tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55836861528651846242024-03-05T03:18:18.475-08:002xVRgaming: vr and pancake, pc and consoleUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-79222574082139817362022-10-25T11:08:00.010-07:002022-10-26T13:47:52.089-07:00AI Generated Elves and Dwarves<p><br /> Although my GPU has cranked out an excess of high fantasy images spun directly from human imagination, I wanted to see how the new fangled AI generators would fare. After the disappointing showing from Rings of Power where the elves neither behaved nor or looked like elves, I wondered what the current machine bias was towards elves. I guess all the fan art it fed on thinks <span style="text-align: center;">elves are pointy eared pointy chinned pretty boys. I would give Stable Diffusion an A+ for understanding the visuals of elves.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh4VVw4LR3t7caeqEu48uE2585wOdU5ICpet1MlhKBsKgIsPlQblCixH80cUCzc7EWu0g18YkSgY4catXFD0TYeSOZMqcBi9AcIUIFXfdYYf62q_VrFBRQEDuvARpDEBSiDgVe_CCR7D5OYX9cxTcZYy_hgYzuwssONxxogfPdHuIQgdOREaPIiiHlc" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1773" data-original-width="2364" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh4VVw4LR3t7caeqEu48uE2585wOdU5ICpet1MlhKBsKgIsPlQblCixH80cUCzc7EWu0g18YkSgY4catXFD0TYeSOZMqcBi9AcIUIFXfdYYf62q_VrFBRQEDuvARpDEBSiDgVe_CCR7D5OYX9cxTcZYy_hgYzuwssONxxogfPdHuIQgdOREaPIiiHlc" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">AI sees elves as pouty pretty boys</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Actually if I had to come up with a description for the drawing, I would settle on "elf twins who specialize in the long lost arcane art of natural hair dying". </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> I used the below seed image to generate a dozen elf pairs. My very first elf twin image popped out when I typed in "All elves in Tolkien should have long hair" into Stable Diffusion. (I don't really think that and I'm more annoyed that Rings of Power didn't judiciously use short hair as a signifier, perhaps give only Celebrimbor and the craftsman short hair to denote their more forward thinking pragmatic ways. ) And from that first seed image, I've generated dozens all with very different faces. I probably would not have been able to tell the difference from something from DeviantArt, no doubt part of the fodder of ML. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhk4nmuWjJoBaXP5XXfFSfQUBzKtuudC4oY_-skUt9e_ws1r7pDOwgllqwAik8A5AkT5fN18KnHZrrL1cfijOqSN6SmZzhSjRrBCJ5ni9hmyJSEu0nAiVms9UnVHCJ-MDhosEy0DfEtiyIXGTXxAhQnM6AVnzMLZqwyZd_w4deH4MMc0wsI1T0oN_Dr" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhk4nmuWjJoBaXP5XXfFSfQUBzKtuudC4oY_-skUt9e_ws1r7pDOwgllqwAik8A5AkT5fN18KnHZrrL1cfijOqSN6SmZzhSjRrBCJ5ni9hmyJSEu0nAiVms9UnVHCJ-MDhosEy0DfEtiyIXGTXxAhQnM6AVnzMLZqwyZd_w4deH4MMc0wsI1T0oN_Dr=w324-h243" width="324" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You don't have to check their ears to know...</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><br />A few came out malformed as Siamese twins, weirdly conjoined at the shoulders with matching fused armors to boot. Some pairs had grotesque flesh appendages in weird locations, but all in all the AI popped out no shortage of diverse elf pairs.</p><p>Unlike the pretty boys of machine learned elfdom, the AI goes the other way with dwarves. The weather beaten faces on these dwarves denotes a harsher life lacking a proper daily skincare regiment. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiz7Q1tCBsmufIvUFw9Z7Y2JxLTiV4qFCqIqpRQ3T5VEvrJorJyBoB5Mny6x61exWuYPoCF-26SZlCeUV_okmL_8OIhUt5K8WLwoslbSZ6pJdWVyaLvw08IZJN3s1t-szY30XsyjjQiqYmW9fg8G9DyMslqkG1PVvyVH1OBR0jqpzHSh2hBdudLltBl" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1024" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiz7Q1tCBsmufIvUFw9Z7Y2JxLTiV4qFCqIqpRQ3T5VEvrJorJyBoB5Mny6x61exWuYPoCF-26SZlCeUV_okmL_8OIhUt5K8WLwoslbSZ6pJdWVyaLvw08IZJN3s1t-szY30XsyjjQiqYmW9fg8G9DyMslqkG1PVvyVH1OBR0jqpzHSh2hBdudLltBl" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dwarves get the shaft...</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrl_DaFYFRsFqnm_1bwgZWBshDZji-c2Kq2pVsHg2Js0gA4W1nyPXw7367OPZTZaVJ15zivbk73vx0KBGGgCWqyVx_RLu_tYlmTbPeC52Ex4Wbx8QbS-mTe-eXHIHFozhDZV1rNlPRPYrVpxrHrJIMMrJSnKhVh6HytXypDrZuitw2u9gtA7uD58-f" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1024" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrl_DaFYFRsFqnm_1bwgZWBshDZji-c2Kq2pVsHg2Js0gA4W1nyPXw7367OPZTZaVJ15zivbk73vx0KBGGgCWqyVx_RLu_tYlmTbPeC52Ex4Wbx8QbS-mTe-eXHIHFozhDZV1rNlPRPYrVpxrHrJIMMrJSnKhVh6HytXypDrZuitw2u9gtA7uD58-f" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">AI only knows what humans feed it...</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>I tried for a bit to see if I could generate handsome dwarves but AI does not quite understand the beauty of solid masculinity donning a braided beard. Still, I cannot deny I was impressed by the creativity of the generated imagery. I have a lot of mixed thoughts about the power of this technology and I'll use it more to see where it takes me. </div><div><div><br />* All images generated with Stable Diffusion 1.4 </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-84357726851251400412021-10-15T13:42:00.004-07:002021-10-15T13:45:03.703-07:00True Skyrim Immersion Killer, Overmodding<p>In the back of my mind, I knew constantly blinging out my Skyrim for ultimate immersion was the very thing that was destroying it. Join me for a humorous look on why constant modding is dangerous for your immersion health. I've contracted a serious case of immersion dysfunction no alchemist in Skyrim can heal.</p>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BpoXOOxZe4U" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><div><br /></div><div>Will my immersion will go to Sovngard when it dies?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-89566578894710707452021-07-29T11:10:00.003-07:002021-07-29T11:22:07.949-07:00Building an AMD 5950X System<p> For my husband's workshop, I was finally able to build them a new PC with my old 1080ti now that I have my precious 3080ti. They use mostly CAD which is CPU driven and a great application of the Ryzen 5950X. I thought they might want to wait for the next gen Threadrippers but as they are limping by with an aging Alienware Aurora, the 16 cores of the 5950X is a huge upgrade for them. (And as building an AMD system was in my bucket list, I was so happy to build one.)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfsqaMZEYZsEK1DwPcyAvJaFZLA6rOo9djWReRtytHr2ihipW_xZx9A7AoW7xkhs_hxzAUvVIBhP5LTpKLYiH22KwPkXfGei2tyjBWpEk_8PONaMS_4qxVkM7eIsySgOrrmaqSVN4c5-A/s4000/IMG_20210708_154412985.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfsqaMZEYZsEK1DwPcyAvJaFZLA6rOo9djWReRtytHr2ihipW_xZx9A7AoW7xkhs_hxzAUvVIBhP5LTpKLYiH22KwPkXfGei2tyjBWpEk_8PONaMS_4qxVkM7eIsySgOrrmaqSVN4c5-A/s320/IMG_20210708_154412985.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Originally we had a plan to buy a prebuild with a RTX 3090 and then swap GPUs- a really sweet gesture from my husband to make a bereft wife happy. Thankfully EVGA Elite Program saved us from having to suffer the vagaries of the system integrators. </div><div><br /></div>For the mobo, I went with a x570 Gigabyte Aorus Pro, one level better than the Aorus Elite for better VRM components. It's not Gigabyte's upper tier or god tier but still places respectably on the A-tier of LinusTech's list. <div><br /><div>Although PCs supposedly have the most future upgradeability, the motherboard and CPU tend to be the biggest limiting factor. This CPU/mobo combo will never know the joys of DDR5. Since there are no DDR5 compatible CPU/Mobos out in the market right now, one has to accept the sobering reality of being locked out of one of the biggest RAM upgrades to come. </div><div><br /></div><div><i>(<span data-darkreader-inline-color="" style="--darkreader-inline-color: #89b4d5; color: #073763;">I myself am waiting for a DDR5 compatible mobo before I upgrade my i9-9900K even if there is no "practical" reason I need to upgrade my CPU. I'm definitely locked out of newer features like resizable bars even with my 3080ti which doesn't quite matter yet. None of the games I'm running are burning out the GPU just yet.</span>)</i></div><div><div><br /></div><div>Despite the recommendation from AMD to use water cooling, the world's best air cooler(Noctua DH-15) still does a fantastic job keeping the 5950X under 76C at full load. The Noctua is a robust workhorse beloved my many a happy air coolers including myself. The 5950X for all it's 16 cores only has a TDP of 105 watts, not much more than my 8 core i9-9900K at 95 watts. Intel has really fallen behind.</div><div> <br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGA19GW9rTTOzGMOADWioEK_037BBYbubkfprCpkCo4FxKoLnk4W5yP_jiVPUtCpQrXeNvLPcyxXtO9OkPVUx-wv0HcWcp840nf7x2pCW_WYJS59I-jG027pAaXdZBXqXQ2ZiIXUOo7Qg/s4000/IMG_20210708_183717810.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGA19GW9rTTOzGMOADWioEK_037BBYbubkfprCpkCo4FxKoLnk4W5yP_jiVPUtCpQrXeNvLPcyxXtO9OkPVUx-wv0HcWcp840nf7x2pCW_WYJS59I-jG027pAaXdZBXqXQ2ZiIXUOo7Qg/w480-h640/IMG_20210708_183717810.jpg" title="Retirement home for my 1080ti" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Retirement home for my 1080ti</td></tr></tbody></table><p>They were lucky that Noctua now provides a less conspicuous all black model instead of the hideous flesh and bark colored fans nobody likes. </p><p>As the case hadn't arrived yet, I loaded up the motherboard so I could still do all the open air tests. At first, I had forgotten all about the power button. I had to use a screwdriver to jump spark it. Yes that is an otherwise useless laptop cooler being used as a mobo bench.</p><p>One thing I didn't like about AMD cpus is that they stingily provide only one average temperature, unlike Intel who provides a temp per core. They've got them in there, just not available for the end user. Now I can't be obsessive about my thermal pasting job and make sure cores are about same temps. If there's anything I learned about top end PC builds, power delivery and cooling where you should spend the bucks.</p><p>I got them a massive full tower that could double as a rabbit hutch. Actually the <span id="docs-internal-guid-3fc08813-7fff-bf41-5b65-0d04a7bb0a84"><span data-darkreader-inline-color="" style="--darkreader-inline-color: #cdcbc9; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Phantek Enthoo 719</span></span> is pretty deluxe and would be the case of my dreams. The reason I got them something so big is more due to cooling flexibility. This has to run inside an extremely dusty metal shop where tiny metal shavings are common. We would have to put special filter paper over all holes. The larger case allowed us to get away with one intake and one exhaust fan.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKWdejr0qMYKBTniK3moH5VskxLKJWi6UZvkeRB7kVjKSUxZOOnd4GKuF4GNPwHy07jPMP5grjtM5LoXMU8tecywwCK1rlPJnJeR2Eq0ptvGT6TcbiUF4KZPG_iI7KOl0ZmujdWUv0NpA/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKWdejr0qMYKBTniK3moH5VskxLKJWi6UZvkeRB7kVjKSUxZOOnd4GKuF4GNPwHy07jPMP5grjtM5LoXMU8tecywwCK1rlPJnJeR2Eq0ptvGT6TcbiUF4KZPG_iI7KOl0ZmujdWUv0NpA/w400-h300/image.png" width="400" /></a></div>The case was designed to fit a baker's dozen worth of HDD drives or an entire extra ITX board.<br /><p></p><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIKd0DHRmgiIjodvHBunoqCqSjCKCM88AXgeZhcKzIp50I4YcTRXbhr_dpwcT4G4KyrpTxO92sNdrTQCmf2dBVb8Ih4ekZ31QaK2Om6ScP-OQPDOjbV5p6RnpvCiEAOZwjG_N2dz7IiNU/s4000/IMG_20210712_144201085.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIKd0DHRmgiIjodvHBunoqCqSjCKCM88AXgeZhcKzIp50I4YcTRXbhr_dpwcT4G4KyrpTxO92sNdrTQCmf2dBVb8Ih4ekZ31QaK2Om6ScP-OQPDOjbV5p6RnpvCiEAOZwjG_N2dz7IiNU/s320/IMG_20210712_144201085.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Keep metal dust out!</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Now the new PC is away working in full commission, I don't get a chance to futz with it in the same way I do my workstation. I just put in standard XMP at 3600MHz and sent it away without trying any other OC options.</p><p>I am itching to build another system. For the hobbyist, building a custom system is so much fun. It's been called adult Legos but the enjoyment comes from not only building but of course the operation and endless configuration, overclocking, custom fan curves, under volting. I recently put in a continuous monitoring system so I can analyze the historical data, a story for another time. </p></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-412847300341991672021-07-08T13:00:00.003-07:002021-08-12T15:11:43.532-07:00Upgrading to a 3080ti, finally<p>I've been patiently waiting 2 years to upgrade after refusing the lackluster 2080ti upgrade. After 10 months of grumbling, entering Newegg shuffles and exhausting vendor sites, I finally held my very own EVGA 3080ti FTW Ultra in my tingling paws. In the rarest of GPU purchase phenomena these days, I actually had a 23% discount to buy MSRP. I won 20% coupon spinning the prize wheel for becoming an EVGA Elite member. At the time, I thought it was some one week promo for peripherals for an RGB mouse or PSU, not a $300 discount on almost the GPU of my dreams. I paid around $1200 for the MSRP of $1399 excluding 9.25% CA tax. </p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizTY1iWU4UyTYu0G7GCBP7kFN0OlAlP98mx1iA_uBvV2Q8Elv9rrbhFwTN_O5dqwrtqbRDq_bzBl16CuZ2M5d2uLolsByc5DS6ZNL-2EpYbk1qirGlxzeKoO5xsDNglVbpO8I4_dE3HP0/s4000/IMG_20210624_092029960.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizTY1iWU4UyTYu0G7GCBP7kFN0OlAlP98mx1iA_uBvV2Q8Elv9rrbhFwTN_O5dqwrtqbRDq_bzBl16CuZ2M5d2uLolsByc5DS6ZNL-2EpYbk1qirGlxzeKoO5xsDNglVbpO8I4_dE3HP0/w320-h240/IMG_20210624_092029960.jpg" title="My 1080ti shorty" width="320" /></a></p><p>All year, I've been debating the wisdom of paying so much for a GPU. Compared to the 3080 MSRP for $800, this factory overclocked 3080ti $1399 is a terrible deal yielding barely 10% in gaming performance for 75+% cost. But that 3080 $800 MSRP is tots imaginary and I was entirely grateful for overpay a moderate amount to a legitimate vendor. I said to myself, "What a steal!" as this model had been reselling for ~$2500 on ebay and Amazon. Also EVGA has something no other AIB partner has - a golden 10 year extended warranty for $60 so I'm going to use this card way past where it dies a natural death.</p><p>How did I even get one? 2 weeks ago the morning of the 3080ti launch, I woke up at 5:45am and pushed F5 hundreds of times for 2 hours on the overloaded EVGA site. And despite the grumpy grumps on reddit who said we would have to wait in the queue until winter, here it is.</p>All morning I giggled like a school girl giddy with excitement that the thing I desired most all year actually was in my paws. The LED is set to display 3 zone thermals for GPU, memory and power with blue being the safe idle temp under 50C. If you recognize the flesh colored sandwich, you will know I value functionality over vanity. Noctua forever!<div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii9k8C-qDWY7CwUpqApZLiRPS5bgm9aOsL-szAVJxDaqxdaCtgOVG0LRTOTeKQx5921KonyRYM7RJbIEZ_Tl1iIGOYRMIAHhGmQTzA5wRRI8obi2s_l1I-Y-IQpu7jufhaqLITmR-fQ_A/s4000/IMG_20210702_092459771.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii9k8C-qDWY7CwUpqApZLiRPS5bgm9aOsL-szAVJxDaqxdaCtgOVG0LRTOTeKQx5921KonyRYM7RJbIEZ_Tl1iIGOYRMIAHhGmQTzA5wRRI8obi2s_l1I-Y-IQpu7jufhaqLITmR-fQ_A/s320/IMG_20210702_092459771.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><div><br /><p></p><p>What is the biggest buzzkill for a new GPU owner? The honeymoon didn't last but first let's cover the good.</p><p>The raw compute power is more than adequate for my gaming. 4K Witcher with Ultra everything settings looks amazing. I guess I could have played those settings on the 1080ti at 30-45fps. I was trotting around in the Blood and Wine DLC and the floriferous scenery and excessive grass really does me right. Of course I turned on Hair Physics to see that grey ponytail bounce.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioDRKu0zynsNkMuwRsRHth_tPEehEAxbmgoJQoiVm2hPmChCSYyjGwfDfoy0PQBOR_QMoJWyenFNivOU7ZrxAkW_Vpc2gprMThyphenhyphenKhxOhQblSCo2-IZdDOpnnrH8h19W_1hNthYYcaPVqg/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1075" data-original-width="2048" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioDRKu0zynsNkMuwRsRHth_tPEehEAxbmgoJQoiVm2hPmChCSYyjGwfDfoy0PQBOR_QMoJWyenFNivOU7ZrxAkW_Vpc2gprMThyphenhyphenKhxOhQblSCo2-IZdDOpnnrH8h19W_1hNthYYcaPVqg/w640-h336/Witcher4K.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">The Bad, Thermals...</h3><div> I knew prior to purchase the 30 series ran hotter than any GPUs prior with the GDDR6 particularly prone to overheating. But actually seeing parts of the card go above 90C even if it's within spec made me uncomfortable. At first I was trying various other configuration means with under volting and more aggressive fan curves. Even more worrying was heat dissipation for all surrounding components. The RAM, SSD, HDDs surrounding the card definitely ran 5-10C hotter.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some on reddit had replaced the air cooler with an AIO cooler and had recommended me the same. One fellow said he saw 10C improvement if that. But the solution was far simpler and easier.</div><div><br /></div><div>I opened up the front of my case and vacuumed up the dust bunnies and temps were magically under control with the GPU under 72C but the memory max higher at 82C and hotspot being 77C when running 3DMark tests. My games normally don't run that hot and I could clamp down power to 80%, run even yet cooler and see no game performance difference since my 4K monitor could do no more than 60Hz. </div><p></p><h3 style="text-align: left;">The Disappointing</h3><p>My main impetus to upgrade was to be able to upgrade my OG Vive to a nextgen headset. The 3080ti definitely alleviated some performance problems for Fallout VR. But heavily modded Bethesda games can be CPU bound that you cannot pay your way out of with a beefy GPU. I was still suffering the same low rates in heavy NPC areas(Goodneighbor, Riften), at least I was doing it in higher resolution. 200% SS definitely is clearer and better looking than 150%. </p><p>I put Alyx on ultra(from high) and didn't notice a significant visual improvement. Valve has done an extraordinary job making Alyx look amazing even with the 1080ti. Same with RDR2 that they have managed this game to look good at almost any setting. 4K ultra didn't necessarily look that amazing to my previous settings. But when I first played RDR2 on a PS4, I was constantly amazed at how good it looked even back then at fake 4K.</p><h3 style="text-align: left;">Trying out RTX</h3><p>Cyberpunk 2077 - RTX looked incredibly realistic but it doesn't make me want to play this game anymore. I don't think I would have enjoyed this game any more or less with RTX. It takes more than shiny reflections to make me love a game.</p><p>I only have 3 games in my library that support RTX (Control, Metro Exodus, CP2077) and the added benefit of RTX doesn't make me want to play them any more or less. </p><h3 style="text-align: left;">End Thoughts</h3><p>After pining away for a new GPU since last September, I am on the fence. I am some days giddy with joy being able to play ultra 4K. Other days I think to myself this is just a GPU. Why was I so hot and bothered for so long...</p></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-81639452552241181592020-11-17T13:21:00.027-08:002021-07-08T13:02:13.163-07:00Humble Choice November 2020: A Steal just for Yakuza Kiwami II and Darkersiders III <p>I've completely revamped my Steam sale spending habits and now I tend to buy ultra cheap bundles. I had a special 6 month discount with Humble bundles where I would get 12 games for $6 every month as part of the Humble Choice. </p><p>Every month there is a chorus of disgruntled moans at the Humble Choice reveal but November really banged out a winner. Most redditors and reviewers threw rocks and broken glass at last month's bundle and while I salvaged some enjoyment out of the October bundle from Sunless Skies, it's indeed a happy occasion to see games you are excited about playing. Here's a rundown after sampling most of the titles.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5OoFqgqO26cTdi_qA36ZUDhMJi4_yxkx96h23KjDPQe61RMuXDpSuaeUBpbbtYDJMqtykaw5Eei9s0MbnDvGhWYrjpYhyphenhyphen1gzhThe2YUBYPoBGjb48DOhbIjoK8jwRwkQGLCD1-UdtjWg/s459/Humble2020Nov.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="459" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5OoFqgqO26cTdi_qA36ZUDhMJi4_yxkx96h23KjDPQe61RMuXDpSuaeUBpbbtYDJMqtykaw5Eei9s0MbnDvGhWYrjpYhyphenhyphen1gzhThe2YUBYPoBGjb48DOhbIjoK8jwRwkQGLCD1-UdtjWg/w328-h279/Humble2020Nov.png" width="328" /></a></div><br /><h3 style="clear: both;">Yakuza Kiwami 2 - one of the best narratives in the Yakuza series</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a class="_3t5uN8xUmg0TOwRCOGQEcU" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom="" data-darkreader-inline-border-left="" data-darkreader-inline-border-right="" data-darkreader-inline-border-top="" href="https://store.steampowered.com/agecheck/app/927380/" rel="noopener nofollow ugc" style="--darkreader-inline-border-bottom: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-left: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-right: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-top: initial; border: 0px; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Yakuza Kiwami 2</a>-</span> I love Yakuza 0 and was more than happy to have Kiwami 2 which is considered to tell the best narrative of the series. With 10 entries in the mainline series, it's tricky to know where to poke your head in as one can easily get lost in the vast hierarchy of the Tojo Clan and rival Omi Alliance. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1V8amIdeRI" target="_blank">Yakuza 0 the prequel is often recommended and is where</a> I first laid my eyes on a grown man in a diaper. Every Yakuza game is designed to be played as a Yakuza virgin's first with the backstory summarized for you so you could start here. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Almost every Yakuza game shares some essential ingredients of Japanese wackiness, obligatory sexually weird kinkiness like grown men in diapers, side missions with a heart of gold, mini-games galore, karaoke bars, intimate restaurants, convenience stores, sprinkled over a dense city map of Kamurocho interweaved with the conflicts of the Tojo Clan which needs straightening out from the straight faced Dragon of Dojima, Kiryu Kazama. This entry also includes Majima's tale of going legit building a construction company.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Kiwami 1 &2 are currently on Xbox Gamepass. <a href="https://gg.deals/game/yakuza-0/?tab=history" target="_blank">Yakuza 0</a> often goes on sale for $5.</div><h3 style="clear: both;"><br /></h3><h3 style="clear: both;">Darksiders 3 - flawed but totally fun hack n slash</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">In an unabashedly video gamey of video game plots, you play as the one and only purpled haired stiletto heeled horsewoman of the apocalypse. You are tasked with hunting down and exterminating the seven sins with your blade whip and a nut bashing costume if there ever was one. Fury is definitely more aggro than her brothers, War, Death and the delicate Strife.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgElFOePAhUgXs493W_ejRr2406CnMOhU1eii0-H80-CpnDvLe32alFeJ5NUrSv5hvwSgPXvAFEuAMFpqmVcqZGgKFnPWmEBj3Nvj0MzaghLnSTP-SXxPn3lOMAxlKoJKnw2O9YZd-5C9c/s723/Fury.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="504" data-original-width="723" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgElFOePAhUgXs493W_ejRr2406CnMOhU1eii0-H80-CpnDvLe32alFeJ5NUrSv5hvwSgPXvAFEuAMFpqmVcqZGgKFnPWmEBj3Nvj0MzaghLnSTP-SXxPn3lOMAxlKoJKnw2O9YZd-5C9c/w320-h223/Fury.JPG" title="Saturday morning cartoons all over it..." width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Total feels of Saturday morning cartoons...<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The best positive review comes from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1DjrpEKbd4">Skillup on youtube</a> who explains how reviewers trashed Darksiders 3 due to steep triple AAA $60 price tag without the polish and content. While he acknowledges the problems, esp. with the camera, he undeniably had some unadulterated fun. That's the core- this game is about having fun even if it's shallow like the simple pleasure of munching on a sugary bowl of cereal watching Saturday morning cartoons. The steep discount should let D3 be forgiven. Don't expect God of War. D3's tale is morally uncomplicated and it's no sin that this game is an enjoyable wrapper for "boss" fights of the seven deadly sins.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The cringey campy dialog will grow on you. "Death- you are anti-life." Visuals are decidedly last gen, I've seen multiple skyrim ebony armor mods that had better smithing than Fury's chunky getup. And that camera will really fight you tooth and nail where you can't even see the enemy while fighting, just strands of purple hair. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><h3 style="clear: both;">Little Misfortune - a twisted and dark-humored point and click</h3><a class="_3t5uN8xUmg0TOwRCOGQEcU" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom="" data-darkreader-inline-border-left="" data-darkreader-inline-border-right="" data-darkreader-inline-border-top="" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/714120/Little_Misfortune/" rel="noopener nofollow ugc" style="--darkreader-inline-border-bottom: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-left: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-right: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-top: initial; border: 0px; font-family: "Noto Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Little Misfortune</a> is a short game(~ 3 hours) with an engaging dark narrative about a little girl named Misfortune trying her very best in a grim world. A dark voice inside her head pushes her towards a game of pursuing 'eternal happiness' which she wants more than anything for her sad "juice" addicted mother. The story takes more than a few wild imaginative turns best left spoiler free.<div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjnOYbF9ZL1O3053XZbuDFcqBIaIz0TMd9RiEpYfWht8vxrhWIgtDcTv92ZIWTzsoBwWdzq0jwH5Q_Bd48llfFw48k_9F6vMU6PECv_JC7Z3V5gq2HhpT3rrQGzuAHYphBs7KERyPd7mc/s1146/frankenstein.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="620" data-original-width="1146" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjnOYbF9ZL1O3053XZbuDFcqBIaIz0TMd9RiEpYfWht8vxrhWIgtDcTv92ZIWTzsoBwWdzq0jwH5Q_Bd48llfFw48k_9F6vMU6PECv_JC7Z3V5gq2HhpT3rrQGzuAHYphBs7KERyPd7mc/w320-h173/frankenstein.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I'm of two minds. The excellent voice acting and compelling story line makes this an interesting game but not necessarily a good game. The main game mechanic is walking and selecting decisions abetted by a few light puzzles and dexterity mini-games. But you will play for the story and to see if you can indeed obtain 'eternal happiness' for little Misfortune.