What does Morthal II overhaul do?

[teresatiger]

Hi, can someone please tell me exactly what the Morthal II mod (https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/17536) actually does? It doesn't really give any details on the SSE mod's page and the original LE mod's page is gone so there's no way to see the info there. Any explanation of what the mod adds would be appreciated!

[anjenthedog]

It just appears to be a texture overhaul and resource appendation (trees etc). In ELI5 language, "it makes stuffs prettier"

 

I'll freely admit that I haven't installed any of these overhauls except the blubbos Riverview addon, that adds a bunch of deciduous trees and some new or augmented flora, (I recommend btw, very nice addition) and one that adds some flowering trees to the E-W road outside Whiterun (the whiterun one may or not qualify a member of that group), but from most of the overhaul reviews I've watched on YouTube, they're all about taking the vanilla buildings and various bits and pieces, and giving them a richer and more "locally unique" look and feel.

 

So...from the pics on that page, I'd guess that it's simply the equivalent of what women often call "a makeover" or what I might call "changing the window dressings". Little more and nothing less. (and ftr lady readers, no disrespect intended)

 

PS> if you're new to this in any way, just make sure to pay close attention to the mod's requirements list and make sure any dependencies (ie required mods) are in place and game stability is checked (by opening the game and playing for a little while after installation of these dependencies) prior to installing it. I'd also recommend reading the "posts" tab to see if there are any gotchas that others may have encountered, along with any remediation they've concocted to deal with any issues

 

edited for my stupid typos.

[teresatiger]

Thanks, yeah, I'm new in that I haven't played Skyrim yet but I've read up on all of the issues with compatibility, patches needed, installing/uninstalling mid-game, etc. and have been working on my mod list for quite a while now, teleporting around to test as much as I can, reading through mod instructions, bugs, user comments, asking about compatibility and so on. So I'm as prepared as I can be lol.

 

I just wasn't sure what this particular mod did. I didn't know if it was like JK's where it adds little things here and there or not. Basically, I'll use Cities of the North Morthal with JK's Skyrim, but was trying to decide between Morthal II or The Great City of Morthal. COTN has a patch for Great City + JK, and a separate one for Morthal II. And Morthal II has a patch ofr JK but I don't know if using both Morthal II and JK with COTN is problematic.

 

If it doesn't add a bunch of new houses, characters and so on, then I guess I'll just go with Great City since that's got a joint patch with JK for COTN right off the bat. I just thought it might have added more than the Great City mod, but if not then I won't worry about it. I just wish there was a clear description, because most of these overhaul mods normally do give a list of exactly what was added or changed. Not sure why this one doesn't! The comments seem so positive, I thought there was more to it :-)

[anjenthedog]

Word of caution. Make sure to play some in between mod installations. I've seen way too may people who install a dozen mods then spend a week or more figuring out why their game isn't working. And trust me, the time you save by loading it up with 44 mods in quick succession is often lost in a single thumb snap of loading the game afterwards and finding that you can't get past the main menu (or worse not even that far)

 

As for "what color you paint your bedroom" (so to speak) that's your choice not mine.

 

Y'all done been warned :tongue:

[FullTimePatriot]

Also If you haven't installed Mod Organizer 2 I highly recommend it. Some people prefer vortex though so there's a preference you'll need to learn yours. Since this is your first time playing skyrim I highly recommend going very light on the modding. There is quite a bit to learn. Over the past two weeks I've spent a lot of time modding skyrim and very little time playing.

[anjenthedog]

teresatiger

 

My advise on that unrelated issue is to Use whichever mod manager you prefer and which works best for you.

 

PS> good for you for "doing your homework". I did quite a bit before I even installed the game as well, along with quite bit since...

[teresatiger]

Thanks, guys! I'm using MO2 and I'm testing everything as best as can be done without doing an actual playthrough, so I'm actually okay with load order stuff right now, but I appreciate the advice!

 

I was really just hoping to know exactly what Morthal II added in this case...but it seems like it's perhaps just decorations here and there rather than additional content (homes, npcs, shops, etc.) in which case, I guess the Great City mod is a better choice for compatibility purposes.

[TygerxEyes]

Ooooo, I cannot agree more... intermitent testing (especially if you are sectioning your mods - MO2 is great for adding separator bars for that purpose).

Thanks, yeah, I'm new in that I haven't played Skyrim yet but I've read up on all of the issues with compatibility, patches needed, installing/uninstalling mid-game, etc. and have been working on my mod list for quite a while now, teleporting around to test as much as I can, reading through mod instructions, bugs, user comments, asking about compatibility and so on. So I'm as prepared as I can be lol.

 

I just wasn't sure what this particular mod did. I didn't know if it was like JK's where it adds little things here and there or not. Basically, I'll use Cities of the North Morthal with JK's Skyrim, but was trying to decide between Morthal II or The Great City of Morthal. COTN has a patch for Great City + JK, and a separate one for Morthal II. And Morthal II has a patch ofr JK but I don't know if using both Morthal II and JK with COTN is problematic.

