Mod manager/installer to use recommendations?

[Rhapsody81]

Hey folks,

 

It's been a while, and ive had the Skyrim itch again.... gonna try loading it onto a external drive (so i dont clutter up my main ones) and see how it runs (if it runs at all XD).

 

Question i have though is... any recommendations on mod installers to use?  I remember trying Vortex out a while back, but the way it creates a 'separate file' for active mods seemed to make it a pain in the rear to use with any mods 'not' installed via Vortex...

 

Sooo.. any recommendations out there?

 

Thanks for any replies!

[travelmedic]

Your only real choices are Vortex or Mod Organizer 2.  Sure there are also Nexus Mod Manager and Mod Organizer 1, but I wouldn't consider them.

 

I have no experience with Vortex so can't really comment on it beyond saying there are a lot of people who use it and like it.

 

Personally I use and like MO2, after having started with NMM, then switching to MO1, before finally ending with MO2.  It might possibly have the steepest learning curve (although I didn't find it difficult), but in my opinion it makes it very easy to adjust the mod order and see how my mods are interacting at a glance.  There are plenty of tutorials on youtube about it - I especially recommend the channels of Gopher and Gamer Poets.  Tutorials about MO1 are still generally applicable to MO2 as well.

 

If you don't mind me asking, why would you have mods not installed via Vortex, or whatever mod manager you're using?  Even though I can't download from LL directly into MO2, I still use MO2 to install and manage Lovers Lab mods, or any mods that I get from other sites besides just Nexus.  I'm pretty sure Vortex will do the same.  Having mods installed in a variety of ways might (?) cause you more issues down the road.

 

There's always manual installation, but I would never do that.  Too easy to leave bits and pieces of mods installed if you think you're deleting them, or to delete the wrong thing by mistake.

[Rhapsody81]

14 hours ago, travelmedic said:

If you don't mind me asking, why would you have mods not installed via Vortex, or whatever mod manager you're using?  Even though I can't download from LL directly into MO2, I still use MO2 to install and manage Lovers Lab mods, or any mods that I get from other sites besides just Nexus.  I'm pretty sure Vortex will do the same.  Having mods installed in a variety of ways might (?) cause you more issues down the road

 

It's not that i would NOT install mods via a mod installer.  (except for certain ones like CBBE or Custom races and such), It's that the last time i had a heavily modified game, i had switched from Nexus Mod Manager, to Vortex (as they nolonger even offered NMM as an option), and unlike NMM, it did not install the mods 'into' the game directory, but instead, created a 'parallel directory' that it put the mod files into, then read from both, overlapping the mod-directory ontop of the game directory. 

 

While it prevented you from borking the entire game directory, it had the effect of making it a bit annoying trying to modify things like CBBE shape sliders as the changes you made in CBBE wouldnt actually 'move over' to the "parallel directory" and you'd end up having to manually copy them over.  

 

Granted, this is my experience from almost 2 years ago... thigs may ahve changed since then.

 

I currently 'dont' have a mod manager, which is why i was asking here what people used these days  

 

I'll take a look at MO2 and see if i like it better than Vortex  

[travelmedic]

Again, I can't speak about Vortex at all since I have no experience with it.  MO2 also installs your mods "virtually" so that they don't screw up the vanilla files but I've never experienced an issue like what you describe.  Having said that, when you run FNIS or other similar executables (maybe Bodyslide too, don't remember now) it will usually put the data into the MO2 Overwrite folder.  From there though it gives you the option to "Create A Mod" out of the data in the folder, do that and just make sure it's checked in the left panel of MO2.  Much easier than it sounds.

 

There are other threads on here similar to yours, and I'm going to guess from memory that LL users slightly favor MO2, but that's not scientific and there are still plenty of happy Vortex users.

[Just Don't]

6 hours ago, Rhapsody81 said:

While it prevented you from borking the entire game directory, it had the effect of making it a bit annoying trying to modify things like CBBE shape sliders as the changes you made in CBBE wouldnt actually 'move over' to the "parallel directory" and you'd end up having to manually copy them over.  

I don't think that's supposed to happen. You should be able to launch any program and interact with your mod files as usual if you do it right, regardless of mod manager. MO2 uses a fully virtual folder system (VFS), but all you have to do is configure BodySlide, FNIS or any other program so it launches through MO2 and the VFS kicks in, then you can manage any files generated by these programs or while playing (MO2 will try to place said files in each mod folder, in /Overwrite or another dedicated mod folder if you configure it).

