Okran’s Shield Belongs to the Shek FIRST! (not the UC)
This is my first officially public mod. Ever. Not just with Kenshi. It is a simple mod, and it is both a test for myself regarding my grander Kenshi modding/ gameplay goals as well as something I felt should be shared with others, who, like me, regard the Shek Kingdom as the most likable major power on the moon of Kenshi.
What It Does: This mod allows Okran’s Shield to be taken over by the Shek Kingdom BEFORE the United Cities WITHOUT needing any involvement with Emperor Tengu. You simply need to initiate the usual vanilla conditions for an Okran’s Shield override. No import required.
What I Changed In The FCS: I only altered two tiny details in the Okran’s Shield overrides. Under the first one with the United Cities take over, I ADDED a world state that required Esata to be either captured or killed in order for it to trigger (thus bypassing the fact that, even though the Shek Kingdom override can technically occur without United Cities entanglement in vanilla code, because the conditions for both are effectively equivalent, the United Cities one always triggers by virtue of it coming first in the code lineup). This, of course, results in the Shek Kingdom taking over so long as Esata is alive and free. I mean, of course she is. She’s precious to the unholy war effort. The second thing I ADDED was with regard to the Reaver’s override for Okran’s Shield. Again, I ADDED that Esata needs to be captured or killed for it to take place. Now, even after Holy Lord Phoenix falls, the Shek will keep Okran’s Shield unless you, the player, betray your valiant brothers and sisters.
Why I Changed It: Simply put, especially for my personal narrative regarding a man I eventually hope you all come to know, Skelch, I felt it was a lot more sensible for the Shek Kingdom to hold Okran’s Shield – especially considering the devs felt the same and just messed up the coding a tad – after going through all the effort in the war to make it so. We fought and bled for it. Hell, far too many of Skelch’s Militia nearly died just taking out Valtena alone! The Shek deserve it, and Skelch certainly doesn’t have the means to hold it himself. Anyway, this is also a minor test of my understanding of world states for the much larger series I mods I have planned. I am very grateful for the input provided to me by fellow players and modders, such as Shidan. Studying your mods and your input in my modding help request thread helped me build the confidence to try this tiny mod out. So, thank you!
A Note About Unintended Behavior: So, simply put, if you try out my little mod, and it does not do what it says, I apologize first and foremost. Again, first ever mod. Two tiny changes regarding world states for a single outpost. Second, I cannot promise I can or will fix it any time soon. I primarily made this for myself, looked at the Workshop, saw this specific little standalone fix didn’t exist yet, and decided to upload it. That’s all.
The Way I Tested It: Basically, this will be a very brief summary of my war effort against The Holy Nation while allied to the Shek Kingdom.
1.) Ally with Shek Kingdom via 40+ bounties. Mostly Dust Bandit Bosses.
2.) Talk to Bayan and Esata about going to war with The Holy Nation.
3.) Sneak into Stack, knock out High Inquisitor Seta, kidnap, run away, turn into Bayan specifically at Admag. (Seta was first to take advantage of the Holy Nation assault event bugs.)
4.) Hire three Tech Hunter body guard squads, one Merc body guard squad, and two Shek Kingdom body guard squads, leap into Okran’s Shield, chaos for 1.5 in-game days, hide scared in the southern barracks for safety, take out Valtena is a brutal and Dark Souls-esque boss struggle (many limbs were lost in a single swing of his blade), heal up at World’s End, head back home to Skelch’s Pass in the Border Zone, encounter Retribution of God while we still are physically carrying Valtena and haven’t made it home yet, enemy fails at pathfinding, Skelch’s Militia makes it home in time to mobilize and easily fight off the assault via harpoons and samurai armor, Wrath of God timer begins, Valtena is turned in to Bayan specifically at Admag, Esata praises us, we go home, Wrath of God timer finishes with the event vanishing.
4.) I load my game today, make this mod, run with only Skelch all the way back to Okran’s Shield. Under normal circumstances, the United Cities should take it. I get there, the Shek Kingdom has it, and I take a screen shot with Skelch without his helmet on. Holy Lord Phoenix currently still resides angrily at Blister Hill.
I believe that’s all, folks! Stay tuned in, like, a year, when I finally attempt my massive undertaking of making a Game Start that takes into account the exploits of my first game. A New Game Plus, if you will, following the events and actions of Skelch the Honorary Invincible Battle Born and Warden of the Border Zone!
***Interestingly, the Wiki I based this mod on has actually updated to state that, essentially, my reason for making this mod is not entirely true, apparently. Regardless, this mod now acts as insurance for the Shek Kingdom war effort, I guess.
Tiny Update 1: Added a check on Esata’s status to the destroyed outpost override. Now, so long as Esata is still alive and free, even if both Tengu and Valtena are captured/ killed, the Shek will still hold Okran’s Shield.