 

If it doesn't add a bunch of new houses, characters and so on, then I guess I'll just go with Great City since that's got a joint patch with JK for COTN right off the bat. I just thought it might have added more than the Great City mod, but if not then I won't worry about it. I just wish there was a clear description, because most of these overhaul mods normally do give a list of exactly what was added or changed. Not sure why this one doesn't! The comments seem so positive, I thought there was more to it :-)

 

City Overhauls

 

Several great ones exist, but compatibility is a critical factor. It is important to remember there are pure texture overhauls (which have least conflicts), almost pure texture overhauls though they may change shape or add furnishings (which is a possible issue), and increasing variations moving from here toward... add-ons like JK's & Arthmoor which add new buildings and whole sections and this is where patches and compatibility greatly impact. If you are up for some experimentation, I recommend Northern Experience (not so you can do this massive mod overhaul - learn and do your own thing), but going to two different sections will help you understand - BASE TEXTURES SECTIONS under which is texture only overhauls for CITIES-TOWNS and then later SECTIONS on Cities, Towns, Villages, Mines/Mills, and so on... where you see JK & Arthmoor expansions.

In the BASE TEXTURES SECTIONS, NE Mod List gets a bit crazy as he often blends 2 texture mods together by hiding/deleting. Obviously NE level of tweaking requires a LOT of hours of messing around)... point is not for you to do this... but this section has some of the best texture only overhauls. If you skip down the list to the section on towns and cities, you will see the best of cities-town expansions which includes JK (AIO has only 1 ESP) and Arthmoor in part because these cover the most cities, towns, villages, mills, and mines and authors are masters and have worked together to create comprehensive patching so the conflict are resolved. Now, remember, the textures come from the basic texture section, but the structure and expansions come from the later sections. What is neat is when the textures get picked-up in the expanded sections of the cities, towns, etc.,.

 

It may not matter to you, but something to keep in mind is some degree of consistency, Skyrim is home to many different cultures and different urban centers (cities, towns, etc.,) and each will look somewhat different... but it is often a good idea to pick things that are somewhat in-sync so there is some consistency (unless you want to go for something completely unique).

 

Personally, I liked the texture the NE Mod List Base Texture Compilations for Cities (see my paste from my Excel mod list). After hiding files (actually I just deleted so my own mod merger was easier), I created my own empty mod (except for Solitude which has a single mod) and, after deleting, dumped all of the remaining files into the empty Merged Files. I then WRAR'd them - zipped - and save in safe place outside mod list so I can get them anytime and not have go through the headache of hiding/deleting them - just a trick to add to your skill set (5-Digit # is the SSE Nexus Mod Number).

 

Merged 10.00 - Riften - Skyland & High Definition [Merged]
18383 10.00.a - Skyland Riften (2K) – V1.0 (Hidden Files) [Merge With Above]
20296 10.00.b - Riften in High Definition (Hidden Files) [Merge With Above]
Merged 10.05 - Markarth - Skyland & Frankly HD [Merged]
21888 10.05.a - Skyland Markarth (2K) - V1.0 (Hidden Files) [Merge With Above]
18050 10.05.b - Frankly HD Markarth - The White City Redux - V1.1 (Hidden Files) [Merge With Above]
Merged 10.10 - Whiterun - Skyland & Believable Skyrim [Merged]
13015 10.10.a - Skyland Whiterun (2K) - V1.0 (Hidden Files) [Merge With Above]
25514 10.10.b - Believable Skyrim - Whiterun – V1.1 (Hidden Files) [Merge With Above]
24252 10.15 - Skyland - Solitude – V1.0

 

For the list of files to delete, Northern Experience - Base Textures and see the lists. If you wanted to keep things much simpler, Skyland is the consistent base which holds the cities together. So, one could just use Skyland for all the cities above... since textures they have no ESP and do not impact plugin count.

 

With regard to actual structural changes and expansions, I recommend you consider starting with JK or JK-Arthmoor using the Arthmoor patch at the end to keep PlugIn Count Low, have two master authors works which are comprehensive, and excellent patches (which after you flag as ESLs cost nothing).

Anyway, I always make my own mod lists, but I learn a lot from other masters. I share this with you as means of learning from others... please be creative and follow your own ideas for your mod list... it does not need to be complicated. Do your own thing :smile:.

Oh, and one final thing, Farmhouse textures determine many of the smallest towns - such as riverwood - in terms of textures. Again, do your own thing, but here is a sample from my Excel Sheet, for texture blend I like for Farmhouse Textures (as well as the basic retextures of the main decor trust me my texture files for objects are extensive). Unfortunately, Mystic Dawn no longer provides Idyllic Farmhouses (2K) from which I use only the stonewalls absolutely beautiful, but you can see how I mix and match - sometimes one mod has the one thing - Mysterious Dawn's HD Skyrim Farmhouse Doors are one of only a few with visible keyholes - I mean seriously how to do pick a lock in Riverwood if they are all latch doors - lol. Anway, you get the idea.

