Thinking ahead... I'm not gonna do this NOW. I SWEAR!

[Skyrimnut]

So, as some of you know, I'm doing a "final" playthrough before I retire Skyrim for a long while. I'm being serious. Uninstalling Skyrim from my computer afterwards and EVERYTHING! While I've altered a few things and have added content, I've not changed much of the Vanilla mechanics except some mild combat, addressed some follower bugs, and added more dragons.

http://steamcommunity.com/app/72850/discussions/0/540741130978426548/

The replay would probably be a year from now, I'm just starting the topic now, so I have a handy place where mods to consider are listed and I can easily search for it when it comes time to do the deed. I am anal that way.

What I would want from this future playthrough is to be as realistic and emmersive as possible. I'd also like it to be reasonable tough, but not frustratingly so. I'd be reinstalling the game, so everything would have a clean, fresh slate, NMM would be updated. BOSS or LOOT would be used. Computer would probably even be freshened up. New ENBS and graphics (darker, more moody look with lots of detail). Would do a good ol' Nord mountain man recluse sort of playthrough. Embraces the old ways... So he'd be a capable warrior/hunter from the getgo, and the old Nords didn't entirely shun magic. Perhaps a reluctant dragonborn down the line. Below are some of the mods I'm considering, but recommendations for this type of playthrough would be great.

Frostfall
Hunterborn
Realistic Needs and diseases or another needs mod
A major overhaul mod (either Requiem or SkyRE)
SkyUI (YES, I'd like to try the new interface, though I'd still play on my good 'ol Logitech)
SKSE or whatever that is, the script extender
The Unofficial Patches! I know, Skyrimnut's gonna finally do it!
Winter is coming
Cloaks of Skyrim
A combat realism mod of some type, I'm using Better Combat AI now
An overhauled follower system, if our mountain man ever needed a follower
Horses for followers?
Alternate start mod
Crafting overhaul of some type, this build would craft, but I want it to be a lot harder.
Realistic aging? Is there such a thing?
Animations that are emmersive?
Removing map markers, location markers, and overhaul the HUD
Character creation overhaul?

Please don't recommend any weirdo fantasy mods. This would be a totally lore-friendly playthrough. Nothing overpowered or cheaty either. And mods could well change in a year, so keeping this thread updated is a good thing.

Let me know what you'd do with this type of playthrough.

Yay Skyrim!

[gnewna]

I fancy trying Morrowloot at some point, not sure if it's the sort of thing you're after, though: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/44212/? Basically an overhaul of the levelled loot system. There's also a couple of variations on the Morrowloot theme, this one looks sort of interesting (slightly less hardcore) http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/50740/?

[Skyrimnut]

Originally posted by gnewna:

I fancy trying Morrowloot at some point, not sure if it's the sort of thing you're after, though: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/44212/? Basically an overhaul of the levelled loot system. There's also a couple of variations on the Morrowloot theme, this one looks sort of interesting (slightly less hardcore) http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/50740/?

THANK YOU! I had looked at that mod previously and didn't remember it. Yes, I'd like an overhaul to the loot system. I want it significantly harder to find things.

I also would like a Civil War overhaul. There is a very good one, I believe.

[Conan the Brobarian]

For ENB I recommend Somber 3: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/54362/?

In m opinion, it is the best looking ENB on Nexus. Very moody, well balanced colors, and no excessive contrast or bloom.

[Brain_Dead]

Well since you want realism mods heres a few that i use myself. First Climates of Tamriel is a must have. It adds a whole weather system to the game and it works really well with Frostfall.

Second for combat mods i would use Ultimate Combat, Revenge Of The Enemies and ASIS(Automatic Spells, Increased Spawns), as well some sort of that that lets you dodge attacks. Ultimate Combat adds new moves and attacks for eniemies. Revenge of the Enimies adds new scrips for the ai making them smarter in combat. It is also compatibale with Ulitmate Combat. ASIS lets ai use potions and spells that are available to the player.

A few other mods you might want to get would be, Camping kit of the Northern Ranger it adds a bunch of camping gear which works well with Frostfall. Deadly Dragons makes dragons a real challenge to kill this time unlike vanilla. Fishing in Skyrim adds fishing gear so hunting isnt you only option. Immersive Patrols and Warzones adds groups of NPCs that patrol around and will sometimes attack each other or the player.

I would also highly recomend Convenient Horses which allows followers to use horses. And
Ultimate Follower Overhaul which lets you take multiple companions with you. Works great with the horses mod.

