Just looking for some modding tips.

[Guest]

Probably should've done this sooner, but hey. Better late than never, I suppose. I'm rebuilding my Skyrim SE load order, and would like some advice on dos and don'ts so I don't make the same mistakes I did last time. I've been modding for a few years now, but I feel like there's still some things that I should know. If anyone has some tips for me, I'd appreciate it. Here's what I DO know (this is what I can think of right now, anyway). As a side note, I know that bugs and glitches are kind of unavoidable, but I would like to avoid as many as possible.

 

READ THE DAMN MOD DESCRIPTIONS! THEY'RE THERE FOR A REASON!

 

NEVER install mods midgame. I don't do this, even if a mod author says it's OK.

 

Don't install a bunch of mods at once.

 

Make sure that mods go in the correct place in your load order.

 

Watch out for mod conflictions.

 

If a mod is supposed to overwrite with another, like an armor mod that uses textures from another, make sure that the correct mod is overwriting the other.

 

Make sure that you use the right version of a mod for your game.

 

Watch out for out of date mods, as those can cause game breaking glitches.

 

[travelmedic]

That's a pretty good list.

 

I would add as a general rule for anyone:  invest the time and effort to learn your tools.  That doesn't necessarily mean become an expert, but know how to change or sort your mod order/load order, check for conflicts in XEdit, run FNIS, and make merged and bashed patches.  By tools I mean mod manager (MO2 or Vortex), XEdit (FO4 Edit), FNIS and Wrye Bash.  DYNDOLOD (is that a thing in SE?) is nice to make your game look better, but not necessary.

 

Maybe you know how to do all of that already, if so, you're already at the head of the pack.  So many problems that people have are because they don't follow the rules you already laid out, and don't know how to run their tools.  Like a lot of people on this list, I'm no expert either, but also learned through a lot of trial and error and some occasional friendly advice from here or Nexus.  And yet I still manage to screw up once in a while.

[Guest]

7 hours ago, travelmedic said:

That's a pretty good list.

 

I would add as a general rule for anyone:  invest the time and effort to learn your tools.  That doesn't necessarily mean become an expert, but know how to change or sort your mod order/load order, check for conflicts in XEdit, run FNIS, and make merged and bashed patches.  By tools I mean mod manager (MO2 or Vortex), XEdit (FO4 Edit), FNIS and Wrye Bash.  DYNDOLOD (is that a thing in SE?) is nice to make your game look better, but not necessary.

 

Maybe you know how to do all of that already, if so, you're already at the head of the pack.  So many problems that people have are because they don't follow the rules you already laid out, and don't know how to run their tools.  Like a lot of people on this list, I'm no expert either, but also learned through a lot of trial and error and some occasional friendly advice from here or Nexus.  And yet I still manage to screw up once in a while.

I use MO2, FNIS, and LOOT. I've never had issues with MO2. FNIS, at the beginning, was a bitch and a half for me to get running, but that was only because I didn't know what I was doing. Now I don't really have issues with it. LOOT has been a weird one with me. I installed it and ran it, but it never seems to do anything. For example, when I check my load order after using LOOT, it looks no different. Maybe my LO was perfect and didn't need to be resorted. I don't know. XEdit and Wyre Bash, on the other hand, I haven't used because I've never had a need for them, so I didn't mess with them.

[Guest]

@deadjester226I've never had issues installing mods mid game that are purely texture, but it is still a risk.

[Dorabella]

21 hours ago, deadjester226 said:

Make sure that mods go in the correct place in your load order.

More than that, an installation order would be essential .
An upload order , does not overwrite any files , while an install order will 

 

Only for example 

 

Spoiler

SKSE *
FNIS *
SkyUi *
Uiextensions *
SexLab Framework *
SOS(Scholongs 3.00) *
Caliente Beautiful Body Edition (CBBE) *
Bodyslide and outfit studio *
XP32MSE ( overwrite where required) *
HDT Physics extentions(overwrite where required) *
COSIO 4.4 or any other bodymorph (overwrite where required) *

 

So , the best suggestion I feel to give you , is to rely on the best SE modding guide you can find here on LL

Determine whether you want to generate a particular gameplay and , accordingly , install only what you need 

 

21 hours ago, deadjester226 said:

NEVER install mods midgame. I don't do this, even if a mod author says it's OK.

