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FALLOUT 3 MODS FAQ
How to find, install, make, and get help

Updated 3-29-2009

by Lasirith (with a lot of help from others)

This FAQ is primarily aimed at mod users rather than mod makers, but as such it addresses a lot of basic issues about how users will play a mod, and thus serves as a good introduction to mods in general.

This FAQ is intended to be a living document, so I frequently update parts of it and add new material. If you're trying to find information about Fallout mods or mod-making, it's worth checking here to see if I've added something about it.

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Table of Contents

This FAQ is intended to answer the following questions:

• What are Mods?
  
• Where can I find good mods?
  
• How can I avoid corrupt downloads?
  
• How do I install a mod?
  
• Mods on Windows Vista
  
• How to install plug-ins manually
  • File Compression
    
  • Unzipping to a temporary directory
    
  • The Archive Invalidation File
    
  • Playing the Mod
  
  
• Can I get these mods on my Xbox-360?
  
• How do I solve a problem with a mod? (Common mod issues)
  • Load Order and Mod Conflicts
    • Setting the Load Order
      
    • Checking Conflicts
    
    
  • Load Order, Mod Names, and Lost Items
    
  • ArchiveInvalidation Problems
    
  • Mods After the 1.5 Patch
    
  • Performance Tuning
    
  • Tracking Down Problems with Specific Mods
    • Asking for Help
  
  
• How do I make a mod?
  
• Where can I find more information? (Further Reading)
  
• Who contributed to this FAQ? (FAQ Credits)
  
• What revisions have been made to the FAQ? (Version History & Notes)

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What are Mods?
(adapted from a Morrowind Mods topic by Tegger)

What are mods? Are they the same as plug-ins, patches, or expansions? What do they do? Will they mess up my game? What else do I need to know before using them or making them?

Mods are modifications of the original game.

The terms "mod" and "plug-in" are interchangeable (in other words: yes, they're the same). Patches and expansions are not the same, however. Patches are official files intended to correct errors in the original game, and expansions (Tribunal, Bloodmoon) add official content to the game.

Some mods add content (such as new weapons, NPCs, quests, clothing, faces, buildings, etc.), and others seek to balance issues in the original game, such as making items or NPCs either more or less powerful. Still others seek to improve upon what was already in the game in various other ways.

Before using mods, you'll need to decide what kind you want to play. No one can answer that for you, so don't bother asking very broad questions on the forums such as "Which mods should I download?" It's fine to ask for other members' opinions on specific mods you're thinking of downloading, though.

Note: Many veteran players recommend that you not use many (if any) mods if you haven't yet played the game through at least one time. You can always replay later with mods installed, and you'll be better able to recognize what the mods added to the game. On the other hand, if there are things you don't like about the original game, chances are that someone has already made or is working on a mod to change that aspect of the game.

While many players only run a few simple mods that change some basic elements of the game, many other players run 50, 100, or even 200+ mods at once, dramatically altering and expanding numerous aspects of the game, as well as adding thousands of new weapons, armor, spells, NPCs, creatures, companions, dungeons, and quests. Fallout is capable of running roughly 250 mods at one time, depending on your system, so the possibilities are almost limitless.

Of course, if you begin to run out of space for more mods, you can always merge multiple small plugins into one larger plugin by using FO3 Plugin Utility http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=5104 Such practices can get messy once you begin to merge larger and larger plugins, so it is best to always keep a backup of the original .esp's until you can verify the merge was successful.

If you're ready to go get some mods, see the section "Where can I find good mods?" (below).

And for those new to using mods, don't forget to also see "How do I install mods?".

If you think you're ready to try your hand at making a mod, the first thing you should do is see "How do I make a mod?"

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Where can I find good mods?

If you already know something about what you're looking for (like the author's name or a keyword like "armor"), then your best bet for finding a mod is probably [*] http://www.fallout3nexus.com/ -- This site is by far the largest database of Fallout mods. Mods are uploaded by their creators with little or no intervention or review by the site's moderators. Downloads are free, as with all such sites, but the paid membership option offers some great extra features and is worth considering.
[*] http://planetfallout.gamespy.com/mods/list/ -- This site has fewer mods than Fallout 3 Nexus, but all of the mods are checked by moderators before being released. Many people make the mistake of thinking Planet Fallout requires you to pay for a membership. This is not true. It's not necessary to pay for access to Planet Fallout -- they just make it a bit tricky to spot the free options. You just need to sign up for a free account and then when you go to download a mod, the list of download mirrors sites will pop up. All of the first ones you see in the list are paid-only premium servers, but if you wait a minute for everything to finish loading and scroll down to the bottom, you will see where the free servers are listed. The free servers work great.

For a list of mod recommended by some of your fellow forum crazies check out http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=955096&hl=

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How do I install mods?

This depends largely on where the mod came from and how it was packaged.

The Bethesda official mods are automatically installed via Games for Windows Live into a hidden folder, and require no end user work to run.

