The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Mod Discussion and News [Creation Kit released]

I tried through the Nexus Mod Manager, activated all 5 files, but I didn't notice any difference, at least not in the beginning of the game. Did I do anything wrong? Should I activate somewhere else?

Did you overwrite files when it asked? Did it ask at all?
 
Are there any mods that radically change combat?
Radically is a big word; consider that ACE, Duel and Deadly Combat tweak combat mechanics, making it more stamina oriented or very deadly.
It's still the same thing but more tactical or fast paced depending which play style you favor.

Duel is about stamina management - everything you do in combat, costs stamina. You need to be careful and have a tactical approach,
making perhaps the combat flows slower compared to vanilla. Blocking and staggering opponents are prominent elements in this mod.
If you intend to use Duel, note that it makes stealth kills very hard - once you're spotted, there's no hiding back pretty much.

ACE is formed by many modules that revamp all the perk trees. The Realistic Fighting module works with Duel, so you can use both if you wish.
The different armor types (cloth, light, heavy) are more varied and flashed out. ACE Archery module is really interesting imo, it divides
all the bows & arrows into two groups (Light and Long ones), creating two viable play styles (crossbow shares the tree with the long bow).

Deadly Combat is, well, deadly. Armor is much, much less effective and you could die from a single power attack.
Damage is increased, melee weapons' range are shortened, blocking and warding is more complex (possibility to recoil the opponent or
reflect the enemy's spell), there's locational damage with different effects. All this makes combat more intense and fast-paced.


My 2 cents. There's also SkyRe that changes combat but I have no experience with it :)
 
grrrr it seems to me that no matter what mod I add now it just crashes my skyrim to desktop....I went by what KKRT00's recommendations and it still having major problems.

Even tried a new game and reinstalled but to no luck....Am I destined not to have mods on my skyrim? :(
 
I didn't overwrite! But, then again, maybe it's jsut because I'm in the beginning and I don't have much to compare?

The textures are for almost everything. Buildings, plants, etc. You need to overwrite when it asks or it won't actually install anything. You can uninstall it and then install again with the mod manager, say yes when it wants you to overwrite files.

grrrr it seems to me that no matter what mod I add now it just crashes my skyrim to desktop....I went by what KKRT00's recommendations and it still having major problems.

Even tried a new game and reinstalled but to no luck....Am I destined not to have mods on my skyrim? :(

Deactivate them all and activate them one by one. Keep going and trying to log in after each activation until you start crashing, then you'll know the mod you just activated is the one causing problems. Also, is your game version up to date?
 
The textures are for almost everything. Buildings, plants, etc. You need to overwrite when it asks or it won't actually install anything. You can uninstall it and then install again with the mod manager, say yes when it wants you to overwrite files.

But, if I do that, the previous installation disappears. There is one for each: Dungeons, Landscapes, Misc, Towns and Riften.
 
But, if I do that, the previous installation disappears. There is one for each: Dungeons, Landscapes, Misc, Towns and Riften.

Ah, yes, that's a slightly different issue. Unfortunately, the mod manager sees them all as the same mod, when they are actually for different textures. So when first activating the mod, it asks if you want to overwrite the "previous version" (selecting Yes) or "install normally" (selecting No) you'll want to install normally (select No). After that, if it asks if you want to overwrite specific files, say yes.
 
I've been messing around with the interior settings on the seasons of Skyrim Enb.

ijrkE7GUyrm5p.png


iboKpmZzpHUMvw.png



Also been trying to make a type of character that I've never played as, as far as facial features.

So this time, I decided to give my character more of a straight nose (not dipping in at the brow) sort of an Indian feature, I guess, which just so happens to look great with High Elves...

i9IILs5DWL6N4.png


itadIvU2ljI9g.png


Any suggestions?

Also, I am in need of some HD Textures, but I dislike the HD2K Pack because the art is all over the place IMO. Anybody got some good alternatives?
 
Ah, yes, that's a slightly different issue. Unfortunately, the mod manager sees them all as the same mod, when they are actually for different textures. So when first activating the mod, it asks if you want to overwrite the "previous version" (selecting Yes) or "install normally" (selecting No) you'll want to install normally (select No). After that, if it asks if you want to overwrite specific files, say yes.

