Skyrim SKSE Module

Create and manage SKSE (Skyrim Script Extender) C++ plugin projects using Spooky's AutoMod Toolkit.

Prerequisites

Run all commands from the toolkit directory:

cd "<TOOLKIT_PATH>"
# Example: cd "C:\Tools\spookys-automod-toolkit"

Build Requirements

IMPORTANT: Building SKSE plugins requires:

| Tool | Purpose | Installation | |------|---------|--------------| | CMake 3.21+ | Build system | Download | | MSVC Build Tools | C++ compiler | MSVC Build Tools | | vcpkg | Dependencies | Auto-bootstrapped by project |

Note: You do NOT need the full Visual Studio IDE - only the MSVC Build Tools (C++ compiler). The Build Tools can be installed standalone without Visual Studio.

Overview

SKSE plugins are DLL files that extend Skyrim's functionality at a native level. This module generates project scaffolding using CommonLibSSE-NG, which supports Skyrim SE, AE, GOG, and VR from a single codebase.

Command Reference

List Available Templates

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse templates

Available Templates: | Template | Description | |----------|-------------| | basic | Minimal SKSE plugin with logging | | papyrus-native | Plugin with Papyrus native function support |

Create SKSE Project

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse create "<name>" [options]

| Option | Default | Description | |--------|---------|-------------| | --template | basic | Template to use | | --output | . | Output directory | | --author | Unknown | Author name | | --description | - | Project description |

Get Project Info

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse info "<path>"

| Option | Description | |--------|-------------| | <path> | Project directory (default: current) |

Add Papyrus Native Function

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse add-function "<project>" --name "<name>" [options]

| Option | Default | Description | |--------|---------|-------------| | --name | Required | Function name | | --return | void | Return type | | --param | - | Parameters (format: type:name, repeatable) |

Common Workflows

Create Basic SKSE Plugin

# 1. Create project
dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse create "MyPlugin" --output "./" --author "YourName"

# 2. Build (requires CMake and MSVC)
cd MyPlugin
cmake -B build -S .
cmake --build build --config Release

# Output: build/Release/MyPlugin.dll

Create Plugin with Papyrus Functions

# 1. Create project with papyrus-native template
dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse create "MyNativePlugin" --template papyrus-native --author "YourName" --output "./"

# 2. Add custom functions
dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse add-function "./MyNativePlugin" --name "GetActorSpeed" --return "Float" --param "Actor:target"

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse add-function "./MyNativePlugin" --name "SetActorSpeed" --return "void" --param "Actor:target" --param "Float:speed"

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse add-function "./MyNativePlugin" --name "GetPluginVersion" --return "Int"

# 3. Build
cd MyNativePlugin
cmake -B build -S .
cmake --build build --config Release

Check Existing Project

# Get project info
dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse info "./MyPlugin"

Papyrus Type Mapping

| Papyrus Type | C++ Type | Notes | |--------------|----------|-------| | Int | int | 32-bit integer | | Float | float | 32-bit float | | Bool | bool | Boolean | | String | std::string | Text string | | Actor | RE::Actor* | Actor reference | | ObjectReference | RE::TESObjectREFR* | Object reference | | Form | RE::TESForm* | Any form |

Function Parameter Format

--param "Type:name"

Examples:

--param "Actor:target" - Actor parameter named "target"
--param "Float:speed" - Float parameter named "speed"
--param "Int:count" - Integer parameter named "count"
--param "String:message" - String parameter named "message"

Generated Project Structure

MyPlugin/
  CMakeLists.txt          # CMake build configuration
  vcpkg.json              # C++ dependencies
  skse_config.json        # Toolkit configuration
  src/
    main.cpp              # SKSE plugin entry point
    plugin.cpp            # Plugin implementation
    plugin.h              # Plugin header
  cmake/
    CommonLibSSE.cmake    # CommonLibSSE-NG integration

Template Details

basic Template

Minimal plugin with:

Modern C++20 plugin metadata (.RuntimeCompatibility())
Precompiled headers (PCH) for fast builds
Comprehensive event handler examples (OnHit, OnEquip)
Safe NiPointer and Actor casting patterns
Correct form lookup methods (EditorID vs FormID)
Logging setup
Message handler for game events

