Advice for a beginner for Skyrim SE mods please

[ANTIPOTHEOSIS]

Hi,
I'm very new here, new to Skyrim, new to modding, I'm playing Skyrim SE on a high-end PC and wanting to figure out a LOT of mods that I've been given and recommended on Vortex. Overall I'm wanting to mod my game to be a lot more user-friendly, very aesthetic and have beautiful (maybe even sexy) characters and followers.

I've been experimenting plenty as I go and trying to learn how different mods work and how they work in relation to other mods, but It's getting far too complicated for me to understand what exactly is crashing my game when I get to the character creation screen (when using the alternate start mod). I think there's a CTD bug somewhere in how I'm using the character creation screen. Depending on the mods I'm using, I also sometimes see female characters without their faces, only showing their hair, eyes and teeth. I suspect that some mods are not compatible with others but I don't know what or why.

Are CBBE and UNP and Dibella mods incompatible?

Should I be installing or enabling mods in a certain order?

 

If I have a whole bunch of character presets, but they don't seem to be appearing correctly anymore in the character building screens, How can I figure out what mods I'm missing or what mods are interfering with that process?

I hope you can help me and thank you for your patience and your help.





In case it helps, I've used file lister to create a list of all the mods I've got in my Vortex Mods\skyrimse folder. I have no idea which mods might be redundant or obsolete or worthless. I don't know if I'm missing anything important, I only have a vague idea about which mods are absolutely essential for the game and which mods are required for other mods to work, but perhaps this info will help: SKSE64 was of course the very first thing I installed...

(Part 1) Engine Fixes 4.13 for SSE 1.5.97 - skse64 plugin-17230-4-13-1579276880

(YSOLDAALLBRUMA)-ARK's- Hair and Face NPC Edits-31659-1-0-1578559092

300 and More NPCS Converted to PC Presets-28315-1-1566061465

3DNPC - Apachii Hair - Shiva-14865-1-4-1549014592

9.0.1 A Quality World Map - Vivid with Stone Roads-5804-9-0-1

A. Noble Skyrim - FULL PACK_2K-21423-5-5-0-1543032385

AC's Presets pack-29807-2-0-1571482727

AddItemMenuSE_112_SKSE2017-17563-1-12-1582886513

Aesthetic Elves-17033-0-5

Alera CBBE 3BBB Body Preset-32729-1-0-1581913679

Alexandria Ice Witch SSE - Dreamgirl - No Physics - 1.0.1-14595-1-0-1

Alexstrasza-5564-1-0

All In One-19664-2

All in one-32444-2-1582543914

All Nine Presets-23175-1-2-1551699534

All-in-One (including meshes)-25091-1-0-1555436009

Alternate Start - Live Another Life-272-4-1-3-1579143151

Amalexia-29983-1-0-1572075641

Amorous Adventures-CLEAN-SSE-7305-3-4

Apachii SkyHair Hairshine-20193-1-0

Apachii Skyhair Wigs SSE-27963-1-1-1564834929

Apachii_Divine_Elegance_SSE_v_1_9-9213-1-9-1562364562

ApachiiHairNPC - Coupes de cheveux de Bordeciel pour PNJs uniques-5105-1-1

ApachiiSkyHair_v_1_6_Full_optimized-2014-1-6-Full

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ApachiiSkyHairMale_v_1_2_Optimized-2014-1-2

Apocalypse v945-1090-9-45

Ashara Skyrim Characters as Presets-2406-5-0

Astaroth Horns-33038-1-0-1582619873

Audiobooks of Skyrim-16741-2-0

Azar Ponytail Wigs SMP-SE-29094-1-0-0-1568903927

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Better Dialogue Controls v1_2-1429-1-2

Better Male Presets SE-2001-1-0

Beyond Skyrim Bruma SE 1.3.3-10917-1-3-3

Beyond Skyrim DLC Integration Patch-10917-1-1-2

Blended Roads - FINAL-8834-1-6-1575939647

BodySlide and Outfit Studio - v4.9.1-201-4-9-1-1578859684

Book Covers Skyrim SE - Desaturated.7z-901-4-2

Brenna - A Nord Preset for Racemenu-29041-1-0-1568649099

Bruma Lanterns LoS Patch-24569-1-0-1553843958

Bruma Lanterns-20780-1-2-1540505386

Caliente's Beautiful Bodies Enhancer - v1.5.5-198-1-5-5-1582484972

Campfire 1.12.1SEVR Release-667-1-12-1SEVR

Cannabis Skyrim SE-4953-4-20

CBBE AIO SE Port Tattoo Pack 1-6-19162-1-6

CBBE Presets Compendium - All-In-One-11229-2-2

cbp.7z-13207-0-26-1574536208

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CFTO - Apachii Hair-14865-2-0a-1548776389

COR CBBE SE Rel 2.2.0-27405-2-2-0-1582085109

Cortex Follower Series-32939-1-0-1582534959

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Cutting Room Floor-276-3-1-7-1579995773

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Dalmerie Follower SE CBBE-32975-1v0-1582482595