[Mumbles]

Requiem & SkyRe both already affect enemy AI and although you can just not use the .esp for enemies with SkyRe (not sure about Requiem) - long time users & the mod author don't recommend other combat AI mods because they're not balanced with the overhaul in mind. SkyRe also works well in conjunction with the Character Creation Overhaul, lets you design a starting character more in line with the older Scrolls titles.

I do highly recommend Deadly Dragons/Monsters because you have the ability to tweak stats for ALL enemies in the game. This helps keep the challenge up as you level up and become OP.

I'd recommend Amazing Follower Tweaks over Ultimate Follower Overhaul - there's not much in it but I've had less problems with AFT compared to UFO playing nice with large load orders. They pretty much do the same things anyway.

Also keep in mind that a lot of the realism & improved enemy mods can end up adding a lot of script load to the game and adding an ENB on top can be too much for some systems to handle. Not sure what you're running with but its worth keeping in mind anyway.

HD textures + script mods + ENB can be a real killer on fluid enjoyment.

Same goes for too many loot mods + ones that spawn more enemies/NPCs + Civil War Overhaul can be a heavy load as well.

Since your playthrough isn't for awhile you should be aware that the SkyRe maker has a new overhaul coming around winter, so he says, called Perma. Considering Redone was his first ever mod I am awaiting this, more refined edition eagerly! Also, once you do see all the possibilities for character builds with SkyRe - you'll have a hard time sticking to just one more playthrough!

Lastly - to counter that guy up there ^^ - Warzones is one of the few mods with quite a bad rep for being unsupported, poorly optimized & corrupting saves (Skyrim Stability Project has it on the BAD MOD list). I've not used it in a long while but my machine at the time couldn't handle the stress. If you're already running IP & increasing spawns & the Civil War Overhaul, its an unneccessary strain on game stabliity IMO.

Frostfall + RND or iNeed + iHUD + Complete Crafting Overhaul Remade are all constants for my game now and frankly, I can't remember what its like without any of them!

My pile of considerably more than 2 cents ;-)

[Skyrimnut]

Originally posted by Brain_Dead:

Well since you want realism mods heres a few that i use myself. First Climates of Tamriel is a must have. It adds a whole weather system to the game and it works really well with Frostfall.

Second for combat mods i would use Ultimate Combat, Revenge Of The Enemies and ASIS(Automatic Spells, Increased Spawns), as well some sort of that that lets you dodge attacks. Ultimate Combat adds new moves and attacks for eniemies. Revenge of the Enimies adds new scrips for the ai making them smarter in combat. It is also compatibale with Ulitmate Combat. ASIS lets ai use potions and spells that are available to the player.

A few other mods you might want to get would be, Camping kit of the Northern Ranger it adds a bunch of camping gear which works well with Frostfall. Deadly Dragons makes dragons a real challenge to kill this time unlike vanilla. Fishing in Skyrim adds fishing gear so hunting isnt you only option. Immersive Patrols and Warzones adds groups of NPCs that patrol around and will sometimes attack each other or the player.

I would also highly recomend Convenient Horses which allows followers to use horses. And
Ultimate Follower Overhaul which lets you take multiple companions with you. Works great with the horses mod.

Lol, I already have Climates of Tamriel installed. Love it. I've also used Camping kit of the Northern ranger. The only thing I didn't like about that mod was the merchant that was placed there to sell the items. It ruined my view of the Riverwood area as the architecture didn't match up. I've tried Fishing in Skyrim and that's on the possible list too. Thanks for the suggestions.

Originally posted by Mumbles:

Requiem & SkyRe both already affect enemy AI and although you can just not use the .esp for enemies with SkyRe (not sure about Requiem) - long time users & the mod author don't recommend other combat AI mods because they're not balanced with the overhaul in mind. SkyRe also works well in conjunction with the Character Creation Overhaul, lets you design a starting character more in line with the older Scrolls titles.

I do highly recommend Deadly Dragons/Monsters because you have the ability to tweak stats for ALL enemies in the game. This helps keep the challenge up as you level up and become OP.

I'd recommend Amazing Follower Tweaks over Ultimate Follower Overhaul - there's not much in it but I've had less problems with AFT compared to UFO playing nice with large load orders. They pretty much do the same things anyway.

Also keep in mind that a lot of the realism & improved enemy mods can end up adding a lot of script load to the game and adding an ENB on top can be too much for some systems to handle. Not sure what you're running with but its worth keeping in mind anyway.

