Useful Idles for Screenshots

Being a photographer in Skyrim is great fun! Getting that perfect shot of your favorite fantasy world can bring a feeling like no other. Even the most amateurish of photographers can get some amazing screenshots. But sometimes the limitations of the game can be, well, limiting. That screenshot's good, but maybe it would have been better if only your character had their hand out. Or maybe it would have been perfect if that NPC had his arms crossed.

Now, we all know there are poser mods out there, both PG and more "adult". But what if you don't feel like downloading a mod just to take a few screenshots? What if you're OCD and don't like filling up your powers menu with countless poses? Well, this guide will show you some simple and useful console commands that can turn that good shot into a great one.

Using the Command Console

For most veteran PC Bethesda players, the command console is second nature. To those who are new to its use, however, it can be a bit daunting trying to dive into it. Here is some general knowledge you should possess before attempting to use the command console:

1. Before you do ANYTHING, make sure you understand that the command console is NOT A CHEAT CODE ACTIVATOR. Console commands are NOT CHEAT CODES. If you use them the wrong way, or are not careful, you can seriously F*** UP YOUR GAME. But don't be scared off by that! The codes used in this guide are virtually harmless and have very little impact on the game world, if at all. So just be careful. I cannot stress this enough.

2. The command console is opened with the ~ or ` key. On American keyboards, it is located on the left side of the number key row, just above the TAB key. I imagine that most other keyboards are the same, but there might be some odd ones that have a different layout.

3. Upon opening the console, time in-game will freeze and a mouse cursor will appear along with a faded black square and a text field (as shown below). The faded black area will keep track of the last few commands you've entered and will also display any other information that might pertain to the command (such as if there is an error). The mouse is used to select objects and actors, which brings us to number 4.



4. In order for any of the poses/animations to work, you must first select an actor to carry them out. For the sake of this guide, it is assumed that you will mostly be posing your own character. However, it is possible to force other humanoid actors to play the animations as well. In fact, you can select multiple actors and give them each their own animation to play before exiting the console and watching them all initiate their respective commands. To select an actor, simply move the mouse cursor over the desired actor and click the left mouse button. Once this is done, a reference ID should appear in parentheses just at the top of the console (as shown below). Note that the player character will ALWAYS have a refID of "00000014".



5. To enter the desired command, simply type and hit the ENTER key. You can queue up multiple commands at once before exiting the console so long as they don't interfere with each other (i.e., asking a single actor to perform two different idle animations at once will NOT work... surprisingly enough...)

That's all you need to know about entering console commands, at least for the sake of this guide.

Some Basic Commands

In the next section, I will list many of the useful idle animations you can use to get great screenshots. For this short section, however, I will tell you just a few commands that can really help with snagging that perfect shot at the right time.


HOW THE COMMAND SHOULD BE ENTERED INTO THE CONSOLE - DESCRIPTION

tm - Completely removes the HUD, including the console, but it will still remain open. Be sure to close the console before attempting to move the camera. To bring the HUD back, simply open the now-invisible command console, carefully type the same command in again, and hit ENTER.

tfc 1 - Freezes time and allows a noclip camera. When used in first-person, your character will disappear. When used in third-person, your character will remain visible. To go back to normal mode, just re-enter the command.

tfc 0 - Performs the same as tfc 1 only time does not freeze. Simply enter the command again to return to the normal view.

The tfc commands can be extremely helpful for getting the perfect angle or stopping an animation at just the right time while tm can help to make screenshots automatically look 100x better than with the ugly HUD lingering about. Just remember that time does freeze when you open the command console, so there's no need to rush when typing these out.

There are many more commands that can help you with taking good screenshots, but that is not the aim of this guide. Please continue to the next section so we can finally get to the good stuff, the idle animations.

Idle Animations

Idle animations can be anything from the subtle motions your character makes when standing still to the complex motions NPC's make during scripted events. There are thousands of these that can be initiated using the console, however only a handful of them can be used with humanoid characters, and even less are truly practical for taking screenshots. There may be a few more that I do not touch upon in this guide because I either: A. Have not discovered them yet. B. Did not find them useful for my own screenshots.

