Roryn's Bluff Overhaul

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(Reply #1) Posted on Wed, 2021-03-24 03:31

Cicero

Joined:
2016-01-25 21:01

Last seen:
5 hours 18 min ago

Introduction

This thread is to organize the Roth Roryn overhaul this year, and to try and get the region release ready before year end. Exterior developers will need to volunteer to help out with the task and to claim a section from the map below. This is not a traditional way to claim things, it is section file editing, open to all developers as long as they are an exterior developer on the website. Down below is the claim map, please comment on this thread which number you want, and I will update the thread itself to reflect the request.

Claims:

Claim	Developer	Focus	Date Claimed
1 (Leftunch)	N/A	River will need most work	N/A
2 (Pryai Source)	Phenoix12	Visual blockers and sunken roads	04/11/2021
3 (Bodrum)	chef	(Completed) Town rework and cliffs	03/23/2021
4 (Illiath)	N/A	Cliffs and cobbling	N/A
5 (Region center)	mojo187	(Completed) Navigation and access to the ruin	04/04/2021
6 (Omaynis)	chef	Cliffs and new AB road	N/A
7 (Inner Sea)	chef	(Completed) Decrease large rocks used to fill in the landscape and cliffs to Ancylis	N/A
8 (Aralor)	N/A	Cliffs (need alot more terrain usage), and more paths to places	N/A
9 (Menaan)	Cicero	Town cobbling, flat terrain, Anbarsud Mine exterior interior, Armun/RR border	03/23/2021
10 (Teyn)	chef	Building changes from the meeting, Verenzaris funky asset usage, new road into RR	N/A
11 (Ando Border)	mojo187	Rock groups, more bumpy terrain, sunken roads, less large rocks	N/A
12 (Obainat)	N/A	Useless mountain rivers, easier access to obainat, cliff meshes	N/A

Claimants can overlap into other claims if they need to for border matching, but it is best if people stay within their area if they can so that no one gets lost if they return to work on their section. Communication is very important during this process!

Seniors and Leads can sign out a section file and comment on the section files thread that they have signed it out and for which developer. There is a google spreadsheet available for everyone to edit to put their name next to a date. The spread sheet has the following listed:
- Date
- Name
- Claim #
- Signed in by
- Signed out by

Date is already set, and is set at the start of a week (sunday) all the way to the end of the year (about 39 weeks listed).
The name section is where a developer wants to put themselves down at a certain date to work on the section file. This way they cannot be overruled unless they consent to give up their time. The individual must work on the section file during this thime though, otherwise it will be a waste.
Claim# is to just document what claim on the claim map a developer has interest in, and so it to be entered as well as to not confuse anyone where work has been done. Sign in and Sign out date would be handled be the senior and lead that has signed out the file so that it is documented as well.

Link to the Roryn's Bluffs secion file:

Section file

Flora (Flowers and Mushrooms in a badlands makes for an interesting look. Nice departure from West gash and its leaves)

Retain + add:
Statics:

- Generic grass (flora_grass_01 - 04) - replace bc grass
- Munzur (T_Mw_Flora_Munzur_**) - replace bush

- Terras Tree (T_Mw_Flora_TerrasTree_**)

- Tumtum Parasols (T_Mw_Flora_TumtumParasol_**) - bordering the Velothi Mountains Region, up to 3 cells away.

- Cine Tree (T_Mw_Flora_TreeCine_**) - whole region, with more growing in fertile areas

- Emperor Parasol (flora_emp_parasol_**)

- Muckpods (flora_muckpod_**) - by water, paired with muckspunge

Containers:

- Aloe Vera (T_Cyr_Flora_AloeVera**) - Cyrodilic plant, part of the border mix mentioned in 2920, replace corkbulb in the whole region

- Mandrake (T_Cyr_Flora_Mandrake01) - Cyrodilic plant, part of the border mix mentioned in 2920, replace heather in the west

- Stinkhorn (T_Cyr_Flora_Stinkhorn**) - Cyrodilic Fungi, part of the border mix mentioned in 2920, replace gold kanet in the west

- Willow Anther (flora_willow_flower_**)

- Black Anther (flora_black_anther_**)

