Please, HEELP! (Newbie in modding)

[lupus_hegemonia]

First of all, here is my system:

 

Operating System: Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit

CPU: Intel Core i5 4460 @ 3.20GHz Haswell 22nm Technology

RAM: 16,0GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 799MHz (11-11-11-28)

Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary (CPUSocket)

Monitor: DELL U2515H

Graphics: Gigabyte GeForsce GTX 1070 8GB G1 Gaming

Storage: 111GB KINGSTON SV300S37A120G (SSD) - 525GB Crucial MX300 (SSD) - 931GB Seagate ST1000DM003-1SB10C (SATA)

Optical Drives: TSSTcorp CDDVDW SH-224FB

Audio: Razer Surround Audio Controller

 

So, I've tried a bit some mods (70+ !), I've tried another's fellow personal set ("Skyrim TMP Project", you can find it in YouTube)...This is fantastic (visually) but extreme heavy (over 400+ mods, which I surely don't need most of them, while the gameplay is worst)...

 

Thus, I said to try the "STEP". I following "STEP" guide step-by-step like a Bible; the process suppose to be 20+ hrs and I'm over... 4 days now, that much slow process from me, to be extra careful. So, I have these (following) to report and got some help from you guys:

1) In many cases, the "STEP" guide says "Install only this file, don't need the rest". I'm pressing the "STEP" guide link, I'm moving to Nexus, I'm pressing the "green button", the downloading process starts, I'm double clicking on the mod (in MO, which I don't know it well and I think is for more advanced users than NMM)... and the mod starts automatically to install... everything... all... some... I don't know, I don't have access to chose. (Some mods, indeed they have a pop-up menu and I'm choosing the "STEP" suggestions)

2) I never did anything manual. I'm letting MO & LOOT to handle everything. But, even so, I have in some (quite some!) mods a "lighting bolt" next to it, meaning that I have "Overwriting Files" conflicts from one (or more) mod(s) to other(s)... So, how am I suppose to fix that? Wouldn't MO & LOOT correcting them automatically, since we're using the tools to load the mods list correctly?

3) In some cases, I'm pressing the "green button" and getting the (supposed) updated version, I'm installing it... and MO says I'm using a previous one! Why's that??? And how am I suppose to update the mods? I can't see anything to press and do it. (In one case/mod, the MO said I have a... newest version than in Nexus - which I took the mod from there!!!!)

 

Check my screen from MO, to see what I have so far (and my "flags") and PLEEEEASE give me a hand:

Edited December 23, 2016 by lupus_hegemonia

[lupus_hegemonia]

So... I figured (found) that when I'm pressing "STEP" guide link and moving to Nexus, that I SOULDN'T press the FIRST (next/under to pictures) "green button" (on top) but to press the "FILES" button (bellow the pictures) and THEN to press that specific "green button" for the specific file "STEP" suggesting!!!
That was my mistake in first place - I was pressing the main (on top) "green button" and I was installing everything...

 

...So, what am I suppose to do, now? Can I fix these "Overwriting files" (lighting bolts) or... start all over again from the beginning (fresh Skyrim installation, again from start editing the .in files... all of them, from the start)????

 

WHY "STEP" don't have DETAILED comments on their guide, telling you to SCROLL TO THE FILES and choose from there?
Now that I found it ...after made mistakes... I know.

 

Why they didn't telling that MORE CLEAR, for newbie modding users???

Edited December 23, 2016 by lupus_hegemonia

[lupus_hegemonia]

Also... when I'm choosing now the correct (suggested) only file that "STEP" says, in many cases I have older version (so, says "update"... which I don't know how to update).

 

Why "STEP" guide isn't up to date? Why don't you updating/correcting the guide? Yes, the game (Skyrim) is old and probably most of people playing/modding Fallout. But what about us, the newbies?

[lupus_hegemonia]

So large community... still nobody to answer and give me help to solve my issues???

[TechAngel85]

1) Mods that only contain assets, and thus have no options to install, will simply install in MO without the user having to do anything. What you describe sounds normal.

 

2) Mods will have conflicts with one another. These are mainly just mesh and texture assets and it is normal for these conflicts to exist. If you are following the STEP instructions, everything will be okay.

 

3) Some mods in the STEP Guide do not use the latest version. Other cases will simply be the author using a non-standard version format that MO is unable to pick up on. You can change the version number by double-clicking on the mod in the left pane and navigating to the "Nexus info" tab. The version number is in the top right corner of that tab. Change it to the latest version, if you are sure you have the correct and latest file.

 

Keep in mind, STEP assuming the user has some basic knowledge of modding concepts and how to use the tools involved in modding. STEP is not meant for someone who has never modding anything before and that is why everything is not written step by step. It's meant to be a guide rather than a bible that is followed explicitly. Complete newbies such as yourself, may find it more difficult and will likely make some mistakes along the way as you learn. That's all a part of the modding process. I would suggest you start over since you've installed so much and have made the mistake of installing the wrong with several of the mods, unless you know which mods to fix.