Fan-made mods normally require a bit more involved process to install. A process that can be made easier, and in many cases more efficient by the use of FOMODS

Regardless of whether a mod is already packaged as an .fomod file, using Timeslip's Fallout Mod Manager (FOMM) is perhaps the easiest way to install mods. It also lets you uninstall mods and all their related files very easily (something that's not always easy to do with mods installed manually). If you already have a FOMOD, all you have to do is select it in FOMM and then click the Activate button. If the mod isn't available in FOMOD format (most mods are not, unfortunately), then you'll need to create a FOMOD for it yourself unless you want to install it manually (you can find instructions for manually installing mods in the next section of this FAQ).

Creating your own FOMOD may seem intimidating at first, but it's really very simple after the first few times.

If you have already downloaded a mod archive that is organized correctly (i.e., the archive can be extracted directly to your data directory without any changes), then the basic process is as follows:

• Launch FOMM.
  
• Click Package manager
  
• Click either Add new if you wish to go straight from an archive to .fomod, or Create from folder if the mod is already extracted into a folder.
  
• Browse to the mod archive (or folder) you want to convert and open it (this will import the files from the selected archive).
  
• Select the new package and hit edit info.
  
• Fill in any blank fields from the readme (optional but helpful).
  
• Check the groups the package belongs in (again optional, but helpful).
  
• Click save.
  
• Click View Readme
  
• If the readme isn't showing up, copy and paste the text into the box and save it.

If the mod includes optional files, or isn't organized correctly, you'll probably need to extract it to a temporary folder somewhere, rearrange it correctly with the options you want to use, and then use create from folder instead of add new. Alternately, if you're really ambitious and have some scripting experience, you can attach a script to the FOMOD so it will prompt you for the option choices during Activation (via the Create Script button)

Once you've created the FOMOD, simply select it and click the Activate button. That's it! The mod files will be extracted into the proper place and any required plugins will be enabled.

Later, if you decide you don't like the mod, you can simply select the FOMOD again and click the Deactivate button -- FOMM will disable and uninstall the mod (removes all the files it installed).

As of yet I am unaware of any other FOMM guides to installing FOMODs out of FOMM.

If you'd rather install mods manually, Apy has written a good beginner's guide for installing Oblivion's mods, which is practically the same as the method for Fallout http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Tutorials.Detail&id=60 (includes screenshots).

For a brief guide into installing Fallout 3 Mods see http://planetfallout.gamespy.com/articles/features/610/Installing-Fallout-3-Mods-for-Newbs
For a detailed explanation for Fallout mods specifically, read the next section of this FAQ.

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Mods on Windows Vista

Installing mods on a Windows Vista system is bit trickier than it is on Windows XP due to Vista's increased security.

For best results, it is recommended to install Fallout to a location other than the default C:\Program Files\ folder. Another location such as C:\Fallout 3\ or D:\games\Fallout 3\ will work better. This will avoid the file permission problems many users have experienced due to the increased security restrictions Vista places on the Program Files folder.

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How do I avoid corrupt downloads?

Q. I keep getting corrupt or incomplete downloads. Why can't I download this? Can you host it somewhere else?

Quick tips for a successful download:

• Check free drive space
  
• Disable firewall
  
• Use a Download Manager

There are quite a few very large mods for Fallout, and a lot of players seem to have trouble downloading them.

If you're having trouble downloading a large mod file, especially when the download consistently dies just before finishing, chances are that it's your firewall causing the problem. Temporarily disable the firewall, download the file, then re-enable the firewall. You should also check to make sure you have enough free space on your boot drive (where the temp file is kept during the download) and wherever you're saving the file. Using a Download Manager is also a very good idea, and may be critical for some really huge mods.

(The following is adapted from Using a Download Manager by Monica21.)
With very large mods, it's a good idea to use a download manager. Among some critical features like the ability to resume downloads when connections are lost, download managers also claim to speed up downloads by opening up multiple connections. The idea is that if one connection is good, then 5, 8, 10 or even 20 simultaneous connections must be terrific. This probably isn't really the case most of the time since the limiting factor is probably your connection speed. However, download managers are critical when attempting to download very large files. Some work better than others.

Here's a few that work well:

• http://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/
  
• https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/220/
  
• https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/201/

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How to install plug-ins manually
(based on a Morrowind tutorial by lochnarus)

FOR BEGINNER MOD USERS

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1. Locate Your Fallout Data Folder

This will be located wherever you installed Fallout, so it is usually:

Unless you installed Fallout 3 in a non-standard location, in which case the path will be:

For example, a lot of people install Fallout to:

Because it's a lot easier to find things there than under "Program Files\etc".

In this case, the path would be:

If you're not sure where you installed it, one easy way to locate the folder is to go to your desktop, right-click on the Fallout icon, select Properties, and select the Shortcut tab. The path to your main Fallout directory is shown in the "Start in" box.

