To those who do not crash

[Spewed]

What are your stable load orders? Stable mods that you use? Apparently I must be do something wrong with my game. So for now I wont be installing any texture mods, outside of detailed faces and the WATER mod. No altering Ugrids or anything like that.

 

What are some mods that you use that enhance the gameplay experience and have no crashes for you? A snippet of your load orders would be nice. :)

[BlackCompany]

For reference:

 

145hrs; Zero Crashes. Ever. Period.

 

AMD Phenom Quad Core Black Ed. @ 3.2GHz

8GB RAM

GPU: Nvidia GTX460 with 2GB RAM

 

 

For a crash free game, I adhere to the following:

 

-No bashed patching. Had enough of this in Oblivion and Fallout 3. It works, sometimes for some things. For others...not so much.

 

-No script extenders. No Script Dragon; No SKSE. Not saying they cause crashes (not going to engage in that debate) I just prefer not to use such things any longer.

 

-Know your mods and your load order. Read the Read Me. Every. Single. Read-me. Every time.

 

-Use only one mod per change. If two mods change an NPC, leveled list, weapon, armor, then drop one and use the other. Exception: Two mods can add to a dungeon or city or house. So long as they do not both add to the exact same spot, and they do not change land or water height, you are fine with this "conflict."

 

-Understand Conflicts. Just because your software says two mods conflict, doesn't mean its a dangerous conflict. One of my mods overhauls magic, including mana regen rates. I love slower mana regen. My girl hates it. I made her a patch to increase mana regen and she loads it after my magic overhaul. Works a charm. This is an example of letting conflicts work for, and not against, you. Some conflicts are ok.

 

Likewise, two mods can conflict and your mod manager may not tell you. If one mod adds something to a cell, it might not be detected as changing it. Meanwhile, another mod might change land or water height in that cell. This conflict means you likely will miss out on what the other mod added to the affected cell.

 

So, know your load order. Adjust it accordingly.

 

-NEVER use the console to complete a quest. Save often. Re-load when you encounter a bug. Completing quests often involves moving NPC's around, changing dialogue, enabling/disabling objects and actors, etc. "Setting Stage" via the console does not always do these same things, and thus, can permanently break your save game. DON'T do it.

 

-Back up saves. Then test mods using new ones. NEVER overwrite saves until you are certain a mod is a keeper.

 

-Follow uninstall instructions for mods TO THE LETTER. Otherwise, don't blame the mod author.

 

-Know your hardware limits. I can run the High Res pack. But I choose not to do so. I would rather enhance game play by using Warzones and Patrols, as well as more detailed dragons. This lets me keep normal resolution on most "background" stuff, while having Dragons that really "pop" in the world at the same time. It also keeps performance hits down when I have 30+ NPC's fighting on screen at once, which happens fairly often.

 

-Don't clean mods. Mod "cleaning" has been around for more than 5 years now. And not once has someone been able to tell me in plain english how it works. All I know it is removes edits from a mod. Edits the author might or might not have intended to make. Its ruined as many mods as it has helped. If not more. Ditto for saved games.

 

-DO NOT use Placeatme (if its still around) in scripts. Bloats saves.

 

-Understand merged/bashed patches, what they combine/merge, and that they DO NOT FIX anything. If two mods change a leveled list, these patches merge both changes into a single file so you get both. If one mod changes stats on NPC's and another adds something to the same actor's inventory, a merged patch will provide for both changes.

 

If two mods change land height, or both add something to the same place in a cell...you are out of luck. Pick one. If two mods alter actor AI or scripts, merging and bashing will NOT help you.

 

Best advice, don't merge or bash. Pick one mod or the other for each change and dump the other. Its painful, but its stable. You can always switch it up next play through.

 

 

I hope this helps you. It has helped me to 145hrs crash free, much of that time with mods installed.

[thomriis]

these mods dont make my game crash, Well at least not right now,But heh you

 

never know do you.

 

1.Adjusted jewelry components

 

2.Adrianne Avenicci follower

 

3.Alva wife companion

 

4.Archmage crafting-Enchanted item

 

5.Babettes feast balanced

 

6.Bikini clothes

 

7.Breezehome basement

 

8.Breezehome renovation

 

9.Camps and shipwrecks

 

10.Cao extrapockets

 

11.Cao goldbrand

 

12.Cm powerspells

 

13.Dragonbone weapons

 

14.Hjerim expansion

 

15.Jswords

 

16.ICR (sorry cant remember what it is)

 

17.Leatherbackpacks all of them

 

18.Lockpicking redone

 

19.MCH Dawnview

 

20.nightingale shield

 

21.Overlook Tower

 

22.Proudspire manor-Dragonborn Edition

 

23.Ranger ridge

 

24.SMUT ???? sorry he he

 

25.Tamriel compendium

 

26.The rings of guardian stones

 

27.The Witch King

 

28.Vals Crafting Meltdown Alpha

 

Had to uncheck 23 other mods cause they made my beautiful skyrim DO THE CDT BOOGEY, Would you believe it my new record playing time is 3H 20M.

