Skyrim Mods - A Comprehensive List & User Support Thread

DPI · Jul 28, 2013

Cool. What threw me off was the 2012 datestamp of the BOSS installer - guess I should've run it first, since as it turns out it keeps updated dynamically via html/web.

Cod · Jul 28, 2013

Any of y'all play through the Falksaar quests yet? If so, how were they?

coffaholic · Jul 29, 2013

I just started a new playthrough 2 weeks ago or so but that mod looks really sweet. I will definitely install it once I get a bit further into the game.

DPI · Aug 1, 2013

Heh. So not even a week ago I installed Skyrim and swore I'd only use the PC-optimized menu replacement mod (SkyUI) and play the rest vanilla. Then the mod-creep began. Slowly but surely, one mod after the next. All capped off by spending an hour today loading RealVision ENB and all the mods it recommends to get the most out of it. Convenient Horses was another breakthrough find - the two barbie doll followers I have now call their own horses with horns and ride around with me, they even perform mounted combat. Talk about a well-built mod, its awesome.

In any case now I can't get anything done in-game because I keep stopping to take in the view and marvel at how much different the game looks. I gotta say though, the Realistic Lighting Overhaul is taking some getting used to but in a good way because everything is very dark at night, like it would be IRL. Dungeons are dark as hell, and if you're crawling around the forest in the middle of the night with just a torch it can be hair-raising. Go into a house illuminated only by candlelight and it looks exactly how it should look. I never realized how much lighting was responsible for setting the tone. I'm a believer now, lighting is everything.

I will edit this post with a full list of my mods if any interest but suffice to say I highly recommend installing RealVision ENB if you're not already using an ENB package, and following the video installation tutorial (easy) and installing all the other mods that are recommended. http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/30936/?

DPI · Aug 1, 2013

By the way, it occurs to me that its a shame the overall mod process is still a bit technical for people that barely know enough to install a Steam game, its a shame that so many people are missing out the greater potential of how this game can look and play, and its too bad that Bethesda doesn't somehow take the best ones and fold them into a 1-click, all in one package as a free DLC, so non-technical users can get 90-95% of the effect in a couple clicks. Ofcourse that would probably take them months to certify and quality test - time they'd rather spend on the Fallout 4 and Elder Scrolls Online. And I'm also reminded we should be grateful that in this new era of DLC driven, console focused game development that we got an SDK at all.

Climber · Aug 1, 2013

Steam workshop got rid of the technical side of modding. Yea there are other mods but it is being streamlined enough that you dont have to spend 12 hours getting mods to play nice like you dud in oblivion.

dj_2004 · Aug 1, 2013

DPI said:
By the way, it occurs to me that its a shame the overall mod process is still a bit technical for people that barely know enough to install a Steam game, its a shame that so many people are missing out the greater potential of how this game can look and play, and its too bad that Bethesda doesn't somehow take the best ones and fold them into a 1-click, all in one package as a free DLC, so non-technical users can get 90-95% of the effect in a couple clicks. Ofcourse that would probably take them months to certify and quality test - time they'd rather spend on the Fallout 4 and Elder Scrolls Online. And I'm also reminded we should be grateful that in this new era of DLC driven, console focused game development that we got an SDK at all.

If people can't spend the few minutes reading readmes and clicking a couple buttons, then perhaps it is best that they don't use mods since a lot can go wrong. However, like Climber stated, Steam Workshop has made the installation of mods extremely easily: click subscribe, run launcher, play.

The greatest time sink is finding the mods that the player wants, and there isn't a way around this, other than mod lists, since everyone has a different want list.

In the end, I doubt Bethesda will ever bundle player mods. They already receive enough hateful comments on how buggy their games are. Not to mention that many mods add extra stress on the engine and computer. Then there are conflicts, regular updates, interaction with official DLC and future mod bundle packs, what mods are the "best", etc. Bethesda does use mods for ideas though, many of which you can see implemented in Skyrim.

Yippee38 · Aug 2, 2013

Can anybody recommend a player home mod that adds doors to all the player homes? I've seen a few, but they tend to have a bunch or extra stuff like crafting tables and materials laying all over. I'm just looking for a mod that will add a basement to all the player homes, that just contains doors to the other homes. Nothing else.

Any suggestions?

Christopher · Aug 2, 2013

Cod said:
Any of y'all play through the Falksaar quests yet? If so, how were they?

I've been through the main storyline of falskaar and some of the site stories. I liked it a lot. I kind of wish the final sequences on the main storyline was a bit more epic of a battle, but considering it was made by volunteers its well worth a play through.

spaceman · Aug 4, 2013

Having serious performance issues. If I have to uninstall and re-install, are there leftover bits of program I need to know about and clean?

dj_2004 · Aug 4, 2013

spaceman said:
Having serious performance issues. If I have to uninstall and re-install, are there leftover bits of program I need to know about and clean?

Ini files and maybe some mod stuff in your My Games folder and some files (mainly load order stuff) in C:\Users\***USER***\AppData\Local\Skyrim. I'm not sure if uninstalling removes these files. There would obviously be mod files in your Skyrim directory until you manually delete those as well.