Danyca_Nord_Presets-26818-1-1-1575988826

Darker Nights-694-1-7p13

Deadly Spell Impacts v1_70-12939-1-70

Different Bodies - CBBE BodySlide Presets-15262-1-1

Dint999 KS SG HG hairs HDT-98438-22012020-1579721518

Diverse Character Creation-2573-1-0-1

Diverse Dragons Collection SE-695-2-1-3

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EVANESCENCE FOLLOWER UNP 1.3.1-32831-1-3-1-1582669024

Evangeline-29983-1-0-1572075859

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Felisja Presets-29513-1-0-1570435004

Female Breton Preset-24396-1-0-1553544673

Female Dark Elf Preset-24396-1-0-1553323735

Female Facial Animation-35303-2-0

Female High Elf Preset 2-24396-1-0-1553539131

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Female Imperial Preset-24396-1-0-1553544649

Female Nord Preset-24396-1-0-1553544702

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Female Wood Elf Preset-24396-1-0-1553323709

FFX13 Presets-31583-Final-1578306857

Flawn's Argonian Presets-30360-0-2-1580896505

FlowerGirls SE and VR Main File-5941-3-0-2-1566171791

FNIS Behavior SE 7_6-3038-7-6-1582048023

FNIS Behavior SE 7_6-3038-7-6-1582048023.1

FNIS Sexy Move SE 7.2-13303-V7-2

Footprints 1.5.3-3808-1-5-3

Foxes_Main-3404-1-0

Frozen Electrocuted Combustion - 3.2.5-3532-3-25-1578000171

Fuse00''s Female Hairstyles with Physics wigs SMP Package-31405-1-0-1578217622

Gloria Follower SSE - 7B Cleavage - Physics - v1.0.0-33087-1-0-0-1582736052

gman749 Northern Angels Followers SSE - Custom UUNP - Physics - 4K Textures - v1.2.0-32873-1-2-0-1582223303

