Ideas for a player home mod

[Asrienda]

I made a couple of player home mods, one released here (Stynja), and another on Nexus under a different name that I won't be disclosing, sorry.

 

What I've learned is that circular homes SUCK to clutter and make look nice. And they suck to actually build. So lesson learned, not making another tower ever again.

 

I'll probably have many of the crafting stations, but likely not all of them.

Since my Skyrim playthroughs are basically Devious Device mod playthroughs, there will be a lot of furniture spread around.

It'll be an exterior world space house, which means no loading screens, nice windows and views, and optional use of Real Shelter 1.4.

 

So... tell me, what do you want out of a home mod?

Where would you like a house mod to be located?

What specifically do you want in it?

[Pavaux]

So... tell me, what do you want out of a home mod?

Just something simple for once. There are too many crazy houses for the fantasy players imo. A house that has the bare necessaries and not much more. A hunter's shack, but something still built to last.

 

Where would you like a house mod to be located?

Somewhere near the forest, but still near roads or a town, a house in the middle of the forest is just too dangerous.

 

What specifically do you want in it?

The simple things. A bed, tanning rack, cooking spit, simple fencing, maybe even an anvil to keep equipment in shape.

 

 

Mind you, this isn't a request, this is just my opinion on houses. Don't want you to spend hours making a shack for just 1 guy.

[moonis]

Comfortable looking house and beautiful, but not too pomptous. Vanilla houses like Breezehome, Lakeview manor and Honeyside look too ugly and unfinished. With bit more refined look, Hjerim would be nice and good sized, but I don't like snowy city where it's situated. Cities like Whiterun and Solitude are nice locations. Outside cities houses would be situated perhaps at some forested hill near lake. Lakeview manor's placing is good but not perfect. Riverside Lodge mod has beautiful location near water. Also high mountain top locations are nice, like Castle Strunmah, with a wonderful view around.

 

Spacious but not too big. Something like vanilla Breezehome is too small. One of the first house mods that I used was Dragonmount, I liked that it had almost anything I wanted, but as it was almost direct copy of Whiterun's Jarl's castle, it was over twice too big for normal house usage. I got frustrated so many times when I hauled overload of loot from one end to another, and could walk only at crawling speed.

 

Six beds are needed for kids, also doublebed for you and your spouse and beds for stewart, thane, bard, dog...

Enough chests. I like to collect weapons and armours and would like to see armory room with close to dozen chests in it (and wallplagues behind them to model what kind of items each chest holds). One room for crafting all kinds of stuff and storage space for materials in there.

 

[Asrienda]

So... tell me, what do you want out of a home mod?

Just something simple for once. There are too many crazy houses for the fantasy players imo. A house that has the bare necessaries and not much more. A hunter's shack, but something still built to last.

 

Where would you like a house mod to be located?

Somewhere near the forest, but still near roads or a town, a house in the middle of the forest is just too dangerous.

 

What specifically do you want in it?

The simple things. A bed, tanning rack, cooking spit, simple fencing, maybe even an anvil to keep equipment in shape.

 

 

Mind you, this isn't a request, this is just my opinion on houses. Don't want you to spend hours making a shack for just 1 guy.

 

Might I suggest: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/60673/?

 

It's made by a good friend, seems to be more what you're looking for. It's my go-to player home for non-DD characters.

 

I think I'm going to make something a bit bigger than a bare necessity house/cabin, but definitely not a castle nor a mansion.

Comfortable looking house and beautiful, but not too pomptous. Vanilla houses like Breezehome, Lakeview manor and Honeyside look too ugly and unfinished. With bit more refined look, Hjerim would be nice and good sized, but I don't like snowy city where it's situated. Cities like Whiterun and Solitude are nice locations. Outside cities houses would be situated perhaps at some forested hill near lake. Lakeview manor's placing is good but not perfect. Riverside Lodge mod has beautiful location near water. Also high mountain top locations are nice, like Castle Strunmah, with a wonderful view around.

