There are some concepts for ambient creatures, which is based on available Skyrim's creatures (can use their animations/movements).
1. Club-shrimp
Animation\habit : salmon.
Game function : usually hunted animals are source of food and raw material. This creature can be used as a basic weapon: club. Very sad that there is no durability in Skyrim.
Habitat : can live in rivers of Morrowind, but would be better if put it in ash.
2. Curling shrimp
Animation\habit : histcarp/spadetail and other molly-like.
Game function : available source of protein or ingredient.
Habitat : isolated small pools or water in caves.
3. Harlequin bat/bird
Animation\habit : hawk.
Game function : ambient.
Habitat : any non-ash biome.
4. Night lantern (imago of Sharp-clawed caterpillar)
Animation\habit : firefly. it's glowing red and slow ascend at night.
Game function : ambient or source of ingredient.
Habitat : non-ash, open places, perhaps Ascadian Isles.
5. Sharp-clawed caterpillar (larva of Night lantern)
Animation\habit : Horker, but much smaller (smaller than kwama forager).
Game function : very deadly live trap (non aggressive, but deadly if player close to it) and source of deadly poison.
Habitat : perhaps, bitter coast.
Very nice.
Would it be possible to steal the ash-hopper animations to make a lot of non-violent animals that run away and re-burrow?
I'm not very familiar with subject. But i think no (if you mean animation of burrowing), it will need custom animation.
if u dont know ask a dev.
alysander, if you wish to help with ambient creatures, get nifskope and open up the files u have these based on. Basing them on the skyrim ones is a good start, but go further, see how the files work, what animations they use, describing them.
Now i am learning it, but i dont see all production chain as whole thing.
Some collateral succulent plant model/concept art. I think green may be too bright.
not bad :) I rather like it. May work in ascadia or westgash
When baked to a low poly, you could desaturate colours in the texture.
Youtube low poly and Uvs, keep learning! :)
It is collateral by-product to my card-game project and ZBrush study (it was for work with subtools).
---
I think if in this project team will upgrade MW alchemistry (for example add unique potions/effects for each disease/condition) there will be need for ~50 new plants/ingredients.
i think that a little orange thrown in there would defuse the green a little making it look more plant like
Another version: with agava-like thorns/leaves. Color of central part can be altered later.
That looks great. We need this kind of love on our flora. Very good job.
Actually... that reminds me of an idea I was discussing with Dragomir the other day.
So if we're going with lots of different 'corkbulb' types of trees, there needs to be something to distinguish them as 'corkbulb'. I was thinking 'what type of tree has loads of different appearances? Oaks! In fact, 'cork' comes from a type of oak. Red oak, white oak, cork oak, pin oak, live oak, chinese oak - they all look drastically different. But they all share a similar fruit and seed - the acorn.
Acorns are how you can distinguish an oak as an oak. Likewise, you might be able to distinguish corkbulb by its fruit. Something alien, and distinguishible. Something like the osage orange.
I also had an idea for what could be used for inspiration of other alien fruits - the galls formed by gall wasps on plants. There are SO many different types of galls. Basically, the wasp injects eggs into a plant with its ovipositor, and the eggs produce plant hormones that direct the growth of the plant in such a way that it forms protective structures around the developing wasp. Some Telvanni-level shit right there. And they look SOOO cool. So cool.
> to distinguish corkbulb by its fruit
= I really think it's more bulb. Like bulb/root of Adenia, or such plants.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dioscorea_elephantipes.JPG
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wuestenkohlrabi.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Adenia_pechuelii-01.jpg
great find, we can use some of these ideas :)
Later i can make some of this models but now when i have some time I am trying to complete Kagouti.
---
I strongly recommend then to look on related categories:
1) caudiciforms
2) flora of Volcanic-Desert Islands between Arabia-Africa-Madagascar-India
3) bennettitiales (group of extinct plants, restorations can be founded on paintings of Zdeněk Michael František Burian)
---
I can use some seeds if somebody have, but now i know only one shop with out_of_stock state :(
(WIP) Some surrealistic plant/fungus for Sheogorad region.
