I've picked up what I consider the most essential mods at this point, and I'm ready to get into some of the more elective choices. I know most of the time you can add in mods later with no problem, but which ones in your experience really need for you to start a new game? Is it just overhaul mods that are like this?

I'm wondering if there's anything else I really have to add now before I start playing,

Clean the official DLCs with TES5Edit http://afkmods.iguanadons.net/index.php?/topic/4110-manual-cleaning-skyrim-master-files/

Install Unofficial patches, get their load order correct .. and play

Get a feel for how the vanilla game plays before you consider adding mods.

Beyond that its all subjective and down to what you want.

Beyond the UPPs the only two recommends I have for anyone are :

Run For Your Lives

When Vampires Attack

Because Dragons and vampires munch on NPCs randomly - And all associated quests with those NPCs dies with them.

Edit : And one last tip, when you add more mods, add them one at a time, and test that all is working as you would expect it to. Installing mods en-masse is a recipe for not having a clue what went wrong because you dont know which mod caused the problem.

Have a save made before you install a new mod too. If you want to uninstall the mod, then you have a save to go back to that is not dependant upon that mod being installed.

I have to say there is a dizzying array of mods out there today. I guess that's what you have to do though: Just get what you need or really want. I'm going to play as a caster, so I'll almost certainly get Apocalypse Spells for instance. I saw the screenshots of that and it looks amazing. It's tempting to have dozens of mods but I couldn't finish a heavily modded Shivering Isles awhile back when my saves became corrupted. Had better luck with New Vegas using a smaller and safer loadout. I know there are precautions you can take but I feel like using too many mods will break the game. Out of curiousity, how many are most of you guys using for Skyrim? Seems like it doesn't need the kind of modding that Oblivion did.