HD textures + script mods + ENB can be a real killer on fluid enjoyment.

Same goes for too many loot mods + ones that spawn more enemies/NPCs + Civil War Overhaul can be a heavy load as well.

Since your playthrough isn't for awhile you should be aware that the SkyRe maker has a new overhaul coming around winter, so he says, called Perma. Considering Redone was his first ever mod I am awaiting this, more refined edition eagerly! Also, once you do see all the possibilities for character builds with SkyRe - you'll have a hard time sticking to just one more playthrough!

Lastly - to counter that guy up there ^^ - Warzones is one of the few mods with quite a bad rep for being unsupported, poorly optimized & corrupting saves (Skyrim Stability Project has it on the BAD MOD list). I've not used it in a long while but my machine at the time couldn't handle the stress. If you're already running IP & increasing spawns & the Civil War Overhaul, its an unneccessary strain on game stabliity IMO.

Frostfall + RND or iNeed + iHUD + Complete Crafting Overhaul Remade are all constants for my game now and frankly, I can't remember what its like without any of them!

My pile of considerably more than 2 cents ;-)

Thanks for the detailed advice, good to know that if I opt for either Requiem or SkyRE I won't need a separate combat mod. I'd like to keep things as self-contained as possible and avoid mods that do only a single thing. If this helps, here is the system that is running the game now.

Alienware X51 R2
Intel i7 4770 CPU @ 3.40 GHz
16G of DDR3 RAM
Windows 7
NVidia GeForce GTX 670 Video card
1TB Hardrive

In a year, the video card may or may not get an upgrade. I run the game on ultra.

Currently I run the following mods... Designed mostly for a more fun playthrough. Not very hardcore.

Climates of Tamriel
Deeper snow
HQ snow
Enhanced distance terrain
Vibrant auroras
Lush grass
Vurts flora overhaul
HD plants and herbs
Enhanced blood textures
The Flocking birds mod
Sounds of Skyrim the wilds
Sounds of Skyrim the dungeons
Better combat AI
Unlimited bookshelves
Dragonbone weapons
More loot in chests
More dragons
Dragon blood
The hunting game
2x slower leveling
Cooking overhaul
Merchant gold increase
Non-leveled items
Improved smithing
Cloaks of Skyrim
aMidianborn Skyforge retexture
General fixes to Followers
Oblivious and Essential horses
Essential dogs
Droppable stones of Barenziah
Droppable black books
Droppable Dawnguard Elderscrolls
A house in each village
Riverside Lodge
Kill them Generals
The Static mesh mods from Nexus
Realistic lighting overhaul
W.A.T.E.R.
Northern Encounters
Parthurnax dilemma
Erravi dungeon
Interesting npcs
Face unlocker
Xenia's Character Enhancement
Supreme Storms
Wyrmstooth
Moonpath to Elsweyr
Realvision ENB
HD textures lite

Not a ton of mods, but there are some heavies in there. Not gonna lie, with the above, I get CTD on occasion, but I'm sure it's something I did and I'm sure the load order isn't optimum (the above isn't the load order). The game is certainly playable, for long stretches even, and sometimes I'll go days without CTD. If it ain't completely broke, don't fix. Load times when going between cells is very fast. With the future playthrough, I'd like to abandon the Steam mods and only use Nexus stuff. Not because I think Steam is terrible, but because I just want things all in one place. If there is a mod that does a better job at something than the mods above, I am not married to that particular mod and am willing to try something new. I don't want wasted mods, so trimming the fat and getting the best gaming experience possible is a goal. I 'm not sure if I'll put the mod expansions (Wyrmstooth, Moonpath). I think a standard playthrough will be enough to have a vastly different game, especially with the major overhauls.

Honestly, I'd rather get this sorted over the course of the year, even decide on proper load orders, rather than not think this through. Hence why I'm doing this thread. As for the War overhaul, was thinking the Civil War Overhaul instead, but perhaps there is another mod that completes the Civil War without making a complete overhaul, I know Arthmoor was doing something along those lines. The Cutting Room floor was it?

[mpd1958]

Skyrimnut, about the Camping Kit of the Northern Rangers, what merchant? In my game the kits are sold at the Riverwood Trader.

[Skyrimnut]

Originally posted by mpd1958:

Skyrimnut, about the Camping Kit of the Northern Rangers, what merchant? In my game the kits are sold at the Riverwood Trader.

