legend8804

Today's your lucky day I suppose. Here you go. Just a friendly reminder, always make a backup before you fiddle with things! [Display] flocalShadowMapHalveEveryXUnit=750.0000 focusShadowMapDoubleEveryXUnit=450.0000 fShadowBiasScale=1.0000 fDirShadowDistance=3000.0000 fShadowDistance=3000.0000 uiOrthoShadowFilter=2 uiShadowFilter=2 iShadowMapResolution=2048 uPipboyTargetHeight=700 uPipboyTargetWidth=876 iVolumetricLightingQuality=2 bVolumetricLightingEnable=1 bSAOEnable=1 iDirShadowSplits=3 bVolumetricLightingForceCasters=0 iTiledLightingMinLights=40 bComputeShaderDeferredTiledLighting=1 iMaxFocusShadowsDialogue=4 iMaxFocusShadows=1 bForceIgnoreSmoothness=0 fBlendSplitDirShadow=48.0000 bSinglePassDirShadow=1 bEnableWetnessMaterials=1 fTessFactorMaxDistanceScale=100.0000 sAntiAliasing=TAA fLeafAnimDampenDistEnd=4600.0000 fLeafAnimDampenDistStart=3600.0000 fMeshLODFadePercentDefault=1.2000 fMeshLODFadeBoundDefault=256.0000 fMeshLODFadeScalar=1.0000 fMeshLODLevel2FadeTreeDistance=2048.0000 fMeshLODLevel1FadeTreeDistance=2844.0000 fInteriorMeshLODLevel2FadeDist=1950.0000 fInteriorMeshLODLevel1FadeDist=2600.0000 fMeshLODLevel2FadeDist=3000.0000 fMeshLODLevel1FadeDist=4000.0000 iMaxAnisotropy=16 iPresentInterval=1 bTopMostWindow=0 bMaximizeWindow=0 bBorderless=1 bFull Screen=0 iSize H=720 iSize W=1280 bAllowShadowcasterNPCLights=0 iScreenShotIndex=0 fMaxFocusShadowMapDistance=450.0000 bPrecipitationOcclusion=1 iMaxSkinDecalsPerFrame=3 iMaxDecalsPerFrame=10 [Imagespace] bDoDepthOfField=1 bScreenSpaceBokeh=0 bMBEnable=1 bLensFlare=1 [Pipboy] fPipboyEffectColorB=0.0900 fPipboyEffectColorG=1.0000 fPipboyEffectColorR=0.0800 [VATS] fModMenuEffectHighlightPAColorB=0.4100 fModMenuEffectHighlightPAColorG=0.8200 fModMenuEffectHighlightPAColorR=1.0000 fModMenuEffectPAColorB=0.4100 fModMenuEffectPAColorG=0.8200 fModMenuEffectPAColorR=1.0000 fModMenuEffectHighlightColorB=0.0824 fModMenuEffectHighlightColorG=1.0000 fModMenuEffectHighlightColorR=0.0706 fModMenuEffectColorB=0.4200 fModMenuEffectColorG=0.9900 fModMenuEffectColorR=0.4900 [MAIN] fSkyCellRefFadeDistance=150000.0000 bCrosshairEnabled=1 fHUDOpacity=1.0000 bSaveOnPause=1 bSaveOnTravel=1 bSaveOnWait=1 bSaveOnRest=1 [LightingShader] bScreenSpaceSubsurfaceScattering=0 bScreenSpaceReflections=1 [General] bGamepadEnable=1 bPipboyCompanionEnabled=0 iStoryManagerLoggingEvent=-1 bEnableStoryManagerLogging=0 uGridsToLoad=5 [Interface] bDialogueSubtitles=0 bGeneralSubtitles=0 iHUDColorB=21 iHUDColorG=255 iHUDColorR=18 bDialogueCameraEnable=1 bShowCompass=1 [Controls] fMouseHeadingSensitivity=0.0300 fGamepadHeadingSensitivity=0.6667 bAlwaysRunByDefault=1 bInvertYValues=0 bGamePadRumble=1 [GamePlay] iDifficulty=2 bShowFloatingQuestMarkers=1 bShowQuestMarkers=1 [Particles] iMaxDesired=750 [SaveGame] fAutosaveEveryXMins=10.0000 [AudioMenu] fAudioMasterVolume=1.0000 fVal7=1.0000 uID7=0 fVal6=1.0000 uID6=0 fVal5=1.0000 uID5=0 fVal4=0.6500 uID4=138006 fVal3=0.6500 uID3=1007612 fVal2=1.0000 uID2=94881 fVal1=0.6500 uID1=466532 fVal0=0.6500 uID0=554685 [Water] bUseWaterDisplacements=1 bUseWaterRefractions=1 bUseWaterReflections=1 bUseWaterDepth=1 [TerrainManager] fTreeLoadDistance=75000.0000 fBlockMaximumDistance=100000.0000 fBlockLevel2Distance=80000.0000 fBlockLevel1Distance=32000.0000 fBlockLevel0Distance=20000.0000 fSplitDistanceMult=1.1000 bShowLODInEditor=0 [Grass] fGrassStartFadeDistance=2000.0000 fGrassMaxStartFadeDistance=7000.0000 fGrassMinStartFadeDistance=400.0000 [Decals] uMaxDecals=100 [LOD] fLODFadeOutMultSkyCell=1.0000 fLODFadeOutMultObjects=5.0000 fLODFadeOutMultItems=3.0000 fLODFadeOutMultActors=5.0000

