Castle West Weald v0.8 (ORE version)
Winner of The Oblivion's Real Estate Castle Homes Challenge

This plugin adds a new castle which is located near The Gold Road, somewhere in the middle between Lake Rumare and Skingrad (http://tesnexus.com/downloads/images/32738-1-1278099100.jpg).

Pictures: http://tesnexus.com/downloads/images/32738-1-1278096279.jpg / http://tesnexus.com/downloads/images/32738-2-1278096279.jpg - more images on http://tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=32738 (images tab)

Download: http://tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=32738



Castle's features:
- neutral themed castle (neither divine nor evil elements here)
- new models and textures (especially the new sculptures, skylights, windows and paintings),
- lots of sculptures and flora inside.
- skylights in Great Hall and Lord's Apartment with visible sky and castle's towers,
- more realistic interior lights system in comparison to vanilla (strong sources of daylight outside the windows, and ambient lights inside interiors - all depend on time and disappear at nights
- exterior of the castle is lit differently during the nights by some mysterious backlights (green and blue).

List of all interior locations:
- Hunter's Rest Inn (near The Gold Road, north of the castle)
- Witch Hut (slightly north and east of the castle, unmarked location in the forest)
- Barracks
- Dungeon
- Shed
- Alchemist's Workshop
- Hunter's Lodge (closed)
- Steward's House
- Smithy
- Cellar
- Repository
- Main Hall
- Great Hall
- Dining Room
- Upper Hall
- Lord's Apartment (player owned)
- Lord's Laboratory (player owned)
- Lord's Armory (player owned)

Ownership:
Player's avatar can buy access (for 50000 gold from steward in his house at castle's courtyard) to three interiors in the Upper Halls of the castle (Lord's Apartment, Lord's Laboratory and Lord's Armory). These are the only places to safely store a loot.

Storage:
There are over 50 safe containers in those three mentioned Lord's Chambers and plenty of shelves there as well.

WIPZ, WIPZ, WIPZzz, Wipzzzzz....



This castle needs to be expanded as the Nature demands it.

In the past few weeks I managed to work slightly on some new locations, and here are the pictures:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j265/trollf/trfMods/OBCastleWW/cww01.jpg - on the opposite side of The Gold Road than Hunter's Rest Inn - its purpose will be that guards who live in that tower will be patrolling the roads from CWW to Skingrad, and to Weye.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j265/trollf/trfMods/OBCastleWW/cww02.jpg - few small interesting things will be there...

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j265/trollf/trfMods/OBCastleWW/cww03.jpg - this you will see when you enter down the well at castle's courtyard...


I also plan to add many more interiors to extend the castle, to name a few: Kitchen, Servants' Quarters, Garden, Library, Storage, Guests' Quarters, Hall of Art, Crypts, etc. Though right now I'm focusing on the locations outside of the castle's walls first.

Wow. That is beautiful! Downloading now.

I'm gonna check this out when I get a chance.

I heartily endorse this mod. It's a huge, beautiful castle, centrally located, with lots of cool features. Troll put a lot of work into it, and it shows. I found it on ORE, so I've been using it for a couple weeks now.

nice castle! definitely a DL from me

Check the second post for some wipzzz info...

And my question is: What would you like to see added to this castle?
Well, I'm curious... everything can be discussed as it is the best time to do so, though not everything will be made (especially evil or divine stuff), but I'm always open to the new ideas... ;]

Big interesting quest maybe?
Also would be great to have some farms and alchemist gardens around.

I would love to see some farms and gardens around, but how about a Zoo/Wildlife Preserve filled with friendly animals?
Anyway I love the way the caste is It fits my character perfectly.

>> Big interesting quest maybe?

I was thinking about that for a while. But in fact there's too early to plan such a thing while the whole castle is not yet "complete".


>> Also would be great to have some farms and alchemist gardens around.

This is a type of the castle where all local "industry" and economy rely mainly on crafts (tailoring, sculpting, metal works, etc) or hunting, and not farming. There are two main reasons why I won't include farms here - building a farm means destroying some part of the forest which is a no go ;] and the farming areas are in the domain of Skingrad. Let's say that this castle barters with Skingrad and exchanges flour/bread/etc. for other stuff which is made here.

As for the gardens... well, I always try to provide a good stuff for alchemists ;] There will be one interior garden (with skylight in the ceiling, between Lord's Laboratory and Lord's Apartment). Other small gardens are planned near some of the buildings in the courtyard (especially around Alchemist's Workshop). And one underground garden will be possibly constructed under the Alchemist's Workshop with some new mushrooms and other flora species.


>> but how about a Zoo/Wildlife Preserve filled with friendly animals?

Zoo? Only one word comes to mind when I think about such thing - animals in captivity :] And that is another no go for this type of castle which is rather nature based and for neutral beings and characters. Anyway some friendly animals are definitely possible, either in vicinity or/and in the castle itself. Need to think about this.