You will know you've found the correct location if you find several very large files that look like this:

This is the final destination where you will put the mod files. Don't put anything there yet, though.

If you want to be able to easily revert to the unmodified version of Fallout, you can make a backup of the entire Data folder at this point (assuming you have plenty of free drive space). Doing this will avoid the need to reinstall Fallout if you ever have a major problem down the road. You may also want to consider installing the latest patch before making the backup so you don't have to reinstall the patch either.

When you're ready to install a mod, you will need to download the mod archive to a temporary folder and extract it, so let's talk about that next.

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2. File Compression

Virtually all Fallout mods are "compressed" into one easy to download file that is commonly referred to as a "zip" file or "archive". This makes the file smaller and keeps everything in one file. There are numerous types of these programs:

All of which can be found by doing a search on Google. Each one is different and some of them will not open all of the file formats from the rest of them. For example:

...and so on.

7zip is favored by many mod makers because it can produce dramatically smaller files than the other formats. It's also free, open-source, and supports all of the other common formats, so if you want to cover all your bases with one download, get 7zip. This is a personal bias on my part. Many people will argue in favor of one of the other tools.

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3. Unzipping to a Temporary Directory (folder)

Double click on your downloaded mod file. The program should open it, displaying the files inside. Depending on which mod you are unzipping, it should have an .esp file (looks like a swiss army knife), a "Meshes" folder, a "Textures" folder, and lastly a README file. Sometimes mods will have all their files placed into mock directory folders, like so:

this is for automatically unzipping the files in to your \Fallout 3\Data\ folder, which I NEVER do. You're bound to come across a mod that will not unzip correctly and you'll have loose files cluttering up your folders. (This is a MANUAL installation guide, after all.)

Select ALL the files by highlighting them. Then select the program's "extract" feature and a new window should come up asking WHERE to unzip it to. You will now need to pick a folder to be a temporary folder. It's probably a good idea to create a temporary "mods" folder in an easy-to-find location such as "My Documents"...

Some archive programs will also let you use a right-click method of extraction, with simplifies the process. In this case, download the mod to your temporary directory, then right-click it to see what options you have. You should see a menu choice for the archive program, and under that a submenu (or "context" menu) that says something like "Extract Here" or "Extract to ...". I find this method significantly easier to use once you get used to it.

In either case, you'll need to extract (i.e., "unzip") the files to the temporary folder. Then open that folder and you will see either exactly the items you need, or you may have to dig down a bit further.

If the mod-maker structured things correctly, it is most common to find some combination of items like this:
However, you might have to keep digging down a bit to find this stuff, so if you don't see a structure like that, then open any other folders you find until you get to the "Data" folder with those items in it.

With some mods, you might POSSIBLY have these folders:

Select all of these items -- except ArchiveInvalidation.txt, which we'll deal with in a minute -- and copy/paste or drag them into your Fallout 3 "Data" folder (described in Step 1 above).

If you already have some of these folders, Windows will prompt you with a warning about files with the same name. Click "Yes to All".

That's it! The mod is installed. Just a few more details and you're ready to go.

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4. Archive Invalidation

Fallout normally gets all of its media assets (artwork, spoken dialog, music, etc.) from within a few large .bsa files rather than in individual folders (such as Meshes, Textures, Sound, etc.). The original game and official plugins use these .bsa files (it stands for Bethesda Softworks Archive). These .bsa files are organized internally just like your "Data" folder is.

Although fan-made mods are starting to use .bsa files more often, most mods still place individual meshes, textures, etc. into folders within your "Data" directory. This isn't a problem for new items added by a mod, but it can be a problem for some "replacer" mods that alter original game items. For example, some of the most popular types of mods are "armor texture replacers" and "landscape texture replacer" mods that improve the look of the game by replacing the original "stock" textures.

Normally, this isn't a problem since Fallout is designed to automatically load any meshes, textures, etc. that it finds in your Data folder, as long as the timestamp (Modification Date) on each of these files is more recent than the timestamp on the original .bsa files. Since the .bsa files are older, items in them get replaced by any newer items with the same name that exist in your Data folders.

In some cases, however, this doesn't work correctly. It now seems fairly certain that this is caused by a bug in Fallout's ArchiveInvalidation system itself. This means you will have to use one of several workarounds if you want to install any "replacer" mods.

Further details on this subject, as well as extensive testing results for ArchiveInvalidation problems in general, can be found in the article http://devnull.devakm.googlepages.com/archiveinvalidation (the ESF threads on the topic have expired, also note that this again is for Oblivion; however, Fallout functions quite the same way).

There are two easy ways to fix Archive Invalidation: ArchiveInvalidation Invalidated, or FOMM's built in invalidator. Both methods are incredibly simple, and require just a quick download. Other methods are possible, but due to their complicated nature are not suggested.

Archive Invalidation
http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=944

Merely download the file and click the activate button within the program.

