New to Modding - What Tools will I Need?

[Lite8888]

Hi, I would like to begin adding mods to the game.

 

I have an idea of which mods I want, but have never used mods before.

 

At first, I thought modding was as easy as installing the Nexus Mod Manager, and adding mods directly to it.

 

But now, I notice that a lot of the mods I want require script extenders, modifications to the game files, and so on.

 

 

So I ask you, before I download a single mod:

 

1) What programs should I install to create a strong foundation for future mods?

 

2) What are script extenders?

 

3) What mistakes have you made when you began modding, and how can they be prevented?

 

-Thanks

[scrivener07]

1) What programs should I install to create a strong foundation for future mods?

NMM is a good mod manager. Its just puts the mods in the right place in the games data folder and keeps track of them. Something mod users have been doing by hand for years. Not required to make mods run but it sure makes life easier.

 

2) What are script extenders?

Its not a mod in itself and doesnt install like one. When a mod maker is writing scripts for mods the language bethesda provides was pretty good but SKSE provides additional language features so mod makers can do things tthat would otherwise be impossible. When a mod maker uses these additional language features, the mod requires that SKSE be installed and running for them to properly execute.

http://skse.silverlock.org/ download skse here

Video for your face

Dont install with NMM and always launch the game with the skse loader

 

3) What mistakes have you made when you began modding, and how can they be prevented?

Read the instructions on EVERY mod you download and dont go on a download frenzy installing 100+ mods at once and then come to forums wondering why things dont work just right. Add a mod and confirm its working properly before adding more.

[Dart98Rock]

One thing happened to me that took a while for me tho fix, if you get unexplained CTD ( Crash to Desktop), check your Skyrim plugins, they are located for me in - C:\Users\(username)\appdata\local\Skyrim\plugin list - make sure there is only 1 skyrim.esm in the list. For SKSE to launch straight from NMM, download this mod - http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/12923 -.

[Deleted1308005User]

Mmm..

Biggest mistake might be mixing "modding" and "using mods" :biggrin:

At least I went full :hurr: when I tried to understand what does NMM have to do with modding.

 

Anyway, SKSE is script extender, and it's quite nice. From what I understand, it extends scripts ;D

Or allows different sorts of scripts to run, thus allowing greater editing of Skyrim, via Scripts.

 

Also, there's Script Dragon, it's required by some mods, but to be honest, I don't fully understand why the mod makers wouldn't just work their mod so it would work with SKSE.

It's probably harder to, for example, bind command to one key via SKSE instead of Script Dragon.

 

Biggest mistakes I've made? Skipped descriptions.

Not during the days of Skyrim Though, mostly when playing fallouts and oblivion.

I never read the description, only the part "Where to get item X"

But nowadays I read every description, if the description is full mess, I know the mod is not probably worth it.

 

Also, BOSS and Wrye bash are some things you want to get familiar with.

I thought those are like most complicated tools you can find, but after I used them for first time, it amazed me how easy and useful it was.

Mods ordered, no issues, no lag anymore..

It's just so good to use those.

Anyway, I wish you luck, and hope my post helped at least a bit.

[Lite8888]

Thanks guys, your comments are helpful! - got a couple of questions

 

Shadowjin, this is mostly geared to you:

 

I get your point about using the phrase "Using Mods" vs "Modding" - made me laugh.. I actually knew this, but was just lazy : p

 

Now, in regards to script extenders, it sounds like your saying that SKSE is the most powerful, but some mods prefer to be run on Script Dragon - - - Can I run both at once? Do these extenders draw memory usage (aka: slow my fps)?

 

Could you please do a run-down of the major differences between NMM / BOSS / Wrye Bash? Can they be used together, or must I choose only one?

 

You're saying that BOSS & Wrye order mods in a more efficient manner, and NMM does not? (thus reducing errors and lag?) Do they do anything else aside from just ordering? (perhaps combining internal game files together, etc?)

 

I really don't feel like using NMM just for the sake of experience, and then switching over to one of the other two (if they are truly better) - I would rather just skip right to the best one and learn how to use it off the bat.. know what I mean?

[DeadBang01]

@Lite8888

 

Regarding NMM/BOSS/Wryebash: I use NMM nearly every day to download, install, and manage mods in my game. Occasionally a mod specifically requires a manual install/uninstall and in those cases, the mod creator will almost always include detailed instructions of where to put the required files in your Skyrim\Data folder. In general, I don't like doing manual installs though I did most of my Oblivion modding that way. NMM just makes the process so much simpler and lets me get to playing the game rather than fidgeting with the files.

 

I also use BOSS in conjunction with NMM to double-check my load order and to avoid possible conflicts. NMM does a really good job at automatically placing your mods correctly, but once in a while something might get screwy. BOSS is a separate *.exe file that will check all your installed mods against itself and generate a suggested load order in your internet browser window. It will also list mods it does not know, which you should order by hand. Additionally, the newest version of BOSS will tell you which mods have dirty edits (ironically, the actual Bethesda game files turn up on this list for me). Once the BOSS list is generated, I do a visual compare against NMM's order and if necessary, adjust NMM to match BOSS.

 

I haven't yet had the need to use WryeBash for Skyrim. I did have to use it on occasion in Oblivion to create a "Bash Patch" which forces some uncooperative mods to play nice with each other. In general, I get everything I need using just NMM and BOSS.

 

I haven't used Skyrim Script Extender yet, though I have used the Script Extenders for Oblivion, Fallout 3, and Fallout: NV. Mostly I used it for UI improvements in my inventory screens/Pip Boy. I'm strangely not so bothered by Skyrim's vanilla UI. I'll also probably wait until the Script Extender creators update for Dragonborn's changes.

 

Hope this helps some.

 

David

 

 

Thanks guys, your comments are helpful! - got a couple of questions

 

Shadowjin, this is mostly geared to you:

 

I get your point about using the phrase "Using Mods" vs "Modding" - made me laugh.. I actually knew this, but was just lazy : p

 

Now, in regards to script extenders, it sounds like your saying that SKSE is the most powerful, but some mods prefer to be run on Script Dragon - - - Can I run both at once? Do these extenders draw memory usage (aka: slow my fps)?

 

Could you please do a run-down of the major differences between NMM / BOSS / Wrye Bash? Can they be used together, or must I choose only one?

 

You're saying that BOSS & Wrye order mods in a more efficient manner, and NMM does not? (thus reducing errors and lag?) Do they do anything else aside from just ordering? (perhaps combining internal game files together, etc?)

 

I really don't feel like using NMM just for the sake of experience, and then switching over to one of the other two (if they are truly better) - I would rather just skip right to the best one and learn how to use it off the bat.. know what I mean?

[scrivener07]

Now, in regards to script extenders, it sounds like your saying that SKSE is the most powerful, but some mods prefer to be run on Script Dragon

One isnt more 'powerful' than the other. SKSE provides ready to use papyrus functions and has been around since Morrowind/Oblivion. Scriptdragon provides an interface to write your own custom functions with c++. I dont recommend any mods that require scriptdragon as SKSE already provides an interface to write your own functions. All this really only concerns mod makers, just stick to SKSE and youll be fine.

 

 

Can I run both at once?

Yes

 

Do these extenders draw memory usage (aka: slow my fps)?

No, only mods with poorly written scripts do this. They have absolutely 0 impact on performance and can even increase performance depending on how a modder uses the functions in a mod.