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General discussionMod Spotlight: Fallout 3, New Vegas, and TES IV: Oblivion(98 posts)(98 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted June 02, 2017
Transform, expand, and customize these modern classics.

Few games would dream to match the ridiculous variety and accessibility of mods that these three games can provide. The sheer volume of what's available online is staggering and can be rather overwhelming for someone who's not willing to spend days figuring out what to use and how.

Luckily, our very own tinkerer extraordinaire has prepared this comprehensive guide on how to get started and which projects to focus on, depending on your needs and your will to experiment.
The floor is yours, Thiev.

Finally, we've made it! <span class="bold">Fallout 3</span>, <span class="bold">New Vegas</span>, and <span class="bold">TES IV: Oblivion</span> are here on GOG.com and you can't wait to start messing with them. Everything you'll need can be found in the enormous catalog that the fine folk over at Nexus Mods have put together. Fun fact: that place was originally called The Elder Scrolls Nexus, and it mostly hosted Morrowind and Oblivion projects.

However, before you even look at a single mod out there, be sure that you are familiar with modding tools and the process overall. There are excellent guides to be found and we strongly suggest that you go through them at least once (<span class="bold">Fallout 3 example</span>, <span class="bold">Oblivion example</span>, <span class="bold">Wrye Bash guide</span>). Now that you know what NMM, FOMM, FOMOD, OMOD and BAIN stand for, you are ready to proceed into the fun part!

Let’s start with the ESSENTIALS.
For all three games, make sure to grab a corresponding Script Extender - <span class="bold">OBSE</span>, <span class="bold">FOSE</span> or <span class="bold">NVSE</span>. These little pieces of hard coding and magic are absolutely essential for some more advanced plugins out there. For a little bit more stability, be sure to read about and grab ENBoost CTD / Memory patch (<span class="bold">TES4</span>, <span class="bold">FO3</span>, <span class="bold">FNV</span>) as well as Stutter Remover plugins (<span class="bold">TES4</span>, <span class="bold">FO3</span>, <span class="bold">FNV</span>).

Next come the Unofficial Patches.
Over the years, the games' dedicated community has done an excellent job of ironing out the bugs and significantly improving the overall experience. Here's the whole set for Oblivion (<span class="bold">#1</span>, <span class="bold">#2</span>, <span class="bold">#3</span>), the <span class="bold">UPDATED Unofficial Fallout 3 Patch</span> and the <span class="bold">Yukichigai Unofficial Patch</span> for New Vegas.

With those pesky bugs out of the way, perhaps it's now time to tweak the original interface a bit if you find the original one inconvenient. <span class="bold">DarNified UI</span> and Vanilla UI Plus (<span class="bold">FO3</span> / <span class="bold">FNV</span>) are excellent candidates for this, so be sure to check them out first. If you're planning on fiddling with the interface of both Fallout games or having more mods with custom menu functions, start with UIO - User Interface Organizer (<span class="bold">FO3</span> / <span class="bold">FNV</span>) and go from there.

Now time for some visual upgrades.
Oblivion is the oldest of the three, so best to start there. What you need is a graphics extender that overcomes the limitations of the time, adds some snazzy shaders, and tops it off with a healthy serving of visual effects. Don't need to take our word for it, just go to the <span class="bold">Oblivion Reloaded</span> page and check out the screens. Then grab the mod. Preferably together with <span class="bold">Really AEVWD</span> to make gazing at objects far away in the horizon less awkward.

Want some more eye-candy? There are texture packs for everything out here (like rocks, yes rocks). It’s always a matter of taste, but we suggest you check out <span class="bold">Qarl's Texture Pack III Redimized</span> for Oblivion, <span class="bold">NMCs Texture Pack for FO3</span> or <span class="bold">POCO BUENO Texture Pack</span> for New Vegas.

If you want to take things a little further in the visual makeover department, you can. For example, before you can get lost in the world of Oblivion, you might want to make its rich environments even richer. That’s where <span class="bold">Unique Landscapes Compilation</span>, <span class="bold">Better Cities</span> and <span class="bold">Weather - All Natural</span> come in.