</div><div><h3>Crying Suns - sci fi tactical pixel art rogue-lite with rich story</h3><h3 style="clear: both;"><p style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"><a class="_3t5uN8xUmg0TOwRCOGQEcU" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom="" data-darkreader-inline-border-left="" data-darkreader-inline-border-right="" data-darkreader-inline-border-top="" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/873940/Crying_Suns/" rel="noopener nofollow ugc" style="--darkreader-inline-border-bottom: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-left: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-right: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-top: initial; border: 0px; font-family: "Noto Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Crying Suns</a> - This tactical rogue-lite oozes atmosphere through it's stellar pixel art and moody sound track. As a cloned admiral resurrected to command a ship to make contact with the Empire, player traverses a procedurally generated node graph of star clusters filled with an diverse array of random events beyond just enemy encounters and resource scavenging on ship wrecks and on the planet surface. Game states there are 300 events and perhaps you will undoubtedly encounter a lot of repeats in subsequent runs. However as a casual player sampling Crying Suns, the events felt fresh even if most are sci fi tropes.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Even though I'm not much for tactics games like FTL but this rock/paper/scissors (drone/fighter/frigate) combat over a hex grid actually won me over. Crying Suns has a more cinematic feels than FTL drawing you in with the main storyline about a fallen Empire. The optional dialog is very heavy on the lore exposition but when a colonist tells you of "sex slaves and baby makers", you might want to read through more dialog.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8PIvC2vrM1q10Muw8sV0gwaO3yG4E172YZMRRq27vgGzjo5Hgu5KudakccfzzbhXwlTVJ2vLDgFu1OVaQXo368UG0bmcYh55UDiiGdB0EOP19hCyoN0E1o-u5ME0nXzFbrzZC2kVKZYg/s1200/PrepareToFighte.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="1200" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8PIvC2vrM1q10Muw8sV0gwaO3yG4E172YZMRRq27vgGzjo5Hgu5KudakccfzzbhXwlTVJ2vLDgFu1OVaQXo368UG0bmcYh55UDiiGdB0EOP19hCyoN0E1o-u5ME0nXzFbrzZC2kVKZYg/w487-h227/PrepareToFighte.JPG" width="487" /></a></div><p style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"></p><p style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">Because of the dialog, the crew feels much more like individual human beings than the crew on FTL. There is a <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/873940/Crying_Suns/" target="_blank">free Steam demo</a> you can try. I'm not sure I would have gone out of my way to buy it but as a Humble Choice inclusion, I'm happy to play this title. </p></h3><h3 style="clear: both;">Darkwood - unique creepy survival horror out of Poland</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Darkwood is an unforgiving top-down survival horror game designed for only serious masochists. The player is vaguely trying to escape the "Woods" set in 1980's Poland in a plague ridden apocalypse where trees, mutants, and supernatural powers have gotten out of control. Nothing is explicitly explained and left to environmental story telling for you to piece together. I'm always amazed when pixel art horror titles can generate such a deep sense of terror and dread. Night time will have you clenching your orifices in a way you haven't. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I've found controls are rather finicky and weapons are designed for a more realistic clunkiness and often I would just run for it panting and gasping because the weapon degradation was not worth the fight. The stamina meter drain is brutal, it's the fastest depleting thing I've ever used in gaming. But this is a title that one plays in dark stormy days of winter.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Other Worthwhile Reviews:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Best positive long form review comes from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mQEhl6GXvM">Mandalore Gaming</a> </li><li>Short mixed review from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxQ1m2iwya8">Photography gamer</a>.</li></ul></div><h3 style="clear: both;">Rover Mechanic Simulator - mind numbing tasks in a Mars garage</h3><div style="clear: both;"><a class="_3t5uN8xUmg0TOwRCOGQEcU" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom="" data-darkreader-inline-border-left="" data-darkreader-inline-border-right="" data-darkreader-inline-border-top="" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/864680/Rover_Mechanic_Simulator/" rel="noopener nofollow ugc" style="--darkreader-inline-border-bottom: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-left: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-right: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-top: initial; border: 0px; font-family: "Noto Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Rover Mechanic Simulator</a> - Yes it's theoretically possible that being a Martian mechanic disassembling and fixing broken rovers is mildly more interesting than being your garden variety earthbound mechanic in Car Mechanic Simulator. However why does repairing worn bearings on Mars and on earth feel so same, taking off screws and cover plates except you get to 3d print needed parts instead of hitting up your suppliers. The strength of this title is that you do get to handle mars rovers based on real world NASA rovers like Curiosity. </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7IOHHh0jHMGyo4boWftN4bc7RFlSVquYvV4K2o_hecAgsikSSW2LzU2-Mfo4eAghyVYgCsy_XhbOfZFFuwP_c2-YDe-nqM495NzpdZTGOriuiJCqu2rJyh0qn_nJpLF0vpIAz4xsB8Q/s1003/rover.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="688" data-original-width="1003" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7IOHHh0jHMGyo4boWftN4bc7RFlSVquYvV4K2o_hecAgsikSSW2LzU2-Mfo4eAghyVYgCsy_XhbOfZFFuwP_c2-YDe-nqM495NzpdZTGOriuiJCqu2rJyh0qn_nJpLF0vpIAz4xsB8Q/s320/rover.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Do you see how many screws each wheel requires?<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div style="clear: both;">Unfortunately the gameplay is clicking and more clicking on rather dull mechanics, shuffling back and forth between the various stations. There is a gamer out there who loves chilling with such low stimulation sim games listening to playlist or podcasts. Me, I wants to take these rovers for a sweet remote controlled ride once I've fixed them but you are pretty much a prisoner in this hermetically sealed one room garage.</div><h3 style="clear: both;">Imperator:Rome - worst of the grand strategy Paradox fillers</h3><p><a class="_3t5uN8xUmg0TOwRCOGQEcU" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom="" data-darkreader-inline-border-left="" data-darkreader-inline-border-right="" data-darkreader-inline-border-top="" href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/859580/Imperator_Rome/" rel="noopener nofollow ugc" style="--darkreader-inline-border-bottom: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-left: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-right: initial; --darkreader-inline-border-top: initial; border: 0px; font-family: "Noto Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Imperator:Rome Deluxe Edition</a> - you know a Paradox game isn't much without the many DLCs so Humble does us the courtesy of giving us the deluxe edition. However, Imperator:Rome is one of their worst entries in the grand strategy genre and was panned widely on release for lack of depth and content. Subsequent updates have only further alienated the player base judging by drop off in players and continuing increase in negative reviews. Personally, I think if you have to spend precious life time and energy on a Paradox game, Crusader Kings III is where it's at.</p><h3>Youropa - doughboy gravity platformer</h3><div>You are a rather soft dumpy humanoid creature with the special ability to defy gravity and walk on walls with suction cups for feet, like a doughboy Etherborn. Youropa, or a cartoony version of Paris has been torn apart and floated in the skies and you have to solve puzzles to (whatelse) restore order. Despite all the positive reviews for this platformer, the plodding motions of the game play did not appeal to me. Most likely because I was replaying Ori and the Will of Wisps yesterday where I was chaining moves flying about so the heavy plodding movements of the You character fell flat on me. </div><div><br /></div><div>Given the abundant existence of absolutely stellar platformers like Ori or Hollow Knight, it's hard for second tier puzzle platformers to compete for your time and attention. And it's the case here that I'd rather spend my precious gaming hours exploring more of Hallownest. </div><div><h3>Tsioque - princess point and click</h3></div><div>Did you ever want to role play a little princess escaping the evil wizard who's taken power while her mother Queen is away? No, me neither. I guess Little Misfortune was enough to fill the point and click quota for this month as I wasn't compelled to play any more than the first few scenes.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Smile for Me - yet/not another wacky indie point and click</h3><div>You are a voluntary(?) resident at a happiness habitat trying to bring happiness to your fellow depressed patients. The habitat has some sinister undertones with every day starting with a live action puppet VHS video of Dr. Habitat cramming positivity down your throat and enforced night curfew. The game uses some novel mechanics for shaking the screen for shaking your head to respond to NPCs. This title is a matter of personal taste and this title didn't grab me by the lapels in the way Little Misfortune did. </div><div><br /></div><h3>Dregs: Darksburg, Townsmen</h3><div style="text-align: left;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Townsmen, a <b><i>ported mobile</i></b> building sim, need I say more. I'd rather play Stronghold HD or finally take a crack at Tropico 6 if I ever got in the mood for a building sim.</li><li>Darksburg- coop roguelite, no friends to play with, don't want to play with randos neither </li></ul></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Conclusion: Last Thoughts</h2><div>I'd be pleased even if all I got was just Yakuza Kiwami 2 and Darksiders 3 but we got more. Crying Sun, Darkwood, and Little Misfortune were interesting worthwhile additions. The rest unfortunately will languish on my bundle leftovers pile never to be touched again. Crying Suns was my unexpected hidden gem that found myself wanting to play late at night.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm still digesting Humble Choice chunks from the last 3 months. I started playing Sunless Skies from the reviled October bundle which really gripped my imagination. Just one good game is enough for me to make Humble worthwhile at my current $10 deal and this month was a boon.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p><br /></p></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-25692419889944392542020-08-27T16:07:00.013-07:002020-08-28T11:41:40.947-07:00SkyrimVR Modding Discipline and Hygiene<p> In my early days, I would carelessly and indiscriminately add large batches of mods fobbed off someone's list without knowing exactly what they did and what the implications were going forward. One thing I didn't realize is that SkyrimVR is an LTR which means any modding sins will pop up sooner or later and give you days of debugging headaches or at worst force you to start a new playthrough.</p><p>For each mod I add, I try to figure out the impact if any on the following problem areas:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Performance</li><li>Save file bloat including scripts, object counts</li><li>Compatibility/Future Compatibility</li><li>Creation Engine Limits</li></ul><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><ul><li><b><i>Reference Handle Cap </i></b>(<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/skyrimmods/comments/ag4wm7/psa_the_reference_handle_cap_or_diagnosing_one_of/">see reddit</a> post), this is the one that makes me the most paranoid</li><li>Mod 255 Plugin limit</li><li>Animation Limit </li></ul></ul>Unless they are simple no-plugin texture mods which can be added or removed anytime, I try really hard to stick to the following practices to ward off future problems. Also I want to keep it relatively simple, I don't want to futz around with merging mods or use wyre bash. More time you spend piddling around modding, the less game time you give yourself.<div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Practice #1 Add only a few new mods per play session</h3><div>Mod greed is a natural thing. Just a little mod restraint can prevent debugging headaches. Previously I thought it would be a "nice" surprise to organically find the mod change sometime later. Instead I ended up with a few nasty surprises that got baked too far into my saves. You want to find and isolate problems early as possible.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now I never install a mod unless I am going to immediately check it out. I.e. I don't install a new follower/NPC mod unless I find them and vet them on that session. I also have a probation period for the more complex overhaul mods and I will revert hours of play if needed.</div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Practice #2 Compare Performance Against Last Known Baseline and non Modded Baselines</h3><p>In VR, a gamer's tolerance can vary but I can get sick or worse lose immersion around 60fps. First is capturing your baseline without mods and then understanding where the bottlenecks can occur and what your fallback solutions are. For me, I know it's the CPU not GPU that is problematic. (For GPU, I can always take out 4K/8K textures and reduce SS. But still I keep an eye out for GPU/VRAM usage always wanting to be around 80% or less)</p><p>I have an i9-9900K that is barely being used so it's not lack of processing power but creaky creation engine limitations when CPU frames take too long. The CPU frame needs to take less than 11ms(for 90fps) and on a completely clean vanilla game, my CPU frames take ~4ms. Let's just say mod greed on my part took it to ~14ms but I'm back to 6-7ms.</p><p>The first thing I do after installing mods is to check current fps and make sure I leave headroom gpu, vram/cpu still left for future. Using fpsviewer, I will do a performance test by traveling to known performance problem areas of Riften, Whiterun, and open cities like Falkreath. </p><p>One of the tricky problems with modding Skyrim is that it's not always one specific sandbag. Sometimes there is death by a thousand paper cuts and also unexpected interactions between unrelated mods.</p><p>For instance, this isn't 100% confirmed but I've read on reddit that Footprints and Wet and Cold can be problematic when you have a large number of extra NPCs which very likely added to my cpu frame slowdown. My new load order still includes all the NPC mods but doesn't include Footprints/Wet and Cold and I don't have performance problems so I will be leaving them out for the future. I love having more NPCs than footprints.</p><div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Practice #3 Monitor Save File, Check Unreferenced Scripts and Objects, Counts</h3><p>At the end of a playthrough, I check the save file size compared to the previous mod load order, then open up the file in <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/5031/">fallrim tools</a> and check</p><p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Existence of unreferenced scripts and objects. If they exist, I will delete them and the rerun the game on the clean save. Sometimes I'm lazy and will do this the first thing the next play session.</li><ul><li>Birds of Skyrim really left a lot of junk scripts around so I uninstalled. </li></ul><li>Script/object counts compared to previous</li><ul><li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/342/">Placeable Statics</a> added an ungodly number of scripts almost for every container. But I was really OCD about removing clutter around my Hearthfire homes and the mod outlined steps for uninstalling...</li></ul></ol><p></p><h3>Practice #4 Research Mod Deinstallability/Compatibility/Future Compatibility</h3><div>First is knowing how permanent a mod choice is going to be and whether or not a mod can be truly deinstalled. Even with mod cleaning with fallrim tools, some mods cannot be successfully purged. When there is no mention of deinstalling on the mod page, it probably is not a clean removal. I thought Sounds of Skyrim was going to be something easily taken out but I get random CTDs without it even with fallrim cleaning. If a mod is going to be in your loadlist forever, you tend to be pickier.</div><div><br /></div><div>Most mods that have been around have a fleshed out compatibility section and I try do a thorough cross check and look at the bug list. But I am most careful with overhaul mods which can crimp your future modding options. </div><div><br /></div><div>Sometimes you will be only be able to do 1 of something. I tried 3 different College of Winterhold overhauls and chose the Magical College of Winterhold b/c it made it you know, more magical. But you can't know the future, last year Obscure's College of Winterhold got released. I didn't like some of Obscure's changes(some of the shiny lamps were not lore friendly and stuck out like a sore thumb) so I didn't have to take action.</div><div><br /></div><div><h3>Practice #5 Play Large Quest Mods on a Separate Vortex Profile and Save. </h3></div><div>I fork off a separate profile in Vortex and play in separate saves for large quest mods like Beyond Skyrim: Bruma, Vigilant, Carved Brink, Project AHO. They have really fantastic armors that would have been great to have in my regular play but I am extremely paranoid about such mods adding a great number of object records which in the long term can increase instability. It's not any one of these mods but rather having dozens of them that is the problem. This<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/skyrimmods/comments/ag4wm7/psa_the_reference_handle_cap_or_diagnosing_one_of/"> reddit</a> discussion really opened my eyes and I used <a href="https://gist.github.com/aers/953a50c61b3028bce7e5376e8590abed">the xedit script</a> to count references.</div><p>The only two big quest mods I do keep in my main load list are</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Legacy of the Dragonborn (I will not be starting over for 5.0) - Not only because LotD gives your hoarding purpose but I loved having Dev Aveza docked in Solitude</li><li>Clockwork - the house is too amazing and I worked to hard to get it...</li></ul><p>Still here, treat yourself to my mod video.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EcHMyqnWYDk" width="320" youtube-src-id="EcHMyqnWYDk"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /><br /></p></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-10026301881453576832020-08-03T14:21:00.009-07:002020-08-27T16:57:00.346-07:00Creed:Rise to Glory - Getting Whupped by Mr. TGiven the reduced options to exercise this year, I finally got Creed:Rise to Glory on sale for $6. I do not have pugilist tendencies IRL but I enjoyed brawling the orc chief in SkyrimVR so much that I wanted to give proper VR boxing a go. Creed is by design meant more as a cinematic experience and less of a simulator like Thrill of the Fight. There is a full career mode where you play as Adonis Creed to win the championship but I first opted for Freeplay mode. <div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_kF0yipGbCbWlOhIkbIjcSdZR068agcIFRFmNEXwyuSeXY1bxuifpjJRLGsuPRNk1cppsugo7nij2cSkvvSgAg7aBXa_QKAnuXk_HeE1P8SfOCysQfOpWwYtiXmZnAPbOuUX0c-_eCi8/s2048/meanT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_kF0yipGbCbWlOhIkbIjcSdZR068agcIFRFmNEXwyuSeXY1bxuifpjJRLGsuPRNk1cppsugo7nij2cSkvvSgAg7aBXa_QKAnuXk_HeE1P8SfOCysQfOpWwYtiXmZnAPbOuUX0c-_eCi8/w400-h225/meanT.jpg" title="Young Mr.T is no joke." width="400" /></a></div><div><br />I chose to challenge Mr. T in a dark alley instead of a proper boxing ring. The first thing you notice is that Mr. T has a consistent shine all over his body like a glazed donut. The cartoony arcade style of young Mr.T(Lawrence Tureaud)'s expressions spontaneously made me smack talk him so hard. Mr. T is for turd.<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXlzcovycwkq_U3KTo5kBjLpsjj3vuT9xv6ss2xnkOhDGfmcj8OqT5tGFPCUrLhllSvbL71M4uAsePn0TIhCM-8Fyu2IUBbc6SGUU8JY2Wq47DHfMCnJuDXTn_YAZVzaE_5r7HH4vlQI4/s2048/Pow.jpg"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXlzcovycwkq_U3KTo5kBjLpsjj3vuT9xv6ss2xnkOhDGfmcj8OqT5tGFPCUrLhllSvbL71M4uAsePn0TIhCM-8Fyu2IUBbc6SGUU8JY2Wq47DHfMCnJuDXTn_YAZVzaE_5r7HH4vlQI4/w320-h180/Pow.jpg" title="Comes on strong" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">VR boxing I'm sure is a mild shadow of the real thing but sure gets your adrenaline flowing. I was totally unprepared for the intensity and my whole body ached even after one measly fight. Still the feel of victory when you take Lawrence down- incomparable. </div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisBp1WhqCLV5PWNvnsejT7kW_pUh-iO0pXosT5xyaTdOA1cj2vplcNIsTzyOvCSuv-Hg4CQVXDqBZeVXPP6i2FQdTN6uiGlyxKDov4-qNQ7kbl1t2wzjve88-s4ZABpo6KGzhyphenhyphen99isIPA/s2048/Tdown.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisBp1WhqCLV5PWNvnsejT7kW_pUh-iO0pXosT5xyaTdOA1cj2vplcNIsTzyOvCSuv-Hg4CQVXDqBZeVXPP6i2FQdTN6uiGlyxKDov4-qNQ7kbl1t2wzjve88-s4ZABpo6KGzhyphenhyphen99isIPA/w400-h225/Tdown.jpg" title="That's right. Who's your daddy!" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I pity the fool...<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>Verdict- Excellent intense workout. Totally worth the $5.99 sales price. I loved the cheesy over the top cinematics and being pumped up with the music from the original Rocky movies. (Check<a href="https://isthereanydeal.com/game/creedrisetoglory/info/"> isthereanydeal to see if there is a sale going on</a>. )</div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-14128861768397554022020-06-21T10:56:00.001-07:002020-06-21T10:56:28.899-07:00Gris<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Gris along with Journey and Abzu, is one of the most beatiful titles in gaming.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-35272170036869366342020-02-08T15:52:00.001-08:002020-02-08T15:52:17.377-08:00SkyrimVR Modding Vid<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Finally I cover my one true gaming love:</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-26823584292126496812019-12-06T10:20:00.003-08:002019-12-06T10:20:20.133-08:00Wacky Microcosm of Yakuza 0<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of the wackiest action titles available to us lucky gamers.<br />
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Strictly Storymode Analysis: <a href="https://youtu.be/Z1V8amIdeRI">https://youtu.be/Z1V8amIdeRI</a><br />
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Yakuza 0 is the prequel and origin story for the entire Yakuza series from Sega which makes it a perfect place to start. This game hands you some of zaniest ridiculous moments of pure fun that's jellyrolled into a dark melodrama about the criminal underworld. <a href="https://youtu.be/Z1V8amIdeRI">Watch my video</a> to see things that you won't see in any other "Western" game.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-86732592149615348692019-09-27T00:53:00.002-07:002019-09-27T00:58:20.853-07:00Joy of Exploration in Abzû<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I've been loving a visually spectacular game all week called Abzû. Abzû is unlike most games out there as it's more of an underwater sensory experience than a traditional game. The most gamelike aspects are a few undemanding puzzle elements.<br />
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You play as a silent nameless polygonal diver of infinite energy piecing together the mysteries of an ancient civilization. There is a story that guides you along a linear path but you can just vibe out on the mesmerizing graphics and soundtrack of this game.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQQ2P4c5eoZgY3fYndAgmxRUZGupVWohug66FzwWEoMiXnrYEJECII6du_s9sPX0VGa-efGCWTr0Nk6ESFSIXmYGELDYwZVJgMcohvlLPSeooYvpKaoJxIdpx_V9wM4rM-fUs3bC8GUf8/s1600/Screenshot+%2528124%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQQ2P4c5eoZgY3fYndAgmxRUZGupVWohug66FzwWEoMiXnrYEJECII6du_s9sPX0VGa-efGCWTr0Nk6ESFSIXmYGELDYwZVJgMcohvlLPSeooYvpKaoJxIdpx_V9wM4rM-fUs3bC8GUf8/s400/Screenshot+%2528124%2529.png" width="400" /></a><br />
Abzû is not meant to be a realistic diving simulator, but out of any game I've played, Abzû evokes the delicious sense of awe, wonder, discovery I had when snorkeling. The stylized visuals grants Abzû an dreamy fantastical quality. The movement of the fish and schooling behavior is highly exaggerated and choreographed in a way consistent with the stylized artistry of the game.<br />
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Abzu winds you through diverse waterscapes from lush kelp forests, pastel reefs of plate coral, architectural ruins to the deep abyss. I joyfully swam among giant schools of fish, orcas, dolphins, squids, whales, sharks, and every other kind of water creature you can think of. If you use a controller, the diver will swim about with fluidity and expressiveness, it made me feel all giddy zipping around. Even though this game is about 3 hours long, I played for an hour over 4 days because I didn't want to eat my cake all in one go. Instead of rushing through, I swam around each nook and cranny looking for starfish and urchins.<br />
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The sheer joy of Abzu is exploration and there is a lovely simplicity in the game design that makes leisurely exploration possible. Wildlife is not trying to kill you. You don't need oxygen, don't need to collect resources or constantly look at your inventory. There is a mild hazard zone in the latter part of the story. You just noodle around and from time to time you activate portals. With Abzu, I felt genuine anticipation and excitement going from one space to another as you never knew what wondrous sight would dazzle you next.<br />
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I would recommend this game to pretty much anyone who has eyeballs. Abzu is thrilling and calming at the same time. Abzu is such a feast for the eyes and I am so grateful such creativity exists in game form.<br />
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<i>The word Abzû is based on the Sumerian words ab for ocean and zu "to know" translated to "Ocean of Wisdom".</i><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-26542625646973384152019-06-01T19:39:00.001-07:002019-09-27T01:00:27.241-07:00Preparing for No Man's Sky VR<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
In anticipation of the summer's BEYOND update to No Man's Sky which adds VR support, I started playing the pancake version mostly at night as a way to unwind from the day's chaos. There's a relaxing simplicity to hopping on your spaceship, choosing a star on the map and warping into a different star system. I'm not forced to be part of some morally complex space opera but just a hapless casual tourist. I don't think I had this much fun exploring, jetpacking, ripping around in a pilgrim(an exocraft motor bike) in a space game in a long while. I played in creative mode to avoid the grind altogether just hopping from planet to planet, looking for a good home planet to build a base on.<br />
