Fashionable Frontiersmen

A clothing enhancement mod for TES:V Skyrim.

Are your tired of looking at the same, bulky, boring and unsightly armor, salvaged from the disemboweled corpses of your enemies? Are you sick of those milk drinking fools, the "mighty" Vigilants of Stendar always mistaking you for for one of the many daedra you now command? Do you yearn to walk the streets of Solitude, in the highest of fashion, but don't want to sacrifice the security of a well-forged suit of armor? Well, you're in luck, traveler! Nodding Off's Fashionable Frontiersmen line of clothing blends Skyrim fashion with practical defense, from simple and light weight - but unique - pourpoints, to practical cuir bouilli, to more sturdy lamellar and brigandine pieces, and everything in between, all designed with the fashionable frontiersmen in mind. Fashionable Frontiersmen - Why settle for ordinary, when you can look EXTRAORDINARY!

What This Mod Is About

Fashionable Frontiersmen aims to thoroughly expand the utility of Skyrim's otherwise, fairly useless clothing in such a way as to diversify the player's options. To do this, I've designed a simple to understand system in which to craft new, incredibly customizable sets of armor, based on the games clothing meshes. While that may not sound exciting, at first, I'd encourage you to continue reading and find out exactly what this mod is all about.

How The System Works

Fashionable Frontiersmen starts with the base clothing. Really, whatever piece you want, you can mix and match to your hearts desire. Either buy or craft the individual Head, Hand, Body and Shoes you want, and from there, we can get started ...

The Pourpoint or Doublet

The pourpoint, or doublet (historically, there has been a fair amount of dispute as to these terms, and the sources I've read tend to use them interchangeably depending on how the piece is worn. I have opted to define these terms as such. Pourpoint relates to the article - in particular the chest piece - when worn beneath armor for comfort and padding. The Doublet, relating to the same article, when worn without armor. Both designed with rings for "pointing" ones hose. For the purpose of this mod, I will refer to it as a Pourpoint.) is where things get interesting. Players will have nineteen (yes, 19!) options to choose from. One plain, offering some basic protection and two for each hold in Skyrim. The differences are in the mechanics. Every hold in Skyrim has it's own feel, and with that, a certain set of skills come to mind. Each set of pourpoints will offer the player some advantages and disadvantages. While one may buff ones thieving skills (sneak, pick pocket, lock picking - muffle on equip), it may come at the cost lessened defense (from the base pourpoint), a weakens to certain elements, or a penalty to the use of magic. Of course, that's just an example. Each hold will emphasize a set of skills, and will be reflected in the name and attributes of the upgraded piece. i.e. Riften doublet, Solitude pourpoint, etc.

The Cuir Bouilli

Cuir Bouilli is, at it's most basic, boiled leather that had been formed, or worked. There are several ways to go about this process, from soaking, to boiling water, to hot wax, urine, and a few other methods ... usually cast in a mold, formed, or worked. What matters is the end product. A hardened piece of armor grade leather. The cuir bouiil is the first step in upgrading your new pourpoint, whether you work from the base piece, or a hold specific piece. If you choose to work from the base pourpoint, you will see a steady progression in armor rating, without any added skill attributes. If you choose to work from one of the hold specific pourpoints, skill attributes will increase or decrease logically, from this point on. The end result will be a piece of clothing, near or comparable (based on the smithing skill and appropriate perks) to leather armor, with or without skill attributes.

(Jack) Bragadine, Lamellar, Ring or Splint

This is where things get interesting. Real interesting. Using the new leather piece as a base, the player will now have a few choices to make ... and if you're sitting here, doing the math, this is where the numbers really jump. Four new armor types, each able to be constructed from all of Skyrim's armor crafting materials. To top it off, skill attributes from your preferred hold pourpoint will continue to progress, or regress, depending on the skills and types of material used. Materials used in light armor crafting, will be better suited for skills surrounding light armor, stealth and marksmanship. Materials used in heavy armor crafting, will likewise be better suited for skills within it's domain. A little common sense will go a long way, and it will be possible to "mess up" at this point, as well as at a later stage in crafting.

(Jack) Bragadine

A Jack bragadine is generally a couple pieces of leather or canvas, with metal plates sandwiched and riveted in between. A simple and popular form of defense in it's time, and similar to a coat of plates in design.

Lamellar

Similar to scale armor, Lamellar was usually made from small, thin scales of either metal, horn, or boiled leather. Unlike scaled armor, where scales were laced directly to a leather backing, scales in lamellar were usually laced to each other. Additionally, the alignment had usually been a bottom-to-top pattering, whereas scale armor favored a top-to-bottom patterning.

Ring

Ring armor is a simple evolution of leather armor, involving heavy rings (usually steel or iron) sewn directly onto it. Provides slightly more defense than leather armor.

Splint

Splinted armor is a leather and plate hybrid, where the leather is only used as a backing for metal plates, which are then riveted in such a way that only the plates are exposed.

Alchemy or Enchanting?

As a final step, players are offered yet another choice. Fashionable Frontiersmen will provide a unique alchemy component, allowing the player to further enhance the defense, or skill attributes provided by their new armor, as well as a few nifty resistances, but at the cost of making the piece permanently blocking any form of enchantment, or disenchantment. Pieces previously enchanted will also lose their enchantments if the alchemical process is used. Skill attributes gained through the crafting process, however, will remain intact. Players will have the option of adding a single new attribute, or buffing one or all attributes (with a penalty for buffing more than one at a time) at each step of the crafting process. To do this, the player will have to buy, or create one of several new potions, dictating the effect they want. Effectiveness of the potion will be based on skill in alchemy, and the appropriate perks. Next, bring the piece (or pieces you want to enhance) to a workbench. You will find the potion listed as a tempering ingredient.

Why Am I Doing This?

With the exception of Ebony, I hate the way Skyrim's armor sets look. Few are piratical, and most look outright silly. I wanted variety ... lots of variety, and while their are plenty of armor mods on the Nexus, or on Steam, even fewer of those look practical. Some of the clothing sets are by far, in my opinion, more attractive, albeit mostly useless ... So, I got to brainstorming. What I am aiming to do, is provide a lot of variety, while making the stock clothing in Skyrim useful. Later, as I get closer to completion, I will be looking for modelers to actually make the pieces look as if there are bits of armor integrated into them.

Milestones And Progress

I am working on this mod in parts to ensure each step can be released as early alpha packs, as well as to not overwhelm myself. I will be releasing the first pack (Clothes) for play and balance testing once the first three goals, Crafting Materials, Stats and Attributes, are finished. Once I am satisfied with the first milestone (Pourpoint), I will update progress on the next (Cuir Bouilli), and continue as such. I'll be relying on YOUR feedback. Milestone releases will be updated at the top of the page.

(In Progress) Clothes

(Planned) Robes

(Planned) Hats

(Planned) Boots

(Planned) Gloves

Future Plans

?As each milestone is completed, I would like to ensure they are compatible with some of the major balance and crafting mods. If you have one you would like to see a compatibility patch made for, please list it in your reply. I'll add it to the following spoiler, and keep it under consideration, pending approval from the mod author.

Potential Comparability Patches

That's A Lot of Work ... Can I Help?

Of course! You can help by testing and giving feedback on the milestone releases as they come out, suggesting new types to add, and most importantly, by showing your support. It's your support that keeps me going, and it it's your feedback that will make this mod really shine!