Stupid question, but is your head crippled? I imagine it should have 'fixed' itself after waiting for an entire day, but seems worth ruling out.

I have experienced this bug once, at the very start of the game. So far it's the only 'game-breaking' bug I've encountered, which is a pretty darn good track record for a Bethsoft game. That said, the only thing I could do was reload from an earlier save, and then I was able to get up from the computer normally.

You may find this post to be rather helpful to you. Basically what you are looking for is the last few lines, at least from what I can gather on the subject. The key is to find out what precisely is triggering the event - so according to you, this 'mannequin issue' is probably what is causing the crash... If you could upload the log that would be great - hopefully someone smarter than me might be able to help you out. ----- A little additional research into this subject prompts me to ask a very stupid question: Have you used the console to place Mannequins into the game? If so, that could potentially be the root cause of this particular issue. Regardless, I'm looking forward to taking a peek at that log file, if only for curiousity's sake.

I can't help but notice Live Another Life is installed.... which might be part of what is causing you to crash constantly? How large are your save files? If they're above 20mb in size, I would say your issue is probably save bloat, and there is not an easy way to fix that. Beyond that though? I think checking the Papyrus log is about the only way you're going to get any definitive answers with a mod list that large, sorry to say. Come to think of it? Even if your issue *is* save bloat, probably the only way to figure out what's causing it is via the Papyrus log. The more I look at what you've written, the more I can't help but think just generating the log and seeing what causes the crash is probably the fastest way to get your answers.

SKSE is a very different thing from Skyrim. The official Skyrim patch is, indeed, v 1.8.151. SKSE is a seperate program, in a sense - it is a script extender. It lets people make mods for Skyrim in ways the developers did not originally allow for, and it is perfectly safe to use. What you are *possibly* looking for is the current beta build for SKSE, which is 1.6.11. This is for people who are currently testing the beta patch. Therefore, it is not necessary for you to have the 'version 11' of the current SKSE - and personally I would stay away from it, as it is in beta and could possibly cause more issues for you than it is worth. For the record, the official SKSE page can be found here, just in case you're worried about those 'dodgy sites'. As for the Dragonborn DLC: I am aware that Steam does, on occasion, have issues when reacquiring files, and sometimes it can take a little while for it to actually take. But generally, it does work after a fashion (it may require a restart, sometimes Steam is funny like that). I've had some issues with that myself in the past, amusingly enough it was with New Vegas when I purchased all the DLCs and I had trouble getting them to work properly. But it should sort itself out eventually - just keep an eye on the download, and if it seems to have paused itself, you can force it to restart by just clicking the pause/resume button a few times until it takes. You shouldn't have to install anything else in order for SKSE to be installed properly. Also be aware that if you plan on using SKSE, you will need to use a modified launch icon. Otherwise SKSE will not work, and any mods you have which require it will likewise not work properly either. Be sure to read the documentation on the site thoroughly - it's boring, but most of the time it can save you headaches. And lastly: It has been noted that Solstheim does in fact cause additional CTDs, but from what I'm seeing, a lot of it seems to be centered on some .ini tweaks, which I can't really say is on the fault of the developers, since on purely stock settings the game appears (at least for me, please let me know if that is not the case) to work pretty darn solidly. Let me know if you have any other questions, I'll help you as best I am able.

