Installing Vortex Mod Manager on Steam Deck - No PC Needed

This is a step-by-step guide on how to install Vortex mod manager on the Steam Deck without needing a PC!

Intro

Hey Everyone!

I got a Steam Deck and am a HUGE Skyrim fan but vanillaRim just hasn't aged well. There are too many mods I just can't play without. Modding Skyrim has been a huge pain, modding on PC then moving files over and hoping it works. Like many others I got frustrated and I always keep my eye out for better ways. Well now Sonic2kk[github.com] came up with a method with to get it to work natively on the Steam Deck and Pikdum[github.com] was amazing and put it all in one simple self extracting tool to make it easy to install and use.

So I've been working with this for a while now and I wanted to share and hopefully help others. Here are some links to my Nexus Collections [next.nexusmods.com] page with mods I've gotten to make the game looks great and perform well if you want to use them. Here's a new Discord[discord.gg] (at https://discord.gg/SD49Aa7a87 ) I made and here are my two Reddit posts for SkyrimMods and SteamDeck , and a YouTube tutorial for visual learners. Hope it helps!

NOTE: I did not make any of these mods or tool. I'm just passing on the info!

Installation

• You MUST run Skyrim normally on your Steam Deck without mods first for game to create all folders needed. Just start a new game and quit.
  
• Some of the BIGGEST FPS improvements you get is by lowering the graphics settings on the game itself. Run the original game launcher (will pop up when you run regular/vanilla game), tap/click Options and check windowed fullscreen and borderless, set the game to aspect ratio to 16:10 Widescreen and resolution to 1280x800. Change your Detail to HIGH. (Default is Ultra.) On your PC you can leave this defaulted at Ultra settings to play your Steam Deck game in higher res when playing on PC.
  
• Switch the Steam Deck into Desktop Mode
  
• Open a browser on the Steam Deck and Download SKSE [skse.silverlock.org], unzip and paste all files and folders into same folder as the Skyrim.exe. Normally somewhere like ./home/deck/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/common/Skyrim Special Edition/
  
• Go to Pikdum's Github[github.com] and under the Install section, right click (LB or left trackpad click) on his link and "save as", name it install.desktop and save it (Download folder is fine).
  
• Open the new file and execute it. This is going to do a lot of things. Just let it run. It may take a while, maybe 3-5 minutes but less than 10.
  It adds a Skyrim Post-Deploy shortcut to desktop which needs to be run every time after you change/install mods in Vortex.
  
• After everything is done, open Vortex from the icon on the Desktop.
  
• You will need to manually set the location of where Skyrim game is. Use either the J: or K: drives > Skyrim Special Edition
  (J: is internal storage games, K: is sd card games)
  
• Vortex will pop up some warnings about staging location and deployment method. Just walk through their fixes.
  (Staging folder needs to be on the same drive as the game.)
  The suggested path works here.
  Deployment method should be hardlinks.
  
• You can go to Nexus Mods[www.nexusmods.com] and download a mod or my collection here [next.nexusmods.com] and then it'll ask if you want to associate Vortex with this type of file, say yes, every time.
  
• You'll need to associate mods to open with Vortex in an additional pop-up (it may be behind the browser window) scroll to the bottom and select Vortex.
  
• In Vortex, tap Dashboard, find and tick Enable Toolbar to add tools to the top of Vortex. Don't forget to run FNIS in Vortex after every actor/character change and run Bodyslide to get physics working.
  
  
• Once your mods are downloaded and done, on the desktop run the shortcut Skyrim Post-Deploy which again NEEDS TO BE RUN EVERY TIME after you change/install mods in Vortex before playing Skyrim.
  
• Switch back to Gaming Mode and enjoy! No Proton version needs to be selected.
  
  **NOTE: Clicking *Open on Nexus Mods* to bring a mod's Nexus page up doesn't seem to pop up a browser. You'll have to search manually. Glitch in Pikdum's tools.**

Uninstall

• Open Dolphin (file explorer), and click/tap the 3 lines in the upper right and make sure "Show Hidden Files" is checked.\Then Delete:
  
• rm -rf ~/.pikdum/
  
• remove vortex
  
• rm -rf ~/.vortex-linux/
  
• rm -rf ~/.local/share/applications/vortex.
  
• manually remove desktop icons
  
  If you have an older install:
  
• Open Dolphin (file explorer), and click/tap the 3 lines in the upper right and make sure "Show Hidden Files" is checked.\Then Delete:
  
• .pikdum folder (Found at home/deck/.pikdum/ )
  
• Desktop shortcuts
  
• Files "pikdum-vortecx.desktop" and "vortex-steamtinkerlauncher-dl.destop" (found at home/deck/.local/share/applications/ )
  
• stl folder (found at /home/deck/stl/ )
  
• steamtinkerlaunch folder (found at home/deck/~/.config/steamtinkerlaunch
  

Troubleshooting

Join my Discord[discord.gg] for live help ( https://discord.gg/SD49Aa7a87 )!
• Mod staging folder and game must be on the same drive (internal or SD card).
  