Check the UESP[cs.uesp.net] for an exhaustive and nigh complete list of the idle animations within Skyrim. The idles that will tend to be the mose useful appear from 2200 to 2700 on the UESP page and begin with 'idle'. Most others are highly contextual and not even available to humanoid characters.

There are two parts to each idle animation command:
1. The command itself, "playidle"
2. The ID of the idle animation

There is ALWAYS a single space between the two parts.

For this guide, I will display a list of my favorite idle commands EXACTLY THE WAY THEY SHOULD BE ENTERED INTO THE CONSOLE, followed by a dash and a brief description of the idle animation. At the end of this section, I will post a video showcasing each of the idle animations I mention.

Please note that all of the idles mentioned in this guide are meant to be initiated while the target is in a STANDING POSITION. There are many idles meant for sitting, but they can be a bit dodgy. Some of these may work while sitting, but I have yet to try.

Many idles can be exited simply by moving, but a lot of them cannot. The easiest way to exit one of those is to have the character draw their weapon. Still, most animations only last a short time and do not require any work on the actor's part.

Now, let's get started!

The following commands should be initiated with empty hands and all weapons sheathed:

• playidle idlepointfar_02 - character holds their arm out and points into the distance
  
• playidle idlepickup_ground - character bends down and picks up a non-existant object
  
• playidle idlesilentbow - character bows like the Graybeards
  
• playidle idlestudy - character acts as if they are observing something closely
  
• playidle idletake - character reaches out as if they are being given something by someone
  
• playidle idlewave - character waves in a friendly manner
  
• playidle idlesurrender - character holds their hands up as if they are surrendering
  
• playidle idlesearchbody - character bends down and motions as if they are inspecting a body
  
• playidle idleritualskull1 - character motions as if performing a ritual
  
• playidle idleritualskull2 - *see above*
  
• playidle idleritualskull3 - *see above*
  
• playidle idlelookfar - character holds their hand to their brow and surveys the area
  
• playidle idledrink - character retrieves a tankard and drinks from it
  
• playidle idledialoguedefensivehandgesture - character holds hands in a defensive manner
  
• playidle idledialoguehandonchingesture - character places their hand on their chin as if in thought
  
• playidle idledialoguewelcomegesture - character opens their arms welcomingly
  
• playidle idlesalute - character salutes like a Legionnaire (one of my personal favorites)
  
• playidle idleexamine - character leans forward as if examining a table
  
• playidle idlegive - character holds their arm out as if giving someone something
  
• playidle idlecivilwarcheer - character will wave their fists as if cheering
  
• playidle idlegetattention - character will jump and wave their arms as if trying to get someone's attention
  
• playidle idlenoteread - character will retrieve a note and begin reading it while standing
  
• playidle idleoffsetarmscrossedstart - character will cross their arms until moving or drawing their weapon
  
• playidle idleblowhornimperial - character retrieves a war horn and blows into it, complete with sound effects
  
• playidle idlebook_reading - character will retrieve a book and begin reading it while standing
  
• playidle idlebowheadatgrave_01 - character places their hands before them and bows their head
  
• playidle idlebowheadatgrave_02 - character places their hands behind them and bows their head

The next few commands are different from the others in terms of their circumstances and effects:

• playidle idlecleansword - character holds equipped sword and cleans it with their hand, must be initiated while a one-handed weapon is equipped to the right hand and sheathed (preferably a one-handed sword) with a free left hand
  
• playidle idlecivilwarshieldcheer - character pounds equipped shield with equipped one-handed weapon, complete with sound effects, must be initiated whilst a shield is equippped and a one-handed weapon is drawn
  
• playidle idlehandcut - character kneels down before retrieving an iron dagger and cutting their hand, initiates a mini-cutscene with the camera but the tfc command will still work

This final idle is actually a combination of two linked idle commands. One must be initiated first and the command console closed before re-opening the console and then initiating the second whilst the first is still going.

• playidle idlewriteledgerenter - character retrieves a handheld ledger and quill and stands there
  
• playidle idlewriteledgerwrite - character glances down at the held ledger and writes something using the quill

Now for the video! The following vid is meant to showcase this listing of idle animations and what they look like in-game.

Conclusion

There you have it! These are some of my favorite idles that could come in handy while taking screenshots.

But which ones should you use for which screenshots?