Modern API Features:

// Modern plugin version declaration
extern "C" __declspec(dllexport) constinit SKSE::PluginVersionData SKSEPlugin_Version = [] {
    SKSE::PluginVersionData data{};
    data.RuntimeCompatibility(SKSE::RuntimeCompatibility::Independent);
    return data;
}();

// Safe NiPointer handling
auto target = event->target.get();  // Get raw pointer
auto actor = target->As<RE::Actor>();  // Safe cast

// Correct form lookup
auto form = RE::TESForm::LookupByEditorID("MyForm"sv);  // By EditorID
auto form = RE::TESForm::LookupByID(0x00012EB7);  // By FormID

Build Options:

VCPKG (automatic dependency management)
Manual vendor/ folder (no VCPKG required)
Windows CMD build script included (build.bat)

papyrus-native Template

Includes everything in basic plus:

Papyrus native function registration
Script interface
Example function

// Register functions
bool RegisterFunctions(RE::BSScript::IVirtualMachine* vm) {
    vm->RegisterFunction("MyFunction", "MyScript", MyFunction);
    return true;
}

// Example native function
int MyFunction(RE::StaticFunctionTag*) {
    return 42;
}

Using Native Functions in Papyrus

After building the plugin, call native functions from Papyrus:

ScriptName MyScript

; Declare native functions
Int Function GetPluginVersion() global native
Float Function GetActorSpeed(Actor target) global native
Function SetActorSpeed(Actor target, Float speed) global native

; Usage
Event OnInit()
    Int version = GetPluginVersion()
    Debug.Notification("Plugin version: " + version)

    Actor player = Game.GetPlayer()
    Float speed = GetActorSpeed(player)
    SetActorSpeed(player, speed * 1.5)
EndEvent

CommonLibSSE-NG

This toolkit uses CommonLibSSE-NG (Next Generation), which provides:

Multi-version support: Single DLL works on SE, AE, GOG, VR
Address independence: No hardcoded addresses
Modern C++: Uses C++20 features
Complete API: Covers most game functions

Supported Skyrim Versions

| Version | Support | |---------|---------| | Skyrim SE 1.5.x | Full | | Skyrim SE 1.6.x (AE) | Full | | Skyrim GOG | Full | | Skyrim VR | Partial |

Building Projects

Standard Build

cd MyPlugin
cmake -B build -S .
cmake --build build --config Release

Debug Build

cmake --build build --config Debug

Clean Rebuild

rm -rf build
cmake -B build -S .
cmake --build build --config Release

Output Location

Release: build/Release/MyPlugin.dll
Debug: build/Debug/MyPlugin.dll

Installing SKSE Plugins

Copy DLL to Data/SKSE/Plugins/
Copy any config files to same folder
Launch game with SKSE loader

Limitations

This module CAN:

Generate project scaffolding
Add Papyrus native function stubs
Manage project configuration

This module CANNOT:

Write custom C++ logic
Compile projects (requires local build tools)
Debug plugins
Generate complex game hooks

For advanced SKSE development:

Important Notes

Build tools required - CMake and MSVC Build Tools needed (NOT full Visual Studio IDE)
Single codebase, all versions - CommonLibSSE-NG handles version differences
vcpkg auto-bootstraps - Dependencies downloaded on first build (~5 minutes first time)
Native functions need matching Papyrus declarations - Script must declare functions as native
Use --json flag for machine-readable output when scripting
LLMs can build plugins - Use Bash tool to invoke CMake commands for end-to-end workflow

JSON Output

All commands support --json for structured output:

dotnet run --project src/SpookysAutomod.Cli -- skse info "./MyPlugin" --json

Example response:

{
  "success": true,
  "result": {
    "name": "MyPlugin",
    "author": "YourName",
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "template": "papyrus-native",
    "description": "My SKSE Plugin",
    "targetVersions": ["SE", "AE"],
    "papyrusFunctions": [
      {
        "name": "GetActorSpeed",
        "returnType": "Float",
        "parameters": [
          { "type": "Actor", "name": "target" }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}