Skyrim: Total War [WIP]

[Finlander]

Welcome Traveller,
To follow Skyrim: Total War modification.


Brief Overview and Some Blah

Skyrim TW's name is quite self-evident, but for those who are not familiar with the theme, the mod is set in Skyrim, a location in the fictional universe created by Bethesda in the Elder Scrolls gameseries, and particularly the mod will focus on the era of the Stormcloak Rebellion, the civil war of Skyrim between the Imperials and Nords.

Adapting the universe of Skyrim into a Medieval II modification is a challenging task for a number of reasons will require various creative - and sometimes even perhaps courageous - design decisions. To bear in mind the limitations of the game in which the modification is based on is the fundamental first step of the development; this will mean that not everything can be made exactly as they were in the original game but this does not mean that we couldn't achieve something great and

Despite the various limitations we in the development have to face, there is a whole realm of possibilities that the Total War engine can bring to us that we could have only dreamed of Skyrim; This is the main reason for why I became enthusiastic to begin working on the modification in the first place. The vision of what Skyrim could potentially be without the restrictions of the engine we had in the original game is the main source of inspiration for this project. Among other things, Total War is the best in offering a grand scale warfare and the mod is indeed exploiting this great possibility: what used to be a band of soldiers in Skyrim will now be an army of many.


A Total Conversion Mod

Skyrim: Total War is a total conversion mod for Medieval II and will change great largely - if not nearly completely - the original game. It is no doubt an ambitious project requiring heavy modding.

There are some of the planned changes and features, but they are not limitated to:

~ New Artwork, including UIs, menus, event pictures, loading screens, character portraits, building icons and more.
~ New Unit Models and Textures
~ Completely new map with textures, settlement and resource isons
~ Full range of interesting scripts and events
~ New Music
~ And much more!




Factions and Loyalty System

Skyrim: Total War intents to include a number of factions into the mod. For those not familiar with the political situation in Skyrim, the land is divided between severals holds which will be presented as intepented factions. These Holds are forming the main factions of the campaign but beside them will stand a range of minor factions that also have ambitions of their own.

The Civil war between the Imperials and the Stormcloacks is raging over the land; Jarls, the leaders of the Holds, are divided supporting one side over another. I would like to introduce a new loyalty system which will determine the side the Holds will fight for. It might be possible to drive a Jarl into changing their allegiance to. Not only the leaders of a faction matter, also a strong enough support among the population is needed before the locals will side with your forces in the war.

Here is a WIP list of possible factions.

Please, bear in mind that the current list of factions is not yet completed. Thoughts and suggestions are always welcome! The Artwork presented is for demonstration purposes only and isn't finalized.



Main Factions: 1. Eastmarch; 2. The Pale; 3. The Rift; 4. Winterhold; 5. Haafingar; 6. Hjaalmarch; 7. The Reach; 8. Falkreath; 9. Whiterun

Other: 10. Forsworn; 11. Thalmor; 12. Bandits; 13. Volkihar Clan; (+ very likely undead factions)

Orc Strongholds: 14. Dushnikh Yal; 15. Narzulbur; 16. Mor Khazgur; 17. Largashbur

As has been said, the list of factions remains unfinished and changes can be made. Therefore, any suggestions of additions are warmly welcomed.




Campaign Modes

The different scenarios that I have intented to create for the mod will affect the beginning of the campaign.

Campaigns plans so far:

▧ Balgruuf’s Dilemma (Sandbox): The name referce to the battle the Jarl of Whiterun was fighting in his mind when he was not yet choosen which side of the Civil War he would join. In this campaign mode none of the major Holds have chosen their allegiance to neither side and so their loyalty will be determined as the campaign progress on.

▧ The Stormcloak Ascendance: In this campaign mode the northern holds of The Pale (Dawnstar) and Winterhold start under the command of Ulfric Stormcloak, but those holds are starting weaker than they would otherwise.