Are you more into the Capital Wasteland of Fallout 3? Check out <span class="bold">DCInteriors Project</span>, <span class="bold">Fallout Street Lights</span> (and it’s <span class="bold">Wasteland counterpart</span>) or <span class="bold">Fellout</span>, instead. And while you're at it, grab <span class="bold">GNR Enhanced</span> - you'll be thankful for all these extra radio tracks during the countless hours of exploration ahead of you.

Perhaps you are in the mood for a trip under the scorching sun of the Mojave Desert. Then grab <span class="bold">New Vegas Restoration</span>, <span class="bold">NVInteriors Project </span> or <span class="bold">New Vegas Uncut - Freeside Open</span>.
Not everyone knows this, but all the quest names in Fallout New Vegas are based on old songs. Rumor has it that there is a mod floating about called Secret Stash, and it adds all those missing songs and more to the New Vegas Radio. Unfortunately, it is no longer available for official download, but anyone resourceful enough to survive the Wasteland will surely be able to dig something up.

Last but not least, an honorary mention should be made of <span class="bold">Tale of the Two Wastelands</span>, despite it still being in its alpha stage. It's a huge undertaking, aiming to bring both Fallout games into a single playable universe. Keep in mind, this mod is not compatible with the GOG version of the game yet, but it will be very soon.

Of course, this is hardly a complete list of all the quality mods that are floating out there. A good way to discover what's on offer is to head over to Nexus Mods and check the TOP lists for all three games: <span class="bold">Oblivion</span>, <span class="bold">Fallout 3</span> and <span class="bold">New Vegas</span>. Texture mods, lightning mods, weather mods, silly mods - with a bit of searching you will come across things you never knew you wanted added to your game and quite a few things you'll wish you could unsee.

Happy Modding!
Post edited June 02, 2017 by maladr0Id
Posted June 05, 2017
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masayersuk: You guys missed out morrowind which is a damn shame as it is definitely better with mods.
Mod spotlight for morrowind has been available since release in the elder scrolls subforum (where this topic should be migrated too as a sticky, it will disappear here).
Posted June 06, 2017
cool
Posted June 08, 2017
Shame these mod spotlights don't come with an idiot's guide to actually getting them working without 5000 crashes.
Posted June 08, 2017
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tammerwhisk: Shame these mod spotlights don't come with an idiot's guide to actually getting them working without 5000 crashes.
Making better guide than all the existing guides is pretty hard job - every mod out there comes with it's own little guide, the better ones with list of compatibilities and incompatibilities with other mods.

And honestly, the mods mentioned here are as conflict-free as you can get. Just download them and upack them into Oblivion/FO/FONV folder so that subfolders align (what is in Data/ in the archive belongs to Oblivion/Data/ when unpacked) in the order they are mentioned and you are good to go. Things only get more serious^Wcrashy when you go out of scope of this guide, which is... out of scope. I think you don't even need Wrye bash or obmm for anything mentioned in OP. Those tools are if you plan to go beyond this guide - try new mods, unistall them when you don't like them, try to solve conflicts when they happen...

Or just play vanilla, this isn't Morrowind where visual upgrades are almost mandatory, all three games look good enough even by today's standards. For my oblivion I only grabbed unofficial patch and darnified ui from this guide, rest I installed are gameplay mods where you are on your own anyway and HAVE to understand what you are doing.
Post edited June 08, 2017 by huan
Posted June 09, 2017
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tammerwhisk: Shame these mod spotlights don't come with an idiot's guide to actually getting them working without 5000 crashes.
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huan: Making better guide than all the existing guides is pretty hard job - every mod out there comes with it's own little guide, the better ones with list of compatibilities and incompatibilities with other mods.
I know, still wishful thinking doesn't hurt anyone.

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huan: And honestly, the mods mentioned here are as conflict-free as you can get. Just download them and upack them into Oblivion/FO/FONV folder so that subfolders align (what is in Data/ in the archive belongs to Oblivion/Data/ when unpacked) in the order they are mentioned and you are good to go. Things only get more serious^Wcrashy when you go out of scope of this guide, which is... out of scope. I think you don't even need Wrye bash or obmm for anything mentioned in OP. Those tools are if you plan to go beyond this guide - try new mods, unistall them when you don't like them, try to solve conflicts when they happen...
Then I am majorly screwing up somehow cause there is a few minor conflicts and some definite instability with Oblivion.