Sounds to me like you could potentially be running on a corrupted save. Either that, or there is a script running which causes the game to crash (in which case Papyrus log is your best bet, painful as that is). Is your SKSE up to date? It's a long shot, but I figure it'd be worth asking, since you seem to get crashes anytime you do something relating to the menus. Though generally, it should be warning you if your SKSE is out of date (I think, not sure I've run into that problem yet).... Have you loaded up a previous save to make sure it's not isolated to just that one save? Or to that character? That would be a very quick test I would think which could tell you where the problem might lie.

One other thought: Even if you completely uninstalled Skyrim, it is entirely possible that the original .ini files may have been left over. It could be that perhaps some changes were made to your .ini that could cause an artifact such as this - particularly if, in your modding frenzy, you made some changes to how Skyrim looks. You may want to take the time to delete your Skyrim.ini and SkyrimPrefs.ini so that the next time you launch the game can re-generate them. It's worth a try, if you find that the issue persists with other characters.

It is Valve's policy to not offer refunds - particularly not in this particular instance. So sorry, but your money has been spent and they will most likely not offer you a refund (though Dragonborn is a good DLC anyways). Just because the TES5Edit finds an error does not necessarily mean that your files are 'screwed'. And even if they were, it's a simple matter of just having steam re-validate your files (which is necessary from time to time, particularly if you just purchased a new DLC - sometimes between pausing and resuming downloads things get messed up). If there were something about the DLC that made the game unplayable, you (probably) would have heard about it by now.

A few thoughts: - You've uninstalled all of your mods, and still this did not fix the issue? Curious, but does this also include any graphical mods you may have installed (UI overlays, custom cursors, that sort of thing)? - Have you attempted to update your display drivers? Probably not the culprit, but if it is graphics-related, could conceivably cause an issue. - Try having Steam validate your files. Sometimes weird things like this happen due to a file getting changed somehow, so revalidating through Steam does tend to at least ensure the core files are intact. - Is this problem isolated to just a single character? Is it every character you play? Have you attempted to start a new game and see if the problem persists? Likewise, what happens if you revert to a previous save (such as one that is really old)? Trying to narrow down the root cause will help a lot in trying to get this issue resolved.

Use the Nexus Mod Manager. It now has a feature that checks any mods you have installed to see whether there has been an update, and will alert you if a mod has a new version available for you. As well as a ton of other nifty features (such as managing mod downloads, installation/uninstallation, loading with script extenders and such). The reasons the Steam workshop is bad: Mods that are updated don't always allow their authors to simply re-upload their mod, so sometimes it gets re-listed and you don't find out unless you are paying close attention. Plus, it has no idea what a 'load order' is, which is another incredibly annoying bit. I'll also highly recommend you look into using BOSS (the Better Oblvion Sorting Software) which you can find on the nexus here: http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/6 The great thing about BOSS is that it can tell you what order to place your mods for maximum enjoyment, and if any mods are going to conflict, it will at least warn you (fixing them is something you have to do on your own, and it is not something I am very good at, so if you are feeling brave, go look up some things for Wyre Bash and familiarize yourself with Bash Patching - it's kind of complex and a little time consuming). At the minimum, I really recommend using the NMM and BOSS. It just makes your life soooo much easier. As far as I know, it's a difficult thing to track down. I've had to do it several times, for several different reasons, and it all just really depends on what all you've happened to change. Usually it's either mod-related or something you've changed in the .ini which can be really hard to track down. Although I've recently read that enabling Papyrus logging can help you determine the root cause pretty quickly, though I have not had to do that myself as I have just gotten the game running (relatively) smoothly again to the point where I can play for hours on end without any crashing. The problem with Crash on Load is that it can be really arbitrary. I usually recommend attempting to load another save to see if that works, and then validating your files to see if that fixes things. Then I start looking at recently installed mods as the culprit, since it is usually something graphics or memory-related.

