User:DianaTESGotH

Overview

 Diana TES GotH is creating Modding Guides and Tutorials

Please consider supporting DianaTESGotH: Patreon Donate via Paypal

The Guides and Tutorials I create are structured for The Elder Scrolls Anthology PC games (Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim along with all their DLCs). I became even more excited about these games when I discovered the TES Renewal Project where other fans have created additional content that seek to merge the games together into a more modern gaming engine. (Morroblivion, Skyblivion, and Skywind). While many fans share their mod lists, they are not tailored for a beginning modder.

I strive to teach when creating my guides. I want users who follow my work to understand the "ins and outs" of what is actually involved in creating a stable modded game. This way the user can hopefully know how to set up a game with their own unique style of game play as opposed to following what someone else has put out there for them. I am more of an adventure/fantasy player, so I prefer graphic overhauls that add unique scenery and items to my game. Others prefer more realistic- survival and combat style overhauls. I try to blend a little of each with my setup to accommodate all users. But, wouldn't it be nice to know how to mod your own game your own way? Hopefully after following my guides and tutorials, a user will understand how to do this for themselves.

Most of my knowledge of modding was gathered from the STEP Wiki, STEP Forums, and chatting with some legendary mod authors and developers on Discord. Now, I'm hoping to "pay it forward" in a way with my instructional guides. So please, never hesitate to let me know where I should make improvements in my process. I want you all who are new to modding to leave with the experience of understanding how to mod your own games your own way and make them stable. I also look forward to learning more from our experienced modders who may catch something I have missed, or didn't fully understand myself. I still have to take breaks from editing my guides in order to research how best to perform certain tasks to keep my mods stable. 

Contact

DianaTESGotH Nexus Profile
Diana TES GotH discord server.

Introduction and Summary

The following guides and tutorials may be split into a number of small sections for user convenience. They also only link to recommended utilities and mods. It is not intended to describe each in full detail. It is the responsibility of the user to read all documentation provided by the developers to learn how to use the recommended utilities and mods.

Any questions or issues related to this guide can be discussed in my discord server, Diana TES GotH. I encourage feedback and suggestions.

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for users who do not install the recommended mods carefully and end up breaking their game. I am also NOT responsible or liable if a user's system is not capable of handling the recommended mods and is damaged.

Terminology:

• BSA - Bethesda Softworks Archive. Sort of like a .zip file, but specific to Bethsoft's games, and optimized (sort of) for their specific usage.

• ESM - Elder Scrolls Master. Usually saved as a .esm file, which has the same format as a .esp file, only one bit (as in, one bit of a byte) is different.

• ESP - Elder Scrolls Plugin. Most mods are ESPs, but some are ESMs. Their format is the same, but the game handles them slightly differently in some specific cases.

• ESS - Elder Scrolls Save. Your saved games. This is loaded after all the ESPs and ESMs are loaded, so that its changes (like what items are in which containers) can override what the plugins say.

• FormID - A unique ID assigned to each "record" of a plugin. Each object in the game is defined by a record, and each record has a FormID. A FormID is 32-bits, with the first 8 bits defining which ESM or ESP the record belongs to.

• LO (Load Order) - The order that your mods (ESPs and ESMs) are loaded. When conflicts occur, the last loaded conflict "wins".

• Loose File(s) - A resource file in the Data folder that's "loose", as in not packaged into a BSA.

• Plugin - any .esp or .esm file.

• Vanilla - A term referring to the game as distribute by Bethesda and Steam. This means no modifications have been done. Alludes to the "plainness" of the vanilla ice-cream flavor.

Load Order PHILOSOPHY & GUIDE

1. Always thoroughly read mod descriptions and developer’s information provided to understand what each mod does and place it accordingly.

2. If a mod author specifies a section or a specific placement for a mod, follow it as much as possible. Take note of any incompatibilities and patches.

3. If multiple mods require a patch to work together, place the mods in the appropriate sections and then place the patch directly after the lowest mod it affects.

4. If multiple mods alter the same aspect of the game, the mod that is placed lowest in the LO will overwrite the mod above it.

5. Remember that the mod sections are only a guideline. Mods may move to different sections in order preserve the changes from other mods. Again, placement is what matters.

6. There are a lot of mods out there and it is easy to want them all. Instead, think critically about what mods are going to enhance the gaming experience and what would be purely fluff mods.

7. It is suggested to create themed LOs with meaningful playthroughs (such as Mage, Ranger, Druid, etc…). Have an experience and then have another on a new save with a new LO.

8. Only start your playthrough when you are finished installing and testing mods. It is not recommended to add, disable, or delete mods mid-playthrough as it can corrupt saves. The exceptions to this are texture and mesh mods, but always use caution.