▧ The Stormcloak Rebellion: In this campaign mode the The Pale and Winterhold start off independent as does everyone else.


Previews and Pictures

We don't currently have any inclusive previews, only some WIP (Work In Progress) pictures have been posted here by me to demonstrate how certain things have progressed on. To find more I'd recommend to browse over the pages of this thread because I cannot collect everything in the OP-

Here's a peek over the map in its current, unfinished form:

WIP Map

Recruitment & Support

Interested in helping by joining the team? Currently there would be a vacant place for:

▫ Experienced Unit Maker: It wouldn't hurt to have an another pair of hands helping with this project. I am currently very busy myself and the time I have I'd like to spend on finishing the map before continuing to other jobs. It would help a lot if someone would be working on the units, and I believe it would make finishing this mod so much faster.

Who would be the most wanted:
▫ A member confident with modelling, texturing and rigging
▫ A member interested in TES lore and/or Skyrim (able to produce fitting material for the theme)
▫ A spontaneus member

As I mentioned, I am very busy with the RL and I would like to spend more time on the map. I'd definitely need a member who can produce quality material for the mod and can be spontaneus in his/her work, bring up ideas and generally be a full member of the team. The lore expertise might seem a bit off here, but since I am working on other stuff and cannot provide concepts it would be great if the member would have an idea on what is or isn't fitting for the mod.

If you are interested in applying for the job, PM me.

Moreover, anybody can show their support by wearing one of the signatures:

Signatures - PM me if you want to add your artwork there

Signature 1 Signature 2 Signature 3 by Mhaedros Signature 4

[Finlander]

Reserved. Feel free to commment and all ideas are much appreciated!

Frequently Asked Questions & Answers

Q: Will the dragons be represented in the mod?
A: - Yes. There will be randomly occuring 'Dragon Attack' scripts/events in the mod, which will cause death and destruction upon the villages they are being targeted at.

Q: Do you plan to implement dragons as units that wander around the map and attack armies?
A: - It is unlikely that dragons will be included as an unit on a battle map in the first releases of the mod; the reason for this is that creating a well functioning unit will be difficult to achieve with the hardcoded limitations and it would require a lot of effort from the modder. As long as I am working on this project alone I cannot promise that I can do it at this stage of progress, sorry. However, I believe that randomly occuring script can be made to represent dragon attacks on armies marching on the campaign map and for the settlements.

Q: Is the Companions going to be in the mod?
A: - Not yet decided. Perhaps the Companions could be an AOR (Area of Recruitment) unit in Whiterun or perhaps mercenaries. Write a comment what do you think about it.

Q: Is there going to be the Dark Brotherhood in the mod?
A: - Yes. There will be a randomly occuring 'the Dark Brotherhood' event for the player with a reward of a high skilled assassin appearing to the player's command, which now can be used to kill one target before the assassin disappearing back to the darkness.

Q: Will there be a Falmer faction in the mod?
A: - Very doubtfully as Falmers were blind and it would not make much sense if they would raise armies and attack settlements outside their underground realm.

Q: Are there plans to create custom settlements for the mod?
A: That has been planned and I would like to see them implemented in as much as anyone here, however, I am not sure if I have what it takes to create them. Great many things can go wrong with it and the settlements ought not to have pathfinding issues or severe bugs making them next to unplayable, the workload is enormous and will require great dedication from their creator. I hope that someone volunteers for this huge task.

[Emperor of Hell]

Nice work Fin! Had the same idea like a year ago. Never bothered to finish it though .

[Finlander]

Guess from who I stole it?

[Inarus]

Promising start Finlander, may that model be the first of many for it looks damn good!

[IAmNotShazam]

Well, I must admit this is actually a pleasant surprise. When I saw the thread I thought it was another announcement by a newcomer stating that they'd never made a mod ever then listed off how there would be 31 factions and they'd all be totally unique and such, all without a single screenshot to back up their claims.

