Dear Readers!

This writing going to contain lot of technical information, it's about how i make the Slavers Of Skyrim and what difficulties i face. It might feel i complaining about how hard it is, i not. I just wish to share how i work and what i face. Plus why so slow i advance.

Chapter 1: Clarification

To put things into perspective we need clear few things:

1 - by profession i not a programmer or expert on computer science. i learn stuff on fly by own.

2 - Creation kit made to make a specific type of content to the game. if one use this tools what made for working is relative easy and quick. ( after CK got patched by unofficial patches)

3 - Tons of guides and examples outside that help one to understand how make things to work.

4 - Problems come when one try to use Creation kit a game engine something that not meant to be used. Most of the lover's lab mods fall this category including most scripted part of my mod.

Chapter 2: One week of worth down the drain... ( again )

Original intention:

When slaver npcs capture anything they take away all item from the victim, give the victim some rags to wear or nothing. Then the items get sold on slave market.

if enslaved npcs got freed they get back some of clothing and go on life.

The theory:

Game engine has few script command that make possible the above mentioned actions happen:

"RemoveAllItems" - as name suggest removes all item from the effected character or object reference. then i can designate in theory a container where the item going to land.

in theory after all item including clothing and armor removed if i give the rags to a npc. The NPC going to wear it.

So its simple in theory... just remove all item then add some items to wear right?

In Practice:

Removing items work as far as items got removed.

Problems start the second part: said items expected to transport to a container a chest. But no item arrive,

After LOT of experimentation i found a way to make items arrive the chest. Days of trial and error found out i need create a new chest to be possible move items inside into it.

More experimentation after i found out to orient the chest right way need place to the floor where the chest going to "created". if i not do it well... the chest going to spawn but not oriented the right way just look weird.

Okay item transfer done! This should be the hard part right? Now add some clothing to victim.... and realize the gold old clothing bug ....

When i add items to a new slave its original outfit going to shown me, but the npc wearing in practice the the new clothing.

It seems i found a Engine side bug!

So what to do? Well do more experimentation+reading around script commands.

Later realize a fantastic command exist: "SetOutfit"

This one meant to change the outfit of the actor.... this means second problem solved right?

Just give out this command and my new-found slave going to look nice with new rags on it... in theory yes...

This script command also bugged...

Yes its bugged! When you give out first the npc receive the new clothing AND the default inventory items.

The inventory items i already removed....

This point my feelings a bit hurt to be honest. if i remove all items then give new outfit the bug kick in and spawn items that should not exist.

if i give new outfit before item removal... the engine side bug kick in and original outfit shown when the npc inventory empty.

at first its seams no way out.....

Well i have patience, and will to try out things so...

After LOT more trial and error found a solution:

Removed all items, and move them to the chest

Set outfit for a new wear

Remove all items

Add the outfit items to the actors but not set new outfit.

this exact steps seams fix the issue.

Well... not...

You can say why? The goal is archived! All items removed, clothing changed!

Yes, true. This part is true... what happen when the npc got freed from slavery by the player or got killed?

Intention is npc get back original gear and go live "happy" life...

Go back live happy life not problem, the gear is the problem.

The way the system made currently a npc can get clothing from lot of variants. To restore original state that randomly chosen by system is a "bit" difficult to script...

When i made the captured slave wear a slave uniform i order the slave wear 1 specific type of clothing.

When "restoring" original clothing a slave can chose tons of possible clothing.

Okay i can make a script that link every possible clothing a variable that added the salve when enslaved.

then using this variable i can trace back the original clothing and give it back the salve using the way i changed the original clothing.

Its lot of work and probably not worth it.

Plus the process eat lot of resources compered a simple capture where no item removal or cloth changing happen.

So yes after i found the way to archive the original goal i dropped the idea for now. Maybe come back latter.

This is just a example. Every time i try make something "new", or try before not used scripting functions, or develop new functions.  i face this type of challenges non-stop, as evryone who do the same things. So this is why so many mods devloped so slow.