Will Vortex ever run from a separate folder to Skyrim?

[ShaunyBoy5]

I like Vortex for it's ease of use and cool UI but I use MO2 for one simple reason. I like a clean untouched Skrim se folder. I like having different instances of my game without having to touch the Skyrim folder. Will this be a possibility in the future? I hope so.

[showler]

How does Vortex "touch" your Skyrim folder any more than MO2 does?

 

The only difference between their approaches is that Windows is aware of the virtual links that Vortex uses so you don't need to leave Vortex running, while MO2 uses a version of virtual links that Windows can only read while MO2 is running.

[Pickysaurus]

A "clean" folder is a folder without any mods in it. It's one of those things that people quote as a benefit of MO2 without really understanding how Vortex works.

 

This can be achieved by using "Purge Mods" on the Vortex toolbar.

 

The only small caveat is that if a tool makes new files and dumps them in the data folder (without an option to redirect them) then they will be left behind.

[ShaunyBoy5]

My thought is that I can have say two or three instances of Skyrim SE with totally different mod load orders, without touching the skyrim folder. Is that possible with Vortex?

[Zanderat]

Vortex has profiles.

[Guest deleted34304850]

My thought is that I can have say two or three instances of Skyrim SE with totally different mod load orders, without touching the skyrim folder. Is that possible with Vortex?

Yes it is and has been for a good long while.

[ShaunyBoy5]

1ae0bfb8. Thank you for clearing that up. I will look at Vortex again.

[Pickysaurus]

Vortex, by default, only supports one instance of each game, but you can change the instance in the game tab be re-routing it to another folder if you do desire.

 

This is very unnecessary though as profiles exist to allow you to swap mod lists out on a single instance.

 

If you have different vanilla files for some lists, install them as a mod in the profile to have them overwrite the base game ones. This saves a tonne of space compared to having loads of instances.

[ShaunyBoy5]

So Vortex does add to the data folder in the skyrim folder. So now I have to delete it and start again to have a clean skyrim folder. Back to MO2.

[ShaunyBoy5]

I'll explain how I use MO2. I use the same system as Wabbajack, which is the Game Root folder. I add the game root folder to MO2 and copy the contents of the skyrim folder into the game root folder. That way I don't have to ever touch the skyrim folder. This way I can swap between instances of skyrim for different playthroughs. I hope that clears up the reason for my original question.