 

Whichever mod manager you chose the key is learning to use it with all its features. Starting from a clean game and doing everything you can within the mod manager will reduce the amount of issues you can face down the line.

Edited May 11, 2023 by Just Don't

[Rhapsody81]

Ended up picking up MO2

 

And yea, it creates its own sub-folder kinda like Vortex did... BUT, this one seems to be easier to mess with / use.

 

Slowly adding in mods now to keep things from breaking... (i know better than to throw 40 mods in at one go XD )

 

Question i have atm....

 

I always used CBBE and Bodyside got that installed relatively easy, but having an issue with Physics.... seems the physics bits are 'locked in place' (so if i crouch, everything goes into the characters chest).  Relatively funny, but puzzled at what im missing.. i did snag HDT-SMP as i thought it would be needed for the CBBE Physics things to work on that body set?

 

(on Skyrim SE btw)

[Just Don't]

11 minutes ago, Rhapsody81 said:

I always used CBBE and Bodyside got that installed relatively easy, but having an issue with Physics.... seems the physics bits are 'locked in place' (so if i crouch, everything goes into the characters chest).  Relatively funny, but puzzled at what im missing.. i did snag HDT-SMP as i thought it would be needed for the CBBE Physics things to work on that body set?

Seems like a skeleton issue. Confirm you're using XPMSSE and no other mod is overwriting said skeleton files.

[Rhapsody81]

24 minutes ago, Just Don't said:

Seems like a skeleton issue. Confirm you're using XPMSSE and no other mod is overwriting said skeleton files.

got it sorted about 20 seconds ago... there's a mod i like to use called "realistic Ragdolls and Force" ... it was suppose to be 'before' XMP, not after it... LOOT wasnt sorting my mistake XD

 

Now to work on the real hard stuff... getting Loverslab installed so i can use the Defeat Mod Thanks for the help Both of you! 

 

(one last question!!  i tried using the Schlongs of Skyrim mod that i remembered having... but MO2 yelled at me stating it was to old and refused to run?)

[belegost]

9 hours ago, Rhapsody81 said:

as the changes you made in CBBE wouldnt actually 'move over' to the "parallel directory" and you'd end up having to manually copy them over.

You need to Deploy again after making changes. Vortex will detect a file has been modified and will ask if you want to keep the change or revert it. Selecting to keep it, will copy the modified file into staging folder. No need to do it manually. Or just modify staging folder directly and then Deploy.

 

Vortex has some amazing functionality hidden under the hood, but it's downsides are, one, it doesn't make it obvious for a regular user and you need to dig deeper to discover what it can really do (most people don't), two, it has convoluted and confusing naming for its functions causing a lot of misunderstanding, unless (see point one).

 

For power users I would go a far as state that it has a slight edge over MO2. But that's a really niche case, so it doesn't really matter. Both Vortex and MO2 are good choices for different reasons.

Edited May 11, 2023 by belegost

[Just Don't]

10 hours ago, Rhapsody81 said:

(one last question!!  i tried using the Schlongs of Skyrim mod that i remembered having... but MO2 yelled at me stating it was to old and refused to run?)

You need an updated DLL on top of the SOS for SE version. The best one is the Multi-Edition installer one (you can find it in the SE compatibility tracking post, one of the blue links in my signature). Confirm which game version you have (the product version of your SkyrimSE.exe) and make sure to get SKSE and SKSE plugins (mods with a dll) with compatibility for that version. I wrote an entire guide about starting with MO2 and installing Sexlab with links to everything. It's the orange link in my signature if you want to check it out. Best of lucks.

[Rhapsody81]

4 hours ago, Just Don't said:

You need an updated DLL on top of the SOS for SE version. The best one is the Multi-Edition installer one (you can find it in the SE compatibility tracking post, one of the blue links in my signature). Confirm which game version you have (the product version of your SkyrimSE.exe) and make sure to get SKSE and SKSE plugins (mods with a dll) with compatibility for that version. I wrote an entire guide about starting with MO2 and installing Sexlab with links to everything. It's the orange link in my signature if you want to check it out. Best of lucks.