Oh dear. I had some very similar issues when I realized just how *bad* the Workshop is for modding and wanted to migrate to the NMM or get rid of my Workshop mods altogether. Without a comprehensive list of all the mods you had installed, it is downright impossible to fully troubleshoot. The two most likely candidates for what has caused this issue are either rogue scripts or save corruption. Often times if you just stop using a mod, it can make things worse (this was the case with some of the workshop mods I had, which was a pain to fix - took me the better part of a week to find the correct version of the mod I had installed before it would work again, and if it wasn't the Steam version, it wouldn't allow me to fix it - quite a pain). With that said: When you removed the mods, did you make sure to read all the directions and ensure it was as simple as just turning them off? Item mods aren't so bad, but when you get into things that alter your character or whatnot, that's where things get interesting. Additionally: It doesn't sound as though save bloat is your issue, which is good - that is a real pain to fix (previous issue I mentioned saw my files in excess of 100mb... truly ridiculous). So at least you don't have that problem. Thankfully, there's still some hope for you. You can still go back to Steam and see which mods you have downloaded/installed recently, which means you can also go back and look in the descriptions to make sure you've uninstalled them correctly. If it is a matter of a mod incorrectly uninstalled, then that is a (comparitively) easy fix. Otherwise, it sounds a lot more like you may be facing corrupted saves, which I have also experienced... and there is absolutely nothing you can do in that case other than revert to a previous save and reload. With all that said, I really miss some of the tools the old NVMM I used had - used to let me manage my characters, and also let me know what mods happened to be installed on a particular save (and the order they were installed in!). Invaluable for times like this when you get rid of all your mods and go "whoops, now what?" Anyways, best of luck, sounds to me like you have some homework to do.

The save files that cause the crashing, how large are they in size compared to the ones that work? Sounds to me like it could be a save file corruption - I had some similar issues once due to some mods I was running, which caused the save file to bloat unimaginably large thanks to some rogue scripts. Went back, removed the conflicting mod, and suddenly I'm a hundred hours further on a character that was previously unplayable. Hopefully this might be your issue as well. Also knowing what mods you are running would be helpful as well - ones that run scripts in the background could conceivably be your issue.

If you're using the SKSE launcher, then that pretty much means if there *are* any workshop mods installed (which it sounds like you don't have), then they aren't updating (which could conceivably cause an issue, but you're 100% certain that isn't, so I'll stop beating that horse). Try validating your files via Steam. To do this, right-click the game in your library, click Properties. Then go to the Local Files tab and select Verify Integrity of Game Cache. Most likely something got messed up somewhere, and hopefully this should correct any changes that were made. Another thing to check is to make sure you aren't opted into the beta patch by accident. Sometimes weird things happen with beta patches, and while I am pretty sure that won't be the cause of the issue, it never hurts just to double-check things. Verifying your game files is probably the easiest, least painful way to fix this. If that doesn't work, then just completely uninstall, make sure anything in the directory you installed it in is gone (to fully eliminate the possibility of any sort of mod that wasn't uninstalled correctly), then reinstall fresh and try it. That's the only thing I can tell you at this point - the vanilla game should never be spawning more than a few enemies at a time like that - even for large battles it never spawns more than 10 NPCs at most (a conservative estimate, not a fact).