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I had low low expectations due to the flubbed launch from Hello Games few years ago and I was immediately struck by what an incredible achievement this is for such a small indie shop with 20 humans working on NMS. Youtuber SkillUp dinged this game for not having memorable curated world spaces but this is not what NMS is about. Everything - planets, plants, animals, spaceships are all procedurally generated and can at minimum produce some truly interesting combinations to be enjoyed as a casual space tourist. Some planets are so outright bizarre- a toxic desert planet with jumping mushrooms was quite a head trip. I had the chance to fight pirates in order to gain a freighter but it seems too much responsibility for now as I just like planet hopping without worries.<br />
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One of my favorite planets was built completely out of hexagons. It becomes a tricky mini game to maneuver around in a 4 wheeler. I could rip around in my motorbike but where's the challenge in that. Actually I've started feeling like I am trampling fragile ecosystems when I go on a wheeled rampage and there were a few times where I just abandoned my wheels for walking and erstwhile jet-packing.<br />
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The night cycle on the hexagon planet was surprisingly exquisite, I cannot wait to visit these places in VR and NMS is currently the only VR game I am anticipating in 2019. I've only thus far nibbled off a tiny bit off the NMS galaxy not touching combat mechanic or base building and am so excited something more meaty is coming to VR.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-1831790440333441382019-03-21T18:54:00.001-07:002019-06-06T16:12:50.980-07:00Stadia is Not "THE" Future of Gaming<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Thoughts on Google Stadia From a Game Loving Cloud Compute Guy</b><br />
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As I slogged through the marketing grandstanding of Google’s Stadia GDC live stream, I grumbled and cursed many a times while making my tender lamb stew. I love gaming and I love cloud computing, so why should Stadia- an “innovative” new service capable of running and streaming GPU intensive games from Google’s cloud servers directly onto any device of my choice cause me such consternation? We have grand declarations periodically that “X is the future of gaming” with X being VR, mobile, on-line multiplayer, and most recently and pitifully ray tracing. No one took Jensen Huang too seriously and ray tracing is definitely not the holy grail of gaming. VR is still struggling and single player most definitely wasn’t killed off by on-line shooters.<br />
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If there is one thing that the brief and glorious history of video gaming taught us is that gaming is endlessly diverging not converging. Stadia has to compete ferociously for it’s life to coexist in a rich heterogeneous ecosystem that includes consoles, PCs, modding, on-line shooters, all those grindy MMOs, grindy mobile games, VR/AR games, other competing streaming services, retro games, emulated games and more. The vast swathes of humankind’s gaming catalog will never be running on Stadia servers. Streaming is not going to drive locally running games to extinction just as chromebook did not kill the PC which instead highlighted limitations of network only applications.<br />
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As a VR/RPG/modding gaming enthusiast who has spent significant time wrangling on Google’s Cloud Platform GCP as well as on Amazon’s AWS and lastly on Azure, I thought I should put more meat on my instinctual skepticism about Stadia and pure cloud based streaming models in general. While I agree with the usual howls of network latency killing gameplay from first hand experience, Stadia has many more challenges to overcome in generating enough of worthwhile content given the hurdles of porting. Also against common agreement, I also don’t believe it’s a complete given that Google has the cloud part in the bag as there are challenges to implement cloud gaming efficiently in managing beefy GPU hardware capacity that is less scalable in 4K unless gamers play predominantly in lower resolutions. How can Google make the pricing attractive and profitable for a potentially laggy and subpar gaming experience that isn’t geared towards serious gamers?<br />
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When Google staked a very public claim in streaming with the GDC announcement, I’m sure Microsoft/Sony/Nvidia/Valve people must have had a gut check- irritation and fear in different measures but gladdened Google only bloviated with grand statements backed up only with a lackluster demo. The Stadia demo of Assassin’s Creed soaring above the landscape was cleverly picked which hides any lagginess instead of a first person shooter demo. Moving the game between devices was old hat for those that have already seen Blade’s Shadow demos a year ago. For those not in the know, Shadow is a cloud streaming service that provides a cloud instance with a dedicated GPU running Microsoft Windows- a glorified remote desktop of sorts that you can move around in different devices. I’m sure all the Shadow engineers blanched the most at the web giant’s power move. I have to confess my initial hate on streaming stems from my negative experience last year with Shadow-mainly due to my subpar laggy internet service.<br />
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Let’s say for the sake of argument that latency is not an issue. Any gaming platform’s strength is in massive adoption. What will make the masses with fast internet and ready cash flock to Stadia? The driving forces for adoption have historically been gaming content/experience and cost and I don’t see it working out in Google’s favor in either front.<br />
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Discomforting Loss of Gamer Control in a Streaming Model</h3>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Even before talking about content or cost, streaming represents a disturbing trade of convenience over control. Many gamers on YouTube and reddit loathe and fear streaming as a way corporations grab control. Google aims to control how you play and when you play and serious gamers are right to be weary of the dark sides to this trade. This streaming service may appeal to uninvested casual gamers who want a way to pass the time, but for serious gamers that tend to spend hundreds of hours in single player games, giving up such control is terrifying as the game is more than a game but a player’s private world especially if it’s been modded.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Netflix of Games” is a readily consumable analogy but trivializes the gap between streaming static content and a video game while disrespecting the dynamic interactive complexity of gaming as a fundamentally different medium. Phil Harrison, head of Stadia, touts the film/music analogy as a way to wave off those weary of giving up ownership but note the biggest blaring difference- the significant majority of films/music have been fully digitized and are largely available in subscription services or for an extra fee. Most games that require hefty GPU horsepower are too complex to automatically convert and 99.99% of the existing work will certainly NOT be converted to this Google platform. From what little Stadia unveiled, it excludes too much and provides too little currently to become a major force in gaming.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Stadia Pricing Based on Existing Cloud Pricing</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Current cloud costs of an instance with hefty GPUs are expensive. Since Google filled out an hour without any mention of the pricing model and have kept coyly mum in interviews, we only have our guesses on how they might monetize the key costs- hardware (CPU/GPU/Disk) vs game title. In looking at existing cloud pricing models, obvious possibilities include metered usage and/or a subscription service with neither precluding the other along with game licensing and micro transaction costs.</span></span></div>
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Projecting Stadia Pricing Based on Existing Cloud Pricing</h3>
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Current cloud costs of an instance with hefty GPUs are expensive. Since Google filled out an hour without any mention of the pricing model and have kept coyly mum in interviews, we only have our guesses on how they might monetize the key costs- hardware (CPU/GPU/Disk) vs game title. In looking at existing cloud pricing models, obvious possibilities include metered usage and/or a subscription service with neither precluding the other along with game licensing and micro transaction costs.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC6xY9TylLh1xXppl7L7F6mb1sl1YYdCaG4eT959r8eJV8mHuIqI09vlSIbLUC589md5vruXef-VGmhUDDYJKK9ai913mgSvTYzn4Ans8cgAagu_CJWvxnlRMzoAwtb8qvgiMNl0UKDBQ/s1600/StadiaSpecsWithDisk.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="842" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC6xY9TylLh1xXppl7L7F6mb1sl1YYdCaG4eT959r8eJV8mHuIqI09vlSIbLUC589md5vruXef-VGmhUDDYJKK9ai913mgSvTYzn4Ans8cgAagu_CJWvxnlRMzoAwtb8qvgiMNl0UKDBQ/s640/StadiaSpecsWithDisk.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">These beefy specs don't come cheap. Also no mention of disk...</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Standard cloud services generally provide metered billing(per second) for the underlying compute resources with either additional metered cost for software license such as Microsoft Windows or allow the user to bring their own licenses. Looking at existing GCP cloud pricing for a single GPU, the closest spec to Stadia would be the <a href="https://cloud.google.com/compute/pricing#gpus">NVidia Tesla P100 with 16GB HBM currently at $1.46 per hour</a> not counting storage costs. This cost is expensive even by cloud standards since high end GPUs are expensive though Google would have squeezed a much better deal out of AMD providing the GPUs. Even $1 an hour would be much too steep for a casual gamer and underlying costs are probably too expensive to provide a free to play model. Shadow currently has a subscription model for $34.95/month which I think is too much of an outlay for the casual gamer but most likely a profit loss if the gamer plays too much. Metered usage opens more wallets than a monthly subscription. Any giant creating this type of gaming platform has to be ready to lose billions for years on end and you have to wonder how long Google is willing to persevere with full commitment given their history of starving projects and unceremoniously ditching failures. Gaming is not a part of the Google DNA. If I had to bet, I would bet more on xCloud succeeding than Stadia. You have to give credit to Microsoft's continued perseverance to gaming despite stumbles- the first Xbox was 17 years ago- 2001. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 700;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">How would Google manage hardware capacity and demand efficiently? Unlike other general use cloud platform where vendors have more wiggle room in slightly over-provisioning to accommodate more users, gaming is a demanding process</span></span><span style="font-weight: 400;">. </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Since</span><span style="font-size: small;"> the Vega 56 has 10.7 TFLOPS similar to a GTX1080ti, even with gpu virtualization, 4K gaming can eat a lot of the single GPU so they have to hope for more users wanting lower resolution gaming.</span><span style="font-size: small;"> S</span><span style="font-size: small;">tadia's predominant usage is driven by a live human clicking behind an instance which has</span><span style="font-size: small;"> to b</span><span style="font-size: small;">e of close geographical proximity to the user to reduce latency at concentrated peak hours. </span><span style="font-size: small;">You can't move users to a different region without risking worsening latency. I</span><span style="font-size: small;">f launching Stadia is as easy and casual as clicking a button on youtube to play a game, how well can Google predict peak demand and grow the data center. It takes time to add new machines- in the meanwhile users lose confidence being locked out when paying for a premium service. Google will have to carefully limit users to prevent a stampede, but what will they do with spare capacity if the masses don't come?</span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">What will Google do with the spare capacity in off hours(working/sleeping)? Run their own machine learning algorithms for world domination? By gods, is Stadia one of Google's evil plan to have more machine learning capacity. They will probably run ML processes that crunch your gaming habits to see what ads to serve you. Even if Stadia loses money, Google still would have scraped a lot of data they couldn't get any other way. Google could also sell off Stadia's spare capacity for AI processing just as Google's cloud service sells spare capacity with preemptible instances which get used for short-lived batch processing?</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Input response time is not the only performance concern. Startup and load even locally can take 10+ seconds to a minute depending on game content and disk media. On Google's cloud, I can vouch for how fast base Linux instances can be spun up (5-10 seconds) but launching game executable from scratch requiring gigabytes to be read may take significantly longer on the cloud than locally depending on implementation. Verily Google could have pre-warmed instances for the most popular games to speed startup but most GPU heavy titles dynamically load gigabytes of texture maps and worlds depending on gamer location. An important takeaway for those that have not used a cloud service, one pays through the nose for faster disk access on the cloud which is always slower than local versions of the same type.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The bane of my big data cloud existence was expensive limited slow storage even in SSD across all vendors though GCP was better than Azure for persistent disk. Disk access is capped by throughput and number of IOPS or reads and writes per second based on disk size. In GCP, you would need 1TB to get 500MB/sec at a hurtful $170/month and with dozens of servers- storage costs were a constant bugbear we had to manage. Granted for Stadia, Google would segregate stateful game data and avoid long term storage for an instance of the base game to bring down storage costs but how would they manage disk performance running predominantly IO hungry games. The reason cloud vendors can get away with shared SSDs is that not every tenant on a server is banging on the disk with equal ferocity. But modern triple AAA game can easily be 50GB-100GB with gigabytes of texture maps and worlds being loaded dynamically but perhaps Google is banking on the fact disk usage spikes are intermittent.</span></div>
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Compelling Gaming Content and Experience</h3>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the varied ways a games can hook users, the best examples of the genre strive to be genuinely engaging and worthy of your time (Witcher 3, Kingdom Come Delivernace, too many titles to list!!!). But the rise of mobile gaming unleashed a rapacious insidious trend of employing psychological manipulations such as intermittent rewards to bleed drops of money out of you. To the detriment of the gaming genre, it’s easier and more lucrative to create Candy Crush than labor 7 years for Read Dead Redemption II. Mobile games can adopt a free to play model to lure casual players but clearly the Stadia hardware is much too expensive to allow users free entry even if the game license is free. Stadia would have to go down partially the harder route of compelling content. Stadia has started their own studio but can they hit one out of the park? Creating a hit game is not something you can just throw money at. Ask Microsoft. And Amazon.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Only recently I understood the reason 91+ million Sony PS4s blot this earth. I had been a PC gamer most of my life and had no desire to downgrade my 4K GTX 1080ti gaming experience with a measly console. But Red Dead Redemption II only available on console made me finally capitulate and shell out $500 for a PS4 Pro with fake 4k which I grudgingly bought over an XBox One X which had superior hardware. All the console games I wanted to play(God of War, Spiderman, Horizon Zero Dawn, Persona 5) were Sony exclusives- a winning trend Sony is not going to give up. Although the hardware by the sound of the fans struggled mightily on my PS4 Pro, I was utterly shocked at the superior graphics of RDRII pushed out with a mere 4.2 teraflops, only a third of my GTX 1080ti. The breathtaking scenery Rockstar created by black magic exceeded cinema. I don’t think I’ll be consigning this PS4 Pro to the dustbin any time soon as such a rich library still awaits to be played. Existing consoles are such a formidable competitor to streaming, even Sony have to compete with themselves to convert their own existing user base to new services. Stadia would have to provide something better and different.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl1_dTWGJSCcrG49WEmx7ZOxhXvLIpfSN-g97enaADXP5toDT3WvKKJhJApe3FBCw4anq6WZ0wU7WsZVj7n_RSd1QLiDuQraHgKiawaZjkZnMkqhuuCpP19EzgND8DgfNOhTwbtmuAL1I/s1600/RDR_Double_Rainbow_2_20181201163102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="986" data-original-width="1600" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl1_dTWGJSCcrG49WEmx7ZOxhXvLIpfSN-g97enaADXP5toDT3WvKKJhJApe3FBCw4anq6WZ0wU7WsZVj7n_RSd1QLiDuQraHgKiawaZjkZnMkqhuuCpP19EzgND8DgfNOhTwbtmuAL1I/s400/RDR_Double_Rainbow_2_20181201163102.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Double Rainbow of Red Dead</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Google only announced Doom Eternal, Tomb Raider, and a handful of other titles as a confirmed launch title besides Assassin’s Creed Odyssey- a roster not strong enough to open the wallets of the masses. Doom historically has had low specs that you can play on an aging potato PC. Since Doom is not an exclusive deal, unless Stadia has an attractive value proposition where it’s significantly cheaper to try than buy, I’m not sure all the Youtube integration and next gen features would be enough. Splitting distribution this way risks cannibalizing publisher profits, it’s a huge gamble on Bethesda’s part that more people that would not have bought a copy will play. I could see that it’s good for the gamer if Stadia becomes an easy/cheap way to try games before you buy. Given the current trend of buggy first releases of AAA titles, publishers will probably try to circumvent any disadvantage. If Fallout 76/Anthem had debuted on Stadia in their wildly buggy states without an upfront license, undoubtedly publishers would have lost revenue.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">There is a steep cost to the game developer to bring a game to Stadia who are already too stretched. Beyond the major obvious difference of creating an executable that runs on Linux with Vulkan, running games efficiently on Stadia is more than a matter of running the same game executable you can run locally vs in their data center. Even if Unity and Unreal Engine will “support” Stadia deployment, it’s probably nominal alpha(buggy) support initially but the bulk of GPU heavy games are built on custom engines.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">On the positive side, I’m thrilled with Google’s choice of Linux/Vulkan. Even if Stadia becomes one more tombstone in the cluttered Google graveyard, Linux gaming got an unimaginable boost. The current list of Vulkan supported Linux games is … well I rolled through that stunted list multiple times in the last few years without being enticed once. The second positive silver lining- Google spends some of their search engine billions on furthering gaming. Google being exceedingly late to a crowded field is predictably is looking to disrupt the gaming industry with a completely different cloud streaming paradigm integrated with a broadcasting platform. Shouldn’t we welcome innovation and competition which in the end is good for the end gamer? Or will this be wasted divided effort on developers that release on Stadia and other platforms. If Doom sucks, the web trolls will come out and blame time wasted on Stadia.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">But a greater harm to gaming would be that if streaming as the predominant model would impact the type of games that get made. Mobile platforms already generate enough insidious free to play microtransaction laden Skinner boxes, but at least their attempts are obvious. If Google and publishers have complete control and knowledge of all your gaming inputs along with all Google has already stored about you, they could with greater subtlety inject their attempts at squeezing cash out of you in and out of game.</span></span></div>
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Final Thoughts on the Future of Gaming</h3>
I am heartily convinced console, PC and many other forms gaming won’t be supplanted by streaming any time soon if ever. Inadequate internet infrastructure and data caps are not the only obvious drag on streaming adoption. Even with 5G and fiber, network latency is a factor that won’t go away for VR where latency=nausea and in competitive games where latency=loser. How can a single new untested platform dominate the future of gaming when the massive existing and growing catalog of fantastic superior games are available elsewhere? Just as evil people routinely predict the demise of single player games, it is a hot steaming pile of cloud conceit that streaming is “THE” future of gaming. History has favored divergence and not convergence and what kind of poor diminished world would we gamers live in if we were reduced to streaming as our play mechanism.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-39720632706890691312019-02-01T17:04:00.002-08:002019-06-05T15:02:43.932-07:00My Adventures in Performance Tuning Fallout 4 VR<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;">TLDR;- FO4VR still takes serious tuning to make it playable even in 2019 even for a beefy rig. FO4VR is a CPU intensive game and sadly it was upgrading to an i9-9900K that made the biggest difference. But tweaking and modding can bring FO4VR to an "acceptable" state of play. </span></blockquote>
When I first started playing Fallout 4 VR on my Alienware R4 17 with an external GTX 1080ti, the stuttering and blurriness was so atrocious, plays would give me severe eyestrain then headaches. I've invested a significant amount of time trying to bring FO4VR to the level of my heavily modded SkyrimVR visuals but I gave up and tried frantically to stabilize with acceptable graphics. After I had given up everything(shadows,interior lights,particle effects,grass) to run a decent stable game, I realized I couldn't do any serious settlement building which was a big part of my enjoyment. So I finally capitulated and built me a new gaming rig. However I decided to chronicle my performance tuning in detail as I still needed all the fixes even for my beefy rig to load up on 4k textures and to mod further.<br />
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The bad performance in this game is a death by a thousand cuts and there is no magic bullet- even an i9-9900K/GTX 1080ti requires compromises and tuning. I still won't run lush tree and grass/ hair physics mods since my reprojection rate can run as high as 30% in my growing settlements. My nightly/weekend tuning exercise fell under 5 categories:<br />
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<li><b>Performance Mods</b>- Probably <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/11076" target="_blank">Lights Remover</a> made the most noticeable difference.</li>
<li><b>Fallout 4 VR config/ini - </b>TAA tweaking, lowering shadow quality, particle effect, turning off grass, etc</li>
<li><b>SteamVR Configuration</b>- Supersampling and reprojection options. Before my hardware upgrade, I ended up running "Always On" interleaved projection with Motion Smoothing to reduce stutters.</li>
<li><b>Existing Hardware Configuration</b> such as overclocking GPU/CPU/DRAM, GPU power options</li>
<li><b>Hardware Upgrades</b>- unfortunately the most expensive yet the most effective</li>
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Also the performance problems vary in nature- low fps, stuttering, high load times, slow and unstable workshop menu. I've put more details below this summary diagram. Even though my husband thinks this diagram is overkill, I use this diagram to reason more systematically about my tuning. The green to red color scheme indicates performance impact positive to negative:</div>
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<li>green- improved performance significantly </li>
<li>light green - moderately improved</li>
<li>white- setting at neutral (could crank up)</li>
<li>yellow - nibbles away at performance</li>
<li>orange- degrades performances significantly, but I use the settings to improve immersion</li>
<li>red- kills performance and hence avoiding them for the present</li>
<li>blue- not sure if it worked as a FPS boost was not seen</li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiowQwsMf1Vep41QuvbqH6cXlBHT_I4leV-0hNaoxC4eVWaUJtknhMnHP6KSuWdarWTRgFdR-jOF6xNcMa_axD1cZM8F_ejJr-XQLBVjAmNeLeIDbL7Er98x5QU8JMUMzWvUJlRzxbm2G4/s1600/Current+FO4+VR+Performance+Configuration.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiowQwsMf1Vep41QuvbqH6cXlBHT_I4leV-0hNaoxC4eVWaUJtknhMnHP6KSuWdarWTRgFdR-jOF6xNcMa_axD1cZM8F_ejJr-XQLBVjAmNeLeIDbL7Er98x5QU8JMUMzWvUJlRzxbm2G4/s1600/Current+FO4+VR+Performance+Configuration.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Performance Tuning Tools- FPSvr</span></h3>
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A good performance tool can more objectively show the impact of your changes and I highly highly recommend <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/908520/fpsVR/" target="_blank">FPSvr</a>. Only for 4 bucks you get a GPU/CPU breakdown for each session that can show you where you bottlenecks are. (It's sad that SteamVR fps tool is so unusable.) You can check the FPS rates and CPU/GPU usage in-game by tilting up your controller, and at the end of the game session stats are automatically saved to analyze through the included FPSvr Viewer. Having historical baselines for comparison is huge when you are piling on mods at every play.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWw4J0zfSa9AkDIZK3zIarvFjBTYBRYYsku-Xzt7TvrwH8vh6GVokTcKuzEQxUFGWzHYCOqqF0i2zHdcOm83Wd_De093SzSjDZ4_FK9O1oQ8MI53zwtb6vQ5aPwDKenSw7vOESCdxUWY/s1600/FPSvr.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="839" data-original-width="1600" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWw4J0zfSa9AkDIZK3zIarvFjBTYBRYYsku-Xzt7TvrwH8vh6GVokTcKuzEQxUFGWzHYCOqqF0i2zHdcOm83Wd_De093SzSjDZ4_FK9O1oQ8MI53zwtb6vQ5aPwDKenSw7vOESCdxUWY/s320/FPSvr.PNG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click me to see this fantastic tool for VR session breakdown.</td></tr>
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If you click to enlarge, you can see the breakdown of GPU/CPU frame times and usage. I used this to see that the CPU was no longer a bottleneck and the current Intel Turbo Boost (~4.6GHz -~4.9GHz) was more than ample for this game and I didn't need to bother overclocking just yet. In my old rig, couldn't play without overclocking my i7-6820HK.<br />
