. If the weapon is a two handed close grip weapon, strength goes up by 1. If the weapon is a spear, strength and endurance go up by 1.

To simulate training given by the PC, the routine checks what weapon the PC is using and raises the companion's corresponding skill by 1.

The number of pieces of armor the companion is wearing is counted by type. If they are wearing a single piece of armor, the skill corresponding to that type increases by 1. If they wear 2 or more pieces of armor of a certain type, the corresponding skill increases by 2.

For 2 or more pieces of light armor, agility increases by 1. For 2 or more pieces of medium or heavy armor, endurance increases by 1.

If they use a shield, block goes up by 1.

If they are allowed to use magic, I try to scale up their skills in proportion to their initial values with a maximum increase of 2. Magic skills need to be 15 or more to be included in the increase. If enchant goes up, luck is increased by 1. If illusion goes up, personality is increased by 1.

Speed, athletics and acrobatics are never changed since these are dynamically set by the enhanced follow AI. In addition to possible increases from armor and weapon use, strength, willpower, intelligence, agility, and endurance increase by 1 every time a companion levels up.

Health increases by one tenth of endurance plus 1.50. Magicka and fatigue are determined by the game engine.

Companions can reach a maximum level of 50.

This routine is still subject to change.

The level up routine will happen every 5 days of game time until the companion is a level below the PC. Then the PC will have to level up before the companion can level up. If the companion is a higher level than the PC, the companion won't level until the PC is 2 levels above the companion.

Sounds good. This makes for a believable character evolution. :goodjob:

One tiny reservation, if you don't mind:




I assume that the 5 days delay in the latter situation is a consequence of the delay you chose for the regular level-up routine? Is it possible to have different values for each situation? (i.e. keeping it at 5 days for regular companion level-up, but setting it at 10 or 15 days when catching up for the player's level .)

The companion progression would feel more natural, as time flows very fast in Morrowind.