That's entirely up to you! A single animation could yield a thousand and one different results depending on the situation and the timing of the shot within the animation. The only thing that limits your possibilites is your own imagination!

In fact, why stop at screenshots? A staged video could always do with some cinematic idles.

Now get out there and make the magic happen!


Also, if any of them don't work for some reason, please notify me. I've checked each one before making this guide and they should all work. Which means that I likely put the idle name in wrong here on the guide. Console commands are VERY picky when it comes to spelling and one wrong character will lead to your actor just standing there, dumbfounded. I'll be happy to correct any misspellings I may have put up there in the list.


Special Thanks:

• The UESP (linked earlier) for it's exhaustive list of console commands and idle animations.
  
• Theo, for being an awesome Dovahkitty and idle actor.
  
• Bandicam, for kicking FRAPS's ass and being a damn good recording software.
  
• Windows Movie Maker, for... Well... it's alright, I guess. It got the job done.
  
• Steam, for it's easy-to-use screenshot feature and ability to share Skyrim photography with the world.

[Sickliff]

Updated CSList link: https://cslist.uesp.net/index.php?game=sr&rec=IDLE

[Treppo]

thanks man :) using it for my videos

[Naz]

Here are some of my favourite idles (Some idles may require DLCs)

IdleLuteStart
IdleDrumStart
IdleFluteStart

IdleLooseSweepingStart
IdleHoe
IdleCounterStart

IdleT02AscendMale
IdleT02AscendFemale

IdleChildTaunt1
IdleChildTaunt2
IdleChildTaunt3
IdleChildTaunt4

IdleChildWhineKick
IdleChildCryingStart
IdleChildCryingEnd
IdleChilePlayDoll

IdleOffsetCarryPotServe
IdleDrinkPotion
IdleEatingStandingStart

IdleExecutionerIdle
IdleHDLeft
IdleCowerEnter

[Leser]

Found some more sitting idles (that haven't been posted by others in this comment section) on uesp, these animations are probably used with the command sendanimevent instead of playidle , like other sitting animations. (I haven't tested these animations myself but i still wanted to archive them here)

IdleGreybeardMeditate
IdleGreybeardMeditateEnter
IdleGreybeardMeditateEnterInstant
IdleGreybeardMeditateExit

IdleKneeling
IdleKneelingEnter
IdleKneelingEnterInstant
IdleKneelingExit

IdleInjured

IdleLayDownEnter
IdleLayDownEnterInstant
IdleLayDownExit

IdleLounge
IdleLounge_Exit

IdleWarmHandsCrouched (this one might be used with playidle, but im not sure)

IdleWallLeanEnterInstant

[Flatonaise]

For anyone this hasn't worked for, please read the entire tutorial on this page. I didn't at first and so I failed initially. :)

Be sure you do as instructed and first click on the actor so that the ref id is displayed on screen. Then input and execute the command. If you don't have an actor selected or ref id input, then it won't apply to any actor in the game.

Thanks for this! I just tried Skyrim Together and saw people doing it... I wanted in on the social-ness! :)

[valera-wrx]

Since this guide is where goodle leads :)

Other idles, like those idlesit mentioned below, require another command - sendanimevent.

So if you want your character to do some animations which won't work from playidle, try using sendanimevent. For example it works amiably for khajiit sitting pose:

sendanimevent idlesitcrossleggedenter

there are some other useful animations (though not comparable to custom animations ofc), just try all what is available from uesp idle codes.

[SETZIG]

I found some animations on uesp.net

playidle idlewarmhands - Player warm his hands by the fire.
playidle idlewarmarms - Player warms his both arms.

Also found the some sitting animation commands but these didn't work for me. Feel free to try those;

- idlesitcrossleggedenter
- idlesitcrossleggedenterinstant
- idlesitcrossleggedexit
- idlesitledgeenter
- idlesitledgeenterinstant
- idlesitledgeexit

[Aelin I-Hin-Ithil]

Sadly non of the command is working for me. Tried several, and all without result.

[Proteus]

CAN SOMEONE please post the damn sit command? Like thats all i want is to sit on the ground like the hippy wood elf my character is not scroll forum after forum for the 15ish letter line of code....for an hour.....

[alien]

After using the TM command and accidentally moving, my player stops being able to attack