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NPCs & AI: Class #1


InsanitySorrow
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NPCs & AI: Class #1

Class01.png

Step 1: Before we start

This class is a direct follow on from the CS Basics: Final Exam, if you have not already, I would suggest reading through and completing those classes. They will help you gain the knowledge of the basic CS work and prepare you for our continuation into NPCs and AI.

For this class I am using DarkRider's completed home from the CS Basics class, don't be afraid if you are using your own house/building the information here can still be used.

Step 2: Let's get started

Now that we have learned or are familiar with the basic workings of the CS and now are the proud owners of a new home its time to move and give the house a tenant.

First thing we are going to do is load up the CS, start the CS and make sure to check the CS Basics ESP you made and make it active. Now while that's loading I am going to give some brief information on the NPC we are going to create, you may make as many alterations as you wish though.

Name: Arlowe Alleius

Class: Commoner

Race: Imperial

Gender: Male

Level: 1

Faction: Player Faction

Now as you can see this is a brief overview but it gives us an idea of what we want and saves us a little trouble when working in the CS.

XD Smarty Says: Don't worry yourself with all the checkboxes and information on screen, just take your time and focus on the basic information you will need to use.

Step 3: The first steps

For this class we are going to create a new NPC, this means we get to decide all the details of our NPC and have less chance of making an edit we will later regret.

Okay then lets get to work. In our Object Window (Left Window Pane) at the very top you will see it says "Actors" and has a nice little + sign next to the text. This is the section where all NPCs are kept and this is where we will be working.

Screenshot01.jpg

Now let's go ahead and click that little + sign to expand the Actors tree and see what sections are available to us.

Screenshot02.jpg

As you can see there are a couple of sections there, we will be working in the NPC section, so go ahead and click on where it says NPC. You should now see the pane just to the right fill up. This new information is a list of every NPC in the game and is where we will be able to make new NPCs or edit old ones.

Screenshot03.jpg

Step 4: Creation Part 01

Okay so we know where we will be working for the time being, but where is the NPC screen so we can make our NPC? Well that's an easy one to answer, in the window pane where all the NPCs are listed Right-Click and a little menu will pop up, select the option "New". A new screen will open up.

Screenshot04.jpg

This screen holds all the information for an NPC, from what they look like to what they are wearing, so let's start making our NPC shall we?

Step 5: Creation Part 02

In part 2 we decided on some basic information for our NPC, so let's start with that. Now before we do that we need to give our NPC an ID. The ID is important because it makes it unique and is something that the Construction Set requires us to enter, for our NPC let's give it this ID:

aaClassNPC01

:lol: Smarty Says: The ID used here does not matter, make sure it's something you will remember, its best to pick a prefix that can be used on all your additions. It will then group these together and makes them easier to find. One thing to note is NOT to use numbers ect at the beginning of the ID, always use letters.

So it now has an ID, let's start with the other data. Now under the ID box there is another box for the NPC name, let's enter the name we decided on before. After that we need to set the NPC up with a new class because the CharacterGen one is not suitable for actual use. So a couple of boxes under the name you will see a drop down box for class, click the little arrow at the left to drop the box down and select our chosen class.

So we have a name and we have a new class for our NPC, but wha about the Race?, well that's the next step. Again look a couple of boxes down and you will see the box for Race, again this is a drop down box, so click the arrow and choose our race from earlier.

After these few steps you should be seeing this:

Screenshot05.jpg

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Step 6: Creation Part 03

The very first thing we done was to decide on what our NPC would be like, one of those attributes was the NPC would be Male, but what if we wanted the NPC to be Female, what would we do?

Well that's rather simple, the CS has a simple gender checkbox for this situation. If you want a male character leave the box unchecked, but if you want a female one simple check the box and the CS will switch a few bits if information to make the NPC female.

Screenshot06.jpg

Now before we move onto the next tab we have a couple of more things to do, We need to pick a hair style and the NPCs eye colour. You may notice a few other buttons, but for now we will leave them alone, I'll be covering them later.

These are what I am talking about:

Screenshot07.jpg

Step 7: Hair and Eyes

A quick step here to give our NPCs hair and eyes, after all we wouldn't want them to be bald and blind, wouldn't be fair eh? XD, To the right of the Ok and Cancel buttons you will notice two combo boxes, changing NPC hair and eye colour is as simple as selecting an option for here. And yes it is really that simple.

