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DreadnaughtVCN

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Dreadnaughtious

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About this mod

Ascadia, Land of Pilgrimage is a total region overhaul for the Ascadian Isles. ALoP seeks to breathe new life into the veritable garden of Morrowind, giving the region its own distinct micro-regions, new interiors, grand bridges, reimagined farmlands, easter eggs, treasure hunts and a new Pilgrimage to undertake that brings you across the region.

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Ascadia, Land of Pilgrimage is a mod that completely overhauls the Ascadian Isles region. The mod itself is a total overhaul for the region. It hopes to transform the Ascadian Isles into a land of rich detail, environmental storytelling, and greatly expanded adventuring possibility. The mod brings in its own new micro-regions, locations, infrastructure and plenty of secrets to uncover.




Description


New Micro-Regions
  • The Pilgrim's Path: Most pilgrimages of the Seven Graces begin along the Pilgrim's Path. Starting at a point called "Pilgrim's Start". The Pilgrim's Start is also where one begins and finishes the new Pilgrimage of the Saints. The Pilgrim's path is a long 'region', maintained by the Temple. Lush and filled with sites and roadside shrines, the dangers of the Ascadian Isles can still hassle those on the path, but it is still safer than wandering off into the wilds. Along the path are many places to stop, either for prayer or a detour elsewhere. The Pilgrim's Path leads all the way upto and just past the fields of Kummu, ending where Hlaalu occupied farmlands begins.

  • The Ascadian Shores: Just south-east, south-west and west of Vivec City. This lushly vegetated area is rich with plant life and but lack any real infrastructure. Offering more of a scenic experience.

  • The Hlaalu Farmlands: The northern farmlands of the Ascadian Isles are mostly maintained by House Hlaalu. Several large plantations serve as the backbone of Ascadia's food and provide a rich environment, primarily operated by the Dren and Arvel families there are now notable property borders and proud maintenance of the region.

  • Vivec City Outskirts: Just outside the grand city of Vivec, the lightly foliaged outskirts offer a contrast to the metropolis. This area is carefully watched by the ever-vigilant Ordinators, ensuring the safety of pilgrims and travelers. Infrastructure has been improved, with the addition of a chandler who oversees the candles of the region, new bridges and an optional main gate. The area remains a quiet threshold to the foreign quarter.

  • The Communal Farms: Situated north-east of Vivec, the communal farms are small, independent farms tended by local farmers with some support from the Temple and a little from house Hlaalu. The farms have been transformed into a humble, hardworking network of micro-farms. Where the food for the people of Vivec is farmed aswell as where young Silt Striders are now raised.

  • Ald Sotha Mora: Once the birthplace of Sotha Sil, destroyed by Mehrunes Dagon, the region surrounding the ruins of Ald Sotha have been turrned into the eerie woods of Ald Sotha Mora, where the trees and mushrooms grow in abundance. A stark contrast to the more peaceful areas of Ascadia, Ald Sotha Mora holds dark secrets. Under the watchful eyes of the Daedric ruin. This forest becomes a dangerous place at night, filled with dark forces that spill from the Daedric ruin or rise from the ashes unmarked mass-graves that litter the overgrown region. Only the daring and skilled will survive the trials of this ominous region at night.

  • The Suran Canyon: The region surrounding the small river leading into Suran has transformed into a dramatic canyon, where the white cliffs that now border all of Ascadia's north, taper off into the sloughs and lakes of Ascadia. The tapering cliffs create a new rocky vista from the city of Suran, changing the makeup of its waterways and atmosphere of the land around it. Suran itself remains untouched for the most part, to ensure compatability. However, theback end of the town, near the temple has new rocks lining it's exterior and there is an optional file for an overhauled bridge from the city that leads into the main Ascadian isles. Despite this, the canyon provides a distinctly new backdrop to this part of the region.

  • The Pelagiad Region: The majority of the area immediately surrounding this Imperial settlement has been left untouched to ensure compatibility with the various mods that overhaul the town. With that said the area not-immediately surrounding it, such as the path and the littoral zones where it meets the lakes of the Ascadian Isles.

Additional Features:
  • New Pilgrimage: To encourage further exploration and in the namesake of the mod, there is a new Pilgrimage for those who enjoy them to undertake. 'The Pilgrimage of the Saints'. Scattered around the breadth of the Ascadian isles is a shrine to each lesser and greater saint of the Temple. Pilgrims can make prayer to each shrine and receive a token. Within the Isles is a brazier where one may toss the tokens when all are collected to receive a blessing from the saints for honoring them.