 

Spacious but not too big. Something like vanilla Breezehome is too small. One of the first house mods that I used was Dragonmount, I liked that it had almost anything I wanted, but as it was almost direct copy of Whiterun's Jarl's castle, it was over twice too big for normal house usage. I got frustrated so many times when I hauled overload of loot from one end to another, and could walk only at crawling speed.

 

Six beds are needed for kids, also doublebed for you and your spouse and beds for stewart, thane, bard, dog...

Enough chests. I like to collect weapons and armours and would like to see armory room with close to dozen chests in it (and wallplagues behind them to model what kind of items each chest holds). One room for crafting all kinds of stuff and storage space for materials in there.

 

Thanks for the ideas.

 

I don't know about making bunks for kids since I personally don't like kids even though presumably I was one at one point.

 

I definitely agree about many houses being waaaaaay too big. I love ambiance and neat looking things in houses, but I also don't sit around my skyrim house at the study or clearing away plates at the dining room table. There's definitely an art to making a space look great AND be functional at the same time, but also without feeling cramped.

[Guest]

well depends on, my favorit home is still breezhome, got a mod for it with all workstations exept dlc stuff. its good centerd of the map, funktional has a loot of vendors around and thats why its practical the only home i use.

for my followers i have the underground bathhouse. it simple looks good and its lets say like a gallery where i display my girls.

 

dragonborn gallery is one i think about keeping, like the bathhouse its a good well gallery for the uniques.

i tryed a loot of diffrent home mods but at the end they where either to small or to big i never use auto storage becouse i like to know where i put my stuff.

 

since you mentiont that you like the dd stuff, how about a gallery to display your divices. could be fun to use with cursed loot and dd shop. maybe some quest hook, for the more uniqe displays like stuff from dds quest, dd shop quests or the cursed loot quests.

my sugestion for the location would be somewhere arond the dd shop, but its a bit tricky since it grows.

[Deathmaw]

Something that you need to do to actually obtain the house would be nice. I don't use house mods that are just like oh here you go have a house for no reason. If there is a quest or a way to buy it I will give most houses a go.

[Asrienda]

Something that you need to do to actually obtain the house would be nice. I don't use house mods that are just like oh here you go have a house for no reason. If there is a quest or a way to buy it I will give most houses a go.

I've never done a quest before but I'll do it for this future house!

 

Any ideas on what kind of a quest? Like what has the happen, general ideas about story?

[Guest Comrade DR. MAHUJ DIK]

Depends on the kind of house. Its a shack in the woods? a estate in a lake? a cabin outside a city? a mix of business and home? It all changes the kind of history it has behind it. I love creating histories, if you ever need a backstory or a quest for a home tellme where the home is and what it is (shack,estate,etc) thatll send you apm with a quest and backstory.

But if you want to create the quest by your own the most important things are being lorefriendly and being original.

[moonis]

Something that you need to do to actually obtain the house would be nice. I don't use house mods that are just like oh here you go have a house for no reason. If there is a quest or a way to buy it I will give most houses a go.

 

This! I also don't like to use houses I can just walk into. I don't feel like like owning them if I don't even have to pay for them. I feel like invader in my own home, just waiting for someone to come and say: "what are you doing in my house".

[Asrienda]

Well it's a house definitely made for use with mods that utilize DD and/or Zaz assets and I plan on at least requiring Zaz for some bondage furniture. 

 

Maybe a quest having to do with the owner? You either kill or enslave her and then free her slaves or take them for your own? Then I guess you can keep her home for your own after that. But it needs to be more than that, a quest leading up to that. 

[Jayleia]

I'd like most of the DD stuff to be out of the open areas, reserved for bedrooms or basement or something behind a secret door, though with a couple of minor exterior bits like a cage and whipping post, both of which could be explained by the former owner breaking exotic monsters and training them...

 

I'd like the house to be small, but look very expensive, with most of the crafting stations also out of the open areas, and with cages/cells next to the crafting areas, unseen by casual visitors...the previous owner was a very big fan of slave labor.