Yeah, so maybe it's just surprising that it worked well without any critical frame drops.
 
There was that mod that allowed you to combine several Texture Packs into 1. The author of the utility apparently hand picked the best textures from each pack. You download the packs and place them in designated folders, run the utility and it would generate a new pack that you could install with the Nexus Mod Manager.

Edit:

Here

http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/20801

It takes a little effort but it might be worth checking out.
 
My long loads seem to be exclusive to Whiterun...so far at least. Not sure why.

Still cant figure out whats causing the crazy random framerate drop either.
 
Yeah, so maybe it's just surprising that it worked well without any critical frame drops.

If your machine is decent and that's the only mod you have installed it wouldn't be a problem. It starts getting iffy when you have dozens and dozens of mods installed...ENB, weapon/armor textures, spell effects, etc.
 
My long loads seem to be exclusive to Whiterun...so far at least. Not sure why.

Still cant figure out whats causing the crazy random framerate drop either.

Ok, write everything You have [resolution, AA, mods, how much VRAM, check VRAM usage in Nvidia Inspector, average framerate in some locations etc] and post Your skyrim.ini and skyrimpref.ini on pastebin.com

---
My 2 cents. There's also SkyRe that changes combat but I have no experience with it :)

And Requiem, also everything cost stamina, mana regen is slower and do not regen when You are running, projectiles are two times faster, damage vs armor is reworked totally, weapons have different armor penetration, You need to fire up enemies to kill theirs hp reneration like trolls, You need magical/element weapons for undeads or heavy armored enemies, enemies do not level with You, arrows deal higher damage to closer target and has higher armor penetration, every hit You take stagger You if You're not skilled in armor or block it, damage is much higher etc.
 
Yeah, here's the skyrim.ini values I put together

[Camera]
fOverShoulderCombatAddY=0.0000
fOverShoulderCombatAddX=0.0000
fOverShoulderCombatPosZ=-20.0000
fOverShoulderCombatPosY=-50.0000
fOverShoulderCombatPosX=25.0000
fOverShoulderPosY=-50.0000
fOverShoulderPosX=25.0000
fOverShoulderPosZ=-20.0000

Not sure what the default values would be, otherwise as long as the xyz values are the same between shoulder/shouldercombat, the camera shouldn't move

Nice thanks.

And my game is having the moving shadows problem again. It was the reason I put the game down in the past and now when I have all my mod ducks in a row it shows back up. I always update my nividia drivers. Bah.

http://youtu.be/YpU1caBHL_4
http://youtu.be/hwZvfhfSL9E

I will not be turning shadows off like the most popular solution suggest. I pretty much play this game because it look so good, and I can mod it like crazy. A sandbox creation world of sorts. If only Fallout 3 was so modable.

Edit: Temporary solution for my problem http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/16464 feels bad man. Crutches, kiddy pool, slow lane, small bus, etc etc.
 
Are there any mods that radically change combat?

In addition to the ones already mentioned ( I use DUEL ):

- Deadly Combat is good, but I think there's too much active scripting going on.

- ASIS is an interesting one - it's not a combat mod, but it applies perks and other custom things in OTHER mods to your enemies too. There's features like increasing spawns, random spawns, NPCs using potions etc. if you think vanilla doesn't offer enough. I didn't like it because it breaks both the immersion and tends to overwhelm you if you're not bringing enough companions. Try it out, but be sure to keep a separate save because it links saves to its ESP.

- Duke Patrick's Heavy Weapons Combat Overhaul is an awesome mod, making combat very strategic.

The mod uses feints, slows down stamina regen to prevent the clickspam that typical combat is, makes use of momentum (if you're an orc with a warhammer hitting a blocking elf, the elf is going to get thrown back a little. ) Unfortunately he also modifies the combat and smithing perk trees a great deal, and prevents the use of other perk mods like SPERG (which I love).
 
