Mods of the Week #1-10

Mods of the Week #1

So, here we go, this time you can look forward to quite a few more mods for this mods of the week than normal. All mods have been highly recommended but aren't necessarily new. So, here it is:

Oblivion Mods

Released Mods

1. Oscuro's Oblivion Overhaul- I've decided to finally include this gargantuan mod into this special mods of the week, as it's worthy of some true praise. Although it was released over a year ago, it should be included because it's a total-conversion for Oblivion, and those who are longtime TES fans will like Oblivion much much more with this mod enabled. Changes leveled lists, enemies to specific areas, so there is no leveled enemies, they'll all appear, as well as new items/factions and many other things to guarantee much more immersion and challenge than you've felt with Oblivion before.

2. Loading Screens Themed Replacer- You won't see what I mean about this mod being so great until it's implemented into your game. For those who like more of an artistic and varied touch before they enter the game, and since a vast amount of time is spent on loading screens, this replacer adds much more interesting drawings corresponding to each loading screen, and allows for even more immersion, like OOO, into Oblivion.

3. Smarter Mercantile Leveling- Changes Oblivion's ridiculous mercantile system to a gold based system, along with much more to enhance the game. It's a simple fix, but it also works wonders, because many including myself, have been annoyed with the Oblivion merc. system.

4. Bruma Hunting Lodge- I included this simply because it's very similar to our own union mod for Morrowind, Solstheim Lodge. This one, a snug, cozy hunting lodge just to the southeast of Bruma, with spectacular views of the Imperial City.

Work-In-Progress Mods

1. Nibenay Castle- The pictures provided in the link explain it better than I do. This mod will be top-notch and is by a top-notch former Morrowind modder. This huge, beautiful castle certainly looks very very promising.

2. Adonnay's c-lassic Weaponry- Adonnay, a fantastic weapons modder, is releasing his new weapons pack, ****c weaponry, which has quite a few weapons from Neverwinter Nights 2. Again, the pictures speak much more than my words, and let's just say it's worth a look to see what he's doing.

3. Fight Club- Ever wanted a brawling hand-to-hand combat club to fight that wasn't just like the Imperial City Arena? Fight Club is your mod to watch. It adds a small arena in the basement of the merchant's inn, this H2H only club will have you fighting 5 to 6 people, including the boss "Hardman", along with being able to bet on matches, and is certainly a nice addition to Oblivion.

4. Haunted House- Adds a fun quest with a haunted house to Oblivion. Traps, monsters, and an evil guild await in this fun and spooky mod.

So, how's that for a batch of Oblivion mods? Now for Morrowind!

Morrowind Mods

Released Mods

1. Morrowind Comes Alive- Randomly adds over 1000 NPCs to over 300 cells to bring Morrowind to life. It relieves the staticness of the world of Morrowind nicely, and it simulates people going to and from towns, out of inns, shops, etc. You'll see new NPCs in the streets and more!

2. Morrowind Graphics Extender- This wonderful mod adds tons of new things to Morrowind, including: An Oblivion-**** distant land feature, semi-faked HDR effect, let's you change Morrowind resolution to non- 4:3 values, among many other nice things.

3. Havish- Recommended to me by our own Tzif, Havish adds an independent city state west of Vvardenfell. The city has 117 buildings, 20 new thieves guild quests, 8 fighter's guild quests, 8 mages guild quests, a banking system, as well as tons of gambling. Even though it isn't lore related, it's tons of fun, and a must download unless you're a lore purist.

4. Vality's Bitter Coast Mod- Vality's latest mod is a tree replacer for the bitter coast, using his own speedtree technique, much like the one used in Oblivion. For those who want to know more about speedtree, and the mod, click the link.

Work-In-Progress Mods

1. Dark Brotherhood Faction- The title is a bit misleading, as it seemingly doesn't add a faction's worth of quests, likely only one, and a sanctuary, but nonetheless, the sanctuary looks fantastic, and for an interesting addition, the door will actually speak to you upon entrance.

2. Soul Gem Crafting- Currently the mod is pretty basic, upon release it will remain that way, but it has plenty of potential, and who doesn't want to craft soul gems of their own?

Mods of the Week # 2

Oblivion Mods

Released Mod

Nicoroshi's Creations- Famed Oblivion weapons and armor modeler, Nicoroshi, has released a compilation of all of his released works to date, and it's safe to say there's many of them. You'll play with the old favorites, Doomshard Bow, Wulfarth's Fury, and the Talon of Akatosh as well as many more interesting pieces.

Work-In-Progress Mod

Kvatch Rebuilt- The "other" rebuilt Kvatch mod, that is actually nearly finished. Taken from the thread, here are a few things you'll be able to do: "Quests to rebuild the city, step by step. The opportunity to be count of Kvatch. Recognition of 'Hero of Kvatch' status, A new arena to conquer, and more!"

Morrowind Mods

Released Mod

Uvrith's Legacy- This adds many quests to Tel Uvrith, and it is important to remember that this is still in beta form. It's more for a Telvanni player, so there are some rather interesting things you'll be doing, but you'll likely get the most out of it if your character is a Telvanni. There are also plenty of new places to vist as well.

Work-In-Progress Mod

Avenge your death- Allows that, when you die, you can choose to die or become a ghost, which from there you're randomly teleported to several random locations. Your objective is to find your corpse.

 

Mods of the Week # 3

Oblivion Mods

Released Mods

1. Haunted House- Already mentioned in a previous mods of the week as a work-in-progress mod, this mod fittingly came out on Halloween. Made by clocks of Cyrodiil creator, WillieSea, this mod is an excellent edition to the game that has truly been missing. Experience the house that has an ancient cursed tomb, secret passageways, and bosses that have pumpkin heads, special swords, and death itself!