Note: If you absolutely must add, disable, or delete Mods mid-playthrough, save the game in an interior cell beforehand. Once the changes are made wait in-game at least 24-72 hours. 

9. Some mods allow you to choose between a 1k, 2k, or higher resolution. High-end computers can handle the 2k or higher resolution. Low-end computers should take the 1k or lower version.

10. Remember that mods are GIFTS to the community- don't take them for granted.

If you are enjoying a mod, please be sure to rate it so that the mod author knows you enjoyed it.
Mod authors never intend to make mistakes, but it can happen and in worst cases it corrupts a save. Be kind and specific if you need to report a bug to them. 
Always, Always, ALWAYS be RESPECTFUL to mod authors when contacting them or commenting on their Mods. Empathize instead of Criticize and you will likely get better results.

Author's System Specs

Desktop
     * Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-7700K CPU @ 4.20GHz
     * Motherboard: Alienware Aurora R6
     * Ram: 64GB (4x16G) 2400MHz DDR4 Memory
     * GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
     * OS: Windows 10 Pro
     * Games: NVMe THNSN5512GPUK NV 512 GB SSD
     * Data and Backup: TOSHIBA DT01ACA200 2TB

Laptop
     * Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8750H CPU @ 2.20GHz
     * Motherboard: Alienware 17 R5
     * Ram: 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 2666MHz
     * GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070
     * OS: Windows 10 Pro
     * Games: SM961 NVMe SAMSUNG 512 GB SSD
     * Data and Backup: HGST HTS721010A9E630 1TB

 

References

Credits:

Ponyrider0 for hosting the The Morroblivion Community Help Desk and for creating the Morroblivion Unoffical Patches, Morroblivion mods, and Open Source software used in the production of this guide.

The following for providing information and sharing their own works freely to the modding community:

Nexus Mods Gaming and Modding Community, with a special thank you to Pickysaurus and SirSalami for helping me migrate my guides and tutorials to the Nexus Mods Wiki.

Tarshana of TarshGaming for her encouragement, support, advice, and permission to use her Logical Load Order PHILOSOPHY & GUIDE that was originally created by Doc Aalvarenga and later edited with the help of ISHFKD. I would also like to thank all of the TarshGaming team for sharing their knowledge and insights.

STEP Wiki and Modding Community for teaching me the ins and outs of modding in general. Also, much appreciation goes out to the owner and moderators for allowing me to host the Morroblivion Overhaul guide on their forums and wiki.

AFK Mods Gaming and Modding Community.

The Assimilation Lab Gaming and Modding Community.

TES Alliance Gaming and Modding Community.

TESRenewal Project Community.

ElminsterAU for the invaluable xEdit utility that makes it possible to create a stable modlist.

The following modding guide authors for sharing their modlists that inspired my own compilation:

Bevilex for Bevilex' modlist for Oblivion -Graphics

DassiD for Guide: A modern Morrowind

DonProtein of Sinitar Gaming for Oblivion Ultimate Modding Guide - Gameplay and Immersion

Hishutup for the Mythic Dawn Oblivion Modding Guide

Laiilaiiheii for his Oblivion Graphic Tutorials and Guides.

mmclendon for Oblivion Vanilla Enhanced

The following STEP Contributors for their support and/or contributions:

Pack Author DarkladyLexy, author of Lexy's: Legacy of The Dragonborn Special Edition who inspires me to maintain this guide as she does her own. Lexy's guide is truly impressive.

Pack Author Darth_mathias, author of SRLE Extended: Legacy of The Dragonborn who is also an inspiration for maintaining his high quality guide.

Pack Author jdsmith2816 for his contribution and patches for this guide.

matortheeternal for sharing his utilities and settings.

Mod Authors zilav, RoyBatterian, GrantSP and all my GamerPoets friends.

The following youtube personalities for their informative video guides and tutorials:

Enigmas The Guy for Oblivion DarnUI and OBSE Mod Organizer Installation guide.

Micaheal of GamerPoets for his most excellent and instructional youtube tutorials. The entire GamerPoets community for all their support and for sharing their knowledge and insights.

outdated TV for his Bevilex Modlist Full Video Guide.

PredCaliber for Oblivion 2017 Ultimate Graphics Tutorial'

Xuul for Oblivion | How to install mods.

Testers and other Contributors:

Morroblivion Overhaul Team Members: Marie-Eve, mcshame, Rogdonlp, and all the others who have been involved in helping to test and proofread Morroblivion Overhual.

And just as important:

All mod authors whose mods are recommended in this guide.

The authors of mods who granted permission for their mods to be shared with the TESRenewal Project Community.

The Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages for their collaborative source for all knowledge on the Elder Scrolls series of games.

Bethesda Game Studios for the Official TES games and the TES Construction Sets for each.