LE or SE

[WhoEvenAmI]

Hey all. I've been modding skyrim for longer than I'd care to admit. The vast majority of that time has been spent on the older version of the game. About a year back, I made the fateful decision to update. I was tired of seeing all the tantalizing features locked behind a SE requirement on some of my favorite mods.

 

I completed my installs the EXACT DAY that bethesda dropped the first store update. It took me "a while" to figure out what was wrong. Then, of course, a few weeks later the second update came, and I threw my hands up in disgust. I haven't touched the game since. But now, I'm thinking of getting back into it.

 

My question is this. Is there a consensus as to which version is actually ""better"" for modding? Is the community split about half and half between the two versions?

 

If this matters, my main interests in terms of mods are the wonderful paradise halls and its addons, as well as player succubus quest. Though, I tend to reach the plugin limit regardless.

 

Thanks.

 

Edit: I guess what I'm really asking is: Have most of the good mods been updated to SE by now (Last I checked, SD+ wasn't working for example, though I think it is now) and has bethesda cooled it with the fucking updates?

Edited September 30, 2024 by WhoEvenAmI

[LesboIsBesto]

mods are long done for SE essentially here, most even have Anniversary Edition (AE) support. Question about SE thats more important is what matters more to you, the mods not updated for AE or the ones that ONLY work in AE? I updated my SE back before the AE update 1st dropped & have been satisfied since, not needing any AE made mods at all even if some look cool & I even drop into LE every now & then too which is still being supported anyways by lots of stuff. 

 

so yeah, look at what mods support AE only or SE only or both & pick what you like more & you're basically gucci

Edited September 30, 2024 by LesboIsBesto

[Kastagir]

LE:  will never be sabotaged by Bethesda "Creations" updates.  Your game and mod collection is safe.  SE mods (except those that rely upon SKSE64 plugins) can be easily converted to work with LE.  Mods can be combined or integrated into a single .esp plugin making the .esl nonsense unnecessary.  And you get Mist.

 

SE:  many mods stopped development with this version so it has the broadest support.  It is also more stable than LE and AE since AE introduced some nasty bugs.  If you are building a game from scratch without a modlist then this is probably your safest bet, assuming you don't care about fishing and other "Creation Club" crap.  But you don't get Mist.

 

AE:  The "latest and greatest" with support from cross-version SKSE64 plugins using the "NG" framework that uses a shared .dll dependencey that doesn't care about your game version.  This is intended to insure against future sabotage updates from Bethesda.  One has to wonder what further inane updates they will introduce.  But you have to ask yourself how much you care about these mods that only work on AE.  And you still don't get Mist.

 

Mist is ENB's approximation of atmospheric perspective.  It truly lends a great deal of realism to Skyrim's landscape during your exploration of the world.  Without it the game looks like garbage, yet many SE and AE users don't seem to care -  they are likely of the same ilk that praised mods like "remove exterior fog" on Nexusmods.  Most of them are preoccupied with taking screenshots of their characters in non-lore friendly locations like cyberpunk-themed slums and Victorian mansions.  Those people stopped playing the game long ago.  You have to ask yourself whether you're one of them.

Edited September 30, 2024 by Kastagir

[MysticDaedra]

There is really no reason to use LE anymore, besides a few holdouts due to personal taste or specific mod support for mods that no longer exist or haven't been updated to SE/AE. That list isn't terribly long. SE/AE has significantly better performance, almost zero script lag, better graphics support, is modern (and therefore mods for it are kept updated), and is the current version of the game.

 

TL;DR: SE/AE. Don't bother with LE, it's ancient. Wish more mod authors would let it go and move on to SE/AE.

[El_Duderino]

1 hour ago, MysticDaedra said:

Wish more mod authors would let it go and move on to SE/AE.

Been there, done that. Held on to LE for far too long.

 

I have a hunch that the AE CK (with community updates and fixes) is far more stable than what I remember from LE. Haven't had a single crash of the CK that wiped out any unsaved progress in my mods. The game itself runs a lot better, too (performance and stability) and there are also more core fixes/improvements available than there were for LE. Where I struggled to get 30 fps in spots in LE, on AE in the same spots and with essentially the same (heavy) mod list I now get a steady 60 fps.