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Yes you can see from the sessions table on the left that I played an unhealthy amount of FO4VR this week except this wasn't exactly playing- I was performance testing all over the Commonwealth on my new gaming rig obsessively looking at the in-game FPS monitor and checking the newly installed 4K textures. </div>
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In addition, I also use GPU-Z and HWInfo to monitor usage and temps to see if I can eke out more from the hardware.<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Performance Mods</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">I installed all the standard recommended performance mods but it was only the <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/11076" target="_blank">Lights Remover</a> that I saw a noticeable difference. Admittedly I did not have as much discipline in my early testing without FPSvr and was relying on SteamVR in-game fpsviewer.</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>***<a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/11076" target="_blank">Lights Remover </a>- Moves all complex interior lighting and leaves just the lamps. As a bonus, this is a huge immersion booster as you have to use your flashlight when indoors. Fighting supermutants in Medford Hospital can get truly creepy in the dark. </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/9835" target="_blank">Insignificant Objects Remover</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/1204" target="_blank">Optimized Vanilla Textures</a> - probably I have overwritten half of these changes with my 4K mod.</li>
<li>F<a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/20713/?tab=description">AR - Faraway Area Reform by SparrowPrince</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/6339">Clear Weather Only</a> - the game does have to work harder during rain and radiation storms so I installed this mod when I was having severe stuttering problems. </li>
</ul>
<ul>Insignificant Objects Remover, FAR, OVT on their own did not fix my initial stuttering problem. However I leave them.</ul>
<div>
Mods that I couldn't yet see an improvement:</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/10283/" target="_blank">Load Accelerator</a> - I really really wanted this mod to work. I still have slow load times(15-30 seconds) on my beefy rig and m.2 Nvme SSD. Performance stats show CPU/GPU are just hanging out not working much during this time. Curse you Bethesda- you still found a way to defeat me. I am giving up on this at the present since I spend the time looking at my FPSvr stats and resting my eyes. </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/26286" target="_blank">Boston FPS Fix</a> - this curiously increased my FPS in Boston areas and I don't know if I have a conflicting mod that undid this mod's changes or the weather changed. I need to spend more time retesting.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Increasing Workshop Menu Performance</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">When you mod in thousands of items to your workshop menu, you are going to start seeing the workshop menu load slower and slower. There is a <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/35382">fix for pancake involving F4SE</a> which sadly will not work in VR. Surprisingly turning off the rotation animation in your </span>Fallout4Custom.ini does provide a performance boost and prevented my games from crashing every 10 minutes to about 60. </div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="background-color: rgba(238 , 238 , 238 , 0.8); color: #222222; font-family: "noto mono" , "menlo" , "consolas" , "courier new" , monospace; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre;">[Interface]
fWorkshopRotateSpeed=0.00 ;(Default: 1.00)
fWorkshopRepeatTime=0.15 ;(Default: 0.25)</span></span></blockquote>
I found the solution from this handy reddit thread:<br />
<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4/comments/4panl5/psa_you_can_stop_items_from_rotating_in_the/">https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4/comments/4panl5/psa_you_can_stop_items_from_rotating_in_the/</a><br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Moderating Mod Usage and Avoiding Performance Killers</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">As soon as I get my build stable, the first thing I do is slap on more mods. </span><span style="color: #0b5394;">I</span><span style="color: #0b5394;"> am greedy when it comes to mods and I know "some" of my performance/stability issues stem from my mod addiction. (The terrible initial performance, blurriness and stuttering was ALL Bethesda since I had it before modding!). </span>Mods are what I love about Fallout and this habit requires a lot of restraint.</div>
<div>
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I can not NOT have 4K texture mods so I make a tradeoff and pare everything else down. </span><span style="color: #0b5394;">I try not use any mods that turn off or mess with precombined meshes no matter how hard I want to get rid of garbage in my settlements. </span>See these explanations from: </div>
<div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Red Rocket TV: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQX-F_zBGGM">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQX-F_zBGGM</a></li>
<li>Sim Settlement education guide: <a href="https://simsettlements.com/site/index.php?threads/scrapping-mods-and-performance-issues.6992/">https://simsettlements.com/site/index.php?threads/scrapping-mods-and-performance-issues.6992/</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Then there are cases where my own gameplay rather than the mod degrades performance. For instance Sim Settlements is an excellent mod is not a performance killer in itself. However it does make growing your settlement so easy that I tend to create larger settlements than I normally would if I had to micromanage it all by myself. Fallout 4 settlement building in general is a performance killer and you can see many youtubers (Oxhorn) talk about how frame rates drop below 30 in their heaviest settlements. That's bearable in the pancake version but totally a no go in VR.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately this poorly optimized game may force you to change your gaming behavior. I don't build settlements in a heavy areas like Hangman's Alley or Jamaica Plains and prefer those situated in decent performing areas.</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Fallout 4 INI Tweaks, TAA etc.</span></h3>
<div id="initweaks">
<b>Tuning TAA</b>- I tried turning TAA off, using FXAA. FXAA just hurt my eyes and decided I must have TAA. You have to tradeoff between sharpness and sparkling edges vs blurriness- sharper it is more sparkly it gets. Shine like a diamond, shine like a diamond in the sky~~~ My current TAA settings are for 2.0X SS:</div>
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
fTAAPostSharpen=0.75<br />
fTAASharpen=1.0000<br />
fTAAHighFreq=0.8000<br />
fTAALowFreq=0.5000<br />
fTAAPostOverlay=0.75</blockquote>
</div>
<div>
I used lower <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">0.675 for </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">fTAASharpen/</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">fTAAPostOverlay</span> when I used to run at 1.5X SS. I adjust shadow settings, ambient occlusion all in-game.</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">SteamVR Configuration, SS etc.</span></h3>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Managing Reprojection</h4>
<div>
With my old rig(i7-6820HK/1080ti), pegging at 45 fps with the "Always On" interleaved projection Application setting was THE only way to reduce stuttering by reducing overall load on the CPU which would run below 80% and have headroom. If I ran without it (with just motion smoothing/ asynchronous projection), as soon as I went into a heavy area like Boston or Sanctuary Hills, CPU would run up to 100% and stuttering would ensue. Yes combat of any kind esp. heavy shootouts suck with interleaved projection but it beats getting a headache. But now even with the i9-9900K, I have motion smoothing on and reprojection rates still range from 5% to 30% depending on how fast I whip around and which area I am in. </div>
<div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Supersampling </h4>
</div>
<div>
I manage super sampling strictly from SteamVR Application Menu. I run at SSx200% and I'm surprised how much clearer everything is- esp. when reading text in game. I know this is the knob I can crank down for more performance if I need to but I am loath to give this up. Supersampling taxes the CPU and GPU both. I could only manage about 1.5x with a i7-6820HK for CPU load but I still used to get the stuttering problem at 1xSS.</div>
<div>
<h3 style="clear: both;">
<span style="color: #3d85c6;">
Performance Goals and Tradeoffs</span></h3>
<div>
In PC gaming, the more you tune and tinker, the less time you leave for gaming. Unfortunately FO4VR is like an old Alfa Romeo. It is not a game you can simply pay higher components to buy yourself out of performance problems due to the creaking engine and modding. I still have slow loading times and workshop/settlement problems that are barely utilizing the underlying hardware. Sadly with FO4VR, I find myself trading off game enjoyment with with fixing performance problems. There's how much time you will spend to get things better and there's also what you have to sacrifice in order to get there.<br />
<br />
You might just be trying hard to stabilize your FO4VR and reduce stuttering trying anything possible. Once you get your system stable and depending on your system's capabilities, you might have choices on what to cut instead of having to cut as much as possible. In the old rig, I cut out everything- no grass, low shadows, no interior light, no face light, no particle effects, and peg to 45fps which wasn't great during shootouts but this let me start building. But when I heard from some youtubers that they can only play their big settlements 20-30fps, I realized settlement building was a ticking time bomb to unplayability for VR. That's when I bit the bullet to build a new system. </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-3502693961038570682019-01-30T20:23:00.000-08:002019-12-30T20:23:55.801-08:00DIY Custom Gaming Rig: Part II Building<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2bvcgzYLtvtInKR8QjZy7H9Xyvt0kfLd3EL3FNGDm0V8OdWlTAFMq4MYIUZehiFM6jzvE5nQbxf9vGzfenNktpKIz2KNJKVc3em5r6QM4fF7luuOEWxFGOzTZV_hQPbRIr9eTWWNsEgk/s1600/IMG_20190121_115536.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2bvcgzYLtvtInKR8QjZy7H9Xyvt0kfLd3EL3FNGDm0V8OdWlTAFMq4MYIUZehiFM6jzvE5nQbxf9vGzfenNktpKIz2KNJKVc3em5r6QM4fF7luuOEWxFGOzTZV_hQPbRIr9eTWWNsEgk/s320/IMG_20190121_115536.jpg" title="behold the z390 motherboard" width="320" /></a>The night before, I made myself a <a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/p/custom-rig-install-steps.html" target="_blank">detailed step by step plan</a> on how I would iteratively install and test the components. I went to bed overexcited and a tad slightly apprehensive about applying thermal paste.<br />
<br />
Once all the components rolled in from Amazon, I cleared off the dining room table for starting the build. Unboxing raw components definitely had a excitement I haven't felt with fully formed consumer electronics like a PS4 Pro. When did RAM get so big and beefy? After years of laptops, it's fun to handle a motherboard again. I was impressed with how much was crammed into this MSI z390 motherboard except for the dragon decal is completely gratuitous and did not add to any badassness. The i9-9900K was smaller and thinner than a triscuit. Hooking up sockets and power cables was intuitive. The most fun part was popping in the DRAM and seating the core i9-9900K in the LGA1151 socket. </div>
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Everything from Amazon had arrived with 1 day shipping except the higher grade Kryonaut Thermal Grease which wasn't due to arrive a day later. My plan was to use the included Noctua thermal paste, do testing and then repaste with Kryonaut the second day if temps were not satisfactory. </div>
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp_w9fjKQgCmIVVao6KLnbi3Jrg_lHWJHdDhi3911l6qTZnw6GfHf7hXsZaB_zLUPc6T0Nxg5G2z5pNz-q2Y8pU2IuVhK63AnhZbui3z7FNONgfV4ZzjyZbm3_OVMDpPkCp9ZepdnwiJk/s1600/IMG_20190123_154940.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp_w9fjKQgCmIVVao6KLnbi3Jrg_lHWJHdDhi3911l6qTZnw6GfHf7hXsZaB_zLUPc6T0Nxg5G2z5pNz-q2Y8pU2IuVhK63AnhZbui3z7FNONgfV4ZzjyZbm3_OVMDpPkCp9ZepdnwiJk/s320/IMG_20190123_154940.jpg" title="cpu, DRAM, both nVME SSDs seated" width="240" /></a>I had watched many a youtube video with the mesmerizing application of grey goop with my favorite being from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUWVVTY63hc">Gamers Nexus</a> which reassured me that technique did not matter that much as long as you didn't squirt an obnoxious amount. I really really wished I had watched <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDUZRNp4pxg" target="_blank">JayZTwoCents video on how to build a PC the wrong way</a> before I did this. Even to his surprise, doing all the wrong things like just smearing on gobs of thermal paste with his finger, separating the cooling sink and reattaching actually did not affect the resulting temps that much. I was totally OC (not overclock, obsessive/compulsive) about a great many things that did not matter in the end and was tripped up by things that I didn't expect.<br />
<br />
Before I could power on the system, I had to install the CPU fan. The absolute worst(THE WORST) part was installing the Noctua fans which took a ridiculous 5 pasting attempts mainly due to the high standoffs. The whole process of reinstalling involved having to unscrew the mounting frame to unseat the cpu which caused the backplate to fall off, popping off the cpu, cleaning cpu and the heat sink, re installing the backplate which required flipping case on it's side and re mounting frame, seating the cpu, squeezing out some thermal paste, pressing down the heat sink. Also you had to hook and unhook the two fans if you had done a full install. It took half a box of coffee filters with isopropyl alcohol to scrub out a wasted $10 worth of thermal paste. </div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Day 1: A fully functioning PC with Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Paste, Horizontal fan placement</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6h3s09inLly93liLdUROM2ReydvVpU9xL1x-a9yTo1xM-FbvnkvfQ150SFb0QQDH1lbt_7-il-oFJuedvPGM_x2zzPkBSYJcPqaVDJA8KTcsGqy6CwJlAU-xfvDhCBQ4yestNcM9vnE/s1600/IMG_20190121_130143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6h3s09inLly93liLdUROM2ReydvVpU9xL1x-a9yTo1xM-FbvnkvfQ150SFb0QQDH1lbt_7-il-oFJuedvPGM_x2zzPkBSYJcPqaVDJA8KTcsGqy6CwJlAU-xfvDhCBQ4yestNcM9vnE/s200/IMG_20190121_130143.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
<b>Attempt 1</b>: I followed the Noctua instructions to the letter and put a small 3mm pea of the included Noctua NT-H1 thermal paste as instructed. I press down but I have this weird feeling it's too little. I pop it open to see an uneven oval. (It's entirely possible that it would have covered everything once it was screwed down....)<br />
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b>Attempt 2</b>: I clean everything up, follow the steps again with a more erm generous helping of thermal paste. However the second screw will not catch at all to the standoff. My husband who conveniently came home for lunch exerts his large hands over the mobo. He asks me to cleanup everything and so he can test the fit and debug without the thermal compound. He keeps asking me if I didn't seat the CPU right and so it's sitting higher. I keep insisting it's impossible- this LGA socket is idiot proof.<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;"><ul>
</ul>
</ul>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikeE4oZiqPmBXh78VDeXpUV3cES9Pc4m-xgxIjHWovugotP4jk6c09d_poLObAwlc9by9ssbSXOsdZ3pijIVcTg6d4hEKYk2tQbvzqNMkOXMloxFL6bm21h07eum-coKq-qrnLtKvFRJ4/s1600/IMG_20190123_153647.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1415" data-original-width="1600" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikeE4oZiqPmBXh78VDeXpUV3cES9Pc4m-xgxIjHWovugotP4jk6c09d_poLObAwlc9by9ssbSXOsdZ3pijIVcTg6d4hEKYk2tQbvzqNMkOXMloxFL6bm21h07eum-coKq-qrnLtKvFRJ4/s200/IMG_20190123_153647.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Cleaned up this cold plate 4 times,<br />
3 times too many.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;"><ul>
<li><b>Attempt 3</b>: I clean everything up again and show him how to pop in the CPU in the socket. My husband thinks the provided Noctua standoffs are too tall and the screws will not catch even with what he considers reasonable pressure. Since he's a precision machinist by training and he knows a lot about screwing in things, I take his word. We try the other shorter standoffs included for the AMD chip. (According to web board chatter, you have to use an unnatural "sketchy" amount of pressure. It's kind of scary to press down that hard because you don't want to crack the motherboard. Since I have Spongebob Squarepants hands, I was happy to be able to use this shorter stand.) My husband squeezes out the very last of the thermal paste but there's really not enough left in the tube but we screw everything in. The Kryonaut is not coming until the next day and I wanted to do benchmarks anyway to see the impact of too little paste. Thermals are not great but in acceptable range. Also I also did a horizontal fan placement like a hamburger parallel to the GPU to see if I can work out a different airflow as this fan was so unwieldy, it didn't quite fit blades hitting against the mobo 24 pin power cable.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
But by mid-afternoon, I had a running computer that had Fallout 4 VR running on it smoother than I ever had seen it.<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Day 2: Kryonaut Arrives, Vertical fan placement, HDD Install</h3>
<div>
I guess all those Grizzly Kryonaut commercials on Gamers Nexus and Linus Tech Tips must have worked subconsciously into my brain as I didn't think twice about that. I won't use liquid metal because it's too nerve wracking and after having cleaned the cpu and cold plate 4 times, I realize the stuff gets everywhere even when you think you are being super careful.</div>
<div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLjufzzcEwCge3zIXOSxqcFvWmIQd7I6E7fJQauYVWEe9wXoK7klB88etdCcb4hXTVoFOSN9akwoFvtbBu4_Htd4wKLF5SM3_LiaZ0YDQIIdgrO-5skp0zccMi81_1sLY6vP-NDVYBjD0/s1600/IMG_20190123_162633.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLjufzzcEwCge3zIXOSxqcFvWmIQd7I6E7fJQauYVWEe9wXoK7klB88etdCcb4hXTVoFOSN9akwoFvtbBu4_Htd4wKLF5SM3_LiaZ0YDQIIdgrO-5skp0zccMi81_1sLY6vP-NDVYBjD0/s320/IMG_20190123_162633.jpg" title="heat fins so big, can't see motherboard." width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prettier without them flesh colored fans.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<b>Attempt 4</b>: I open up the heat sink and yesterday's last squeeze was definitely was not enough. I clean it up again and apply the Kryonaut with the included tiny paddle but it's too thick and sticky and clumps up all the wrong places making me worry I'm just whipping in more air pockets in an effort to spread it. I decide to start over and use the X method instead. </div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b>Attempt 5</b>: I unscrew the mounting bars one last time, unseat the i9 one last time, clean both surfaces not as obsessively as yesterday, reinstall the backplate, and mounting frame one last time, totally forgot I want to use an X, and just plop down a fat dollop of Kryonaut goodness. I just screw everything in, do a benchmark and see pretty good thermals(10+F decrease from yesterday) and call it a day. I now hate and love this Noctua fan since it's quiet and performs admirably.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Day 3 Fan Readjustment Causes Ugly Cable Syndrome </h3>
<div>
I had put the fans to left of each tower as placement to the right would causing the blade to run into the motherboard power cable. The old configuration wasn't optimum having the back case fan be back to back with a Noctua fan. I shifted the fans to the right over the memory slots which forced me to pull out the power cable over the top of the stylish blue cable bar. NZXT has gotten some flack over the cable bar being too high and just 2 centimeters lower would have solved all my problems and now my cabling job looks subpar and prevents me from posting on Instagram. But the thermals are cooler than ever (idle and under load) and so performance over looks wins out. (Also I was not going to unhooking and rehook these fans yet again- the fins are sharp and fingers were all cut up.)</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghotZ_fxY4h9Ai7Y1XJd3bFLQMxGh72Z_-PdWKf_jhb0ekgJbFtcHX6zgjBXqR3myOnGendKp_yQ0q9DytS_OO173qnmkYqIsAxfJpj8fnJ7mNQBV2t6HlSRn68fUvQJBlM8JOPTEzWms/s1600/IMG_20190130_110331.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghotZ_fxY4h9Ai7Y1XJd3bFLQMxGh72Z_-PdWKf_jhb0ekgJbFtcHX6zgjBXqR3myOnGendKp_yQ0q9DytS_OO173qnmkYqIsAxfJpj8fnJ7mNQBV2t6HlSRn68fUvQJBlM8JOPTEzWms/s320/IMG_20190130_110331.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">FINAL fan positioning forcing power cable in front of bar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div>
But now I can finally close up the machine, do a closed case thermal test to compare against the open case test. The machine can now graduate from the dining table to it's rolling cart into the living room. </div>
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<br />
The RGB configuration is for temps, not for aesthetic purposes although it's a pretty night show completely hiding those flesh colored Noctua fans.<br />
<h3 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Upgrading BIOS, Resetting CMOS</h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
On the first day when I installed the GPU, I changed the graphics card setting to PEG and hence going BIOS would just end up as a black screen. I could have debugged this on the first day but decided to do all the VR software install since everything else was working. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Now it was time to start overclocking which meant I had to reset the CMOS which required moving the GPU out of the PCIe slot since a fresh MSI BIOS will not boot with the GTX 1080ti in the slot. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I also wanted to flash the latest BIOS . Since MSI doesn't ship with a jumper cable, I had to use a flathead screwdriver to short the CMOS which didn't make me feel comfortable but was fine. </div>
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I could service everything vertical on the cart but I didn't feel comfortable handling my heavy 1080ti hanging off the slot(I have the dread GPU sag of less than a cm) and ended up lugging the case back out on the floor. But now I know intimately the layout of my rig and got familiar with the MSI BIOS. It just needed another graphics setting.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-55904756888926132362019-01-28T18:36:00.002-08:002019-02-05T14:29:41.481-08:00DIY Custom Gaming Rig: Part I Specs<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Friends, it was finally time to build my very own! I've always bought laptops making DIY unpractical but now due to my increasing (ahem) compute needs, I was ready to commit to a stationary beast of a PC tower. My Alienware 17 R4 laptop which had served me so well for 2.5 years was now limping along due to an aging CPU i7-6820HK even though it had plenty of GPU power of a GTX 1080ti with an external GPU chassis.<br />
<br />
Truth be told, my laptop is perfectly adequate for all titles except for Fallout 4 VR- a game so poorly optimized that it needs a 8 core CPU released years after the original game to run full graphics. Right now I have to peg to 45 fps, reduce AA and supersampling, reduce load distances and shadows, turn off dynamic grass, turn off interior lighting and face lighting, turn off rain and radiation storms and dozens of performance mods to run stable. It hurts my eyeballs when I play and my vision is my one deteriorating resource. It's not quite potato mode but this was not a game I could currently give friends a VR tour even though it was the only game that <a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/search/label/fallout4vr" target="_blank">contained my very own structural creations</a>. And of course I could not even think of upgrading to a next generation VR headsets without a beefier machine.<br />
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<br />
When you go all custom, you have all the freedom in the world which translates into making dozens of micro-decisions over hundreds of competing items then cross checking for compatibility. It literally broke my PC brain for the day, totally crashed h-ster.exe.<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">Final Specs</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="color: #45818e;">After painstaking review, I went with the following components. I've put down detailed decision making process below in case it may be of use to anyone else. It doesn't mean I recommend these components but you may be interested in the why and how I chose them. (I've put amazon links not to sell anything since I am not part of an affiliate program but just as convenience to myself.)</span></div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><b>CPU</b>: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Intel-i9-9900K-Desktop-Processor-Unlocked/dp/B005404P9I" target="_blank">intel i9-9900k</a></li>
<li><b>RAM</b>: <a class="a-link-normal" href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0143UM4TC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0066c0; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 DRAM 3200MHz</a></li>
<li><b>GPU</b>: EVGA GTX 1080ti (only holdover from old rig)</li>
<li><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">Mobo</span></b>: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07HM753YR/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">MSI z390 Gamer pro Carbon AC</a> (<a href="https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/mpg-z390-gaming-pro-carbon">MSI</a>, s<a href="https://asset.msi.com/pdf/main/global/presale_v2/MPG-Z390-GAMING-PRO-CARBON-AC?">pec</a>) with wifi</li>
<li><b>Storage</b></li>
<ul>
<li>boot drive+ fastest gaming- m.2 NVMe Samsung 970 Pro 500GB</li>
<li>fast gaming drive- m.2 NVMe Samsung 970 Evo 500GB</li>
<li>SSD(SATA) Samsung 500GB, (waiting to by 1TB)</li>
<li>HDD: WD Blue 5400rpm, 4TB, 2TB</li>
</ul>
<li><b>Case</b>: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C3DW3D4/" target="_blank">NZXT H700</a> (<a href="https://www.nzxt.com/products/h700-matte-black-blue">nzxt</a>)</li>
<li><b>PSU</b>: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NARQ2QU/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05__o00_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">Corsair HX850</a></li>
<li><b>Cooling</b>: Total 9 fans</li>
<ul>
<li>CPU fan: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NH-D15-heatpipe-NF-A15-140mm/dp/B00L7UZMAK">Noctua NH-D15</a>, 2 fans</li>
<li>CPU Thermal paste: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Thermal-Grizzly-Kryonaut-Grease-Paste/dp/B011F7W3LU/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1549134965&sr=1-2&keywords=grizzly+kryonaut">Grizzly Kryonaut</a></li>