Fallout Mod Manager
http://timeslip.chorrol.com/fomm.html

Assuming you have FOMM installed already, the steps you need to take are as follows:



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5. Playing the Mod

The only thing left to do now is to activate the mod. Note that some mods, like texture replacers, don't need an .esp, in which case you can
skip this step.

• If you are using http://timeslip.chorrol.com/fomm.html, either with or without .fomod's, then you can activate your mods using the ESP list in the main window.
  
• Unfortunately due to a bug in the Fallout 3 Launcher, mods will not stay checked for loading, which means that Fallout Mod Manager must be used in order to activate your mods.

You must make sure the plugins you want to use are checked with an "X" using one of these tools. The Fallout3.esm file must always be checked. The others shown in this list (usually .esp files) will represent whatever mods you have installed.

If you did everything correctly, you should have no problems with your newly-installed mod.

You can launch the game and test it out now.

Note that if you play with a very large number of mods (i.e., more than 100), it's a good idea to keep most of your inactive mods somewhere other than in the \Fallout 3\Data\ folder. Having a very large number of inactive mods in the Data folder can cause system slowdowns and crashes. You can just move them into a separate subfolder (i.e., "InactiveMods" or something similar). Wrye Bash includes a feature to help you "hide" such inactive mods.

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Can I get these mods on my Xbox-360?

The Official mods from Bethesda are available for the Xbox-360 via Xbox Live Marketplace.

Fan-made mods are NOT available for the Xbox-360.

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How do I solve a problem with a mod? (Common mod issues)
(parts of this are adapted from the article http://www.atomicmpc.com.au/article.asp?SCID=27&CIID=36919&p=1 by Martigen)


The most common issues people have had with Fallout mods are:

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Load Order and Conflicts/Overlaps

It's inevitable that the more mods you use, the greater the chances some of them will clash. While mods that address different areas of the game are, for the most part, clearly compatible, it's not so simple for mods of similar intentions, due to the way the game handles its data structures.

For example, if you want to use "FallOut 3 Overhaul Kit" but prefer the increased weapon damage as provided by the "XFO Fallout 3 Balance Overhaul" mod - how does Fallout handle the conflict?

Quite simply actually - the last mod loaded takes precedence. So if you did want to use the damage that "XFO Fallout 3 Balance Overhaul" provides, simply ensure it's loaded after FOOK. And how do you do this? Glad you asked.

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Setting the Load Order

Fallout loads mods by order of date. Ensuring a mod is 'newer' than another causes it be loaded last, and thus take priority.

The problem with this is that the mod selector under 'Data files' in the Fallout launcher lists mods alphabetically - good to find and choose the mods you want to use, but doesn't tell you the order they are loaded in.

The best way to see the load order - and more importantly, re-order them - is to use one of the excellent fan-made tools for managing your mods.

For Fallout Mod Manager, you'll need .NET installed, but it's well worth it. From FOMM, you can simply select the mod you want to move, and then drag and drop to re-order them, or you can hold alt and hit either the up or down key. You can also right-click on a mod and select Move to Top or Move to Bottom. For multiple mods you can also shift click to select multiple mods in a row, or ctrl click to select multiple mods, and then drag and drop (or as before use alt) to reorder the mods

See http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=4968 for more detail on which types of mods should go where in your load order, as well as patches for fixing the conflicts, (which are discussed in the next section,) between the biggest mods.

Understandably load orders can get very confusing, which is why the http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3596 was invented. Merely download the program and run it, and it will sort your mods for you based upon tried and true formulas from FOIP and others. Bare in mind the Fallout Mod Sorter does not know what every single mod does, so in some cases you may have to clean your load order up afterwords, but this program will remove the major conflicts.

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Checking Conflicts/Overlaps

Probably the best tool to use for exploring overlaps between mods is http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=637. This utility will let you easily see how multiple mods interact and override each other, as well as giving you a quick view of the changes that a plugin makes. It lets you browse a graphical record tree of your active plugins, revealing the values set by most record types and comparing overlapping changes from each active plugin.

FO3EDIT also has a sibling, http://fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=198, which produces a text report with most of the same detailed information.

Unfortunately, unlike the Oblivion Mod Manager, the Fallout Mod Manager does not yet have a conflict detector built in.


If it looks a little overwhelming, follow this guide: as the leveled list mods like Mart's Mutant Mod or FallOut Overhaul Kit are the most important with regards to balance, load these mods last with the exception of specific changes you want to make to them - as with the example, using a mod like XFO to tweak the damage of weapons. Most major mods such as Mart's Monster Mod, or FallOut Overhaul Kit, will also contain load order examples within the readme, so always remember to read the readme before asking a question involving the mod.