GMO - Complete Overhaul-23817-1-1-1552434110

GMO - EEK's Beautiful Skyrim -for- JK's Skyrim Overhaul-23817-1-0-1552429665

GMO - Flower Girls SE Overhaul-23817-1-0-1552451405

GMO - Forgotten City Overhaul-23817-1-0-1552761257

GMO - Guild Members Overhaul SE-23817-1-1-1551910062

GMO - Immersive Patrols Overhaul-23817-1-1-1551926260

GMO - Immersive Wenches Overhaul-23817-1-1-1552882561

GMO - Interesting NPC's Overhaul-23817-1-2-1555910929

GMO - JK's Skyrim Overhaul-23817-1-0-1552429340

GMO - Lucien Follower Overhaul-23817-1-0-1552702358

GMO - Moon and Star Overhaul v1.0-23817-1-0-1552826306

GMO - Outcasts Harlots and Hoodlums-23817-1-1-1552577613

GMO - Pets of Skyrim Overhaul-23817-1-0-1552964334

Half Dragon Race-18268-2-3-1

Haven Bag-2809-1-5-4

HDT Physics Extensions-53996-14-28

HDT-SMP for SSE 1.5.97 v2.11-30872-2-11-1578745910

Helvetia-29983-1-0-1572075812

HookShareSSE-21373-4-0-1-1560493766

Immersive Armors 8.1 SSE Test-3479-8-1

Immersive Citizens - AI Overhaul-173-0-4

Immersive HUD - iHUD-12440-0-2b

Immersive Patrols-718-2-2-3-1581370322

Immersive Sounds Compendium SSE 2.2-523-2-2-1547767621

Immersive Wenches SE-595-1-6-0SE

Improved Eyes Skyrim 1.6-9141-1-6

JContainers SE-16495-4-1-12-1574419908

JK's Skyrim all in one-6289-1-6-1555210753

Julia Bodyslide Preset-23400-1-0-1550105186

Julia Follower-23400-1-1-1550276739

Julia Racemenu Preset-23400-1-0-1550105090

Juliet Standalone Follower-32761-1-0-1581975673

Justinia-29983-1-0-1572107574

Katarina LoL SE-292-2-0-1568050542

Katherine McNamara Presets-31592-1-1578331084

Kettle-Maiden Nord Plate-12664-3

Kettle-Maiden Steel Armor New-12664-3

Kettle-Maiden Stormcloaks-12664-3

Khariy_Redguard_Presets-27280-1-0-1562780675

Kissing - Immersive Lovers Comfort 0_8-225-1-8

KS Hairdo's SSE - Female-6817-1-61F-1572250969

Lanterns of Skyrim SE-2429-1-01

LazyTools 0.10.1-13381-0-10-1

Legacy of the Dragonborn SSE - Apachii Hair-14865-4-1-6a-1548780814

Legendary Armors - Bikini Complete SSE V4.0-2309-4-0

Lucien-20035-1-4-3-1567593363

Mai-33148-1-0-1583061527

Main 3.8-2357-3-8

Main File v4.0-4423-4-0

Meyila - CBBE SE-33178-1-0-1583010803

MfgFix-11669-1-5-0-1580418452

Mushroom Follower-27128-1-0-1562182088

Natural And Realistic Body Presets - Bodies All In One-13896-2-0

NBsNPCApachiiHair-7753-1-0

NM Succubus Bikini SSE - Chest - UNP - Physics - v1.0.0-27991-1-0-0-1564928463

NM Succubus Bikini SSE ConvS CBBE-28118-1-1-2-1565977064

No Cell Respawn-24514-1-0-1553671052

No Plastic - Natural Beauty (Presets)-19669-1-0

No Spinning Death Animation-1432-1-31

Nomadic bow and quiver-33137-1-0-1582894103

nord presets 1-3486-1

Northborn Scars-720-1-3

NPC Apachii Hairstyles-9466-1-0

Nude Body-18992-1-0

Obsidian Weathers - 1.07-12125-1-07-1547804194

Open Cities Skyrim-281-3-1-5-1577395402

Ordinator 9.28.1-1137-9-28-1-1580147433

OSA-17217-2-023-SE

Osare Panty SSE - UNP - Physics - v1.1.1-27379-1-1-1-1582473985

OSex-17209-2-02SE-Alpha

Palaces and Castles Enhanced - Apachii Hair-14865-2-0a-1548785794

Paloma-29983-1-0-1572075693

Papyrus Extender - SSE 1.5.97 - 2.3.2-22854-2-3-2-1577999743

PapyrusUtil SE - Scripting Utility Functions-13048-3-9-1580810594

Point The Way-352-2-0-6-1576451206

Pretty Female Idles SSE 1.932-3760-1-932

Project AHO - Apachii Hair-14865-1-05a-1548777543

QuickLootRE-21085-1-18-5-1562618286

R18Pn Astaroth Suit SSE - Chest - Tail - UNP - Physics - v2.0.1-21337-2-0-1-1560300809

