New Vegas crashing both startup and in-game

[ARC133738]

Hi,

I have been trying to follow Gopher's Ultimate New Vegas modding guide with several other mods but my game is currently crashing after only a few minutes of gameplay and often when I try to startup the game. Are there any bugfixes left for me to try?

I have tried numerous bugfixes and other remedies for crashing including:

bUseThreadedAI=1 and iNumHWThreads=2 in my fallout.ini, fallout_default.ini, FalloutPref.ini

Fnvedit does not stop midway through load/scan

LOOT says that I have 13 warnings but 0 errors

NVAC - New Vegas Anti Crash

Yukichigai Unofficial Patch - YUP

New Vegas Stutter Remover

4GB Fallout New Vegas

Computer specs:

Windows 10 Pro (64 bit)

AMD FX-8320 Eight-Core Processor, 3.5 Ghz, 4 Core(s)

DDR4 RAM 20 GB

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 DDR5 4GB

My loadorder:

FalloutNV.esm=1

DeadMoney.esm=1

HonestHearts.esm=1

OldWorldBlues.esm=1

LonesomeRoad.esm=1

GunRunnersArsenal.esm=1

ClassicPack.esm=1

MercenaryPack.esm=1

TribalPack.esm=1

CaravanPack.esm=1

YUP - Base Game + All DLC.esm=1

Interior Lighting Overhaul - Core.esm=1

ELECTRO-CITY - CompletedWorkorders.esm=1

Advanced Recon Tech.esm=1

FCOMaster.esm=1

AWorldOfPain(Preview).esm=1

Momod.esm=1

Lucky38Suite_Reloaded.esm=1

More Perks.esm=1

More Perks for Dead Money.esm=1

ELECTRO-CITY - Highways and Byways.esm=1

domecity.esm=1

The New Bison Steve Hotel.esm=1

NVR-Strip.esm=1

AWOPDeadMoney.esm=1

SomeguySeries.esm=1

More Perks for Honest Hearts.esm=1

Companion Core.esm=1

Project Nevada - Core.esm=1

Project Nevada - Equipment.esm=1

Project Nevada - Rebalance.esp=1

Project Nevada - Cyberware.esp=1

NevadaSkies.esm=1

Project Nevada - Extra Options.esm=1

Interior Lighting Overhaul - L38PS.esm=1

RobCo Certified.esm=1

More Perks for Old World Blues.esm=1

More Perks for Companions.esm=1

oHUD.esm=1

WMVM.esm=1

YUP - NPC Fixes (Base Game + All DLC).esp=1

The Mod Configuration Menu.esp=1

DarNifiedUINV.esp=1

Project Nevada - Rebalance Complete.esp=1

Project Nevada - All DLC.esp=1

EVE FNV - ALL DLC.esp=1

FCO - NPC Changes.esp=1

NVR-Version_10.esp=1

Vurt's WFO.esp=1

outsidebets.esp=1

WeaponModsExpanded.esp=1

WMX-DLCMerged.esp=1

christinecos.esp=1

Advanced Recon Tech.esp=1

More Perks Update.esp=1

CNR_Beta.esp=1

WMX-EVE-AllDLCMerged.esp=1

MadScience02.esp=1

CourierCacheWSE.esp=1

AWOPDeadMoneyVendorPatch.esp=1

ILO - YUP Patch.esp=1

EMR-StealthSuitMkII.esp=1

NewVegasBounties.esp=1

NewVegasBountiesII.esp=1

NewVegasBountiesII Fixes - DLCs.esp=1

TheInheritance.esp=1

Russell.esp=1

AWOP - Russell.esp=1

hunter.esp=1

Advanced Recon Gear.esp=1

Advanced Recon Gear - Project Nevada.esp=1

WMX-ArenovalisTextures.esp=1

MoMod-NightSpawn.esp=1

MoMod-MCMMenu.esp=1

Project Nevada - Cyberware Additions.esp=1

More Perks for Companions Update.esp=1

More Perks for Dead Money Update.esp=1

More Perks for Honest Hearts Update.esp=1

More Perks for Old World Blues Update.esp=1

RobCo Certified Friendly Hit Fixer.esp=1

JIP Companions Command & Control.esp=1

The Weapon Mod Menu.esp=1

TrooperOverhaul-Dragbody.esp=1

NCRTrooperOverhaul.esp=1

NVR-NPCs.esp=1

NVR-ELECTRO-CTIY_Patch.esp=1

AWOP Interim Fixes.esp=1

FCO - GlowingOne.esp=1

FCO - Beyond Boulder Dome.esp=1

FCO - The New Bison Steve.esp=1

WMX-POPMerged.esp=1

My Merge Patch.esp=1

FCO - OHSB NPC Edits.esp=1

FCO - Russell.esp=1

FCO - Race Addon.esp=1

SnowGlobePerks_SkillsOnly.esp=1

SnowGlobePerks.esp=1

ILO - Nevada Skies Patch.esp=1

LFox Missing Ammo Recipes GRA DLC.esp=1

LFox Missing Ammo Recipes HH DLC.esp=1

LFox Missing Ammo Recipes.esp=1

AWOP-FCO3.esp=1

AWOP-MoMod.esp=1

FlashlightNVSE.esp=1

ILO - PipBoy Light.esp=1

pipboy2500_edisleado.esp=1

XFO - 4bb - Perks - Two per level.esp=1

dD - Enhanced Blood Main NV.esp=1

courierpowerarmor.esp=1

Courier Power Armor - Advanced Recon Tech.esp=1

Courier Power Armor - Project Nevada.esp=1

KerberosPanzer.esp=1

Project Nevada - The Legacy of X13 Patch.esp=1

Crossbow.esp=1

CASM.esp=1

Cerulean Robotics Playerhome.esp=1

AWOP-WMX-EVE AllDLCMerged.esp=1

Project Nevada - WMX.esp=1

Project Nevada - EVE All DLC.esp=1

WeightlessAmmo.esp=1

Conelrad 640-1240.esp=1

CASM with MCM.esp=1

Interior Lighting Overhaul - Ultimate Edition.esp=1

ILO - A World of Pain.esp=1

ILO - New Vegas Bounties II.esp=1

ILO - New Vegas Bounties.esp=1

NevadaSkies - TTW Edition.esp=0

NevadaSkies - Ultimate DLC Edition.esp=1

NevadaSkies - Basic Edition.esp=0

[Raider5]