19421 12.00.a - MystiriousDawn's HD Skyrim - Alt Frmhs Txtrs – V2.2 [Hidden Files] Doors (w Locks) (Outdated)

11842 12.00.b - Skyland - Towns & Villages – V3.1 (Darker Wood) [Hidden Files] Dark Wood (Preferred) - Roofs & Wood (Resource Intensive - TGR Base But DO NOT USE Doors, Floors, or Stone Walls)
Non-Nexus 12.00.c - Idyllic Farmhouses (2K) - VX For StoneWalls
23611 12.01 - Real 3D Walls (Work Together) – V1.5 Great For Idyllic Farmhouses (2K)

290 12.02 - Better Ropes – V2.1
1937 12.05 - Rustic Windows SE (2K) - V2.0

 

5442 12.10 - Peltapalooza - Special Edition (Full) – V1.0

5436 12.11 - Rugnarok - Special Edition (2K) – V1.1
9799 12.12 - Nordic Carving - Wallbaskets SE – V1.0c

4878 12.15 - CC's Cart (2K) - V1.0
32772 12.15.a - Carriage Seat - SMIM (2K) - V1.0

23513 31.20 - Gourd and Flora Cabbage HD [Make Merged Mod] Retextures Gourd & Cabbage Plants
11003 31.21 - Natural Potato (Use My Archieved File) Retexture of Potato Plant in Fields
11133 12.22 - Iconic's Real Hay - Less Red (2K) – V3.1
10305 31.23 - HD Photorealistic Ivy Change Ivy meshes and textures in all exterior areas. 2K Resolution w/Uncompressed NormalMaps.
" " 31.23.p- HD Photorealistic Ivy - Enhanced Textures Detail (UV-Tweaks) – Compatibility Patch UV Tweaks Patch

 

Again, do your own thing, but I hope these help give you ideas what is possible with texture bases, no plugin impacts, mix-and-match, and where some of the textures come from... :smile:.

 

On Mod Managers - MO2 & Vortex

 

I have a slightly different opinion on Mod Managers use one of two - MO2 (my preference) and Vortex. MO2 is probably the best choice for someone without much experience only because it is easy to use and powerful (you can grow into the deeper stuff), but the main reason is the is a zillion (teastingly said) YouTube Videos Tutorial & How Tos. MO2 also allows one to easily hide files (often preferred over deleting) and removing ESP without deleting (e.g., making it optional hides it). Vortex is great and supported here and Gopher is doing a very nice tutorial series. It has a lot of great features and is exceptional... I just learned MO2 and use many advanced features. And, Gopher, to my knowledge, is the only one really doing how to/tutorials for Vortex on a major level. Gamer Poet prefers MO2 and tends to do his tutorials favoring MO2 but does included others in guideline. Whatever you do... do not learn learn Nexus Mod Manager (NMM) as it is not being supported and has many many problems which will never get fixed as it has been abandoned by Nexus. Obviously, some folks learned NMM and have a death grip on it (and do not want to learn another - familiarity breeds comfort - I freely admit MO2 is that for me), but since you are new and not wed to one stick with the two I recommended. Others exist, but good luck finding current tutorials and how tos. In the end, it is your choice... you have to live with it.

 

Given you have chosen MO2, I think you'll be in good hands. Cheers...

 

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Addendum:

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Post-Script - ESP vs ESPLite vs ESL

 

I wanted to introduce you to this concept because it becomes important to big mod lists because SSE has a hard limit of 255 PlugIns. In the old days, you mod list could get eaten-up by Patches with ESPs. Today, we can convert most patches to ESLs which allows all of the ESL flagged ESPs to load together so they all take-up only 1 of the 255 PlugIns (highly simplified, but the gist). In addition, some mods (not just patches) are by their nature what one can loosely refer to as "FE" mods and can be flagged as ESL. As ESPs flagged as ESLs, the mods loaded in a manner that they are bundled into the "1" of 255. In some instance, Mod list authors will let you know mods can be compressed (Form IDs) so they become "FE" mods and can be flagged, but I do not recommend doing so until you really understand what is at stake (e.g., breaks saves of games in progress, also changes cause patches to no longer work, and can break mods themselves - don't Compress Form IDs unless you know what you are doing or someone you know knows what they are doing says that you can with a given mod and then only before you start playthrough as it will break saves).

 

Remember, patches and mods that are naturally "FE" no problem since you have not compressed them you could just unflag them.

Anyway, Gamer Poet has a great set of videos that talk about the process. It does require current SSEEdit and some understanding and provided you are not Compressing Form IDs and mostly just flagging approach patches you can save yourself oodles of ESPs on count. Remember, it gets advanced ... but just sticking with patches and mods that are by nature "FE" you will get back a good number of ESP/PlugIn Slots. Good Luck!

Gamer Poet:

 

 

 

FINI - As usual, I went overboard. I am at the tail end of my (about 70%) of the way through my 871 and counting mod list (with 591 PlugIns 410 ESL or ESL-Flagged - lol) so I am in deep... so forgive me going way overboard :smile:.

[FullTimePatriot]

Tyger, you may have gone overboard, but I'm incredibly impressed at the amount of detail and information you provided. Also WOW 871 Mods! Can you take a picture of or post your mod list? I'm curious what mods you have! Thanks for your post.