- Black Rose (T_Mw_Flora_Blackrose**)
- Hackle-lo (flora_hackle-lo_**) - replace kreshweed
- Temple Dome (T_Mw_Flora_TempleDom**) - pair with T_Mw_Light_AanthirinMushroom light
- Bluefoot (T_Mw_Flora_Bluefoot**) - pair with bc mushroom 128 light
- Green Lichen (flora_green_lichen_** + T_Mw_Flora_LichenGn03) - on rocks
- Black Lichen (flora_black_lichen_** + T_Mw_Flora_LichenBk03) - on rocks

- Muckspunge (flora_muckspunge_**) - by water, paired with muckpods
- Marhmarrow (flora_marshmerrow_**) - by water, in groups

- Saltrice (flora_saltrice_**) - by water, in groups

Remove:

chokeweed
west gash trees
Gold Kanet (in and outside of the west, unless in a garden) roobrush
fireflower(duskbell)
Corkbulb (in the wild, keep in the fram crops) Heather harrud root
flora_bc_grass - static
kreshweed
bittergreen (except from st aralor monastary entrance)
flora_bush - static
Stoneflower (keep in Andothren, it's fitting)
orange moss (if any)

Vertex settings:

73, 70, 65 (under statics)
122,122,122 (roadside)
156, 156, 156 (texture transition/sand to water transition)

Roads

Next section are screenshots with a description of things to watch out for in your claims when you are working on the section file.

Pointers

Terrace cliffs stacked on top of each other rarely looks good, as they have a rectangular topolgy and so roating them looks blocky, which is more obvious when near/on top of other terrace cliffs. They should ideally only be used once and rarely on river banks. The terrain is flat on the bottom and the terrain is steep, so there is no build up from the top to the bottom. Deleting the cliffs in this scene is actually a massive improvement as the terrain itself is good, and does the job without much effort. The cliffs are very much not necessary.

Rock arches should be purged from the region, this is not West Gash, and the majority of people agreed that they should be thrown in the trash.

Bleeding grass is famous in TR. Either raise or delete grass when they are doing this. Check under the geometry too, sometimes junk is left over from all the years of reworks before this one.

Vertex paint is a big issue in this region. Use it intelligently, and fix areas where it looks like it is hindering the experience.

Flat roads are prevelant in Roth Roryn. Sometimes it is hard to pull off (like on winding cliffside paths), but if possible, sink the roads just like West Gash does it. Detail in the region should help bring focus to the road, so containers and rocks should be on the side of the roads, and not pasted all over the wilderness.

Another common theme in Roth Roryn is spiky/stretched terrain. These are a fundamental issue with the terrain usage, and so require work. The remedy to this issue is gutting out everything in the immediate scene and rebuilding it back up with the terrain in mind.

Rock groups. They hinder exploration, can reduce performance, and make the scene look messy. Cull as many as you can, and leave the ones that do compliment the scene. These will be ones mostly on road sides, but work best if the road sides are riased as a small hill that the rock groups can be bled into, not jsut placed onto flat ground on the road side, any instance of flat terrain should be 100% accessible to the player and AI.

Waterfalls feeding a puddle is immersion breaking. Remove these and relocate NPCs if possible (might need to work with a quest dev to make sure any quests stay in tact for such an occasion).

Large cliff meshes are becoming more unpopular by the day, due to their lack of versaitility and squarish nature. Remove these in favour of terrain, or, if worst comes to worst, Wolli peaks. This also extends to the massive cliffs used a lot in map 1, 2 and 3. Don't use them and also delete them if you come across them.

Being creative with rocks usually leads to funky results. If you see such instances as the above, be sure to remove them.

Rock steps are okay sometimes, but honestly are an interior asset. I would very much recommend removing them whenever you can and using terrain to do the work. This is the only way to get to the Daedric Ruin in claim #5, and it isn't that obvious. This scene here needs to be somewhat rebuilt for a more natural way to the ruin.

More instances of stacking terrace cliffs, and this reinforces my point from eariler. But the focus of this shot is the terrain to back up the terrace. It doesn't make sense, the hill on the right is so small that these massive terraces just would not have happened. This could just be a terrain hill and it will look better and be more accessible.

Not a very good way of using rock groups. I doubt this much erosion would occur and an insignificant rock.