 

When you update/reinstall a mod with MO, you are presented with choices. Read here: https://wiki.step-project.com/Guide:Mod_Organizer#Installing.2C_Updating.2C_.26_Uninstalling_Mods

I would suggest you read that entire Guide on using MO. Like I mentioned above, STEP expects users to know how to use the tools involved and this includes MO.

 

Last, be patient. We're a large community, but it still may take 24-48hrs for someone to be about to respond to your posts. We're all doing this free of charge during our free time. :: On that note, I have to leave to my real life job....

[lupus_hegemonia]

1) Great, thxs.

 

2) Great again. So, as a user "Ishara" told me, IN ANY mods list there are these "lighting bolts", right? (I do following STEP like a "Bible")

 

3) Okay, if there is wrong message, I can change the version to the one is suppose to be. But... lets say I'm not sure. So, I'm pressing the "Checking for updates" (for all), the MO finds 7-8 of them (in a new tab) and they are checked... and then, what? There isn't any button or something to press and begin the updating for these...

 

...Well, it's not like that. Most of the users are trying to put a mod and make Skyrim better, they are simple gamers, not mod-developers. I was one of the three co-founder of "Hegemonia: City-States" (Rome: Total War), one of the best (if not the best) mod of RTW. But I spend... 1 year (at least) to call myself "basic knowledge modder". All I want is to place 200+ mods in the right order and begin playing, I don't care to be "scientist" of mods...
...I was thinking the same, to start over again, you'll right.

 

So, HOW am I testing these? Because they're not in data folder. Would I finish ALL of them and THEN run the game to check it?

Edited December 23, 2016 by lupus_hegemonia

[maedrhos]

Hi, lupus. Welcome. I was like you three years ago: wanted to play a modded game rather than become an expert at modding. There is no way around it. If you want to play a modded game you have to know some basics. The biggest time saver for me when I was in your shoes would have been to start at STEP rather than discover it while I was trying to get 200+ random mods to work and not being able to figure it all out. The fact that you have discovered STEP early means you are well past me at this stage. Better than STEP, in my opionion, is SR:LE: https://wiki.step-project.com/User:Neovalen/Skyrim_Revisited_-_Legendary_Edition . The author, Neovalen, does a wonderful job of guiding even someone new through the process. The whole modding field at the moment though is in transition. Some of the basic tools have not yet been written for the new version of Skyrim. When they become available new guides will be written by Neo and others, Darth Mathias comes to mind, for their setups. So, many of the guides have not been updated for about a month. I'm still using the SR:LE set up in the link above and if I were to do it now I would, as far as possible, use the older version of the mods that Neo used in his last update. Neo built a conflict resolution patch based on older versions of some of the mods that resolves disputes between them. For someone who doesn't want to be an expert, the conflict resolution patch is crucial to get the game to work properly.

 

I would not add 200+ mods to a set up and then start triaging to see why it doesn't work....I would follow a guide and once you have got that set up working....add or take away a few mods at a time to test whether or not the set up works. You need a base first before you start branching out on your own.

 

When you run into a road block, just post a question....someone will pull over and help.

[GrantSP]

First thing to know is that MO is just a tool, it is not the thing modding the game, you are and therefore you need to know which mods are downloaded and installed.

 

Update flags.

 

e.g. 1) Embers HD is a mod in your list that is shown as needing updating. Now regardless of whether you used the "Download" button at the top of the page of the one beside the 'Main' file, the same download takes place (This is not always the case but in this instance it is.). If you check in the 'Downloads' tab of MO, you can filter the list by typing: embers, you will see that the file you got is version 1.32. The problem is simply in the the author's lack of versioning in the install script and the mod shows as only 1.3. Simply follow the MO wiki guide and change the version number if the update flag is distracting.

 

e.g. 2) Skyrim Improved Puddles is a mod that will provide you with the WRONG file if you chose the "Download" button at the top of the page. Doing so will give you the 2048 size version and not the 1024 version STEP recommends. You will need to check which file you installed using the method I described above. Now this brings us to the reason why MO will flag some mods as being out-of-date when they aren't.

This mod's page has as the latest version available: 1.1b whereas the file we want to use is: 1.1a. MO can only check the Nexus page's latest version as shown on it's home page, not each download listed. It will always show as wrong no matter how many times you download the correct file. This is why MO has the ability to manually change version numbers, as is explained in the MO wiki.

 

This is why MO has no automated update of flagged mods, because 99% of the time they aren't out-of-date!

 

Conflict flags.

 

The thing to remember with conflicts is: there aren't a bad thing! Indeed the very concept of conflicts is what makes a mod, a mod.

