Modding Monster Hunter Rise Safely

A simple Guide about Modding Monster Hunter Rise safely

Foreword

I consider myself a "vanilla huntress" - a Monster Hunter player who does not use mods for various reasons. Mainly due to a strong antipathy towards mods which clearly must be considered cheats. But I love mods in general, as I see so much good in them.

By the day this guide got updated it feels so long ago since I wrote that ~ nowadays I am enjoying visual mods so much, that I cannot consider myself a "vanilla huntress" anymore...

Originalmente postado por Myself "On the Matter of Mods" - Advanced Tips and Tricks for Beginners:

I am convinced that any kind of game which allows mods is a great game, as they allow for more than just adjustments and fixes by third party providers. Mods allow a community to grow, to challenge the developers with user created community content and in the process keeping the game alive for many more years to come - way beyond a game's "natural" lifecycle. Mods are "limitbreakers" which can enhance your personal experience with a game.

Read the full text here with the sections
"On the Matter of Mods" and "Take into Consideration when Modding..." https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2717340432
In addition to that I had to learn more about modding Monster Hunter Rise for my Technical First Aid Guide while also helping fellow hunters on the forums with every kind of technical problem - which is also the reason why these guides of mine exist in the first place.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2755312447
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2763430311
By the end of the day, it is entirely up to you if you use any mods and which mods you like to use. Ii am here to give you some beginner tips on modding, how to do it as safely as possible.

For that matter I will only refer to mods which are available at no cost from the probably most popular and safe website for modding games: https://www.nexusmods.com/monsterhunterrise/mods/

I am certain that there are many more sources than just that, with patreons, discord communities (like this one[discord.gg]) and so on - but those are not risk free, hence the limitations to the website mentioned before.

I hope this guide helps you getting started properly with mods, safe and sound. While I might judge what mods are "good" or "bad" from my point of view, I will not judge what and whatnot you are going to use yourself. The most important about the game is that You are going to have fun, and this guide is only a hint giver to safe you from sort of disaster.

Happy Hunting!

Is it difficult?

In fact: it is easy to install mods for Monster Hunter Rise!
Once you understand the basics, it is a mere matter of copy & paste stuff and a little more.
You will also get to understand how and why it can be safe to use certain mods.

Disclaimer: Mod at Your own Risk!

While this guide is for giving you guidance how to mod the game safely, please keep in mind that any alterations in any kind, whether by adding objects to the game files or editing them, you doing them all with your personal risks. As there is no Steam Workshop and no official mod support by Capcom, the modding community is entirely a private matter in that regards.

While it is fully acceptable to apply workarounds and more to enhance you personal experience of the game, You must not do any harm to any third person by your doings in regards of modding Monster Hunter Rise. In doubt: refer to common sense.

I am personally convinced, if it was not for "bad mods" and "bad player behaviour", more Japanese game developers and publishers alike would be more open and supportive towards a modding community. We are after a win:win and great gaming experience after all!

Start with making a Backup

Whether you are going to edit certain files, use only wrappers, let a mod manager deal it or whatsoever: start always by making a backup of your save game!

Your save game you will find in

..\Steam\userdata\yourID\1446780\

Best you copy that whole folder, preferably to a different storage device or a cloud storage.

My Steam folder is located on a special SSD dedicated to games only. If you kept the default settings during installation of Steam, you might find yours at your OS storage drive within

C:\Program Files (x86)\

It would be something like this

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\yourID\1446780\

Make sure to look for your actual ID and not the template "yourID" in this example.

Personal Recommendation

Since release of the game there were several reports on the forums with players losing spontaniously their save game. Because of the issue I have been making regular backups myself, despite I have never been affected or using mods. For the purpose of modding the game I recommend to you to make a backup every time after you finished a game session, especially when you should decide to use mods which I do not consider safe.

Should disaster strikes you please refer to my other guide which has been tested with mods.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2743342837

Veteran's Tip

Some third party apps and mods, like REFramework e.g., create additional files as part of their installation and implementation. A screenshot of your Monster Hunter Rise game client's folder can help you identify which files are native to the game and which were added by the mod in case you need or want to remove them.



This screenshot shows the content which can be found with the game's directory folder with PC/Steam Version 12.0.0.0 of the game, including Sunbreak and paid DLCs

Handling Mods after Patches

This is as important as making backups!

A beginner mistake by players often made is, that they do not "disarm" mods after the game got patched. As in: uninstall / remove mods - best before instead of after - a game patch gets applied.

Mods do alter the game.

Think of it like a spare tire you have been using for your car model A. And then you get a new car. Unless it is the same or circumstances allow that there is compatibility, it is most likely that the same spare tire before which worked on your car model A will not work on your car model B - and not removing a mod is like keeping the spare tire for the model B car which can lead to disaster.

Since there is no guarantee that a mod which worked before will work flawlessly after patch, the best course of action is to free your game first from any mods, and have your game files verified.

