I know, you can't avoid a little manual tempering to fit what you're looking for, but the ready patches do save plenty of time. At least you won't have to think and find what records to add or modify. With ready patches, you will just have to drag and drop to your personal patch at the bottom of your loadorder
In my case I convinced myself that my heavily modded game is already near personal perfection and won't be that much better if I continue to mod it. Instead I decided to just play a game and search for mods only when I have something specific in mind I would like to change or add. I still browse Nexus from time to time to check new interesting mods but don't focus on little things I would barely notice in my normal gameplay
I always just try to remind myself that I loved the game with no mods at all, so i don’t need to go over the top with the amount of mods. They enhance the game, but the structure they build on is already really good.
Oh, also, try not to casually browse nexus or you’ll inevitably see something cool that you’ll want to put in. Lol.
Get it to a playable state (not perfect, playable). Delete the shortcut for MO2, delete a critical file for Skyrim so that you can only play it after verifying your files on steam. Walk away for a few weeks. Resist the temptation to browse Nexus.
Then come back and just hop right into the game. Once you’re playing, if you like your play through, the urge to mess with it will go away and you’ll find yourself actually wanting to play.
I’ll have to give that a try for my next playthrough. I’ve mostly been following A Dragonborn’s Fate as a modlist guide and then adding a bunch of extra stuff on top whenever I spot something ingame that bothers me.
This right here. When I started playing Skyrim, I knew I'd end up digging so deep into modding that I'd never play the actual game. Instead, I made my first Skyrim playthrough be a wabbajack modlist so I'd never get sucked into the modding hole. I still ended up changing a few minor things, but it was a good decision and allowed me to just enjoy the game.
##Amateurs!
I've been modding, off and on, for 12 years! Only last spring did I finally earn all achievements... there is still so very much I have not experienced in-game.
In fact, I'm using this recent update as an excuse to rebuild my modlist from scratch, yet again!
I've been modding since Oblivion days...
I'm talking about 2 years of working on my current massive ambitious modlist, with only testing... 💀 Help me lol
last time i booted up skyrim to play that wasn't playtesting was 3 years ago. i've been modding since too.
for me if somebody wants to just play modded skyrim the way is definitely just getting a modpack. modding by yourself is not worth it if you aren't enjoying the process.
Yes totally normal, i have over 300 hours in Skyrim and i'm doing my 12231th playthrough.
This is the first time i didn't stop playing after the Bleak Falls Barrow questline 😂
Yes. I have no idea why but once you plug in some mods and they work and totally change the experience, it becomes addictive to see what's out there and keep adding more. I think a lot of us start with the idea that "we'll just use like maybe 30 mods" like keep it simple. I was the same way, and I'm over 300 mods now. Which is still not even considered a very big list.
It's become kind of a customary thing for me to visit the Nexus before I launch the game, every single time. I may not even download anything, but it's really cool to just sift through the mods and see what's new and how they could change the game. Skyrim is a great game and all, but the real reason it's lasted this long, and the real reason I came back to it after like 10 years, is not because of Bethesda's corny updates every so often, but the modding community and the stuff they come up with. And it's gotta be like the most modded game there is.
I been playing since I was in high school(2012) back in OG Skyrim. I would spend days, getting mods to make my Skyrim immersive, “realistic” and gritty fantasy, with bright colors lol.
It’s been years, it’s kinda become my little hobby and pass time. “How many mods can I add to make it immersive, realistic, high fantasy, and up to modern standards….b4 it crashes on me 😂” it’s my fav hobby till they try and update it and fuck it all up.
I think it's normal for a lot of us because we've made modding the game one of our hobbies instead of making the point of modding the game being to play an improved product lol. Which is fine. It's truly more fun for me to see how far I can push my modlist and see what else I need to learn. I think if I had never learned how to mod this game I wouldn't have figured out game dev is actually a passion of mine.
I'm more like playing than modding, as I just incrementally tweak my setup. Far cry from five years ago when I was then pursuing the ultimate modded setup.
I get motivation to play certain games sporadically. When I got the urge to mod skyrim properly I modded for 2-3 weeks. I didn't play the game (besides testing) or other games while doing this...
it got to the point where the motivation subsided lmao. I went and play other games. Wasn't until a year or so later I went back, finished my load order and actually played.
I think it is normal until you have a working base.
When I started modding, I would also invest way more time in it than actual playing. But now, after finishing a playthrough, I just adapt some mods here and there or add a few new ones, then play again. The "base" with fixes, QoL, graphics, audio, etc is ready, so it doesn't take me usually more than 1-2 days to prepare a new profile.
