Linux Users: ModOrganizer, any tips?

[oak]

I'm super comfortable using Linux, have done for decades in general and server use, but have only been gaming on it for the last 9 months. I can't for the life of me get ModOrganizer working with it and it's really bugging me :)

Anyone on Linux in this community using ModOrganizer and feel like helping out with some instructions to get it off the ground?

I feel like I'm missing just some simple Proton based element, but every guide I've looked at does it differently, so there's no consistent help. It's the one thing from migrating my gaming experience over to linux that hasn't been straightforward. Not only do I want to try some new mods in Skyrim, but I'd prefer to use MO to mod Starfield if possible.

[Silverlight]

I usually mod manually on Linux.

When I do use MO2 I tend to use this Linux centered release of it

https://github.com/rockerbacon/modorganizer2-linux-installer

Project hasn't updated for Starfield as far as I can tell yet.
But that makes sense, starfield is still a beta feature of MO2 , or was until very recently.

If you want to do install mo2 manually I'd grab the version that does work with starfield and attempt to follow this video:

https://www.reddit.com/r/linux_gaming/comments/zwz87d/how_to_install_mod_organizer_2_without_using/

I thumbed through it . I've never tried this method myself, but it's only a year old and claims that all you need is steam and Mo2.

~~Silverlight

[oak]

Thanks. I realised I've started that video before, but ran out of stamina about half way through. It's 44 minutes and geared to cover all the basics for someone pretty green with Linux, I think. Not to say that's a criticism, I just struggled :)

Watching again, (and there's some specifics, which for the sake of the sanity of others in the future I might just bullet point list out when I've got it sorted) it seems to boil down to: install MO2 inside the games prefix, launch Proton directly from shell pointing towards the prefix installed to. I think I can make it launch from Steam rather than having to create scripts/shortcuts etc to launch (I'm lazy, I like launching all the games one spot if possible). I mean, MO2's a simple proposition, right? it just needs to operate inside the right prefix so it has access to the right usr data and game data.

...I just need to workout how to add a non-steam game to steam and force it to use an already existing prefix (which I'm sure I'll find with google shortly, I'm thinking worst case I probably have to hand edit a json file somewhere or something similar).

ed: or I may cave and try the script :p

[oak]

Well, 2.4.4 with Skyrim - success.
2.5.# (the version that supports Starfield) with Starfield - failure.

Manual installation for now it is.

Looks like to get MO2 2.5 to work with linux requires wine 9, which proton hasn't moved to yet.

[oak]

2.4.4 with a plugin to allow it to use Starfield with basic functionality plus a starfieldcustom.ini file (to allow archiveinvalidation) plus SFSE plus a plugins.ini enabler plus a plugins.ini file, and now I have MO2 working with Starfield with SFSE and all my mods work.

Took a while because this v of MO2 isn't Starfield aware and the plugin to allow it is NQR (no disrespect to the person who created it). So the starfieldcustom.ini isn't being read from the one I'd already created, even though it uses save files from that location, and I beat my head against the wall trying to get plugins to work, in desperation I put an SFSE/Plugins folder everywhere and something finally clicked. I'll work out the paths required tomorrow (sleep now), though it's quite possibly only needed until Proton pulls Wine 9 and then MO2 2.5.1 (or whatever it'll be by then) should work.

Time for a fresh playthrough with nice colour LUTs, correctly levelled mannequins, a decent torch, starui hud and inventory, and the community patch.

[_oBSOLEte_]

Proton tricks and use the windows executable with run exe in prefix.

[Sharps97]

Pretty sure Starfield currently cannot be modded (outside the built in creations feature) in Linux, especially using any form of a mod manager due to the way they spammed data files across multiple file paths that break every flatpack convention under the sun when attempting to use an actual manager (might be the reason why they did that in the first place)

[oak]

Originally posted by Sharps97:

Pretty sure Starfield currently cannot be modded (outside the built in creations feature) in Linux, especially using any form of a mod manager due to the way they spammed data files across multiple file paths that break every flatpack convention under the sun when attempting to use an actual manager (might be the reason why they did that in the first place)

I'm using MO2 with a mix of about 50 Creations (I've downloaded with the game, then taken the files from Override and created a mod in MO so I can manage them there) and 120 other mods, comes to approx 150 plugins all told.

I've been using MO2 under Linux to manage mods for Starfield since the end of Jan 2024, and it had some quirks for the first 6 months but was very usable.

The first big fix was Proton switching to Wine 9 (via Proton Beta) in Feb 2024.
Then MO2 updated to 2.5.2 (RC1 in Jul 24, full release end of Aug 24) and ironed out issues adding Creations support. It's been smooth sailing since then.

The only hold out for my gaming/moding (in fact day to day) life on Linux is I still can't get Creation Kit to operate. Pretty sure if I swapped my Nvidia GPU out for a Radeon it'd sort out my CK issues.
General modding though, no different to Windows now :)

ed: I don't have to create manageable mods from the Creations - MO2 plays fine with Creations enabled in-game as well. I just do it because I'm being pedantic about where the mod management happens, I prefer it all to be in MO2.

[Sharps97]

I'll have to take a look at MO2 then. I've spent a few weeks trying literally everything else to no avail.

[Sharps97]

Tried and failed. I opened a ticket for MO 2, but I think this might be a Mint interaction with Steam issue.