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About this mod
New edition of my Deadly Combat mod. Highly similar in terms of features, but highly optimised using many of the latest technical developments (SKSE plugins) in SSE modding. The goal of this mod is to make combat in Skyrim faster-paced and more exciting, to make player skill more important, and to make combat look and feel more impactful.
- Requirements
- Permissions and credits
- Changelogs
Deadly Combat 2023 Edition
Version 1.01
14 July 2023
Borgut1337
NEW in the 2023 Edition:
- PAPER's OnImpact() events are used instead of OnHit() events. This is a significant reduction in script load (especially when the Player and/or any NPCs are using continuous-cast spells like Flames, or enchanted weapons).
- SPID is used to distribute scripts to NPCs, instead of cloak spells.
- Creatures (any Actors without the ActorTypeNPC keyword) now receive separate magic effects with separate scripts from the other NPCs (no change in functionality, but more efficient).
- Timed blocking for the Player is now implemented directly in an SKSE plugin. In theory, this can mean better responsiveness (though I personally already never had any responsiveness issues with the old implementation). More importantly, this fixes a bug where, in previous implementations of Deadly Combat, timed blocks would cause the Player's Block skill not to increase.
- Extra Stamina costs for non-timed blocks (after holding the block button for a long time) are also implemented through SKSE, in a manner that should automatically be compatible with any perks mod you may have installed. No more need for an Ordinator patch.
- Numerous micro-optimisations throughout the entire mod's scripts.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Requirements
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Special Edition) on PC.
- SKSE: https://skse.silverlock.org/
- Address Library for SKSE Plugins: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/32444
- Spell Perk Item Distributor (SPID): https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/36869
- PAPER: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/73849
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. (In)compatible Skyrim Versions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Skyrim version 1.5.97 is compatible (personally tested).
- Skyrim versions 1.6.xxx should be compatible (not personally tested).
- VR is probably not compatible (but not tested, maybe it is).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Mod Description
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The goal of this mod is to make combat in the Special Edition of Skyrim faster-paced and more exciting, to make player skill more important, and to make combat look and feel more impactful. The scope of the mod has been reduced a bit in comparison to the version for the classic version of Skyrim (available from http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/5485/?). A number of small features that I never personally liked have been removed. The mod also no longer re-balances combat by changing any of the numbers related to damage/stamina/armor. For this, I recommend other mods instead (see Section 8). The following features are still in:
(A) Staggering in Combat
Staggering effects (where a Character's current action gets cancelled, and he visibly reacts to getting hit) are much more common in combat. Staggering can frequently occur when characters get hit by any (unblocked) attacks or (unwarded) spells.
(B) Timed Blocking
If a Character (player or NPC) times a block well (meaning that blocking was initialized approximately half a second before intercepting an attack), this counts as a timed block. Timed blocks are significantly more effective. They block more damage, and refund any stamina costs for blocking (blocking by default costs no Stamina, but this can be changed by other mods).
(C) Timed Warding
Timed Warding is similar to blocking, but with Ward spells instead of weapons or shields. If a Ward spell is timed well (meaning that the Ward was created shortly before intercepting a spell), the spell that was cast is reflected back to the original caster.
(D) Scripted Changes to Combat AI
NPCs will sometimes behave a bit differently in combat. If you keep spamming attacks at them, they will be more inclined to start blocking (which can easily result in a timed block for them). You will also sometimes see them playing a quick sideways or backwards dodge animation. The mod will also sometimes make them sprint or roll forwards to close the distance to their opponent more quickly if they're getting hit by ranged attacks. If the player is riding a horse, the mod will also make opponents more inclined to attack the player's horse instead of the player (at least in Classic Skyrim I frequently noticed NPCs not doing anything but stare at the player, if the player was too high on top of the horse for them to get in range for a hit). This feature does not conflict with mods that implement AI changes through Combat Styles.
(E) Blocking Physical Attacks with Wards
Magical Ward spells now interact with physical attacks (melee and projectiles from bows/crossbows) in similar ways as shields do. Melee attacks that collide with your Ward are now treated by the game in exactly the same way as melee attacks hitting a shield when blocking. This means that when a melee attack hits your Ward spell, the damage will be reduced, your Block skill can increase, and your Stamina is reduced if you have any mods installed that make blocking cost Stamina (such as Wildcat). If you time it very well, it will even be registered as a Timed Block by this mod, but that is difficult to pull off because the animation to cast a Ward spell is typically longer than the animation to start blocking with a shield. Arrows and crossbow bolts from enemies that you are facing towards will now deal no damage if you have a Ward active, and they will visibly bounce off of the Ward (instead of getting stuck in your body).