Ok, write everything You have [resolution, AA, mods, how much VRAM, check VRAM usage in Nvidia Inspector, average framerate in some locations etc] and post Your skyrim.ini and skyrimpref.ini on pastebin.com

This is what I got:

Resolution, Mods, Framerate, etc:
http://pastebin.com/prwmf3NE

Skyrim.ini
http://pastebin.com/6MzcHMuC

SkyrimPrefs.ini
http://pastebin.com/xXdTuXNW

Both .inis were generated by http://online-source.net/tools/cfg-makers/skyrim-cfg-maker/ with me manuall changing these lines:
fMasterFilePreLoadMB=100.0000
iPreloadSizeLimit=209715200
 
Help! First time playing Skyrim in PC (played a few dozen hours on 360) and also first time dabbling with mods. I only have a handful since I don't have a proper gaming system. The thing is, in a couple of them appeared a weird triangle sign with a "!" mark inside. Like this:

iXe7I0NXxzut0.png


These are all the mods I have installed. Game doesn't crash or anything, just wanted to know if I did something wrong. Thanks in advance.
 
Help! First time playing Skyrim in PC (played a few dozen hours on 360) and also first time dabbling with mods. I only have a handful since I don't have a proper gaming system. The thing is, in a couple of them appeared a weird triangle sign with a "!" mark inside. Like this:

iXe7I0NXxzut0.png


These are all the mods I have installed. Game doesn't crash or anything, just wanted to know if I did something wrong. Thanks in advance.

Means there is an updated version. However, the way it determines this is a little wacky. You should be alright if you downloaded them recently.
 
This is what I got:

Resolution, Mods, Framerate, etc:
http://pastebin.com/prwmf3NE

Skyrim.ini
http://pastebin.com/6MzcHMuC

SkyrimPrefs.ini
http://pastebin.com/xXdTuXNW

Both .inis were generated by http://online-source.net/tools/cfg-makers/skyrim-cfg-maker/ with me manuall changing these lines:
fMasterFilePreLoadMB=100.0000
iPreloadSizeLimit=209715200

Oh man, i dont see anything wrong here ;\, but try changing those to my values

skyrim.ini said:
iMaxMemoryPageSize=6144
iMinMemoryPageSize=3072
iMaxAllocatedMemoryBytes=7516192768

I would recommend changing resolution to 1080p, use 4xMSAA and then enhancing it with nvidia inspector to TRMSAA like here http://i.minus.com/jbiIk10G8D4gEl.jpg

If You are using ENB, turn off anizo in skyrimpref and force it in ENB. Also shadows on grass adds a lot to image, so consider that :)


------------

Some newer shots from my config [locked 50 fps all the time].
http://kkrt.minus.com/mbkZHrw8Ao3CFe
http://kkrt.minus.com/m968QO42BUiRD

 
Oh man, i dont see anything wrong here ;\, but try changing those to my values



I would recommend changing resolution to 1080p, use 4xMSAA and then enhancing it with nvidia inspector to TRMSAA like here http://i.minus.com/jbiIk10G8D4gEl.jpg

If You are using ENB, turn off anizo in skyrimpref and force it in ENB. Also shadows on grass adds a lot to image, so consider that :)

Lol. Well thanks for taking a look. I appreciate it. Ill tinker with it some more and see what happens.
At worst, Ill just uninstall all mods, replace the steam files with my vanilla backup, verify the game cache to make sure everything is in check, and start over.
 
Lol. Well thanks for taking a look. I appreciate it. Ill tinker with it some more and see what happens.
At worst, Ill just uninstall all mods, replace the steam files with my vanilla backup, verify the game cache to make sure everything is in check, and start over.

Only those could mess with performance and those are ones, i havent personally tested, so i'ld look at them first :)
Skyrim Distant Detail
Skyrim HD - 2k Textures
Static Mesh Improvement
High Quality LODs
Better Distant LOD Waterfalls

others should be safe.
 
I am having problems with feel of the mouse in this game. I turned off mouse acceleration but menus and in game movement still feels floaty to me. Are there any good mods that overhaul mouse movement?
 
SkyUI is all kinds of amazing. I couldn't play with regular-ass UI anymore after trying this one. Ended up getting SkyUI, iHUD, Immersive armor, cloaks, that convenient horses mod and jaysus swords, besides the unofficial patch. Game runs perfectly and I think I'm finally ready to start assing around in the world. I don't think I can put any significant visual mod because my pc is shit (C2D E5300 or something like that, 3GB RAM and a measly GT220). Nevertheless, I'm pretty happy with what I have right now and I'm sure I can pick up more subtle mods to improve my overall experience.
 