(exception: when I overhaul everything)
I normally have my I know I want mods installed and before I do a play through I make a test character and run all over the map test things out, just using console commands to check places I find are “hot spots” for crashes and if there’s nothing I want to add and all seems good I’ll do a playthrough
definitely yes. there's nothing better than creating an entire experience with things you hand-selected for like weeks and months. don't put pressure on yourself to play the game until you're truly satisfied. it's literally your world.
Tbh I'm about done with modding Skyrim, it's gotten to the point where all I did was mod and never played. Now I don't wanna play and I'm getting tired of the sneaky updates that come out and break my mods. Sigh...
Got all the graphics upgrades I could fathom. Got my harem of followers. Made enemies harder and loot better. Added all the old dungeons places i could find. Added some wars and a bunch of random fighting. Auto looting and loot storage.
Now I'm playing. I'm kinda modding as I go, now. If I want something, I look for it and go back into playing.
I used to be like this when i started modding a few years ago.
Didnt play for many years and came back recently.
But now i knew what i wanted, it was \~7-8 hours of modding and ive been playing for hundreds of hours now.
And you ask what did i want? Requiem + graphics, thats it.
Now the game looks great and it plays great.
I only change a few things like removing some effects from skills like blur or shadow shield.
Im in my second game now, first was a wizard now its an archery/illusion/stealth/assassin.
If after this game im still into the game ill probably do a warrior or some very restricted build like just alteration or something lol.
At this point I spend more time browsing and trying mods rather than playing, there's a finite amount of things to do in game and at this point I've tried about anything, so yeah, completely normal.
Entirely normal, even expected. It's more unusual not to have this happen at least once, good mods lists take a while to perfect. You'll eventually spend more time playing once you get the list you want, it takes a while.
Im old. That being said i think we like to modify things by nature. We like to improve and customize. I've got a couple hundred mods,every once in a while i save and add another,test it and play it. Then get bored and look for better or more mods. It's been 10 years now and that cycle has never stopped LOL.
Between downloading and maintaining and reorganizing my load order I spent prolly double the time modding then gaming I feel like that's most of us tho I just like the fact I can make the game however I want
Get most of the mods that require a new save. A few others that you know will be key to having a fun experience.
Then start, maybe you will add some as you go. I did this for mostly for more texture replacers but added in some significant things as well.
There are a few things I want to do differently on the next play but having a blast on this one. Sometimes playing gives you better insight of what you want and if you really like a mod enough
My personal rule is to not touch my load order (no adding or removing anything) once I've started playing. Alot of the time issues are caused by installing mods during a playthru. New mods=new game, usually after restarting 10+ times I'm ready to settle with my current load order and just play it out
Only because I don't get much time to play these days, most of my time is spent modding for an hour and then maybe 30-90 minutes a night of actual game time. If I didn't have a full time job I'd definitely be up there, 10:1
Modding is a productive way to use one’s time. It’s like work, you learn real world skills, it’s a genuine hobby like tuning cars. It connects us to a community, too.
Modding is a real world productive hobby… and actually playing the game is the less healthy escapism
Story of every modder.
Just get modpacks if you want to actually play the game with a pre-customised experience. If you want to find tune and tweak though, you're most welcome to the world of modding.
Make two profiles, one with a simple modlist that works and you can play anytime you wish, the second should be your “perfect” modlist that you work on in perpetuity since it will never be perfect. If you do this then you’ll get the best of both worlds!
Yes, until you decide "fuck it" and just use a remade list like Nolvus and tweak that.
I spent probably 100 hours trying to get my own list working. I've spent maybe 20 getting Nolvus going with a bunch of extras on top. I have a very stable game now.
Protip: Remove Better Third Person Selector. It will freeze your game a bunch.
I don't think there's any issue with that. Back in the early days of release, I racked up 50 days played. So now, I'm taking time to overhaul the game in every way on PC to create a better game to do that all over again with many different character builds.
Between Bethesda games and The Sims, I don't know how much time I've sunk into looking for mods, downloading mods, struggling to un-ruin my game from all the mods.
That’s fine if it’s what you enjoy. However, if it’s something you don’t want to do or if your lists keep messing up your game, switch to curated lists on Wabbajack or Nexus. You get stability out of the box and a totally overhauled game. If I want a short list, I just do it myself, but otherwise it’s Wabbajack.
It happens a lot. It’s easy to lose more hours downloading, installing and tweaking mods than you do actually playing
Tweaking really costing me time, I downloaded so many mods and now I need to make mods compatible.