There is only one way to that tower, and it is up a narrow cliffside path that you won't be able to see unless you walk through the valley of terraces. This should be heavily rewoked for more terrain usage, and all the terrace meshes removed.

This terrace section has a secret.

Some terrain that can easily be fixed with the smooth tool. There isn't even any LTEX glitches to cover up. Very strange. Keep an eye open for instances like this. There are several throughout the region.

If possible, having roads going to points of interest would be great. Especially if they are tombs and mines, as these will have traffic going to them over time.

The mountain rivers are very pointless, and there is no way to access this small valley without spells or climbing higher than it. This entire area needs gutting, it fundamentally goes against Morrowinds landscaping. That dungeon should have a more obvious way to get to it than just seeing it from above because of the river (whose source is the end of the mountain going into the mountain).

Terrain to this bridge would very much be aprreciated. Statics are never fun to walk on, so make the players expereince just that little but better by having the terrain on both sides of this bridge. Another thing to watch out for is Sound effects. This bridge is lacking it. Make sure to have sound effects at all waterfalls and bridges.

There is some questionable use of Hlaalu assets in this region. With access to new assets in Tamriel Data 8, this can be removed and if it is necassary to have it for a garden, the modular set ot new whole assets can be used to make a better one.

Quests

Dev Shah compiled a list of quests in the secion file before 03/23/2021. There are somethings that are only interior related, but just in case, it is important to read incase there is something that people should watch out for in their claim.

Merged quests-
-TR_m4_Bd_Wesencolm -
   Uses TR_m4_Wesencolm, in Bodrem Hall. Nothing in script that'll break, but will need to be changed if placed in another cell.
   DIalogue breaks a little if there are no mountains in the area.
-TR_m4_FA_FortAncilysHistory - No special care needed except the normal npc's placement.
-TR_m4_mn_Assassin - No special care needed except the normal npc's placement.
-TR_m4_T_IlvaamuUnbound -
   Has PositionCell, -28160, -108640, 928, 0, "Teyn" in TR_m4_teyn_ilvaalmu_script. It needs to be changed if the layout of Teyn is changed.
   Also has PositionCell, -4419, 271, -569, 0, "Rith-Ilviryon Ancestral Tomb" in TR_m4_NPC_V_Ilvaalmu_script
-TR_m4_T_MotherInLaw- No special care needed except the normal npc's placement.
-TR_m4_wil_buyingrope -No special care needed except the normal npc's placement.
-TR_m4_wil_DrownEnslaver -
   (-1, -18)The whole set with the npcs and the mudcrabs should be preserved, in the same place if possible. Some scripts require the distance from the player there.
   Also mentions that Alver farmhouse is SW of there.
-TR_m4_wil_KoboldFisher - No special care needed except the normal npc's placement.
-TR_m4_wil_MyDearFriendArvena - No special care needed except the normal npc's placement.
-TR_m4_wil_nirnBoundSaint -
   (-8, -18). Using mostly activators for scripts, but also uses moveworld and rotateworld. The area should be changed ideally by someone who knows these functions, and that should be properly playtested.
-TR_m4_wil_Nymph -
   (-14, -17) Irmiel should be in the waterfall, and Shurlukh should be in a relatively close place.
-TR_m4_wil_RithIlviryonLost -
   (-3,-15) npc should be at the door of Rith-Ilviryon ancestral tomb, and has a PositionCell, -17856, -105184, 3776, 0, "Fort Ancylis".
- TR_m4_wil_Shenjirra -
   (-3,-21) Nothing special, but a lot of stuff disables after the the player is 3000 units away.
-Tr_m4_wil_SkeletonWizard
   (-3,-17)Some AIFollow/AiWanders, doesn't look like there's anything special.
-TR_m4_wil_TribunalTS
   (-6,-20)Nothing special, just need to keep the npcs close to the entrance of Olthan Ancestral tomb.
-TR_m4_wil_Trouple_Trouble
   (-13, -20) Should be kept nearby, and the alit that are south of the troupe are needed for this quest.(If their placement changes, some dialogue might need change.
-TR_m4_wil_VanishBandits- Nothing special, one Positioncell to an int(Llendu Ancestral Tomb)