The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - MODS & TWEAKS

Soldato
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Whats that?

Stick to Nexus Mod Manager for now :). Mod Organizer is a more powerful and complex mod manager.

The Mod Directory in your 1st screenshot is where NMM will put the .zip/.rar/.7z files that you install or download from Nexus website. It doesn't have to be where mods you have downloaded already are. In fact I think it's better that it isn't the same.
 
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Stick to Nexus Mod Manager for now :). Mod Organizer is a more powerful and complex mod manager.

The Mod Directory in your 1st screenshot is where NMM will put the .zip/.rar/.7z files that you install or download from Nexus website. It doesn't have to be where mods you have downloaded already are. In fact I think it's better that it isn't the same.

Already hit a hitch.

Installed blood textures, that was fine, its in the mod manager/data folder and plugins.

Downloaded this

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/607/?

activated mod.. not in any folder, plugin etc grrrrrrr
 
Soldato
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That mod comes in 5 parts. And each part has a Download With Manager button next to it. You need to pick either Full or Lite version, I'd go with Lite. Then you download each part and then activate them all one after the other.
 
Soldato
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Well it's up to you. You probably won't notice much difference while playing. If you keep stopping and staring closely at textures you might see. I use Lite because while on it's own my system could handle Full fine, I have loads of other mods on top.

Graphics wise using an ENB will probably make the most difference to how the game looks (and runs).
 
Soldato
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My Ultimate MOD List & Boot Order



So I'm doing a full refresh of my MOD's due to upgrading to GOTY and need to change my mods to include the DLC. Even though this is an old game, I still think this will be useful to a few of us, and well useful to me if I mess something up!

My Hardware / System Currently:

  • Intel i7 3820 @ 3.6ghz
  • SLI GTX SC 680's
  • 4 x 2GB Quad Channel RipJaw 2133Mhz RAM
  • 120GB Corsair GT SSD
  • 1TB Samsung HDD (Game Installed)
I will be listing:

  • My Complete List of Mods
  • The BOOT order I have installed them in
  • Step by Step progression including screenshots
  • Errors I have come across
I'm hoping this will be useful to some, as there isn't really a definitive list & I have outputted my Skyrim/Data directory to text file for you to download to make it easier than screenshots.

Mod List: Reaper's Skyrim Mod List

(Subject to change as I may download new Mods for DLC)

I'm installing them now so will add a spoiler with my Step by Step progress.

#1 - Software Used & Recommend

  1. Mod Organiser
  2. Nexus Mod Manager Alternative
  3. SKSE Script Extender
  4. LOOT

#2 - Installing SKSE Guide

Required for certain script mods, always should install.

Follow these steps:

#1 - Download from the above Link provided
#2 - Start the installer:



#3 - Follow the steps:









SKSE is now installed.
IMPORTANT: - Ensure you create skse.ini within the \Steam\SteamApps\common\Skyrim\Data\SKSE folder with the following parameters, this is a much needed memory patch for the game:

[General]
ClearInvalidRegistrations=1

[Memory]
DefaultHeapInitialAllocMB=768
ScrapHeapSizeMB=256
#3 - Install Mod Organiser & LOOT
  • Setup MO and follow their tutorial
  • Enter your credentials to Nexus & do the following Version change:



#4 - Install Un-official Patches

  1. Skyrim Un-Official Patch
  2. Dragonborn Un-Official Patch
  3. Heartfire Un-Official Patch
  4. Dawnguard Un-Official Patch

Double Click each of them when you have downloaded them into MO:







Click the tick on the left to select the mod to be loaded, it will then update the plugin list on the right:

These are required to get rid of 1000's of bugs across the main game and the DLC if you have them installed.
Download them from Nexus to Mod Organiser (Or Nexus Mod Manager) and install your first Mods.

#5 - Launch and Run the game

This is a good time to test that the first mods have loaded, it is also a good time to test the SKSE launcher works. In MO click the SKSE launcher and see if the game loads successfully, from there start a new/load a game & ensure everything is working, next up more fixes & start up patches.

#6 - Other Important & Recommended Fixes

So your game is running & is boring to look at! But at least the patches have fixed some annoying bugs so that can't be sniffed at... let's add some more:


Each of these can be installed the same way the Un-Official patches were installed, do a test afterwards to make sure things are running OK and nothing has broke the game.
I recommend each of the above to be installed as they're great patches & really do fix some noticeable things in the game.