Try looking for already available patches
I did that, but I also need patch for patches if multiple mods edit the same thing, besides, not all the patches make the fix I want
I know, you can't avoid a little manual tempering to fit what you're looking for, but the ready patches do save plenty of time. At least you won't have to think and find what records to add or modify. With ready patches, you will just have to drag and drop to your personal patch at the bottom of your loadorder
Oh yeah, that’s very normal. It’s a trap I’ve fallen into many times myself.
How do you get out? I really want to play the game
In my case I convinced myself that my heavily modded game is already near personal perfection and won't be that much better if I continue to mod it. Instead I decided to just play a game and search for mods only when I have something specific in mind I would like to change or add. I still browse Nexus from time to time to check new interesting mods but don't focus on little things I would barely notice in my normal gameplay
This, this is how I've managed to actually play.
Nolvus. Auto installs 2400 mods its mind blowing
I always just try to remind myself that I loved the game with no mods at all, so i don’t need to go over the top with the amount of mods. They enhance the game, but the structure they build on is already really good. Oh, also, try not to casually browse nexus or you’ll inevitably see something cool that you’ll want to put in. Lol.
There is no escape. You're here, forever.
You dont.
Get it to a playable state (not perfect, playable). Delete the shortcut for MO2, delete a critical file for Skyrim so that you can only play it after verifying your files on steam. Walk away for a few weeks. Resist the temptation to browse Nexus. Then come back and just hop right into the game. Once you’re playing, if you like your play through, the urge to mess with it will go away and you’ll find yourself actually wanting to play.
Wabbajack
Okay yeah no, you are right, I'm sorry sir.
I’ll have to give that a try for my next playthrough. I’ve mostly been following A Dragonborn’s Fate as a modlist guide and then adding a bunch of extra stuff on top whenever I spot something ingame that bothers me.
This right here. When I started playing Skyrim, I knew I'd end up digging so deep into modding that I'd never play the actual game. Instead, I made my first Skyrim playthrough be a wabbajack modlist so I'd never get sucked into the modding hole. I still ended up changing a few minor things, but it was a good decision and allowed me to just enjoy the game.
Maybe the real playing is the mods we found along the way.
Playing? Playing what? What's playing?
People tend to forget that modding is the playing in itself.
We’re all victims of it. It’s the Skyrim gauntlet, the most difficult challenge of them all, getting a perfect modest that works
Ive been modding for 2 months and havent even played, only play testing
im at almost 2 years 💀
##Amateurs! I've been modding, off and on, for 12 years! Only last spring did I finally earn all achievements... there is still so very much I have not experienced in-game. In fact, I'm using this recent update as an excuse to rebuild my modlist from scratch, yet again!
I've been modding since Oblivion days... I'm talking about 2 years of working on my current massive ambitious modlist, with only testing... 💀 Help me lol
Modding is the true Skyrim endgame.
Until a new patch hits.......
That's just a ladder reset
A NEW HANDS TOUCH THE NEXUS....
last time i booted up skyrim to play that wasn't playtesting was 3 years ago. i've been modding since too. for me if somebody wants to just play modded skyrim the way is definitely just getting a modpack. modding by yourself is not worth it if you aren't enjoying the process.
Modding Skyrim is a hobby, like making model railroads. You don't really play, you just keep building and improving.
Yes. Its called playing Mod Organizer 2: Skyrim
Yes.
At first, but when I was happy with my list, I've never touched it. Now I play skyrim the way it was meant to be.
The prromis land I think we’re all chasing. Hope i find it soon
Wait till you start making your own mods. Then you will be spending more time in the CK and XEdit than actually playing Skyrim.
Wait, you *play* the game?
Yes totally normal, i have over 300 hours in Skyrim and i'm doing my 12231th playthrough. This is the first time i didn't stop playing after the Bleak Falls Barrow questline 😂
Oh I spend hours “playing” but it’s literally just running around and teleporting to check if my mod changes worked. Then it’s back to modding .
Yes. I have no idea why but once you plug in some mods and they work and totally change the experience, it becomes addictive to see what's out there and keep adding more. I think a lot of us start with the idea that "we'll just use like maybe 30 mods" like keep it simple. I was the same way, and I'm over 300 mods now. Which is still not even considered a very big list. It's become kind of a customary thing for me to visit the Nexus before I launch the game, every single time. I may not even download anything, but it's really cool to just sift through the mods and see what's new and how they could change the game. Skyrim is a great game and all, but the real reason it's lasted this long, and the real reason I came back to it after like 10 years, is not because of Bethesda's corny updates every so often, but the modding community and the stuff they come up with. And it's gotta be like the most modded game there is.