Quest idea then - help renovate the land and guard the inhabitants and help bolster their trades. Making the relationship between you (protector/funder) and them (craftsmen/farmers) reciprocal.

Hoarfrost promised that, but after getting your staff together and completing the quests you get tithes but no challenges.

Or do something I've not seen in a game like this - retell a classic like parcifal: A castle owner that does not recognize his own son. Or some other Joseph Campbell reinterpretation.

Or a romance (reason to stay home).

I'd like to see a trophy hall - something that has both mounted heads and (creature) mannequins. Maybe you could do something like Battlehorn, where there's a taxidermist who could mount creatures if you bring the parts? I see the castle being a good fit for hunter/ranger types, so a trophy hall wouldn't go amiss. I'd actually planned on using one of the doorways in the Great Hall for that very purpose.

I was thinking about something along these lines. The new guild with ranks, and you as the main benefactor, etc. But I put away this idea until the whole castle will be finished.

And the romance? Well, only with an axe in hand... :>


WalkerInShadows ->
I plan to make Hall of Art accessible from the right side of the Great Hall. Instead of trophies and skinned animals there will be various sculptures, figures and statues of animals and people, along with some paintings, pottery, and other artistic stuff.

I love the castle, and also the location. My only idea would be more NPCs walking around outside and more night-life could make the atmosphere a bit friendlier.

Going a step further, using dance animations for dancing NPCs and background music/talking would be awesome, but this might be outside the scope of your project.

ORE version due to a short deadline has only basic AI. For the final version I plan at least to double the number of all NPCs and make more complex AI packages for them. NPCs will have full shedules dependent on the day of the week. I also thought about some periodic events with the greater number of NPCs involved (like special dinner in the castle every Thursday, the weekly gathering in main hall, etc.).

In regards to animations and music I need to think of this. It's possible that some animations will ba altered by me to provide more variety. Though I'm somehow limited here as I do not want to use any animations from SI or from other mods. So either I will modify vanilla anims or make new ones if the right mood strikes me ;]
Some background voices and music are probable as well. I know my way around sound editors so could do a couple of mixes from various sounds, but I will have to test the results in game first, and see whether it's worth to invest some additional time for this.

Well, new animations are more likely, but sounds and music are at the bottom of my to do list for this mod ;]

Reading the posts above, I'm seeing Trollf trying to keep his castle neutral, so that any character can adopt it, and a number of requests to make it suit a specific character. That got me to thinking that what's needed are options. I.e. sets of alternative decor or clutter items that can be switched for a different set to suit a different owner. E.g the trophy room can have stuffed animals for the hunter, captured weapons and armor for the fighter, books and crystals for a mage, and so on. I don't know if it's possible to have an interior load door redirected by script to a completely different cell, but that could make construction of each new interior easier. Pick one via dialog with the Castle Steward when you take possession, or buy an upgrade, or whatever.

Trollf gets to add multiple rooms in one space this way, and the castle itself still suits any player.

And at the risk of derailing this thread entirely, it would have been nice to see all player homes provide choices of upgrades, instead of just the one fixed set. E.g. Arborwatch gets two servant/guest bedrooms. They could have been offered as laboratory or trophy room options. Maybe if a trend gets started here, we'd see more of it.

If it's more of those statues like the ones in the halls, I'm all for that - those are gorgeous. Who made them? And will the Hall have shelves and such for us to display our own items?

ghastley ->

That's good idea, but imho only for smaller house mods. In CWW there is enough room to have each of those locations separate - mages will have their laboratory, alchemist's workshop, library, and many gardens; the warrior has an armory, smithy and I also plan to add some training hall, thieves should like the new storage room and many many secrets in the castle (ORE version has no secrets at all ;p). Almost every "standard" archetype of character will find things suitable for him/herself in many rooms. Thus there's no any need for switch-able interiors here me thinks :]

Anyway, I have some desire to implement some "dynamic" content though. This means whenever the player visits the castle there will be a chance for something to be different in castle's surroundings. Some merchants' wagons will appear in courtyard and vendors in main hall for a couple of days, maybe some seasonal adventurers here and there, there can be even new deliveries and additional crates by the cellar or repository locations, smith will change arrangements of armors in his workshop every second month, etc., etc., etc.



WalkerInShadows ->

Yes, the statues of similar type made by me.
As for the shelves, display cases, etc. I do not know... yet. I only know that I want to create such a hall, but had/have no time to think about this more.

Love this idea

How about implementing some traveling minstrels/bards, like Cliffworms`s " Oblivion Comes Alive " project

Ooh. I love finding secret rooms.

That is badass.

Coolio. Those statues are awesome. And the place needs a fountain somewhere, too. A big one.