- NOTE: all of this also works for NPCs that are casting Wards.
- NOTE: if you don't care about any other features from this mod, you can get this feature standalone in the separate Wards Act Like Shields
mod.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Installation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Like any other mod, recommended to be installed through your mod manager of choice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. Uninstallation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not recommended to uninstall mid-game. If you want to try anyway, to be safe, try to follow the following steps first (some may not be necessary, but it's good to try to be as safe as possible):
- Use the in-game configuration power to deactivate the mod
- Try to go to a location in-game with few or no NPCs (entering "coc qasmoke" in the console would work well)
- Use the in-game waiting function to wait a while (for example, 24 hours).
- Save the game, then deactivate and uninstall the mod.
- Now it should be safe to load your saved game again and continue.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. Incompatibilities
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This mod changes very few existing records, and almost exclusively adds new records and scripts. This means that it is compatible with almost every mod.
Some mods that people specifically asked about:
- Combat Evolved: Compatible.
- Valravn/Wildcat/Smilodon: Compatible, and also recommended (with some features disabled through configuration). See Section 8 on Recommended Mods.
- Smilodon: Compatible, and I suppose similar recommendations hold as for Wildcat. I never personally looked into exactly what the differences are between Wildcat and Smilodon.
- Ordinator/Other Perk mods: Compatible.
- Precision: Compatible, but it may be worth considering to disable its hit reactions (because Staggers from Deadly Combat play a similar role visually, whilst also affecting gameplay through interruption of actions).
The only record existing in the base game that has been changed by this mod is the ImpactData record for Arrows. This was necessary to make arrows bounce off of Wards, instead of going through them and piercing the player. This means that I suspect that there may be a very small (but not critical) incompatibility with Sound Overhaul mods which may edit the same record to change the sound of Arrows hitting various objects (but Immersive Sounds Compendium is compatible according to user reports). There are three different ways in which you could use such a mod together with Deadly Combat:
1) Load Deadly Combat before any such mod. This will cause arrows to no longer bounce off of Ward spells (their damage will still be reduced, the only difference is purely visual).
2) Load Deadly Combat after any such mod. This will cause the sounds to revert back to the vanilla sounds for arrows specifically (any other sounds changed by such a mod will still be changed just fine).
3) You could try merging the changes into a new plugin, using a tool such as SSEEdit.
Not compatible with:
- Wards Act Like Shields: the same feature is already included in this mod.
Not recommended to be used with:
- Valhalla/other mods with timed blocking: too many similarities in features. Personally, I prefer my mod, because it also lets NPCs do timed blocks (and I dislike many other features of these other mods).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. Known Issues/Bugs
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) When you get hit by arrows/bolts and you have a Ward up, you may still see blood effects and/or hear your character reacting as if they were hit, even though the projectiles visibly bounce off of the Ward and don't hit your character.
2) When melee attacks are blocked by a Ward spell, it can sound like the weapon struck a metal object (like a shield). I would prefer something sounding a bit more magical, but this would create many more incompatibilities with mods such as Enhanced Blood Textures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. Recommended Mods
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Mortal Enemies SE.
- Valrvan/Smilodon/Wildcat: I recommend disabling features such as timed blocking/injuries/stamina costs for these mods, only keeping them for damage/armor numbers tweaking.
- Parrying (specifically: my Parrying RPG version).
- Dual Wield Parrying (specifically: the SKSE version).
- Shield of Stamina (specifically: my version with more consistent stamina costs).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Source Code
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Source code is available from GitHub: https://github.com/DennisSoemers/DeadlyCombat
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. Permissions & Disclaimer
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- THIS MATERIAL IS NOT MADE, GUARANTEED OR SUPPORTED BY ZENIMAX OR ITS AFFILIATES.
- ALL FILES IN THE DOWNLOAD ARE PROVIDED ''AS IS'' WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY
OR GUARANTEE OF ANY KIND. IN NO EVENT CAN THE AUTHOR BE HELD RESPONSIBLE
FOR ANY CLAIMS, WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE RELATED TO THE DOWNLOAD.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. Credits
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to:
- Bethesda Game Studios, for Skyrim and the Creation Kit
- CharmedBaryon for CommonLibSSE NG and the CommonLibSSE NG Sample Plugin.
- The SKSE authors for SKSE.
- Meh321 for Address Library for SKSE Plugins.