Ahh, thankies.

 

Figured it had simply become one of the abandoned and lost mods I'd just not be able to get anymore

Edited May 11, 2023 by Rhapsody81

[Rhapsody81]

6 hours ago, Just Don't said:

You need an updated DLL on top of the SOS for SE version. The best one is the Multi-Edition installer one (you can find it in the SE compatibility tracking post, one of the blue links in my signature). Confirm which game version you have (the product version of your SkyrimSE.exe) and make sure to get SKSE and SKSE plugins (mods with a dll) with compatibility for that version. I wrote an entire guide about starting with MO2 and installing Sexlab with links to everything. It's the orange link in my signature if you want to check it out. Best of lucks.

sooooo.. im still having issues getting SOS to work... 

 

Im running Skyrim SE, whatever version is currently on Steam... just what do i need to get it to work correctly?

 

And i somehow broke my ability to use Racemenu CharGen Presets......  Think im just gonna uninstall what i have, and start over again with whats needed, then go again >_>

[Just Don't]

1 hour ago, Rhapsody81 said:

Im running Skyrim SE, whatever version is currently on Steam... just what do i need to get it to work correctly?

Check the version of your executable and get familiar with that number because you'll see it a lot. Then get the Multi-edition installer for SOS and, using the version number you got, install the correct version of the updated dll. I'm not sure if it's a requirement for the updated dll or not, but you should get Address Library (on Nexus) because that's widely used by SKSE plugins. Your SKSE install must also match the version of your executable, which is why that's crucial information. Racemenu also has a dll file so you need to match with your executable version (and it probably requires Address Library? it's been a while since I installed RM).

[Rhapsody81]

4 hours ago, Just Don't said:

Check the version of your executable and get familiar with that number because you'll see it a lot. Then get the Multi-edition installer for SOS and, using the version number you got, install the correct version of the updated dll. I'm not sure if it's a requirement for the updated dll or not, but you should get Address Library (on Nexus) because that's widely used by SKSE plugins. Your SKSE install must also match the version of your executable, which is why that's crucial information. Racemenu also has a dll file so you need to match with your executable version (and it probably requires Address Library? it's been a while since I installed RM).

ahhh ok... i see what was throwing me off... i needed the AE version of the Address Library as well even though im using the SE client... that's what was causing me issues.  That got SOS working again (thanks for that!)

 

Now i just gotta figure out what broke RaceMenu's extra sliders...... when i 'first' installed everything, they were working could even save/load presets for looks... could change the charcacter height and such... now, none of the extra sliders are working :T  

 

Yay for modding Skyrim.. fix one thing, and something else breaks.

[belegost]

42 minutes ago, Rhapsody81 said:

i needed the AE version of the Address Library as well even though im using the SE client

No,  you are using AE. Any Skyrim version higher than 1.5.97 is AE. That's anything that is version number 1.6 and above. Fuck you Bethesda for making things even more confusing for newbies than it already was thanks to an update nobody asked for.

Edited May 12, 2023 by belegost

[Rhapsody81]

4 minutes ago, belegost said:

No,  you are using AE. Any Skyrim version higher than 1.5.97 is AE. That's anything that is version number 1.6 and above. Fuck you Bethesda for making things even more confusing for newbies than it already was thanks to an update nobody asked for.

just found that out.... tried useing the AE version of Racemenu out of a last-ditch effort, and what do you know.. its suddenly working again... even though the game specifically says "Special Eddition" on the installer, the instillation folder, and when i launch the game im treated to a box saying "press x to upgrade to AE Eddition!"...

 

*sighs*

 

Im using 1.6.640 of the "Special Edition" that is apparently really an AE edition, with an .exe labled as "SkyrimSE"......?

 

I got that right?...

 

Guess that means i need to make sure any mods i want to install are all AE versions now? or will SE versions still work possibly?

[belegost]

3 minutes ago, Rhapsody81 said:

Im using 1.6.640 of the "Special Edition" that is apparently really an AE edition, with an .exe labled as "SkyrimSE"......?

 

I got that right?...

 

Guess that means i need to make sure any mods i want to install are all AE versions now? or will SE versions still work possibly?

See, this is what I'm taking about.

I'm on phone, otherwise I would've treated you to a lengthy explaination. Alas, someone else will have to.