As far as ambient background voices and sounds, Brumbek's revised http://tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=14344 is a great example of how this can add a unique atmosphere in specific areas.

http://tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=8711, of course, is the textbook example of ambient sound done right, but, since it's less town-focused, is probably less relevant.

When I'm walking through your castle, I do feel those halls could really come alive with the sounds of people going about their daily business. Porters would be moving goods into storage for the Winter months and merchants bartering with each other in the castle courtyard, a khajiit bard might be singing an epic in a half-forgotten tongue to a group of gathered nobility, etc...

I guess the fact my imagination is sparked in this way is a true testament to the realistic feeling you've created.

Hi,nice castle ,I'm waiting for the next version

For me if a mod says Made by Trollf, then = Instant Download! I still have Unfathomed Tower somewhere in my game too.

My character has finally made the 50000 gold needed to buy this castle so we were able to take a look at the full glory last night.

Awesome, beautiful place, just incredible stuff! As is so often the case with your homes your creativity and and common sense utility shines through making this one of the best castle homes I have seen. I love touches like the piles of books that are also containers for books, things like that are just brilliant. It havok-proofs the home without sacrificing utility.
The roof / ceiling is magnificent - watching the moon rise is just stunning, the statues are truly beautiful.

A couple of points:
This mod actually just manages to sit next to Shezrie's Village (Woodview) without any conflict that I could see, which is great as I love that village very much.
A couple of things that I found a little odd, and maybe it is just a mod conflict: some of the plants in the castle stayed "red" or owned after I had bought the key. After paying all that gold I don't want to be arrested for picking a flower in my own castle! Likewise, the cellar doors seemed to stay red & locked.
I hope one day you will attach a quest to the Hunters closed cottage. It seems a shame that the hunter is in a tent outside.
(Respectful request) Maybe you might consider doing a COBL version: add the Luggage, Alchemy Sorter, Alchemy Grinder & Dinner Plate for us COBL addicts!

Kudos on a wonderful castle!

First I have to say that I absolutely love this castle. The screenshots posted on the Nexus don't do this mod any justice.

It was really obvious to me when I started exploring that the castle had a very "unfinished" feel to it, so I was happy to see that you have plans on expanding it. I'm anxiously awaiting those updates!

The -only- thing about this castle that I would be interested in seeing would be something for the Lord's Armory. Walking in to a room full of boxes kinda killed my "Must show everything!" urge. I've taken to placing some sort of armor/weapon on top of a designated box so I can remember where & what I've stored in the room >.>. Maybe adding some nice display cases that match the theme of the castle (maybe/maybe not placed in other areas of the castle besides the Armory >.>) could spruce things up a bit.

I could always go into the CS and try to make those changes myself, but the thought of it makes me feel dirty. Doing that to your kinda-sorta-lil'bit-unfinished mod is akin to walking into someone else's kitchen and cleaning the one dirty dish that's in the sink. Y'just.. don't >.<.

Anyways, thank you again for all of your wonderful work. I greatly look forward to seeing more of it in the future!

Ygern ->

some of the plants in the castle stayed "red" or owned after I had bought the key. After paying all that gold I don't want to be arrested for picking a flower in my own castle! Likewise, the cellar doors seemed to stay red & locked.

I can agree that the price you need to pay for the content you're supposed to receive is quite high. Well, that was assembled in a hurry to finish the mod before the deadline, without any in-depth thoughts actually. The point is that you are not the owner of the castle :] You only pay for those three locations in the upper halls. The whole castle is someone's else property. This should change in the next version and it will be more complex.


I hope one day you will attach a quest to the Hunters closed cottage. It seems a shame that the hunter is in a tent outside.

No any quests associated with Hunter's Lodge. It will be just converted to fully functional tavern.


Maybe you might consider doing a COBL version: add the Luggage, Alchemy Sorter, Alchemy Grinder & Dinner Plate for us COBL addicts!

I do not make COBL versions for my mods. But I plan to release the next version of this one in esm format, so someone else could do a simple esp plugin later with COBL additions.


Maruviel ->

It was really obvious to me when I started exploring that the castle had a very "unfinished" feel to it.

True. As three months were not enough to combine all ideas I had (and have) for this castle.


The -only- thing about this castle that I would be interested in seeing would be something for the Lord's Armory.

That place is a "placeholder" (together with few others). Almost everything there will be replaced by a new content and it all will be arranged in a different manner.


I could always go into the CS and try to make those changes myself, but the thought of it makes me feel dirty. Doing that to your kinda-sorta-lil'bit-unfinished mod is akin to walking into someone else's kitchen and cleaning the one dirty dish that's in the sink. Y'just.. don't >.<.

You can do anything to this version, and make any plugin you like. As the next version has so many changes and differences that it won't be compatible with the current one. And I plan to release it not as an update but as separate mod instead. Let's say that this ORE version is just like a demo with no more than one-third of the planned content or so... but there's so much to do here, that I doubt the version 2 will be released this year ;]