Just out of curiousity: How are you launching the game? It sounds to me as though there may in fact be a mod that is being loaded - entirely possible if you are using the Steam launcher (which can be annoying when activating/deactivating mods downloaded via the workshop). Additionally, I'd validate your files just to be absolutely certain the core files weren't tampered with or otherwise changed. Based on your description, it sounds as though something is very wrong with your leveled lists...

After doing much trial and error and playing around, it would appear the crux of the issue was, in fact, my uGridsToLoad. Previously, it was set at 9 - returning it to its default value of 5 appears to have, at the very least, allowed me to exit the tunnels, and get back to the overworld map. Why this particular area (which I now see is listed as Bloodskal Barrow on the map) was causing issues, I really can't say. But it would seem that turning up the uGridsToLoad for that particular zone can be troublesome. Is this a problem other folks are experiencing in the Dragonborn DLC? I am curious about this.

Hey guys, I've been playing Skyrim for quite some time, and I've seen a number of crashes over time for various reasons, all of which with plenty of research I've been able to resolve. Except this one. I'm hoping one of you can help me out here. I recently purchased Dragonborn, and have been running around Solstheim. Occasionally it randomly crashes, but I'm used to that - it's just part of that good ol' Bethsoft experience. But now I am at a point where I cannot appear to proceed, and I am trapped. I've been running through the Bloodskal Barrow, doing that quest for the old guy in the mine to find his ancestor's remains. I've managed to get all the way through to the very end.... and I cannot leave through the door that leads back to Solstheim without it crashing on the loading screen. It is a reproducible thing, and it would seem this is the ONLY door this happens. Running back to the previous area does not cause a CTD, so that is out. Validating my steam files does not appear to fix this either. I doubt it is save file corruption, as my save is resting at about 17 mb (which is honestly about right, given the length of play on this character, as well as some of the mods). I *have* adjusted the uGridsToLoad, but I doubt this is the issue either, considering I've been able to run around other areas of Solstheim with relatively few issues - and this tweak was made long before I got Dragonborn. The only mods I have installed (besides the HD textures and their related patches) are a few mods that don't have much affect in Solstheim - house mods, things of that nature (an a couple NPC mods, which should cause this crash either). I really have no idea how to proceed at this point. I would hate for my main to be trapped like this, especially after the hundreds of hours I've played him. I have been unable to discover any reason why this particular door should be giving me issues. So I turn to you for help in this matter. What am I missing? Is there some other way out of this mess that I'm just not seeing, some other method of troubleshooting that could save me hours or days of randomly attempting things? Please help. I really want to finish exploring Solstheim without breaking quests if at all possible. *edit* Another thing I should mention: I have noticed that when running the game, prior to the crash the game uses up to about 2GB worth of RAM - not an issue since I have 8GB worth to play with. And since it uses the latest patch, memory issues shouldn't be the problem...

Are you running NMM in administrator mode? Sounds to me that could possibly be your issue. It could also have something to do with where Skyrim is installed as well - Win7 is notoriously finicky about that. Possible solutions: Right-click your NMM Icon, click "Run as Administrator". That *should* eliminate any write permission errors. Alternatively: Your phrasing is rather strange, almost sounding as though you already has Skyrim running when you tried to run NMM? Because that would definitely cause it to not work properly. It might also help if you tell us where Skyrim is installed on your drive. With Vista and Win7, some directories are more difficult to apply changes to than others (for example, if you installed it to your Program Files or Program Files (x86), that can also cause issues...). Let me know if any of this helps.