 

MY scars on my forehead are starting to heal Hooorey.

[RedRavyn]

@ Spewed: I can confirm much of what BlackCompany says, although I do disagree with him on a few points, in principle, although not always in practice. I use SKSE and Script Dragon because a few of the mods I feel I can't live without use them.

 

I've never used the console to complete a quest, although I have used it to reset quests and to occasionally set a stage when a quest becomes bugged and I can't finish it. I've never encountered any problems, but I do this very sparingly, and I'm always certain that people and things are where they should be when I do it. When in doubt, don't.

 

Yes, BlackCompany, "placeatme" is still in the game and there are still clueless people telling newbies to use this do "find" lost actors. I try my best to intercept such things and set the newbie in question straight on how to use "moveto". This is a feature of the game that Bethesda should remove entirely. It not only bloats save games, resulting in game instability and, ultimately, crashes, but it can create some very ... shall we say, "interesting" and possibly game-breaking situations when more than one copy of a named NPC or unique quest-related item gets put into the game because of it.

 

I think it would be pointless for people who respond to this post to include their load orders. Every respondent will be posting different lists, some just a few items, and some possibly hundreds. Nobody is going to read them, and you won't be able to discern diddly-squat from reading them, yourself.

 

Mods can interact in very complex ways. Sometimes two mods will get along just fine, but you add a third one and things go to hell in a hand-basket. Remove either of the first two and things are just fine. It's not about one-on-one conflicts. It can be about group conflicts, and it would take someone with an incredible intellect to be able to sort out all the possibilities -- that or a program that can run a multivariate stepwise discrimanant analysis. That's probably a bit out of our league, here.

 

Use BOSS. It works, and you'll probably have very few mods you have to make your own decisions on.

 

Finally, I got used to saving every ten minutes or so when I was playing even fully-patched Oblivion. In comparison, Skyrim is almost rock-solid. I've had only a few crashes with 1.4 Skyrim (I've frozen the game at that point until Bethesda gets all the bugs they're working on sorted out). Most of those happened in conjunction with Windows update downloads. I don't know what it is about that, but it happened with Oblivion, too. Microsoft does not play nicely with other people's software when it comes to updating itself -- not even Win7, which is what I'm running. My suggestion is to turn off Windows updating when you're playing Skyrim ... just in case.

[thomriis]

In my opinion the game is best left unpatched, It seems bethesda sorts things and break things with every new update.

 

I given up hope that bethesda can fix their own game.

[xlcr]

hi Spewed, might be helpful if you consider posting the contents of your 'DLCList.txt' and 'plugins.txt' file here (search your C: drive for these),

there are many knowledgable people here that might be able to simply identify which mods/loadorder might be causing you stability issues.

Do you allow Steam update access to your machine? Are you using Steam Workshop subscribed mods?

If you're using Nexus Mod Manager, maybe post a snapshot of your Plugins list.

Have you looked into using the BOSS API to manage your load order?

 

There is an existing thread here of people discussing mod/loadorder/patch update issues:

http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/news/article.php?id=73

Edited April 28, 2012 by xlcr

[Xanins]

I would just like to thank those of you who talked about not using the placeatme command. I've used it here and there, sometimes way too much, but now I know not to. Thanks!

[worldofscotty]

500 hours and counting of stability.

