Getting back into the groove

[SATMA]

After a hiatus spanning about mid-2010 to now, I'm getting back into the Fallout modding groove with FNV. While I've made some progress in mod acquisition, I still have some lingering questions.

 

For modding games, I tend to prefer mods which alter vanilla gameplay as little as possible; i.e., enhancing or enriching it instead of expanding it. It pans out that these are consequently my favorite categories for mods:

 

-Radio stations

-Hi-res textures

-Atmospheric/immersion

-Oversights/fanmade bugfixes

-Body mods

-Unique/aesthetic weapons, clothing, and armor

-Companion mods

 

I've got a start on radio stations and atmospheric mods but have had some confusion in other areas. So here are my questions:

 

1) Can anyone recommend a hi-res texture mod with relatively simple installation (i.e., relatively few files that simply slot into the data folder without fussing around with .esp) that is still faithful to the vanilla?

2) Good enhancement or bugfix mods (a la the Repair Rethought Reborn mod for Fallout 3, which added junk items to the repair lists of many weapons, or mods which correct nonsensical oversights)?

3) I'm sketchy on how body-mods like Exnem's female or Breeze's male body work in FNV; can you just install the old FO3 Nexus mods or are there new ones hidden away in the jungle of schoolgirl outfits on FNVNexus?

 

As for the weapons, clothing, and armor mods, I figure I will find stuff that suits me well enough on my own, but if you know of anything which is similar to Unique Uniques or Unique Weapons With Unique Textures for FNV, chime in on that here too.

[carlosjuero]

Don't have a clue about texture mods, I use the base game textures [both in FO 3 and in NV]

 

For game enhancement/immersion I like Project Nevada. It adds a decent # of changes like FWE did [though not nearly as extensive] for FO 3. It overhauls the cybernetic implants a bit so they make a little more sense for being put in [ to me ] and it adds variable crosshairs for different weapons, grenade hotkey, etc. There is also a mod called LFox Bottle That Water which allows you to re-bottle water [for Hardcore mode players] - though it has some quirks right now [replaces all dirty water w/ purified if you refill an empty at a clean water source].

 

I believe Exnem has a port of his FO 3 body texture here on the NV Nexus already - I am using the beware of girl high res type 3. I also believe I saw a Breeze's male body texture mod here on NV Nexus, not sure though. I think that most texture mods are basically straight ports, they don't need esm's or esp's [for the most part].

 

I am also using Fellout NV because I enjoyed Fellout FO 3 so much. Fellout NV is not as tweaked as the FO 3 version was though, I think the author got a little irritated with people constantly back and forthing ["its too dark", "its not dark enough", etc]

[drakeelvin]

I think the #1 retexture mod for NV is Nevada Skies, and as for good content enhancement mods the two that most come to mind are New Vegas Bounties I / II, and Project Nevada.

 

As for retexture mods, you'll need to overcome the archive invalidation issue which is a result of how the game is designed.

 

I've read different sets of instructions on it but the most up-to-date instructions on how to fix it seem to be in the description for the ADULT mod BEWARE OF GIRL Type 3 HiRez HiDetailed Replacer (another high ranking top 25 retexture)

 

When you download the archive invalidation from its author's page, go back to BoG and use their instructions on how to fix A.I. because BoG updated their instructions after New Vegas changed how A.I. worked, but the A.I. page instructions haven't been updated for a long time.

 

One might not call the BoG method an easy solution, but it is the most concise and easy to follow set of instructions I've seen.

Edited May 13, 2011 by drakeelvin

[carlosjuero]

I use BoG and just used the FOMM A.I. - worked flawlessly for me.

[drakeelvin]

I hear ya, I'm not an expert on Archive Invalidation I only know that earlier this spring the FOMM toggle stopped working for me and using the BoG instructions was how I got it to work again. I've heard chatter that it works differently on some systems but I'm not an authority on the subject so I really don't know the gory details. But I do believe that in terms of documentation, the BoG instructions are the most concise and easy to follow I've read, and I should add, that actually worked for me :)

[ita]

High-res weapon textures here.

Redone normal maps for environmental textures here. I don't use it myself as I've found some of the results a bit funky, but your mileage may vary.

High-res textures for various in-game objects and statics here.

 

Various small tweaks that I use and recommend are No auto aim, Experience Level Adjust Mod (very useful since you gain levels ridiculously fast in the vanilla game) and No Faction Warning Popup.

 

As for body mods, your best bet is probably to use the aforementioned BOG Type3 replacer or exeter's Body and Armor Replacer, which contains a Type3 body as well as almost every vanilla female armor mesh fitted to the Type3 body.

[miscdude]

Realistic Repair

This is the mod I use for my repair lists, it lets you repair things like power armor with scrap metal, certain weapons with a hammer, etc. makes the junk items reasonable to carry around.

Edited May 16, 2011 by miscdude