Skyrim: Race Matters

Thank you for the wonderful response on here, and on Reddit! These are not the only playable races the mod will apply to, they are simply the only ones I've planned out. I've been working on the Khajiit for the time being, and will happily post a small, playable demo when it's finished.

I've addressed some questions towards the bottom.

One thing I’ve felt was a little lackluster and fairly immersion breaking was the fact that beyond a mean comment here or there, the race you chose to play as didn’t really impact your game play or relations with the world of Skyrim and her people.

It simply did not make sense to me that you could roll on up to the Stormcloaks as a High Elf, or sneak around as a Khajiit without issue.

After a bit of experimenting in Skyrim, I started to plan the mod as a series of adjustments and conditions for your character based on your race. I don’t intend to go adding an insane amount of assets or customize any scripting, I simply prefer to stick within the existing framework using existing assets where possible.

Here are some examples of some changes:

Khajiit

more likely to be followed around stores

more likely to have people watching you

kicked out of store if purchase isn’t made within a certain amount of time

more likely to be accused of theft, even if innocent, especially if your armour is above a certain value

have to complete more side quests in order to “prove” worthy (ie: to become Thane)

items cost more, rooms cost more

higher bounty, longer jail time

Khajiit NPC friendlier and will open their homes to you

Khajiit merchants provide better price for items

Khajiit caravan provide a bed roll and discounts

Khajiit merchants will fence items of lower value

Argonian

more likely to be followed around stores

more likely to have people watching you

more likely to be stopped when stealthing during day near guards

kicked out of store if purchase isn’t made within a certain amount of time

asked to leave if stealthed near shopkeeper

more likely to be accused of theft, even if innocent, especially if your armour is above a certain value

unable to own a home in certain cities

have to complete more side quests in order to “prove” worthy (ie: to become Thane)

items cost more, rooms cost more

higher bounty, longer jail time

Argonian NPC can fence items of lower value

Nord

less likely to be followed around stores

more likely to get away with crime, theft, etc

Nazeem isn’t a dick to you if you are a Nord with a lot of money

Nord cities and merchants provide better discounts, freebie items

Stolen goods under a certain value less likely to be seen as stolen goods

lower bounty, lower jail time

Guards more likely to turn a blind eye

Stormcloak members likely to aid you if you are attacked outside of a city

More to prove to get in the Mages College

High Elf/Altmer

In Nord dominant cities: denied room rental at tavern denied entry in many shops Must disguise self with hood in order to move around safely within city



In Imperial cities: able to rent room but at slightly higher price higher prices in shops

Nord NPCs will refuse to speak to Altmer in most circumstances unless you “prove” yourself to them

Thalmor Justiciar will help you if you are attacked in view

Stormcloak members will attack you if you are alone outside of a city

No chance of becoming Thane in Nord dominant holds

Have to prove more to become Thane in other areas

High Elf NPCs friendlier to you

High Elf NPC with homes will open their home and bed to you

Imperials

In progress.

Orcs

In progress.

Bosmer

In progress.

Dunmer

In progress.

Red Guard

In progress.

Breton

In progress.

Additional notes...

1. NPC demeanor, of course, will be a factor. I wouldn't expect someone like Ysolda who is sympathetic towards the Khajiit to turn around and suddenly begin to hate on Khajiit in the next sentence.

2. Each race will have varying degrees of difficulty, with some being easier than others. Naturally, in some regions the High Elves will have it harder than in other regions. Just because you are barred from an area, however, doesn't mean you can't find another way in. It just requires a bit of stealth and clever thinking. There will be assets available for you that would assist you in navigating these harder areas -- a cloak/hood that offers cover for a certain amount of time.

3. This is lore friendly. For those of you who cannot understand the reasoning behind some of this, please read up on the lore and talk to some of the NPCs. Argonians and Khajiit are universally thought of to be untrustworthy, thieves, etc with Argonians outright banned in Windhelm.

4. On top of drawing from lore, the actions also draw from how things were during similar points of our own history. For those who don't believe a Stormcloak member -- a member of a heavily nationalistic group -- would attack someone based on their race, please look up incidents of hate crimes in our history. It won't mean they would actively seek you out, it would operate more based on a % likelihood vs your visibility, lighting factor, and whether you're outside of the city and in range of other people or not.

5. Custom recorded dialogue is not on my radar. There are several unused conversations in the CK that can be appropriated and turned in to something interactive. I'd like to focus on the actual balance itself before getting in to more advanced customization.

Edited by griefmyst, 26 September 2014 - 03:00 PM.