If I could mod Daggerfall, my changes would be pretty simple. I'd make it be so containers are usable (boxes, desks, bookshelves) so you don't just have to drop stuff on the ground; I would make every room in a player-owned house able to have stuff stored in it; I would include resting services for members of guilds (so they can rest in their guild instead of having to go to an inn, their house/ship, or outside of town); and I would add some "formal/fancy" versions of robes, and I would add some more varieties of monsters, so that my level 16 mage will actually still have interesting battles in dungeons.

Cool topic.
I'm going to be obvious, and go with animations.

Just up the graphics and stop the horse neighing too much and the clip clop carrying on when you stop. But that's it.

http://daggerxl.wordpress.com/

Wtf is patience and where do I get it?

DaggerXL... I know I said this about OpenMW too, but I hope I'm still modding when it's finished, or I'm going to miss out on ALL (literally in this case) the fun!

I'm afraid it's often in short supply.

So I'll have a tough time getting it?
That svcks, I want it now.

I'd remove or at least tone down the level scaling, it's almost as bad as Oblivion's!

If I could mod Daggerfall? Add back in the things that worked right in Arena but were yanked: phases of the moon, stars and constellations at night. Real haggling, not the automated sort (or have automated as an option, for those who want it). Pictures of humanoids matching their weapons/armor (ever notice in Arena-- the weapon in the attacker's hand is actually what they've got? And the armor matches what's in their inventory?). The ability to keep trying to pick a failed lock at the risk of being caught (none of this, you get one try and you're done, nonsense). Better implementation of food and drink-- if I want to get drunk, let the character get drunk!
Other things not in Arena. Actually make the weather matter-- too hot for armor in the deserts, too cold for bikinis in the snow. You can take damage from sunlight if you're a vampire, but stand in sub-zero weather naked and nothing happens. Make the clothes influence NPC reaction. Walk up to a peasant in costly clothes and get treated better. Actual crime. I'd like someone else to try and pickpocket me for a change, or mug me when roaming a dark city at night. I'd like more things to spend money on, like the ability to invest in businesses. Think about it, you get tons of gold but aside from one ship and one house, what else is there to spend it on? You should be able to buy into a tavern, perhaps, and get a payment from them when you visit-- as well as the royal treatment as a partner. Containers that work. Oh, yes, containers that work and don't just eat things.
Of course, there's about ten-thousand-million-bajillion other things that could be implemented, but if you changed too many, it wouldn't be Daggerfall, would it? I'm trying to keep my suggestions within the framework of what I think is possible. Of all the things on my list, the hardest would be the weapon/armor thing, which would require a total overhaul of the graphics to make it work. Many of the other ideas are just tweaks to systems that already exist.

That hasn't been updated in a while. Is it still going?

I'm pretty sure it's still going. And if I could mod Daggerfall I would do what the project is doing now. Especially improving the lighting.

Perhaps 3-D models for indoor characters, rather than the 2-D models.

I agree the 2D models are kind of lame, but at least they're diversified and well-detailed, unlike many of the 3D models. And also having important people be 2D makes it so you can't accidentally kill them, which I appreciate. Yeah it detracts from the realism, but at least this way you won't have to load an old save upon accidentally killing an important questgiver/ quest object person.

It's still going. Lucius (the DaggerXL mastermind) was recently working on the game's launcher, smoothing out the options and settings bits so that the game is more accessible.

The forums over at http://daggerxl.50.forumer.com/ are where most of the action happens. Lucius comments there multiple times a day, so if you have a suggestion feel free to pop on over and chip in your 2 cents. Of course, releases are usually the only thing that he updates the front page about, but check back soon as there might be an update sometime in the near future.

Yeah, some of the 2-D models are more detailed, but modding capabilities could open up for new and better 3-D models. Also, it is just as easy to screw up your main quest etc. by simply denying the quest the quest giver gives you.

If I could mod Daggerfall?

Something like this?
http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt346/rhymer1987/DaggerXL/DXL_B8_4b4f90d7.png
http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt346/rhymer1987/DaggerXL/DXL_B8_4b4f90eb.png
http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt346/rhymer1987/DaggerXL/DXL_B8_4b4f93d7.png
http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt346/rhymer1987/DaggerXL/DXL_B8_4b4f93b8.png
http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt346/rhymer1987/DaggerXL/DXL_B8_4b4f90fd.png

Rhymer forgets to mention that this is already a mod in progress (for DaggerXL, not Vanilla).

roads between town that you can travel along.

visible khajiits, Dunmer and Argonians in the streets. (wandering npcs)

chance of a friendly encounter in a dungeon (another adventurer etc)

smaller warfare between states.

noises for enemy humans.

nothing more.

