Modding DAO, what do i need?

[godospartan]

Alright, before people go BASHING me and saying "Why you no read other posts? here's all you need to know!" and send me either to another website, or that one post about DA modding for dummies, allow me to VERY clearly state....

 

NEITHER IS CLEAR! The post here with the "for dummies" tag is not clear on every single thing i have a question for. As well as the fact it has many little tidbits that are confusing because it's a complicated process being spoken about in a way that, to them, sounds easy but to the rest of us does not.

 

So onto my questions...

 

What do i need? When i ask this, i mean any utilities. i modded Fallout new vegas, up the wazoo even. For that i needed NVSE and NMM. (FOMM as well) So what do i need here? can i use NMM, grab the mods into it, install, and just play normally? or do i need another utility, and is there specific stuff i need to know on using it to mod?

 

I'm not modding this game heavily. there's not enough mods to heavily mod this game with. so i don't think there's really any concern with conflict, but i seen some mods that change things similar. Bioware forums hosted downloads for fixes on the female bodies, using those, and say a character redesign pack... will this conflict?

 

and my last question on modding, IF i need any utilities to use other than NMM, which ones the best, so i don't have to bash my brain against a wall trying to figure out what i did wrong on my computer.

[DwainDibley]

 

 

I'm not modding this game heavily. there's not enough mods to heavily mod this game with

 

Now that, is funny.....

[godospartan]

 

I'm not modding this game heavily. there's not enough mods to heavily mod this game with

 

Now that, is funny.....

 

 

Considering the VAST amounts of "compatibility issues" i keep seeing around the installation warnings for every mod i come across, modding heavily with most things will break the game, and quite possibly someones computer. so, considering that fact, instead of installing 50 face changing mods just because i can, im modding like a true gamer who knows better, and who will only mod what is needed or wanted, which would only be like 2-4 body/face mods i dont see many weapons and armors i like, so put 3 more to that, additions and fixes, about 5 considering. and maybe that healer class. nothing overly OP, play the game without blasting through it with something that makes it far less challenging. thus, i get around 15 mods. compared to FONV where i have A HUNDRED! Heavily modding DAO is possible, but highly unlikely for a TRUE gamer, not mod/hackers who have no consideration for games and just mod it down till the thing is unplayable just because they can.

[mcgoy]

What you 'need' depends on what you like.

 

I use DAupdater (came with the game when I bought it, I bought the disks, didn't download) exclusively for those that must be installed. There are a few mods that require another package, but they (as far as I know) tell you what you need. The ChargenMorph Compiler isn't necessary, but I find it very very useful.

 

From there, it depends on what you want. There are fixes, tweaks, and restoration packs. There are mods that add Companions, there are mods that add Quests, etc etc.

 

im modding like a true gamer who knows better, and who will only mod what is needed or wanted,

So what do you need/want? Which 15 mods are you talking about?

[Thandal]

Except for a very few, highly specialized, mods, you don't "need" anything other than the base game. There are really almost no "compatibility" issues with DA mods. When two (or more) try to modify the same thing, one works and the other(s) won't. But unlike most other games, it doesn't crash! I routinely run with about a hundred mods installed, and I know someone who runs with triple that number.

 

Tell us (specifically) what you're trying to do and we might be able to help.

 

(Oh, and the "Using Dragon Age Mods for Dummies" article is one of the most comprehensive out there. But you actually have to read it. If you can't follow it, maybe you aren't ready to use Dragon Age mods in the first place. :laugh: )

[Question2]

I started to play origins again recently and i was surprised to find that nobody had bothered to consolidate all the unofficial fixes. It took me more than an hour to track down most of the ones i needed and download/install them. Nobody even bothered to zip them up and upload them for easy downloading.

 

Does anyone know how to use the toolset to open a item from the default game?

[mcgoy]

Yes, I know how to use the toolset to open an item, but it would be easier for you to go to the 'Getting Started' section of the toolset wiki than to ask the 50 questions needed to know where to start the explanation:

http://social.bioware.com/wiki/datoolset/index.php/Getting_Started

[Question2]

I dont see anything on that page that explains how to open and edit an item....

[mcgoy]

I was going to avoid the 50 questions, but...

 

Do you have the toolset installed?

Do you know which item you want to edit?

 

http://social.bioware.com/wiki/datoolset/index.php/Item_tutorial

 

The toolset wiki is your friend :)

[Shamy20]

I was actually struggling these past days a bit with mods, it wasn't as easy as drop click and install (like with Skyrim for example). I installed everything with NMM, then I uninstalled everything and manually installed everything else.


I would not bother installing anything with the Nexus Mod manager, except for Dragon Age Mod Manager (DAOMM).


Afterwards,

 

1) You take the mods that you want that either are .dazips, and you put them in the DAOMM mods/dazip folder and then install using DAOMM.

 

2) If there are mods that require to be installed in Users/.../My Documents/BioWare/Dragon Age/packages/core/override you read the DAOMM Manual (5. Creating a *.override file for a Mod, that only adds a few files to the override folder) which explains exactly what you need to do by using DAOMM's Override Creator.

 

 

3) My Mod List for comparison

• DAO Modmanager

• Make Console Visible

 

• Dragon Age Redesigned (Also important to check the readmes and other details)

• Tucked Hair (Necessary for Dragon Age Redesigned)

• Improved Atmosphere (Can't stress enough how important it is to read its manual)

• Theta HD

• Morrigan Sacred Ashes Trailer Robe

• Armour of the Devout

• Armor of the Sten

• Dialogue Tweaks

• Morrigan Restoration Patch Dialog

• ZDF Dialogue Fix (Needs to delete some files to be compatible with Improved Atmosphere)

• Combat Tweaks

• Skip the Fade

• Lock Bash

• No Helmet Hack

• Madd Gift Guide

• White Teeth

• Map Textures

• Beyond Ferelden Base Chest

• Personal Annoyance Remover

• Silverite Mine Stolen Gear Awakening Fix

 

 

 

4) Good luck!

Edited November 13, 2014 by Shamy20