Shadriss

If by better, you mean I can't see a candle flame not giving off light anymore, than yes. :) NIce work.

Oops. Forgot to read the last sentence before I quoted you... :)

I'm not seeing anything out of the ordinary. Vivid is quite saturated... it's part of it's design. I have two recommendations then: 1) Forget ELFX and use RS instead - Vivid works a bit better with it. That said, if the colors are too saturated for your liking... 2) Swap to Vividian Vanilla and see if that works better for you.

IIRC, some seemingly vanilla items are replaced by CACO versions that LOOK identical, but have other properties for whatever reason. Either way, I see these every so often when I start a game. As far as I can tell, normal.

Theory: You also have CACO installed (or another similar mod that alters food records). Evidence: CACO redoes a large number of things, including food item records. iNeed, by design, looks for unrecognized items and puts up that screen when one is detected (used), allowing you to set it as appropriate. This was done to allow for maximum mod compatibility. Because CACO does what it does, the original records that iNeed usually looks for aren't there, and so sees in this instance what it thinks is a new item, and shows this screen. Conclusion: Both mods are working correctly, and once you set the item's category the first time (per playthrough, I think), you should not see it again for a given item.

The bow doesn't impress me much, actually. Portions look OK, but the metal scrollwork on the Pride looks like it's painted on vice inlaid, and looks just plain sloppy. *shrug* The blade doesn't really seem to have too much in the way of difference that I can tell in the shot, but that may be because of the lighting, as you mentioned. My two cents.

Fair enough... just remember what happened LAST time to cause it... and what it took to get it clean. I don't think we want a modern equivalent.

Saidin is cleansed, Neb. Get caught up, newb. :) Of course, those could be Saa...

In reference to my previous comments concerning Rorikstead - I just completed a quick run over to the area to check out my concerns. Shurah's additions to the area (if any, I honestly couldn't see what they were specifically) blend in phenomenally well with ETaC's, so it would appear I do NOT have to choose between them... at least for the moment. I post this to close the loop on that concern, and also to re-iterate to Shurah (should he still be checking in here) that so long as nothing breaks in-game between this and any other mod I use, I will continue to use it. Just because I can't see the changes to the AI (as I previously mentioned) doesn't mean they aren't there, and if all I'm missing out on is a few of the many AI packages included by this because of object placement, it still makes it worth the download and usage. EDIT: On the Rorikstead observation - this of course assumes that his changes were not fully encapsulated by a building placed by ETaC... something that only just occurred to me. Regardless, my other observations stand.

He's on his meds right now...

Thanks much - for reference, using Vividian Vivid ENB for those, along with the Extended fogs and what have you. Also JK WHiterun, as mentioned. :) Also, thanks for the fix. I used to be good at this crap... I'm getting old.

Dragon Priest: (incoherant screaming and yelling) Dragon Born: Oh yeah? Well your armor is crap! You can't even color coordinate!!! Dragon priest: (Cries) Uhmmmmm... no. :)

I think the only thing I just got out of that was that the embed function doesn't work, which I figured out myself. :) I'm old guy - I need it in plain english without all the fancy coding terms. I'm laughing at myself over here over my inability to follow even HALF of what you just said Jawz...

Shurah, none of what I posted had any direct reflection on you. It was a simple question concerning the use of this mod in the STEP process, given that there is (quite demonstrably, as this thread proves) a great deal of misinformation, ambiguity, and confusion surrounding this mod. I spend quite a bit of time in and around Whiterun, and have not seen anything that jumped out and said 'Hey! I'm new!'. This is not to say that they aren't there... in fact, if they are and I'm not seeing them, it's a credit to you for making it that seamless. My concern is not simply based on the above however. I did go back and confirm your addition of items and buildings to Rorikstead, and this is of concern to me (and others) because a great many of us like to use mods that alter the towns and villages. While I do not, in any way, take away from your right and ability to alter these same locations, it does a fair bit to limit the usage of the mod itself. I have not yet gotten to Rorikstead in my current playthrough, but I have no doubt at this point that there will be buildings and areas conflicting, such that I will be forced to make a choice between a better AI package and the town arrangement that I have come to like and enjoy for that area (and, by extension, other towns and villages that you may, in the future, do the same to.) I would argue, as a matter of maximizing compatibility, that not altering these areas may be the better path, and then providing some level of documentation of how to best make use of the new packages you provide to other authors, such as MissJennaBee of EtAC, so they can also make use of your work to the betterment of all. You ask for respect for your work, and you have that. I find it disturbing, however, (though in light of all the other discussions I've read, not surprising) that you have chosen to take all of this as an attack on you or your work, which is most definitely not the intent. I understand frustration on both sides of this - I've been there, though not with this particular game. Anytime conventional (and accepted) wisdom is challenged, this kind of thing happens. It would be far more constructive to address the questions themselves rather than take the stance of proving individual statements incorrect or misleading in the fashion you have, to this point, chosen to do so. Tech - I have to go with the others that have posted and agree with Extended for the compatibility reasons I mentioned above. Core, as I understand it, is supposed to be baseline, and if this issue persists... well, it becomes self evident, I think.

