Modding can be intimidating : IV

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 6:21 pm

What would be the best place to start?

I found a handy suggestion list of mods that seem to really enhance the game, problem is, all the links to said mods are broken.
Mainly the overhaul mods such as FCOM or Deadly Reflexes interest me so far. I heard that installing BOSS, OMM, and Wrye Bash was greatly suggested before trying to dive into any mods. But there's so many different versions of each mod I have no idea where to start lol. I assume the most recent would be the best bet, but I've noticed that isn't always the case.

FYI, nobody hates dumb questions more than me, so going into this I realize you probably get other tools asking this very same question multiple times a day. If nothing else, maybe someone can point me in the right direction? This stuff confuses the hell out of me, especially if you don't understand all the lingo/abbreviations.

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 7:18 pm

Welcome, have a fishy stick!:)

Also, place to start: http://tesivpositive.animolious.com/.

Advice: Read, and be patient.

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:34 am

I agree that it can be very intimidating. I'm new to modding myself... Follow anithinks' advice, but also there is another link I can give you, that someone else gave me. My advice, check them both out and see which one you're more comfortable with. Also, apart from being patient, don't give up on it if you get frustrated or confused. It's so much fun, and I'm thrilled to be learning it myself.

http://cs.elderscrolls.com/constwiki/index.php/Main_Page

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 4:31 am

Welcome fellow noob : )

I'm a newbie myself but in a week or two I've been improving a lot thanks to this great forum. The great step was learning to use Wrye Bash, you really want to start there and almost forget about any other tools. TesIV:Positive was also an invaluable resource for me.

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 4:13 pm

Must have modding tools:

BOSS: sorts your load order correctly (99.9% of the time)
Wrye Bash: build a Bashed Patch to solve most mod conflicts (see the stickied "Compatability and you" thread for why this is needed). Use the link in my sig if you're interested (especially check out alt3rn1ty's guide, referenced on the first page).
This one is pretty complex, and requires some setup to install correctly. Best bet is to install the "standalone" version (but disable CBash right now, it still has bugs).
OBMM: easiest to use for installing mods...but BAIN (part of Wrye Bash) is so much more powerful if you're willing to tackle the higher learning curve. Also, OBMM can edit shader packages, if you need that.

Tons of other very useful tools, of course, but those should get you started.

Mods to get:

Unofficial Oblivion Patch - fixes tons of stuff in the vanilla game
Unofficial Patch Supplementals - Fixes more stuff that didn't make it into the UOP above

Other than that, there is just too much to list, but some things that always show up in my load order:

All Natural - my favorite weather mod
Immersive Interiors - requires All Natural, makes it so you can see the cities when you look out of windows
SM Plugin Refurbish - fixes up SI/DLC quest to start in a more realistic manner
Better Cities or Open Cities Reborn - improves all the cities. The 'Open' variations make it so you can walk right into the cities from the world, without going through loading screens

FCOM is probably a bit complicated to start with (very complicated). I've never tried it myself, just because I know I don't want to deal with the complexities of getting it to work, especially when I'm testing other mods too. Usually it's recommended to start with something simpler (for example OOO, the 'O' in FCOM)

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 7:10 pm

My usual copy/pastes for the common newbie mod request topics can be found below. The most important thing to remember is to take it easy, and take it slow. Strat off with just some small well known mods that are known to be clean, reliable, and easy to install. Get a taste for the little mods and tweaks you might want. As you need to slowly look into utilities and stuff you might need. You see this little mod you really want that requires OBSE, then look into OBSE for a bit. A week later you see another mod that mentions Wrye Bash a lot look into wrye bash. Once you have like 10-20 mods look into BOSS for sorting that load order. etc.