  • New Fauna: In addition to the vanilla creatures the Ascadian Isles is also home to several new dangers. the Ascadian Durzog and the Tiger Guar, which are both active predators added to the levelled lists. The Ascadian Durzog is a smaller but nimbler cousin to the Durzog we're all familiar with. It doesn't hit as hard or have as much health but is swift, agile and can be found in packs or alone. The Tiger Guar on the other hand is not as common as the Ascadian Durzog and is a predatory cousin to the Guar can be found at all stages of its life within the region.

    Not quite Fauna but also worth noting is that after nightfall special encounters can be found within the woods of Ald-Sotha Mora. With special Daedra variants and restless revenants that haunt the woods, the region becomes notably more dangerous at night. Even at day the region is more dangerous than the rest of the Ascadian Isles. Travel with caution and bring a scroll of intervention.

  • Lots of other Secrets: Hidden treasures, secrets, scavenger hunts, hidden quests and all manners of adventures await discovery across the entirety of Ascadia. Return stolen armor to a vengeful spirit to receive a reward or delve into the den of a Durzog mother.

    Compatibility
While the mod itself overhauls a lot of the region I have taken steps to try and keep it compatible with other projects it does still fill the shoes of some. It comes with-

Out of the box compatibility with:

BCOM
Vivec Lighthouse
Great Seawall of Vivec
Beacons of Mamaea
Suran Expansion
Galen Quest
Vivec Islands
Mournhold Canton
Seven Graces Shrines


Known current conflicts with:

Gates of Ascadia (Gates of Ascadia has taken some aspects of this mod and adopted it for use within itself as a more lite version. This is an either-or situation. GoA is timeless.)
Abdis Pipe Emporium (fix WIP)
Little Landscapes's - "path to Balmora" "Path to Pelagiad" & "path to vivec Lighthouse"
Minor conflict with AATL's Static Encounters (carriage stuck in tree)
Some enemies may spawn in 'friendly' areas with "Friends and Foes"
Several minor floaters with 'Jade Springs'
Any other Ascadian Isles region overhaul
Arvesa (if loaded after the Arvesa file, otherwise should work fine)

Furthermore, it should be noted there are minor landscape edits in cells (2, -9) and (1, -9) just on either side of the Great Ascadian Bridge. There are also minor landscape edits in the cell (6, -6) for the optional Suran Bridge plugin.


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Requirements



The mod requires the following plugins:

Morrowind
Bloodmoon
Tribunal
OAAB_Data
Tamriel_Data


Optional Files



There are two main files to pick from. Only install one. One has main gates for the city of Vivec and the other doesn't for those who don't like the idea of Vivec city having an outside wall.

Secondarily, there is an optional mod that adds in a bridge for Suran. A lot of Suran overhauls have bridges so I wanted to make sure it is optional. This can be installed with either main version of the mod, or even independently for use alongside Gates of Ascadia. There is also now a White Suran version of this bridge thanks to Lucevar!
 

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Performance



It should be noted that this mod adds a lot of assets to the region and thus will have increased performance requirements. On average, the exterior cells have 400-550 assets per cell. Some a little more, some a good bit less. In some of the more intense areas frames may be similar to that of TR's Old Ebonheart. Performance may vary depending on distant land and how it's generated, how high-quality distant land generation is, shaders & lighting mods. Along most roads are lit lanterns and lighting overhauls may affect performance differently. In general, if you're getting under 45 frames in the region as is, this mod may not be for you. For a light alternative, I recommend Gates of Ascadia, as it, alongside Seawall of Vivec and Markgran Forest, was the inspiration for this mod.


Permissions
Anyone is free to edit this mod, upload versions, create versions with additional or less content, make patches as they will. Credit and a link back to this work is appreciated. 


Thanks


A super special thanks to the many wonderful people of the Morrowind Modding Community discord. I had a lot of help with pointers, general advice, critique and support with a lot of people from this wonderful community, without them, this year-long project would never have really taken foot, let alone finish. Love you guys!

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With Ascadia, Land of Pilgrimage, you’ll find a vibrant, reimagined region that adds depth, beauty, and excitement to the Ascadian Isles. Whether you're exploring peaceful farmlands, undertaking a sacred pilgrimage, or venturing into the eerie depths of Ald Sotha Mora, every corner of Ascadia is packed with new experiences for you to enjoy.