My Oblivion Album

November 25th, 2013

Having a break (probably a long one)from Skyrim and it's "issues" so I don't rage and uninstall it before the big new world mods are done. I decided to replay Oblivion (heavily modded) and to my surprise I'm really enjoying it.

A few things I've really taken notice of just with my character just in a few hours (and NPC's of course):
she breathes,
there's proper head tracking,
she has facial expressions,
she blinks,
I can jump properly, and more that I can't think of right now.

The game is rock solid stable with a lot of heavy mods. No annoying stutters and no need to use half a dozen 3rd party utilities to overcome the other problems.

My load order, which will grow, if anyone's interested. I'm using Maskar's Overhaul which I like a lot. It's hard but configurable via it's ini or on installing. I'm using WAC as well.
Active Mod Files:

spoiler:

I found some real treasures when I was scouring the Nexus for mods and these are especially great. My Voice Extender - this is just amazing.

This is Maskar's Oblivion Overhaul. I used to love OOO but this, I think has taken top position. For me anyway. That's not taking anything away from WAC because it does different things.

And this which makes the default races actually look decent. I was amazed to say the least when I saw it in game.
Oblivion Character Overhaul by Nuska who does great work.

Also I really like this - Combat Stance Reanimation.

Now for some screenshots. I will write a little back story later, but my character's name is Eliza Thorn and she's a warrior mage. Using Deathknowz excellent DKImperials. I did add different hair though, Eliza's style isn't in the mod by default.

Oh, and I know there are jaggies. I've been deciding on whether I like HDR or Bloom and with AA on I can't use the default system to take shots. I don't really want to use an external program like FRAPS unless I have to, but then I don't care that much as my main focus is playing the game, not screenshooting.

Prisoner

Rat BBQ

The Emperor dies...and I nearly did as well.

What's this then? Ermmm...let's keep moving.

Sleepy lion at the shrine.

Ailsa · November 25th, 2013

Very nice - makes me want to get Oblivion up and running again

Fessels · November 26th, 2013

Oh the memories that return, and i see the that the Imperials have become even a bit more Roman with the "Group circle" on the fourth screenshot.

Any way bookmarked the mods you mentioned.

November 26th, 2013

Fessels wrote:Oh the memories that return, and i see the that the Imperials have become even a bit more Roman with the "Group circle" on the fourth screenshot.

That's from WAC. Alex placed other crucified (hanging) victims around the world as well and the Imperials all wear that armour or variants of it. Officers have better gear.

Between WAC and Maskar's Overhaul, which adds a lot of content as well, the game is much, much better.....and so, so dangerous...

.

I've also now added SweetFX for some motion blur and graphic enhancement, without the overhead..

, and better water and a few other mods. I still have nowhere near the number I used to run and I'm not going to go overboard, plus I can make my own mods with the CS to combine armours and items especially where there's only one thing I may want from a mod.

I was looking around in the CS yesterday and I thought of a few things I might try and the Oblivion modding scene is still pretty active. It might sound weird but it feels comfortable knowing I can fix things and make things I want in this game. With Skyrim I have no interest in the CK and having to learn a lot of new processes and procedures for a game that frustrates me so much.

EDIT-

After saying I've had no crashes I have had a couple but that's not really unexpected. My BOSS log shows 17 popular and well known mods that need cleaning, some of which have a LOT of dirty edits. I could see how some of the dirty ones could cause issues though because of what they do.

Nearly all of the WAC esps need cleaning as well.

Fessels · November 26th, 2013

That is from WAC...what the? Has it been so long ago that i have forgotten that already, even though i have used WAC as well? Either way, Maskar's Overhaul does look good. As for the Oblivion modding community...well to be honest i am not surprised. Long after Oblivion came out, the Morrowind modding community was also still very active. Those moments show that despite all the bugs in the TES games, people still really like the games.

MasterAub · November 27th, 2013

Nice...Never say never again...

November 28th, 2013

MasterAub wrote:Nice...Never say never again...

True and I'm probably going back further to Morrowind a bit later.

As for Oblivion I've added all the Unique Landscape mods via an Omod compilation. I've only seen a small part of the additional landscapes so far but it makes such a difference. Also patched the Oblivion exe with the 4GB patch for x64 systems to use more memory.

MasterAub · November 29th, 2013

ok me think we should make a list of "must have mods" that work well together and are stable...what do you say?

November 30th, 2013

MasterAub wrote:ok me think we should make a list of "must have mods" that work well together and are stable...what do you say?

Sounds like a plan.

This is my current load order. Quite a few additions since the last one.
Active Mod Files:

spoiler:

I also use a LOT of texture replacers, including Qarl's Redimized, flora, animals and monsters and just about everything else is retextured. I also found an excellent Lore Friendly Load Screen pack....Default Laodscreens

I still haven't really finished looking through the Nexus but there are a number of mods that have been uploaded since I last played.

You might like my new companion and I'll probably do a few more unique ones when I get to it. I've missed the CS...