 

As far as location...away from major towns, because this stuff isn't exactly legal, either in the warmest areas where slaves could be kept outside as punishment, but it wouldn't be necessarily dangerous except for extended periods, or in the coldest, where an escaped slave would die in minutes without the warmest clothing obtainable.

 

Now how to GET the house...I'm drawing a blank.

[Blackness blackness is...]

 

So... tell me, what do you want out of a home mod?

Just something simple for once. There are too many crazy houses for the fantasy players imo. A house that has the bare necessaries and not much more. A hunter's shack, but something still built to last.

 

Where would you like a house mod to be located?

Somewhere near the forest, but still near roads or a town, a house in the middle of the forest is just too dangerous.

 

What specifically do you want in it?

The simple things. A bed, tanning rack, cooking spit, simple fencing, maybe even an anvil to keep equipment in shape.

 

 

Mind you, this isn't a request, this is just my opinion on houses. Don't want you to spend hours making a shack for just 1 guy.

 

Might I suggest: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/60673/?

 

It's made by a good friend, seems to be more what you're looking for. It's my go-to player home for non-DD characters.

 

I think I'm going to make something a bit bigger than a bare necessity house/cabin, but definitely not a castle nor a mansion.

Comfortable looking house and beautiful, but not too pomptous. Vanilla houses like Breezehome, Lakeview manor and Honeyside look too ugly and unfinished. With bit more refined look, Hjerim would be nice and good sized, but I don't like snowy city where it's situated. Cities like Whiterun and Solitude are nice locations. Outside cities houses would be situated perhaps at some forested hill near lake. Lakeview manor's placing is good but not perfect. Riverside Lodge mod has beautiful location near water. Also high mountain top locations are nice, like Castle Strunmah, with a wonderful view around.

 

Spacious but not too big. Something like vanilla Breezehome is too small. One of the first house mods that I used was Dragonmount, I liked that it had almost anything I wanted, but as it was almost direct copy of Whiterun's Jarl's castle, it was over twice too big for normal house usage. I got frustrated so many times when I hauled overload of loot from one end to another, and could walk only at crawling speed.

 

Six beds are needed for kids, also doublebed for you and your spouse and beds for stewart, thane, bard, dog...

Enough chests. I like to collect weapons and armours and would like to see armory room with close to dozen chests in it (and wallplagues behind them to model what kind of items each chest holds). One room for crafting all kinds of stuff and storage space for materials in there.

 

Thanks for the ideas.

 

I don't know about making bunks for kids since I personally don't like kids even though presumably I was one at one point.

 

I definitely agree about many houses being waaaaaay too big. I love ambiance and neat looking things in houses, but I also don't sit around my skyrim house at the study or clearing away plates at the dining room table. There's definitely an art to making a space look great AND be functional at the same time, but also without feeling cramped.

 

i am in luck. that's a really neat looking home.are there any similar mods but with a higher coziness level ?

[Asrienda]

I'd like most of the DD stuff to be out of the open areas, reserved for bedrooms or basement or something behind a secret door, though with a couple of minor exterior bits like a cage and whipping post, both of which could be explained by the former owner breaking exotic monsters and training them...

 

I'd like the house to be small, but look very expensive, with most of the crafting stations also out of the open areas, and with cages/cells next to the crafting areas, unseen by casual visitors...the previous owner was a very big fan of slave labor.

 

As far as location...away from major towns, because this stuff isn't exactly legal, either in the warmest areas where slaves could be kept outside as punishment, but it wouldn't be necessarily dangerous except for extended periods, or in the coldest, where an escaped slave would die in minutes without the warmest clothing obtainable.

 

Now how to GET the house...I'm drawing a blank.

I did some exploring last night and i think the markarth area is very nice and not often used. I was thinking near the unmarked dibella shrine near old hroldan inn. Perhaps adding a dialog option to the inn for sleeping in a regular room, which causes you to be kidnapped at night and you have to escape from the slaver's house? with of course lots of sexlab content in there too.

