TK's Mod Questions Thread, Got mod problems, or are you just lost with a tool? Options

[Thomas Kaira]

First off, some useful links and utilities:

The Bethesda Oblivion Mods forum, this is where you'll want to go for all the latest news and updates on the mountains of unofficial content we all take for granted. If I don't have the answer you're looking for, chances are one of the many people here do.

Oblivion Mod Manager, I don't think I need to explain this one.

Better Oblivion Sorting Software, this is a well maintained utility that reads the mods you have installed and suggests the best order to load them in to avoid the inevitable conflicts. This is another must-have.

Wrye Bash, the Swiss army knife of Oblivion modding, and I swear by it. It's intimidating at first, but surprisingly easy to use once you figure out how it works. Finally, Once you figure out BAIN, you will never need to worry about installation problems again.

Wrye Bash Pictorial Guide for Newbies, if you are just starting Bash, it can be very easy to get lost in how much it does. This will help you get on the right foot.

TES4Edit, a very important tool. Most of its features don't concern the end user, but its ability to clean up dirty and unneeded edits in a plugin is invaluable.

TES4Edit Cleaning Guide at the TESCS Wiki. It contains a comprehensive list of mods that need to be cleaned, mods that are already clean, and mods that should not be cleaned, as well as a comprehensive guide on how to actually do it.

So, it seems I have become "Mr. Modder" around these here parts, so I've decided to open this little thread if you have any questions for me. Questions about making modding easier for yourself, how to use a specific tool, if you've encountered a rather irksome problem and can't figure out what to do about it, or if you want to make your game perform a bit better. I will be the first to admit I'm not a professional modder, as I don't make my own mods. I do have the experience needed to maintain a heavy load order with minimal issues, as well as understanding a few advanced tricks to squeeze every last drop of performance out of the game, so I do know what I'm talking about.

If anyone has any doubts, this is my load order:



So with that, ask away.

This post has been edited by Thomas Kaira: Feb 8 2011, 06:46 AM

[TheOtherRick]

Thanks for starting this thread TK. You might be sick of me before this is through, but hopefully you won't regret starting it. I just looked at your mod list/load order. WOW! 11 .esm files to start the list. I am not looking to change the game to that extent. However, I am looking to make it more immersive than what I have now. That is the ultimate goal. Of the bold printed utilities that you have listed, I only have OBMM. I have stayed away from Wrye Bash and BAIN, and wasn't aware of BOSS (other than seeing it mentioned in passing). I had not heard of TES4Edit until this post. So, before I (we) embark on this, allow me to post my current mod list/load order -

00-Oblivion.esm
01-Cobl Main.esm
02-Unofficial Oblivion Patch.esp
03-DLCShiveringIsles.esp
04-Unofficial Shivering Isles Patch
05-SM Plugin Refurbish - SI.esp
06-Knights.esp
07-Knights - Unofficial Patch.esp
08-SM Plugin Refurbish - Knights.esp
09-Cobl Glue.esp
10-Cobl Si.esp
11-Cobl Tweaks.esp
12-Salmo the Baker, Cobl.esp
13-Real Hunger, Cobl.esp
14-Living Economy - SI.esp
15-Living Economy - Items.esp
16-Harvest[Flora].esp
17-Harvest[Flora] - Shivering Isles.esp
18-Enhanced Water v2.0 HD.esp
19-AliveWaters.esp
20-AliveWaters - Slaughterfish Addon.esp
21-RealSleepExtended.esp
22-Cyrodiil transportation network.esp
23-za_bankmod.esp
24-kuerteeGoldIsAnInventoryItem.esp
25-Chapel Tithe.esp
26-Cobl Races - Balanced.esp
27-Cobl Races.esp
28-Cobl Races TNR.esp
29-Cobl Races TNR SI.esp
30-Laesea_House_v1.0.esp
31-FormID Finder4.esp

This list is from OBMM. I have OBSE v18 and Pluggy v125. Two OMOD files - DarkUld_DarN_16_OMOD_Version-11280 and Oblivion Graphics Extender. The game runs smoothly. Before I add anything, I would like advice my current list (changes/tweaks). I don't know the code for "show/hide spoiler", so sorry about the post length.