It is fairly rare to find conflicts that actually break anything. The conflict report is mostly useful for tracking down problems where a mod is not working the way it's supposed to work because a later mod changes the same thing. In this case you just have to decide which behavior you prefer and then move that mod down (later) in the load order so it gets precedence by loading last. If you really want to use conflicting changes from more than one mod at the same time, check to see if anyone has released a compatibility patch to make the mods work together, and if not you may be able to merge the two mods together using either Fallout Mod Manager or FO3Edit

Again I must also mention the http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=4968, which contains load order examples for mixing several major mods, and which has patches to resolve the conflicts between mods, and which shows definate promise for encompassing more mods in the future.

In addition I would once again refer new players to the http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3596, for an extremely easy to use program that will take most of the guessing out of setting your load order.

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Load Order, Mod Names, and Lost Items

Many people have experienced problems with losing stuff they had previously acquired after installing a new mod or updating an existing mod. This happens because Fallout savegames keep track of items based in part on the load order and based in part on the mod filename.

If you've been playing with some mods for a while and then add a new mod or update an existing one, this may change the load order (a new mod may have an older date than mods already in the list, or an updated mod may have a newer date than the previous version. Frequently, mod .esp filenames include a version number, which helps you and the author to keep track of which version is old and which version is new, but it also means that the filename will change when you replace an existing mod with an updated .esp file.

Changing the load order of a mod does not seem to have much effect on whether Fallout can keep track of that mod, so generally this is not a problem. However, changing the filename of the ESP will almost always cause Fallout to lose track of previous data for that mod. This means the game will lose track of which mod an item came from, your progress in a quest added by a mod, or even worse, which mod added a storage container that you've stored a bunch of stuff in. If this happens, the items in question may disappear from your inventory or from a storage container.

Load order is critical for making sure you get the changes you want when more than one mod changes the same thing(s), as noted above in the "Load Order and Conflicts" section. Since the "Data Files" selector you get when running the default FalloutLauncher.exe lists mods alphabetically, you have no way of knowing what the load order is without using an external tool or using Windows Explorer to sort your "Data" folder by date.

This is yet another powerful argument for using a tool like Fallout Mod Manager. They can list mods in load order. FOMM also automatically adds new mods to the end of the load list so they don't mess with your existing load order, although this feature can be problematic when installing updates to mods you already have. FOMM makes it easy to move mods up and down in list so you can make sure that an update to an existing mod gets moved into the same position previously occupied by the old version. They both also let you keep a version number for the mod without having to include it in the .esp filename.

Mod-makers should avoid the practice of naming mods with a version number, because users installing a mod update that has an even slightly different .esp filename is a surefire way to make their savegame lose track of any related data (such as loot they won or items they stored in cells or containers added by the mod). Most of the time, keeping the same .esp filename on all versions of a mod will prevent lost data even if the load order of the .esp file changes.


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Archive Invalidation Problems

If you forgot to use ArchiveInvalidation invalidated, or you're trying to use a manual ArchiveInvalidation.txt file and it does not contain the proper entries, or is in the wrong location, etc., you may notice that some or all of the textures you installed with a mod will not work properly. This usually shows up as items becoming invisible or appearing purple when playing the game. See the section How do I install mods? in this FAQ for more information.

If you're still having problems with invisible, purple, or black items, please see http://devnull.devakm.googlepages.com/archiveinvalidation#AIExplained.


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Using Mods After the 1.5 Patch

As a result of serious changes to the behavior of modules within Fallout, almost every single mod will not work. Luckily there is a solution, but it is in the beta stages, and while it has not to this point caused any problems yet, it still might, so procede cautiously. With Elminster's latest http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=637 you can once again make sure your mods are working. Merely download FO3Edit and rename "FO3Edit.exe" to "FO3MasterUpdate.exe". At this point run the program and it will fake Fallout into thinking all your mods are masters while preserving load order. This causes your mods to work after the 1.5 patch. Please note that each and every time you add a mod or change the load order you must re-run the Master Update. If at a later time Bethesda fixes the problems caused by the 1.5 patch, then rename the .exe to "FO3MasterRestore.exe" and once again run the program and it should undo any changes to your mods.


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Performance Tuning

Fallout is a very resource-intensive game and many different factors can cause it to run slowly even on a very powerful computer. If you're having FPS (frames-per-second) or other performance problems, or just want to get the most you can out of the game, the best bet is to read Koroush Ghazi's http://www.tweakguides.com/Fallout3_1.html. It's by far the most comprehensive guide to Fallout performance tuning I've found.


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Tracking Down Problems With Specific Mods
(adapted from a post by Kivan)

Q. Help! I just installed a bunch of mods and now everything is in Spanish! How do I figure out which mod is causing this problem so I can disable it?

If you're having problems with an item, building, NPC or any other object in the game, you can easily find out which mod (if any) has added or changed the object by using the Beta Comment file. Note that if more than one mod has changed the object, only the changes made by the last mod to load will actually affect the object, so it will be the one this technique will find.

To use the Beta Comment file, you will first need to enable it (if you haven't already). Start by editing your Fallout.ini file:


Double-clicking this file will usually open the file in Notepad.