An official manual how to verify your game's files can be found here:
https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=2037-QEUH-3335

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2828650446

After the patch the first thing you should do is re-visiting the websites and sources from where you got the mods. Mod authors who have pride in their work usually make sure that their creations will last for a very long time, and they will offer updated versions of their mods for making sure that no issues are to occur even with newer versions of the game.

Then you can reinstall your mods one after another, taking out any mods which are no longer working in the process.

!!! WARNING !!!

I write this now in short and in detail later - any mods which actually edit your save game's values (cheat mods) - might render your save game unusable with a patch. Due to this constant risk which has no solution due Steam's auto-update games without any rollback to older versions I highly recommend you stay away from those kind of mods (cheat mods).

My Definition of a Safe Mod

A safe mod in my books is a mod which

a) can be applied without editing existing game files

and

b) it can be removed safely without a trace

That means, should a patch for the game be released, but not a patch or updated version of the mod, that you will not lose your save game or anything like that, since there is no dependency built.

Imagine it like a comparison between clothings and a tattoo. One can be easily removed, the other... maybe not so easy or never, depending where you put it... I guess. (I do not have any tattoo, so the analogy might be lacking... )

The easiest mods for Monster Hunter Rise in that regards are mods which come as PAK files. Those mods are read by the game as extras, which instead of overriding existing files just claim priority.



The game's main files themselves are inside the re_chunk_000.pak file which you can find in your Monster Hunter Rise game's directory.

For me it is

..\SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\MonsterHunterRise

the path might differ depending on your Steam Library settings. Most people might find it in the default folder which is

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\MonsterHunterRise

On the screenshot you can see the re_chunk_000.pak.patch_XXX.pak files which are downloaded mods*. The game loads normal and then applies any file in that pattern as addition without actually changing any existing files.

These kind of mods you can delete any time without affecting your save game at all. More complex it becomes with script mods which needs a foundation or rely on a mod manager.

Veteran's Tip

When using PAK files, make sure the numbering chain is unbroken - otherwise they will not be loaded properly. As in: if you have 0,1,2,3,4,6,7 without the 5, only 0-4 will get loaded into your game. Mod managers can help you out a lot in not losing track of the mods you are using.

===================================
* Update Note: PC/Steam Version 12.0.0.0
With version 12.0.0.0 of Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, the developers have added an additional essential game file: re_chunk_000.pak.patch_001.pak
As you can see, the new native game file uses the file name which is previously used exclusively for mods. So new mods in PAK versions you add to the game are to be named starting with re_chunk_000.pak.patch_002.pak instead of re_chunk_000.pak.patch_000.pak
===================================

Dangerous Bad Mods

The game itself came at release with Denuvo, a DRM and anti-tampering software. In addition to that there is something which people refer as "sanity check". As in: the game checks itself for player objects (equipments) whether they can exist as they are or not.

Take for example talismans.
Talismans can have up to three decoration slots with 1x max Level 3, 1x max Level 2, 1x max Level 1. Or 3-2-1. That means talismans can have 3-2-1 / 2-2-1 / 2-1-1 / 1-1-1 as slots for decorations. Now cheaters might want a talisman with their skills of choice plus mayhaps 3x Level 3 decoration slots. Something which is absolutely impossible by normal means.

Since I have never cheated or try a cheat myself, I cannot tell for certain what happens under normal circumstances. So take the following information with proper caution.

a) your game might crash if it was not for additional mods which bypass the "sanity check"

b) your game will definitely crash when the game gets patched in the relevant files without an update for the mods

c) your game will randomly crash

d) you will certainly spoil the fun for others if you go with such cheated items into multiplayer

e) the game will keep crashing after you played multiplayer once

Such are the possibilities since only the cheater themselves will know for sure what values of the game they edited and how it might react with patches and multiplayer interactions.

There have been e.g. reports of players having issues after receiving Guild Cards from other players which is highly suspected to be related to cheats. Even when some files are not exchanged and only the host is affected, cheats will still spoil the fun for everyone. If you are okay with that, cheating through the game, please be considerate and do not affect others by keeping your game in singleplayer.

Extra

The majority of cheat mods with value editing etc., they come usually in more complex forms than just PAK files. However, there are some mods which are still considered cheats, despite they are in PAK form. E.g. a mod which would make it possible to have the whole selection of Daily Special Dango available all the time with a 100% activation rate. While those are still cheats, they usually do not affect others nor do they leave any trace behind when removed. While I am against those regardless, it is fair to mention that those mods can be safe to use. One of the more popular "harmless" and yet still cheat mods show icons of weaknesses of monsters, e.g.


Screenshot from the mod page

Due to the Steam rules I will not link ANY cheat mods. I condemn them and mention them here only for educational purposes. Remember: You mod on Your own risk!

Read the Manuals, Please

Whatever you do and whichever mod you like to use - please read the manuals written by the mod authors properly! That should be a matter of course, and yet there have been a significant number of mod users who reported at the forums issues which are mod related.


Excerpt of a mod manual to underline their importance

Should you ever have an issue with a mod: ASK THE MOD AUTHOR

It is not that there are zero mod users active on the Steam forums. But only if you ask the mod author directly on their mod page, you can be sure to have secure answer to your questions which will probably not break the game due to a misunderstanding.

