Cestral

Thanks a bunch Neovalen! Looks like you got everything covered there. I will just modify and update the batch since the conflicts will just take a second to sort out. Looks like he fixed the barset as well after I brought it to his attention so now I can add that as well over Tobe's barset. From his patch notes it doesn't appear like anything else was updated. Normally I have to go through textures that have been previously removed to see if they were changed and improved enough to be included (time stamps ftw!).

I have already combined the Snow and Rocks HD cave textures in my current 1.7 build. I don't particularly like a couple of cave textures in it, but I will still use them because their sharpness and clarity are just miles ahead of the ones currently in the TPC. I was looking at adding snow and ice textures I believe back in 1.3, but I couldn't make up my mind and ended up leaving it out in the cold, and it's been in the freezer ever since (bad joke). I might take a look at it for 1.7 again. The next update will take a while because I will be somewhat busy this week.

Oooh nice find! That's looking good! I do see a texture seam on the tall banner on one of the preview shots though. ;( I'll definitely check that one out.

No, not only, but conflicting mods have a higher priority.

Gotta tell you I love these new rock meshes from SMIM. Still plenty he hasn't covered, but those he has are considerably improved.

Gonna start working on these updates this right now. These updates always seem to come on bad days for me and somehow they always come at once from all directions! :p

Just an fyi message: SMIM v1.26 is out, but apparently it suffers from a bug. I will await the fix before implementing TPC support for it. SRO also had a v1.4 patch released today. It looks rather huge, but I will take a look at it later today.

Just an fyi that 1.6 is out.

Someone should ask the author of Dragon Glyphs HD if they could DDSopt the textures and send them back to him just to have them uploaded on his page.

I got a brand new, crappy video card in my computer! Yay! Let me give you my take on RDD: - Most of its textures look sharper when viewed closely, i.e. 2-3 meters distance. Anything beyond that and it will look worse than the textures the TPC currently uses. - RDD's stone textures look a little too neat and clean, and has the tendency to look slightly plastic in some places. They are also much brighter. - The texture detailovergrowth01 contains dirt among other things. This dirt is put onto the bottom of walls in particular, and with RDD, there's no transition effort whatsoever to this texture, so you'll end up with band-aided pieces of dirt along the bottom of the walls. The SRO textures the TPC currently uses are created with this dirt in mind, and blends seamlessly with a much more natural look. - RDD's wall stones are extremely stripy. It doesn't look or feel right. - RDD's wood texture is much, much sharper, and even though it feels less worn and slightly less fitting than the TPC version, it's still an overall improvement because the TPC version is way too grainy. - Some of these dungeon textures are used around the world as well, and not only inside dungeons. Certain mossy stones in particular come to mind. These look sharper and better with RDD's textures with one exception: They're a little too bright. Since these stones use the same textures as the floors, it will not be the primary reason to base a selection on however. - RDD's moss in particular looks much sharper. The moss in the TPC has a tendency to look very pixelated. - RDD's textures in general have been blurred/smoothed which removes pixelation when viewed closely, but has the tendency to remove detail when viewed a few meters away. The next version of the TPC will add support to combine RDD, but there will be very few stone textures taken from it, and about half of its textures in total have been cut.

That sounds really good, Kelmych, but I'm afraid the average user isn't going to resort to DDSopt their textures, hence my reluctance to add it to the TPC.

Yes, I agree, and this is why I have refrained from supporting RDD in the TPC. I can tell you though that the work is pretty much complete already to combine RDD with the TPC. I have picked out the goodies, which excludes all the floor textures and the majority of wall textures. My video card broke when I was putting the final touches on it. I was also looking at adding Dragon Glyphs HD from STEP recommendations since it's pretty easy to do without a video card, as it only has 2 textures. I noticed though that the 4 files it has adds up to an enormous 84 MB in size! There's no way I will add this into the TPC. I have every intention of making things look as great as possible in the non-light version of the TPC, but not at any cost. 84 MB is just silly for two 2048x2048 textures. EDIT: To clarify "without a video card". It works fine as long as I don't do anything 3D-related. As soon as I turn on Windows Aero or load up a game I get artifacts and crash immediately.