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huan: Or just play vanilla, this isn't Morrowind where visual upgrades are almost mandatory, all three games look good enough even by today's standards.
Eh, disagree at least with Oblivion. It's a lot more clunky and rough around the edges than the Fallout titles.

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huan: For my oblivion I only grabbed unofficial patch and darnified ui from this guide, rest I installed are gameplay mods where you are on your own anyway and HAVE to understand what you are doing.
I seldom mess with gameplay mods, not that many don't have "quality" but it's just really easy to take it too far and ruin the feel of the game (imo).
Posted June 09, 2017
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yogsloth: ... I'd love to play Oblivion. Just bought it.

But, the list of things to do is overwhelming, and there's no guidance on how to do it or in what order. ...
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MuParadigm: Oblivion GOTY works fine without mods, which is how I played it the first time. I assume Fallout 3 & NV both work fine without modding too.

Modding gives players more options to suit their playing styles or modernize the graphics, but they aren't mandatory, just fun.

Don't let other people's enthusiasm for modding put you off from trying or enjoying the vanilla game.
I am sorry, I have to bite here. Oblivion has the worse levelling system ever period. You can wander out of the first dungeon and see a ruin full of bandits, come back in thirty levels and those self same bandits, living rough and thieving for a living are now wearing glass armour and daedra rune bows which even the king can't afford. It may work without mods (and even that is debateable due to having the 2gb limit) but it is in no way "fun" without mods.
Modding in many cases is optional, and to suit a players play style - in the case of Baldurs Gate, and Elder Scrolls however there are required things to make the games playable (BG1 in BG2 for instance, Oscuro's Overhaul in Oblivion). If I played Oblivion vanilla now, without knowing about the mods it would at best be a 2 out 5 star game, 1 out 5 if I compare to Morrowind.
Posted June 11, 2017
Anyone else having a beast of a time trying to get Oblivion Reloaded working?

Just uninstalled the game and deleted the data folder to start from scratch ... tempted to bomb from orbit. It's the only way to be sure ...
Posted June 11, 2017
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nightcraw1er.488: You can wander out of the first dungeon and see a ruin full of bandits, come back in thirty levels and those self same bandits, living rough and thieving for a living are now wearing glass armour and daedra rune bows which even the king can't afford.
That is without a doubt the most serious flaw in the game and should be modded away.
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nightcraw1er.488: It may work without mods (and even that is debateable due to having the 2gb limit)
The GOG version does not have a 2gb limit.
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sergeant_citrus: Anyone else having a beast of a time trying to get Oblivion Reloaded working?

Just uninstalled the game and deleted the data folder to start from scratch ... tempted to bomb from orbit. It's the only way to be sure ...
I had it installed once when it was still available on the Nexus, I think. Right now I can't help you with that, though.

One thing that you should definitely do is use a mod manager. Deleting the data folder and un-installing the game is a waste of time when you can just install the mods with a mod manager and remove them completely using the mod manager.
Post edited June 11, 2017 by 0Grapher
Posted June 11, 2017
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sergeant_citrus: Anyone else having a beast of a time trying to get Oblivion Reloaded working?

Just uninstalled the game and deleted the data folder to start from scratch ... tempted to bomb from orbit. It's the only way to be sure ...
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0Grapher: I had it installed once when it was still available on the Nexus, I think. Right now I can't help you with that, though.

One thing that you should definitely do is use a mod manager. Deleting the data folder and un-installing the game is a waste of time when you can just install the mods with a mod manager and remove them completely using the mod manager.
I agree, I'm using OBMM and NMM. Probably should just learn to use Wrye Bash. It doesn't seem that OBGE works with any mod manager, however, and since it modifies the texture files, it seemed prudent to restart with a clean slate.

In the future, however, I might just backup my Data folder before doing any complicated modding.

It's possible that I may need to install the game without Galaxy, because I'm seeing a lot about how having the game in the Program Files directory can mess up a few mods.
Posted June 12, 2017
If I want to play New Vegas with NVSE, I take it that I run the nvse_loader.exe file that I install into the game's primary folder. I was running the game via GOG Galaxy, as I figured I may as well get credit for achievements if I'm going to play through the game again.