I just went back to playing FNV and was having CTD's left right and center, and like you I tried ever fix, redownloaded anti stutter, NVAC , ettc to make sure it was all as current as possible. in the end, I rolled back the latest NVidia drivers and suddenly no more CTDs. might not work for you but its worth a shot. also try changing the busethread back to zero and the InumHWthreads to four. that stopped some of my crashes. I suspect that its something to do with having Win10 as an OS.

 

any way no promises that any of that will work for you. Good luck.

[dubiousintent]

Please read the wiki "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article. It covers many things that "mod guides" often assume you already know.

Did you install Steam to it's default location? If so, please see the wiki "Installing Games on Windows Vista+" article for why the original default Steam behavior of installing games to the "C:\Program Files" folder tree was bad (they learned better, and don't do that any more); and why "disabling UAC and running as Administrator" is NOT sufficient, with instructions how to move it. This is the single most important thing you can do to fix and protect yourself against problems in the future. As much of a PITA as that is, it's never going to be any easier than now. Please see the 'Restoring to "Vanilla"' section of the wiki "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article as well.

If you did move Steam out of the default location, then likely any access privilege problem is one of "File and Folder permissions" on the parent "root" folder under which you installed the games. If this is not set correctly to allow at least "System", "Administrators", and "Users" to have "Full Control" then you can't overwrite other files or make changes. You then need to enable the "Properties | Security | Advanced | Change Permissions" setting of the parent folder to enable the box: "Replace all child object permissions with inheritable permissions from this object", so those changes get applied to the existing files and sub-folders.

All of the following may not apply to your specific situation, but are worth repeating anyway.

* Be aware that one error may mask a number of other errors, which will not appear until those masking them have been resolved. Building a stable game consists of resolving each problem individually until none remain, and then realizing that every change you make thereafter (including updates to mods already installed) run the risk of introducing new problems. Be prepared to revert to a previous save if you do so.

* Are you running Win10? Did you get the "Fall Creator's Update" (FCU)? Do you have "New Vegas Stutter Remover" (NVSR) installed? If all three are "true", then please see the 'Issue: Recent (post-Win10 FCU) CTDs after 10-20 minutes of play' (and other "heap size") entries in the 'Solutions to Performance problems' section in the wiki "Fallout NV Mod Conflict Troubleshooting" guide.

The FCU update was released in mid-November 2017, so a "brand new" system probably did not come with it installed. However, the default configuration is usually to have OS updates automatically installed. (Those usually start being distributed on the second Tuesday of each month, but may take a week or more to get to everyone.) See the MS http://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4028685/windows-10-get-the-fall-creators-update "Get the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update" article for how to check your version release and manually pull down the update if necessary. It is important to keep your OS always "up to date" to prevent malware infections.

* Are you using the 4GB Patcher? If not, please see the 'Maximizing use of memory' section of the wiki "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article.

* If you are using the full 4GB of memory, most likely your CTD problem is the default "heap size" is too small. Please see the 'Solutions to "Crash To Desktop" (CTD) problems' section in the wiki "Fallout NV Mod Conflict Troubleshooting" guide.

* Move any "inactive" plugins out of the game "Data" folder. They count against the "plugin cap" because they get loaded by the game engine if found, and can cause "Missing Master" problems. Please see the wiki "Missing Masters" article if you get that error message.

* "Compatibility patches" to make one mod work with another need to be placed after (as in "physically lower, higher numbered") in the "load order" than both of the plugins they are designed to make compatible. ESMs should always be placed at the top (lowest numbered) positions in the "load order", followed by the related ESPs though they can be separated from their ESMs by other plugins. LOOT does a good job of determining those basic orders. Getting the "load order" incorrect will cause "Missing Master" errors as well.

