Cant get MOST mods to work

[Yoshi69]

I had oblivion, added mods the manual way (extracting to Bethesda/oblivion/data, then checking the .esp under the oblivion launcher data files), couldn't get most of them to work, I uninstalled it. I just reinstalled oblivion, I patched it with the update (I had forgotten last time, trying to patch after adding all the mods came up with an error understandibly) and did all the mods by turning them into OMODS and doing it that way, but this time the same 2 mods work (body replacer and a menu/map replacer) while other mods dont.

 

The .esp's and .esm's show up in the data files and are checked, but none of the mods show up in game (this goes from partners to armor/weapons, quests/landscape etc). I got curios and tried patching again (even though I already had) and got the same error as when I tried to patch earlier (see first couple sentences of this post). Also alot of save games crash on me, the ones that dont crash still come up with the "this save relies on data that is no longer present".

 

Im using vista 64-bit, oblivion is in: C:/Program Files (x86)/Bethesda Softworks/Oblivion.

 

Its got to be something painfully obvious that im not getting, any help? thanks in advance

[maYuYang]

Hi there^^.

1st of all, Never install a game in Program Files under Vista, that will only mess your games up. You should uninstall it and install it into another directory like YOUR HD:\Oblivion or YOUR HD:\Your Games\Oblivion.

 

You actually only made two mistakes:activating the mods with the Launcher was the 1st one. Activate them with OBMM instead. Get BOSS, too.

The 2nd mistake was that you propably didn't read all readmes(But I can understand you on that one...).

Imo, the reason why your mods aren't working is the Load Order. Some Mods need to loaded in a specific order, otherwise, they won't work at all or will cause crashes. That's why I suggested BOSS, install all components into your Data folder and run the BOSS.bat. That tool will sort load order sensitve mods. With OBMM, you can fine-tune it then(e.g. the minor mods like equipment will be in the end, load them earlier, but not 1st. If you use Deadly Reflex, make sure it's loaded last). The Launcher doesn't offer any option to change the load order.

Then, it might be that some mods require OBSE. Make sure to install it, too(all .dll and the OBSE_loader.exe). You need to use the obse_loader.exe in order to play, Oblivion.exe won't work with installed obse-using mods!.

 

And finally, provide us with more information, like what mods you used(we don't need to know what armor mods you use, the overhauls, landscapes and other major mods do interest us), if you use the SI Expansion and so on. You have to know that we cannot see what you see on your screen if you start Oblivion, hence we will have a hard time guessing what could cause the issue(and some of us are already tired of ppl asking things like "Oblivion crashes on startup, help plz" but not supporting us with more detailed information. Please do not misunderstand that as rant, I'm just saying it so you know...)

[Yoshi69]

thanks a ton, OBMM is being moody about installing itself if oblivion isnt under program files at the moment, after I get that sorted out ill see if I can get it working with your advice

 

as for details, im not using shivering isles

 

mostly armor/weapons and hair/skin/etc packs, but the big ones are CM Partners Basic, Natural Environments and BTMod

[rladngus]

Try the following:

 

1. Reinstall into a different directory. I never had this issue but I hear many people do (the person above me already mentioned this). So, instead of installing it to C:/Program Files/Bethesda/Oblivion, try C:/Bethesda

 

2. Make sure you're using the correct load order. I know load ordering is a major pain in the ass, especially of you have a lot of mods in your list, but that's why you have this brilliant little utility tool called BOSS (Better Oblivion Sorting Software). Download it here. Make sure you download both "BOSS 24 Oct 08 B" and "Database 30 Nov 08." After downloading is done, extract content to your Oblivion/Data folder (read the readme file for detailed instructions). After you've installe BOSS, extract content from your "Database 30 Nov 08" download (should only contain 1 file: masterlist.txt) to Oblivion/Data folder and overwrite (consider this as a "patch" for BOSS). To use the program, simply double-click on BOSS.bat file, NOT BOSS.exe.

 

NOTE: I don't know if this might happen to you, but it happened to me, so I will tell you anyway: When trying to run BOSS, you might get an error message saying "BOSSlog.txt could not be found" or something to that effect. In that case, simply create a .txt file (notepad) in your desktop, rename it to "BOSSlog" and cut/paste it to your Oblivion/Data folder. This should fix it (it worked for me).

 

2nd NOTE: You will need to download an extra program and install it before getting BOSS to work. Don't worry, this is legit stuff, as it comes straight from Microsoft.

 

3. You could try activating your mods using another program instead, namely Wrye Bash. You can download Wrye Bash here. The installing process if rather simple, but there are many steps, as you will have to download 2 other programs and install them before using Wrye Bash, so I won't explain it. There's a guide in the same website I provided you with so check it out for instructions. Anyway, once you open Wrye Bash, you will see a list of your current mods under the "Mods" tab. Check/uncheck mods to activate/deactivate them (install/uninstall). Then exit and run OBMM (effect should have taken place in OBMM as well as you were using Wrye Bash).

 

Good luck.