Questions: I replaced the fallout launcher executable with nvse_loader.exe, giving it the same name as the launcher. Galaxy launches the game fine when I do this, but will GOG Galaxy's achievements still work?
Post edited June 12, 2017 by EndlessKnight
Posted June 12, 2017
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0Grapher: One thing that you should definitely do is use a mod manager. Deleting the data folder and un-installing the game is a waste of time when you can just install the mods with a mod manager and remove them completely using the mod manager.
Agree, with one exception - if the uninstalled mod had file conflicts with another mod, files are already overwritten and you need to uninstall both and reinstalll the one you want to keep.

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sergeant_citrus: It's possible that I may need to install the game without Galaxy, because I'm seeing a lot about how having the game in the Program Files directory can mess up a few mods.
That is good for many reasons, programs just don't belong into "Program files" on windows (yes, this is irony, and also true). But you don't have to uninstall Galaxy, just set it to use another folder (you can also choose folder individually when installing the game).

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EndlessKnight: If I want to play New Vegas with NVSE, I take it that I run the nvse_loader.exe file that I install into the game's primary folder. I was running the game via GOG Galaxy, as I figured I may as well get credit for achievements if I'm going to play through the game again.

Questions: I replaced the fallout launcher executable with nvse_loader.exe, giving it the same name as the launcher. Galaxy launches the game fine when I do this, but will GOG Galaxy's achievements still work?
Weird that I didn't think of that, I messed in goggame_with_long_number.info file to make galaxy run the nvse_loader instead. My achievements still work, game time tracking doesn't (and I think it doesn't work even with the default launcher).
Posted June 12, 2017
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huan: That is good for many reasons, programs just don't belong into "Program files" on windows (yes, this is irony, and also true). But you don't have to uninstall Galaxy, just set it to use another folder (you can also choose folder individually when installing the game).
Neat, thanks for the tip. It sounds like I could even run it through galaxy using EndlessKnight's method.
Posted June 12, 2017
I had time to test things out and can confirm that when you replace the New Vegas launcher executable with nvse_loader.exe and rename nvse_loader to the file name that the launcher was using.... Achievements do still work in Galaxy.
Posted June 13, 2017
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0Grapher: One thing that you should definitely do is use a mod manager. Deleting the data folder and un-installing the game is a waste of time when you can just install the mods with a mod manager and remove them completely using the mod manager.
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huan: Agree, with one exception - if the uninstalled mod had file conflicts with another mod, files are already overwritten and you need to uninstall both and reinstalll the one you want to keep.
I see why you think that but that isn't correct. What I remembered was that at least Nexus Mod Manager adds the overwritten files in again. So, I just tested it, made two archives containing Meshes\test.txt, one containing the text "test" one the text "overwritten". After adding both mods, there was the file test.txt containing "overwritten" in my Meshes folder. After removing one mod again, there still was a txt file containing "test".
Right now I can't check how the Oblivion Mod Manager behaves.

For some reason Nexus Mod Manager gave me an error at first but when I made the new archives with the Meshes folder it worked. I'm wondering if there is a check if your mod contains mod files. That would be neat but they should display a proper message.
Posted June 13, 2017
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0Grapher: I see why you think that but that isn't correct. What I remembered was that at least Nexus Mod Manager adds the overwritten files in again. So, I just tested it, made two archives containing Meshes\test.txt, one containing the text "test" one the text "overwritten". After adding both mods, there was the file test.txt containing "overwritten" in my Meshes folder. After removing one mod again, there still was a txt file containing "test".
Right now I can't check how the Oblivion Mod Manager behaves.

For some reason Nexus Mod Manager gave me an error at first but when I made the new archives with the Meshes folder it worked. I'm wondering if there is a check if your mod contains mod files. That would be neat but they should display a proper message.
You can use TES4EDIT to merge mods. Or Wrye Bash. I recommend Bash to manage your mods due to ease of use once you get it going. Using BAIN installers is simple and powerful, and it archives file versions if there is a conflict, merges mods, manages load order, and even save file dependencies. You can load a different loadout for different saves if you have people who prefer different mods playing at the same time. All this in the convenience of a simple "Load dependencies" menu option when right clicking on the save file. I like Mod manager ok for some things, but Bash (for all three games) is king when it comes to mod user utilities.
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionMod Spotlight: Fallout 3, New Vegas, and TES IV: Oblivion(98 posts)(98 posts)
(98 posts)