Yeah, I agree. It's just that the one mod with the most requests to add has been WATER, but I've always said "just add it separately". :p

You are correct. I assume you mean Parallax Rocks and Mountains, which isn't in the TPC. I suppose that I will leave the wet rocks out of the TPC. I was thinking of adding only the core function, but it would be a hassle if someone wanted to use any of the optional pieces, but then, if I add them, someone might not want them either. Not sure if adding WATER would be a good move in the first place.

SRO Dawnguard can be added separately because it doesn't share any files with vanilla. I could easily do an update to include it in the TPC though, because I don't think the textures even need to be checked. They should definitely be an improvement. Still, releasing untested things feels wrong. ^^ I'm trying to do some editing to the batch the best I can without being able to actually test it right now. It will still save me some time if I manage to get a hold of a video card tomorrow or in the future. I would like some STEP input on a couple of things. WATER: What's your stand on the optional functions in this mod (Get Wet, Reduced Splash, Extra Wet Rocks and Trough Water)? Should any be avoided for any reason, or is it entirely up to the user? HD2K: Textures\actors\dragon priest\dragonpriest.dds Textures\actors\goat\goat_d.dds Textures\actors\parthurnax\parthurnax.dds Textures\armor\dragonbone\dragonboneboots.dds Textures\armor\dragonbone\dragonbonegauntlets.dds Textures\armor\dragonbone\dragonbonehelmet.dds Textures\armor\dragonbone\dragonboneshield.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\dragonpriesthelm_n.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_bronze.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_corondrum.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_ebony.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_greenstone.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_iron.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_marble.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_moonstone.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_steel.dds Textures\armor\dragonpriesthelm\helmet_wood.dds Textures\armor\dragonscale\boots.dds Textures\armor\dragonscale\gloves.dds Textures\armor\dragonscale\helmet.dds Textures\armor\dragonscale\shield.dds Textures\armor\draugr\femaledraugrboots.dds Textures\armor\draugr\femaledraugrgauntlets.dds Textures\armor\draugr\femaledraugrhelmet.dds Textures\armor\draugr\maledraugrboots.dds Textures\armor\draugr\maledraugrgauntlets.dds Textures\armor\draugr\maledraugrhelmet.dds Textures\armor\thievesguild\m\thievesguildarmorshoesm.dds Textures\weapons\dragon priest\dragonprieststaff.dds Textures\weapons\nightingale\nightingalebow.dds These are textures that were added when the TPC was in its infancy, and I honestly have never checked these textures in game, so I have no idea if they are actually an improvement or not. Any input on these would be helpful.

There are some more pieces to take into consideration as well; For example, look at the bush in the bottom right corner. It looks much better with Vurt's. The sharpness and color tone is much better. Viewing distance also plays a major part. While it might be less of an issue with trees, still, it's always nice when you get close to something and it still looks sharp and nice without becoming a blur. Additionally, look in the far distance, at the trees in the upper left and upper right corners in the hills. They look much better with Vurt's. I'm thinking if this is a mesh issue rather than a texture issue, because the branches look different in the screenshots. I'm gonna have to look into this. EDIT: Oh, maybe I should have read your whole post before commenting. Yes, as I thought, it was indeed a mesh issue.

The latest SMIM patch can be added separately. Either extract it directly into your combined folders or just add the patch into your load order after your combined archive. Vurt's Flora 1.4 I can't do anything about without checking it in game. I could easily add the new stuff in the batch, but of course I want to know what the new textures look like in game before I do so, which I can't right now. The TPC will still work as normal, but if any grass texture that was excluded from TPC 1.52 has been improved and should now be included, then that will obviously be missing unless you add it back manually. I'm trying to arrange a new video card and with luck I might get my hands on one soon, but I don't wanna jinx it! :p I feel very passionate about this project and really, really want to keep working on it asap.