An inventory cheat.

Selling off all the crap I spent two hours in a dungeon collecting because I couldn't carry it all quickly became the whole of my Daggerfall experience. Because of that, I can't really recall anything else I'd want to mod. Graphics could certainly use updating, but that's the one thing already being worked on.

Most of essential improvements has already been mentioned.
The only one that is missing is: VISABLE REPUTAION(s) with different fractions.

Cheers.

I would really love to see this, I read (can't remember where) that originally there were plans to implement wars between the kingdoms, with sieges, etc (if I'm not mistaken). Would be awesome to be able to see / take part in large scale battles, with catapults, archers on the cities walls, etc.

Other elements I'd like:

Making the provinces more unique, with more differences, i.e a large amount of unique artwork in buildings and clothing for the main regions such as Daggerfall, Wayrest, more dialogue associated with the regions.

The other races as visible animated NPCs (as Luzur mentioned)

To have more weapon types, like spears and throwing weapons (such as in Morrowind), with the spears giving you a ranged advantage when compared to a sword. (Spears are my favourite weapons in Morrowind).

To be able to put usable candles in buildings, even better if you could set up your own camp-fire in the wilderness

Mostly I'd say things that were intended but didn't make the cut into the final game. Things like:

Missing guilds such as more unique Templar orders, Order of the Lamp, and more factions you can do jobs for.
Implement the rope that was supposed to be used to rappel down shafts and climb back up.
Conversations with monsters via their language skill.
Prostitution!
More quests that actually increase your legal reputation.
A wagon than trails behind you and exists in the game world.

I'd like a system where you could actually work against a guild. For instance, to battle the Thieves guild by doing jobs from the City Guard, or just choosing to sabotage a faction. MW does a little of this with the great houses, but it's very limited.

Yea, I'm mainly for adding/fixing intended features.

Rope, prostitution, useful languages, I like that wagon idea.
I like most of the ideas MomentaryThought mentioned. I'd really like to see human NPCs armed and armoured with their correct inventory but that would be a tough one (AFAIK).
Clothing having a reputation effect.
The ability to change your default speech to Blunt, Normal or Polite instead of needing to click that every time I open a new conversation.
More valuables inside houses and palaces for burglars to steal.
Make pickpocketing worthwhile by increasing the value of gold (ie no $200K daedric weapons)
Fixed poison weapons (eg. ability to make poisons at DB potion maker)
selling soul gems (DB again, possibly some factions in Mages' Guild). Maybe one shot self working soul gems for PCs without magic (like the scarab the KoW gives you to use).
the Asylum for DB.

More access to artifacts without summoning (quests from guilds/merchants/whoever, "rumours" which would just be a regular faction quest initiated in a conditional way). Maybe more non-aligned artifacts.

I'd like to see the vampire clans fixed, and expanded on a bit. Loose guild structure. Wouldn't need lots of services, just enough to make them seem like a faction.
Perhaps summoned Daedra Lords refusing to give quests to vampire PCs (vamps and daedra sort of warring between each other), sending daedra to attack instead. Vamps would still be able to get artifacts through questing (non-aligned ones).

More use of the house and temple map locations. Generally no need to ever visit them. So quests that send the player there. More NPCs in them. Other stuff to make more use of them. Ability to buy those houses/plantations out in there own location. Perhaps rare services or whatever in there hidden from the player and hinted at through rumours and in game books etc. Sorta like the covens.

NPCs inside dungeons. Not heaps, just a few here and there. Some offering services (eg. healing, training), merchants, witches, etc. Make those dungeon locations that should be inhabited be inhabited (like the castles of Daggerfall, Sentinel and Wayrest).


Other stuff on http://www.svatopluk.com/daggerfall/museum/

After picking through the sound effects, there are actually a whole assortment of humanoid sound effects so it's not that far fetched to implement them.

Holy Christ.

Regarding the topic:

I'd add everything that was left out from the original design: http://www.uesp.net/dagger/faq/dagdescr.shtml. Also, all the features included in the feature list of the dungeon demo and never implemented.

THIS