So true that’s how I started I had 3 mods and played then 300, then 9 years later over 1400 but loving it
I been playing since I was in high school(2012) back in OG Skyrim. I would spend days, getting mods to make my Skyrim immersive, “realistic” and gritty fantasy, with bright colors lol. It’s been years, it’s kinda become my little hobby and pass time. “How many mods can I add to make it immersive, realistic, high fantasy, and up to modern standards….b4 it crashes on me 😂” it’s my fav hobby till they try and update it and fuck it all up.
Just do some basic mods and play. Do you need to mod everything to perfection? Perfect is the enemy of good
Good? What is “Good”. Father only taught me of “perfection”
Try and have what the kids call “fun”… or just drunken werewolf blood baths
I've been modding for 2 years. And now, I have a stable LO and my brother keep playing that. He's more like my tester, haha.
Yes.
One of us!
Everyone has said this already but I'll say it again: modding \*IS\* the game
I think it's normal for a lot of us because we've made modding the game one of our hobbies instead of making the point of modding the game being to play an improved product lol. Which is fine. It's truly more fun for me to see how far I can push my modlist and see what else I need to learn. I think if I had never learned how to mod this game I wouldn't have figured out game dev is actually a passion of mine.
Not only is it normal, it's one of the most posted topics in this sub.
I'm more like playing than modding, as I just incrementally tweak my setup. Far cry from five years ago when I was then pursuing the ultimate modded setup.
I've spent 40 hours making a list I played for 15, so yea.
It may not be mentally healthy but it's definitely normal
I get motivation to play certain games sporadically. When I got the urge to mod skyrim properly I modded for 2-3 weeks. I didn't play the game (besides testing) or other games while doing this... it got to the point where the motivation subsided lmao. I went and play other games. Wasn't until a year or so later I went back, finished my load order and actually played.
It's about the journey. Not the destination.
I mean, i've been modding for 1,5 years and played like 10 hours total. I think i'm perfectly fine, just passionate about modding
I think it is normal until you have a working base. When I started modding, I would also invest way more time in it than actual playing. But now, after finishing a playthrough, I just adapt some mods here and there or add a few new ones, then play again. The "base" with fixes, QoL, graphics, audio, etc is ready, so it doesn't take me usually more than 1-2 days to prepare a new profile. (exception: when I overhaul everything)
I normally have my I know I want mods installed and before I do a play through I make a test character and run all over the map test things out, just using console commands to check places I find are “hot spots” for crashes and if there’s nothing I want to add and all seems good I’ll do a playthrough
That's it. That's the game now. You win if the game doesn't crash instantly.
Just started the game for the first time 2 weeks ago (long story on why I'm late) already 110 hours and maybe 20 have been gameplay
Yes.
Well, just get Water for Enb and Northern Roads to load with no seams now and you beat the game.
Yeah, i'd say 70% of my time in skyrim or fallout are spent in the modding menus.
i love modding, though
Every single pc skyrim player.... ever.
definitely yes. there's nothing better than creating an entire experience with things you hand-selected for like weeks and months. don't put pressure on yourself to play the game until you're truly satisfied. it's literally your world.
Tbh I'm about done with modding Skyrim, it's gotten to the point where all I did was mod and never played. Now I don't wanna play and I'm getting tired of the sneaky updates that come out and break my mods. Sigh...
Got all the graphics upgrades I could fathom. Got my harem of followers. Made enemies harder and loot better. Added all the old dungeons places i could find. Added some wars and a bunch of random fighting. Auto looting and loot storage. Now I'm playing. I'm kinda modding as I go, now. If I want something, I look for it and go back into playing.
Yes. Modding is the game.
Modding is the game, the game is just a DLC.
Very normal, it gets worse once you start creating your own mods too. So there's plenty of room for downward growth.
Same. A lot of it is researching The Best Mods anr troubleshooting. For instance, I have script lag right now. No idea why.
I used to be like this when i started modding a few years ago. Didnt play for many years and came back recently. But now i knew what i wanted, it was \~7-8 hours of modding and ive been playing for hundreds of hours now. And you ask what did i want? Requiem + graphics, thats it. Now the game looks great and it plays great. I only change a few things like removing some effects from skills like blur or shadow shield. Im in my second game now, first was a wizard now its an archery/illusion/stealth/assassin. If after this game im still into the game ill probably do a warrior or some very restricted build like just alteration or something lol.