NOTE: Some of these MOD's may need to be installed manually rather than automatically done, this is due to the files being .ini or .txt instead of .bsa or .esp. Please bare this in mind when installing them.
When they're installed you're manager & Skyrim folder should look like this:





#7 - User Interface Mods/Plugins

The main one to install is SkyUI to make the user interface across the whole game so much better, several other mods then plugin into SkyUI to give a really nice interface, ones to install are below:
  • SkyUI - Main overhaul of the Skyrim User Interface, highly recommended.
  • Immersive HUD - Allows the HUD to be toggled ON or OFF.
  • Less Intrusive HUD - Allows you to customise what you want on your HUD.
  • Quality World Map - More detailed and useful, recommended.
  • RaceMenu - Allows more customisation to be done to your character.
  • Categorised Favourites Menu - Everything is formatted nicely in proper categories when you press Q, Plugin to SkyUI.

Once installed, test these are working & the features you want are there.
Ensure you're not getting any bugs between the SkyUI mod and SKSE and make sure Categorised Favourites isn't complaining about SkyUI version. (Screenshots below)



NOTE: Currently having an issue with my 21:9 working when launching SKSE in MO, will update if I figure out why.
FIXED: Edit the SkyrimPref.ini under the MO/Profile/Default directory.

#8 - Visual/Texture Mods

These are what most people will be looking for & at this stage you should have a very good stage for placing these mods onto.
Ensure your game is running stable & the mods installed before are working as they should, a good 10-30 minute test will ensure the game is running OK.

Visual Mods to install:


These are the main bulk of mods, will be adding to the list with others for armour/weapons.

Should be looking something along the lines of this in your MO/NMM or MO/NMM directory.



Game Screenshots at this stage:





These are the recommended visual MOD's, depending on which version of the ENB you selected and what resolution of texture's you're using you should be hitting the 50+ FPS mark. (If you have similar hardware to me).

#9 - More Visual Mods

These are more texture mod's I use in the game, which really bring some supreme detail to certain textures. Some of these use 4k textures or can hamper performance, however if you're running your ENB successfully at a playable frame rate then you should be OK.

Test these one by one, as you're now loading a lot of textures at once for the first time!


MO or NMM should look like this, including the ordering using LOOT:

These add some very nice textures in all the other places, see screenshots below when installed:







Look good, right?

#10 - Location improvements

Now these make's some places look fantastic, the one for Whiterun is beyond impressive with the simple use of trees and different plant life. These don't really hit performance, but only download if you want a new look for certain towns/cities.

These make a great addition to the Skyrim world, worth trying them out to see if you like them.

Subscribe to the mods on the steam community side and launch the game through steam to download and install the Steam Workshop mods.


#11 - Gameplay improvements

These mods make changes to the gameplay by adding or removing certain features, some of the best include a 'temperature system' which has character effects, meaning shelter is required when a blizzard or storm starts, others add help during quests, further achievements and horse skins.


There you have it, a wonderful and completely modded Skyrim ready for you to enjoy. You should have roughly 100-110 mods installed, all of which are stable and up to date!
Any errors I come across will be updated in the below error log, and any changes I think make will be placed into the change log, keep and eye on these if you find any instabilities.

Error's Log -

Code:
[LIST]
[*][COLOR="Lime"]FIXED [/COLOR]- [S]Perfect Whiterun & Towns and Villages Enhanced - Villages have a texture replacement issue[/S][*][COLOR="Yellow"]Resolution [/COLOR] - Had 2 instances of SFO installed.
[/LIST]

Change Log - Latest updates to the Guide

Code:
[LIST]
[*]07/10/2014 ~ ENB Comparisons (Started)
[*]11/10/2014 ~ Grass Comparisons (Started)
[*]11/10/2014 ~ Added Skyrim No Intro Fix
[*]11/10/2014 ~ Added skse.ini guide to the SKSE installation process
[/LIST]

#12 - ENB Comparisons/Performance

So occasional questions that are raised normally look like, which ENB is the best visually? Which looks good but doesn't affect performance? Which should I use with XYZ?
I will be putting a full comparison of the popular ENB's and rating them on their looks, their performance & compatibility with other mods.

ENB's I will be testing are:

  1. RealVision - ENB
  2. Serenity ENB
  3. Seasons of Skyrim ENB
  4. True Vision ENB

I will post up side by side screenshots to show the different including some video's if I have the time.

I will also be playing around the GRASS and WATER textures to see which one looks the best.
 
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