R246 Lewd Body UUNP-7945-2-0-1540586254

R246 RaceMenu Preset NORD 05 Version 3-7945-3-0-1547803061

R246 RaceMenu Presets-7945-2-0

RaceCompatibility All-in-One Scripted Installer-2853-2-0-9-1567336569

RaceMenu High Heels Fixes-18045-1-3-1552859840

RaceMenu Special Edition v0-4-12-19080-0-4-12-1576724270

Radiant Quest Marker SE ESL-19605-2-2-1553651654

Ragnar - A Nord Preset for Racemenu-29041-1-0-1568649014

Ranger Armor - CBBE 3BBB (3BA) Bodyslides-33141-1-0-1582978228

Ranger Armour - SSE CBBE BodySlide-16950-1-6-1-1550952028

Realistic Ragdolls and Force SE-1439-1-92

Realistic Water Two v2.2.2-2182-2-2-2-1579057528

Recorder Bodyslides - CBBE-17214-1-2

Recorder Bugfix Patch-17816-3-0h

Recorder Follower BSA Ver. 3.0-4718-3-0

Recorder Overhaul Misa Amane CBBE-30811-1-0-1575574596

Recorder Overhaul SSE - CBBE Body PHYSICS- 1.0.3-17477-1-0-3-1543057859

Relationship Dialogue Overhaul - RDO Final-1187-Final

Rich Skyrim Merchants-1772-2-0

ROCO - Elicia Sky - True Valkyrie-26435-1-0-1-1560512280

Run For Your Lives-2272-4-0-2-1579234959

ScaleformTranslationPP-22603-1-4-0-1583022008

Seraphim Companions SE - Default-23260-1-0-1549579564

Sexy Vests - Complete-3662-4-1-1

Shirakune Body Presets CBBE-29752-1-0-1571262207

Shiva's Beautiful Presets 1.0-7492-1-0

Simple F2F Conversation Kiwami-18685-1-0-1Kiwami

Simply Bigger Trees SE-5281-1-0SE

Skoli Presets v2-22779-2-1550624433

Skyland - A Landscape Texture Overhaul-3820-3-9-1-1558410031

Skyrim 3D Trees and Plants-12371-4-0-2-1567976463

Skyrim Flora Overhaul SE v2.72D-2154-2-72D-1582215490

Skyrim Sewers 415-9320-4-15-1549828167

Skyrim Weapons Expansion - BSA Packed-32500-1-1-1581221909

SkyUI_5_2_SE-12604-5-2SE

SMIM SE 2-08-659-2-08

Sofia Follower v.2.51 (BSA)-2180-2-51

SOS - Schlongs of Skyrim - LightSE

Succubus Real Flying Patch-29093-1-0b-1569645041

Succubus-san SSE - FOMOD - UNP or CBBE (SE) - No Physics - v1.0.1-12218-1-0-1

Super Booty Body SE AIO v3.5 (4 bonus presets)-1329-3ish-1578048523

Suzy-96685-1-2-1558164543

Sweet and Sexy Lingerie Shop SE-20415-3-0

The Eyes Of Beauty - Player-16185-1-0

The Legendary Booty Body All in One v3-30857-3booby-1578048968

The Paarthurnax Dilemma-365-2-0-1-1553759871

TK Hitstop SE-14904-1-410-1574503953

Total Character Makeover 1.2-1037-1-2

Touched By Dibella Bodyslide Preset-TBD Classic-20137-2-0-1544626481

Touched by Dibella-20024-1-1-1561434461

UIExtensions v1-2-0-17561-1-2-0

Underground FOMOD-14365-1-2-1564302022

Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch-266-4-2-2-1580064134

UNP AIO SE Port Tattoo Pack 1-6-19162-1-6

UNP Female Body Renewal 4.6-1699-4-6

Unread Books Glow SSE 2.2.1-1296-2-2-1

Vigor - Combat and Injuries-1876-11-1-1551386197

VioLens - A Killmove Mod SE 2.22a-668-2-22a-1560801018

Vivid Weathers - Definitive Edition-2187-2-42-1559391607

WCX - TBD Presets-27547-1-5-0-1566148805

Wet and Cold SE v2.3.0-644-2-3-0-1580692154

Winter Presets-26598-1-0-1560513515

Wyndra-29983-1-0-1572075768

Wyrmstooth Requiem Patch-18691-1-1

Xana Succubus SSE - No Tail - Custom UNP - Physics - 2k Textures - v1.4.1-14860-1-4-1-1542295913

XP32 Maximum Skeleton Special Extended-1988-4-71-1577467636

Zeddenheim's Presets Collection-27672-1-0-0-1563978348

 

[Indio21]

Hi,

I'm very new here, new to Skyrim, new to modding, I'm playing Skyrim SE on a high-end PC and wanting to figure out a LOT of mods that I've been given and recommended on Vortex. Overall I'm wanting to mod my game to be a lot more user-friendly, very aesthetic and have beautiful (maybe even sexy) characters and followers.

 

I've been experimenting plenty as I go and trying to learn how different mods work and how they work in relation to other mods, but It's getting far too complicated for me to understand what exactly is crashing my game when I get to the character creation screen (when using the alternate start mod). I think there's a CTD bug somewhere in how I'm using the character creation screen. Depending on the mods I'm using, I also sometimes see female characters without their faces, only showing their hair, eyes and teeth. I suspect that some mods are not compatible with others but I don't know what or why.

 

Are CBBE and UNP and Dibella mods incompatible?

 

Should I be installing or enabling mods in a certain order?

 

If I have a whole bunch of character presets, but they don't seem to be appearing correctly anymore in the character building screens, How can I figure out what mods I'm missing or what mods are interfering with that process?

 

I hope you can help me and thank you for your patience and your help.

 

In case it helps, I've used file lister to create a list of all the mods I've got in my Vortex Mods\skyrimse folder. I have no idea which mods might be redundant or obsolete or worthless. I don't know if I'm missing anything important, I only have a vague idea about which mods are absolutely essential for the game and which mods are required for other mods to work, but perhaps this info will help: SKSE64 was of course the very first thing I installed...

 

 

Hello, first to clear your perception and understanding of the world of modding watch the first 3.5 minutes of this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EKcS7qmtLo

 

Second, you never want to use another person's mod list for various reasons. It does sound more like you put a LO together from recommended mods though, but without researching them properly is probably worse. As you said "I don't know if I'm missing anything important, I only have a vague idea about which mods are absolutely essential for the game and which mods are required for other mods to work" which is the biggest detriment. Modding requires TONS of research and learning. Do not form the false perception that the world of modding starts and ends with picking a MM, get your mods and all available patches, sort with LOOT, make a bashed patch, and all should work like turning on a machine. That is not the world of modding with large LOs and conflicting mods!

 

Third, with out the proper knowledge driving "your choices" of mods and requirements a high end pc is only going to allow you to make for more problems. Myself, and if you really want to be able to play that mod list some day without driving you nuts, I'd start back to the very beginning with a completely clean slate. Ai Cave of the video I referenced above has videos on how to do just that somewhere on his page. I'd uninstall it all completely and follow such mentioned instructions from Ai Cave or GamerPoets and reinstall the game and MM.

 

Then follow more of those videos or links here on nexus and get all the support mods and tools for modding (LOOT, Wyre Bash, SSEEdit) and learn to use them, again from mentioned video authors or updated tutorials like the Tome of xEdit, for working with xedit.

 

Once you got a basic working knowledge of mentioned software and mods, start your search for mods to make the game as you would like. Meticulously read all the description page of a mod, it's requirements AND the mods requiring it for patches and such, look over the bugs tab if offered, the posts and tutorial tab, I believe, for any notes from the mod author or users reporting problems, look over any related videos for other relevant info maybe not being mentioned in the fore mentioned areas, and definitely verify that mod is for the SSE game and not skyrim as a lot of people mess that one up beginning.