Fair enough Kel... I think we have differing ideas on the lore surrounding (more specifically, what is believed by various groups vs. what is actually seen), but it's pretty immaterial to the actual subject, so I'll just let it lie. In this particular case, I do feel a need to point out, though, that just because a thing is dark in nature, it's appearance does not have to be so. In point of fact, a great many things that are bad look good, fun, or otherwise attractive. Whay would these be any different, especially when there are groups within the Lore that even now try to get Black Gems accepted as part of the mainstream (necromancy as well, since you bring that in, and correctly so, btw).

Truth. Have has this in since I first found it, and still love it's look in-game. Especially if you have JK's Whiterun installed - the cemetery area near the hall of the dead is flat gorgeous with this installed on top of JKWhiterun. (Would have embeded it, but I can't figure the stupid coding out...)

Sounds good. As I've said a few times, it was a minor thing, but it stuck out to me. You shots are fine, Greg. As I said - if it's rust, I wouldn't expect it to band quite like that, so it came across as something else entirely to my mind. Still a good replacement, and hardly a deal killer - as I said, I'm not gonna critique a Priest's armor while I'm trying not to die. :)

Thanks for that, Tech. As I mentioned, it's a minor thing for exactly the reason you listed, but if we're gonna do compares as we did here, we should call'em like we see'em. Apart from that, I do agree it still looks better than AMB.

So with all this said, I have to ask - where does STEP stand on continued inclusion of this mod? If there is that much ambiguity about how it works, what it works with (or doesn't), and so forth, is it really something we should mess with or not? Honestly, I'm not sure I've seen anything new with regard to NPC actions that I can recall, and now that he's also (as I recall, I may be wrong here) added things into Rorikstead, there could be even more issues as they relate to mods that alter towns and villages.

Rust would make sense... having it show in distinct bands like that does not. Rust would apply itself semi-equally across any exposed surface, not in concentrated regions (unless, of course, those regions were ALL that were exposed, somehow). It's a minor thing anyhow, just something I noted in passing. Don't think it's enough of a distractor to worry about ('cause I'm gonna yell at Morokai about rust and color coordination while I'm shooting him full of arrows, right?).

Just looking at your shot of Morokai in particular. Look at the arm armor, and you'll see the colored banding I'm referring to.

Could have sworn this one had been discussed before... or maybe I just used it at one time and removed it for some reason...

Blacks are not, as you put it, 'inherently evil'. Maybe in extreme bad taste, but as there is no indication that a soul in gem experiences anything except a kind of limbo (The Azura's Star quest demonstrates this nicely) nor is there any indication that, after used, that the soul is not released to it's original intended destination (that I'm aware of...), the worst that can be said is that you have put a big 'DELAYED' next to their afterlife Flight Schedule. That said, I prefer this new one to the Soul Gems differ. They still have difference from each other apart from size, but they are all also obviously the same material, which isn't the case with SGD. The added touch of differing pulse rates to simulate a kind of heartbeat is an even nicer touch. It feels closer to vanilla while still making them different enough to tell apart with a relatively quick glance.

I think it's more amazing that, apparently, someones mind DIDN'T go there... apparently, we haven't corrupted everyone yet. (yells to minions: "Get the mind control beams ready, boys!") Sure looks good in the screens provided, though I don't need the footprints part. I'll get this in and see what happens.

Agreed with Extended.