For this tutorial I gave my NPC loose hair and brown eyes, but its your NPC so pick what you want. Just remember we'll change the hair colour later, so don't worry about that.

Screenshot08.jpg

Step 8: NPC Stats

Every NPC in the game and the Player all have stats, just how the game works. So when creating new NPCs we'll need to setup their stats. Now there are two options here, you can customize the stats by adjusting them all manually or you can simple check a checkbox.

The latter is what we're going to do here, it's simpler ;), In the center of this screen you will notice a box for the NPCs attributes and skills, above the attributes section is a checkbox labelled Auto Calc Stats. So let's check that :lol:, What this will do is automatically set the NPCs stats based on their class and level. Now while this box is checked you cannot alter the stats, you have to use whatever the CS sets. While this does not allow customization it has benefits, mainly that of speed and less hassle for the creator.

Screenshot09.jpg

Now that we have that done, it's time for a change of tabs :D, Next up is factions.

Step 8: Factions

Factions are a big part of Oblivion, Factions range from Friendly right down to evil, these are another factor in how the player interacts with the work and its occupants.

Our NPC is going to be living with the player and will be friends with them. So what we are going to do is add our NPC to the PlayerFaction, this will tell the game that the NPC is friends with the Player, it will also give them permission to live in the home depending on how you have set your home up.

Adding factions is simple, first in our NPC screen we will click on the Factions tab, as you can see at the moment its empty. Newly created NPCs do not belong to any factions. Let's change that shall we :D

Along the top bar of the CS you'll notice a Character option, select it and in the drop down menu select Factions:

Screenshot10.jpg

In the new menu that opens up you will notice a lot of Factions, scroll down until you find the player faction:

Screenshot11.jpg

Once you have selected the PlayerFaction, simple drag and drop into the NPCs faction area, you should see the PlayerFaction get added. Adding Factions is as simple as that :)

Screenshot12.jpg

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Step 9: Inventory

Editing the NPCs inventory is an easy but important step, after all we don't want our NPC to be running around in their underwear now do we? :lmao:, Now editing the inventory is much like adding the NPC to a faction, its simple drag and drop.

In the Object Window under the Actors section you will see an Items section, it's here where we will be getting our NPCs clothing, jewellery and items. Click the little Plus sign next to the Items label and navigate down to where it says Clothing, this is our first stop, were gonna get our NPC some clothes.

Screenshot13.jpg

Now you have that selected, lets click the Plus sign next to the Clothing test to see the full clothing sub menus. Scroll down a little to the Middle Class section. It's here where we'll pick some nice middle class clothes for our NPC.

Screenshot14.jpg

It does not matter what you choose here, just drag and drop a shirt, pants and shoes over to the NPCs inventory. I have chosen:

MiddlePants01

MiddleShirt01

MiddleShoes01

:D Smarty Says: TO view what your NPC looks like, look to the far right of the NPC screen, in the bottom right there are two options for viewing the NPC, one for the head and the other a full preview. Click the Full Preview checkbox to see what your NPC looks like, it's great for checking out the clothes.

Additional:

Following the steps above, give your NPC a ring and amulet. Make sure it's suitable for a middle class commoner.

Step 10: Spells

Spells are an important resource for the Mages of Cyrodill, they are not so important for common NPCs, but our one is rather special so he will be given a nice spell. Since our NPC is a commoner we're going to give him a simple restore health spell, nothing special but he may find it handy if the player decides to go on a killing spree.

Now adding spells is very similar to adding inventory items, first on the NPC screen click the Spells tab, As you can see the NPC currently has no spells, so let's change that. Follow the steps above and navigate to the Magic section of the Object Window, click the little plus sign to expand the menu and click the Spells option.

Screenshot15.jpg

In the spell list navigate down and find the spell StandardRestoreHealth1Novice, drag and drop this into your NPCs spell list. And that's it, the NPC has a healing spell :D

Screenshot16.jpg

Additional:

Following what has just been explained, give your NPC a standard Fireball, Frost and Shock spells, Make sure they are targeted spells.

Step 11: Facial Features

One of the distinguishing features of any person is their looks, well this is the same for the NPCs of Cyrodill. So what we'll be needing to do is play around with the Facial Features of our NPC to give them their own look. Don't worry though, we'll not be aiming to create a masterpiece, instead we just want something a little different to the other NPCs.