It happened and happens just too often that a problem could not be solved because of missing information which the author of a mod more likely has. Plus, when you check their page for help, you also might find updates or give them a hint that their mod needs to be updated. That is, if you like the mod enough to share feedback, so you can continue using it in the future as well~

Workaround Mods

There is nothing I could or will say or write badly about these mods. Instead I tell you about my respect for the modding community and my dissapointment in Capcom, as these mods have solved issues for countless of players who would not be able to enjoy Monster Hunter Rise properly otherwise.

REFramework
https://www.nexusmods.com/monsterhunterrise/mods/26

Tip: make a screenshot of your game's folder, so you can tell later on which files are associated to the installed mod and you have an easy time to delete them - in doubt: no worries! If you ever accidently delete a file essential to the game, you just verify your files and it gets redownloaded.

DeviceStutterFix
https://www.nexusmods.com/monsterhunterrise/mods/137

RiseTweaks
https://www.nexusmods.com/monsterhunterrise/mods/37

Details about which kind of issues these mods adress you can find here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2755312447
It also happens that REFramework is the basis for many other mods, so you might not get around it to begin with.

Important Note

Among the workaround mods I mentioned RiseTweaks, which is a script to be used with REFramework. While it is quite helpful and fulfills the wishes of players to have better framerates with cutscenes e.g. I have to put a warning here.

REFramework scripts are commonly known to cause issues in Multiplayer, specifically desynchronisation issues which leads to stuttering, short freezes, and disconnects. No matter how harmless a script might look like, no matter if it is supposed to only affect you and even if it is not active - as long as REFramework is having a script (LUA file) in its autorun folder you might experience issues. Therefore, please use the recommendation for RiseTweaks with care and preferably in Singleplayer only. Plugins like the DeviceStutterFix on the other hand seem not to affect Multiplayer and can be used safely.

Tip: REFramework for Screenshots

REFramework
https://www.nexusmods.com/monsterhunterrise/mods/26



Comes with an option to enable "free camera".
That allows you more freedom in taking screenshots.
I highly recommend this, especially for "Fashion Hunters".

Easy Mods to Start

Alongside the already mentioned and very well regarded Workaround Mods I see little to no harm in mods which change the presentation of certain armour. In fact, most of them are so easy, I would even consider them great mods for beginners to test how the PAK files work.


Screenshot by the mod author of Shapely Sonic Wear

This one e.g. is a mod for which you can simply download the PAK file and drop it into your game's folder. If you have no other mods used before, you can start right away without renaming the file even.

Shapely Sonic Wear
https://www.nexusmods.com/monsterhunterrise/mods/363

PAK vs. Mod Manager (e.g. Fluffy)

I prefer PAK files for adding mods to the game over using a mod manager. However, that is my personal preference to have less dependency and having full control* at the same time. But it is also clearly worth to mention that there are good reasons to use a mod manager like Fluffy Manager 5000, which is often mentioned as requirement for many mods.

How you want manage the mods you are using it is up to you by the end of the day. Since this guide is for beginners I think it is best to start with something easy where you actually just copy & paste a file over, and delete it when you are not satisfied.

Once you get a taste for mods, I am sure that a mod manager is the better choice for the long term in regards of comfort and convenience.

Especially when a mod like the Shapely Sonic Wear comes in several variants, just PAK files will not do without extra steps.

* Using PAK files allows me to maintain full control about the load order in the most easiest way in comparison to using the Fluffy Mod Manager which does not support a simple GUI for that - also, the PAK files are more resistant to patches. When the patch 10.0.2.0 -> 10.0.3.0 happened e.g. a lot of players were reporting issues again which originated in them not having uninstalled their mods via Fluffy first (Fluffy warns everyone about that on their author's page).
Those who used PAK files only were totally unaffected.

About Overlays

Now some might be interested in such stuff like seeing monsters' health bars and more, considering there is a "mod" which was famous with Monster Hunter: World which also got a version for Monbster Hunter Rise.


A screenshot from a demo video on YouTube, which is provided by a mod author - the mods used here are extensive, as they show health bars, effects durations and monster vulnerability, etc.

Technically that very specific overlay is no mod but a third party app. In theory it is absolutely safe to use (as in: such will not break your save game), since it does not alter any game files but rather work on their own. Similar to the Steam overlay or GeForce Experience e.g.

However, since those are third party apps, make sure to check them thoroughly and install them only when you trust the source, as there are different risks involved in such.

Afterword

I hope I could show you with this guide, that it is easy to install mods and enjoy the game safely.

As long as you follow the basics, like making regular backups and understanding how the mods work, you will be able to avoid disaster and enjoy the game to the fullest, regardless if or which mods you use by the end of the day.

I shall continue to enjoy the game as "vanilla huntress". But I have to admit: the layered armour stuff and screenshot helper - I do appreciate having them and might use them more often in the future. After all: what matters is you having fun with the game.

Enjoy and Happy Hunting!