<li>Front Fan: 3 <a href="https://www.amazon.com/NZXT-Computer-Case-120mm-RF-AF120-B1/dp/B06XKKZQRS">NZXT Aer F</a>120 (<a href="https://www.nzxt.com/products/aer-f">NZXT</a>) front fans preinstalled in case</li>
<li>Back Fan: 1 NZXT Aer F140 </li>
<li>Other: EVGA GTX 1080ti has 2 fan design+ PSU fan)</li>
</ul>
<li><b>Keyboard</b>: CORSAIR K55 RGB </li>
</ul>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">General Decision Factors</span></h3>
<div>
<b><span style="color: purple;">FUTURE PROOFING</span></b>- By virtue of building a desktop, I could continuously swap out parts for probably a decade. I wanted head space to grow and base components like the motherboard had to be upgradeable with ample DIMM slots and PCIe support for SLI. I don't run multiple GPU configuration now because current VR games sadly do not take advantage of SLI. However it could be supported in the future so I was careful to choose a mobo with at least twin SLI support.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: purple;">PERFORMANCE/COST Value Ratio</span></b></div>
<div>
I want sufficiently high quality components without burning cash like an idiot. At the high end, you get diminishing returns at an exponential cost. I could buy faster 4000Ghz DDR4($409) instead of 3200Ghz($130 on sale) but I do plan to overclock a scootch which is probably the optimum performance gain I will see in game. For $60 more on the 4400Ghz, you can get an entire i7-9700! Since my sweet husband is financing this build, I find myself being more budget minded than I usually am. However I did dump a hundo more on the overpriced i9-9900K because.... because reasons. This PC is for making sure I have a high VR quality gaming experience for me and my friends for years to come.</div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: purple;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: purple;">RELIABILITY</span></b>- Building a custom rig, I am on my own to troubleshoot individual components to send to the manufacturer so I went with brands that appeared to be the most reliable. With next generation components, it's hard to tell what is reliable since reviewers do such short-term performance tests. I had to parse through reviews and reddit threads looking for prevalence of problems.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i><span style="color: purple;">AESTHETICS</span></i>- I am not a fan of RGB, gold, or diamond encrusted RAM- way too flashy. However this giant box was going to be a major part of the living room visible from the dining room and kitchen so I had to go with something that I would like looking at while eating breakfast everyday. </div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">CPU i9-9900k vs i7-9700k</span></h3>
<div>
Given Intel has stagnated and resorted to pulling hyperthreading out of the i7-9700K(a feature most core i7 had for years) to differentiate the i9-9900k, the i9-9900K touted "the fastest gaming computer in the world" might be the last Intel chip I buy. I'm not ready to go the Ryzen way just yet, AMD gives you overall less options with regards to motherboards and components. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The gaming benchmarks indicate the 9th gen i9-9900k performs only a few whiskers faster(if that) than i7-9700k for $100+ more and probably I would not notice a difference in game. Yes, everybody knows i9-9900k is poor value for money but still i7-9700K is 8 core 8 threads while i9-9900K is 8 core 16 threads and that hyperthreading will totally come in handy with my future ahem video processing plans! (In my mind, this is nothing compared to macbook upcharge.)</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
DRAM DDR4 3Ghz+ </h3>
<div>
When did choosing DRAM become so complicated? Memory is something I upgraded regularly for 25+ years and I don't remember having to think this hard. I guess there has been never such a good time to be alive with so many RAM options.</div>
<div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Capacity: 16GB. I've been using 16GB on my alienware all this time without exceeding 12GB. With Amazon Prime next day shipping, no need to pre buy too much memory until you need it since prices will be dropping all 2019. </li>
<li>Speed: 3200MHz DDR4 is the sweet spot of gaming performance to value at the time of purchase as the Corsair Vengeance LPX was on super sale ($130 from $219).</li>
<li>Overclocking- probably you couldn't push RAM that hard b/c the vendor would bin it for higher speed category (3333Mhz,3466Mhz)</li>
<li>Brand: Was going to get whatever top brand was cheapest, most likely a Corsair or G.Skill</li>
<li>aesthetics: No RGB although I regret my decision. I should have used the RGB to display DRAM temperatures.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
I went with <a class="a-link-normal" href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0143UM4TC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0066c0; font-family: "amazon ember", arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 DRAM 3200MHz </a> ($131, now even dropping further to $122).</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I also relied on gaming DRAM benchmarks to figure out the performance to cost ratio.</div>
<div>
https://www.techspot.com/article/1171-ddr4-4000-mhz-performance/page3.html</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
GPU GTX 1080ti vs RTX 2080ti</h3>
<div>
Right now, with a CPU throttle, I barely break 70% usage on my 1080ti. Given I don't play and won't play games where real time ray tracing would matter, I don't need to shell out $1400+(with CA tax) more to upgrade for possibly ~30% boost. At that price, I should expect at least 66% improvement, no? (You can r<a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/2018/09/gpu-upgrade-agonizing-over-rtx-2080ti.html" target="_blank">ead my very detailed post here on the 1080ti selection.</a>)<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
Like many, I was truly underwhelmed with Nvidia's RTX launch- IMHO they focussed on the wrong things and let AMD beat them first to a 7nm GPU. You know Nvidia couldn't sell ray tracing when Jensen Huang kept blathering on about "it just works"- an infamous quote for which Todd Howard is lampooned regularly. DLSS(deep learning super sampling) is even worse and totally useless for most of the games out there- who's gonna pay to have in their game crunched through hyper expensive NVIDIA's DGX SaturnV supercomputing cluster to build a learning model for subpar results. Games I play- heavily modded dynamic games, older titles, and indy games- will never have RTX's DLSS. DLSS is misleading since it's upscaling 1080p for performance gain. Jensen Huang should play Red Dead Redemption 2 on PS4 Pro at 4k just to what performance magic is.<br />
<br /></div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Motherboard Selection Agony</span></b></h3>
Selecting my mobo was probably my hardest decision of the entire exercise.<br />
<br />
My basic requirements:<br />
<ul style="font-weight: 400;">
<li>Features</li>
<ul>
<li>form factor- ATX. I briefly fantasized about an eATX going dual socket but came to my senses once I chose the i9-9900k </li>
<li>chipset: latest z390</li>
<li>SLI support (2x)</li>
<li>Reasonably powerful VRM- no doubled up phases like Asus</li>
<li>integrated WIFI</li>
<li>at least 2 m.2 slots, as many SATA ports as possible</li>
<li>RAM- 4 slot dual channel good enough</li>
<li>integrated graphics support- this wasn't originally on my list as I blithely thought all mobos supported this until I ran into one that didn't.</li>
<li>PCIe armor, i.e. fortified steel PCIe slots- these here GPUs are heavy and GPU sag on a horizontal mount is a real thing, I'm down by less than centimeter right now.</li>
</ul>
<li>Reliability</li>
<li>price- The thought of spending $500 on a mobo seems wrong some how and I was shooting for midrange ~$250. </li>
<li>pretty good overclocking performance (it didn't have to be the best given all my other requirements)</li>
</ul>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Z390 Motherboard Selection: MSI vs Gigabyte vs Asrock</h4>
For z390 boards, you pretty much have MSI, Gigabyte, Asrock. Asus had a controversy over the <a href="https://youtu.be/bLO-vYjJN-I" target="_blank">"fake" doubled up phases on their VRM</a> and since Hardware Unboxed showed it being significantly hotter than the rest of the z390 boards, Asus ROG XI Maximus Hero was not in the running.<br />
<br />
I had planned to get one from the much touted <a href="https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z390-AORUS-MASTER-rev-10#kf" target="_blank">Gigabyte Aorus </a>line but there were so many bad Newegg reviews and a reddit thread complaining of mobo woes. The last thing you want is a temperamental motherboard. Same with ASRock Z390 Taichi Ultimate which had much better specs(3 m.2s) than my MSI selection but had some nasty Newegg reviews. Let's just say at the time of selection, MSI while middle of the pack in terms of performance and features but had the most benign least scary complaints - 15/15 all 5 stars on NewEgg.<br />
<br />
MSI has multiple z390 models for each of their MPG and higher end MEG line. I had planned to get an MSI Z390 MEG ACE but in looking at the IO panel, I noticed it had no Integrated Graphics support! What if your GPU dies or won't work with your BIOS without extra configuration.<br />
<br />
I ended up with the sensible if not boring <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07HM753YR/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">MSI z390 Gamer pro Carbon AC</a> (<a href="https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/mpg-z390-gaming-pro-carbon">MSI</a>, s<a href="https://asset.msi.com/pdf/main/global/presale_v2/MPG-Z390-GAMING-PRO-CARBON-AC?">pec</a>) after going through this exhaustive 20 page review- <a href="https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/msi-mpg-z390-gaming-pro-carbon-review,1.html" target="_blank">https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/msi-mpg-z390-gaming-pro-carbon-review,1.html</a> with special attention to the <a href="https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/msi-mpg-z390-gaming-pro-carbon-review,18.html" target="_blank">overclocking</a> page.) Every board has it's strengths and weaknesses but I ultimately chose perceived reliability.<br />
<b style="color: #38761d; font-family: "open sans", helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><i><br />Power Supply</i></b><br />
<b style="color: #38761d; font-family: "open sans", helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></b>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">I had 3 decisions forks:</span><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><b><i>wattage</i></b> - Unlike RAM, choosing wattage is somewhat Goldilocks situation where more is not better since you can pay up the wazoo in electricity bills. However I wanted to reserve head room for adding more power hungry components like a second GPU. The Corsair HX1250 watt was on sale for $129 as the 850 watt version and I almost got too greedy until I computed the PG&E bill. There is a sweet spot of peak efficiency and so I wanted to be at 60%. You can compute your wattage on-line with https://outervision.com/power-supply-calculator and mine came to 506 watts with 1 gpu (756 watts for 2gpu) so I went with a 850 watt. </li>
<li><b><i>features - f</i></b>ully modular, over voltage protection, under voltage protection (but these come with most high end PSUs nowadays)</li>
<li><b><i>brand</i></b> - Kind of a no brainer for me and just went with a trusty Corsair with the <b><i><span style="color: red;">10 year warranty. </span></i></b>I could have easily gone with the EVGA Supernova, but my brain had been sandblasted by mobo decision making.</li>
<li><b><i>model</i></b> - Corsair has multiple lines, CSX/RMX/HX/AX based on efficiency <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/80_Plus">80 plus certification level</a>s and few features. HX (Gold, fully modular,OVP,UVP) was good enough for me. I didn't see paying $50 extra for a few percentage points gain for the top AX line when I would be only running 50-70% anyway. </li>
</ul>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">(</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">https://thepcenthusiast.com/corsair-rm-vs-hx-vs-ax-power-supply/)</span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #45818e;">Air Cooling vs Liquid Cooling</span></h3>
<h3>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
After much agonizing, I decided to stick with tried and true air cooling cuz a water cooling system will eventually break your heart. Custom loops are not for me- too much maintenance and high high chance of leakage (see all the youtube water cooling proponents/experts JazZ2cents and bitwit crying over unexpected leaks.) Even with the all-in-one AIO units, certain small percentage leak- ample evidence on youtube and reviews. Unfortunately there is no 100% leak proof system, someone somewhere will have water sprayed all of their system through no fault of their own and that's not going to be me. Since I'm am only overclocking moderately for gaming boost, I could not see a worthwhile payoff in liquid cooling besides possibly saving space but my case is a cavern.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJW_v7-8-Dy7EtBQCSTOD1XySCDducI13guj33BMrckcPfHlAjgDRoWezqi4rQRuXfFQ4HS1s3moDMHHH-WuEZHRfha6Na6frhd7yXuh5YQHwsp-K-wI3WSibg6VJxtxXpwneZAgQwNI/s1600/IMG_20190130_110331.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJW_v7-8-Dy7EtBQCSTOD1XySCDducI13guj33BMrckcPfHlAjgDRoWezqi4rQRuXfFQ4HS1s3moDMHHH-WuEZHRfha6Na6frhd7yXuh5YQHwsp-K-wI3WSibg6VJxtxXpwneZAgQwNI/s320/IMG_20190130_110331.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
In the air cooling space, there is only one undisputed king- the Noctua NH-15. Noctua performs just as well if not better as some AIO Liquid Cooling solutions. It's quieter, and gives you a <b><i>6 year </i></b>warranty. Too good to be true?</div>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
Yes, there is one catch, actually 2 (no actually 3). You have carefully curated the LED aesthetics of your case and now you have insert this weird prosthetic flesh colored thing with brown fans- obviously designed by a synth.<br />
<br />
There is also a second catch. This thing is huuuge dominating the motherboard but I looked up<a href="https://noctua.at/en/products/cpu-cooler-retail/nh-d15/comp#socket_3297"> compatibility charts </a>and decided that skin colored fan frame would not deter me.<br />
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2/1/2019 Update- Due to it's bulky size and design, the fan install was the most painful part of my build. (<a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/2019/01/diy-custom-gaming-rig-part-ii-building.html">See Part II</a>) Yes I could technically fit this fan on the MSI board but it forced me to pull out the power cable in front on the blue cable bar messing up the clean look. But the weird prosthetic double fans already ruined any hope of a pretty case. But all is forgiven since it keeps the CPU cool.</div>
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Case: NZXT H700 vs Phantek Evolve X</h3>
There is a dizzying selection of tower cases all with their nifty design innovations balancing airflow and sound. Here's what I thought I was looking for in order of importance although I'm not going to lie. Phantek Evolve X is the superior case but it just didn't come in a snappy blue like the NZXT...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheszEHo1KM3c_kiYoAfU3hWs9zfJ1iJEBJGLQ2-UCz3LYC7C-uf6w8nn4A2cP2dohvVuBhr80cAzkRvQhswlkZemFLn23U8Me4WKh6R87wYpHZxSYgG2pbyQgxzwDuDdft7uS34Dq4eBc/s1600/IMG_20190121_110010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheszEHo1KM3c_kiYoAfU3hWs9zfJ1iJEBJGLQ2-UCz3LYC7C-uf6w8nn4A2cP2dohvVuBhr80cAzkRvQhswlkZemFLn23U8Me4WKh6R87wYpHZxSYgG2pbyQgxzwDuDdft7uS34Dq4eBc/s320/IMG_20190121_110010.jpg" width="240" /></a>
<li>Size - Mid-tower because I'd have to get rid of the wood stove to make space for a full tower. For those using laptops, a mid-tower is a cavern. You could probably raise 4 rabbits in it.</li>
<li>Modularity and Accessibility</li>
<ul>
<li>easy side panel, top panel, PSU access</li>
</ul>
<li>Cooling - It didn't have to be the absolute coolest, just balanced and not a known heat trap.</li>
<li>Cable Management</li>
<li>Aesthetics</li>
<ul>
<li>Not too zany with 1 glass side panel</li>
</ul>
</ul>
After working with the NZXT H700 Case, I'm moderately satisfied. I'd buy it again because well, the color of sea and sky, what's there not to love. The blue highlight matches so well my personality since I just don't like boring sleek grey(anthracite grey...)/black/silver tones so prevalent in all gadgetry now aways. Sadly the iconic blue cable bar is bent just too high so the motherboard 24pin cable bends very awkward underneath.<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Component Vendor: Amazon vs Newegg</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">The only reason I went with Amazon is that due to Prime, I ordered everything on Saturday and had it shipped by Monday noon. I booted up my new machine by 5pm Monday. Take that Digital Storm.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Weirdly, I put everything into Newegg since it appeared they had cheaper prices than Amazon. Amazon must do some tracking because when I kept going back and forth, Amazon's price had normalized to be identical to Newegg prices in my cart. However be aware that while Newegg has a price match guarantee, Amazon does NOT.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #45818e;">How Much Money Did I Save DIY?</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #45818e;"><span style="color: black;">I had planned to buy a build from OriginPC or Digital Storm but still use my original GTX 1080ti. OriginPC appears not to let you purchase a system without a GPU at least on-line but Digital Storm does. Plus DS is out of Fremont so I could go pick it up reducing any shipping mishaps. I had spec'ed out their $2700+ Velox when I noticed that they had a crazy long processing date "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Ship Within 20-25 Business Days </span><span style="color: black;">". A month or more!!! Yelp reviews confirmed such long dates and worse if you tried to cancel the order, they would charge you a 5% fee even though they hadn't started building. Combined with unacceptable wait times and an exorbitant integrator's upcharge ($2500 for a desktop without a GPU!), I realized I could easily build my own exactly how I want it for much much cheaper.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">From Digital Storm, Velox $</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">2,512.00</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Chassis Model: Digital Storm Velox </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Processor: Intel Core i9-9900K </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Motherboard: MSI MPG Z390 GAMING PRO CARBON AC </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">System Memory: 16GB DDR4 3000MHz Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro (RGB Light Bar) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Power Supply: 850W Corsair RM850x (Fully Modular) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Storage Set 1: 1x SSD M.2 (512GB Samsung 970 PRO) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Storage Set 2: 1x Storage (2TB Seagate / Toshiba)</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Corsair H100i PRO - 240mm Liquid CPU Cooler </span></div>
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The Amazon purchase came under $1700 with better components (faster ram, better PSU) but I need to do a full spreadsheet analysis but nobody's got the time right now. Benchmarks to run. Tuning and overclocking to get on.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-60516065407704732972019-01-16T10:38:00.000-08:002019-06-02T02:31:09.123-07:00Fallout 4 VR- Wasteland Architecture Part II - Spectacle Island<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL88j4zv-AQCPS4Be4J9n4m4OGw1v2wl4lzgCOUkC1xPEzNoo66sat34eQWDuJvF2_adgN528fFsSZ-mvga5nSBOnAA2hZwOYj5chBCu2yb5H0wf16762Lokt7EBDVUno_CsOdyWHsXWY/s1600/Spectacle_1_Neck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="874" data-original-width="1058" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL88j4zv-AQCPS4Be4J9n4m4OGw1v2wl4lzgCOUkC1xPEzNoo66sat34eQWDuJvF2_adgN528fFsSZ-mvga5nSBOnAA2hZwOYj5chBCu2yb5H0wf16762Lokt7EBDVUno_CsOdyWHsXWY/s400/Spectacle_1_Neck.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="text-align: left;">By land mass, Spectacle Island is the largest buildable settlement in Fallout giving the player a lot of flexibility to experiment with more sizeable structures. The real life Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor was named so for the early natural shape of two vaguely round land masses connected by a thin strip. After decades of trash dumping and a final massive dump from the Big Dig, it looks more like a small "b" or a "9" or worse. Since Fallout 4 history diverges in 1950, the game Spectacle Island is shaped like an amoeba.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Unlike <a href="http://2xvr.blogspot.com/2019/01/fallout-4-vr-wasteland-architect-part-i.html">Graygarden</a>, I used this island as more of a blank slate since there wasn't any natively interesting structures preexisting on the island. I used my favorite cleanup mod to get rid of unscrappable garbage piles, <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/26136/">Clean and Simple</a>. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU1RSAdtuP6wUQ5DCGs7v-hy8ghLI-GY0sEzfRGHi8SvskkmnPHb_2qspjQ6ChjJCDuRJqMhzMA3HLTSnaI-a1sKhTc1pm1msPR2ZSwA1fP94J9EerwhMDrsfP-0S4uQhjxjGoxw8ymkA/s1600/Spectacle_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="1265" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU1RSAdtuP6wUQ5DCGs7v-hy8ghLI-GY0sEzfRGHi8SvskkmnPHb_2qspjQ6ChjJCDuRJqMhzMA3HLTSnaI-a1sKhTc1pm1msPR2ZSwA1fP94J9EerwhMDrsfP-0S4uQhjxjGoxw8ymkA/s400/Spectacle_2.jpg" width="400" /></a>Super mutants, raiders, and complaining settlers can harsh your mellow and I wanted to build a quiet seaside getaway to decompress from all the wasteland violence. This happily has become my remote outdoor base where I do most of my crafting outdoors without being harassed by NPCs- enemy or otherwise. Since I am cooped up at home inside a VR headset, I want to spend as much of the game time in the virtual outdoors- radiation be damned. The first problem was unexpected- after fighting off the waves of oversized mirelurks, I walked around the island looking for possible build sites. The ocean/wind sound was so deafening I could not continue without a sound reduction mod.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnF104ckSZq81KhtINuJJrptKkjlFwocAnwfEnkjlDCXsyC39BTZo5e2y2G7viDobW7rFJ52oFP_fhxjasKNgq5SG0gQZLG-D1j78o_UbFZgKYxWabBB4x_U65yRBBukvobwUn3EnHyog/s1600/Spectacle_3_PowerArmor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="635" data-original-width="1210" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnF104ckSZq81KhtINuJJrptKkjlFwocAnwfEnkjlDCXsyC39BTZo5e2y2G7viDobW7rFJ52oFP_fhxjasKNgq5SG0gQZLG-D1j78o_UbFZgKYxWabBB4x_U65yRBBukvobwUn3EnHyog/s400/Spectacle_3_PowerArmor.jpg" width="400" /></a>For the main living areas, I wanted to connect railcars together and it's the fantastic <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/22425">Custom Concrete Walls with Window Glass </a>mod that really tied this together. I had originally used SOE institute glass assets which didn't match as well. The island has an uneven topology so concrete base support was used for some token amount of visual anchoring although the game engine lets you have floating detached structures. Fallout severely limits where you can snap/place items preventing me from putting supports exactly where I wanted. I also didn't want to risk corrupting my save with some potentially unstable mods so the support base is the few places the engine would let me snap.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUm9-wUpOpBmndbqP5yIXDLq_uOu_e1BYUJ5qrsM4SlOldPz82yddNR0LM__2ARcn-N-Bc2P8JD8stvxQFhuSl3qjF1XCH4tUeFmZLa1d8l9CsYObWF9fd6aZ9BzyUJT2LYQDUKr2nQ9o/s1600/Spectacle_4_vertibird.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUm9-wUpOpBmndbqP5yIXDLq_uOu_e1BYUJ5qrsM4SlOldPz82yddNR0LM__2ARcn-N-Bc2P8JD8stvxQFhuSl3qjF1XCH4tUeFmZLa1d8l9CsYObWF9fd6aZ9BzyUJT2LYQDUKr2nQ9o/s400/Spectacle_4_vertibird.jpg" title="" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hall before Guest Bedroom</td></tr>
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Most of the sides of box cars are closed off with concrete framed windows so Dogmeat wouldn't fall off. Even if he is immortal and survives the fall, sometimes he would get stuck in circles underneath the deck and you would see a pair of twitchy ears clipping through- a total immersion killer.</div>
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The railcars are connected and placed so each window would have the most pleasing views of itself and the surrounding island. Since there is so much land here, I could have gone nuts and added dozens of railcars for a giant maze complex but it didn't feel right after about 7 railcars and I pared it back as it felt too gratuitous and unwieldy.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbGsP2dJgzyot2ITdiP7p_xBdIDdkbFRiajjOwvrmNgQ-nh2U-P6udDPc56UdOjcO-f_JzaMDscS9iHdUM8omMkeQJnRtW4T_8tcnh6IRd010LIObMYRttzPI9JRkylJ7v8-hSFullUr0/s1600/Spectacle_5_Bedroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbGsP2dJgzyot2ITdiP7p_xBdIDdkbFRiajjOwvrmNgQ-nh2U-P6udDPc56UdOjcO-f_JzaMDscS9iHdUM8omMkeQJnRtW4T_8tcnh6IRd010LIObMYRttzPI9JRkylJ7v8-hSFullUr0/s320/Spectacle_5_Bedroom.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">VR Bedtime</td></tr>
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I keep most of the interior relatively minimal with most of it is empty except an small armory, lab, bed room, and a guest room- a huge departure from my hoarding Skyrim days. Most of Fallout 4 exteriors and interiors are so piled with junk that one really needs visual relief in game. My bedroom has a sleeping bag, chair, suitcase, and a doggie bed. I use the camping mod so I sleep in various places in the Commonwealth but I like to return to this home at the end of my play session.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLJRF7hbTjHyHqgqTLW8zzFvm-XgywAHH-roJ6CXR2cG-iyLxa8a1bpBnQuepUS22rSWt4IciWHlISnknUgpXrTIe8dsz-JWPXnWy0WFGbcP6gtiCufD7PYVTPKRwzt0TiGh3P29YYYwE/s1600/Spectacle_7_Openair+Bathroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1064" data-original-width="1277" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLJRF7hbTjHyHqgqTLW8zzFvm-XgywAHH-roJ6CXR2cG-iyLxa8a1bpBnQuepUS22rSWt4IciWHlISnknUgpXrTIe8dsz-JWPXnWy0WFGbcP6gtiCufD7PYVTPKRwzt0TiGh3P29YYYwE/s320/Spectacle_7_Openair+Bathroom.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hung with Immersive Toilet Paper</td></tr>
