This guide isn't meant for the experienced modders, however will first start out with the basics of getting around in the construction set. There's a few beginner guides around anyhow, but since i have fun writing; here goes.



It is one of the tools required to create your basic mod!

http://www.elderscrolls.com/downloads/updates_utilities.htm

So you might ask yourself? How hard can it be? Well obviously i'm not really a tech-geek - so it's quite frankly not that hard. However for the advanced things there's plenty of guides around, which i won't get into (yet)

Also there's Giskards guide for building a nice quest setup on this forum.

The first thing you'll notice is the basic setup inside the Construction Set.

Three windows:

The Render Window - this displays the in-game content (torn apart a little ..tweaked a little for easier access. You don't want full hdr in your render window.

The Cell View Window - Yes believe it or not the entire game is split into parts for interiors/exteriors -> cells

The Object Window - Read onwards!

Nearly everything displayed ingame is an object. We're talking not just swords here! lights, tables, walls, special activators like doors which will lead to another cell, the whole works.

What do you do with this? Well you can do loads with it. As you notice by looking everything is divided into sub-components. Although empty. So it's time to get the required data inside.




Go to File -> data : Select Oblivion.esm ..eeew no don't worry it's loading (if you run vista it won't correctly show the progress in the lower part of your screen, but don't worry it works.)

Just take your time and spend half an hour checking everything. You'll notice so many goodies around. (I see them as gifts made by resource creators and Bethesda to actually implement in-game.)

Now you got a nice view of the object window. We'll procede onwards and add a book to the interior cell of The First Edition Bookshop.

Whoa hold on a minute; Yes sorry, we're going step by step!




First you select the Cell View Window. In the upper (world space) selection it's already set to "interiors". Well the bookshop is an interior cell, so that's brilliant. Check.

Second you have to understand nearly every home, shop or dungeon is an interior. So there's alot of them. Luckily the girls and boys at Bethesda organized this. Everything to-do with the Imperial City is labeled "IC(etcetera)".

Third now select an interior and press "i", it will "fast-travel" to the section starting with an "i", scroll down towards ICMarketDistrictFirstEdition. Double-left click this with your mouse. The Render View becomes active.

Okay so now we have a very small view of it's interior. Now you can use the "scroll" button on your mouse to scroll forward to turn tiny-shop into big-shop. Since it's a top-down view - you can hold the shift key and move your mouse around to get a more dynamic view of the whole.

It will take some time getting used to, plus if you select an item (left-click), you can press "c" to get a side view or "t" to get a top-view. I use the "t" key in concert with selection to quickly get a close view of a cell.

Alright. Drag and drop time! Select the Object Window - go to Book. Now left-click a book, keep pressing it and drag it onto the Render View. Release.. weeeh.. You got a book inside the shop!

Now the trick is zooming-scrolling-shift key-ing all over the place to get a proper angle for the book. You can now also press "f" to let the book "fall" onto the lower object (the counter for example).

If you want to lift the book again, you can press "z" (x,y,z is mostly a setup in any 3d-program where z is height) and keep the left-mouse selected on the item and move the mouse forward or backwards. You'll notice it going up or down.

Also if you're truely getting annoyed with the *** book, press "delete" on your keyboard for a 2nd try (yes or a third/fourth). Another nice one, is holding the "scroll" button, so you can move forward and side to side inside the render view.



Now you're done with the hard part!

Go to File - Save - Type in the name of your first mod. Save woohoo your first basic plug-in! Get it into your load order and *drum-roll*, you have your first book custom dropped into the store! Congratulations you have graduated from utter-newbie level to drag-and-drop expert.

(to be continued)

very nice tutorial

Next may I recommend ready made scripts!

I just want a nice simple building project. I did them in Morrowind but for some reason have problems with Oblivion. Despite all 11,000 plus mods out there I find Cyrodiil rather empty of farming comunities.

For a simple building project I have a problem getting a door onto the farm house that connects the enterior and exterior. A simple farm door. I understand the arrows. I pick an empty spot on the map, put down a farm house. Fine. I go pick an appropriate interior, fix it up. So far so good. I put a door on the interior and start having problems. The door doesn't want to link up with my exterior house door. Yes, I remembered to put one there.

Once I get that mastered I'll have some scripting questions.

Alright if you double-click the doors you should get a menu showing a teleport "tab" (if it doesn't you got yourself a static door and not a door which can be "activated")

Step One:

Double-click the exterior door and go to "teleport"-tab ...select the "teleport" option ..now leave the menu there (so no cancel or ok)

Step Two:

Go to the cell view and select the interior of your farmhouse. Now your previous menu with the exterior door window probably is gone behind other windows (if it didn't skip this part) ..you don't have to move all the windows. Just go to File - Save. It will give a warning that there's windows open. Woohoo your window of the exterior door is up front again

Step Three:

Press "Select Reference in Render Window" and you'll get a Counterstrike mouse pointer and click on the interior door. Now move around the "teleport" object (the yellow box with the extruding pyramid) to a position in front of the door ..with the pyramid facing outwards (this is where a player or npc will be facing when he enters)

Step Four (optional):

Some doors link around the axis which is set in a kind of weird way (tent doors for example). So you have to look well and drag the teleporter object (the yellow box with the extruding pyramid) to a point in front of the door.

Step Five (optional):

Upload the .esp to a file-sharing site. I will have a look.

Thank you, firespark, I do believe I actually understood that. Well done.

One little thing I don't see in the Tutorial that I need. How to rotate an object. I can move around on the x,y,z axis fine but I can't figure out how to rotate it.