I apologize if you've already stated this, but what ENB are you using?
First things first: I use the ENBs with Enhanced Lights and FX and Dark Dungeons for ENB - no other lighting mods.
NVIDIA drivers used are 306.97 version; 310.70 may turn Skyrim green tinted and generally darken it.

I'm currently testing with different ENBs but I usually employ a modified version of Countervibe ENB (not available anymore) and, recently, Fimbulvinter 3.0 ENB.

I find Countervibe pretty robust, meaning that it's a balanced ENB that makes you enjoy all lightning situations as they are intended in the vanilla game with more vivid colors.
You can refer to my previous screenshots, they were took with Countervibe on. Check hodilton YT video to see it in action.

After experiencing 380+ hours of color balanced Skyrim you tend to be more keen to unbalanced experimentations.
I recently started to like and use Fimbulvinter 3.0 and outdoors are improved imo, as you may notice in my last batch; it has a dirtier and heavier feeling than Countervibe.
Interiors are clearly darker but I find it tolerable, but it is still quite a balanced ENB if compared to other, more known ones. Check hodilton YT video to see it in action.

Bonus pics
lVAbH.jpg

csWL2.jpg


Btw, SkyUI 3.0 has been released :)
 
I guess it must be harder than it looks, because so far nobody has made the martial arts combat mod for Skyrim that everyone's been wanting for years in Elder Scrolls titles.
 
Too..... many.... mods...... paralyzed by the choices and amount of investment needed to get them all.
 
I've picked up the two DLCs and am planning on doing a completely new play through.

I've just been playing Dark Souls and I'm afraid that Skyrim combat is going to be dull in comparison. I've never used any combat mods before.

Now, I'm not looking for something that makes the game as hard as Dark Souls, since I don't fancy losing my progress every few minutes by having to reload (in Dark Souls dying isn't a problem since you don't lose progress, but it is to me in Skyrim since my only option is to reload) instead I'm looking for something that makes the combat more engaging and tactical.

So I'm looking more for "different weapons and armor feel very different in combat" and "blocking and positioning becomes more important" over "arrows kill in one hit" and "all bandit spawns have now doubled and are twice your level" for example.

Is there a mod like that out there?
 
I've picked up the two DLCs and am planning on doing a completely new play through.

I've just been playing Dark Souls and I'm afraid that Skyrim combat is going to be dull in comparison. I've never used any combat mods before.

Now, I'm not looking for something that makes the game as hard as Dark Souls, since I don't fancy losing my progress every few minutes by having to reload (in Dark Souls dying isn't a problem since you don't lose progress, but it is to me in Skyrim since my only option is to reload) instead I'm looking for something that makes the combat more engaging and tactical.

So I'm looking more for "different weapons and armor feel very different in combat" and "blocking and positioning becomes more important" over "arrows kill in one hit" and "all bandit spawns have now doubled and are twice your level" for example.

Is there a mod like that out there?

In addition to the ones already mentioned ( I use DUEL ):

- Deadly Combat is good, but I think there's too much active scripting going on.

- ASIS is an interesting one - it's not a combat mod, but it applies perks and other custom things in OTHER mods to your enemies too. There's features like increasing spawns, random spawns, NPCs using potions etc. if you think vanilla doesn't offer enough. I didn't like it because it breaks both the immersion and tends to overwhelm you if you're not bringing enough companions. Try it out, but be sure to keep a separate save because it links saves to its ESP.

- Duke Patrick's Heavy Weapons Combat Overhaul is an awesome mod, making combat very strategic.

The mod uses feints, slows down stamina regen to prevent the clickspam that typical combat is, makes use of momentum (if you're an orc with a warhammer hitting a blocking elf, the elf is going to get thrown back a little. ) Unfortunately he also modifies the combat and smithing perk trees a great deal, and prevents the use of other perk mods like SPERG (which I love).

ACE, Duel or Deadly Combat, Dance of Death for finishing moves.

.
 
Too..... many.... mods...... paralyzed by the choices and amount of investment needed to get them all.

When is too many for you?
I do understand that Skyrim might look like a game of hoarding mods over mods but you're fine with a solid list of 15 mods.
 
I've picked up the two DLCs and am planning on doing a completely new play through.