 

Once you like all that download and install the mod. Sort it with LOOT and see if you are missing any necessary patches, if it needs cleaning (which you will encounter learning to clean game dlcs reinstalling everything if you follow the videos I mentioned), etc. Once all that is resolved run your LO through Quick Check For Conflicts using xedit and resolve all conflicts by the instructions set forth in the Tome guide either by arranging LO, making a custom patch, or both, and creating mod groups. Of course this would be your first mod so arrangement will not be an issue most likely but it will be from there on with every mod.

 

Now you are ready to find the next mod and all requirements and begin the process again, and again for every single mod you choose. When you get enough mods that you want to begin a play open WB and verify the order of the masters for the mods and if not correct fix them with WB. Then build your bashed patch with WB. Then, and only then, will you be able to get a mostly problematic free game. Happy modding and welcome to the community :smile:

 

Edited March 2, 2020 by Indiao21

[ANTIPOTHEOSIS]

 

 

 

 

Hello, first to clear your perception and understanding of the world of modding watch the first 3.5 minutes of this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EKcS7qmtLo

 

Second, you never want to use another person's mod list for various reasons. It does sound more like you put a LO together from recommended mods though, but without researching them properly is probably worse. As you said "I don't know if I'm missing anything important, I only have a vague idea about which mods are absolutely essential for the game and which mods are required for other mods to work" which is the biggest detriment. Modding requires TONS of research and learning. Do not form the false perception that the world of modding starts and ends with picking a MM, get your mods and all available patches, sort with LOOT, make a bashed patch, and all should work like turning on a machine. That is not the world of modding with large LOs and conflicting mods!

 

Third, with out the proper knowledge driving "your choices" of mods and requirements a high end pc is only going to allow you to make for more problems. Myself, and if you really want to be able to play that mod list some day without driving you nuts, I'd start back to the very beginning with a completely clean slate. Ai Cave of the video I referenced above has videos on how to do just that somewhere on his page. I'd uninstall it all completely and follow such mentioned instructions from Ai Cave or GamerPoets and reinstall the game and MM.

 

Then follow more of those videos or links here on nexus and get all the support mods and tools for modding (LOOT, Wyre Bash, SSEEdit) and learn to use them, again from mentioned video authors or updated tutorials like the Tome of xEdit, for working with xedit.

 

Once you got a basic working knowledge of mentioned software and mods, start your search for mods to make the game as you would like. Meticulously read all the description page of a mod, it's requirements AND the mods requiring it for patches and such, look over the bugs tab if offered, the posts and tutorial tab, I believe, for any notes from the mod author or users reporting problems, look over any related videos for other relevant info maybe not being mentioned in the fore mentioned areas, and definitely verify that mod is for the SSE game and not skyrim as a lot of people mess that one up beginning.

 

Once you like all that download and install the mod. Sort it with LOOT and see if you are missing any necessary patches, if it needs cleaning (which you will encounter learning to clean game dlcs reinstalling everything if you follow the videos I mentioned), etc. Once all that is resolved run your LO through Quick Check For Conflicts using xedit and resolve all conflicts by the instructions set forth in the Tome guide either by arranging LO, making a custom patch, or both, and creating mod groups. Of course this would be your first mod so arrangement will not be an issue most likely but it will be from there on with every mod.

 

Now you are ready to find the next mod and all requirements and begin the process again, and again for every single mod you choose. When you get enough mods that you want to begin a play open WB and verify the order of the masters for the mods and if not correct fix them with WB. Then build your bashed patch with WB. Then, and only then, will you be able to get a mostly problematic free game. Happy modding and welcome to the community :smile:

 

 

 

Hi Indiano21,

 

 

Firstly, thanks for the video and thanks for the detailed response. I wasn't expecting it all to be so complex, so thanks for introducing me to that and for the essential bits of advice.

 

I've been watching a few Skyrim SE mod videos on youtube, looking at the popular (all time) mods list on nexusmods, and a handful of other suggestions given by friends overseas.

 

When I've downloaded mods and when I've discovered new mods that I like, I've been trying to pay attention to requirements for other mods to be installed and installing the required mods first. But I get that doing that can only go so far.

 

I don't really know much about load orders, but when Vortex has notified me where load orders need to be set, I've generally gone for the suggested options and worked from there. I've seen a few mod cycle problems, but have worked my way around them on those occasions.

 

LO stands for Load Order. Does MM stand for Mod Manager? (just checking)

 

I assume that LOOT is the LOAD ORDER OPTIMISATION TOOL (I'm downloading that now, didn't know about that)

 

Last week I was using the Skyrim SE in-game mod database. But then I was looking for mods that weren't there at all and so I registered at Nexusmods and found out about Vortex instead. It's been a busy couple of days.

 

At this point in time, I am totally fine starting from scratch with some foundational mods and ignoring the majority of that list from my first post. The essentials only. A list of reliable mods that I can read up on, enable and test and later expand upon without having to disable everything and start from scratch when problems occur. I completely uninstalled Skyrim SE from my Steam program and reinstalled it last week with no mods so that I could begin again with nexusmods and Vortex. I hope I don't have to do that all again. My Vortex Mods folder is now 70+ GB worth of mods for Skyrim SE (mostly from nexusmods) and it would be terrible to have to delete them all and start over.