- NoahBoddie for pointing me to an address to use on 1.6.640
Version 1.01
14 July 2023
Borgut1337
New edition of my Deadly Combat mod. Highly similar in terms of features, but highly optimised using many of the latest technical developments (SKSE plugins) in SSE modding. The goal of this mod is to make combat in Skyrim faster-paced and more exciting, to make player skill more important, and to make combat look and feel more impactful. In Classic Skyrim, this was one of the most popular combat mods.
Brodual's #1 Classic Skyrim Combat Mod: (NOTE: this video is about the Classic version, not the SSE version)
NEW in the 2023 Edition:
- PAPER's OnImpact() events are used instead of OnHit() events. This is a significant reduction in script load (especially when the Player and/or any NPCs are using continuous-cast spells like Flames, or enchanted weapons).
- SPID is used to distribute scripts to NPCs, instead of cloak spells.
- Creatures (any Actors without the ActorTypeNPC keyword) now receive separate magic effects with separate scripts from the other NPCs (no change in functionality, but more efficient).
- Timed blocking for the Player is now implemented directly in an SKSE plugin. In theory, this can mean better responsiveness (though I personally already never had any responsiveness issues with the old implementation). More importantly, this fixes a bug where, in previous implementations of Deadly Combat, timed blocks would cause the Player's Block skill not to increase.
- Extra Stamina costs for non-timed blocks (after holding the block button for a long time) are also implemented through SKSE, in a manner that should automatically be compatible with any perks mod you may have installed. No more need for an Ordinator patch.
- Numerous micro-optimisations throughout the entire mod's scripts.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Requirements
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Special Edition) on PC.
- SKSE: https://skse.silverlock.org/
- Address Library for SKSE Plugins: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/32444
- Spell Perk Item Distributor (SPID): https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/36869
- PAPER: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/73849
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. (In)compatible Skyrim Versions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Skyrim version 1.5.97 is compatible (personally tested).
- Skyrim versions 1.6.xxx should be compatible (not personally tested).
- VR is probably not compatible (but not tested, maybe it is).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Mod Description
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The goal of this mod is to make combat in the Special Edition of Skyrim faster-paced and more exciting, to make player skill more important, and to make combat look and feel more impactful. The scope of the mod has been reduced a bit in comparison to the version for the classic version of Skyrim (available from http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/5485/?). A number of small features that I never personally liked have been removed. The mod also no longer re-balances combat by changing any of the numbers related to damage/stamina/armor. For this, I recommend other mods instead (see Section 8). The following features are still in:
(A) Staggering in Combat
Staggering effects (where a Character's current action gets cancelled, and he visibly reacts to getting hit) are much more common in combat. Staggering can frequently occur when characters get hit by any (unblocked) attacks or (unwarded) spells.
(B) Timed Blocking
If a Character (player or NPC) times a block well (meaning that blocking was initialized approximately half a second before intercepting an attack), this counts as a timed block. Timed blocks are significantly more effective. They block more damage, and refund any stamina costs for blocking (blocking by default costs no Stamina, but this can be changed by other mods).
(C) Timed Warding
Timed Warding is similar to blocking, but with Ward spells instead of weapons or shields. If a Ward spell is timed well (meaning that the Ward was created shortly before intercepting a spell), the spell that was cast is reflected back to the original caster.
(D) Scripted Changes to Combat AI
NPCs will sometimes behave a bit differently in combat. If you keep spamming attacks at them, they will be more inclined to start blocking (which can easily result in a timed block for them). You will also sometimes see them playing a quick sideways or backwards dodge animation. The mod will also sometimes make them sprint or roll forwards to close the distance to their opponent more quickly if they're getting hit by ranged attacks. If the player is riding a horse, the mod will also make opponents more inclined to attack the player's horse instead of the player (at least in Classic Skyrim I frequently noticed NPCs not doing anything but stare at the player, if the player was too high on top of the horse for them to get in range for a hit). This feature does not conflict with mods that implement AI changes through Combat Styles.
(E) Blocking Physical Attacks with Wards
Magical Ward spells now interact with physical attacks (melee and projectiles from bows/crossbows) in similar ways as shields do. Melee attacks that collide with your Ward are now treated by the game in exactly the same way as melee attacks hitting a shield when blocking. This means that when a melee attack hits your Ward spell, the damage will be reduced, your Block skill can increase, and your Stamina is reduced if you have any mods installed that make blocking cost Stamina (such as Wildcat). If you time it very well, it will even be registered as a Timed Block by this mod, but that is difficult to pull off because the animation to cast a Ward spell is typically longer than the animation to start blocking with a shield. Arrows and crossbow bolts from enemies that you are facing towards will now deal no damage if you have a Ward active, and they will visibly bounce off of the Ward (instead of getting stuck in your body).