Very sad that 3dSoft have such limited tools for symmetry/iterations.
.NAME = "Sheogorath Mouth"
I'm loving your alien flora. We just have to be careful about how we can get these game ready. There is a big step between these high poly sculpts and getting them low poly so that we can have them dotted around the landscape.
People who can/will retoplogies are in short numbers so this will be a skill that you want to learn in general if you're keen to advance your modeling skills and help the project.
This looks highly awesome Alysander! We need a lot of alien flora to fill the landscape of Zafirbel bay - the mushroom salt marshes archipelago on which Sadrith Mora and some other Telvanni towers are built. It should be filled with all types of fungus and sea flora that is both underwater, or just comes out of it when the tide is away.
I am now curious more about how to construct plant from identical parts. Is it possible directly in game?
---
Where i can read about how realized changing model of plant with/without collectable ingredient?
I don't see good ideas to such desert place. If you have - share it. If it is simple enougth - i will realize it.
---
More general idea : there is no water/sea plants/ingredients in MW. Only clams. Poor.
I did some concept flora searching awhile back and posted in these threads
http://tesrenewal.com/comment/46121#comment-46121
http://tesrenewal.com/comment/46442#comment-46442
Idea from thread about Telvanni furnuture : lighter-organism.
Can anyone make simple animation of opening/closing? (i can add elytra to it).
i like the idea but are those things to open fully or just partially like in the concept? If it will only open partially i suggest those things open like this:
Nope. I want make another bug for it (with head below). Will be perfect if they opens only when someone around.
---
This may be another species/sex/stage.
hah ok it is a bug i didn't understand that sorry i thought it was a mushroom or a plant like those found in shivering isles, that why i thought it would be better to open the other way around. So yah leave it as it was in your concept...
ok i like the idea of only opening when someone is around, like those plants in Dawnguard that close when you get near them, but in this case the opposite.
Another polypaint : two related species of giant sponges (fictional species). Can be variated througth lighter-desaturation of texture to live (this, placeable on sea-floor) and dead-dry (desaturated version, placeable on beaches of small islands).
left one would be an ideal placement off the shore of grazeland and bittercoast :D
@Ravanna: If only dried on the beach. May be community can make some dry-seafloor place with forest of this sponges.
---
~1000 vertices on low poly is good? I want this sponges to be HUGE (2-5 meters)
Planning/Conception/Gathering_ideas
I have bunch of ideas for passive organisms related to seafloor, caves and Telvanni chambers. Someone can affect to them now, or add some new. Also i can accept tips on UVs, baking, design and i need someone to make simple animation for (2) organisms.
1/ Sponges clad : plan about 5 types of organisms, each live (seafloor) and dried-dead form (for beaches).
2/ Elytra clad : plan about 4 types of organisms : underground and Telvanni organisms feeding on trees trunks (eating tree-sap).
I want to use one low-poly and UVs for all.
Also I want to make Nix Hound's eggs/prelarva based on Fury_on concepts http://tesrenewal.com/files/Fury_on/images/skywind%20nyx%20l... alike to this organisms.
{http://tesrenewal.com/files/Fury_on/images/skywind%20nyx%20l...} -inspired nix-prelarva : nix-hound is close to Kwamas i think, so it can have more larval stages as a Kwama. It could be placed in bunches on tree stems and roots.
The egg is looking pretty good, but I would add some more colors to it. It's good to have at least three or four colors in your scheme to make it more visually interesting.
This is completely simple creature like greenflies, it have no need in complex coloration.
--- easter egg version 1.0, i think it's ready. I need someone to test it's low-poly and textures. ---
{http://tesrenewal.com/files/Ribtibs/images/Update3.jpg} -inspired Chrysalis.
v0.5 : Too zergy yet, but may become some ambient immobile creature for Kwama's nests - Root-sucking tick.