• ISSUE: Vortex wont open after installation.
  FIX: Go to /home/Deck/.Pikdum/steam-deck-master/vortex and run install-vortex.desktop. It'll reinstall Vortex (won't erase your mods).
  
• ISSUE: Running install.destop and it opens but doesn't do anything
  FIX: right click on it and choose execute. If you dont have that option open up a folder (in Dolphin). Main Menu -> Settings -> Configure Dolphin -> General -> Confirmations Check YES to "Ask for confirmation when: Executing scripts or desktop files" and you will have a choice again to execute or edit a .desktop file as you wish.
  
• ISSUE: Error that a mod/FNIS didn't download right on Steam Deck.
  FIX: Select continue, usually works anyway. Worse case go to NexusMods[www.nexusmods.com] and redownload.
  
• ISSUE: Game works with Alternate Start but it crashes after you use the bed
  FIX: Try disabling Faster HDT-SMP and HDT-SMP, or any skeleton mods.

Thanks

Hope this helps others! And again a HUGE shout out and thank you to Sonic2kk[github.com] and Pikdum[github.com]!!!




By buying me a coffee :) [ko-fi.com]

[Weszles]

@xy I have the same issue, and I tried and was able to troubleshoot it mostly:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3474212979

[xy]

I downloaded some essential mods and start a new game, the dragon on the loading screen is purple, seems to be a texture loss, then game crashed. anyone has any idea what's happening?

[Halfshell]

Would you know why when after running the game, modding programs still cannot detect my SSE installation on Steamdeck?

[astromedia.only]

@Strout
Thanks, I got it running after all (had to do indeed some extra steps + disable some problematic things I think) but that huge loading time was surprising and not plesantly ... Im glad Im not the only one having it so its global issue.
I did tryed another mod pack that is lighter recently but it was also not that easy to setup (and had some ctds from start) so now Im in slow process to create my own. Collections are great idea but sadly there seems to be still lot of volatile things in them too.
Also atm Im having issue with pikdum it self - it seems it works after install but as soon as vortext updates it self automatically without giving me option to do so and I have to restart it just borks it self completely and will never start again (before atleast steamdeck restart helped altough it being anoying too) so I guess I will take some break from tweaking my collection before those tools settle more I guess.

[OasisAvatar]

@Leonard1776 short answer is yes. It would be simplest if you installed Skyrim to that SD card via your Deck and them modded it on your Windows PC by having Vortex find it and mod it, then put the SD card back in the Deck. Basically it would be easiest if everything was on the SD card, but the Deck and Windows Vortex need to know it there.

[Leonard1776]

If I installed some mod on game (located on SD-card) , using Vortex through my Windows-11 PC , then add this card to Steam deck & run game on it (without using Vortex) , will mod will work on Steam deck ?

[Strout]

@astromedia.only
I got Gates to Sovngarde working with this guide. I had to take a few extra steps in Protontricks though AND let the game loading the mainmenu for like 20 or more minutes... actually gave up on it and just let it running, and suddenly while doing something else, I heard Skyrims menumusic^^

For the Protontricks part, a guide in GTS-Discord helped.
https://discord.com/channels/902984082181484615/1277622611215519857/1277623491159658497
Step 12 and 14 of the todos on the Steam Deck got in running for me. Maybe with taking the extra steps described there, the game would also run on decent FPS with GTS-Modcollection installed.

A great guide here anyway. Like how straight forward it was!

[astromedia.only]

This gives me hope it will work nicely one day ... tho it works fine in general mods are not that tolerant in some cases (had to install vcredist extra to get some working and it was still not enough to get Gate to Sovnguard modpack to working state sadly ... if somebody achieves this using this tutorial let me know how ... atm it just crashes for me on loading the menu of the game or something at start after long time no see anything :/ ) ... I was just hoping to install one pack and just play but it seems its not that stable yet sadly and I did fallen in even larger rabbit hole trying to fix it than with my VR setup ... thanks for the tutorial tho - its most streamlined one so far and some pack not working is not really its fault :)

[(Obese) Legal Raven]

@Keit99 Tf are you talking about? I wouldn't be caught dead using that overrate PoS. LOL

[OasisAvatar]

Further/faster help, join my Discord under #vortex-help.
https://discord.gg/SD49Aa7a87