Is "Vortex" all i need to play modded Fallout New Vegas?

[Detguffordrengen]

Hello, i'm very new to modding.

 

i've been tryng to read up on how to mod Fallout New Vegas while it installs on steam, and was wondering if Vortex is all i need to download and manage mods, and how to launch the game with mods?

 

I'll be honest here, i dont understand anything i've read so far.

 

Thanks in advance for any help given!

Edited August 27, 2020 by Detguffordrengen

[dubiousintent]

The answer varies depending upon how old the mod you want is and which mod manager it was designed to work with. Vortex is the latest approach to "mod management" and probably the one you should start out with if you are new to the scene. But because it is designed to work with a multitude of different games, you need to learn it's documentation thoroughly. It is possible that some older mods will require using a different manager in order to install correctly. (You can use more than one.) But they should be the exception rather than the rule.

 

There a lot of different things you have to understand to get a 'modded game' to work. Because they are made by different authors working in isolation, most mods have the potential to "conflict" in some way with others that attempt to do something similar. There are ways to get around most of those conflicts, but they require more knowledge and learning more techniques than someone who just wants to 'play the game' quickly is generally interested in. So the recommendation is to only install one mod that affects any particular aspect of the game (such as Weapon Mods or Body Replacements). Start simply, one mod at a time, and TEST between installing each mod to your "load order".

 

I recommend anyone read the entire "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article to understand the differences between this game and others you may have experience with; especially if this is your first attempt to play a modded FNV or it's been more than a year since you last did so. It is designed for someone who has never played a modded PC game before, so it tries to avoid making any assumptions, is kept "up-to-date", and covers years of "lessons learned". It is NOT a list of various mods to install that happen to work on the author's machine. It addresses fundamentals underlying how to get the basic game and mods to work together.

If you still have questions after reading that, do let me know and I'll see if I can help. I'm always interested in making that a better document.

 

-Dubious-

Edited August 27, 2020 by dubiousintent

[gnarly1]

But because it is designed to work with a multitude of different games, you need to learn it's documentation thoroughly.

You actually don't need to read the documentation at all as it is relatively easy to work out how to use Vortex. But it is recommended to read the docs at some stage.

 

I'd recommend starting with Gopher's YouTube series on modding FNV. That will provide a solid foundation of knowledge and you'll get to know the mods that together make FNV as stable as possible.

 

Edited August 27, 2020 by gnarly1

[Radioactivelad]

I used Vortex once when it was new, hated the UI, and uninstalled it.

 

I've been using the much more straightforward Community Edition of NMM since then and it's done the job just fine.

[orkel1215]

I have used Vortex and NMM and I honestly prefer Mod Organizer 2 IMO. It keeps your game files clean so if (And when!) you mess something up you can just untick the mod and go on about your business. It really helps not have to reinstall the game every couple of months. I remember starting out my modding adventure with NMM and it was good, there are a lot of tutorials on it (There are a lot for MO2 now too). I would also get familiar with FNVedit Its EXTREMELY useful to make a stable game. You really just have to press like 5 buttons and it makes a merge patch for you (So other mods play nice together). Those are the basic tools that I use on a every day basis.

 

TLDR: Mod Organizer 2 (Yes it works for FNV) is Much better option IMO. You are also going to need to use FNVedit for a stable game / so mods can all work together. Enjoy your modding adventure!

[RichterVBach]

I used Vortex once when it was new, hated the UI, and uninstalled it.

 

I've been using the much more straightforward Community Edition of NMM since then and it's done the job just fine.

But can't you just do that same thing in Vortex? Just uncheck it?

[ashtonlp101]

Mod managers are kind of a person to person thing. Whereas some like Vortex, others like NMM, I personally like MO2. They all have learning curves to an extent, but for beginners I'd start with NMM. If you're new to modding, start by downloading a couple simple mods. Don't go crazy or else you will run into serious issues that you won't know how to resolve. Have fun!

[M48A5]

Why not use the mod manager made for Fallout games. Fallout Mod Manager (FOMM) https://www.nexusmods.com/newvegas/mods/54991

 

Some people will say that it is an old manager. That's true, but the game is also old and the same is true for most of the mods.

 

Also, Fallout Mod Manager was made to handle Fallout mods and nothing else. It's not like the newer mod managers that try to be all things to all games.

[madmongo]

I personally use FOMM only because I have always used FOMM. You need some sort of mod manager, but which one is a matter of personal preference and experience.

 

Fallout New Vegas modding isn't idiot-proof. Far from it. Mods for games like Skyrim and Fallout 4 tend to be fairly-well packaged. Usually everything is packed up as much as it can be, so you only have a few files to drop into your data folder and you're done.

 

Fallout New Vegas supports BSA files, but using packed files hasn't become anywhere near as standard as it is for games like Skyrim and FO4. When you have loose files, it is very easy for loose files from one mod to overwrite files with the same name and location from another mod. It is therefore easily possible to completely bork your Fallout New Vegas installation. One easy example is to use a body replacer mod, then copy a different mod which overwrites the human skeleton. Now your body replacer is using the wrong skeleton, body parts are being stretched the horizon, and your game is an unplayable mess.

 

My advice is to download Fallout New Vegas, and immediately copy the entire folder somewhere so that you can easily get back to it. Most PCs have gobs of disk space these days, so making backups like this usually isn't an issue, but if you have a smaller hard drive, this will eat up a lot of disk space. Now add in mods that you want to try out, and add them one at a time, and play through a little test game to see if everything is working the way you want. When you get a modded configuration that you like, again make a backup copy of your Fallout New Vegas folder so that you can easily get back to it. Then keep adding mods, making backups, until you get the game the way that you want it.

 

If you don't make backups, then if you get a mod that overwrites files and screws things up and your mod manager can't fix it, sometimes your only way out of it is to wipe your Fallout New Vegas installation and start over. At that point, having a known good backup will save you a huge amount of time since all you need to do is copy the entire folder over instead of downloading the game and installing your mods one by one again.

 

If you are used to modding games like Skyrim and Fallout 4, then modding Fallout New Vegas is going to feel clunky and sometimes difficult. Keep in mind that this is an old game. Mod support is something that has been dramatically improved on over the years.

[Klyde21]

Edit: Guide removed from this page. Should you require the latest version, please refer to my post.
If the guide isn't helpful to you, I apologize. I tried.