It depends on what you install. In the case of clothing/armor , there is no problem , except in exceptional cases

21 hours ago, deadjester226 said:

Don't install a bunch of mods at once.

Good idea. Better a few at a time and test them. In case of problems ,it will be easier to identify the source

 

21 hours ago, deadjester226 said:

Make sure that you use the right version of a mod for your game.

 

Mistake that is made very frequently . There are quite a few who download/install without reading the descriptions

 

 

[Guest]

31 minutes ago, ?????? 1627 said:

Mistake that is made very frequently . There are quite a few who download/install without reading the descriptions

When trying to use Sexlab SE, one major issue I had was that there were mods that were requirements for other mods, but the requirement mods were for original Skyrim and not SE. I tried to figure out if they were compatible with SE (because I'd rather be safe than sorry), but the mod author didn't have anything in the "Compatible with SE" part of the mod page. I tried asking for help, but I ended up having to deal with a condescending asshole. I know that the mod authors wouldn't have it listed as a requirement if it wasn't compatible, but I was new to that stuff at the time.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, zelphador23 said:

@deadjester226I've never had issues installing mods mid game that are purely texture, but it is still a risk.

Like I said, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

[Dorabella]

1 hour ago, deadjester226 said:

original Skyrim and not SE. I tried to figure out if they were compatible with SE

Safe are those of Baka Factory ,GS SLAL ,Biillyy SLAL ,Anub's . 

 

[Guest]

20 minutes ago, ?????? 1627 said:

Safe are those of Baka Factory ,GS SLAL ,Biillyy SLAL ,Anub's . 

 

So, basically the animation packs for Sexlab are safe? It's been some time since I messed around with it.

[Canaduh]

• Where possible, install the requirements for a mod first, unless you manually order your mod priority. (Left pane)

 

• Don't be afraid to rename mods as you install them, so you know what they're for.

[Guest]

31 minutes ago, Canaduh said:

install the requirements for a mod first,

I always do that just to make sure I have the requirements installed before the mod that requires them. Made that mistake back when I first started modding. It was a CBBE outfit mod that required installing the UNP version for the textures. I, like a modding noob, didn't read the description and was on the verge of losing my shit when it wasn't working. Finally, I read the description and realized what went wrong. After that, it worked like a charm. It took me an hour and a half to do that... At least I figured it out.

And that, kids, is the reason why I now read the descriptions for mods extremely carefully. Seriously, I'll read them 3 times over. The first is for the info, second time is to make sure that I didn't miss anything, and the third time is for insurance.

[travelmedic]

On 6/24/2023 at 11:36 PM, deadjester226 said:

And that, kids, is the reason why I now read the descriptions for mods extremely carefully. Seriously, I'll read them 3 times over. The first is for the info, second time is to make sure that I didn't miss anything, and the third time is for insurance.

 

Seriously, I wish more people would learn to do this!!!

 

With all of the great tutorials and resources available here on LL and elsewhere, too many low effort people can't be arsed to read the instructions, install stuff willy-nilly, and then come here expecting everyone else to sort out the mess that they created.  We all run into issues sometimes, but some people don't even try...

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, travelmedic said:

 

Seriously, I wish more people would learn to do this!!!

 

With all of the great tutorials and resources available here on LL and elsewhere, too many low effort people can't be arsed to read the instructions, install stuff willy-nilly, and then come here expecting everyone else to sort out the mess that they created.  We all run into issues sometimes, but some people don't even try...

Right now, I'm reinstalling my SSE mods and being HYPER paranoid. After every installation, I run LOOT, and if it tells me a mod needs to be cleaned, I immediately use XEdit QAC. Once I'm done with that, I go into the game to make sure that everything runs smoothly. I'm leaving NOTHING to chance.