 

As we're here on LL: many of the kinky and sex mods have made leaps and bounds in development in recent times, both functionally and in terms of features. All (or most?) of that exclusively in AE.

 

Also, there's a very easy and effective way how you can circumvent Beth breaking your game/mods with new core updates: Create a duplicate of your entire Skyrim installation folder. Reference that one for building your mod list in MO (or which ever mod manager you prefer). Then Bethesda can update the original folder as much as they want, your parallel installation will always remain on the version that it was when you first set it up. Optionally, you could even build a third Skyrim installation for the CK so that this one is "sandboxed", too.

[SkyAddiction]

6 hours ago, El_Duderino said:

Also, there's a very easy and effective way how you can circumvent Beth breaking your game/mods with new core updates: Create a duplicate of your entire Skyrim installation folder. Reference that one for building your mod list in MO (or which ever mod manager you prefer). Then Bethesda can update the original folder as much as they want, your parallel installation will always remain on the version that it was when you first set it up. Optionally, you could even build a third Skyrim installation for the CK so that this one is "sandboxed", too.

 

Even more convenient, you can set your appmanifest file for Skyrim to read-only if you have the Steam version. It will never update until you revert it. This works for any Steam game as far as I can tell.

[Raven 54]

If updates to Skyrim are an issue.. to keep them from happening go to Steam/Steam Apps/appmanifest_49830/right click which opens windows/ properties/General/ click read only which blocks updates.

Very Important to pick the app_manifest that matches your game version!

 

And to stay on topic...SE 1.5.97 is my preferred Game, I can't believe Bethesda made all our lives so much more difficult with the AE add on that is useless in my opinion.

They could have at least made AE a separate game like LE is to SE (yes I know it's the same game) but that would have solved so many issues with installing, not having to downgrade, broken mods due to version differences, etc. etc.

 

Spoiler

 

[Raven 54]

7 hours ago, El_Duderino said:

Also, there's a very easy and effective way how you can circumvent Beth breaking your game/mods with new core updates: Create a duplicate of your entire Skyrim installation folder. Reference that one for building your mod list in MO (or which ever mod manager you prefer). Then Bethesda can update the original folder as much as they want, your parallel installation will always remain on the version that it was when you first set it up. Optionally, you could even build a third Skyrim installation for the CK so that this one is "sandboxed", too.

Instruction on how to do the backup would be most appreciated, for those of us who are not skilled in Computer Tech!

I have seen others speak of this but have never seen instruction on how to do it.

Does it matter which mods you have installed or uninstalled when using the backup?

I have the base game backed up so all I have to do is tell Steam to reinstall, but do not know how to do what you are talking about.

Thank You.

[El_Duderino]

47 minutes ago, Raven 54 said:

Instruction on how to do the backup would be most appreciated, for those of us who are not skilled in Computer Tech!

All I meant was to duplicate the entire Skyrim installation folder to a second folder. I.e., open Explorer and go to where Steam installed Skyrim, select the "Skyrim Special Edition" folder, press Ctrl-C and Ctrl-V. It will start copying the whole game into a new folder, called "Skyrim Special Edition - Copy" or similar depending on your Windows' language setting. You can either treat this as a back-up or access the game directly from it if you change the game paths in the MO settings.

 

In any case, the method with the Steam Appmanifest files seems much easier!

[Kain82]

Another great thing about SE/AE is the introduction of light plugins.  I currently have over 600 mods installed 546 of which are all light plugins, and the game runs buttery smooth as long as you use the Unofficial Patch and mods like SSE Engine Fixes.

[belegost]

SE.

 

Stubborn dinosaurs (including some mod authors) would have you belive that LE is still relevant and better than sliced bread. They would remain standing on that hill, waiting for the meteor to hit and take them out, simultaneously claiming its just an unusual sunset and nothing to worry about, refusing to evolve and adapt to an environment that no longer can sustain them.

 

They are as misguided in their stubbornness, as Nazeem is in his self-importance.

Edited December 10, 2024 by belegost