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I originally put the bathroom inside but it's impossible to get privacy in such a transparent structure and I didn't want to cover up anything. I ended up placing the waste facilities just underneath the bedroom. Why do I even need to add a bathroom in this virtual world? Friend, if you need to ask- the answer is all about raising immersion levels. Just look at the immersive toilet paper flipped the correct way. I don't actually use it in game and it's out of the way enough that followers will not avail themselves so it's here purely for visual immersion. (Yes I am aware of "needs" mods but I'm not that kind of player.) I will have to put in a magazine rack once I have enough collected.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi52seix3khw33MBOcW46C5b64gT1xYAioQtksshh2NriFlcZLT-16FIeTGiorpcsnOGIrN0TEq9E3ShpfMKaBZmzMlWoT6cKqx_M24TORauwx4ssey1xBvENagYoj1lScurNz9YwdH7gU/s1600/Spectacle_6_ChemistryStation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi52seix3khw33MBOcW46C5b64gT1xYAioQtksshh2NriFlcZLT-16FIeTGiorpcsnOGIrN0TEq9E3ShpfMKaBZmzMlWoT6cKqx_M24TORauwx4ssey1xBvENagYoj1lScurNz9YwdH7gU/s320/Spectacle_6_ChemistryStation.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">Chemistry Workshop with Best Wasteland Views<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">This was the perfect corner for a chemistry station as it's visible from a window in the front entrance hall so you know you have to turn left and not get lost in the maze. All other crafting- weapons/ammo/food is outside surrounding the original unscrappable workshop. </span><br />
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Some practical Spectacle Island tips:</div>
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>You don't need Preston Garvey/Minuteman to take over this island, just fight off waves and waves of Mirelurks and restore power to the island.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/22425">Custom Concrete Walls with Window Glass </a>mod does require the Wasteland Workshop which I bought for pancake Fallout 4 and copied over into the VR folder. </li>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-38677714733161310722019-01-14T00:44:00.002-08:002019-01-16T16:30:26.841-08:00Fallout 4 VR- Wasteland Architecture Part I - Graygarden<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The magic of moddable Bethesda open world games lies in the power to repurpose the base game to suit the player that diverges entirely with the main intended gameplay. I slogged through enough of the Fallout settlement building of pitiful shanty towns to see that kind of grind was not for me. Why waste precious game time looting spatulas off ghouls for that 1 unit of steel and rubber when you can just have infinite build materials at the click of a console command. Plus there just isn't enough Nuka Cola bottles in all of the Commonwealth to build the kind of structures I wanted.<br />
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Fallout 4 didn't have to be just a pseudo FPS/RPG. When I saw the beauty of the fractured freeway of Graygarden, I realized Fallout 4 VR is a very unique VR construction simulator albeit sited in a nuclear wasteland. I need not limit myself to lore friendly structures and I could go all out and build whatever a modded system would let me. However the post apocalyptic wasteland of Fallout contains aesthetically compelling sites of broken infrastructure that I didn't want to cover over but highlight it in all it's ruined glory.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQVQFaAGm6iE4hoKxl27aiUL5_JpiPCquY8SElJ_EyEHEuSUp4HPIgkkXgzDfDEHpppotWH0iVvW9nxg4iJie_7GIGE90rJ6YnlGkFJtK6TNahhtOBomVXeaZeuPnyLDbvrCc2KV79tl4/s1600/GG_1_GreyGardens_overview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="951" data-original-width="1158" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQVQFaAGm6iE4hoKxl27aiUL5_JpiPCquY8SElJ_EyEHEuSUp4HPIgkkXgzDfDEHpppotWH0iVvW9nxg4iJie_7GIGE90rJ6YnlGkFJtK6TNahhtOBomVXeaZeuPnyLDbvrCc2KV79tl4/s400/GG_1_GreyGardens_overview.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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With Graygarden, I felt compelled not to use any mods to artificially clean up or restore the location. I relied heavily on <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/10075/">Settlement Object Expansion Pack</a> using Institute glass assets. Using glass floors allowed a safe navigable structure (slipping is not a thing in the Creation Engine) and still reveal the these lovingly modeled splintered rebars and dangling bits of concrete beneath. It would have been a high crime against immersion to cover these up.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4qBrrxz2jcFlrVnuS7rB4CobPQbY75BnoQOT4-DVx2wOZyx6RqabDiYmGmBvPuIMZ6cywrgNmZ4Omv44fjyb_iC5ol7mDRbneAtPa0WBbY_MUC8d7ED2OY6nlsOnPRj2e_xrz-zRnADU/s1600/GG_3_doubleStairsToBus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4qBrrxz2jcFlrVnuS7rB4CobPQbY75BnoQOT4-DVx2wOZyx6RqabDiYmGmBvPuIMZ6cywrgNmZ4Omv44fjyb_iC5ol7mDRbneAtPa0WBbY_MUC8d7ED2OY6nlsOnPRj2e_xrz-zRnADU/s400/GG_3_doubleStairsToBus.jpg" width="400" /></a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2wQ2O3rln9nU0xenJtFRQMZar9ylMHnSrwOEkaFf8J9ObbeJhE9gBBYt9on59RM9tU1kCi4DzATfOG1NW1BIMJN5xgfV6AuberLVh8hzXmh_RyEq7EBk-1ig5ByQzPr6LyHfbsiFydzM/s1600/GG_4_MidDeck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2wQ2O3rln9nU0xenJtFRQMZar9ylMHnSrwOEkaFf8J9ObbeJhE9gBBYt9on59RM9tU1kCi4DzATfOG1NW1BIMJN5xgfV6AuberLVh8hzXmh_RyEq7EBk-1ig5ByQzPr6LyHfbsiFydzM/s400/GG_4_MidDeck.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The joy of architecting in the game world is that even though glass ramps are a dangerous slip hazard no one would build in the real world, they work wonderfully in game. Not only do they provide unique views below, these institute glass ceiling assets are wide enough that Dogmeat and other followers do not get stuck or fall off as they do on regular ladders which I had originally before I found the SOE mod. I was never so completely engaged in VR as I did building out Graygarden and I was able to power through a year end 40 hour real life fast. Puzzling out how to structure the stairways to the 8 storied top deck was crazy fun as you had to dynamically building an ascending path. I fell to my death a few times losing an hour of work when I accidentally selected and moved the item I was standing on which has turned me into an obsessive compulsive saver- but also a heavily modded Workshop wheel CTDs a lot, a lot. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZwH1rj5Qnz3P1JLz_wlDAsgw8pKVobk62JP66zjTUfLhIE3YlUjthkp60tyHJbjiBykFvKXubucVBZ_wSC9Kp1MrRv4gGqgblFe_kJgT7RanNMea7zhV-8jcGbqwG-PeY3EQiBlePTkM/s1600/GG_5_GlassRamps_to_top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZwH1rj5Qnz3P1JLz_wlDAsgw8pKVobk62JP66zjTUfLhIE3YlUjthkp60tyHJbjiBykFvKXubucVBZ_wSC9Kp1MrRv4gGqgblFe_kJgT7RanNMea7zhV-8jcGbqwG-PeY3EQiBlePTkM/s400/GG_5_GlassRamps_to_top.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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My initial plan was to build as many flat level platforms as possible for settlement building for Sim Settlements. However after building everything out, I realized I didn't want to clutter this space with repetitive immersion breaking NPC settlers. I got enough of them back in Sanctuary Hills and Taffington Boathouse. So I maintain Graygarden as a robot colony true to it's historic origins and plan to make the decks into a museum.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcWcm7wPa5bAvfWstl5lW6Y8LK_MHMqMqIarMUzZVxM2zom3h-2EhhClEeSsdDp8sDmus4BtsiOgxIjvFtwRLbEVG2awIz8eERzk8BK3kIsveC_BmLQlUGP489En5Z8PPE8te7WPKwveE/s1600/GG_6_TopDeck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1289" data-original-width="1289" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcWcm7wPa5bAvfWstl5lW6Y8LK_MHMqMqIarMUzZVxM2zom3h-2EhhClEeSsdDp8sDmus4BtsiOgxIjvFtwRLbEVG2awIz8eERzk8BK3kIsveC_BmLQlUGP489En5Z8PPE8te7WPKwveE/s400/GG_6_TopDeck.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Adding to my immersion, I kept getting hit with heavy radiation storms during construction and trusty Codsworth kept warning me "Radiation Mum". I could have just flipped the weather to clear but it was fun to build under adverse conditions popping all the Rad-X and Radaway I had stockpiled. The top deck displays some custom power armor and larger weaponry but most importantly I have a vertibird helipad for the Immersive Travel mod which I use for flying to Spectacle Island. I went a little overboard with decorative statues on top.</div>
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I also added a triple relay of elevators to get to the vertibird without having to ascend via the glass ramps. Sadly I wasted a few hours trying to fix the Bethesda floating elevator button bug trying 2 separate mods. It didn't fix it so I don't use the elevator much.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX-Z0ME9Tn0DWzUahAgbAJUEKCX6hbSmISxtnjbMxkK_4kUC5F5rWcuV2KD3jBLBhWfSdKyIBObOWg755eY0SJhOuT_ak7njzawn4OdNmQNytjqrLsEzlqpfzMyurh1Yp4J3hp0W81HpA/s1600/GG_8_elevator_toVertibird.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1244" data-original-width="827" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX-Z0ME9Tn0DWzUahAgbAJUEKCX6hbSmISxtnjbMxkK_4kUC5F5rWcuV2KD3jBLBhWfSdKyIBObOWg755eY0SJhOuT_ak7njzawn4OdNmQNytjqrLsEzlqpfzMyurh1Yp4J3hp0W81HpA/s640/GG_8_elevator_toVertibird.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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(You will have to take my solemn word that these photos do not do justice to the fun of exploring the actual site in VR. I had originally planned to make a video walkthrough of the site but I realize that my head bobs uncontrollably and since I move through teleportation, a video would be a most unpleasant jiggly experience for the viewer.)</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-27835462480221935692019-01-13T20:28:00.000-08:002019-01-14T00:45:10.112-08:00Enjoying Fishing in RDR2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpgtJoWtzNwB7K3awPDB4QC_Ue-XUXJ2ORtPPQpXWtpsLi6U4K5rPOlS0K-yS7Mb_oNfAR2eVI6YF5OgPHg6VajgApIWLkX7IBALNna4BWudkpKS4P04UOwUtBpKSp_uVj-_QyGyM1Ezo/s1600/RDR_Fish_muskie_201812012jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpgtJoWtzNwB7K3awPDB4QC_Ue-XUXJ2ORtPPQpXWtpsLi6U4K5rPOlS0K-yS7Mb_oNfAR2eVI6YF5OgPHg6VajgApIWLkX7IBALNna4BWudkpKS4P04UOwUtBpKSp_uVj-_QyGyM1Ezo/s320/RDR_Fish_muskie_201812012jpg.jpg" width="313" /></a>Fishing is a beautifully relaxing activity in the oft violent world of Arthur Morgan. I love how Arthur mumbles to himself while fishing- and this is when I identify with him most. I don't like straight up fishing games as much as fishing in character in an open world. I am the kind of player happy never to finish the main quest just to putter around in the game world with a fishing rod. I only made progress just to unlock the rod and the fishing boat in Chapter 3.<br />
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Before you can fish properly, evil Rockstar locks this activity behind a barricade of Chapter 2 missions where your Arthur is forced to undergo all manner of unpleasant violent gang work. I was so frustrated that Abigail's "Fisher of Men" quest would not appear that at one point I just shot a muskie with a pistol which works well as does a bow and arrow. Due to the water, the reticle will not turn red and auto-aim appears not to work but if you want Arthur to enjoy some grilled fish before the unlock, shooting fish is not a bad way to go.<br />
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My husband instead opted to off a fisherman for their rod. The first few times the fishing rod disappeared as the hapless body fell into water. You have to stealth assassinate a fisherman preferably close to the shore otherwise the fisherman will unequip the fishing rod with a gun. However getting a fishing rod will not unlock any of the bait from the general store and hence you can only fish with bread and cheese until you unlock "Fisher of Men" which lets you unlock "Fisher of Fish" for the special lures.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjukkrmXOrYt8lccBPXkD8pMIIMPVtnsUCVvjQhrI3aX3dAO_9iAtQZ7trK49LEVDYB_oHTaDKRptdqZ_vonGV34QmjSySSsi9z7wiC0nxAGDAdEeU4qQr-8GQe6mPciVUMPsn8OK6B38A/s1600/RDR_Fish_catfish+2_20181127214740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjukkrmXOrYt8lccBPXkD8pMIIMPVtnsUCVvjQhrI3aX3dAO_9iAtQZ7trK49LEVDYB_oHTaDKRptdqZ_vonGV34QmjSySSsi9z7wiC0nxAGDAdEeU4qQr-8GQe6mPciVUMPsn8OK6B38A/s320/RDR_Fish_catfish+2_20181127214740.jpg" width="320" /></a> One time I was mauled almost to death by a grizzly while trying to get to a salmon fishing spot. By the time I made it to the water, Arthurs back was bloody with slash marks but he went on gently mumbling and fishing as if nothing ever happened.<br />
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The game mechanic and strategy for reeling in all fish appear to be the same- controlling the line with L when the fish is struggling, fast reeling when not. You can easily see where fish are bubbling on the surface and there isn't a huge challenge. I've never screamed so much in game trying to reel in a big one as I did with this 19 pound channel catfish. Unfortunately RDR2 does not keep track of largest fish caught, only how many so one must take a proper snapshot as proof.<br />
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Returning caught fish back to the water gives you 1 good guy point making it a great activity to boost your reputation as perch are just jumping in shallow areas.<br />
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I whip out my fishing rod everywhere near a body of water. Try fishing in the polluted waters in Annesburg right outside the train station, you will be surprised Rockstar has added little details.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-88541458265952357422018-12-02T20:28:00.003-08:002018-12-02T20:52:57.864-08:00Fallacy of the Best Horse in Red Dead Redemption 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I see numerous youtube posts and gaming articles on "How to get the BEST horse for FREE" which invariably regurgitates steps of taming a white Arabian in the wild. But how can there be an objectively best horse when such designation depends on an individual's play style and the activities engaged in RDR2's vast open world. While the primary stats health/stamina/acceleration/speed are important, I personally find the secondary attribute of courage to impact my gameplay much much more. No amount of health and speed makes up for a horse bucking you directly into the path of bullgators, a grizzly, pack of wolves, or any other kind of predator that menace the landscape.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZbOb8K3-B1xSxX6RpW8tEfXl9rHrOAtjYgGP3XOOBtutdEjgOk2dhrlRO-tOWWhm83cHBWBEmsw9nyl6g4ZGHwdWW0KB82DP8pBNX8AEEKXuGbQieQwXcq-_oaP8hBb09rP6nK04pwB8/s1600/RDRArdennesStable.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZbOb8K3-B1xSxX6RpW8tEfXl9rHrOAtjYgGP3XOOBtutdEjgOk2dhrlRO-tOWWhm83cHBWBEmsw9nyl6g4ZGHwdWW0KB82DP8pBNX8AEEKXuGbQieQwXcq-_oaP8hBb09rP6nK04pwB8/s320/RDRArdennesStable.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Not that's a horse! Legs of an Ardennes totally look <br />like a prehistoric quadruped rather than a modern horse. </span> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I spend most of my time fishing in the Bayou and Arabians totally suck around gators, snakes, or any kind of predator. I spawned a white Arabian through the St. Denis glitch and I gladly sold this high-strung high maintenance beast for a few dollars after much exasperation. An Ardennes while a slow tank will tolerate gator country like a champ! Race horses spook easily even fully bonded and they will buck you straight into danger.<br />
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<b><i>Courage Stats</i></b></div>
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In game courage behavior appears not to be a consistent blanket attribute as listed in the RDR2 compendium but highly dependent on context. Horses as in real life behave differently under different stressful scenarios, i.e. a horse steady in combat can still spook easily around alligators. Even fully bonded, I've seen different horse reactions in these following types of stressful situations:</div>
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>human combat, shootouts</li>
<li>wild predators </li>
<li>traffic in town like St. Denis- I had an Arabian that was terrible around trolley traffic in St. Denis</li>
<li>in deep water crossing</li>
</ul>
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The official game courage levels seem incorrect. From the descriptions alone, it would appear War Horses have the highest levels of courage, followed by Half War horses like the Turkoman with race horses being the most skittish- however this not the case. Through experience and in Reddit chat- Arabians are reputedly extremely skittish but the Arabian is listed with the highest level of courage(6/10) while war horses have 5/10 or moderate level of courage. My husband proudly sticks by his Tennessee Walker(2/10) that he takes hunting everywhere and it does quite fine near alligators. Try to take an Arabian anywhere near gator country. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU7RAyjaPF98WFTmaFBnJmmEk7SYO3XoU5u9GbBuS1hZLyK4jJeDWWE9zsYZcBXferz5Cp8tCZySvM-Fo_a-Zt-icYTkxjWyUdkuokPZA_ebuAmApoJh01UUGb5CKXRTuLVGhhyphenhyphenW5pmCs/s1600/Horse+Courage.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="582" data-original-width="1192" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU7RAyjaPF98WFTmaFBnJmmEk7SYO3XoU5u9GbBuS1hZLyK4jJeDWWE9zsYZcBXferz5Cp8tCZySvM-Fo_a-Zt-icYTkxjWyUdkuokPZA_ebuAmApoJh01UUGb5CKXRTuLVGhhyphenhyphenW5pmCs/s640/Horse+Courage.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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Just as speed can differ for different coats of each breed, courage may vary as well and perhaps at the individual level. Even if the official courage ranking seems faulty, I listed the breeds by category ordered by the courage rating listed in the compendium. I've also added the compendium description in underlined quotes that pertains to courage below:<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<ul>
<li>Superior</li>
<ul>
<li> <a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/arabian">Arabian</a> (6/10 courage listed is highly dubious, just do a google search on "rdr2 arabian skittish")</li>
</ul>
<li>War </li>
<ul>
<li>Ardennes(5/10 courage) -"<u> This sturdy, brave breed handles well under pressure and will not become agitated while in combat. Ardennes horses are known for their well-built bodies as well as being <b><i><span style="color: #0b5394;">brave in combat situations</span></i></b>.</u>" This is the breed Rockstar added as a pre-order bonus.</li>
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<li>My fully bonded Strawberry Roan Ardennes is a perfectly dependable tank in combat, but he still bucked me when ambushed by a grizzly and a pack of wolves. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFPn2xikFIlCdNFt2iWyGucnc4jjF5nRnUIDG9ecYHRfWAbEwwMK45OvzzbhlHKJI-G4LBK26OaiT1HCWgHPMTTeMf3czlCcpxeXFmSWG51ykreq7L0M_rirshFuWIrxsaKKONnoA70M/s1600/RDRArdennesStrawberry.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFPn2xikFIlCdNFt2iWyGucnc4jjF5nRnUIDG9ecYHRfWAbEwwMK45OvzzbhlHKJI-G4LBK26OaiT1HCWgHPMTTeMf3czlCcpxeXFmSWG51ykreq7L0M_rirshFuWIrxsaKKONnoA70M/s400/RDRArdennesStrawberry.jpg" width="327" /></a></li>
</ul>
<li>Andalusian (courage not listed) - listed as the only breed called out for courage in hunting. "<u>This breed of horse is courageous and will not be spooked easily. Andalusian breed of horses are tough and aggressive in nature which makes them <span style="color: #351c75;"><b><i>perfect for hunting.</i></b></span></u> "</li>
<li>Hungarian Halfbred (courage not listed) - "<u>renowned for its fearlessness making them perfect for loud and dangerous situations</u>" </li>
</ul>
<li>War/Race</li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/turkoman">Turkoman</a>(5/10)- "<u>Turkoman is a multi-class horse with characteristics that make it perfect for racing and combat."</u></li>
<ul>
<li>My fully bonded silver turkoman is fantastic for combat but I have been bucked during predator attacks by grizzlies/wolves/bullgators. Turkomans also do not like being near gators.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<li>War/Work</li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/mustang">Mustang</a>(5/10) -"<u>They have traits of both work and war horses, so are strong and will not be easily frightened. This loyal and bold breed of horse are invaluable in combat situations.</u>"</li>
</ul>
<li>Race/Work</li>
<ul>
<li>Missouri Fox Trotter(5/10) - some conflicting reddit threads mentioning how easily it spooks, or alternatively how it's braver than an Arabian. In truth, anything with 4 legs is less skittish than an Arabian.</li>
</ul>
<li>Draft: </li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/shire">Shire</a> (4/10)</li>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/suffolk-punch">Suffolk Punch </a>(4/10)</li>
</ul>
<li>Work</li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/american-paint">American Paint</a> (4/10)</li>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/dutch-warmblood">Dutch Warmblood</a> (courage not listed)</li>
<li>Appaloosa</li>
</ul>
<li>Race</li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/american-standardbred">American Standardbred</a> (2/10) - "can be frightened by loud noises"</li>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/nokota">Nokota</a>(2/10) - definitely easily spooked esp. around gators. </li>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/thoroughbred">Thoroughbred</a>(2/10)</li>
</ul>
<li>Riding</li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/tennessee-walker">Tennessee Walker</a> (2/10) - even with this low courage rating, my husband plays exclusively with Tennessee Walkers and they seem do fine in combat and around gators.</li>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/morgan">Morgan</a> (1/10)</li>
<li><a href="https://socialclub.rockstargames.com/games/rdr2/compendium/horses/kentucky-saddler">Kentucky Sadler </a>(1/10)</li>
</ul>
</ul>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Appearance - Size, Coat, Shape, Neck Girth, Gait, etc...</h3>
<div style="text-align: left;">
More than 50% of game play is trotting around on your steed. You will be consistently staring at your horses head, rear, haunches, and tail more than any other rendered objects in the game. There's no shame in choosing a horse for it's looks in a video game.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Although I had spawned the super rare Tiger Striped Mustang, it just looked too out of place and I traded it away for a Turkoman.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Arthur never looked right on the Arabian- just too "My Little Pony", too bad the stables don't offer rainbow mane. </div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
My Own Stables</h3>
Currently I rotate between the following 4 horses:</div>
<br />
Silver Turkoman - really a magnificent beast- too good for Arthur but this horse does not do well around predators.<br />
<br />
Strawberry Roan Ardennes War Horse - handles like a tank but great for something steady around<br />
the Bayou near alligators.<br />
<br />
Reverse Dapple Roan Nokota - One of the fastest in game (7 speed 5 acceleration), it's actually a lot of fun to ride but spooks easily. Low health and stamina(3/3) were less of an issue.<br />
<br />
Nokota Blue Roan - I am partial to his blushing pink nose, and even traded in an Arabian, Tiger Striped Mustang for this low stat Nokota. I want to trade him in for an Adalusian but can't find the heart to sell him.<br />
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-51693377183659309872018-11-29T18:02:00.003-08:002019-01-28T14:57:32.630-08:00GTX 1080ti with eGPU A Waste of $1000<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVBANLsl-Ormti2VJ08xhNgkiFMOzNxY96G7hSwIWbhZkJOU1yz-DzjQ6PcKNbc72RhUpNhO3gUZNP2Rk5LoXxkeABSfwZ58YXSCH4_kJQEPGyyhTZna3SpSCvIBToZVUKbeCYgdqoZAg/s1600/IMG_20180927_133149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVBANLsl-Ormti2VJ08xhNgkiFMOzNxY96G7hSwIWbhZkJOU1yz-DzjQ6PcKNbc72RhUpNhO3gUZNP2Rk5LoXxkeABSfwZ58YXSCH4_kJQEPGyyhTZna3SpSCvIBToZVUKbeCYgdqoZAg/s320/IMG_20180927_133149.jpg" width="320" /></a>After finally getting my grubby little paws on a GTX 1080ti, I was sorely sorely disappointed I had set myself up so hard. When you plunk down a sizeable outlay of gold for just a GPU, you really have to ask yourself honestly, how much more enjoyment will you reap on a speedier GPU. And the answer now I surprise myself with is "not that much more". Considering that I now spend most of my precious gaming time on a PS4 with Red Dead Redemption 2, I guess my gaming life would have been just as rich had I stuck with my serviceable GTX 1070. I upgraded in preparation for the Pimax 5K+, but I realize the OG Vive is still lots of fun. But really, I ain't got no time to be under a helmet when RDR2 is so fabulous.</div>
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SkyrimVR is unstable as before- crashing in 30 min intervals. Still can't have Apachii Divine Elegance Store, no bikini armor- can't have anything nice... (Actually I don't approve of bikini armors but I'd like to have these mods ready in case male friends visit and want to see the full charm of modded Skyrim.) But my SkyrimVR problems are not GPU related- it must be the aging Bethesda engine not meant to run 200+ mods despite having 11GB vRAM. It falls over even before it reaches 9GB use. Probably I need a clean character build but after 300 hours of grind, I loathe the thought of starting over.</div>
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Yes I can run with much higher 2x SS settings. I can run ENBs now but this is not reason enough for $1000. Stuff looks somewhat better than a 1070(though the Vive Gear VR lens swap made the biggest difference in clarity), but I realize I was utterly enraptured with the magical fantasy world of SkyrimVR even before this upgrade.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVIgL4Rt83TMGOGQLcSte0R0WiV60g-l6RbXID4w3lArpwIWBbejKPpsKUzVdl3feL-Wsc7ZZR_7Lid9z2qD3vYOUsoh_MD-pLEgHPUvKnkDQfY2TiYOs0Fe3kcAiuOAFGTqyDPvQnkg0/s1600/IMG_20180925_123927.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVIgL4Rt83TMGOGQLcSte0R0WiV60g-l6RbXID4w3lArpwIWBbejKPpsKUzVdl3feL-Wsc7ZZR_7Lid9z2qD3vYOUsoh_MD-pLEgHPUvKnkDQfY2TiYOs0Fe3kcAiuOAFGTqyDPvQnkg0/s320/IMG_20180925_123927.jpg" width="240" /></a>Kingdom Come Deliverance definitely needed the extra horse power to run 4K, otherwise the stuttering really ate into immersion. But playing at 1080p was still enjoyable. 4K Witcher 3 runs amazing with 1080ti, but I was still amazed even with lower fps. My $1000 lesson is that raw GPU speed may not take your enjoyment that much further because it's engaging game play and not the most hyper realistic detail that will win your imagination. I grew up on 8 bit games, even text based ASCII RPG games which were strangely thrilling. And now that I've been completely absorbed in Red Dead Redemption on a dinky PS4(1.84 Teraflops) while my 1080ti(11.3 Teraflops) dusts away, I happily realize I have no need to upgrade to an RTX.<br />
<br />
From a technical point of view, I am still impressed you can run a laptop with an external GPU. Probably the best part of this upgrade is keeping the core laptop motherboard cool.</div>
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-55877515691611733032018-09-26T10:58:00.000-07:002019-01-31T12:17:00.354-08:00GPU Upgrade: Agonizing over RTX 2080ti vs 1080ti<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>TLDR- Alienware AGA with EVGA 1080ti SC2(with EVGA open option to upgrade in 3 months)</i><br />
<br />
In the fall of 2016, I treated myself to a new Alienware 17 R4 with a GTX 1070 after limping along a few months with my HTC Vive on a subpar GPU. This R4 has been a champ for most VR games in the last two years until I started modding SkyrimVR heavily. I don't need buttery performance on pancake 4k games- I enjoy amazing artistry and story telling so much on the Witcher 3 I haven't actually noticed the suboptimal fps. However low frame rates and reprojection in a high-action VR game is not just a buzz kill- the ensuing nausea kills the session and queasiness lingers enough to avoid VR for days. Also I spend hours agonizing over my load list and cutting mods when I want to try out new mods.<br />