Last year, when I was using the mod, the kits were available from a small house near Riverwood, he also had a vendor sell some extra kinda cheaty equipment. I checked the mod just now and see that it has indeed been changed. For the better. It didn't need the separate vendor, so I'm glad the author opted to just have Lucan sell it or have it be crafted. Because otherwise, it was an incredible mod. Yes, it'll be on the list for this playthrough.

[mpd1958]

Good luck with your planned project and have fun.

[Captain Capslock]

Please, get SkyTweak. You can configure pretty much every value in-game.
Use the mod to set damage multipliers to around 3x - 5x.

It's quite a thrill on early levels to find an axe, knowing you only have to swing it once, maybe twice to kill an enemy... while you're screwed as well if you don't block in time.

[Skyrimnut]

Mods I'd like to use for this playthrough.


-Climates of Tamriel
-Wet and Cold
-Wet and Cold Ashes
-Wet and Cold Holidays
-Better Dynamic Snow
-Quality Snow HD 4k
-Quality Snowflakes 4k
-Enhanced Distant Terrain 2
-Skyrim Flora Overhaul - basic
-Lush plants and trees
-HD plants and herbs
-Vibrant auroras
-Enhanced blood textures
-Birds and flocks hearthfire
-Unlimited bookshelves
-Cloaks of Skyrim
-A home in every village - this will save my life with Frostfall, unfortunately, this is a Steam exclusive.
-Static Mesh Improvement Mod - SMIM
-W.A.T.E.R.
-Northern Encounters
-Interesting npcs
-Face unlocker
-Xenius Character Enhancement
-Supreme Storms
-Realvision ENB - gonna stick with this one, it works best with my other graphics mods
-Skyrim HD - lite
-SkyUI
-SKSE
-Unofficial Skyrim Patch
-Unofficial Dawnguard Patch
-Unofficial Dragonborn Patch
-Unoffcial HD texture Patch
-Frostfall
-iNeed
-Camping kit of the Northern Ranger
-Winter is coming
-iHUD
-Amazing Follower tweaks
-Character Creation overhaul
-Alternate Start Live another Life
-BOSS or LOOT
-Deadly Dragons
-Convenient horses
-Enhanced lighting and FX
-Skyrim sound overhaul


The computer incase people were curious.

Alienware X51 R2
Intel i7 4770 CPU @ 3.40 GHz
16G of DDR3 RAM
Windows 7
NVidia GeForce GTX 670 Video card
1TB Hardrive

[Skyrimnut]

So I read the 100page guide to SkyRe and the guide to Requiem last night and while I love aspects of them (Weapon varieties, more unique items, non leveled enemies, non leveled loot), there are parts I don't like and I don't feel like downloading them. Skyrim is Skyrim and while I do have some quips with the game (leveling, some issues with emmersion, the crafting, some combat issues, etc) that I'll address with the mods I do end up using, I actually do like the perk system in the game. If I want to play a more intense game, I'll go play a more intense game that is designed that way. They both have a lot of perks, and while others like that sort of focused gameplay, I like the freedom of being a more versatile build. I also do not like changing the races or the standing stones and I felt that many of the races were nerfed. I admire and respect what the mod authors for those two mods did, it took a lot of work, but I think they have a different mindset on how the game should be played than I do, and that is ok.

However, there are a few more mods that seem like an excellent fit for what I want.

-Morrowloot (I like the logic behind it) or Morrowloot 4e
-Scarcity (again, the logic is great)
-Even better quest objectives (I plan on playing with quest markers turned off, haha, that's why this'll be done in a year, so I can forget where everything is)
-Skyrim Scaling Stopper
-Complete Crafting overhaul remade

The big challenge is finding a mod that works on enemy AI without altering perks. The one I'm currently using, Better Enemy AI, does this, and perhaps with Frostfall, iNeed, and all the other overhauls, this mod will actually be sufficient. I've read through Deadly Combat and it seems interesting.

[Mumbles]

Races nerfed? Really? I mean - to each his/her own of course - but I always saw it the other way around. The vanilla races are poorly thought out ... barely useful in some instances. SkyRe tried to make them all worthwhile, so that's the opposite of a nerf isn't it? I love my Imperial Battle Commander issuing orders to followers and Night-Eye more than once a day on Khajiit!

Obviously - your game - not my business. :)

What I actually came here to say is down here:

I just switched from Immersive Settlements to Expanded Towns & Cities - and I'm loving it! Bringing it up because there are homes to buy in most of the villages that I've seen so far. Deciding where to live is so much harder now?!