Larval form:
Chrysalid form:
The egg reminds me a lot of the Chaurus hunter pod things from Dawngaurd. I've always imagined the Kwama growing from more maggot like things.
1. This will be egg of Nix-Hound, not Kwama (actually Kwama have eggs even in original game).
2. Also it looks that you mean cocoon life stage, not egg life stage.
3. If it will be realized it will be associated with this creature by Fury_On: (nix-hound larvae).
http://tesrenewal.com/files/Fury_on/images/skywind%20nyx%20l...
http://tesrenewal.com/files/Fury_on/images/skywind%20nyx%20l...
Concept art: Kwama's life stages.
In this version Kwama foragers is'nt of "Kwama species", instead they are another symbiotic species, which provide nest protection and Kwamas gives them food. Colors are not "colors", more just to show shapes.
Early state of model of Wandering_Scrib. Ideas/critics welcomed.
Probable rig : Chaurus (only 2 pairs of legs used for movement)
---
Mid limbs can be used by creature for transporting young individuals, eggs and mainly - food : corpses of various small animals covered in black protecting material.
This requires new animation of course, in simple case legs can be just holded along body.
In more hard case carrying can be used for using forager as spitting acid saliva weapon.
---
Game role: fast non-aggressive, but unsafe creature, mostly outdoor Kwama, ingredient source.
it is too tall, either make the main torso bigger and spread the legs out, or make the arms closer to the main body. It is looking really good ;)
Nest_scrib model, based on model by Shushine
(changed quantity of limbs => 8, added eyes, abdomen segments, changed mouth, added tail-fork)
Probable rig : Spider or Chaurus
---
Game role: slow ambient creature inhabiting mostly Kwama nests, ingredient source.
@Yours_Truly it need to be middle between worker and nest_scrib sizes. Height of legs and torso size will be close to Shalk i presume. Legs will be moved/modified when i reach online anybody of animators.
I'm loving the way the Kwarma is being fleshed out. Good job Alysander.
omg.... a real scrib <3 nostalgic as phuuck seeying this :')
This thread has too much awesome, give me MMMMMOOOOOAAAAARRRRR.
Creature concept for distant future (low priority) : Ant chaurus.
DESC: Some Chaurus-Elytra small (rat-size) toxic relative, living in nest-mounds like termitary.
Coloration shows to potential opponent that's this creature is toxic.
Creature concept for distant future (low priority) : Scrib of alternative species of Kwama (continental or smth).
DESC: Main idea of species : there is'nt symbiosis with Kwama Foragers, so Kwama (workers, scribs and eggs) have own defensive toxines and spikes. Eggs and flesh of this species are'nt eatable.
CONCEPT: How is shrine arranged?
Book with this scheme should be in every respected heretic's library
and it should be banned by every respected inquisition of Morrowind.
That might be true by the time Oblivion takes place, a few years after the events of Tribunal. But up until the destruction of the heart, and the deaths of Sotha Sil and Almalexia (and potentially Vivec) the shrines were real, like the shrines to the 9 Divines. Until Vivec decided to call it quits he may have invented such a device as a facade, but eventually he just leaves and temple worship goes back to Azura Boethiah and Mephala. These false shrines would only be imagined in use for a relatively short period of time.
Gives me an idea though - after the heart is destroyed, shrines could have a not-negligible failure rate. 1 in 10 ir even 5. After Tribunal is released, if Vivec Almalexia and Sotha Sil are killed all Tribunal Shrines will cease to function at all.
I treated this as they using heart to enforce magic of this dispenser, but it needs soulmagick anyway.
---
> after the heart is destroyed
= just % weaker effect is better i think.
Perhaps heartstones could power it? They would still function after the heart itself is destroyed.
Heartstones aren't a thing until the heart shatters. I'm guessing they're rocks imbued with shards of the broken heart?
Heartstones can be treated as magicka catalizator too, then it will be possible to us make quest for tuning this shrines (or stripping them down if player decide to say that they non-repairable).
Pages