Best texture overhauls?

[Albatr0se]

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[s.turner3030]

Define best, as everybody will have different views on what the best means.

[Albatr0se]

Originally posted by s.turner3030:

Define best, as everybody will have different views on what the best means.

Well, I need multiple opinions.

[Hypertext Eye]

Originally posted by Albatr0se:

Originally posted by s.turner3030:

Define best, as everybody will have different views on what the best means.

Well, I need multiple opinions.

There are as many different opinions as there are texture overhauls.

[mikk011]

The top mods in the Models and Textures category (sorted by either Downloads or Endorsements) at nexusmods.com like the Cathedral series, Skyland, Noble Skyrim, Vivid Landscapes or Pfuscher's retexes are all good (I've used parts of Noble for as long as I've been using Special Edition). Pick whatever appeals to you the most. https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/categories/29

Pretty much everybody uses Static Mesh Improvement Mod as a foundation mod and allows it to be overwritten in a case by case basis. If you are good at managing your overwrites, you can even use more than one overhaul, though that's pretty inefficient.

Edit: I just looked at your screenshots, you look like you already have a good handle on selecting mods. Keep doing what you are already doing; otherwise, you might want to consult a guide or video series if you are trying for some thematically consistent look.

[Fear2288]

Skyland AIO + the individual Skyland releases are a great “starter set” for most architecture, environment, and object textures (no weapons/armor). They up the quality but without being too demanding on performance, and while it uses many new textures (not just upscaled vanilla ones) Skyland specifically tries to keep everything rather close to Bethesda’s original vision/design/aesthetic.

Noble Skyrim is a classic retexture for architecture but one that’s managed to remain in most peoples’ mod lists due to its quality:performance ratio (like Skyland). Many people will use Noble Skyrim as a “base” upon which they then add other specific retextures on top of.

Currently, I’m in love with the Vanaheimr series of environmental retextures and others done by a guy named Cl3mus. They’re noticeably more performance heavy than something like Skyland but they look fantastic. The only gripe I have is that he didn’t really do much to make ore veins distinguishable from regular rock textures - meaning that you really have to keep a keen eye out for ore veins or use another mod like the one that makes them glow.

For weapons/armor there are three which could be considered “the best” by most.

aMidianborn Book of Silence and Rustic Clothing are like Noble Skyrim - they've been around for quite a long time, but have remained the best weapon, armor, and clothing retextures due to their increased quality, low performance impact, and for mostly sticking to the vanilla colors, designs, styles.

However, Xavbio’s series of retextures have more-or-less dethroned aMidianborn and Rustic Clothing. Xavbio’s further increases the quality (at the cost of also increasing performance impact), largely sticks to the vanilla aesthetic, and even gives you alternative stylistic options for some sets.

Xavbio has also done similar retextures for popular mods like the Oblivion Artifact Pack, Helgen Reborn, Unslaad, Vigilant, Glenmoril, Moonpath to Elswehyr, and Immersive Armors as well as the CC content (though he hasn’t done Saints and Seducers yet, he’s working on it now and supposedly that will be his last retexture mod but I hope he’ll consider doing Vicn’s latest mod Dac0da).

Creatures and monsters are a bit more piece meal. There aren’t very many AIO retextures for them and it’s more about assembling a bunch of individual, specific mods made by various creators.

[Hypertext Eye]

Originally posted by Fear2288:

Creatures and monsters are a bit more piece meal. There aren’t very many AIO retextures for them and it’s more about assembling a bunch of individual, specific mods made by various creators.

I use fluffworks for things that should be fluffy. Not a texture mod but better imo. Plus there a patches to make it work with certain texture mods.

[Fear2288]

Originally posted by Hypertext Eye:

Originally posted by Fear2288:

Creatures and monsters are a bit more piece meal. There aren’t very many AIO retextures for them and it’s more about assembling a bunch of individual, specific mods made by various creators.

I use fluffworks for things that should be fluffy. Not a texture mod but better imo. Plus there a patches to make it work with certain texture mods.

I REALLY wish that Fluffworks was modular. I don’t like the fluffy horses. I mean, I guess the creator wanted to make them look like certain real-world Icelandic and Scandinavian breeds which are rather fluffy/fuzzy, but I prefer the “temperate” horse look (short, flat-looking fur).

I guess I could go in via xEdit and delete the horse-related files but I’m not sure how easy that would be (sometimes doing such a thing is really easy, sometimes it’s not).


On the topic of creatures though…

Personally, I’m a fan of Mandragorasprouts’ Falmer and Draugr remodels/retextures, 4thUnknown’s remodel/retextures of dragons, skeletons, spriggans, and fire atronachs (I don’t like his ape trolls), Bears of the North, Wolves of Skyrim, KrittaKitty’s horses, MM’s Realistic Elks, ones that add fluff shell texturing to foxes and rabbits, and a few other specific retextures I can’t recall the names/makers of.

[Death Approaches]

when talking "best" we also have to address parallax... complex parallax textures really change how the game looks; more than higher resolution textures do. bump maps become truly 3D appearing, so a rock on the ground that's not actually modeled sure as hell looks like it was, woodgrain on a door actually has crags and cracks, the iron hasp and the pin the nails it to the door actually has dimension, that changing angle of viewer makes it seem a 3D modeled solid object.

if you're looking to replace game textures because you want a "best" scenario, you got to consider parallax textures, and all the mods that enable that too, which is another set of things to deal with, and a way to see this glorious thing, either reshade or community shaders - I highly recommended CS with all the current modules, btw, which are about 10 but especially skylighting, global illumination with ambient occlusion, subsurf scattering, water, wet, etc. just install all of them - it really changes the game's appearance and makes it seem like a much more recent game, only problem is, you need a real GPU with some horsepower and copious amount of available VRAM (can be done under 8GB but not everything, and probably not full GI resolution, and that's at 1080), same as reshade & enb would. it's definitely worth the framerate hit if you have the power and resources to see it in all it's glory.

[𝑲]

Try them all, every texture for terrain and people, buildings and sky, dirt puffs and water drops. Trust me on this. Two+ days comparing textures. It will improve your life. You will emerge into the outside world eventually and be stunned by the parallax on the gravel.

[Hypertext Eye]

Originally posted by Death Approaches:

(snip)

I'm a big fan of PBR textures. If something has a PBR texture mod, that's what I'm using.

[matt]

If you're looking for an all-in-one texture pack, Skyrim 202X[www.nexusmods.com] is probably the best if you have a good gaming PC. There are better choices if you have a potato PC.

[Bad Distraction Carnifex]

Skyland + Skyland Bits n Bobs (PBR addons too unless you use ENB and use Community Shaders) + BnP skins (with the RVS add-ons) are the basics.

Textures for armors n whatnot are all personal, really but imo you don't get much better than Skyland PBR textures overall.

[Doom Sayer]

https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/68307
Downscaled. Also its a good download for everyone as a start then overwriting over it. Smaller res also means smaller file which matters since nexus has slowest download speed of any website that currently exists.