First Playthrough, mods or not ?

[fraquar]

Actually, the only other thing I'd suggest beyond the Unoffical patches which lets you keep a Vanilla playthrough is Skyrim Community Uncapper. You really need a way to control (I.e. slow down) the ridiculously fast way you level in the Vanilla game so you can actually enjoy it for a while. IMO, It is the single biggest problem in the Vanilla game, even moreso than the bugs that the Unofficial patches address.

[Gremxula]

Skyrim + update + unofficial patch only .....play to lvl 20 to get really used to the game then you will enjoy the extras more. Just a few examples of what I mean...........

 

Dawngard ....This DLC will start killing off merchants early in game and continue to do so until the DG main quest is completed.

 

Envoienmental mods.....these will make Skyrim a nicer place to be but you will need to know what Skyrim was like to see and hear the benefits.

 

Dragonborn DLC and other extra lands / Quest mods (Wyrmstooth, Helgen Reborn, Falskaar etc.) can all be installed later. You have plenty to do in your first partial play through.

 

Companions / followers ......there are plenty that you can get right from the start (well first town you visit) just use thes until you get ready to mod your game and or restart. Some of the better companion mods are at there best if used from near the start as to use their quest knowledge others may be just simple meat shields and added at any time.

 

SKY UI......I would add as soon as I feel confident the normal UI is rubbish. Also look at other interface improvement mods when you notice things.

[jet4571]

Skyrim + update + unofficial patch only .....play to lvl 20 to get really used to the game then you will enjoy the extras more. Just a few examples of what I mean...........

 

Dawngard ....This DLC will start killing off merchants early in game and continue to do so until the DG main quest is completed.

 

Envoienmental mods.....these will make Skyrim a nicer place to be but you will need to know what Skyrim was like to see and hear the benefits.

 

Dragonborn DLC and other extra lands / Quest mods (Wyrmstooth, Helgen Reborn, Falskaar etc.) can all be installed later. You have plenty to do in your first partial play through.

 

Companions / followers ......there are plenty that you can get right from the start (well first town you visit) just use thes until you get ready to mod your game and or restart. Some of the better companion mods are at there best if used from near the start as to use their quest knowledge others may be just simple meat shields and added at any time.

 

I agree with this, play to level 20 with the unofficial patches and DLC.

 

After you hit level 20 then find mods that add to what you feel is lacking rather than whats the most popular. Make those choices on mods based on what you want in the game instead of a list of recomendations. Like SkyUI... I like it less than the default UI. From what I saw you picked some suggestion list to go by without ever playing the game and looking for mods that suit you yourself.

 

Environmental mods.. completely depends on the computer running them and personal tastes. ENB? Sure if you like the mid range PC you bought slowing to slideshow mode with the wrong one. These types of mods are best left until you know just how much the rig you have can handle so take it slow adding them and make sure you do not get slideshow mode. Nothing worse than 1-10 fps because you have all textures including bugs and foliage at 4096X4096 and an ENB with everything enabled.

 

So basicly play 20 levels to get to know the game then start thinking about modding it. No first playthrough with no mods and not the first playthrough having mods all the time. At level 20 you should have an idea on what can be added to improve your game based upon how you are playing it rather than someone elses prefered list.

Edited December 18, 2013 by jet4571

[N7R]

I came from playing Skyrim on the xbox so all I had was pure vanialla playthrough and after that I wanted my Skyrim to be overhauled and made more fun.

 

It's all personal preference really on what you are looking for once you dive into mods. For me I wanted graphical updates, new armor, weapons, gameplay updates, and anything else that added more fun to the game. I persoanlly find the vanilla game of Skyrim boring after getting to a certain point and mods for me make the game endless fun. I'm not worried about if a weapon or armor mod isn't lore friendly, if it looks cool I'll add it.

 

After you play the vanilla game for a bit you'll soon start to see what you like and don't like and then go after mods that help fix or add to the game. So yes, playing a few hours of Vanilla first would be recommended.

[Voodoochild7742]

I'm personally about 30 hours into a vanilla playthrough of Skyrim legendary.

Is it still possible to install the unofficial patches or should i have thought about that sooner?

[Shadanwolf]

I'm gettning new PC soon so at last i will be able to play Skyrim, and i have very important question to you guys... Should my first playthrough of Skyrim be with some mods installed or pure vanilla game ?? I've read many comments that without mods this game may be really bad so i would like to squeeze from it as much as possible. I'm not saying that i would like some super big, game changing mods but the ones which could help me improve it a little bit. I've found some mods which sounds interesting and adds some nice little features which makes game fun and more interesting. I thought about installing:

SkyUI, RealVisionENB, ImmersiveArmors, Populated lands and roads, Immersive Patrols, unofficial patches, Wet and Cold, Faalskar (not sure about that though, it's quite big), Footprints, Apocalypse spell package (not sure about that one either, because dont know if those new spells make game too easy however wider range of choice would be fun), (and there was also one which made nice burn/lightning/ice effects on bodies when using magic but i can't remember how it was called :sad: ).