 

Can you (or anyone) recommend to me, based on the sort of things that I already have, a foundational list of mods to begin with? Because I'm not even sure which mods to start with given the huge amounts of complexity modding has overall.

 

I think the only mod that I have that was built for Skyrim (Oldrim) rather than Skyrim SE is the "Female Facial Animation" mod that I saw was suitable for both games. besides that, all of the mods I have downloaded I've specifically made sure were for SkyrimSE.

 

Downloading Wrye Bash now too...

 

I have seen occasional patches in nexusmods. Would all of the relevant patches be on there? I've also seen Vortex highlight when a mod is out-of-date and needs to be patched or updated. I assume that's reliable.

 

That''s quite a lot of information that you've given me, and the limited time I have to do all this and afterwards actually play the game is slightly daunting. But thank you for your detailed summary. I'm already overwhelmed.

[Indio21]

Yes, I know the feeling well of being overwhelmed in the "World" of modding, lol. There really is good news and that is it is not as hard as it seems. One does not need to be an expert on the tools I mentioned above. A good basic understanding of the functions of the areas you will use is enough for ones like LOOT (yes you are correct above), WB, etc. Two big ones to know, and by that I mean the most features of, are your chosen MM (again, above you are correct) and xedit, which I am sure you already formed the conclusion you will use a lot.

 

I am not familiar with those "designed" lists, so to say, I just began by watching and reading on, mostly watching on Utube by mod reviewers, the kinds of mods I wanted. Basically wandering around in the dark on it all like most probably do beginning, lol. Now I can give you some feedback but lets clear somethings first.

 

Vortex uses LOOT's masterlist to sort your LO (again you are correct). To break this down to the basics, LOOT references a list of mods that are known to work together, fairly harmoniously, in that order. Because mods are added by the hundreds a day this list is never complete and up to date on all existing possibilities of mods affecting one's LO. So you use this to roughly sort your LO. You may be thinking why use LOOT then if Vortex references its list. To answer that specifically we need one of the veterans of modding here. I am not educated enough on the internal workings of the two software to know if there is any specific differences in what it does. Myself, when I was still using vortex, LOOT seemed to give me a more understandable answer most times than vortex did of the same issue. Like if I was missing a required patch, so that is what I mainly use it for and the reason above now. Before in Vortex I noticed I could sort plugins with LOOT and immediately following sort with vortex and vortex would change the arrangement LOOT did. After discovering that, I only referenced LOOT for a better understanding and always let vortex do the sorting. It may have been a bug or whatever, I do not know and it has been some time now since working with vortex.

 

With Vortex, only resolve the conflicts it shows with red lightning bolts on the mods tab. Vortex may start by default with the section showing it disabled so enable it in settings if not. Vortex shows them in two ways that lead to the same affect. Addressing them by the individual bolts maybe less confusing if you have a lot of mods conflicting. On the plugins tab is where you want to drag and drop for LO placement in vortex, if needed. Sort them first, and possibly a couple times if you have installed a lot of mods since doing it the last time (just another glitch I noticed in vortex is if the plugins list screen flashes like it just reloaded at the end of sorting you need to do it again as it did not sort completely. This too may have been addressed, again I am not sure). Then if in xedit it shows you can remove the conflict by moving/adjusting the mods placement that is an easy fix by establishing the rules in vortex dragging and dropping the plugin. If not more elaborate solutions are necessary. The Tome of xEdit guide webpage will walk you through it all hand in hand with all needed for CR (Conflict Resolution). Also, behind that "Help" icon on vortex is a whole world of info on using it and much more. Like I mentioned, know your MM of choice :smile:

 

Trust me it blows working through hundreds of mods on CR as it is like the most perpetual game of checkers one could play. It is why it is strongly encouraged to work through CR on each mod you add right then and there. While playing a heavily modded game is just fantastic, the time it can take one to accomplish can be a long stretch of no playing fun. As I am now working on CR on my second LO of 378 active plugins now, the first was about 150 and I did not know of the importance of CR, I can definitely confirm what you watched in that video I sent you to first, lol. Now for a "very basic" explanation of how modding works.

 

Think of the whole game of Skyrim as a pie. A mod cannot exist in the game being outside the pie so it must lie on top. Now each "area" of the game, so to say, is a piece of that pie. One piece for the world (quests and such basically), one for textures, one audio, one weapons, another armor, etc. So if one "carefully" selects mods only changing each individual area those are conflicts one wants as we want the mod to change/conflict the original game programming to create said mod affect. The bad conflicts begin when we try to layer mods, again so to say, in an area. As an example say you find to weapon overhaul mods that makes some specific weapons into leveled type artifacts. Say mod A makes a sword one and mod B does an axe. Mod A comes first in our hypothetical LO but does not offer an axe. Mod B comes along enabling the axe but because it does not offer a sword that cell is blank. With conflicts in the game engine the last info loaded wins the conflict. That means Mod A's sword will never make it into the game as it is overwritten with a blank cell. If we switch the LO the Mod A's sword wins but the axe is not loaded from Mod B. That is when one needs a compatibility patch to make both weapons show in game. If one has not been already made we are forced to "nicely request" (which we actually are not actually "forced" to do, but one does get farther with honey than vinegar ) the, or a, mod author for a patch. Otherwise we have to build our own in sseedit or CK.