Confirmed fixing my save bloat issue - my save file is now back down to almost 5 mb. The issue? It was the RTS mod. Here's how I fixed it: Despite unchecking the mod in the load order list, it wasn't until I completely uninstalled the mod via the NMM (by going into the mod list and then completely uninstalling it) that I managed to get an incredible improvement. We're talking shaving 100 mb off of a single save file. The effect was immediate. Case in point, if you have an issue with save files becoming insanely bloated, check to see if it might be a mod causing the issue. I have confirmed that the RTS mod alone was to blame by rolling back to an even older save, re-enabling every other mod, and then saving as soon as I got into the game. Thanks for your help and support Georgiegril, at least now I know it wasn't an issue (entirely) with Skyrim itself, but just one of the mods. Now off to inform the mod author...

No worries, it was more a matter of my being tired and wanting to make sure I fully understood what you were saying. ;) Hoping that the author manages to get back to me, but there appears to be some question as to whether the mod is still 'active' or not. Also, since disabling his mod I've noticed a tremendous decrease. Save files are currently at half the size they were (but still near 100mb, which is ridiculous). If I manage to get it back down to sane levels, I will be very happy indeed. I'm going to look up some console commands and see if maybe force-resetting outside cells might be helpful in reducing savefile size even more.

Alright, after sleeping for some hours, getting some coffee in me, and reading your post over about four or five times, I've started testing again. The first culprit (the most likely in my opinion) seems to have already shown drastic results. By disabling the RTS mod, waiting a few minutes, and then saving again (per the author's instructions), I've already seen almost a 60 mb drop in my save file size. This tells me it is most likely due to the RTS mod, for whatever reason, causing all of this insanity. Also, I am aware that it has an autosave function (which I did not know until I started looking around), which cannot be disabled. I figure the bulk of my save file bloat likely occurred due to five autosaves - the four that come with the game as well as this fifth, once-per-day. I'll be leaving a nice little note for the mod author, since Skyrim now has an option that lets you pretty much have timed auto-saves, it is wholly unnecessary to have one force-included in a mod. Holdovers from previous Bethgames need to be removed to avoid issues like these. Thanks for all your help, I will continue to see if there is any other way I can cause my standard save file size to decrease. If anyone else has any other suggestions, please let me know. I'll keep updating if I find anything else that might be useful for you guys.

For the longest time, I've avoided playing Skyrim for one reason or another, despite having logged well over 200 hours into the game so far. So, the other day, I finally decide I'm going to start playing again, especially after discovering the Real Time Settler mod (something I've been waiting for a long time). And aside from the usual Skyrim issues, I wasn't having any real issue at all playing the game. Now I am discovering that the game is beginning to freeze every few minutes at random intervals. Most notable is when I am saving a game (which was one of my first clues). Poking around on the internet in the vain hope I might find the answer, it pointed me towards save game bloat, so I decided to take a look and see what my save file sizes were like (thinking it could be an issue with my virtual memory getting eaten up). What I discovered are save files that are blowing up at an insane rate. I first got worried when I noticed that my latest save game was - no joke - 171 mb in size. That is freaking insane. I turned off all of the autosaving stuff to see if maybe that could be causing the issue (something I never really had an issue with before, not even on my 200+ hour playthrough!). A few more tests, I decided to ask myself, "I wonder what will happen to my save file size if I stand in The Winking Skeever and save after a few minutes." What happened was that, over a period of less than ten minutes, my save file suddenly jumped up to almost 200 mb. Something is seriously wrong here, and I am at a complete loss as to what could possibly be causing my save file size to increase so drastically despite the fact that I pretty much stood in place for a few minutes inside of a tavern. I do not believe my system specs are the issue here, considering this is an issue with the save games themselves (and them being totally massive). I will make a note here: I have my previous character backed up, and his save files never seemed to grow above the 14 mb range - which I consider to be reasonable, personally, given the length of time played. But this new character has hardly spent more than 30 hours adventuring, and this save bloat is just unfathomable. My questions are the following: 1- Has the culprit behind the save game bloat been discovered? 2- Once a save game has become so insanely bloated, is there any chance of recovery, short of losing pretty much all progress? 3- Is there any way to help prevent these save files from getting so incredibly large? For the record: Yes, I am playing a legitimate copy of the game (I have the statue and art book to prove this). The following is my load order for everything active: Skyrim.esm Update.esm SkyMoMod.esm HighResTexturePack01.esp HighResTexturePack02.esp shenkthieveryoverhaul.esp midasskyrim.esp morerain.esp boss.esp phenderix's magic evolved.esp imp's more complex needs.esp chopping_block_wood_fires.esp unlimitedbookshelves.esp tk_clutter_plants.esp enhanced soundtrack 01.esp enhanced soundtrack 02.esp riftenjailvisualfix.esp thearmourerfixes.esp skyrim scaling stopper.esp live another life.esp RTSforSkyrim.esp SkyMoMod_lists.esp SkyTEST-RealisticAnimals&Predators.esp Upon looking this over, I think I can see how SkyTEST could be causing some of my scaling issues with my game - I've noticed a distinct lack of the 'really hard' encounters that I noted with the scaling stopper (though really it hasn't been too large an issue for me, after all I could've just been *really* unlucky when I started this new game). Regardless, I don't feel that should be causing me some of the issues that I am seeing here, which is an increasingly large file size that is quickly getting out of control. One final note on my saves: The massive save bloat seems to have started occurring some time last night, when my game went from less than 5 mb to almost 26 mb in a matter of about 3 hours. Unfortunately, I was unaware of this until I started looking around to see what was going on today. I would really hate to have lost all of that progress. It may only be about ten hours or so, but I did a lot in that time - made a lot of money, gained a lot of experience, and earlier today, I started trying to build my first settlement while I was out adventuring. Any help you all can give me would be greatly appreciated. And just in case it might matter (but I kind of doubt it does), I have NMM running three of the mods in that list: RTS, SkyMoMod, and SkyTEST. Everything else was installed via Steam Workshop. But I don't believe that should cause any issue like this, I would hope. Thanks again for any help you might be able to offer to me.