I've just been playing Dark Souls and I'm afraid that Skyrim combat is going to be dull in comparison. I've never used any combat mods before.

Now, I'm not looking for something that makes the game as hard as Dark Souls, since I don't fancy losing my progress every few minutes by having to reload (in Dark Souls dying isn't a problem since you don't lose progress, but it is to me in Skyrim since my only option is to reload) instead I'm looking for something that makes the combat more engaging and tactical.

So I'm looking more for "different weapons and armor feel very different in combat" and "blocking and positioning becomes more important" over "arrows kill in one hit" and "all bandit spawns have now doubled and are twice your level" for example.

Is there a mod like that out there?

Frankly, Skyrim's melee combat is subpar...you're never going to get anything as weighty and realistic as Dark Souls even with the best mods because it isn't built that way from the ground up. The combat mods mentioned improve things quite a bit, and make combat more strategic and challenging, but you don't want to go in with high expectations.

Mods like Duke Patrick's and Deadly Combat make use of active scripting to constantly check combat states etc. but given how combat can be frenetic, you often don't realise what's happening before it's done, and the lack of visual reactions makes it worse.

Combat mods therefore address these in terms of staggering combatants more, making stamina important (as it should be, Dark Souls-style), and AI changes: enemies are more aggressive and time their attacks, and are more aware of their fellows being taken down. (With DUEL, taking down a bandit in Treva's Watch yesterday summoned nearly all the fellows in the building. Can be fun or plain unfair, depending on your perspective. Companions highly recommended).

FNIS holds some hope: this system allows modders to add new animations to Skyrim without replacing the current ones. If any enterprising modder decides to make new fighting animations for different weapons, it'd be awesome.

Edit: TK HitStop here is a step towards weightier combat.
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/23681

Too..... many.... mods...... paralyzed by the choices and amount of investment needed to get them all.
Try the STEP here. It's a filtered PDF list of mods regarded as essential to improving Skyrim. You don't need to install them all, or even the Hi-Res textures or anything.

http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/11
 
First things first: I use the ENBs with Enhanced Lights and FX and Dark Dungeons for ENB - no other lighting mods.
NVIDIA drivers used are 306.97 version; 310.70 may turn Skyrim green tinted and generally darken it.

I'm currently testing with different ENBs but I usually employ a modified version of Countervibe ENB (not available anymore) and, recently, Fimbulvinter 3.0 ENB.

I find Countervibe pretty robust, meaning that it's a balanced ENB that makes you enjoy all lightning situations as they are intended in the vanilla game with more vivid colors.
You can refer to my previous screenshots, they were took with Countervibe on. Check hodilton YT video to see it in action.

After experiencing 380+ hours of color balanced Skyrim you tend to be more keen to unbalanced experimentations.
I recently started to like and use Fimbulvinter 3.0 and outdoors are improved imo, as you may notice in my last batch; it has a dirtier and heavier feeling than Countervibe.
Interiors are clearly darker but I find it tolerable, but it is still quite a balanced ENB if compared to other, more known ones. Check hodilton YT video to see it in action.

Btw, SkyUI 3.0 has been released :)

Did you adjust anything for those screenshots? I installed Fimbulvinter 3.0 and it looks different. I'm getting a ton of bloom that's really lighting up my character like a nuke.

That and I'm seeing a strange glitchs where some sunset/sunrise graphics are glitching through walls and buildings.
 
Frankly, Skyrim's melee combat is subpar...you're never going to get anything as weighty and realistic as Dark Souls even with the best mods because it isn't built that way from the ground up. The combat mods mentioned improve things quite a bit, and make combat more strategic and challenging, but you don't want to go in with high expectations.

Mods like Duke Patrick's and Deadly Combat make use of active scripting to constantly check combat states etc. but given how combat can be frenetic, you often don't realise what's happening before it's done, and the lack of visual reactions makes it worse.

Combat mods therefore address these in terms of staggering combatants more, making stamina important (as it should be, Dark Souls-style), and AI changes: enemies are more aggressive and time their attacks, and are more aware of their fellows being taken down. (With DUEL, taking down a bandit in Treva's Watch yesterday summoned nearly all the fellows in the building. Can be fun or plain unfair, depending on your perspective. Companions highly recommended).