 

Now this is "an extremely basic" description of what is going on because mod can affect cells one never ever would think they have in common. As an example I have weapons and armor mods that write into cells affecting water for my water mod, Yeah, wtf right lol. Either or that is why CR is such a necessary evil if you really want to open the doors of this modding world. Now if I had to do it over again, knowing correctly how to start, I would have started with just a real basic modded game. Get that going and you got some playing time with a good foundation to add some mods for trial if needed. Then in the time you do not want to play keep working on that large LO you really want. That being said here are such recommendations of mods to begin.

 

One of my favorite I have added and recommend is the Legacy of the Dragonborn. You can read its description here on nexus and all these mods I mention from nexus. Legacy has its own quest line but a key feature is it adds a museum to Solitude for display of game/quest rewards/artifacts. The team over it all tied it into a bunch of other related quests, like around a dozen or more. Legacy has a FOMOD patch installer on a related mod page. Back when I put it on I opened the FOMOD to see all mods the patches were offered for and then tracked down the quest mod to see if I liked it enough to add it. Most all I did as I want lots of adventuring, lol.

 

Forgotten Dungeons seems to work well with Legacy thus far as I have seen and know of xedit. That one will add 50 more quests and some extensions to existing quests I believe. Other world quests, as I call them, like Beyond Skyrim Bruma, Beyond Reach, and Falskaar also I have not encountered more than placement conflicts. Oops upon reviewing I have had to create one custom patch for Beyond Reach and Beyond Skyrim but a quick look over my LO shows that is it thus far. Who knows what could develop with another mod added. Mind you though these are not simple quests but whole new worlds full of quests. That will fill up that "world" slot pretty well to start, lol.

 

Now from here on it gets more tricky adding mods with plugins. Pick an audio mod to start and texture mods one is fairly safe with. Myself, thus far, I am liking how Noble Skyrim and the various ones offered through Skyland look. Those are pretty limited to 2k textures because of my limit on vram so if you have, I believe it is, 6 to 8 gbs of vram or more you may want the high end 4K textures or better. I know nothing on them with performance and such but have read veterans saying lots of high resolution textures is a strain on the game engine as basically it was pieced together between the 32 and 64 bit platforms. You would have to research that on your own to venture there. Myself I tend to lean more to the "if it is not broken" philosophy.

 

House mods are fine as long as they have not been placed in same areas of mods generating quest areas and such. Adding weapons and armor mods can be a factor with Legacy as some weapons and armor are artifacts. As Legacy is a Elder Scrolls Masterfile, a .esm, most said mods will be a .esp, an Elder Scrolls Plugin, for weapons and armor therefore being forced lower in the list than Legacy. Again, this is just a hypothetical example of the conflicts that can arise depending on the cells they share the same.

 

Oh and you can add the Skyrim Sewers mod also to the other quests mod if you like it. A new patch for the two just got made and will be added soon the patch FOMOD for Legacy. Outlaw Refuges plays nice with SS too :smile:. I added them from missing it in Oblivion, the sewers anyways.

 

Followers can be touch and go with some I had seen reading. Did learn good warnings on not to have more than 5 followers at a time as it again strains the game engine though. I have done no testing with more than 5 on my LOs, to note.

 

That is all that comes to mind for a starter LO. If I think of more I'll add them. One thing to note is the game starting has stability issues with modded games. I have read it can stop with conflict free games and really hoping to find out. Some use the Alternate Start mod to avoid having to turn off mods to start the game. Myself, for LO testing and verification, I turned off every single mod, created my character, and played through getting out of Helgen. I then followed the person far enough to get the starting main quests. I then did like three game saves, in case I needed to undo one or two, and shut the game down. I then activated all my mods and plugins verifying the LO did not change with the plugins as a "feel good". Then I know I have good saves on a stable vanilla game and after the area the game has stability issues with on modded games. I now know that no mods could have wrote into those saves as none were active affecting my testing from behind the scenes, so to say. It ruled out any possibilities for me as I have read of people having problems with the Alternate Start mod. Probably because of conflicts as soooo many use it, but this way allows me to remove that as a possibility affecting my saves.

 

That all should keep you good and busy for a bit, lol. If you go with any of those "world mods" be sure to research them well as they can have a few patches required. Lots of knowledgeable people on here for help too so ask if you need it. We all had to learn it and been there :sad: lol. Happy modding!

Edited March 2, 2020 by Indiao21

[ANTIPOTHEOSIS]

Thanks Indiao21 for the further hints, tips and explanations.