 

This is going to sound stupid, but the biggest problem seems to be the abundance of cave bears in the area.

[anunwantedbaby]

I would love to see something like a player-slave house. Maybe after strolling the country-side you come across an abandoned little shack, and after investigating, you come across a lovely little collar. Being the curious Dragonborn that you are, you try it on, and suddenly the house door slams shut, and some ghost appears, detailing how perverted he was in his life and how his final gift to the world would be this enchanted collar and his humble house. It would be open to anyone dull enough to put on the collar.

 

He'd explain that the house would be yours to use as you please, but the collar goes on as soon as you enter, and you'd have to abide by certain, rather questionable house rules like staying naked, being constantly gagged, sleeping in a cage in the basement, etc.

 

That'd probably be a lot of scripting though and I don't want to impose, just spewing out ideas.

[Asrienda]

I've narrowed down to a couple of locations so far.

 

Right across the street from Old Hroldan Inn. Would have to incorporate the owners of OHI as part of the deal... perhaps they've fallen on hard times as they're so isolated (plus the ghost problem) and they need additional income in the form of providing lodging for the slave trader next door? OHI is just to the left in this picture.

 

 

Overlooking the farm and mine before Markarth. Kind of close to Markarth city though, perhaps a problem for immersiveness.

 

 

Near Swindler's Den by the mini waterfalls. This isn't near a road but is pretty scenic if you like that orangy color palette.

 

 

To the West of Dragontooth Crater, near the small pond. Very very isolated yet near a road. It seems to be in a fairly high level area.

 

 

West of Gjukar's Monument.

 

South-ish of Fort Greymoor.

 

 

What do you guys think?

 

I'm looking for some mining access, some farming area, near a road, not too near a major city or military camp, not too cold so slaves can be scantily-clad while outside, and it has to look decently nice.

[Scorpion_SK]

I will say my personal opinion what i like in home mods and what good home mod needs:

1. First of all it must be spacious and have enough place for many followers - trust me it is very important thing, which unfortunately most authors of home mods ignores, and becasue of this most of home mods are too small, too narrow and too cluttered. Most people uses multifollower mods like UFO, and MHIYH mod, and wants that all their many followers (and most of followers typically are cute sexy girls ) live with them together. When space is not enough, followers begin to stuck in the house, they cant move themself and also begin to interfere player's movement and this becomes very annoying. Also often large free flat space is needed for using some dancing mods with followers, and of course for using SexLab with them . Also some people needs enough free space for placing their own various placeable furniture, for example from mods like Corpse Preparation - True Necromancy, Jaxonz Furnishings or furniture from ZaZ Animation Pack . So it would be also nice to have in the home special additional absolutely empty room, where player can place any furniture from other mods which he wants, and turn this room in what he needs - into additional living room, into necromancer lab, into his personal dungeon or into what his specific tastes wants.

2. It must have many free beds for followers (at least 15 or more). This is because MHIYH can set where each follower will sleep.

3. It must support Multiple Adoptions and have 6 beds for children.

4. It must have forge and all other crafting things INSIDE the house (i mean in its interrior), because it is very annoying, each time when you want to craft some thing, you must go outside the house, wait that f...ing loading screen, and after when you crafted some armor for example, then you must enter your house again and wait that f...ing loading again, and give the crafted item to one of your followers, who are living inside. Sometime this must be done very multiple times, so forge outside the house is very uncomfortable thing in gameplay sense.

5. It must have bathing area with water. Many people uses various real needs mods which depends from hygiene and water. And also bathing in your own home together with cute sexy follower girls is simply a great fun by itself .

6. House must have a key, and the key must be obtained through purchase with large amount of septims or through some little quest. I never understood why, but most of the authors do their houses simply open and already owned by player or throw the key in chest right near the door. This kills a lot of fun. Because when player must do some efforts to obtain a house, this is more realistic, more interesting for player himself and is better for game ballance. And cheaters, who more likes to get the houses instantly, anyway always can add the key through the console, this is not so hard for them.