* Don't install compatibility patches for mods you do not have installed/active (e.g. get rid of any "TTW" patches if you aren't running TTW).

* Don't install every optional file for a mod. Read the install instructions carefully. Optional files need to be selected on a "case by case" basis. For example: with any mod you usually only need one ESP (and possibly one ESM) "base" file depending upon whether you have all the DLCs active or not. Only if you don't have them all active do you need to install any specific DLC versions if there is an "Ultimate Edition/All/Merged DLC" version.

* Do not use an "Auto-purge" mod for game play. (That was old advice from before we knew better.) They are designed for debugging by mod creator's only, according to the author of the JIP extensions to NVSE. See the 'Issue: CTD without warning, "Out of Memory error", or stops responding after the Main Menu', "Cause-2", "Solution-3" entry in the wiki "Fallout NV Mod Conflict Troubleshooting" guide for the game settings that do the same job.

You really need to use a "Merge Patch File" with that collection of mods. Please see the 'Third Rule: The Rule of One' and 'Merge Patch File' sections of the wiki "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article.

Please see the 'Solutions to Starting the game problems' and 'Solutions to Performance problems' sections in the wiki "Fallout NV Mod Conflict Troubleshooting" guide for any remaining problems .

 

I'm reasonably sure you're saying to yourself "What's with all this reading? The guide I used didn't have all of this stuff." And that's why. There are a ton of little things you have to get correct to have a stable game. This material is all focused on getting that stable game; not on which mods you want to play. Figure on taking about a week of reading and patient installing of mods ONE AT A TIME to get things right. Nothing worse than getting 20-100 hours in and finding out you have to start over.

-Dubious-

[ARC133738]

I am unable to rollback my nvidea drivers and the game still crashed after I set InumHWthreads to four.

[dubiousintent]

"InumHWthreads" greater than 2 don't seem to work. That setting was intended for the XBox consoles at the time, which had dual CPUs. Any higher values seem to be ignored.

 

nVidea driver installs don't invoke the Windows "restoration checkpoint" system, so they don't have a "rollback" option. You would need to download and manually install an older version.

 

As I recall Gopher's video has you install NVSR, which was standard advice prior to Win10 FCU. Be sure to see the second bullet point in my previous reply.

 

Also, exactly when you crash during the game initialization process is very important. That is covered in the 'Solutions to Starting the game problems' entry mentioned there as well.

 

-Dubious-

[Fkemman11]

I read somewhere that the latest updates to Win10 are causing problems (ctds) with NV Stutter Remover.

[ShepherdN729]

Just thought I'd break out the old FNV and try some of the mods recommended by Gopher, et al. Who knew? Playing FNV with mods just makes it crash more often and more inexplicably. Seems like there's just so much involved in getting any mod to work properly or to not cause constant crashes, is it even worth the effort? Looks like it's back on the shelf for this one.

[dubiousintent]

Just thought I'd break out the old FNV and try some of the mods recommended by Gopher, et al. Who knew? Playing FNV with mods just makes it crash more often and more inexplicably. Seems like there's just so much involved in getting any mod to work properly or to not cause constant crashes, is it even worth the effort? Looks like it's back on the shelf for this one.

Not really any more effort than when playing with mods for any other game. (And lots easier than modding for XCOM:EU/EW which required hacking the game code to implement.) But definitely involves much more work than simply plugging a cartridge into a game console. If you read up first and do things properly you can have an essentially "trouble free" game from the start. Most of the problems I've helped with (on a daily basis) over the last 3 years have been the result of people rushing into things, and not reading about the known issues. Most of the basic modding advice lessons learned here apply to any modded game.

 

-Dubious-

Edited December 25, 2017 by dubiousintent

[Fkemman11]

 

Just thought I'd break out the old FNV and try some of the mods recommended by Gopher, et al. Who knew? Playing FNV with mods just makes it crash more often and more inexplicably. Seems like there's just so much involved in getting any mod to work properly or to not cause constant crashes, is it even worth the effort? Looks like it's back on the shelf for this one.

Not really any more effort than when playing with mods for any other game. (And lots easier than modding for XCOM:EU/EW which required hacking the game code to implement.) But definitely involves much more work than simply plugging a cartridge into a game console. If you read up first and do things properly you can have an essentially "trouble free" game from the start. Most of the problems I've helped with (on a daily basis) over the last 3 years have been the result of people rushing into things, and not reading about the known issues. Most of the basic modding advice lessons learned here apply to any modded game.

 

-Dubious-

 

Well said and very true. I know from experience. It takes some work and a lot of reading/trial and error to have a large mod list for any title and be able to play it with few errors. Reading the fine print before installing mods will save ppl some headaches. Once you start to understand more about how the game works, it gets easier.

[ARC133738]

I downloaded NVSR and when into the .ini file and changed bHookCriticalSections=1 into 0 then repackaged it and installed with Nexus Mods Manager. That seemed to have solved both crashing and kept my game at a decent frame rate. I also redid my merge patch with fnvedit because there were still unresolved conflicts between mods. My game gave me the warning that there were missing files when I loaded up my save and I am unsure if that will affect my game.