FNIS holds some hope: this system allows modders to add new animations to Skyrim without replacing the current ones. If any enterprising modder decides to make new fighting animations for different weapons, it'd be awesome.

Edit: TK HitStop here is a step towards weightier combat.
http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/23681

Thanks, I'll take a look at those. I had grabbed Duel, but that sounds exactly the opposite of what I want; I don't want more combatants, just more challenging combat with a few opponents at a time. I'll keep looking then, and check out the other combat mods.
 
Did you adjust anything for those screenshots? I installed Fimbulvinter 3.0 and it looks different. I'm getting a ton of bloom that's really lighting up my character like a nuke.

That and I'm seeing a strange glitchs where some sunset/sunrise graphics are glitching through walls and buildings.

It's everything in that post: do you have Enhanced Lights and FX (even though it's mainly for interiors)?
What version of the NVIDIA drivers do you currently have? Did you get the enbseries v12.12.12?
If you also installed different lightning mods and tweaked your ini's for a different purpose, I'm afraid there isn't much I can do to help.

Here's a reference pic that might help you
wrPaj.jpg

Whiterun Marketplace @ 9:30AM
 
Thanks, I'll take a look at those. I had grabbed Duel, but that sounds exactly the opposite of what I want; I don't want more combatants, just more challenging combat with a few opponents at a time. I'll keep looking then, and check out the other combat mods.

Duel doesnt spawn more NPCs and makes individual encounters much harder and tactical.
 
It's everything in that post: do you have Enhanced Lights and FX (even though it's for mainly interiors)? What version of the NVIDIA drivers do you currently have?
Did you get the enbseries v12.12.12? If you're employing different mods and tweaked your ini's for a different purpose, there isn't much I can do to help.

Yeah, I have all that and the same driver version you do. I haven't installed any other graphic mods or messed with my ini, other than to set bFloatPointRenderTarget. I did forget to set my brightness, so that seems to have done it. That and I changed my character's skin tone to be a little darker so the skin doesn't glow as much.

I had to set EnableSunRays=false to get rid of the sun rays through walls on sunset, though.
 
Yeah, I have all that and the same driver version you do. I haven't installed any other graphic mods or messed with my ini, other than to set bFloatPointRenderTarget. I did forget to set my brightness, so that seems to have done it. That and I changed my character's skin tone to be a little darker so the skin doesn't glow as much.

I had to set EnableSunRays=false to get rid of the sun rays through walls on sunset, though.

Glad to hear it works. I had to change my skin tone too, but to a lighter variant!
 
But if the whole fort comes running due to heightened awareness, like shiroryu said, then you're still fighting very large groups.

Don't want to put you off DUEL though. :) I recommend trying out each mod on a save where you have some fights coming up, and seeing how each one changes things for you.
 
Glad to hear it works. I had to change my skin tone too, but to a lighter variant!

A question for you. Have you played the Dawnguard content yet? If yes, is this normal?

http://steamcommunity.com/id/zerohaste/screenshots/?appid=72850

The top image is without the Fimbulvinter 3.0 ENB enabled, the bottom is with. I've encountered this with most of the Dawnguard dungeon content so far, making me think it's something I missed that I needed to do, but I can't find anything. I did download the Dark Dungeons for Dawnguard part of Darker Dungeons for ENB, but the areas look the same with it enabled or disabled.

I might have to get rid of ENB if this is the way it's supposed to be. I like darker areas, but that dark is unplayable to me.
 
I've cleared Dawnguard's contents but, back then, I used another ENB (ForceWithin 2.0 Beta, which is compiled from a gaffer)!
That area is supposed to be that dark with Fimbulvinter - I have the same situation, a little brighter compared to yours thanks to the sunrays.

Yes, it's very dark compared to the vanilla version but, in this case, I find the (lack of) lightning fits for the atmosphere and location.
Do note that Fimbulvinter is slightly unbalanced so you'll encounter non-optimal lightning conditions; I suggest you to check Markarth interiors and see
if it's bearable to your preferences.

And, if you aren't enjoying anymore this particular ENB, consider to switch to another one! As I always emphasized, choosing an ENB is a very personal thing.


EDIT: for those using Enhanced Lights and FX 0.1.4, it seems there's an invisibility glitch during the Thalmor Embassy quest.
 
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