<br />
I could cut out all those greedy Skyrim mods- who needs realistic rope and individual straws in hay bales anyways or... Or I could get on the treadmill of nextgen hardware upgrades. With Pimax 8K headsets coming up and with the sale of new RTX gpus, I had sweet sweet visions of prancing around Skyrim with 200 degree FOV in second generation VR gear.<br />
<br />
One ponders heavily the wisdom of spending thousands to get realistic immersive virtual grass. Gamers are often in a spectrum of spend guilt. I personally am a huge believer in video games as a positive force for growth and development. I had some dubious mental calculation about never having wasting money on cable TV- this must have saved at least $10K in the last 10 years. I also had dutifully saved up some septims to buy the Vive Pro which just didn't seem worth the effort.<br />
<br />
My decision tree went something like this.<br />
1. I need more VRAM(because 4K environment textures DO make a difference) and that would only be GTX 1080ti or RTX 2080ti with 11GB over the standard 8GB.<br />
2. A bigger fork deciding over a brand new spanking desktop or use a external gpu on my Alienware R7.<br />
<br />
<b>New Box or eGPU?</b><br />
My hard working husband(so sweet guy) who knows how much I love marveling in a VR fantasy world has offered to buy me a top of the line Alienware Area 51 with the RTX of choice. Area 51 currently comes with with an RTX 2080 OC (overclocked mode) with the 2080ti probably coming out later in the year when the supply of 2080ti increases. The only reason I stick by Dell and Alienware instead of building a custom rig is for the 5 year support plan since these beast gaming machines are more prone to failure. I've only had to replace the motherboard once in the last 2 years.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Alienware AGA vs Thunderbolt eGPU</b><br />
It was time to call in the AGA(Alienware Graphics Amplifier) option. AGA hands down is faster than thunderbolt 3 since has direct dedicated connection to the motherboard unlike the thunderbolt 3 which has to share the PCIe switch.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>RTX 2080ti vs GTX 1080ti</b><br />
Obviously if money was not an issue and one could get your hands on a RTX 2080ti, you would spare your brain cells of the excruciating price to enjoyment analysis. Although such funds are ample in my piggy bank, I totally frown on paying the "must have latest greatest gpu" premium charged in the first months of a gpu's initial release. On getting a 2080ti, I don't believe my future enjoyment of future games will have that much to do with ray tracing or DLSS.<br />
<br />
If I think of the most amazing games I have ever played in the last 10 years and some of them not even 3D like Samarost 3, hardware ray tracing in no way would enhance these games. But also triple AAA publishers- those who have the budget to potentially take advantage of the RTX, may not take the risk in something so proprietary for NVidia that requires such expensive gpus. Game companies have to sell to the widest audience - that includes consoles which have no hope of hardware ray tracing in the next few years. The GTX 1080ti which is still almost ~50% better than my 1070 but may be barely adequate for a Pimax. There is the overhead loss of course of 10-15% in not directly plugging into the motherboard but 1080ti upgrade seemed a good compromise.<br />
<br />
(Update- at launch, it wasn't exactly clear what DLSS was and finding out about it, it's even worse than I thought and totally useless for most of the games out. The game developers have to send in "data" to Nvidia to have them crunch the data through hyper expensive NVIDIA's DGX SaturnV supercomputing cluster to build a learning model. DLSS demos really show subpar results esp. with images having text- not great for VR. Games I play- heavily modded games, older titles, and indy games- will never have RTX version of DLSS nor could it. DLSS is misleading since it's upscaling from 1080p. DLSS2 is running 4k native. Not clear how it would impact VR games since none has been modified and foveated rendering is a better solution. )<br />
<br />
<b>Proprietary Alienware Graphics Amplifier vs Thunderbolt eGPU</b><br />
No brainer to get the proprietary Alienware AGA external gpu chassis over a Thunderbolt eGPU. The AGA has separate dedicated bus on the Alienware R4 instead of the Thunderbolt which would share the PCI lanes including network. Plus the AGA was on sale for $159 on Dell.<br />
<br />
<b>MSI vs Gigabyte vs EGVA- form factor, thermals, noise, etc...</b><br />
Even when one decides on a gpu, you still have to go through the gauntlet of graphics board selection. MSI, Gigabyte, EVGA were the 3 aftermarket manufacturers I considered due to their improved cooling systems. There is the problem with form factor as the AGA chassis allows for only 2 slot cards and MSI/Gigabyte had 2.5 slots. I read on the board the 2.5 slot cards do fit but you cannot fully close the top and I didn't want my board being prey to dust. <br />
<br />
The clincher was <i>EVGA's upgrade program</i> so if I wanted to jump to a 2080ti in the next 3 months, I still had the happy option to plunk down an extra $500 to do so.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF5-Rj8faE83V1DJrQsLt0PvWK5zEhPMlb7EojfXkTJJPO_dvTUxZlU3rOn3m9GTGnVbimguRnKHk3tm3NTMbiX6Qmbdvc6cngHGS4NiY45o0cgUZvLxwlDgT-kUfxIRV9o6gENVpurs0/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-09-26+at+11.08.43+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="379" data-original-width="525" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF5-Rj8faE83V1DJrQsLt0PvWK5zEhPMlb7EojfXkTJJPO_dvTUxZlU3rOn3m9GTGnVbimguRnKHk3tm3NTMbiX6Qmbdvc6cngHGS4NiY45o0cgUZvLxwlDgT-kUfxIRV9o6gENVpurs0/s320/Screen+Shot+2018-09-26+at+11.08.43+AM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
<b>Which EVGA 1080ti Model: SC2 vs FTW3?</b><br />
Even when you chose EVGA 1080ti, you still have the final and last gauntlet of model options, FTW3 SC, SC2, Black Edition GAMING, SC2 Hybrid... careful weighing of cooling options ICX Cooling vs ICX Technology, 2 fan vs 3 fan. I opted for ICX SC2 Gaming which had the 2 fan smaller form factor but still the 9 temp sensors and asynchronous fans. You can see gamer nexus deep breakdown here:<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>https://www.gamersnexus.net/hwreviews/2900-evga-1080-ti-ftw3-review-vs-sc2-gaming-x-xtreme-aorus/page-3</li>
</ul>
<b>Who to Buy from: Amazon vs Newegg</b><br />
The final hurdle- where to buy this EVGA 1080ti SC2 Gaming. I looked on Amazon and one of the reviewers said be weary of used cards in crypto mining that had been returned and repackaged. I decided to buy it from a place with a stringent GPU return policy so I bought it non-refundable directly from newegg(and not an affiliate vendor).<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-24788440828739601252018-07-10T14:38:00.001-07:002019-11-24T15:07:25.984-08:00SkyrimVR Player Home Mods<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; margin-bottom: 16px;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">The most interesting Skyrim real estate is not from the vanilla game but from the endless creativity of talented modders. Many of these mods are worth exploring as places in their own right if not for inhabiting and is often vastly superior to vanilla.</span></h2>
<h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; margin-bottom: 16px; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">
Portable Homes </span></h2>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; margin-bottom: 16px;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Modding allows for a different paradigm of callable homes encapsulated in an item in your inventory a la "I Dream of Jeannie". Some would consider this cheating but consider it essential for a true hoarder-n</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ever leave any dragon bones behind.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> Portable homes can be construed as lore friendly for a mage character. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/13764" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Staff of Shalidor</a>(++)<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">- </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> upside down fun, this innovative home on the ball of a staff has a well-lighted yet cosy interior making it a pleasant escape after the trauma of melee combat in a dark dungeon. This mod really helped ease the dreariness of Alfthand during the long slog to Blackreach. Also</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> you can hear the rain and weather from your last location giving you a lovely immersive connection the the outside. My husband was quite catty- "What- your staff just hangs out rigid while you disappear". Hrrmmf. It enters a magical plane if you must know.</span></li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/15752/">HavenBag - Dwemer conversion</a> (+++)- Call at your whim a deluxe spacious bachelor pad with ample weapons racks, hot tub, all the usual amenities for smithing and enchanting, oven for baking replete with a fully loaded pantry. Dwemer architecture does make it feel more like a museum and lacks the coziness of the Staff of Shalidor but the spaciousness is calming after combat in dreary dungeons and caves. I am able to bring Meeko here and hence this is my main portable home. (The original <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2809">Haven Bag</a> is an interior of a leather bag but I chose the Dwemer version so home does not feel too crammed and cluttered.)</span></li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/13372">Campfire Cabin</a> - craft and plunk down a cabin anywhere. Allows you to also craft a portable enchanting station so I can do most of my stuff outside. (Requires Campfire another fine mod.)</span></li>
</ul>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Castles, Megahomes, Villages</span></h4>
<div>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmdqIs-6eEhlQUGDLuuLnMpfhhJksoGpV4rgWx5TBdoun3VJcaRQGbqX-0DKfDVTOjyhO1zdFtXl3i2bNUl2yk31oUozXBpRwVWT5-HzzL6P7dsort9cleyjI89CNu4ZGEj374HN6-jM/s1600/201806InigoAtTelNalta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixmdqIs-6eEhlQUGDLuuLnMpfhhJksoGpV4rgWx5TBdoun3VJcaRQGbqX-0DKfDVTOjyhO1zdFtXl3i2bNUl2yk31oUozXBpRwVWT5-HzzL6P7dsort9cleyjI89CNu4ZGEj374HN6-jM/s320/201806InigoAtTelNalta.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/18680">Tel Nalta II</a> (+++)</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> my all time favorite SSE mod which lets you build a full fledged Tel Vanni mushroom village. The mod comes with an optional cheat chest with materials needed to build out the village. I didn't know this and it was great fun running around Skyrim gathering materials for the first few pods. This merits a post all it's own. TBD </span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: pre;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/7207">Antennaria</a> - </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: normal;">enough magical feels to satisfy any fantasy nerd. Artistically this is probably the loveliest bedroom in all of Tamriel nestled in a ferny overgrown grotto.</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/4751">Aemer’s refuge</a> - tremendous castle with a double dragon fight to win the right to enter. Mod also places rune passage ways which can be activated from vanilla homes. </span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2692">Leveler’s Tower</a> - it's a massive cheat castle but way too fun not to explore to behold sights not in vanilla- a massive basement farm worked by dwemer spiders, a fight arena where you can spawn battles, the list goes on. </span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
</ul>
</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Functional Useful Homes</span></h3>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWmMv61KK2k_tCmhGQ3xRMPR1AenvIh3-k1vnkmYO8DJ6LUjM8Qv9o4aXmUY9X9tmXKCttSFEnccPdfyT7a_Wtc1b2c2nufPpaSCyvvJUN89w68yaw-xTvPe3uZhyphenhyphenl9NhqBNOFY_E8j5E/s1600/SmithingRuska.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1459" data-original-width="1458" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWmMv61KK2k_tCmhGQ3xRMPR1AenvIh3-k1vnkmYO8DJ6LUjM8Qv9o4aXmUY9X9tmXKCttSFEnccPdfyT7a_Wtc1b2c2nufPpaSCyvvJUN89w68yaw-xTvPe3uZhyphenhyphenl9NhqBNOFY_E8j5E/s320/SmithingRuska.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quiet smithy with a lake view</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Ruska in Riften</b> (+++)</span><br />
<div>
<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Placed conveniently near Honeyside's back door. I use Ruska as my base to do my smithing outdoors overlooking Riften lake. Balimund is a nice guy and all but Khajit needs quiet space to create the best armor and weapons. Ruska is an Elianora house and as such has all her signature facilities of named storage. I actually use </span><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/6601" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Hearth Craft </a><span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to make a portable enchanting station which I've hid(troll skull) next to the ore chest so I can do smithing and enchanting all outside. When I had knee surgery, I did all my smithing and enchanting sitting here enjoying the great outdoors.</span><br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<b><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/9710/" style="white-space: pre;">Mammoth Manor</a><span style="color: #24292e; white-space: pre;"> near Lake Ilinalta (+++)</span></b></h3>
The two story manor is spacious enough for a gang of followers and the open two story living room layout allows you to keep ready tabs on everyone. There is an ample armory downstairs. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimN3pYa7sHuA80T3meVFthxHPPj835Ll1c1NMas2voXcLZYUzsD0UWmzAP7CgdoP-vEcrBJPlaJ8FzvdtNAJQsRLKc6F71Yw8glzmh3vKAxxelXSLi5m7GBNa_KUNgSTHF6t_0rZ_KX7M/s1600/MammothInterior.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="561" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimN3pYa7sHuA80T3meVFthxHPPj835Ll1c1NMas2voXcLZYUzsD0UWmzAP7CgdoP-vEcrBJPlaJ8FzvdtNAJQsRLKc6F71Yw8glzmh3vKAxxelXSLi5m7GBNa_KUNgSTHF6t_0rZ_KX7M/s640/MammothInterior.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div>
Also this property comes with a separate Nord sauna down the hill by the lake's edge. Be careful, it auto strips you and anyone else if you enter the sauna inside the cabin. You do have to prove your worth to own this abandoned piece of real estate.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdVlmhExDMP0ybz9SI85jzAp8pj9xyfLTmnoqXT8peu4efNPgdnsFsZaXyq5Oo1bT3hephjXztCf6Do92b4SAzb5wO2GnqyUA1tgk9TK1LKFzn0LIEs060qHbr6z2LF3FDb0oIGCESRcg/s1600/MAmmothManor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdVlmhExDMP0ybz9SI85jzAp8pj9xyfLTmnoqXT8peu4efNPgdnsFsZaXyq5Oo1bT3hephjXztCf6Do92b4SAzb5wO2GnqyUA1tgk9TK1LKFzn0LIEs060qHbr6z2LF3FDb0oIGCESRcg/s400/MAmmothManor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mammoth tusks thematically everywhere</td></tr>
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<a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/17247" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hermit's Stump</a><span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">
A hidden retreat on the way to Ivarstead, it's worth visiting at least once. This is where I do my mushroom farming as this mod has more Hearthfire plantable spots than anywhere. Probably one could mix this with Cannabis Skyrim for that Humboldt feeling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">AirBNB - casual stays when near the area</span></h3>
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/11989/" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Telmos</a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> mushroom house on the way to Ivarstead, I love the look of the skyline near the waterfall with this house.</span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Wind Path - remote refuge next to a waterfall. You can stroll up the mountain path to the troll cave for some rather decent loot. Don't try to wash your hands or play the lute yourself in VR as this goes to black screen.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/10860/" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Viking Long House</a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> - across the docks in Windhelm when I am forced to quest in that overly Nord Nord land</span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1420/" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Leafrest</a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> in Riverwood</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Hobbit Homes</b></span></div>
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<li style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1420/">Island Hobbit Home</a> - this is probably the most hobbity of the bunch. Warning If you don't have SKSE, you will get a weird green blank mesh in the alchemy room instead of the potting station.</span></div>
</li>
<li style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/14624">Hobbiton</a> - exterior and the foundry are beautifully done and others rooms could do with a little more work. The layout is spacious with a lot of bookshelves making the open floor plan useful if you have an army of followers.</span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJGNq_bnER7Xh-pebpM1M0475SCu7tgp7l-nqaxqE6pkdNzWL4QP_gchhXd8L4g8KkN4AWkNoQnH_EbQHPR6akOE2Ik9em7XiPHhgrz72r8X92I5uHfxhByBBzo2ZYqRISv5itJDtsJi4/s1600/HobbitHouse.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="342" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJGNq_bnER7Xh-pebpM1M0475SCu7tgp7l-nqaxqE6pkdNzWL4QP_gchhXd8L4g8KkN4AWkNoQnH_EbQHPR6akOE2Ik9em7XiPHhgrz72r8X92I5uHfxhByBBzo2ZYqRISv5itJDtsJi4/s400/HobbitHouse.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
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<li style="list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1331/">Marnya</a> - little ho hum exactly as the author intended and shares the world space with Hobbiton, I'd rather have Hobbiton than Marnya</span></li>
</ul>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Improvements to Vanilla Homes, Hearthfire Homes</span></h4>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Riften Honeyside is my home base and I keep it unmodded just to have a completely vanilla home to do clean saves. However most of the vanilla homes lack a loving home touch as Bethesda did the bare minimum. It's almost as if the guy that does bandit camps also did the homes </span><span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">and just perfunctorily put few items on each surface and called it a day.</span></div>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/9626/">Breezehome by Lupus</a> - not too over the top</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Breezehome Porch- make use of the front unused space</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lakeview Extended- builds a full fortified compound out of this Falkreath Hearthfire home. Made by the same author as the excellent Tel Nalta.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #24292e; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lakeview Extended Basement</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/4397/" style="font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol";">Proudspire</a><span style="color: #24292e; font-family: , , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif , "apple color emoji" , "segoe ui emoji" , "segoe ui symbol";"> - I had to slay so many necromancers to get this ugly uncomfortable home. Figures Bethesda would make the most expensive home in Skyrim the worst. This mod makes Proudspire at least a little more livable but Solitude is my least favorite city and I'd rather not have to overnight in Proudspire.</span></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
</h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Rejected Homes</h3>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Skyrim modded real estate is vast and I've downloaded 30+ more home mods and removed them for one reason or another and will note them here at least to remind myself.</span><br />
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</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-76645760088707060712018-07-10T14:30:00.006-07:002020-08-27T16:18:57.214-07:00My Current Skyrim VR Mod List not including Homes<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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(<a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/2018/07/skyrim-player-home-mods.html">Home mods are listed here</a>)<br />
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Mods are what makes skyrim an endless wonder of replay-ability keeping this creaky 8 year old growing and vibrant. Amazingly, a community of devoted Skyrim enthusiasts are still adding to the world's largest library of game mods which change Skyrim in diverse and unimaginable ways. One of the true joys of playing skyrim is reshaping the game world to fit one's peculiarities and I've probably spent more time modding than actual game play. But with 18,000+ mods, it takes time investment to separate out what will really enhance your gameplay. My preferred mods listed here are family friendly i.e. no MXR/LL kinky stuff, this is not to say there is anything wrong with that per say but I am striving for a naturally immersive 4k realm.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivpegHT-Fhbm272R2psbx1upZUFKDInz-ft4Eydz4Jzboh96k151rlgSUwIrbn92XQZDm21kpp5KVhWIA8WGTlpjMry_qOFrXhJOle-wtYuY3PoNPnCSsK5wFi1szwLMDEa5bRDO8WvTc/s1600/DevAveza.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivpegHT-Fhbm272R2psbx1upZUFKDInz-ft4Eydz4Jzboh96k151rlgSUwIrbn92XQZDm21kpp5KVhWIA8WGTlpjMry_qOFrXhJOle-wtYuY3PoNPnCSsK5wFi1szwLMDEa5bRDO8WvTc/s400/DevAveza.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Being Attacked Boarding the Dev Aveza (Legacy of the Dragonborn)</td></tr>
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<br />For gamers who are just starting out, I would recommend adding just 2-3 mods for each play so they can get a feel for what the mod actually does. From a practical point of view, you want to debug and isolate incompatibilities and performance issues with small sets of changes. (<i>True story: When I first started as a clueless noob, I mass installed about 40 mods that I got off lists from the internet. Weirdly the bandit women kept showing up naked like mannequins without nipples whenever I would loot their armor. I didn't know if this was the original game or a mod but it was definitely a creepy immersion killer. I didn't know if I should install a lady skin mod like UNP to restore biologic correctness but I ended up slapping on the "Skyrim Modesty Mod" to allow the dead some dignity. It made more immersive sense that Tamriel's females- outlaw or not- would wear some form of underclothing in the chilly Nord climate. It turned out WICO was at fault and I had somehow missed the never nude selection.</i>)<br />
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Even if you have a powerful machine, you will break your game many times over by continually adding mods as you are building layers of instability on the original sand dunes that is the Bethesda Creation Engine. If you have just a middling machine- well then you will be spending a lot of time teetering off the edge and rolling back. Before my <a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/p/my-rigs.html">1080ti/i9-9900K upgrade</a>, my 1070/i7-6820HK Alienware would routinely crash and burn and debugging and pruning my mod list was just the cost of running mods.<br />
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But more importantly restraint is recommended for the following, think of mods like Christmas presents- don't open them all at once! Despite appearances, there is not an infinite supply of quality mods and it will be quite a long time til TES VI.<br />
<br />
I use about 200+ mods currently on a GTX 1080ti at 200% SS running at mostly 90 FPS. I try to point out the fps hogs when I can. The mods listed here are everyday mods exluding homes(<a href="https://2xvr.blogspot.com/2018/07/skyrim-player-home-mods.html">separate list</a>) or DLC sized ones like Project AHO& Falskaar. Anything I consider essential, I've marked with a rating of plusses with +++ being the most critical for me.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Essential Core</h4>
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<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/266">Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch</a>(+++) </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/8655/">SMIM Static Mesh Improvement Mod</a>(+++) </li>
</ul>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Utility/VR Mods</h4>
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<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Dragonborn Speaks Naturally(+++)- voice command is so much more immersive than scrolling through menus. I love the flexibility of pairing custom console commands. I should do a separate post on this but I started using this during the Dawnguard DLC. It is however a bit humiliating when your husband is tittering when he hears "Transform me into a vampire lord"...</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/20364">Haptic Skyrim</a> VR(+) - Haptic feedback for spellcasting, melee weapons and bow. I love the subtle vibration when pulling a bowstring</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/20394">showracemenu alternative</a>(+++) - nicer than having to use console command, I use it to fork my builds from time to time to make versions friends can try.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">vrmirror - Not just for vanity, I went out onto town with just wearing my loin cloth and got sniggered at. I</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/5804/">Quality World Map</a>(+++) - Take the blurriness out of the atrocious Bethesda map. IcePenguin I thank you!</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">no stagger in VR</li>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Mega-Mods</h4>
<div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/11802">Legacy of the Dragonborn</a>- A expansion mod so complex it has it's own wiki. LotD establishes a museum in Solitude and you can even start your own explorer guild. LotD is chock full of new quests and custom characters but there is a certain satisfaction in filling the halls with the loot of your adventures. The airship Dev Aveza is included.</li>
</ul>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Custom Voiced Followers</h4>
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<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px;">