2. Get Wet- This mod allows your character to simply get wet in the rain, or when swimming. This is definitley a nice addition to the game, albeit small.

Work-In-Progress Mods

1. Choices and Consequences- An update to a different mod that had a similar purpose called Enhanced Quest Roleplaying, Choices and Consequences is a role-player's dream. This mod overhauls many of the game's sidequests, as well as a few of the quests in the main quests, giving you a lot more dialogue options, and the true chance to role-play during quests. Also, it changes the Mages Guild by making the quests more magic-oriented.

2. Star Wars Galaxy Modification- A total conversion mod, in you guessed it, the Star Wars Galaxy. I'm not sure how much hope there is for this project, but it seems that it's pretty well supported, so perhaps it lasts.

Morrowind Mods

Released Mods

1. Sandman's Weapon Project- Adds over 500 new weapons to Morrowind, along with 80 shields and defensive weapons. There are so many that every merchant has some new weapons to buy, and, enemies get the chance to wield these weapons as well.

2. Key-Wizard_Crystals_Resource- A modder's resource, that it tended toward the Telvanni, Wizard type, and coming in six different models, these crystals certainly get the job done.

Work-In-Progress Mod

1. The Price of Glory- A quest mod, based around a book series, The Price of Glory has some interesting tasks, including: stopping an uprising in Ebonheart, cover or expose political scandal, and more. There are other features as well, including your own home, your own personal guard, and dynamic relationships with council members. Definitley a download when it comes out!

 Mods of the Week # 4

Oblivion Mods

Released Mods

Legend in the Sky- This mod creates a huge castle in the skies above the Imperial City. To get the book about the castle, visit First Edition bookstore to get the info on how to acquire it, and take on a very interesting challenge. Although I've yet to play this mod, from the overwhelming applauding of it, it's a definite thumbs-up. If you don't believe the praise, check it out yourself, you won't be dissapointed.

Book Jackets: Oblivion- One of the most highly detailed, and simply well-done mods for both a lore-junkie, and realism lover is book jackets, which makes a retexture of all book covers in the game. An extroadinary amount of work went into making this, but the over 50000 downloads to date speak wonders, and I can fully assure you that this mod is the real deal from playing it myself.

Work-In-Progress Mod

Action Figures- A very early WIP, but the author was messing around with the construction set, and came up with a Mehrunes Dagon action figure, complete with packaging! He's open for suggestions on what else to make, so if you want to help with this fun little mod, you should click the link I gave you!

Morrowind Mods

Released Mod

Julan Ashlander Companion- A mod designed to have a companion who knows what's going on within the main quest, he'll supply you with interesting comments, and wants you train him as a warrior. You can actually train Julan yourself, he's got over 1800 lines of dialogue, an optional romance for female characters. Julan also manages to do some bad things as well, for example, he can get extremely drunk, get on badly with travel companions, moan about weather, when he's bored, etc. Overall, this mod is truly perhaps the best companion mod Morrowind has, as is a must-download if you plan on doing the main quest again, and want a friend.

Work-In-Progress Mod

Build your own house- Being made by our own lettuceman44, an officer at the union. This mod aims to go where no other house mod has gone before because it gives you ultimate customization in actually building a house to your liking, whether its an unfurnished plain house, or a monstrous Redoran Castle/Stronghold type of thing. Keep track of it!

And now...for our highlighted top mod this week:

Bomret's Detailed Normal Maps for Vanilla Oblivion- A doozy of a title, this mod is truly a piece of work that goes unheralded to other texture/graphics mods out there. This mod replaces the undetailed normal maps with highly detailed ones, making for a much better look, and the best of all, virtually no performace cost whatsoever. I highly recommend taking a look at the screens for this one, it gives Oblivion a clean, very nice visual

Mods of the Week # 5

Oblivion Mods

Released Mods

1. Divine Avenger's CM Partners Compilation- Based off the CM Partners mod, with Divine Avenger's Compilation, you'll be able to download a companion from the likes of Aragorn, Sephiroth, as well as elves from Lineage II, and many many more. A very fun compilation for anyone who's a bit lonely in the TES world.

2. Better Letters- This wonderful mod rewrites all the letters in the game, adding some about love triangles, in-game quests, and simple letters those have in their homes. Wonderful for immersion, as it definitley adds to the game.

Work-In-Progress Mods

1. Veritas Keep- A gorgeous, gorgeous castle mod, rivaling the likes of Nibenay Castle (shown during a previous Mods of the Week). This castle can be your own with its own vault, casting room, library, bedroom, meeting room, along with much much more.

2. Jousting for Cyrodiil- See for yourself, this mod will add jousting within a new arena in Cyrodiil, thanks to mr_siika and crew. It features skill affected jousting, different enemies, different horses, and some excellent rewards. I recommend watching the highlight video, it's nothing short of remarkable.

Morrowind Mods

Released Mods

1. Domehome- A magnificent home, fit with servants, and of course, it's a dome. Started by the excellent and legendary Morrowind modder, and finished by his companion modder, the wonderful, and yes legendary Emma.

2. Daedric Sorcery- Join a group trying to summon the daedric princes for themselves. The quest mod adds various quest paths, so you'll never have the same result if played again.

Work-In-Progress Mods

1. Connary's Megapack Textures- This mod is a long ways off, but is one of the greatest texture mods yet. Connary shows here how talented he is by making Morrowind caves, imperial forts, housing, and stronghold textures much more detailed. Hopefully it will progress quickly, since it's certainly a promising mod.

Mods of the Week # 6

 Oblivion Mods