I was discussing this idea in the dev chat, but was told to make a proper thread to discuss it.
The Propylon stuff was a bit confusing and somewhat useless in Morrowind. While it would become even more useless with fast travel activated, I think we could make them a little more user friendly anyway. Surely some people will disable fast travel or just want to experience Morrowind without it.
The Dawnguard expansion had these little gazebo things that, once activated, could be used to travel to various parts of the 'vale'.
You can go here at 4 minutes 41 seconds to see one of these dome things being activated, and how the interior looked.
What I propose is that we base our concepts for the propylon concepts off this model. It comes with animations and the doorway system already in place. One challenge will be making the gazebo 10 sided, with doors enough for passageways to all the stronghold complexes.
The gazebos will start out as inactive, like the dome. Instead of an Auri-El statue thing, there will be a spot for the player to place the respective index. When the player places the correct index into the receptacle the dome shall rise, revealing the gazebo of doors, and this location will now be accessible from any other 'active' Propylon chambers.
The door opposite the entrance for a given Propylon chamber will have a large map of Vvardenfell with a 'you are here' ping, and the name of that stronghold written in Daedric so the player can know where they're going when traveling through the gazebo thing.
I would like to travel to any Propylon (of player have its' index) from every other Propylon (i.e. even some for what you have'nt index yet).
Also i think, you need them 9-sided, i presume (Caldera exit-location is added by quest, but was'nt planned by constructor/mage).
Not sure on using same-like architecture for that. I think MW one was pretty cool and shrouded.
Other reasons this idea is a good one: no need for a master propylon 'quest' (which sucked anyway), the base materials for this plan already exist in Skyrim (easier to tweak what's there than do something entirely new), and full access to all other activated propylon chambers from any other activated propylon chamber (no uni-directional circle travel).
There seem to be 10 propylon indices, not including the 'master' one. So I was originally thinking we'd have ten 'doors'; one normal door to enter the given gazebo, nine portal doors to take the player to other places. There might be other arrangements of the doors to make it simpler on ourselves and stick with the basic shape from Skyrim by using two domes for each propylon chamber, for instance.
But nevermind that - the specifics of design come later. For right now, I'm just putting the idea out there so we can get to the design phase.
Ah, I'd forgotten Kogoruhn. So that's interesting... We'd need a 12 sided shape if we went with the Dawnstar gazebo method, one for the entrance, and 11 for 'doors'; though Kogoruhn's would be ruined the doorway would still be accounted for.
We can fiddle with the dome, perhaps putting the weird scythe pillar things around it. I'd need to know what's easy enough to warrant doing. Easiest is keeping it just like Dawnguard. The more we change it, the more work it might potentially be. Our designs would need to keep this in mind.
Well, I'm more conservative in this matter.
It is just sketch. Each pylon is surrounded by by poping out portals. Certain portal goes up when you get proper index (when you activate in one place it will be activated in others) You can go though the portal from both ways. Animation of this would be really easy to do and it will be a bit closer to original than Dawnguard solution.
Other idea appearing some monster each time when you activate new index. You have to even kill monster to activate entirely certain portal. You know some kind of security against enemies. 11 unique enemies will be quite fun (just some deadric bosses)
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Hmm now I see it is possible to create working mirror in Skyrim :)
DO whatever is easiest. Copy the DLC01 falmer portal if u must, and just have the model replaced.
But the main room is now more of a pyramid.
You guys should be talking to Tyverous or Gurthie since they're making this stuff mostly.
Now i think that teleport ring with 2 teleports in each stronghold have some sense.
At least that helps to prevent some friendly telefrags.
However, with only one keys on each teleport it looks like personal transport.
Ascending stairs are making it looks like hill/pyramidal.
You could make descending stairs to make space around TP spherical,
maybe it would be some better.
All you guys need is a frame to be made in conjunction with the interior models to remain stylistically similar. You might even want it built into the actual interior wall mesh to add functional purpose to the structure's shape. So yeah, rav speaks wisdom.
I don't think you even need them to pop-up. Easier just to have those meshes static and then have your door/fx run on activation.
Well, I privately prefer pop-up version with script that it will rise up every time when player visit interior cell. It would give really cool effect but until I'm not responsible for creating this asset, let so be it.
Also you have to keep in mind that if some ppl would play with fast-travel these portals will be useless... unless there will be cool situation that every dungeon has index to other dungeon. Then collecting all index will have more sense.Each index could be in some highlighted place which all will be similar in look.
Here is list of all of them.
So Andasreth has portal to Berandas, Berandas to Falasmaryon and so on.
Wheresoever you want to place portal (in wall, all standing alone), I think each one should have some information where it take you. Like in my wonderful sketch (don't laugh, I spend a lot of time on it). When portal is activated some things are highlighted.
Map on floor can easily be done. Just need someone to create the map graphic. the glowing trigger is simple using existing fx assets.
Has anyone opened the actual nif from DLC01 yet.
You should really try testing some skyrim tech before more ideas get thrown around.
also, which effects from skyrim will u use for crystals/energy
waygates? yes, i seen nif. But teleportation have no effects except just same as for any door, is'nt it?
i would prefer it's design more centripetal - if collective really wants it to be universal (any TP could teleport you to any other), player can just place preferred index in central hole of it's column where it will levitate and turn on whole thing (no need to have animation when player have no indices - so player must explore what is this ruined thing is still works).
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for energy it can be even just sparks (however, this would look like too much Terminator time_machine then) or soul_trap/dragon_soul effect (idk if this is real for sure).
This thread is sacrilege.
The portals at the Dunmer strongholds are all connected - the whole point of having them in the game as a means of transportation is to find the indices for each. Why would you make a location connected to them all? They're already connected. Not wanting to learn the teleportation routes is sheer laziness. Honestly, it's not hard to learn.
Add to this the ability to Almsivi and Divine Intervention from those points, which would allow you to travel almost anywhere with little effort or cost. There is no point in trying to further advance an already advanced system, and to be honest, it isn't lore friendly.
For the sake of pragmatism and making it "easier" to use, I understand but do not condone. It is easy enough as it stands. If we strive to make everything "user friendly", there can be no challenge or mystery. What you're proposing goes against the spirit of Morrowind as a game, which as a whole is not very "user friendly". Do not forget that this is the reason why so many of us still find Morrowind compelling.
Also, consider the logic; if teleportation allows you to travel from point A to point B and from point B to point A based on the propylon colums of the corresponding locations, having one single location that allows travel to any of those points would be dangerous. The "propylon circle" is a closed system. If you added an eleventh location, it wouldn't be closed, and could cause unpredictable effects. From what I understand of TES magick, it isn't pragmatic, but extremely convoluted.