- NOTE: all of this also works for NPCs that are casting Wards.
- NOTE: if you don't care about any other features from this mod, you can get this feature standalone in the separate Wards Act Like Shields
mod.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Installation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Like any other mod, recommended to be installed through your mod manager of choice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. Uninstallation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not recommended to uninstall mid-game. If you want to try anyway, to be safe, try to follow the following steps first (some may not be necessary, but it's good to try to be as safe as possible):
- Use the in-game configuration power to deactivate the mod
- Try to go to a location in-game with few or no NPCs (entering "coc qasmoke" in the console would work well)
- Use the in-game waiting function to wait a while (for example, 24 hours).
- Save the game, then deactivate and uninstall the mod.
- Now it should be safe to load your saved game again and continue.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. Incompatibilities
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This mod changes very few existing records, and almost exclusively adds new records and scripts. This means that it is compatible with almost every mod.
Some mods that people specifically asked about:
- Combat Evolved: Compatible.
- Valravn/Wildcat/Smilodon: Compatible, and also recommended (with some features disabled through configuration). See Section 8 on Recommended Mods.
- Smilodon: Compatible, and I suppose similar recommendations hold as for Wildcat. I never personally looked into exactly what the differences are between Wildcat and Smilodon.
- Ordinator/Other Perk mods: Compatible.
- Precision: Compatible, but it may be worth considering to disable its hit reactions (because Staggers from Deadly Combat play a similar role visually, whilst also affecting gameplay through interruption of actions).
The only record existing in the base game that has been changed by this mod is the ImpactData record for Arrows. This was necessary to make arrows bounce off of Wards, instead of going through them and piercing the player. This means that I suspect that there may be a very small (but not critical) incompatibility with Sound Overhaul mods which may edit the same record to change the sound of Arrows hitting various objects (but Immersive Sounds Compendium is compatible according to user reports). There are three different ways in which you could use such a mod together with Deadly Combat:
1) Load Deadly Combat before any such mod. This will cause arrows to no longer bounce off of Ward spells (their damage will still be reduced, the only difference is purely visual).
2) Load Deadly Combat after any such mod. This will cause the sounds to revert back to the vanilla sounds for arrows specifically (any other sounds changed by such a mod will still be changed just fine).
3) You could try merging the changes into a new plugin, using a tool such as SSEEdit.
Not compatible with:
- Wards Act Like Shields: the same feature is already included in this mod.
Not recommended to be used with:
- Valhalla/other mods with timed blocking: too many similarities in features. Personally, I prefer my mod, because it also lets NPCs do timed blocks (and I dislike many other features of these other mods).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. Known Issues/Bugs
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) When you get hit by arrows/bolts and you have a Ward up, you may still see blood effects and/or hear your character reacting as if they were hit, even though the projectiles visibly bounce off of the Ward and don't hit your character.
2) When melee attacks are blocked by a Ward spell, it can sound like the weapon struck a metal object (like a shield). I would prefer something sounding a bit more magical, but this would create many more incompatibilities with mods such as Enhanced Blood Textures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. Recommended Mods
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Mortal Enemies SE.
- Valrvan/Smilodon/Wildcat: I recommend disabling features such as timed blocking/injuries/stamina costs for these mods, only keeping them for damage/armor numbers tweaking.
- Parrying (specifically: my Parrying RPG version).
- Dual Wield Parrying (specifically: the SKSE version).
- Shield of Stamina (specifically: my version with more consistent stamina costs).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Source Code
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Source code is available from GitHub: https://github.com/DennisSoemers/DeadlyCombat
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. Permissions & Disclaimer
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- THIS MATERIAL IS NOT MADE, GUARANTEED OR SUPPORTED BY ZENIMAX OR ITS AFFILIATES.
- ALL FILES IN THE DOWNLOAD ARE PROVIDED ''AS IS'' WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY
OR GUARANTEE OF ANY KIND. IN NO EVENT CAN THE AUTHOR BE HELD RESPONSIBLE
FOR ANY CLAIMS, WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE RELATED TO THE DOWNLOAD.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. Credits
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to:
- Bethesda Game Studios, for Skyrim and the Creation Kit
- CharmedBaryon for CommonLibSSE NG and the CommonLibSSE NG Sample Plugin.
- The SKSE authors for SKSE.
- Meh321 for Address Library for SKSE Plugins.
- NoahBoddie for pointing me to an address to use on 1.6.640