TimG · Aug 5, 2013

Anyone know how to achieve grass like this?

https://googledrive.com/host/0B0emlsaBnjHsbTllY1k3cVlpUDg/images/enb/SweetFX0.jpg

Deleted whining member 223597 · Aug 5, 2013

TimG said:
Anyone know how to achieve grass like this?

https://googledrive.com/host/0B0emlsaBnjHsbTllY1k3cVlpUDg/images/enb/SweetFX0.jpg

SweetFX?

TimG · Aug 5, 2013

SweetFX isn't a texture mod. It's similar to ENB/FXAA.

dj_2004 · Aug 5, 2013

Searching for grass on Nexus will provide you with a few dense grass mods. As for the exact mod, no idea as I like Vurt's too much to use anything else. You'll also have to use ENB and SweetFX (may be able to get by with just ENB) to have the grass look like it does in the picture due to the shadowing and lighting.

TimG · Aug 6, 2013

dj_2004 said:
Searching for grass on Nexus will provide you with a few dense grass mods. As for the exact mod, no idea as I like Vurt's too much to use anything else. You'll also have to use ENB and SweetFX (may be able to get by with just ENB) to have the grass look like it does in the picture due to the shadowing and lighting.

I managed to track it town, pretty sure it's called "Dat Grass."

TimG · Aug 11, 2013

The tops of the trees in the distant are now getting cut off near the top. Not sure why.

http://i.imgur.com/mP2iS2H.jpg

dj_2004 · Aug 11, 2013

TimG said:
The tops of the trees in the distant are now getting cut off near the top. Not sure why.

http://i.imgur.com/mP2iS2H.jpg

Tree LOD issue. Are you using Vurt's?

Edit:
If you are using Vurt's (Skyrim Flora Overhaul), then as stated on its description page:
"My distant trees look like someone scissored them in half!
Disable any tree LOD's that doesnt come with the Summer or Regular Edition. If you want to use a mod that adds its own tree LOD's you will have to use the Basic Edition."

And, while I'm posting, some mods that I'll add to the list sometime:
Climates Of Tamriel - Weather Patch - Fog Rain Overcast
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/39799//?

Vivid Landscapes - Dungeons and Ruins
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/39874//?

Ultimate Assortment by Favoredsoul
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/39959//?

Megalith · Aug 11, 2013

Is there a texture pack that improves the graphics as widely as the official high-res one from Bethesda? Or do most packs only focus on certain things, like grass and trees?

For some reason, I've lost the motivation to play after getting my full set of Daedric armor, even though I've only just completed the Unrelenting Force shout.

dj_2004 · Aug 11, 2013

Megalith said:
Is there a texture pack that improves the graphics as widely as the official high-res one from Bethesda? Or do most packs only focus on certain things, like grass and trees?

For some reason, I've lost the motivation to play after getting my full set of Daedric armor, even though I've only just completed the Unrelenting Force shout.

A few large texture mods exist, one being Skyrim HD - 2K Textures.

TimG · Aug 11, 2013

dj_2004 said:
Tree LOD issue. Are you using Vurt's?

Edit:
If you are using Vurt's (Skyrim Flora Overhaul), then as stated on its description page:
"My distant trees look like someone scissored them in half!
Disable any tree LOD's that doesnt come with the Summer or Regular Edition. If you want to use a mod that adds its own tree LOD's you will have to use the Basic Edition."

And, while I'm posting, some mods that I'll add to the list sometime:
Climates Of Tamriel - Weather Patch - Fog Rain Overcast
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/39799//?

Vivid Landscapes - Dungeons and Ruins
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/39874//?

Ultimate Assortment by Favoredsoul
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/39959//?

That must be it. I am running Flora Overhaul and was using a LOD mod as well. Thank you. I didn't think of Flora Overhaul when troubleshooting.

song414 · Aug 12, 2013

TimG said:
That must be it. I am running Flora Overhaul and was using a LOD mod as well. Thank you. I didn't think of Flora Overhaul when troubleshooting.

weird. I used SFO full with skyrim bigger trees and my LOD trees looked messed up. I installed AOF LOD Trees mod and overwrite the SFO and they look awesome now.

Brownstone · Aug 20, 2013

Quick question, i've SkyUI installed on it but its slow. What i mean, everytime i open my inventory or decide to loot, it takes a few seconds to open (its installed on my ssd).

I got SkyUI through Nexus Mod Manager

dj_2004 · Aug 20, 2013

Brownstone said:
Quick question, i've SkyUI installed on it but its slow. What i mean, everytime i open my inventory or decide to loot, it takes a few seconds to open (its installed on my ssd).

I got SkyUI through Nexus Mod Manager

You have SKSE installed?

dj_2004 · Sep 7, 2013

dj_2004 · Sep 25, 2013

Does IMAIGINATOR have an option to give a blur effect to the horizon, like it does in FO3 (or maybe I am thinking of a different mod)?

dj_2004 · Sep 26, 2013

dj_2004 said:
Does IMAIGINATOR have an option to give a blur effect to the horizon, like it does in FO3 (or maybe I am thinking of a different mod)?