7. The house must be good navmeshed. Because of reasons described in p.1.

8. About house location, IMHO better outside the city but not too far from one of the cities. For not need to travel very far each time when you need to buy some supplies in shops. Also the road from house to nearest city must be not cluttered, it must be enough smooth and it must be also good navmeshed. Because some advanced followers like Vilja for example, have the ability to go in the city for shopping, when you give them the order to sell your items or to buy something for you. Otherwise any NPC will stuck in the road. Also when you dismiss your follower, he also will stuck and not return to the house if the road to it will be bad.

[Asrienda]

Thanks for the input Scorpion_SK. While I mentioned before that I won't have children beds in this mod (I mean it's a DD/Zaz-themed house), I'm definitely grateful for your other input!

[Scorpion_SK]

While I mentioned before that I won't have children beds in this mod (I mean it's a DD/Zaz-themed house),

Well... in my advices i realy only meant how to make the good quality universal and gameplay-wise comfortable house, which can be used for any purposes, which player wants depending from his own playing style. Yeah i agree, i have not considered the specific thematic of the mod, but maybe this will be not the last and only one house which you will make.

Also, depending from which side to look at this. Can you imagine for example the cute family of bloody Vampires (i even saw somewhere the mod which makes Serana into the little vampire child) or something like Addams Family , which lives in some dark styled gothic house, but they also can have a children .

[Asrienda]

 

While I mentioned before that I won't have children beds in this mod (I mean it's a DD/Zaz-themed house),

Well... in my advices i realy only meant how to make the good quality universal and gameplay-wise comfortable house, which can be used for any purposes, which player wants depending from his own playing style. Yeah i agree, i have not considered the specific thematic of the mod, but maybe this will be not the last and only one house which you will make.

Also, depending from which side to look at this. Can you imagine for example the cute family of bloody Vampires (i even saw somewhere the mod which makes Serana into the little vampire child) or something like Addams Family , which lives in some dark styled gothic house, but they also can have a children .

 

 

That child Serana mod is sooo cute! 

[Scorpion_SK]

That child Serana mod is sooo cute!

Honestly maybe this mod with child Serana is not a good example for our discussion, because technically she is not an adoptable child, she still is a follower only with changed appearance to look as a child.

So let i show another example: Lucy And Louis - Adoptable vampire children.

But the Serana's child-like look in that mod still is the good example, that vampires and other similar dark sadistic characters still can have the children. For example castle Volkihar, which is the house of Serana's family, also looks more like big dungeon furnished with various torture devices. Poor Serana, seems she had not very colorful and funny childhood while living in this dark place, but logically to suggest, that sometime she also was the child and also lived here.

[Asrienda]

 

That child Serana mod is sooo cute!

Honestly maybe this mod with child Serana is not a good example for our discussion, because technically she is not an adoptable child, she still is a follower only with changed appearance to look as a child.

So let i show another example: Lucy And Louis - Adoptable vampire children.

But the Serana's child-like look in that mod still is the good example, that vampires and other similar dark sadistic characters still can have the children. For example castle Volkihar, which is the house of Serana's family, also looks more like big dungeon furnished with various torture devices. Poor Serana, seems she had not very colorful and funny childhood while living in this dark place, but logically to suggest, that sometime she also was the child and also lived here.

 

 

You can adopt that Serana and Valerica, I mean it's a separate character but uses the same model. http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/65155/?

 

But in any case, I'd like to avoid any idea of children and adult-themed mods sharing the same .esp.

[Scorpion_SK]

But in any case, I'd like to avoid any idea of children and adult-themed mods sharing the same .esp.

Of course in all what i said, i absolutely NOT meant any direct usage of any adult mods (like ZaZ furnitures) on children. Never! I only meant, that unfortunately sometimes happens situations, when children lives in houses like castle Volkihar, where such furnitures are present. Sad but true.

But honestly, i completely agree with you, you are right that better to avoid such situations, because it will look too weird.

[Asrienda]

I think I'm going to actually put it in a very snowy area near Dawnstar and forgo the idea of a farm.