Let's take the base game file Dragonborn.esm. Double-click on that listing in your left-hand pane and the 'Conflicts' tab should be visible. All those listings in the top panel are 'conflicts' with other base game files such as from Dawnguard or Hearthfires. Clearly the developers aren't providing a broken game so these 'conflicts' are necessary and make the game work.

This same process is at play with mods you install from mod authors but the trick here is to know what needs to 'win' in the conflict and thus the need for guides such as STEP.

You, the player, need to gain some understanding the process so as to make future modding sessions less worrisome and more of a joy.

 

As mentioned before it is highly recommended to be familiar with the tools you will be using so please acquaint yourself with the MO wiki and videos showing how to use them. All the points you raised and are discussed here are explained in these resources.

With that in mind though feel free to ask anything you like here in the forum. We though are a worldwide forum and the timeframe you expect an answer in may not be the same as that the rest of us exist in, that and it is now well into the holiday season and many users may be away from their computers.

[lupus_hegemonia]

Fellas, another question:

 

Can I use MO with Skyrim AND NMM with Skyrim SE???

I mean, I'm following "STEP" guide to finish the mods installation via MO for Skyrim Legendary Edition... Can I use NMM this time, to install mods for Skyrim SE?

I'm asking, because MO asked to link the mods with it... and obviously NMM will do the same for itself.
Doesn't matter (since when I'll have NMM on, the MO will be closed)?

[lupus_hegemonia]

Hi, lupus. Welcome. I was like you three years ago: wanted to play a modded game rather than become an expert at modding. There is no way around it. If you want to play a modded game you have to know some basics. The biggest time saver for me when I was in your shoes would have been to start at STEP rather than discover it while I was trying to get 200+ random mods to work and not being able to figure it all out. The fact that you have discovered STEP early means you are well past me at this stage. Better than STEP, in my opionion, is SR:LE: https://wiki.step-project.com/User:Neovalen/Skyrim_Revisited_-_Legendary_Edition . The author, Neovalen, does a wonderful job of guiding even someone new through the process. The whole modding field at the moment though is in transition. Some of the basic tools have not yet been written for the new version of Skyrim. When they become available new guides will be written by Neo and others, Darth Mathias comes to mind, for their setups. So, many of the guides have not been updated for about a month. I'm still using the SR:LE set up in the link above and if I were to do it now I would, as far as possible, use the older version of the mods that Neo used in his last update. Neo built a conflict resolution patch based on older versions of some of the mods that resolves disputes between them. For someone who doesn't want to be an expert, the conflict resolution patch is crucial to get the game to work properly.

 

I would not add 200+ mods to a set up and then start triaging to see why it doesn't work....I would follow a guide and once you have got that set up working....add or take away a few mods at a time to test whether or not the set up works. You need a base first before you start branching out on your own.

 

When you run into a road block, just post a question....someone will pull over and help.

I know this, I've tag this page...

 

Look... I "discovered" Skyrim one month ago! Aye, I was... living in cave!!! Anyways, I knew about the game (since I'm fanatic Elder Scrolls gamer, I played all the previous ones) but I didn't give a try to this one. Now, before a month, I did... and lost my mind (and sleep)!!! The VANILLA game is FINE by me, I really enjoyed so much (over 380+ hrs now!); I just want to make it BETTER, that's all - not completely different (as many others trying to do; I've seen... Manga-style graphics, LoTR characters, etc. I don't want that. I want THE VANILLA experience... even better, since I own a good machine and I thought "what the hell, my machine can handle better textures, faces, more beautiful bodies, etc.)

 

So, I'm fine with STEP, if I'll make it... running (hahaha). If I'll have the VANILLA original game MUCH improved, I'm very very happy man. Also, I don't need SOME of STEP mods. There are many mods of STEP that (for their flavor/desire, of STEP developers) doesn't make any (more) sense to me. Like I said, I want THAT game I've spend 380+... as it is...just quite better (because I can afford it).

[lupus_hegemonia]

First thing to know is that MO is just a tool, it is not the thing modding the game, you are and therefore you need to know which mods are downloaded and installed.

 

Update flags.

 

e.g. 1) Embers HD is a mod in your list that is shown as needing updating. Now regardless of whether you used the "Download" button at the top of the page of the one beside the 'Main' file, the same download takes place (This is not always the case but in this instance it is.). If you check in the 'Downloads' tab of MO, you can filter the list by typing: embers, you will see that the file you got is version 1.32. The problem is simply in the the author's lack of versioning in the install script and the mod shows as only 1.3. Simply follow the MO wiki guide and change the version number if the update flag is distracting.