Then I noticed there's actual WIPs and it's made by someone who has some experience here. For the first time in a while, I think I'm going to get my hopes up for an Elder Scrolls themed Total War, hope it all works out!

Out of curiosity, what's the Thalmor's involvement in this mod? Will they play a part?

[lolIsuck]

That's a great looking first model and, being a Skyrim fan myself, great idea for a mod too.
Good luck with this, mate.

[Finlander]

Aww, thanks everyone. You're too kind.

Out of curiosity, what's the Thalmor's involvement in this mod? Will they play a part?

A good question, actually I did not think of them when I made the the faction.

I was suggested (by someone with far greater knowledge of the lore than I have ) to make Thalmor a faction of their own. They would be loyal to themselves, thought they pretend to be in good-terms with the Empire.

[Guti00]

this is a dream

[IAmNotShazam]

Aww, thanks everyone. You're too kind.


A good question, actually I did not think of them when I made the the faction.

I was suggested (by someone with far greater knowledge of the lore than I have ) to make Thalmor a faction of their own. They would be loyal to themselves, thought they pretend to be in good-terms with the Empire.

They could go either way. They stand behind the shadows in the Civil War, which when finished, ends with the victorious side remarking to get ready to take the fight to the Dominion. As for lore don't worry too much. As long as you don't go the route that TESO is going, you'll be fine.

[The Roman Republic]

Are you doing this all on your own?

By the way, great unveiling of the mod.

[Heathen Storm]

Wow! Very nice work my friend!
And that model... incredible!

[ComnenusTheOne]

Damnit for the last 2 weeks this is what i had in mind, though having no idea about modding.... i was skeptical about making a thread and asking other people to do it.

You got my full and i mean my FULL support. Anything you need: research, background, conlang etc. I am your man.

[Warcrafthero]

Good idea i have imagined a skyrim mod many times, unfortunately i don't have any modding skills such as modelling and 2d art

[cenkiss]

Good work. How do you plan to do units? In skyrim all towns had the same units . Only difference was the color.
What kind of type of units can we expect? Will it include magic? You can make apprentice magicians to work like archers or crossbowman in my opinion.

[ComnenusTheOne]

Speaking about Vampires, i am thinking about this: A hidden Vampire faction. Then after X turns, you get a message like "The Tyranny of the Sun is fulfilled" and the faction becomes active, you get Vampire armies spawning here and there, and then, your faction gets Dawnguard units (Dawnguard would not be a separate faction) to help defeat the threat. It's an idea.

[Murfmurf]

Aaah this is what that helmet was for!

Looks great Fin, good luck!

[Finlander]

Are you doing this all on your own?

By the way, great unveiling of the mod.

Thank you and yes for the time being I am working on this alone, though there have been TWC friends volunteering to help on this and that.

Wow! Very nice work my friend!
And that model... incredible!

Thank a lot buddy!

Damnit for the last 2 weeks this is what i had in mind, though having no idea about modding.... i was skeptical about making a thread and asking other people to do it.

You got my full and i mean my FULL support. Anything you need: research, background, conlang etc. I am your man.

Hah, thank you. I am not so sure of recruiting a team as of just now as the mod is still at a very early stage and much have to be planned out first before a team could work at full effectiviness. Though, experienced unit makers who I know would be the most needed, and of course, later, once the base is done, people are needed to work on tasks that doesn't necessary need modding experience, such as collecting lists of names, writing descriptions and such. Thanks anyway for the support

Good idea i have imagined a skyrim mod many times, unfortunately i don't have any modding skills such as modelling and 2d art

Thank you, I am glad the idea received such a wonderful reception.

Good work. How do you plan to do units? In skyrim all towns had the same units . Only difference was the color.
What kind of type of units can we expect? Will it include magic? You can make apprentice magicians to work like archers or crossbowman in my opinion.

Much needs to be planned, including unit rosters, but i can say that there are going to be more than justthe regular Guard unit for every Hold, though the Guard unit will still be avaiable for each faction but I have been thinking to make them have something like 3 differend level tiers by experience with a little variation on gear and stats. Oh, and there are lots of ideas in Skyrim for AOR units, such as Companions in Whiterun.