Look for the line:

SBetaCommentFileName=

If there isn't a filename after that already (which there won't be unless you already added it), you'll need to add a filename after it with a .txt extension, ie MyBetaComments.txt, so the line looks like this:

SBetaCommentFileName=MyBetaComments.txt

(Or whatever name you chose to use.)

Save your changes and close Notepad.

Once you've got the Beta Comment file enabled, follow these steps:

1) Start Fallout and find the mystery object.
2) Open the console with the ` or ~ key, or whatever key is specific to your locale.
3) Click on the object so that you see its name and reference ID (eight hexadecimal characters, ie "001C8F02") at the top of the screen.
4) Typing in the console, add the comment with bc (for beta comment) followed by a space, followed by the comment in quotes (and try not to use punctuation as most of the symbols aren't allowed), such as:

bc "This object should not be here"

5) It's a good idea to include the name of the object in the comment so you can use this as a search string later.
6) Press Enter and you should see Beta Comment added.
7) Quit Fallout (you can use qqq to quit right from the command console.)
8) Go into the main Fallout 3 folder, the one where the game program and Data folder lives.
9) There will be a file there with the name you chose above (i.e., MyBetaComments.txt in the example.) Open the file in Notepad.

Here's an example of what you will see in the file. It shows the date and time the comment was added, the filename of the source of the object, the last modification date and time of the file, the name of the logged-in user, the cell name or cell coordinates if it's outdoors, the X/Y/Z coordinates of the object, and the comment you added:

8/15/2006 (10:12) Fallout3.esm 5/19/2006 (14:42) MyName SomeOutdoorCell (8,3) 38235 14531 1508 "This looks fine"
8/15/2006 (10:13) PrankMod.esp 8/12/2006 (15:30) MyName SomeIndoorCell -1914 682 -80 "This object should not be here"

Anything with the source Fallout3.esm is from the original game and hasn't been altered. Anything that has been altered by a mod will list the name of the problem mod, in this case the fictional "PrankMod.esp".

Unfortunately this may not always tell you which mod altered something from Fallout3.esm. Also, the spot where you would normally see the plugin name may be blank if the object came from Fallout3.esm. This is particularly true for spawned creatures or other dynamic elements placed with scripts because the modindex will point to your savegame rather than a plugin (you can tell if this is the case when the FormID starts with "ff").

You can usually get around this problem if you included the name of the object in your comment. Having the name or even part of the name will let you easily search through your plugins for this name using a free utility like http://www.wingrep.com/.

That's it! Now that you've found the problem mod, all you have to do is disable it by unchecking the .esp file in your Data Files selector (and/or you can delete the .esp file itself if you're really mad by now). If you like the mod and want to see the problem fixed, you can always open the plugin with the CS yourself and try to figure out what's wrong, or you can report the problem to the mod creator (and/or the mod community if you can't locate the creator) using a discussion forum such as the one you're on now.


::
Asking for Help

If you just can't seem to figure out the problem yourself, you can always post a request for help in your favorite mod forum. If you do this, however, be prepared to provide a complete list of the mods you're using and the order in which they are loaded. The easiest way to do this depends on which tools you have available.

If you are using http://timeslip.chorrol.com/fomm.html then you can simply right click your mod list and copy your entire load order to the clipboard which can then be pasted into your help request by right clicking and hitting paste or by using the paste hotkey Ctrl + V.

You can also usually find a good list in your Plugins.txt file, which is typically located here: Where is your Windows login. You should be able to open this file in Notepad and copy/paste it into your help request.

You can also use the standard Windows CMD prompt (Start->Run->CMD), and the following command sequence:

cd \Program Files\Bethesda Softworks\Fallout 3\Data
dir *.es* /od/b > C:\Mod_List.txt

This will create a new text file (C:\Mod_List.txt) containing a list of all your mods sorted by date. You can then open this file and copy/paste it into your help request.

::
How do I make a mod?

The most important place to look for information about making mods, including many tutorials and how-to articles, is http://geck.gamesas.com/index.php/Main_Page. The best tutorial to start with is http://geck.gamesas.com/index.php/Category:Getting_Started#My_First_Vault_Tutorial_Series. You should also be familiar with http://cs.elderscrolls.com/constwiki/index.php/Category:About_Modding_Etiquette. The best place to find help with the G.E.C.K. is the http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showforum=46 on the Official Bethesda boards.

If you want to gain a better understanding of how multiple mods interact and override each other or just gain a quick view of the changes that a plugin makes, you'll definitely want to try ElminsterEU's excellent http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=637. It lets you browse a graphical record tree of your active plugins, revealing the values set by most record types and comparing overlapping changes from each active plugin. FO3Edit also has a sibling, http://fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=198, which produces a text report with most of the same detailed information.

If you're looking for information on how to create 3D meshes for use in Fallout 3, the http://www.niftools.org/wiki is the place to look. In particular, you should download the latest release of NifSkope, grab the latest mesh exporter for whichever modeling program you want to use, and find help on the Help Forums.