I'm sorry guys, but I am unable to work on the TPC for now. I just had my second graphics card break on me in 3 weeks time, and I am unable to buy myself another one. Let's just say that my life is a little too complicated right now for me to be able to spend money on another graphics card. Just to give you a small idea: I left my life in my home country because my wife gave me an ultimatum to either go with her or lose both her and my son. I sold and got rid of everything I owned before I left. Now, I'm living in a foreign country where I don't speak the language, and pretty much nobody speaks English here either. Shortly after arriving, my wife left me and I'm now only staying here to be able to be with my son. My finances are bled dry and I'm pretty much living as a guest here for now, and I'm not exactly able to spend money on hardware. Heck, I can't even fly home if I wanted to. This is why I've had a lot of time to spend on the TPC. It has been a good distraction from my RL miseries. Anyway, that's where it's at and I'm hoping to be able to work on this again down the road. I suppose for now the TPC in its current shape and form will have to remain, and I can't say for how long.

I haven't had the time to get much work done because of RL and these updated mods I've had to go through. I've compiled a list of mods, but it's too huge for all of it to be added with 1.6. I have been looking at Re-defined Dungeons previously and, well, I know many people like it, but I'm not a big fan of its extremely visible patterns in most of its rocks. It's just too exaggerated imo. It's also a little hard to blend with the current SRO textures because Re-defined Dungeons have very neat and clean textures, while SRO has more dust and dirt around. It's also very easy to install separately for those that prefer it. But it's an optional mod after all, but if I go through it, I want to create a good blend and not just copy+paste the whole mod in there (unless a mix of textures won't be possible, then I will do so). Some stuff on my list, but not all: Skyrim Redesigned WIP Intricate Spider Webs HQ Milky way galaxy Enhanced Night Skyrim Dragon Glyphs HD HD Linens Insanitys City Banner Replacer HQ Paper HD Cinematic Fire Effects Improved Torches Textures New Thinner Torch Better Dynamic Snow Improved NPC Clothing - High Res Elaborate Textiles - NPC Clothing Retexture Better Dwemer Ruins Re-Defined Dungeons HQ Skyrim map V2 WATER Unique Booze Bottles HD Celtic and braided rugs HQ Towns and Villages Snow and Rocks TEXTURES HD Illuminated Tree Lod Silly Level of Detail (2 mods) I haven't looked closely at all of these yet so I might not actually add all of them, but at least that's most of what's on my list currently. There are a few more mods as well, and I'm sure there will be more suggestions. Your Riften HQ Textures suggestion is noted.

Yeah, the new flower replacement blends in much better. I'm not so sure about the vanilla grass. I have mixed feelings about it. I kind of prefer the vanilla "fieldgrassobj01" too, but only when viewed from at least 5 meters distance. Whenever you get close, they get grainy and Vurt's grass looks better. I also have mixed feelings about the new tundra grass. It's better and worse at the same time. I think when used with Lush Grass and you have very thick grass, all the grass becomes a grayish blur which doesn't look too hot. At the same time, it's a nice replacement to the grainy and "light up like a fire at night"-tundragrass that it replaced. I don't use the new "snowgrass02" not only because it looks a little too thickish, but also because mixing the vanilla version of it with Vurt's "snowgrass01" gives the best blend imo (different grass types instead of the same with different coloring). Overall, it's very mixed between vanilla and Vurt grasses in v1.52.

Aw man another update! I'll look into it. Yes, I also removed the new green grass from the TPC and switched to vanilla in 1.51. I guess he came to the same conclusion. :p Now I can switch back again.

Thanks for the list! All of this is intended and if you have any questions about any specific file that was removed then just ask. EDIT: A lot of the missing files in that list from Tobes Highres Textures aren't actually missing.

Do that! Greatly appreciated!

That's a bug. I've messed up the folder structure for those files. I will have it fixed. Until then you can put them in manually before you compress the merged folders.

Yes, 1.6 will have those changes. The TPC was originally intended to just merge the 3 required texture packs, but then grew to an "ESP free" texture compilation, and has now grown even further. I just haven't gotten around to ESPs yet. I only did an exception previously due to the importance of SMIM. 1.6 will be different.