I figure that later this week or on the weekend perhaps I'll start off with something safe and basic to make sure that the extra programs are running well and that I can see them working so that I can familiarise myself with them.

just in general though, when starting from scratch and enabling mods and their plugins, is it better to do things in a particular order based on mod category types? Should I start with User interface mods and any relevant patch mods to begin with?

Thanks for your advice.

[JimmyRJump]

[Indio21]

Thanks Indiao21 for the further hints, tips and explanations.

 

I figure that later this week or on the weekend perhaps I'll start off with something safe and basic to make sure that the extra programs are running well and that I can see them working so that I can familiarise myself with them.

 

just in general though, when starting from scratch and enabling mods and their plugins, is it better to do things in a particular order based on mod category types? Should I start with User interface mods and any relevant patch mods to begin with?

 

Thanks for your advice.

Perfect, I was hoping your topic would catch a veterans eye like JImmyR. As my venture into modding did not start based off proper procedures, when I restarted the game all my mods were on. My pc is fairly beefy I figured so if it CTD I figured I'd learn not to do that, lol. As it was it did not CTD, but regardless I'd still use Jimmy's approach. Then, and until now, I could not find any info on if it was correct to do so. Like I mentioned, most use the alternate start mod. Knowing that I figured if they could do it I should be able to in a stable game area. Jimmy really seems to know the game engine, and much more, so his recommendations I trust. BTW, it is his writings I was referring to when I warned about high resolution textures and the game engine.

 

In that overview of mods I gave, you probably noticed nothing on body type textures. That is because I never made it that far on my first LO before I embarked on a new doing CR. I do know from chatting with Jimmy he works with them by thousands, so if you want recommendations on that with textures he is one to ask! Plus, he was building pcs and modding and successfully playing these games before I even thought of building my first pc. He also seems to be very knowledgeable on hardware too.

 

I did not mention doing a hard save in the area JimmyR mentions because I learned the game does one automatically right about the time Ulferic starts to walk away. It shows in its own menu area upon starting the game so do not be alarmed if it is not showing by default. Once I learned that, and I read it was best not to turn on mods until leaving Helgen, I stopped doing extra saves there. But now that JImmy spoke up there is probably good reason to do it there I am not aware of. If you want them you only get a limited time frame from Ulfric walking away and them calling you to do so. You are welcome and happy modding :)

[ANTIPOTHEOSIS]

JimmyRJump that is one really impressive list of mods. Thanks for sharing that with me. I hope to use it for some inspiration to gradually build a loadout for my own game.

Indiao21, thanks for your instructions on how to properly use the mods and modding tools. I'm going to restart from scratch and hopefully do it properly this time.

[JimmyRJump]

 

JimmyRJump that is one really impressive list of mods. Thanks for sharing that with me. I hope to use it for some inspiration to gradually build a loadout for my own game.

Indiao21, thanks for your instructions on how to properly use the mods and modding tools. I'm going to restart from scratch and hopefully do it properly this time.

 

Just don't get dissapointed when you modded yourself into a corner. Make sure to save the character face you built in RaceMenu so you can keep re-using the one(s) you like when having to start over.

 

There's also a handful of mods in that list that aren't available for Skyrim SE and are from Oldrim. As long as it's mods that don't have a plugin or of which the plugin gets overwritten by stuff from Skyrim SE, you can get away with it.

[Indio21]

 

JimmyRJump that is one really impressive list of mods. Thanks for sharing that with me. I hope to use it for some inspiration to gradually build a loadout for my own game.

Indiao21, thanks for your instructions on how to properly use the mods and modding tools. I'm going to restart from scratch and hopefully do it properly this time.

 

You are welcome. I am just soooo appreciative of the veterans leaving us this knowledge I just try to help forward it is all and help where I can. To clarify my response above, some mods the authors say cannot be started mid play through. That is why I just stopped on my first LO and began the current, I wanted them lol. Myself not having the "know" behind these areas I just follow recommendations. But, as an fyi for you, I am very curious if this is another recommendation like when most say to put their mod at the bottom of LO. I learned most just recommend that to stop conflicts from occurring. About the 50th mod saying so I was thinking this is impossible, lol. That is why I suggested the two LO as I did. If I got a mod without such requirements I might put it in my first LO to roughly check things out as I know conflicts are not resolved there. Ones that do specify a new game start needed go into my current working one.

 

Also, just as an fyi as I seen you mention about beginning this weekend. Do not feel like you are bugging anyone with questions before you are ready to tackle them. I would not recommend diving into questions one knows would be over their head, at the time, unless it was for general clarification to understand the overall of something. I just have noticed some new people have this false perception these veterans just sit around here all day waiting to answer someone's question. I do not get that impression from your posts, to clarify, as you seem very respectful of people's time. I only mention it because they do have lives too and if you post the question sooner, there is a better chance the answer might be waiting for you when you are ready. I too did that one. Not meaning the expecting an immediate reply, but just was thinking with so many people online here at any given time an answer might appear fairly quickly. Like if you did want to start with any of the body textures you mentioned. Jimmy or another knowledgeable person might be able to recommend some good ones to start with that do not conflict or conflict with very little.