So again.. should my first time in Skyrim include mods or shoud I play without them ?

If you think that i should install mods which one would you recommend ?

 

Sry for my english and thanks for all replies :smile:

You said exactly what I would have said.

 

OP (currently playing with SKYRE mod and some visual mods.This is my 2nd/3rd full game.My suggestion is play vanilla Skyrim with some visual mods ONLY. See how far you go and decide after signifigant gameplay..\As for myself I will never play SKYRIm withour SKYRE mod).

[Graeystone]

Recommended mods for neccesary tweeks/fixes but no game breakers.-

Complete Crafting Overhaul

Smithing Perks Overhaul

Weapon and Armor Fixes

These three mods fix most if not all issues concerning Crafting and Smithing

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/8003/?

The links for Smithing and Weapon/Armor Fixes are provided in the Description for Complete Crafting Overhaul.

 

Flora Respawn Fix-

Like the above three but fixes the problems with harvesting plants.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/31268/?

 

RaceCompatibility for Skyrim and Dawnguard-

For if you ever start playing custom races or use custom companions.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/24168/?

 

ShowRaceMenu Precache Killer

When you start using modded hair, races, eyes, war paint, etc. This one is a giant neccesity for tweeking things like eye color and hair styles.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/33526/?

 

Better MessageBox

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/28170/?

Wish you could navigate ALL dialouge boxes with the movement keys like in the 99% of video games out there? Well now you can with this mod.

 

Proper Aiming-

Makes the gane's Crosshair an actul Crosshair for Archers and Spell Casters. This mod may come of as a 'cheat/game breaker' but it isn't. Weapon and Magic damage are still the same. It just fixes the 'off center aiming' issue.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/13652/?

 

Shadow Striping Fix-

Fixes quite a lot of the messed up shadows.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/27418/?

 

The Choice Is Yours-

Cuts down on being forced to automatically accept quests. Doesn't affect the Main Quest.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/26359/?

 

 

Visual Improvments-

Book of SIlence

Improves the looks of weapons, armor, and certain monsters. The nice thing about this mod is that you can do everything or pick and choose what class of stuff you want to replace. I use BoS for Monsters and Weapons but not Armor.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/24909

 

ApachiiSkyHair-

A lot more hairstyles for both genders and races. If you use this one, then install ShowRaceMenu Precache Killer

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/10168/?

 

Enhanced Character Edit-

Want to make your character look much older or maybe make his/her cheeks a little puffier or give your Norn some Elf Ears, then this the mod to use.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/12951/

 

SkyJubsInvisible Helmets-

Hate looking at helmets, problem solved!(1) Has a lot of options.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/18250/?

 

Superior Lore-Friendly Hair-

Makes Vanilla Hairstyles(both genders) look a heck of a lot nicer.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/36510/?

 

Hale - Iridum Eyes-

More eye color/design choices. All races.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/30823/?

 

Question - "HEY, where's the reccomended adult/mature stuff!"

Answer - "Find those mods yourself!"

Edited December 19, 2013 by Graeystone

[TenderHooligan]

Just my personal opinion but for a first play through I would only go with the Unofficial patches and SkyUI. In my experience once you start modding, a lot of people never make it very far in the game and get restartitis because they installed a mod they didn't like and can't remove it or have corrupted their save or something, or want to try a new mod that needs to be installed before a certain point. Just play the game, find out what you like and dislike, take notes and start looking for mods that will improve those specific elements. Once you've got a good way through the game (maybe all the way through the main quest or a faction or one of the DLCs), then you can kind of use that save as a testbed so to speak, trying out mods you think you'd like to see how they work, how it affects your system, and so forth. Maybe play another good chunk (another major questline, a DLC, etc.), then decide whether you want to continue with that character or start fresh with the most essential mods you've found.

 

I'm tempted to say use the Uncapper as well as fraquar suggested because there's really no reason not to and it will only improve your game BUT you can install that at any time anyway and it's good to get a feel for the vanilla leveling so you have an idea how much you want to adjust its modifiers and other features. For instance, I knock crafting and offensive skills like archery and one-handed way down because those are what I tend to use the most and they level too fast in vanilla compared to auxiliary skills like Speechcraft, but others (like Light Armor since my character does everything possible to avoid getting hit) I leave closer to vanilla (maybe 70%) so the skills I use and value level at a more even pace. And it's hard to figure that out if you use the uncapper right away or don't know what skills you're character will use.

[rizon72]

Personally I downloaded some face mods right away after playing for a few minutes.

[racedoc]

Coming from WoW and addon addicted, I've loaded up with mods - just started Skyrim recently like you. They are fairly easy to use and install if you're familiar with addons and mods.

 

I'm curious about the unofficial patches - I installed those like everyone is suggesting right away. I was unaware that without them the game would be unplayable? I find it amazing that Bethesda would permit that, is it true you cannot finish Skyrim without the use of those unofficial patches?