RedDingo

It really doesn't matter which side wins, just that the Civil War be ended quickly. Whether it's an independent state or part of the Empire, Skyrim will be an obstacle to the Dominion's conquest of Tamriel in the next Great War and a weaker Skryrim means less resources diverted to the northern front. The only real difference in the outcome of the Civil War is whether or not you believe the likes of Dunmer and Argonians deserve basic civil rights in the province or if it really is just for the Nords. To be honest, I find Ulfric to be a hypocrite for trying to rebel against religious oppression when he had no problem with reestablishing an identical form of despotism against the Reachmen (mind you, those opportunistic atavists don't have my sympathies either). I also consider him a traitor to the Way of the Voice the moment he used the Thu'um against Torygg. It's one thing to leave the Greybeards if you decided their way of life was not for you but to use what you learned from them in a way that goes against the whole point of their order is almost as bad as killing Paarthurnax. At least stand by your bullshit honestly.

I can't speak for the Thalmor fans as that touches on the political situation threatening world today, but I think the elves and beast races are just very original compared to the more human races. The Khajiit come in over sixteen variations based on the lunar cycle, get high on crystallized moon beams, and don't really have a word for "rules". The Argonians seem like your stereotypical lizard folk until you learn they have a symbiotic relationship with sentient trees from another dimension that allowed them to stick it to the Daedra during the Oblivion Crisis. The history and politics of the Dunmer subvert a lot of stereotypical dark elf tropes. The Wood Elves have a super-keto anti-vegan culture. Even the Altmeri are neat deconstruction of your basic self-righteous high elf. The Daedra are more hands on actors in the events of the games while the most presence you'll see from the Aedra is their worship (the setting being made from them only sort of counts). Daedra on the other hand...well in Skyrim alone, you reenact The Hangover after partying with Sanguine, take a literal trip through dream and space using Vaermina's magic, and create a rain of cheese with the power of Sheogorath. The Daedra have more character to interact barring the occasional Talos incarnation.

When your load order gets in the 100s, it's probably best to make a merged patch and a batch for leveled lists. It cut down on the CTDs a lot (they still happen from time to time but not as frequently and not when crossing world cells). It might be good to sort them with LOOT and then quick clean them with Xedit/Sedit if you haven't done that too.

From what I could tell, it's common enough that someone made a guide to navigate around it. While that's appreciated, it's still a bit immersion breaking.

Lorewise I think shapeshifting would count as alteration.