Okay, so I decided to try out Dynavision instead due to its focus on DoF, and the static DoF setting does what I want except for its distance. Does anyone know which file has the Dynavision static DoF distance value? I checked the scripts but couldn't find a relating line.

AceGoober · Oct 1, 2013

A good friend just gave me a brand new retail version of Skyrim for helping out with her computer issues. A big Thanks! to the OP and all who have contributed suggested mods in this thread. I'll certainly be installing many of the mods listed here prior to creating a character to enjoy the full benefit of the enhanced visuals right from the beginning.

castun · Oct 1, 2013

Dammitall, I broke my Skyrim. Picked up playing again the one night and messed around for a bit, then next day I decide it would be a good idea to update all the mods that said there were updates available. Bad idea...I was just using the NMM to manage and everything was fine. Now I get to go find which mod is causing me problems.

Krenum · Oct 1, 2013

castun said:
Dammitall, I broke my Skyrim. Picked up playing again the one night and messed around for a bit, then next day I decide it would be a good idea to update all the mods that said there were updates available. Bad idea...I was just using the NMM to manage and everything was fine. Now I get to go find which mod is causing me problems.

When that happends, I uncheck all my mods, and check a few then start the game, if the game wont start after the last few checked, one of them has to be the culprit.

Process of elimination man.

dj_2004 · Oct 1, 2013

A mod that removes confirm dialogue boxes from crafting and removes the alchemy quit dialogue box:
http://forums.bethsoft.com/topic/1451875-no-poison-dialogues/?p=22988550

castun said:
Dammitall, I broke my Skyrim. Picked up playing again the one night and messed around for a bit, then next day I decide it would be a good idea to update all the mods that said there were updates available. Bad idea...I was just using the NMM to manage and everything was fine. Now I get to go find which mod is causing me problems.

If Skyrim is crashing the moment you launch the game then it is usually a missing master (esm) file.

castun · Oct 5, 2013

dj_2004 said:
If Skyrim is crashing the moment you launch the game then it is usually a missing master (esm) file.

Well, it shows the main menu background for a few seconds, then it just drops me to desktop with no errors. Was working fine, then updated mods (I have quite a few, mostly graphical ones) and then gave me problems.

NMM shows a dawnguard.esm even though I don't have that DLC. I'm guessing since some of the mods overlap certain files, updating must've goofed up something. I also don't know anything at all regarding WyreBash, or cleaning dirty edits and such.

dj_2004 · Oct 6, 2013

All you would need to do is launch Wrye Bash and it should tell you which mod is doing it. I think Wrye Bash has an all-in-one installer now so no more downloading Python separately.

Otherwise, list your mods or buy DG.

strend · Oct 6, 2013

Smart Cast

So happy something like this finally came out. You can setup auto-cast rules and spell combos.

aeonrevolution · Oct 6, 2013

So, I always hated Elder Scrolls because something just felt off to me about them. I just bought a 360 controller for my PC and booted this up...

OMG! Its one of those, "Noowwwwwww I get it" type of deals.

I think I'm lvl 7 or so and am doing the Companions quests.

dj_2004 · Oct 6, 2013

strend said:
Smart Cast

So happy something like this finally came out. You can setup auto-cast rules and spell combos.

I'll add it into the list. Thanks.

aeonrevolution said:
So, I always hated Elder Scrolls because something just felt off to me about them. I just bought a 360 controller for my PC and booted this up...

OMG! Its one of those, "Noowwwwwww I get it" type of deals.

I think I'm lvl 7 or so and am doing the Companions quests.

I tried using my 360 controller a few months ago but it was too limiting and clunky. It was good for basic exploring, though.

aeonrevolution · Oct 6, 2013

When you guys add mods are they supposed to be in the Data File section of the launcher? All I see is Skyrim.esm even though I threw in two HD Texture packs.

dj_2004 · Oct 6, 2013

aeonrevolution said:
When you guys add mods are they supposed to be in the Data File section of the launcher? All I see is Skyrim.esm even though I threw in two HD Texture packs.

Only mods that have esp and/or esm files will show up in Skyrim's launcher. Replacers, such as for textures and meshes, tend to not have an esp file as the game already knows to load them up in loose file form. If the replacers use a BSA file, then an esp tends to be required so the game knows to use that BSA... much like how the official HD texture packs are bundled.

aeonrevolution · Oct 6, 2013

Ah okay. Thanks! I wish there was a way to be certain I'm loading the new textures...

dj_2004 · Oct 6, 2013

aeonrevolution said:
Ah okay. Thanks! I wish there was a way to be certain I'm loading the new textures...

Easiest way tends to be while playing the game, but you can also find the objects in the CK as they will display the new textures in there as well.

Usually, if you properly installed the texture pack, then it'll work as every mod that I've used had the proper paths and file names and I don't think anything special needs to be done in the Skyrim ini files.

Skyrim Mods - A Comprehensive List & User Support Thread

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