 

e.g. 2) Skyrim Improved Puddles is a mod that will provide you with the WRONG file if you chose the "Download" button at the top of the page. Doing so will give you the 2048 size version and not the 1024 version STEP recommends. You will need to check which file you installed using the method I described above. Now this brings us to the reason why MO will flag some mods as being out-of-date when they aren't.

This mod's page has as the latest version available: 1.1b whereas the file we want to use is: 1.1a. MO can only check the Nexus page's latest version as shown on it's home page, not each download listed. It will always show as wrong no matter how many times you download the correct file. This is why MO has the ability to manually change version numbers, as is explained in the MO wiki.

 

This is why MO has no automated update of flagged mods, because 99% of the time they aren't out-of-date!

 

Conflict flags.

 

The thing to remember with conflicts is: there aren't a bad thing! Indeed the very concept of conflicts is what makes a mod, a mod.

Let's take the base game file Dragonborn.esm. Double-click on that listing in your left-hand pane and the 'Conflicts' tab should be visible. All those listings in the top panel are 'conflicts' with other base game files such as from Dawnguard or Hearthfires. Clearly the developers aren't providing a broken game so these 'conflicts' are necessary and make the game work.

This same process is at play with mods you install from mod authors but the trick here is to know what needs to 'win' in the conflict and thus the need for guides such as STEP.

You, the player, need to gain some understanding the process so as to make future modding sessions less worrisome and more of a joy.

 

As mentioned before it is highly recommended to be familiar with the tools you will be using so please acquaint yourself with the MO wiki and videos showing how to use them. All the points you raised and are discussed here are explained in these resources.

With that in mind though feel free to ask anything you like here in the forum. We though are a worldwide forum and the timeframe you expect an answer in may not be the same as that the rest of us exist in, that and it is now well into the holiday season and many users may be away from their computers.

1) So, as other told me (more experience MO users), sometime (since I'm following correct the guide), is AUTHOR's fault that didn't changed his log, is not mine - and I can simply CHANGE myself in my MO list the current (wrong) version's number to the proper one. Got it, thxs!

 

2) Yes, I know... now! They told me so. That's wrong, from STEP guide. They ASSUME those they'll follow their guide they are EXPERIENCE users. Well, like me, I'm just start modding. So, wouldn't "hurt" nobody to simply add a text line and saying "DO NOT PRESS the first green button under mod's images, SCROLL DOWN and find the file we're telling about"! Is so simple; they're writing tones of (obviously) useful information but... why they missed this DETAIL?

 

3) Aye, they told me so too! They told me that ANY MOD SET can have many such "lighting bolts". (I thought, after I finished the guide, every data on MO list will be... clean-crystal, without anything but the mods' names.

 

Also, I missed some things - for instance, I simply installed SKSE and DIDN'T follow EXACTLY the instruction to make the SKSE "as mod" in my MO list, as the video shows! Now I know... because as they told me to do so... I RE-STARTED the MO process from scratch (damn, I've installed quite many mods, I had to do it again)!

 

So... you're telling me NOT TO INSTALL everything and THEN start (from the beginning) the game (with the car, the execution, Alduin appears, etc). You're telling me to START the game (and continue it from time to time) to CHECK that everything is proper?

[lupus_hegemonia]

In STEP, for Skyrim Total Enhancement mod, they're saying to download one of the optional files; which I did.

But, after I did, I discovered that is an old version (1.2) - and in mod's page there the new one (2.2.9.2). Fine... but since I CHOOSE one option file (the "Performance" one), how am I suppose to know which update to pick??? There isn't any choice in the new update, there isn't a "Performance" Option file update.

And how am I upgrading? Simply pressing again (from Nexus) the "green button"? And if the mod has THE SAME name with the old version? What am I doing, then?

[lupus_hegemonia]

Also... when (how many times) I'm pressing the LOOT to optimize the MO list?
I'm doing it (now) after every mod I'm installing... Is this good (takes longer time, obviously)?

[lupus_hegemonia]

I'm getting this message, when I'm trying to add new priority to ELE Legendary Lite:

 

Must be an integer between +/- 127 inclusive

 

 

The STEP guide gives MUCH MORE value (970000)!!! What am I suppose to do?

[GSDFan]

 

I'm getting this message, when I'm trying to add new priority to ELE Legendary Lite:

 

Must be an integer between +/- 127 inclusive

 

 

The STEP guide gives MUCH MORE value (970000)!!! What am I suppose to do?

 

LOOT changed the numbering in a recent updtae, negative 127 to positive 127, and the guide has not been updated.

 

 

 

[Nozzer66]

Also... when (how many times) I'm pressing the LOOT to optimize the MO list?

I'm doing it (now) after every mod I'm installing... Is this good (takes longer time, obviously)?

I only LOOT order after every group of so of mods. Do all the UI mods, the LOOT, then do all the next group, Use LOOT etc. There's nothing inherently wrong in LOOTing after every mod, but no real need.