Now for some screenies. I've only just reached level 2 with this character so I cheated and used God Mode just for some screenshots. I found the road to Bruma was quite a bit more dangerous than I remember...

Chorrol at Dusk

Imperial City from the road to Bruma

The area behind Chorrol using Unique Landscapes

The road to Cloud Top is now so different I didn't recognize it.

Me and my Gnoll buddy. Since I'm using Maskar's Overhaul I can't use certain armours and weapons until I have the correct skill level so I'm still in the vanilla leather cuirass but WAC boots and greaves.

Goblins at the Odil Farm.

Surrounded...

Frost Giant thingie....One hit and it's all over. Sable and Bonesplitter are both unconscious...

MasterAub · November 30th, 2013

Very nice indeed...what are the xul...mods are those the unique landscape ones?

December 1st, 2013

MasterAub wrote:Very nice indeed...what are the xul...mods are those the unique landscape ones?

Yes, it's a compilation of all of them to date in an Omod or BAIN format.

MasterAub · December 2nd, 2013

Here is my Oblivion "must have mods" that's what I'll go with when I reinstall "the whole 9 yards"

Graphics
1 Oblivion Character Overall
2 Natural Environment
3 Oblivion Grass Overhaul
4 Animated Windows Lighting System & Chimney
5 Oblivion Graphic Extender (O.B.G.E)
6 O.B.G.E Liquid Water
7 Alluring Potion Bottles V3
8 Qarl Texture Pack III Redimized
9 Unique Landscapes Pack

Gameplay
10 Unofficial Oblivion Patch
11 Unofficial Shivering Isles Patch
12 Unofficial Official Mod Patch
13 Midas Magic
14 Waalx Animals & Creatures (W.A.C)
15 Maskars Oblivion Overhaul
16 CM Partners Mod Basic
17 Sounds of Cyrodiil

Armors, Clothing & Weapons
18 Adonnay's Elven Weaponry

Companions
19 CM Partners Mod Basic

Quests
20 The Lost Spire

Home
21 Frostcrag Reborn

New Land
22 Elsweyr- The Deserts of Anequina

Others
Oblivion Script Extender
BOSS
BAIN / Wrye Bash

December 3rd, 2013

You don't need the Custom race Fix as it's built into the Unofficial patch.

The Oblivion Character Overhaul is going to be updated soon and from the screens I've seen it looks incredible.

??No Elsweyr- The Deserts of Anequina?? Must have for me.

I haven't added in any quest mods yet, especially big ones. I want to make sure my game is as stable as possible first which it is for the most part considering how many mods I have installed and with a couple of OBSE plugins. I still get the occasional crash but usually only after a few hours play and the game decides that's enough for now...

..

Another you may like that I re-installed again is Sounds of Cyrodiil....and a heap more mods I keep finding...

Thank goodness for Wrye Bash and the merge function.

If you liked OOO or FCOM, I think you'll really like Maskar's Overhaul. It doesn't overhaul as much of the main game as OOO, but with WAC it makes a very challenging game. And it's compatible with pretty much everything.

MasterAub · December 3rd, 2013

Hi Maigrets,
Did not know about the custom race fix...

Agree with you on OCO. It is an amazing mod that places Oblivion in the league of must have game even by today's standard.
Elsweyr is OBVIOUSLY on the list. The mod is stable, clean and beautiful (forgot it)
I can not recommend Lost Spire hard enough...This is the kind of fully voiced mod that are so professionally done it makes Official DLC go hide in the shade (except for Shivering Isle which is for me a true Add-On). The mod is stable, beautiful and original honnestly if you have to pick one, pick this one.
Sound of Cyrodiil is on the list and I installed it when I had my Oblivion period early this year.

Was a big fan of OOO but the mod along with WAC did not make the game so stable at least for me. I am not going without WAC and the other day I spotted your reco about Maskar's Overhaul; I checked the mod on Nexus and it made my list. Again influenced I was...

I'll Keep you posted if some other mods make the list.

December 3rd, 2013

The only thing I really miss about OOO or FCOM is all the static placed loot, but Maskar has a system for that. If you can complete a dungeon and kill it's inhabitants you get the highest level gear possible. However, that's not as easy as it seems...

. The further you go from civilization the more dangerous it is.

I have Lost Spires in my backup folders, but when I installed the game several months ago I was getting a lot of crashes and removed it and other mods. It was probably co-incidence as I really didn't bother troubleshooting much back then and stopped playing. I will give it another go though as I think my game is as stable now as it can possibly be.

Agree with you on OCO. It is an amazing mod that places Oblivion in the league of must have game even by today's standard.

True and not only that mod. My game looks as good as anything new I've tried, including Skyrim, and it still has great gameplay.

OBSE was updated a couple of days ago as well. A lot of the known modders are coming back to the game, or never really left, and new ones are coming in as well. That says something about a game that was released in 2006. Mind you I wouldn't play it or any Bethesda game unmodded after the first play through. It was always my thought that they provided the foundations with their games and modder's complete it...

