Using Steam version of Nehrim with non-Steam Oblivion

[Bad Haired Sam]

I have played Nehrim before using the non-Steam version of both Nehrim and Oblivion, however I would like to play again with some of the more recently released updates and mods. One of the mods (specifically Nehrim Gameplay Overhaul) requires the Steam version of Nehrim (I think because it relies on translation.esp which the non-Steam version does not have) and so I have been trying to figure out how to get the Steam version of Nehrim to work with the non-Steam version of Oblivion GOTY Edition that I own, so far without success.

After doing a bit of digging, I think the answer is that the Steam version of Nehrim only works with the Steam version of Oblivion, but I figured I'd ask here just in case anyone had managed to get it working with the non-Steam version of Oblivion. If anyone has succeeded at this then information on how you managed it would be appreciated, as would a definitive it is/isn't possible to make it work answer from a dev.

[Bad Haired Sam]

So it turns out it is possible after all. The issue I was having was caused by me forgetting to install disc 2 which has the DLCs and patches. In case someone else finds themselves having problems getting Nehrim to work with a non-Steam copy of Oblivion, here is the installation method;

-Make sure Oblivion is patched to version 1.2.0416. If using the Game of the Year Edition then as long as you install both discs you will have the correct version
-Install Nehrim via Steam
-Use NehrimInstallSwitch.exe to activate Nehrim
-Copy and paste the Oblivion installation from the program files folder into programfiles/steam/steamapps/common/Oblivion and overwrite all files
-Open the Nehrim Launcher in the steamapps/common/Oblivion folder, go to settings, select the Special tab, and check the Launch via OBSE box
-Press launch Nehrim and the game will run
-If you intend to install mods for Nehrim, make sure you redirect the mod manager you are using to use the game files found in programfiles/steam/steamapps/common/Oblivion, and that it launches the game using OBSE.exe

[[CU] Dolphin]

it's been a couple of months, but I would like to ask if the game still has constant crashes when using this method.

[Bad Haired Sam]

Game stability for me varies. I have some additional mods installed which may contribute to crashes, but generally the game will crash for one of three reasons;

1. The game has been open for a long time.
2. The game cell the I am in has stability issues. (You'll spot this if you have repeated crashes in the roughly the same location)
3. I alt-tabbed out of the game and it ♥♥♥♥ itself. (It will do this 1/4 times you alt-tab, so save every time you do it)

I can't tell you how stable a vanilla installation will be with this method, however with my modded installation the game will remain stable for at least 30 minutes outside of bad cells and most of the time for over 60 minutes. My main piece of advice would be to manually save frequently, making a new save each time in case of save corruption (Oblivion is a Bethesda game after all). The game will crash from time to time, but it boots up very quickly and if you save often you will lose very little progress.

[Luko]

If I remember correctly, as I tried to install Nehrim from Steam there was a message that no valid Oblivion files were found or so, I don´t remember the words (months ago), and this was after I installed the Oblivion GOTY from CD 1+2.
What´s the different, I mean why did it run for you ? Any idea?

[Bad Haired Sam]

When I installed Nehrim it created an Oblivion folder in steamapps/common which contained Oblivion.exe and nothing else. What I'm guessing is that when you tried to install Nehrim it looked for the Oblivion files, found none, and so failed to install.

I would suggest you make a folder for Oblivion in steamapps and copy the Oblivion game files into that directory, and then try to install Nehrim.

[Luko]

Makes sense. In the meanwhile I have purchased the steam version of Oblivion for pennies and so it´s all well, but the mechanic is interesting maybe for future installations of other games.
And tu for your reply.