 

Fuck you Bethesda. Fuck you, fuck, three times fuck you.

Edited May 12, 2023 by belegost

[Rhapsody81]

8 hours ago, belegost said:

See, this is what I'm taking about.

I'm on phone, otherwise I would've treated you to a lengthy explaination. Alas, someone else will have to.

 

Fuck you Bethesda. Fuck you, fuck, three times fuck you.

Lol, no worries.

 

Now that I know what I'm dealing with I should be fine...

 

Just hope the specific mod I was hoping to primarily use works with the AE version ?

 

That, of find out how (if possible) to 'downgrade' the steam version of my Skyrim...

[Alessia Wellington]

19 minutes ago, Rhapsody81 said:

That, of find out how (if possible) to 'downgrade' the steam version of my Skyrim.

 

Downgrade Patcher

[Just Don't]

10 hours ago, Rhapsody81 said:

Guess that means i need to make sure any mods i want to install are all AE versions now? or will SE versions still work possibly?

You need to find mods compatible with 1.6.640. AE and SE are broad terms that people use wrong constantly. Mod authors who need to state the compatibility of their mods will list the specific version numbers, or mention that the mod is compatible with any version (SE/AE/VR, etc), or any version after a certain point (i.e. 1.6+).

You only need to check this for mods that contain a dll (such as SOS, Sexlab, Racemenu and so on). Any other file type works fine as long as it was made/converted to Skyrim SE (aka anything not made for the original 2011 game since that one uses a different 32-bits engine and Skyrim SE/AE uses 64).

 

And at this point you don't really need to downgrade, unless a mod you want to use is not available (which are very few) but you can do that and start getting SKSE and SKSE plugins for 1.5.97 instead. Which would mean using the dowgrader, reinstalling the correct SKSE version and reinstalling any mod with a dll, then installing only mods made for 1.5.97 until you're tired of doing so. BTW 1.5.97 is receiving less and less support since most stuff is already available for 1.6.640 and asking new users to downgrade to a version from 2019 as the first step isn't the best approach really.

Edited May 12, 2023 by Just Don't

[Somes008]

Which skyrim have better adult mods? Original or special edition?

[Rhapsody81]

4 hours ago, Just Don't said:

You need to find mods compatible with 1.6.640. AE and SE are broad terms that people use wrong constantly. Mod authors who need to state the compatibility of their mods will list the specific version numbers, or mention that the mod is compatible with any version (SE/AE/VR, etc), or any version after a certain point (i.e. 1.6+).

You only need to check this for mods that contain a dll (such as SOS, Sexlab, Racemenu and so on). Any other file type works fine as long as it was made/converted to Skyrim SE (aka anything not made for the original 2011 game since that one uses a different 32-bits engine and Skyrim SE/AE uses 64).

 

And at this point you don't really need to downgrade, unless a mod you want to use is not available (which are very few) but you can do that and start getting SKSE and SKSE plugins for 1.5.97 instead. Which would mean using the dowgrader, reinstalling the correct SKSE version and reinstalling any mod with a dll, then installing only mods made for 1.5.97 until you're tired of doing so. BTW 1.5.97 is receiving less and less support since most stuff is already available for 1.6.640 and asking new users to downgrade to a version from 2019 as the first step isn't the best approach really.

 Ahh ok.. So the difference in AE and SE isnt quite as much as the difference between SE and Base.. cotcha

 

That was the only real thing i was concerned/currious about, as i remember having to re-find everything when SE came out as 'none' of the olds mods worked due to the completely different file-structure of SE? (at least i think it was something along those lines that was changed).

 

If its purely the DLL's then most of what i remember always useing before should still work.  

 

6 hours ago, Alessia Wellington said:

 

Downgrade Patcher

TY for that might look into it if needed. 

[chaimhewast]

2 hours ago, Rhapsody81 said:

That was the only real thing i was concerned/currious about, as i remember having to re-find everything when SE came out as 'none' of the olds mods worked due to the completely different file-structure of SE? (at least i think it was something along those lines that was changed).

Certain things are incompatible, but most LE mods work perfectly fine with SE and beyond. The big thing that's incompatible was DLL-based mods, since they had to be rewritten for the new engine. If there's a mod from LE that hasn't been updated you want to use, you'll want to run its assets through CAO to ensure best compatibility.