Vital mods to make game fun?

[Turbcool]

Just bought X3 AP. Could you guys suggest any mods that will enchance the experience? Because vanilla game seems dull.

Gameplay is very cool, but the graphics and interface are the things i wish to make better.

[Kreon91 [GER]]

one script is essential - Bounce

[Ketraar]

There are no vital mods, everyone telling you otherwise is misleading you. The Bonuspackage (free DLC on the store page) has many quality of life scripts that are signed and thus vanilla safe. They are usefull especially mid to late game.

As per usual I sugest you play vanilla and get a feeling of teh game, it will help you realize the things you'd prefer different or what suits your personal play style. Then go out and look for mods/scripts that change these things.

There are hardly 2 people that play the same X game.

MFG

Ketraar

[RandomDude]

I dunno if there are any interface-improving mods. The x series has always been like that. Lots of menus etc.

Using software like Community Logistics will help automate repetetive commands though.

[Fedora01]

Well, if you want to add a little (or lot) of chaos into your game you could try Improved Races 2.0 with Yaki Armada 2 and Pirate Guild 3 (with Anarkis Defence Systems). But ultimately it's up to you :) good luck.

[Vermy]

XRM is fun, LU is amazing, Mayhem + LU is also interesting. A lot to choose from.

[DrSuperEvil]

There are also mods that allow sector ownership to change between major races.

[Turbcool]

Thank you guys for all the advices!
For now i just installed XRM + IEX (with bonus pack) and enjoying it so far.
Later, i would try LU+Mayhem as it seems a good combat-oriented combination.

[Goat]

if you dont like the graphics and interface you should try the first x3..(reunion)

[Kreon91 [GER]]

I've tried the big ones and would go for the one with gameplay you like the most. The interface can't be modded much and is mostly the same for all of them. But you get better control over your ships with new commands and menus.

-Xtended or XRM if you mainly seek new content and stuff to see. The engine is a little bit stressed though and performance is not great. I can't remember their balancing philosophies, but i had the feeling that XRM combat was overall faster paced and was designed primarily for direct combat control (dogfighting).

- Go for Litcubes if you don't need the story, but want a more polished game. Less bugs, better performance, very heavy rebalancing of ships and weapons (mostly for the better in my opinion). Combat feels strangely slow in the beginning (heavy weapons fire like 2 times per minute). But this is required for performance (less particles) - LU supports much larger battles than vanilla and has a better framerate.
It also comes with many tools to handle a big empire. But building such an empire feels a bit like a gimmick and the game can be mostly played like vanilla. You can optionally have two "endboss" enemy factions.
LU streamlines nearly everything and some of the more exotic things like ammunation based cannons are completely cut from the game. You will also notice that many of your favourite vanilla ships with exceptional characteristics got heavily debuffed. Everything is nice and balanced, without big bumps or ditches. This could annoy some people.
Just don't forget: NEVER use random vanilla mods with LU or bunnies will die !!!

- Mayhem takes the balance and fixes from LU, puts LUs empire management features to good use, applies it's own little rebalancing (for example a debuffed player with slower strafing speed) and ultimately creates an interesting blend with a strategy game. It is like playing a slower version of Sins of a Solar Empire from the perspective of a single pilot with the ability to influence fleet battles. Basicaly Joubarbe created his own genre here :-)
The empire building part is vital from the beginning and you have to expand to survive in the long run as you need military stuff to repel enemies that directly jump fleets into your sectors while having limited options to get military stuff in the first place (no ships sold, limited amounts of equipment sold). Therefore you have to produce everything yourself. You need to claim new territory to expand your economy which can bring you into conflict with other factions too.
Of all mods above Mayhem gameplay differs the most from vanilla. It is also harder than the others. If your military capability doesn't grow, your enemies will overwhelm you. The player ship alone, as tough as it may be, is no match for the opposition you will face here ;-)

[Winking Wizard]

First and foremost, no mods are essentials. Even the official bonus pack as you'll always find ways around it. I thought bounce was essential until I ran a vanilla game for achievements.

But a lot of mods help while not breaking the game. Bounce and the official bonus pack, for example, remove a lot of your potential frustrations while not altering anything stat-wise.

[Diemex]

I'd say the cycrow (sp) cheat scripts are essential. mainly to help get you around bugs that may trip you up and halt your progress.

Anything beyond that is subjective to each individual.

Personally I'm playing with XRM only on a fresh install. But this will be my 3rd playthrough... so I'm specifically looking for some new content.