.

I'm thinking of adding Open Cities next, but I don't think I'll bother with Better Cities although it does look great. I don't tend to spend much time in cities and it wouldn't be worth it to me. I think all the extra clutter etc may add a fps problem and I don't want that.

MasterAub · December 3rd, 2013

I'm thinking of adding Open Cities next

be careful with this, I experienced lots of bugs because of this mod last time I played especially in Bruma and Chorrol...

I used to use open cities way back then when you could choose which city to open (multiple esp). These days the author has put every cities in one package which is probably what the community was and is asking but for me that unique package system does not fly that much.

December 3rd, 2013

MasterAub wrote:
I'm thinking of adding Open Cities next
be careful with this, I experienced lots of bugs because of this mod last time I played especially in Bruma and Chorrol...

I used to use open cities way back then when you could choose which city to open (multiple esp). These days the author has put every cities in one package which is probably what the community was and is asking but for me that unique package system does not fly that much.

The one I was thinking of is Open Cities Classic which is a more basic edition.

There's another one Open Cities Reborn that does more than just open the gates and moves buildings and other things around.

You're probably right though which is why I'm holding off. I did read some of the comments and it's apparently not so easy to remove either.

December 8th, 2013

Latest load order with some new (added, not brand new) mods and some updated ones. I've also added better tree shadows, better grasses and plants (The Imperial Ecology) Vibrant Weather and a few others like better archery, enchanting and spell making. And rainbows...

Active Mod Files:

spoiler:

I bet this surprises people but my only complaint about the game is the lack of really dangerous, creepy dungeons and decent rewards for exploring them.....so...

I am going to put OOO back in my game, but not the full FCOM as I will still be using WAC and Maskar's Overhaul. I have a WAC-OOO Patch that was made for the Alpha version Of WAC but maybe it still works as it's mainly for leveled lists and creature placement etc.

EDIT: Since I've been doing a bit of Googling the WAC-OOO patch may not be necessary if WAC Overspawn.esp and TCOS.esp are not loaded and merged into the Bashed Patch. Without the Overspawn mod I'll need to put Slof's horses back in. I like the WAC horses more, but in the end it doesn't matter too much as I usually run everywhere anyway and only notice them as I go by.

The main reason for putting OOO back is if I were an adventurer in real life and I went exploring any of the dungeons, caves, ruins or forts, and found virtually nothing in them time after time, I would pack up and leave and go elsewhere. A few skeletons, bandits or whatever, depending on which type of dungeon it is, and little to no loot or reward besides calipers and old rotten boots, gets extremely boring and there's no point in exploring.

At the moment Maskar's addresses some of the loot issues but not the way OOO does it. I downloaded a couple of small mods that add clutter type loot and Better Dungeons which upgrades caves mostly to have some interest so they don't all look the same. The author was going to go on to improving Ayleid ruins but it seems that's not going to happen now.

Rainbows over Cyrodiil

Wildlife. I couldn't get close enough to see what it actually is. The grasses and trees look nothing like that now but I need to take some new shots.

Cave garden. One of the additions made by Better Dungeons.

My summoned zombie that turned out to be an Argonian. Just depends on what the game gives me when I summon...

Ailsa · December 8th, 2013

Lovely shots - brings back such memories

December 8th, 2013

Ailsa wrote:Lovely shots - brings back such memories

Thanks.

Since My OB game looks even better than Skyrim, it's more stable with no stuttering or a slow script engine that causes problems and save corruption, I'm enjoying it a lot.

Between Fallout New Vegas and Oblivion, I'm not missing Skyrim at all. I thought about loading it up a couple of nights ago but didn't actually do it because if it crashes or still has the awful stutters that Fessels is or was also getting out of the blue, (and that I've had for ages), and I can't imagine they magically vanished since I last played.....I'll be more tempted to uninstall it forever. A long break is better.

I've come to believe it has something to do with the last official patch as 1.8 was almost perfect for me. Instead of having a character corrupt at level 25 or earlier, I could get to level 60+ with 1.8 and with virtually no problems before I decided it was time to start fresh.

Oblivion is a poor game in it's vanilla state IMO, but modded it can be fantastic, varied and interesting. Skyrim is not so bad vanilla, but even modded becomes boring very quickly especially when I have to start over and do the same things again and again because of the crappy engine. I actually have no desire to play Skyrim even though I do miss some of the awesome mods a little. Hello Inigo

And I miss being a werewolf. That's about all really.

I hope not to see another repetitive Draugr/spider dungeon or Dwemer/Falmer ruin for a long while (although I do like the Dwemer technology)...it's zombies of all kinds, wraiths and other fearsome creatures I'll be battling and doing some interesting Guild and other quests.

Yes, I'm complaining again...

In fact I was going to edit most of it out after coming back and re-reading, but the fact is Skyrim is boring and a chore to me rather than a pleasure and it leaves a bad taste.

I might move this thread to the WAC screenshots area later since it's really not to do with Skyrim.