 

SKSE Version: 0.1.4.15

CFM_extensions.dll

−Recognised And Re-ordered Plugins

 

Skyrim.esm Active

Update.esm Active

3rdEraWeaponsMoS.esm Active

Imp's More Complex Needs.esm Active

Real Wildlife - IMCN.esm Active

JSwords.esm Active

Nchuzzrezar.esm Active

ApachiiHair.esm Active

HighResTexturePack01.esp Active

HighResTexturePack02.esp Active

Shadow Striping Fix.esp Active

Unofficial Skyrim Patch.esp Active

Bash Tag suggestion(s): {{BASH: Delev, Relev}}

Chesko_Frostfall.esp Active

StaticMeshImprovementMod.esp Active

Economics of Skyrim.esp Active

BabettesFeast - IMCN.esp Active

BabettesFeastBalanced.esp Active

Crimson Tide - Blood.esp Active

Dwemer Certified.esp Active

HunterTraps.esp Active

Immersive Patrols.esp Active

Lanterns Of Skyrim - Around Cities.esp Active

lt_better_horses.esp Active

lt_camping.esp Active

MoreVillageAnimals.esp Active

Real Wildlife Skyrim 0.1.esp Active

Bash Tag suggestion(s): {{BASH: Relev}}

Real Wildlife Skyrim 0.1 IMCN.esp Active

Bash Tag suggestion(s): {{BASH: Relev}}

ValsCraftingMeltdownAlpha.esp Active

CrowdedCities.esp Active

3rdEraWeaponsMoS.esp Active

Cloaks - Player Only.esp Active

Cloaks - No Imperial.esp Active

Cloaks.esp Active

Dwemer Scouter.esp Active

Northborn Fur Hoods.esp Active

EinherjarArmor.esp Active

JSwordsDistributionBalancePlugin.esp Active

LFArmors.esp Active

lordamor.esp Active

ScoutArmor.esp Active

WarchiefArmor.esp Active

warmagearmor.esp Active

WiS IV - Normal Mode.esp Active

Note: Use only one esp --- WiS IV - Rainbow mode or Normal mode or Golden Age or Dark Rainbow or Dark Age or Lore Friendly

Bash Tag suggestion(s): {{BASH: Delev, Relev}}

DeadlyDragons.esp Active

Bash Tag suggestion(s): {{BASH: Delev, Relev}}

Adam Adamowicz's Grave.esp Active

Jorrvaskr Lofthome.esp Active

Nchuzzrezar.esp Active

WinterholdDestruction.esp Active

whiterunMarket.esp Active

WhiterunFortified.esp Active

WhiterunREVISION.esp Active

Archery Overhaul.esp Active

Proper Aiming.esp Active

Incompatible with: AutoAim.esp

Better Dynamic Snow.esp Active

posesivecorpses.esp Active

RevampedExteriorFog.esp Active

Slightly Reduced Distance NPC Greetings.esp Active

torches for RL (infinite life).esp Active

Better Villages.esp Active

dD - Realistic Ragdoll Force - Realistic.esp Active

IMCN - Overrides.esp Active

Phenderix's Magic Evolved.esp Active

dovahkiinrelax.esp Active

zzzEverlastingWeaponEnchant.esp Active

ACE Armor.esp Active

ACE Melee.esp Active

TheEyesofBeauty.esp Active

BDO.esp Active

Incompatible with: Better Followers - Dialogue, Ask Follower Skills, Followers can Relax, CM's Level your Followers Skills, Mounted Followers -- included in BDO

Live Another Life.esp Active

−Unrecognised Plugins

 

Reorder these by hand using your favourite mod ordering utility.

 

Osare Underwear.esp Active

RTSforSkyrim.esp Active

Poison Overdose.esp Active

MyAddedStuff.esp Active

[BlackCompany]

Thanks for sharing, World of Scotty. I can vouch for Immersive Patrols and Economics of Skyrim. Both are rock solid, and I could not give up either one now. Essential mods, in my opinion. I even chose Immersive Patrols over Warzones. I like Warzones and would install it if I began the Civil War quests. But I think the patrols are more immersive, more believable. Matter of personal preference, not mod quality - i really must stress that.

 

Also, on placeatme: yeah, use it pretty much never. I had one mod - a turret mod for FONV - that broke that rule. I delved into the mod and found out the mod author knew how to clean up placeatme references, never used them on anything vanilla and so I kept it. Unfortunately, turns out Obsidian is comprised of some of those old "placeatme" folks from the Oblivion modding crowd. Believe it or now, they used placeatme for the Glowing One Explosion Effect. Ever wonder where the save bloat came from in FONV? Willing to bet, that was it. I made a custom mod that commented out that little script. Made the glowing one look dumb, trying to summon his explosion and failing, but it let me play 200 hours without save bloat. Fair trade.

 

So yeah...don't use placeatme. Use moveto.

 

And like I said, I did not mean to denounce script extenders as the culprits of crashes. I used OBSE for years. Its just personal preference, not a matter of their quality.

[Systex]

In my opinion the game is best left unpatched

 

Is it possible to downgrade Skyrim?