I have seen Magic being used in other mods and I know it can be done in an impressive way. I'd love to have mage units taking part in the mod somehow at some point.

Speaking about Vampires, i am thinking about this: A hidden Vampire faction. Then after X turns, you get a message like "The Tyranny of the Sun is fulfilled" and the faction becomes active, you get Vampire armies spawning here and there, and then, your faction gets Dawnguard units (Dawnguard would not be a separate faction) to help defeat the threat. It's an idea.

Interesting idea, I need to think about implementing a Vampire faction.

Either way, I have been giving my thoughts run wild on the vampires, and an idea popped to my mind to implement a trait system for them. If I am not totally wrong, I think there might be a script to give a small chance to a general to be infected with Vampyre disease if the general has been in a close combat with a Vampyre.

[ComnenusTheOne]

Well there are many things you can do. Traits and ancillaries.... well. To be honest they were never that interesting in the game. And a "vampire" trait, i can't see just how it will work. Forced night battle? +4 stars for night battles? -X hit points? I don't know. A separate Volkihar faction makes.... more sense to be honest.

For the main factions, i guess religion will work there. The "catholic vanilla" can be the Imperial Factions, with the "Pope" being some imperial figure and you can dictate anti-Stormcloak crusades here and there, and of course if a Skyrim factions gets excommunicated.... well the Empire wastes no time or effort into bringing them back to control. The Stormcloak Factions could me "muslim vanilla" with their priests being either warmongers or something like that, and if one has enough piety (or however you call it) they could raise a "jihad" against an imperial city. Or something like that. Not sure why, but i do believe the Orc factions should be split into 4, each according to the stronghold in the area. Different leader = Different politics. Now.... undead.... i am not sure. Will the draugr be an active faction? Will they lead attacks to other factions? Shall there be diplomacy with them? Some things would not make sense from them. I can see diplomacy with everyone, even Vampires, but the undead... oh well.

For Forsworn and Thalmor, i think the idea is pretty clear. Forsworn are separate from everyone, just like you pointed out, and their main target would be the Reach and nothing else. As for the Thalmor, they have their embassy and one or two strongholds and that's all. Not sure what kind of victory conditions or anything would you give them, if being playable at the end.

I'd also say... don't be too strict with what you see in-game. You can be canon and lore-friendly AND have artistic license as well. You don't have to portray the Stormcloaks EXACTLY with the in-game uniforms. Work it out.

[Finlander]

I hope I was not misunderstood with my trait talk as I did not mean that Vampire faction could not be seen in the mod or only a trait system would be implemented.

If there is going to be a Vampire faction, their characters need to have a trait system either way. As for a non-vampire faction it is hazardous to get one of the generals diseased with Vampirism. Though, I am not sure could anyone affected by it hide their secret from the public. If they do find out, I don't think it would take long time before he is beheaded.

And yes, I agree very much on how the vanilla religions would work. An Imperial Jarl who get's "execommunicated" could try to seek into a new alliance and maybe even change sides on the civil war permanently.

You have a point on Draugr factions, trying to negotiate trade agreements with them just wouldn't make sense unless all diplomacy with them can be disabled somehow in a way I don't know. Also I don't think would it make much sense to have them forming huge armies and launching sieges on castles, thought there were some ancient and powerful figures in side missions that could actually become the King of the Dead of some sort and raise skeleton armies and lead his troops outside of the dark tombs if such character is ressurrected. On the other hand, there were some angry necromancers who raised dead back to the world of living only to serve thems.

However, my original idea for the Draugr faction was to represent them as an rebel faction for the sake of making things more interesting. No other faction form diplomatic relations with them and having a faction of their own you can add all custom portraits for their leaders, sounds, strat map models... all without messing up other rebel factions. They would also function better when they can have a behaviour of their own.