 

I want it near to the ocean for access to shipping.

 

I want it to be nearly impossible to escape on foot.

 

And there happens to be a random Dibella Shrine right next to where I was looking for... must be a sign!

[Monsto Brukes]

Here's a thought: The one thing I've seen most problematic with towers isn't the roundness, it's the huge spaces It's extremely difficult to make those giant rotunda's and superwide hallways and rotating stairs feel like home . . . not to mention all the friggin ugly stone.

 

Something I've done with personal spaces is using wharf walkways as dividers and what I call "front walls"  . . . take a short section (of the wharf), set it just in front of an interior wall with a bit of space in between (not big enough to walk in between them). My skyrim is hosed at the mo (has been since before Cities Skylines came out) otherwise I'd just bump a screenshot. 

 

Anyway this does 3 things... adds depth, adds color (a bit of red/brown cuts the grey nicely), and helps manage the space. I used the helgen tower (the very first interior space you enter in the game) as the basis for a home and using those walls I was able to make a nice living room/kitchen area with stairs up to a 2nd level for bedroom and storage. You could do this kinda thing >>   __----__   (bottom facing the room) against the curved wall.

 

I also found that using really large pieces like the dragonsreach dining tables, or even some of the odder shaped wharf pieces, but clipping them mostly into the walls until you get a nice shape, also does wonders for squaring the usable space without necessarily squaring the 'feel'. Wall-based lighting also makes it feel more homey. top dead center is more efficient, yes, but it's ... uninteresting.

 

Just a couple thoughts.

 

 

Oh also quest . . . Next travel to Dawnstar, the town is under bandit attack. When they're quelled, you should go speak to the Jarl. He asks you to clear out bandits from this potential homestead. You get there and it's not just bandits, it's <something more heinous>. Then after you're done, jarl offers you the deed as payment for services rendered and says he'll get townfolk to "clean the place up in a couple days." Voila... useful home-gaining quest.

[Asrienda]

Here's a thought: The one thing I've seen most problematic with towers isn't the roundness, it's the huge spaces It's extremely difficult to make those giant rotunda's and superwide hallways and rotating stairs feel like home . . . not to mention all the friggin ugly stone.

 

Something I've done with personal spaces is using wharf walkways as dividers and what I call "front walls"  . . . take a short section (of the wharf), set it just in front of an interior wall with a bit of space in between (not big enough to walk in between them). My skyrim is hosed at the mo (has been since before Cities Skylines came out) otherwise I'd just bump a screenshot. 

 

Anyway this does 3 things... adds depth, adds color (a bit of red/brown cuts the grey nicely), and helps manage the space. I used the helgen tower (the very first interior space you enter in the game) as the basis for a home and using those walls I was able to make a nice living room/kitchen area with stairs up to a 2nd level for bedroom and storage. You could do this kinda thing >>   __----__   (bottom facing the room) against the curved wall.

 

I also found that using really large pieces like the dragonsreach dining tables, or even some of the odder shaped wharf pieces, but clipping them mostly into the walls until you get a nice shape, also does wonders for squaring the usable space without necessarily squaring the 'feel'. Wall-based lighting also makes it feel more homey. top dead center is more efficient, yes, but it's ... uninteresting.

 

Just a couple thoughts.

 

 

Oh also quest . . . Next travel to Dawnstar, the town is under bandit attack. When they're quelled, you should go speak to the Jarl. He asks you to clear out bandits from this potential homestead. You get there and it's not just bandits, it's <something more heinous>. Then after you're done, jarl offers you the deed as payment for services rendered and says he'll get townfolk to "clean the place up in a couple days." Voila... useful home-gaining quest.

 

Yeah I tried to divide up and color the walls a bit in my last mod, but it was my first home and I have no desire to go back to it to be honest. Thanks for the pointers though

 

I like that, although it seems a bit too "vanilla" for me personally. Then again, maybe I shouldn't be so ambitious with my first quest project so that might be just the thing!