Basically start out slow, install small safe things, slowly expand your knowledge as you need to, and don't add a bunch of mods at once.
If you just decide to install FCOM, 8 quest mods, 3 texture overhauls, 5 gameplay mods, 4 race mods, all the utilities, extenders, and potential requirements you might need and do all that right off the bat then of course it's going to be intimidating. Just take it slow, do some searching and research, install the mods YOU really want, and do it all at your own pace. Personally I didn't install a major gameplay mod until like 1 year and half after I started modding, and I didn't install OOO+MMM until 2 years after.

Spoiler

Lists and resources for finding many popular mods, and some good mods:
(note the distinction between the two, don't just follow mindless peer pressure, try and make your own opinions and find what you'll like)

List of lists:
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?showtopic=1010109
Top 100
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/top/alltime.php
Files of the months:
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/filesofthemonth.php
Hall of fame:
http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=oblivionmods.HOF
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/categories.php, http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/tags/search.php, http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/advancedsearch.php

General help in terms of installing, utilities, workshops, etc.:

http://tesivpositive.animolious.com/
http://www.oblivionmodwiki.com/index.php/Main_Page
http://tesalliance.org/forums/ (Check The Enclave forum, the Oblivion forum, or the Voice actor forum depending on your pursuits)
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/forum/87-iv-oblivion/ (Hardware/software for non mod related issues, Mods for mod users, Construction set for making mods.)

List of topics exactly like ~~yours~~ generic pleadings for "Any mods?" that have already been answered:
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1072579-the-any-mods-list-of-topics/
Read the AZERessential topics to get the basic "get wryebash, OBMM, OBSE, start slow" basic advice for starters recommendations

If you want any further help I suggest you tell us about yourself; what you like and what you're looking for... Here's some questions to get you started:

Have you played Oblivion already?
What sort of things interest you?
What type of Character do you usually play? (good/evil, theif/mage, roleplayer/random-no-story-hack-and-slasher?)
Are there specific types of mods you think would interest you? (Quests, graphic mods, gameplay mods, overhauls, etc.)
When did you leave?
What did you not like about Oblivion? What did Oblivion not have or need more of?
Male or female character?

For the occasional "What are your must haves?"

Mostly quest mods: http://kno.li/i

My favorite quests are:
http://theelderscrolls.info/?go=dlfile&fileid=349 (my most favorite)
http://www.tesnexus.com/modules/members/index.php?id=125368
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=21989
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=17448
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=6977
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=6855
Ihttp://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=19591

[b]Gameplay mods:

http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=25462
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=25835
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=22894
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=25844
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=25844
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=26196
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=18442
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3409
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=21862(good for troubleshooting)
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=20736
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=20807
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=20371 (Needed for Integration)
http://www.tesnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=22124 (Needed for Integration)

I'm mostly a quest mod player and I recently posted a big rundown for most of them that I've playedhttp://thenexusforums.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=157600&view=findpost&p=1349075 and http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/genmessage.php?board=924363&topic=51137901.

(Some of these are probably outdated by now)
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?act=findpost&pid=15598757
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?s=&showtopic=1073167&view=findpost&p=15603156
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?s=&showtopic=1073167&view=findpost&p=15602927 (Don't really want a lot top 10's or simple lists but I'm desperate for cop/pastes at the moment)
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?s=&showtopic=1075680&view=findpost&p=15650213

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 10:36 am

And here I thought I'd be downloading and installing mods and playing them quickly...

Ho boy, this is gunna take some time

» Mon Dec 12, 2011 8:35 am

dont forget tes4edit to clean the dirty esp files. there is a nice list of clean mods and ones that need cleaning and a few that are a do not clean at all . if its not on the list it more then likely needs to be cleaned.
another reason to get wrye bash is for the bash patch which alot of mods need that to get the full benifits. just so many reasons to get this tool to mention .
and yes go slow add just a few mods at a time so you dont end up with the i just added 50 mods and now my game is crashing what mod caused it hahah.

and last but not least read the read mes they will give you information about installation and potential conflicts. and some will even recomend other mods that may complement the mod.