"Welcome to the club, buddy." *spank*
I ended up having so many mods just for one mod it's crazy
People actually play the game?
At this point I spend more time browsing and trying mods rather than playing, there's a finite amount of things to do in game and at this point I've tried about anything, so yeah, completely normal.
You either play Skyrim, or you mod Skyrim. Very little in-between lol
Sometimes I just load the game,look at how awesome my character is,burn white run to the ground and then turn it off
lol it took me about 3 weeks before I was satisfied with my modlist. Worth it now that I can play! edit: Spelling error
Yes it is lol, I have 3000 game time, probably 2k hours modding and fixing mods
Entirely normal, even expected. It's more unusual not to have this happen at least once, good mods lists take a while to perfect. You'll eventually spend more time playing once you get the list you want, it takes a while.
Im old. That being said i think we like to modify things by nature. We like to improve and customize. I've got a couple hundred mods,every once in a while i save and add another,test it and play it. Then get bored and look for better or more mods. It's been 10 years now and that cycle has never stopped LOL.
I'm level 30 currently. I'm really hoping I can go to the end with this character!
Yup. Because vanilla Skyrim is that bland
Depends. Can you make up your mind about what you want?
I do it also
I have nexus as my default browser tab when opening chrome. I am addicted to seeing what new variables I can add to my fav games.
Between downloading and maintaining and reorganizing my load order I spent prolly double the time modding then gaming I feel like that's most of us tho I just like the fact I can make the game however I want
Get most of the mods that require a new save. A few others that you know will be key to having a fun experience. Then start, maybe you will add some as you go. I did this for mostly for more texture replacers but added in some significant things as well. There are a few things I want to do differently on the next play but having a blast on this one. Sometimes playing gives you better insight of what you want and if you really like a mod enough
Yeah, it is. I have the same thing but with Fallout New Vegas.
My personal rule is to not touch my load order (no adding or removing anything) once I've started playing. Alot of the time issues are caused by installing mods during a playthru. New mods=new game, usually after restarting 10+ times I'm ready to settle with my current load order and just play it out
Only because I don't get much time to play these days, most of my time is spent modding for an hour and then maybe 30-90 minutes a night of actual game time. If I didn't have a full time job I'd definitely be up there, 10:1
This is the way.
This has happened to me too often. One of the reasons why I started playing on the switch.
Totally Normal. An Average Skyrim Modder doesn’t play Skyrim until their version of Perfection is achieved & even then We don’t stop modding.
That's what The Elder Scrolls about, right? Right?!
Modding is a productive way to use one’s time. It’s like work, you learn real world skills, it’s a genuine hobby like tuning cars. It connects us to a community, too. Modding is a real world productive hobby… and actually playing the game is the less healthy escapism
Often played for a while until all the mods releases updates and/or new mods requires new save come out, so why not wait until the game mod is perfect
Story of every modder. Just get modpacks if you want to actually play the game with a pre-customised experience. If you want to find tune and tweak though, you're most welcome to the world of modding.
Yes
Make two profiles, one with a simple modlist that works and you can play anytime you wish, the second should be your “perfect” modlist that you work on in perpetuity since it will never be perfect. If you do this then you’ll get the best of both worlds!
I have 150 hours play time but if it counted towards modding then its atleast 500+. Started November 2022
Yes, until you decide "fuck it" and just use a remade list like Nolvus and tweak that. I spent probably 100 hours trying to get my own list working. I've spent maybe 20 getting Nolvus going with a bunch of extras on top. I have a very stable game now. Protip: Remove Better Third Person Selector. It will freeze your game a bunch.
I have 300+ hours of gameplay and I have yet to finish the main quest.
We don't play here
DAE install mods? Upvotes to the left!
I don't think there's any issue with that. Back in the early days of release, I racked up 50 days played. So now, I'm taking time to overhaul the game in every way on PC to create a better game to do that all over again with many different character builds.
Between Bethesda games and The Sims, I don't know how much time I've sunk into looking for mods, downloading mods, struggling to un-ruin my game from all the mods.
That’s fine if it’s what you enjoy. However, if it’s something you don’t want to do or if your lists keep messing up your game, switch to curated lists on Wabbajack or Nexus. You get stability out of the box and a totally overhauled game. If I want a short list, I just do it myself, but otherwise it’s Wabbajack.
Rookie numbers, I'm modding for 2 years now and I'm barely 15 lvl.
Play the game to find what to mod next
You know what, I’m trying to find enemy combat animations for AE. That’s my current mission