Other than that you are running, or planning to run, a very similar load order to me, on slightly better hardware. Though with my Civil War Overhaul characters (I also use OBIS sometimes) - I've had to crank down the visual stuff. Wet & Cold and all the HD plants & blood aren't that important when you're trying to deal with dozens of spawns and have a fluid epic battle session. I mean the hd blood looks cool and all - but I'm far too busy just staying alive to worry about how much it squirts, or how detailed the snowflakes are! :)

You should still keep an eye out for Perma - he's taking a less is more approach, in regards to perks, apparently. He knows he went a bit overboard with the original in some people's eyes ... not mine, obviously!

[Skyrimnut]

Originally posted by Mumbles:

Races nerfed? Really? I mean - to each his/her own of course - but I always saw it the other way around. The vanilla races are poorly thought out ... barely useful in some instances. SkyRe tried to make them all worthwhile, so that's the opposite of a nerf isn't it? I love my Imperial Battle Commander issuing orders to followers and Night-Eye more than once a day on Khajiit!

Obviously - your game - not my business. :)

What I actually came here to say is down here:

I just switched from Immersive Settlements to Expanded Towns & Cities - and I'm loving it! Bringing it up because there are homes to buy in most of the villages that I've seen so far. Deciding where to live is so much harder now?!

Other than that you are running, or planning to run, a very similar load order to me, on slightly better hardware. Though with my Civil War Overhaul characters (I also use OBIS sometimes) - I've had to crank down the visual stuff. Wet & Cold and all the HD plants & blood aren't that important when you're trying to deal with dozens of spawns and have a fluid epic battle session. I mean the hd blood looks cool and all - but I'm far too busy just staying alive to worry about how much it squirts, or how detailed the snowflakes are! :)

You should still keep an eye out for Perma - he's taking a less is more approach, in regards to perks, apparently. He knows he went a bit overboard with the original in some people's eyes ... not mine, obviously!

Yeah, it's a to each his own sort of thing. Don't get me wrong, I appreciated what they were trying to do with the races, but as you said they are more powerful, but they are definitely now swayed towards a more specialized combat style, which is more aligned with traditional RPGs. What I guess I meant by nerfed is that you can't really have a Jack of all trades anymore and each race is now kind of skewed towards a certain class. Unless I'm completely misunderstanding what their appraoch is, entirely possible. I read the thing late at night.

Lol, when I was reading commentary on Requiem, people were complaining on how it suited a sword and board best and it sucked for mages and stealth. Whereas another poster said it sucked for sword and board and was great for stealth and mages. Hahaha, last I checked it was the same mod, so it doesn't surprise me in the least that you and I would get completely different impressions off reading the same text.

I was actually looking to live away from the cities, so I found this mod...

Hidden Hideouts of Skyrim

At least now I can get rid of A home in Every village. It was the only steam mod left. I liked it as it wasn't OP at all, but I don't think this guy is going to be a 10+ home kind of guy. I will check that mod out, though, would be nice to live in one of the smaller holds.

Perma may well change everything. I'll wait and see. I'm not much of a crafter, so we'll see if Morrowloot and scarcity gets me off my hunter's butt and I craft some items using the crafting overhaul you suggested. I love that I will probably not have Daedric or Dragonbone at the end of the game, so I am tempted to go for the hardcore Morrowloot rather than the compromised Morrowloot 4e. Any experience with the Skyrim Scaling Stopper?

Yes, we seem to be running similar things. If I can forgo one of the heavier overhauls and do the Civil war overhaul instead, I'd like that better, as I've always wished the Civil War would've been better. The idea of it was my favorite in the game, but the execution wasn't so great. I think that'll make me bump down the textures a bit, maybe not do Lush Grass, and opt only for the Basic flora overhaul, only do the lite 2k textures. This build wouldn't feature an extra world like Falskaar or Wyrmstooth, I think that's too much. Hunterborn will also be put back on the list. Wish there was a good dog overhaul, but Barbas is excellent.

I'd like to stick with Adept difficulty. What I'll do is take the mods I have now and start sorting out their load orders here first, by reading descriptions and figuring out compatibility. I'll end up using BOSS or LOOT, but it is good to know how to do it on your own as well. I heard one was obsolete now?

[Skyrimnut]

Originally posted by Mumbles:

I just switched from Immersive Settlements to Expanded Towns & Cities - and I'm loving it! Bringing it up because there are homes to buy in most of the villages that I've seen so far. Deciding where to live is so much harder now?!

PS: I put that mod on my list. Very cool. I've always wanted to live in Dawnstar.