<div style="font-size: 16px; font-weight: 400;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxVjhT59ppk5eJIlOFeYz58Zm0dLl4fysWijc2l5mcxQwZZpNDyevyJaJVUCD0xtRGYakL0i0bQ5lMQw9AyCahaU7hyeNJccQjRM4c3W4h164NUsBc52h6riF7RkHMgeXFw-dr3xS0Sw/s1600/Inigo.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1594" data-original-width="1184" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxVjhT59ppk5eJIlOFeYz58Zm0dLl4fysWijc2l5mcxQwZZpNDyevyJaJVUCD0xtRGYakL0i0bQ5lMQw9AyCahaU7hyeNJccQjRM4c3W4h164NUsBc52h6riF7RkHMgeXFw-dr3xS0Sw/s400/Inigo.jpg" width="295" /></a></div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Inigo(+++) - who doesn't love Inigo and his sometimes serious sometimes playful furry blue face! He's a bad ass archer, singer, poet, witty jokester with a complex tragic backstory. I love roaming the lands with a fellow Khajiit where he efficiently takes care of business- perhaps he is too overpowered with his ebony bow. You'll be impressed in the classy way he shows Nazeem who's who in the Whiterun market.</li>
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<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Lucien- This wimpy imperial intellectual and his hyper chatty hyper catty ways really grew on me. I love the way he sings behind me while we wander Skyrim. Lucien shines because he has so much dialog with vanilla and custom followers. He whispered to me quite seriously, "I think Inigo has fleas." But the way he will engage in conversation with you without you prompting his menu is fantastically immersive.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/16137">Hoth</a> - So much much more than a violent tank. (to be fleshed out later) However some of his obnoxious lines that are funny at first are too oft repeated. </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Kaidan 2 - I installed Kaidan2 as he and Lucien have custom banter with each other. I find Akiviri stuff just not as lore friendly but after I bust him out of prison from the Thalmor, I can't seem to kick him to the curb. </li>
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</h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
NPCs</h3>
<h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 16px;">
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<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">WICO(+++) - Windsong Immersive Character Overhaul- the most lore friendly overhaul out of the bunch to make NPCs look acceptable to 2015 standards. I preferred this over TCO. You will be shocked how horrible vanilla humans look after you get used to WICO. Careful in your install, you can get naked ladies if you don't choose correctly!</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">(Immersive) Amazing Follower Tweaks -Probably the first thing anybody does with AFT is to make Lydia dance. I use iAFT to keep it lore friendly paring down those party features. Careful, if you already have a standard follower you might want to dismiss them first. </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Immersive Citizens AI Overhaul - it's hard for me to tell what is RDO vs AIO but it's nice change having the denizens gasp and say "Dragonborn, it's an honor" instead of racist Khajiit putdowns.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Real Dialog Overhaul- RDO</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Modesty Mod- don't let those ladies go nude or show too much skin in the cold north. I don't know why I have this in my list except that when my Mom comes and visits, I'll going to put this on.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">My home is your home - doesn't work with Inigo but is useful to send your vanilla followers to specific homes if you have a large squad on call.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/8165/?tab=3&selected_game=1704&navtag=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nexusmods.com%2Fskyrimspecialedition%2Fajax%2Fmodimages%2F%3Fid%3D8165%26user%3D1%26gid%3D1704">Improved Meeko</a> - makes Meeko less crazy aggro and Meeko will stop attacking enemies on sight. I have command lines for everything but it's nicer to have it in one mod. Also I had a weird bug where Meeko was stuck in the bushes and this unstuck him.</li>
</ul>
</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Weapons - Armor - Gore</h3>
<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px;">
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/64440">Real Bows</a> (+++)- archery is the most believable combat mechanics in VR and deserves better and more functional looking bows. Forsworn bows with the double limb design are so beautiful, I've hung them up in almost every house I own.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-weight: 400;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymNtFWHCbTcxR118vV-k3RnsMML7rMMBcxjiq_9JWPEt_TeTmm8AbqvhORNaeQNyh9KUM7ua2QL_VVGs7VV-bQryNC-MEMrBp6gdI861Nlt4ia7G9NE-P82eWOWMwBMue4VxV61950OQ/s1600/Bpws.jpg"><img border="0" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymNtFWHCbTcxR118vV-k3RnsMML7rMMBcxjiq_9JWPEt_TeTmm8AbqvhORNaeQNyh9KUM7ua2QL_VVGs7VV-bQryNC-MEMrBp6gdI861Nlt4ia7G9NE-P82eWOWMwBMue4VxV61950OQ/s400/Bpws.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Ars Metallica - wouldn't smith without it.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Immersive Armors</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">LeanWolf's Better-Shaped Weapons</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Enhanced Blood - it's a bit too gory but I'm too lazy to make up my mind to remove it</li>
</ul>
</h3>
<div style="color: #24292e;">
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
</ul>
</div>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Weather/Environment</h4>
</div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 16px;">
</div>
<br />
<ul style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-family: times; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; padding-left: 2em; text-align: left; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cathedral Weathers(+++)- Currently using for a colder more diverse feel. </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strike>Climates of Tamriel</strike>(++) - Vivid Weathers was lovely but the snow and rain didn't feel believable and really killed your immersion. CoT has better snow and rain but tends to be much brighter than other weather mods. After playing for a month of gloomy overcast weather, I prefer sunny glare of CoT. (I disabled the enb preset as it was chewing up too much fps. <a href="http://enbdev.com/download_mod_tesskyrimvr.html">enb vr</a> )</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Pure Waters (Pure Waters looks much more realistic except for waterfalls. I took out RealisticWaterTwo which looked terrible at distance)</li>
<li>Ethereal Cosmos- gives night sky a more fantasy feel</li>
<li>Ethereal Clouds</li>
<li>Wet and Cold- frosty breath definitely gives immersion in cold weather. </li>
</ul>
<span style="font-size: large;">Textures/Models</span></div>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 16px;">
Adding 4K textures gives you a Diderot effect and surrounding low resolution textures will start offending your immersion senses forcing you to update everything.<br />
<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px;">
<div style="color: black; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2347">Skyrim 2017 Textures</a><span style="color: #24292e;">(+++)</span><span style="color: #24292e;"> </span> - Pfuscher provides a strong base.</li>
<li>Book Covers Skyrim SE(++)</li>
<li>RUSTIC EVERYTHING!!!</li>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/4703">Rustic Clothing</a> (++) - Not sure you would play without this. Otherwise the vanilla costumes can chafe your eyes.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/17228">Rustic Noble Furniture</a> </li>
<li>Rustic Windows</li>
<li>Rustic Daedra, Rustic Death Hound, Rustic Spriggan, Rustic Frostbite, Rustic Cooking</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/5436/">Rugnarok</a> - I wasn't going to waste the RAM and deinstall but everytime I look down and say "Damn, that's one fine rug"...</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5N6PjGn2J2W_U1-n9jDrx1Ko0DALf8V09aecIRmEUN9-Orjw3O8Zp7I-qytCIi-thjIfYp2RqQSkkj-dZHkjLnVgGFOCanxui5r4ww8tCWs6ep35XiS_2jRElKXBvTbMFgV98clJcI-k/s1600/20180713MeekoRugnarok.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1329" data-original-width="1257" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5N6PjGn2J2W_U1-n9jDrx1Ko0DALf8V09aecIRmEUN9-Orjw3O8Zp7I-qytCIi-thjIfYp2RqQSkkj-dZHkjLnVgGFOCanxui5r4ww8tCWs6ep35XiS_2jRElKXBvTbMFgV98clJcI-k/s400/20180713MeekoRugnarok.jpg" width="377" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meeko chilling out at Mammoth Manor- a fine house for followers to not get in your way</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Peltapalooza -same, everything gamwich makes is generally of the highest quality except this one I am slightly on the fence about. It's better than vanilla to be sure but not as immersive.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><strike><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/12029/">High Poly Project</a> </strike>- be amazed at the bristles in your broom, cabbages gone savoy. This one chews performance like nothing else, especially rendering all the rope in Riften. If you have the raw machine power of a 2080ti, waste it on this and see what it could be if you ramped up the polygons on useless clutter. I took it off to give more headroom to other mods but it was fun to have it for a month.</li>
</ul>
</div>
</h3>
<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
</ul>
</h3>
<h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
Creatures</h2>
<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px;">
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/4063/">BirdsAndFlocks</a> (++)- Seeing flocks scatter in the sky- guaranteed immersion for the first 12 times.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">SkyTEST - Realistic Animals and Predators - Adds puppies to Skyrim! Author really should stress this more. This mod overhauls animal behavior in a more realistic way, adds juveniles, other farm animals like pigs.</li>
</ul>
</div>
</h3>
<h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
Flora</h2>
<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px;">
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Skyrim Flora Overhaul</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">HQ Bark(++) - The best bark textures in VR gaming. However combo of SFP and HQ bark messes up LODs.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/8767/?tab=posts">Immersive Fallen Trees</a> - really does feel immersive to see giant trees fallen and making a bridge- I love running around Skyrim looking for them. </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/4423/">Realistic Aspen Trees</a> - adds oranges and reds for a true autumnal feel</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="http://hd%20photorealistic%20ivy/">HD Photorealistic Ivy</a>(++) - so real looking. I didn't think this would make a big difference in immersion but ivy is hanging more places than you think.</li>
</ul>
</h3>
<h3 style="color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">
Fun</h3>
</div>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGuBxTZ22Gep3INYFQI3vUeotd-FS9fb9udcSOV1WpZOqOok70L049yf9flzaSJqCEKZ_FeoPBAj0ogMjKKwJdgV2aWdc9XtVFxv38aJzVcnihFk2dQCNp5Pv0IGoZuP6UKreLfNNh53c/s1600/2018-06-08.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1028" data-original-width="1336" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGuBxTZ22Gep3INYFQI3vUeotd-FS9fb9udcSOV1WpZOqOok70L049yf9flzaSJqCEKZ_FeoPBAj0ogMjKKwJdgV2aWdc9XtVFxv38aJzVcnihFk2dQCNp5Pv0IGoZuP6UKreLfNNh53c/s320/2018-06-08.jpg" width="320" /></a>
<li>Campfire - camping in the wilds of Skyrim with your own dog has it's own unique charms. I don't go hardcore with any survival mods like Frostfall but just want to relax out in the woods.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/4953">Cannabis Skyrim</a> - Since I don't toke, I didn't think I wanted a lore unfriendly gag weed mod. However finally I ran out of mods to try and gave it a go. My god the textures on the hemp plants are of such high quality and the comic value huge! The shop Your Highness is a top class joint with so much attention to detail. This mod also allows you to plant weeds all over Skyrim so you can finally embark on your Johnny Appleweed project. Dynamic plant growth makes it fun.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/16475">Fishing in Skyrim VR</a> - Although the mechanics are a bit thin, it's still fun running around Skyrim to see what you can drag in with your net. Be careful where you throw your net. I got human remains along with empty wine bottles in the swamps of Morthal. Also mod let's you use a Dwemer bomb in the water- useful for getting rid of slaughterfish that's preventing fast travel. </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2303/">Become a Bard</a> - in VR you don't get to see animations or actually play the instrument, but it's still fun air-playing at inns or setting the soundtrack when you want some other lore friendly music. I actually got kind of nervous first time I played at the Winking Skeever but the crowd warmed up.</li>
</ul>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Cities & Roads</h3>
</div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/6289">JKs Skyrim</a>(++) - Vanilla cities are sparse- the more you play the more you will notice this lack of richness. JK's Skyrim fills out the cities without going over the top. JKS adds pulley system to Riften to move goods between the lower and upper levels, ladder on the roofs for thieves. (I uninstalled Dawn of Skyrim since I didn't like the non-immersive cartoony rats it added to Riften and I prefer JKS alone.)</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Kato's Whiterun with Trees(+++) - Making the trees much taller makes such a remarkable difference to make Whiterun into a believable old city. It's night and day.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Kato's Falkreath(+++)-tastefully done</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Magical College of Winterhold- b/c vanilla is not so magical...</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Skyrim Better Roads and Bridges</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Immersive Roads SSE</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1269">Beautiful Honey Signs</a></li>
</ul>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Audio</h3>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Immersive Sounds</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Audio Overhaul</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">No Bee Sounds+++ - I made the mistake of having a greenhouse in Hearthfire DLC and the buzz was obnoxiously loud. I was able to install the Skyrim version without trouble.</li>
</ul>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Other Immersion and Miscellaneous</h3>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Less Dragons++ - When you sigh when you hear the shrieks from the sky and the dramatic combat music. Dragon encounters should be a rare event. When you realize you have 50 dragon souls and not enough shouts to fill, it's time to turn that down.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/16280">Realistic Boat Travel</a> - the less fast travel you do, the more immersive the game becomes</li>
</ul>
<h2 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; margin-bottom: 16px; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Dawnguard DLC</span></h2>
<div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Grave Gargoyles SE</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Vampire Lord Retextured(Demonic)- sadly you can't see your bad ass vampire lord self, only when Lord Harkon transforms. </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">CC's Fort Dawnguard Reborn</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Northfire's Castle Volkihar</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">CC Fort Dawnguard Reborn 4k</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">FranklyHD Dawngaurd Armor and Weapons</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Clear Refracting Icicle and Frost Atronach</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Serana Dialog Edit</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">(For characters, WICO)</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h4 style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; margin-bottom: 16px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">
Reverted Mods</span></h4>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px;">
Ones which caused too much grief with incompatibility:</div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">Open Cities - it never quite worked and prevented others like JK Skyrim from working</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box;">EnhancedLightsandFX - early on I had so much mod conflicts that I just took it </li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><strike>BirdsOfSkyrim</strike> - Deinstalled due to scripting issues. I liked seeing diverse birds, and the airborn birds are fantastic. But sometimes birds are floating inches off the ground or doing glitchy things killing immersion. Also left hundreds of unattached scripts that needed cleaning.</li><li style="box-sizing: border-box;">footprints - performance problems</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span face="" style="color: #24292e;"><br /></span><span face="" style="color: #24292e;">I know plenty of people love and use the above mods but I just had so many issues with the rest of my mod list that I decided to go without.</span><br />
<span face="" style="color: #24292e;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="color: #24292e;">Mods too GPU greedy:</span></div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/14601/">Verdant - Altered Forest Grass </a>- I could see I'd want to take screenshots with these but the stutter makes VR nausea-inducing. Maybe if I get my next gen GPU, save up that money for the RTX 2080ti.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">ENB- I decided that I'd rather have higher SS at 200% with 4k textures rather than have ENB.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">KS Hairdo's - I thought it was a performance killer but I had to massively prune my list when the build became unstable.</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #24292e;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #24292e;">Rejected out of personal preference</span></div>
<div>
<ul style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #24292e; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-left: 2em;">
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/2429">Lanterns Of Skyrim</a> - added too many lanterns throughout the realm making it unnaturally bright and killing immersion of the dark night</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;"><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1037/" rel="nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #0366d6;">Total Character Makeover</a> -TCO characters looked too video gamey and samey. WICO NPC makeovers just looked more natural and lore friendly.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Cathedral Plants - looked great in the flat images but in VR, did not look as natural as the other human made 4k plant textures.</li>
<li style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0.25em;">Noble Skyrim </li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5583686152865184624.post-83868834899552829222018-07-03T21:13:00.001-07:002019-06-01T22:14:32.969-07:00SkyrimVR Tourism<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div>
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">People lollygag in Skyrim for hundreds of hours for very different reasons. I made this list to figure out how to introduce friends to SkyrimVR in less than 2 hours to give them the highlights of Skyrim.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Don't forget to toggle combat(tcai) for your tourist if they don't want to be constantly attacked.)</span></span></div>
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Cities Tour </h2>
<div>
Places anyone can go via fast travel or lore friendly carriage:</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><b>Markarth</b> - nothing beats that epic dwemer fantasy feel of a visit to the westernmost corner of Skyrim after the rather humble Nord settlements. Since this is a vertical city with a lot of staircase jumping- let visitors know they should move rather slowly or risk getting motion sick. The interior buildings are a bit ho-hum so this is a city best enjoyed from the outside with the exception of <a href="https://elderscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Nchuand-Zel_Excavation_Site">Nchuand-Zel Excavation Site</a> accessible from Understone Keep. Also don't be afraid to jump in the water to gather alchemy supplies (but don't let anyone queasy see the dead body in a cage). Also walking out of the city gates and heading north following the river is a pretty jaunt. Note you may get attacked by the fierce Forsworn who at best have some cool looking skull laden gear to loot. Warning, stone beds at the Silver-Blood Inn definitely are not that comfortable. Dwemer Museum is a total let down.</li>
<li><b>Riften</b> - After the drab grey hues of Skyrim, the warm yellow aspens of Riften give you such a cosy feel of a pretty fishing village. Casual tourists need not be burdened with the dark side of Riften though the doings of the mead mafia family or the Thieves Guild in the Ratway may be of interest. Be careful tourists don't inadvertently enter Honorhall Orphanage if you didn't finish the Innocence Lost quest. Honeyside is my first home base and favorite livable city despite it's seamy corrupt underside. Riften skies at night is a special treat. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlLrtXicCVu2u_Z96DfrlQz0BQJRQceQ9fbymXFI0hNj67PZhATzXLzmuaNgyx8R204CjhpC188qERC03RpWWOLpXH9F4gxStg6fHwIHMhSw58hsEzfrOrEdi0P9LtfaR2rD-9CzUfC2w/s1600/RiftenAtNight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: arial; font-size: 14.6667px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; white-space: pre-wrap;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlLrtXicCVu2u_Z96DfrlQz0BQJRQceQ9fbymXFI0hNj67PZhATzXLzmuaNgyx8R204CjhpC188qERC03RpWWOLpXH9F4gxStg6fHwIHMhSw58hsEzfrOrEdi0P9LtfaR2rD-9CzUfC2w/s320/RiftenAtNight.jpg" width="320" /></a></li>
<li><b>Whiterun</b> - I remember being quite impressed by the grand hall of Dragonsreach after emerging from the provincial backwaters of Helgen and Riverwood. I first got the LOTR horse lords of Rohan vibe here from the architecture. Also one could get rid of Heimskr for a more peaceful visit. But the real charm of Whiterun is being insulted by Nazeem or Braith for which you only need to hang out in the markets. No one does annoying NPCs better than Bethesda. </li>
</ul>
<div>
I find Solitude and Windhelm rather uninteresting even with extensive mods. I parked the airship Dev Aveza behind the Blue Palace via <a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/11802">Legacy of the Dragonborn</a> that makes it somewhat worthwhile for a visit and a fantastic place to defend from a dragon attack. Also as a Khajiit I find Windhelm's racist guards too tiresome.<br />
<br />
Takes some work but open to fast travel after unlock:</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><a href="http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Raven_Rock_(Dragonborn)">Raven Rock</a>- Access to the island of <a href="http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Solstheim">Solstheim</a> is only available after starting the <a href="http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Dragonborn_(Quest)">Dragonborn quest</a> after fetching the Horn of the Jurgen Windcaller after meeting up with the Greybeards in High Hrothgar and then a randomly generated attack by cultists. I don't play the main story line but I did just enough to unlock Solstheim. Dunmer architecture is so weirdly different from rest of Skyrim, it feels like another planet. Raven Rock is the most sci fi locale in Skyrim. For some Solstheim may not be a refreshing visit due to the black vog constantly ejecting from the volcano and oppressive ashen landscape. A visit back to cool green wooded mountains such as those of Falkreath Hold surrounding Lake Ilinalta is recommended to offset the dry dusty feels of Solstheim.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<b>Blackreach & Dwemer Ruins</b></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkwO5DqL8K1TTKdzy8SUhy3UGlIZQcvqyXTL5EyyCGy1BDEQNs1aleQiwkgqx8Z3y11T3K92xIkHsbuq24znDZkcdx0ExMIYz86zNnssEqg7dIf1xf09k68kT8RT1Cmd8MlVZ3w6bfAhs/s1600/blackreach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkwO5DqL8K1TTKdzy8SUhy3UGlIZQcvqyXTL5EyyCGy1BDEQNs1aleQiwkgqx8Z3y11T3K92xIkHsbuq24znDZkcdx0ExMIYz86zNnssEqg7dIf1xf09k68kT8RT1Cmd8MlVZ3w6bfAhs/s320/blackreach.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Blackreach is undoubtedly the most fantastical hidden underground world in Skyrim. The city of giant glowing mushrooms is a total head trip. In hindsight I could have just materialized via console command, but I dutifully slogged through endless halls of mechanical spiders and creepy Falmer starting at Alfthand with a party of 3 followers to help me. You have to first get the <a href="http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Discerning_the_Transmundane">attunement sphere from Septimus Signus</a> maker north of Winterhold. Sadly by the time I finally reached Blackreach, I was way too tuckered out to appreciate it and had to go back the next day.</div>
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(Blackreach alone is rather vast to explore. When friends don't have time, the compact cavern of the mod Tel Nalta II gives a condensed flavor or Blackreach.)</div>
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<h2>
The Wilds Tour</h2>
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The real joy for me is to wander around Skyrim with my furry friend Meeko. I have not been disappointed anytime I've randomly just chosen a spot on the map or just walk out from a city. The few locations of note:<br />
<ul>
<li>Sulfurous Hot Springs of Eastmarch near dragon mount (near Darkwater Crossing/Kynareth)</li>
<li>Anywhere on the Rift</li>
<li>Throat of the World</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Grottos/Open Caverns</h2>
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Dungeons are a bit too claustrophobic for me and I prefer grottos or open caverns with trees in them.</div>
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<li>Broken Oar Grotto - includes a shipwreck</li>
<li><a href="http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Eldergleam_Sanctuary">Eldergleam Sanctuary</a></li>
</ul>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
The Houses Tour</h2>
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The vanilla homes are rather ho-hum but these player home mods are worth showing off to friends:</div>
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<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/18680?tab=posts">Tel Nalta II</a> - an entire mushroom village. The Tower Cavern with a giant dwemer spider is a great place to start the tour</li>
<li>Shalidor's Staff - a portable home inside a magical staff</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/7207">Antennaria</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/1420/">Island Hobbit Home</a> - for Tolkien fans</li>
<li><a href="https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/15192/">Windpath</a> - Located overlooking a waterfall, you can hike up north to get to a troll cave.</li>
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