If you are completely new to modeling I would advise watching the http://fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=4941, which makes use of entirely free programs and takes you through all the steps of creating and placing your very own meshes into Fallout 3.

Both http://www.fallout3nexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=17 and http://timeslip.chorrol.com/fomm.html allow you to browse/unpack/create BSA files.

The http://fose.silverlock.org/ (FOSE) has created dramatic new possibilities for modding in Fallout, including expanded hotkeys, and several new and various conditionals for scripting use. However, this comes at a price, when FOSE is running Games for Windows Live will not be able to run, meaning you will be unable to gain Achievements. You can install FOSE, and then merely launch the game without it if you wish to gain achievements and temporarily wish to forgo your FOSE required mods (such as the infamous Enclave Commander mod).

If you're creating a mod that includes new dialogue, you can get voice acting help from http://z4.invisionfree.com/wayhouse/index.php?act=idx (The Voice Over International Cadre).


Mods you create should be packaged in a common format (see the list of archive formats) along with a readme file describing what it does and how to install/uninstall it. The http://cs.elderscrolls.com/constwiki/index.php/Category:About_Modding_Etiquette page provides some good tips on how to package and distribute your mod. If you want to make it really easy for users to install your mod, you should consider distributing it as a FOMOD. This can be done by creating the FOMOD in FOMM, and then copying both the .fomod as well as the matching .xml file (which contains all the info on the mod) out of the Mods folder in your install directory. (Usually D:\Program Files\Bethesda Softworks\Fallout 3 )

::
Where can I find more information? (Further Reading)

A lot of similar ground is covered in the article http://planetfallout.gamespy.com/articles/features/610/Installing-Fallout-3-Mods-for-Newbs


The most comprehensive guide to performance tuning is Koroush Ghazi's http://www.tweakguides.com/Fallout3_1.html.

::
Who contributed to this FAQ? (FAQ Credits)

Assembled and adapted for Fallout 3 by Lasirith using material from: dev_akm's excellent Oblivion FAQ (with permission) whose credits are reproduced:

Assembled using material from:
-lochnarus
-Martigen
-Tegger
-Kivan

Additional material, testing, and moral support provided by
-Auctionmule
-DoomedMarauder
-Wonder Dog
-Malifrax
-Jarol
-Scanti
-Zanderat
-adeliedreams
-Acleacius
-pintocat
-Baphomet
-MadBat
-kalikut
DarkDragon
Grumftheld
jodoebell
motub
alex_ro
Fragment
BallOfFire
Conan_Lon
Adriana35
Ensis
Cosmic-Banana
Tom Supergan
Qazaaq
Majin Vegeta21
- and many others on the ESF forums and CanadianIce forums. Thank you all!

A lot of the material in this FAQ is based (at least loosely) on the http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=106063, assembled by the ESF moderators with input from many others.

Special thanks to Archeopterix for first agreeing to submit this to the ESF administrators to try and get it pinned (and for answering many PMs from me on the subject), and to Blith Erring Idio for getting it pinned! Also, Grizz deserves a huge thank-you for pinning the FAQ on the CanadianIce forums.

I did manage to get permission from all the folks whose work I have mangled here, so a very special thank-you is in order for all of them. This FAQ wouldn't exist without all that great source material to draw from!

~ End dev_akm's credits

::


This FAQ is of course still in revision stages, contact me or post in this thread with any revisional ideas or ideas for things I missed. Thanks again to dev_akm for doing the original work on this FAQ for Oblivion. ~ Lasirith

Reserved for queries of my own for clarification~

I was wondering when one of these would get done. Sticky, anyone?

Good stuff! Sticky.

Great FAQ, looks good and informative!

bump?

Sticky this!

Dear Moderators,
How are you? I am fine.
In regards to what everyone else has mentioned, please sticky this post to the top.
If for some technical reason, or due to some unforseen policy reason, this post can't be stickied (I love all these new words I'm learning) then I'll be updating it on occassion with my own findings and what I'm learning as I continue to mod (yes, the Minnow) -pending permission from the OP, oops, I already have permission to do so

respectfully your,
Ole Andy

ps I could have pm'ed this, but I thought I'ld post it here in the open.

pps
First Impressions GECK
Don't get discouraged, people. Yes, there are alot of buttons. Yes, it is within everyones grasp to learn it -if an ol' marine-jarhead-numbscull like me can do it, so can you :stare: (although I'm still fiercly struggling)
Any beginning modders who want help, reasurence or just a shoulder to cry on, PM me. I'll be in the same place you are, hankies in close reach..
It'll be fun.
If enough beginners pm me, we'll start a school!!

School of MOD
(now that should actually mean "masters of destruction" :rock: )


Acolyte. ..concidered by some to be famous.. :rofl: -that kills me!

