Whenever someone is critical of an NPC in ways that are ostensibly subjective, the first thing I try to do is understand why, and perhaps figure out ways to improve the experience. Why do some users hate an NPC that others unconditionally love? Sure, it’s easy to ascribe this to taste and opinions, but that would imply it’s an unsolvable quandary for which I can only toss my hands in the air and curse the Gods for making people different.

However, if you’re like me (for your sake, I hope not) and are unsatisfied with such an answer, there is another explanation. Even if the world was filled with emotional clones who felt the same and thought the same and were in love with the same person, if you think about it, there is still one variable that often changes depending on the playthrough, and could account for some of these varying opinions. Location, location, location. In other words, where you meet an NPC is just as important as what they’re saying.

For instance, when I added daily schedules way back when, it may have compromised your first impression of certain NPCs, especially the folks in Whiterun. Meeting Iria outdoors in the sun results in a completely different mood than if you’re meeting her in the Hall of the Dead. Even in the crypt, if she’s sitting down chowing on a piece of bread, that doesn’t feel particularly morbid. As a result, the deadpan, gallows humor can get misinterpreted.

On the other hand, if you meet her in the crypt first, then see her parading around Whiterun, suddenly it adds a second layer of depth. All right, she’s a creepy, ghoul of a woman, but she also doesn’t mind the occasional walk in the park. So, minor tweaks like the one pictured are aimed to enhance the experience. In the next version, she’ll stay here mulling over a corpse (I considered the open coffin being taboo, but fuck Andurs asks you to kill skeletons so whatever) until you speak with her. Only then will she depart. The same could probably be done for Eldar, although it would be somewhat bizarre for him to run the shop in the middle of the night. Larkspur too will have his initial encounter moved to the dungeon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXuMsXtEpRc

Another thing I want to correct is the generic combat dialogue for super followers. Bethesda used generic combat lines because the same files were utilized across multiple NPCs. Since Aela has the same voice as Uthgerd, it’s convenient for them to share the same battlecries.

Conversely, there’s no reason for unique voice types to do the same – it was probably laziness on my part that I had the actors share a list of generic babble. This results in hilarious incongruities like Valgus screaming “Why won’t you die already!” despite him being a healer who advocates peace. The video also shows him heal you at the end of battle, which yes, isn’t the same as him using the spells in combat, but I’ve yet to figure out how that’s done – hence no animation or magicka use involved. It’s solely for immersion.

In any case, these are some examples of what I’m working on as I take a break from quests and new NPCs. I think the mod can always find ways to get better, and not just by adding new content. In other words, it’s more about turning my brain sideways as opposed to upside down. Yeah, that metaphor makes no sense.