So with our NPC screen open, navigate through the tabs and find the Face tab. You'll also notice a Face Advanced tab, but for now just ignore it, that tab covers more advanced facial features.

Screenshot17.jpg

Now as you can see this screen only covers the very basics of how an NPC's face looks, for example the NPCs Age or Hair colour.

Okay so what were going to do is change our NPC a little, change your NPC based around this information:

Age: 20

Complextion: 1.0

Hair Length: 0.5

We are going to leave the hair the same colour, but for future reference to change it click the Select Color button.

Screenshot18.jpg

So with that done let's move onto the final step :clap:

Step 12: Placement

Now the last thing we need to do is place the NPC in the game world. As I stated before we started that I am using DarkRider's Bogwater Downs for this class, if you followed all the parts of the CS Basics class including the extra credit ect you should have a nice Basement area where our new NPC can live.

Don't worry if you do not have an area for the NPC, you can place them anywhere in the home, just note that when we come to work on the AI that the NPC will need to sleep ect, so might be nice to have two beds :laugh:

Okay so what we need to do is click Cell View window and find our interior where we wish to place the NPC, it does not have to be an interior you can place them outside, but for this we'll place him inside. So once we have found the cell, click it to view it, zoom in untill you have a close view of where you want the NPC ri be placed, Now go to the Object Window and drag and drop the NPC into the Render Window, adjust as needed.

Screenshot19.jpg

See just like placing anything else :D, Once you have that done you can save, you have just created your first NPC :clap:

Note: Please post a screenshot of the NPC in your interior, no other images are needed but you can show them if you want :D

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Homework

Time for a bit of Homework :lmao:, This time you are going solo and creating a new NPC.

For this one I'd like you to create a Female Khajitt, upperclass Pawnbroker at level 15. Ontop of that she will need a small amount of gold, potions and a few basic spells. Oh I forgot to mention, she likes to have a couple of pieces of Jewelry, something preferably in gold. Her eyes are standard Khajiit ones and she wears her hair in a headband, she is middle aged with pale skin.

After that is all done I would like you to place the NPC in the gameworld, this time in an exterior location. The location is just outside the Chapel in Bruma.

:D Smarty Says: Be sure to use BrumaWorld and not the Tamriel world when placing the NPC.

Please take screenshots of her information and her placement in the gameworld.

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  • 1 month later...

IIRC the tail issue is becuase of the NPC's skeleton, some bug in one of them I think.

The first NPC has a different name an his clothes look a little different, but he's still there so I don't mind :), The second one looks perfectly fine to me, you may head to class #2 if you so choose :D

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here's mine:

I named her A'jira(h?)

ajira.th.jpg

ajiraspells.th.jpg

ajirainventory.th.jpg

ajiraface.th.jpg

And Arlowe, poor sapps gonna end up as a test dummy for my mugger's club!

arlowe.th.jpg

i got the weird mile long tail thing too, made it almost impossible to place her, she'd end up all the way off the map if i tried to drop her in front of the chapel... any known fixes for that?

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OK, created NPC, working on homework, got pants on him after a false start on that :evil:

newnpc1.jpg

I re created the new NPC and this time it worked, i think the first time i did not pick the right things ...

she appeared fine.

newnpc2.jpg

npc2newstats2.jpg

npc2newstats.jpg

Edited by CrisG9
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ah, i forgot the potions.

Here are screenshots of the potions, faction, and spells...and i removed an amulet that may have caused that effect.

potions and main inventory

added1.jpg

Spell inventory

added2.jpg

Faction and Stats

added3.jpg

npc2inbruma.jpg

Edited by CrisG9
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fixed3p.jpg

I had read the assignment but i then got scared by the amulet that caused the chameleon and removed all the G*** jewelery and forgot to put them back.

chose two hopefully safe pieces.

as we do these classes should we have our Basic Class and the main OB esps activated only?.... so will these NPCs be dependent on our Basic class esp?

Edited by CrisG9
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Looks good, you may move on :evil:, Also enchanted items usually have a prefix of "Ench", so just avoid those ones if you're not wanting any special effects. There are always plain versions of each item there.

As with any project you will need the Oblivion.esm active, for this class you will also need your basics ESP too. The NPCs will be saved into this project. Well infact the first one is, the second NPC can be made it it's own ESP if you want.

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