*DELETED*

nvm

Still not stickied? O.o

very nice thread, will definitly point ppl to this one for my mod, will hopefully help new/unexperienced users to avoid some of the usual problems when dealing with mods (my comment section gets kinda spammed with stuff that could be avoided by some knowledge of how mods work).

Yes, for the love of god, sticky / pin this post. The daily "what are the must have mods!!!" is getting annoying

Also, I'd reccomend adding links under "where to find good mods" to a few of the list threads floating around here. Inlcuding:

http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=955096&hl=

I'm sure there are others.

There is also this post, "http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=972430&hl=" for modding resources




Incidentially there is a program that just so happens to be called http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=970662

Does it come in English too??

okay im sorry but i really don't understand I downloaded the Fallout Mod Manger..but the mods I've downloaded are rar. files and I don't know where to extract to.

As you can see, this is covered in detail in the FAQ, just follow the instructions in that section.

Cipscis

I didn't know what a plug in was, sorry

need mod help i downloaded and installed the fook mods using my fomm when i try to run game it crashes i have to use control alt delete to clear screen and end program

Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: Fallout3.exe
Application Version: 1.4.0.6
Application Timestamp: 4981c35c
Fault Module Name: Fallout3.exe
Fault Module Version: 1.4.0.6
Fault Module Timestamp: 4981c35c
Exception Code: c0000005
Exception Offset: 000e87ec
OS Version: 6.0.6001.2.1.0.768.3
Locale ID: 1033
Additional Information 1: fd00
Additional Information 2: ea6f5fe8924aaa756324d57f87834160
Additional Information 3: fd00
Additional Information 4: ea6f5fe8924aaa756324d57f87834160
thast the error message im getting

Game CTD on load is often a missing master. That means a mod on your load order has a dependency on an .esm file that you don't have loaded. Make sure you've read the readmes for all your mods, some will say they require other mods to function...

And in the future, post mod problems in that mod's thread if you can.

why can't they be allowed on 360 though

Sigh... Does anyone know how to use the search function? Take your pick:

• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=978961
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=949596
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=966227
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=955688
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=954369
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=939621
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=933463
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=927470
  
• http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=922226

It took me all of about 10 seconds to find those threads. Next time please search before you ask a question like this.

Cipscis

i was taking a look at http://devnull.sweetdanger.net/loadorder.html

i was wondering if any of you more advanced modders have any opinion on the load order of Oblivion versus the load order of Fallout 3.

taken from the page:


"""Oblivion.esm
Unofficial Oblivion Patch








And a special-case warning for Knights.esp (Knights of the Nine) -- you may not be able to move it earlier than some other mods (some people have had problems after moving it before OOO, for example).

That's basically the structure I use and I have 140+ mods working well together.

Another way of describing this (posted by DMan77):
....
Oblivion
unoffical patch
Deeper realism mods that add sights and sounds
added content like weapons/items
gameplay changes, like 'must eat and sleep'
The OOO type
the 'new begining' type mod..
...""""

Now my modding experience is moderate, and i have noticed that Fallout takes more kindly to modding (EXCEPT FOR THAT DAMN 1.5 PATCH!!!) than Oblivion ever did...
do any of you have an opinion on these writers load suggestions?

btw, THANK YOU for this guide.. it's very professional and answers any question i could think of, except this one.

As a general rule:

=ESMs = (e.g. FOOK.esm)
=Unofficial Patch=
=Spot-fix mods= (e.g. Skill points, perks)
=Environment mods= (e.g. Fellout)
=Large overhaul mods= (e.g. MMM, FOOK)
=Optionals to the overhauls= (e.g. MMM increased spawns)
=Interoperability mods= (e.g. MMM - FOOK)
=Spot-fix mods that get overruled by later overhaul mods=


There are a few ground rules. All ESMs come first. No exception. An ESP must not be loaded before an ESM, that's just asking to be dumped back on your desktop. Two mods doing the same thing are likely to conflict. For example, Enhanced Weather - Rain and Fellout have some overlap. If EWR is loaded after Fellout, it will overrule part of Fellout. With many mods, you can jiggle them up and down in the load order to achieve the perfect blend between them. For example, Fellout is aware of EWR and can provide rain all by itself if EWR is loaded, so if you load EWR first and then Fellout, Fellout will give the rain itself using EWR's scripting, but EWR won't actually supply any weather modes because Fellout's overruled them.

The last bit is for spot-fixes that are overruled by your bigger mods. For example, at least two overhauls (and my own Fellout) modify the PipBoy light. If you have your own favourite PipBoy light mod, it'd need to come near the bottom.

Just a quick question, If I port a few things from Oblivion to fallout 3 would it be ill-legal? If it isn't how can I do it?

I believe it is legal for your own personal use ONLY, and I wouldn't know the first thing about how to do it.


bigcrazewolf
Mods-R-Us Team Member
:fallout:
http://mods-r-us.webs.com/ UPDATED 8/21/09