Basically, if you get to a point where it starts to crash pretty much no matter what you try, odds are your save is screwed. Generally it'll crash when you try to fast travel - that's usually the big tell. Rolling back to a save from a couple of hours previous saw me not crashing anywhere near as much as I had been. That was how I knew my save file had to be corrupt. It happens, unfortunately.

The vanilla time for a cell reset is 4 days I think. However, FWE changes that to something more like 7-7.5 days. They recommend you wait about seven or eight days, and I chose to err on the side of caution. Unfortunately, there is no easier way to wait except to just wait for 24 hours multiple times. Still experiencing crashes, seems to be occurring more in Central DC. I am beginning to suspect this may have something to do with Enhanced Rain and Weather, but cannot test that for certain yet. Interestingly enough, my processor seems to be experiencing peak load in certain places, but is hardly using up a gig of RAM, so there's no problem with me running out of memory at least.

A small update, just in case this might help others who are having similar issues to mine: I have noticed that if you have an incorrect load order to start with (namely regarding the MMM mods), things can get quite strange indeed. Even worse, however, is that even once you fix your load order, the crashes may still occur (if not occur more often!). What you may need to do: - Go to a Megaton House (or Megaton in general, some place not populated by mobs) - Wait about 10 days (to force cell reset) - 'uninstall' MMM (by which I mean uncheck MMM and all its components) - reload game, save, quit - reload MMM (and components) Now, I didn't immediately see a difference, however as of lately I have been experiencing fewer and fewer crashes within the game. This suggests that MMM may, in fact, have been the culprit as I had though earlier. VATS seems to be responding much better now, and I don't seem to be getting as many CTDs randomly (which is always an improvement). I am considering messing around with the .NET framework install (uninstalling it, reinstalling an older version of 3.0), but I am not sure how that would affect some of the programs I run, since I am currently using 3.5. But if you are experiencing a lot of crashing and it is frustrating you as much as it was for me, check your load order and make sure that you didn't have it messed up from the start. MMM is strange in that even after you fix the load order, it is STILL necessary to purge the cell buffers so that you can play (relatively) crash-free. Hope this helps someone else.