Mod Patches and when to overwrite

[MikeD1982]

I've been playing with mods on Skyrim for 1-2 years and there's something I've never quite understood and never seen fully explained in general. Often mods will have patches and other optional files in them. Sometimes, mod authors will mention on the files tab or in the mod description that if you use certain patches or optional files for the mod you have to overwrite.

 

I use ModOrganizer and so my question is when should you overwrite? Should you always overwrite when you add a patch or optional file? Or only when you're told to? If you are not supposed to always overwrite, then what are you supposed to do? Just name it a different name but something where you know it's a patch for a specific mod? Usually, unless common sense tells me it's a direct patch and should be overwritten or if the mod author actually specifies, then I just name it slightly different, but I'm not sure if when I do this, the patch is taking affect. With some patches, it's obvious what they're meant to do but other times not so much.

 

Hopefully this post and my questions make sense.

[DarkRudra]

When in doubt, treat the patch or optional file as a separate mod. Make sure it is activated and below the original mod in the left pane of Mod Organizer. That should ensure any duplicate/updated files are overwritten when the game is loaded. The only time I would consider overwriting a mod's files directly is if one of these things is true:

 

1) The patch or optional file is an update to the main mod. For example, Relics of Hyrule updating from 6.5.2 to 6.5.3. Obvious, yeah?

 

2) Optional textures in different resolution or color. For example, Thane Weapons Reborn has an optional 1K texture pack. I might overwrite the main mod's textures with those from that pack. (Actually, no, I wouldn't. I would have to do it again every time TWR updated. Bad example, but it gets the idea across, I hope.) Another example, the Crimson Twilight Armor has a lot of alternate color texture packs out there.

 

3) The patch is an .esp only. This only applies when the .esp is reusing a filename. For example, Damsels in Distress - Unique Female Followers replaces the .esp of Unique Female Followers to relocate said followers into cages in dungeons. Now, I like to merge basic follower mods like that with Merge Plugins. If I treat DiD as a separate mod, Merge Plugins won't see all the textures and whatnot for the followers. It's pain when tracking what needs to be activated or not in my final mod list. So I decided to overwrite the .esp in UFF instead. Gotta be aware of updates though - Mod Organizer will only track one mod page for a specific listing. That's why I tend to do this only for older mods that aren't likely to get updated and/or will cause me merging headaches. If I weren't merging the mods, I'd keep them separate.

 

4) The original mod is not likely to be updated. Because if the original mod is updated, then you'll have to go through the trouble of reinstalling the patch or optional file by overwriting the mod's files again. If a mod is under obviously active development, it's better to treat any patches or optional files as a separate install.

[MikeD1982]

Thanks for the explanation, DarkRudra!