The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is still worth ultra-modding in 2022

Source: Windows Cardinal

Skyrim isn't a new game anymore, fifty-fifty with all of the re-releases that Bethesda has put out to cash in on its success. The Special Edition came out in 2022, and although it was an improvement over the original, the modding community wasn't content to let information technology lie. The Skyrim Nexus is chock full of things for you lot to install, but information technology can be challenging to decide what to put into your game, especially considering you lot accept conflicts to tackle.

Modding Skyrim can exist as easy or complicated every bit you desire it, depending on what you lot're looking to get out of your game. This isn't a guide on how to ultra-mod Skyrim — such a thing already exists — but rather a give-and-take on whether it's nonetheless worth going in a higher place and beyond to play a total overhaul of this classic of the 2022s.

A classic reborn

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition

Return to Skyrim

A classic of the modern historic period, Skyrim is all the same revered as one of the all-time games of the final (and current) generation. It spans a gorgeous open world full of dungeons, quests, and NPCs. But take it all multiple steps frontwards with an extensive modernistic drove, and you accept yourself a whole new game. If you want more, go a scrap further, so you lot hit the "ultra-modernistic" status.

Some groundwork

Source: Windows Central

I recall the solar day fondly that Skyrim came out. I lined upwards outside Gamestop with a agglomeration of other people, despite the cold Colorado air. 1 guy was diggings the trailer music in his machine, getting usa all pumped upwards for when the doors opened.

See, I had a nuptials to go to that same twenty-four hour period for my at present sister-in-law and her husband. Despite being the person in accuse of controlling the music, and therefore necessary, I decided to skip sleeping to play Skyrim. I was amazed. In the months and years to follow, I poured hundreds of hours into the Xbox 360 and PC versions equally I did with Daggerfall, Morrowind, and Oblivion. Throw in Dawnguard and Dragonborn, and I was a content gamer for years.

Before, I idea 200-400 mods were "ultra." Oh, how wrong I was.

I've long dabbled in modding Bethesda games, merely I usually just installed some graphical mods, gameplay adjustments, and the required bugfixes and patches. It wasn't until I upgraded to a 1080 Ti that I felt the urge to go back to Skyrim and install a bunch of GPU-crippling mods. Though my framerate never exceded 60fps, I loved nearly every infinitesimal.

At present here I sit with a 2080 Ti, and I wanted to accept a stab at real ultra-modding Skyrim. Earlier, I idea 200-400 mods were "ultra," but information technology wasn't until I dove into the enthusiast community that I plant out how wrong I was. There were people with mind-bogglingly huge modlists and load orders, and I discovered tools I'd never heard of before, like SSEEdit and DynDOLOD. It was overwhelming, and information technology pushed me away for a few months.

It wasn't until weeks ago that I decided to have a stab at Lexy'southward Legacy of the Dragonborn, an extensive guide to have a beautiful and stable ultra-modded Skyrim. The pre-requisites list alone was enough to put off a sane human being, let alone how many mods to install, configurations to run, merges to do, and and then on. Information technology took a couple of tries and almost 24 hours of work, but I managed to get everything upwards and running. You can see the results in the images contained within this post.

The process

Source: Windows Cardinal

All credit for how my installation of Skyrim looks and runs goes to DarkLadyLexy and their team. Though the amount of work the user has to put in is quite substantial, it pales in comparison to the work required to maintain the guide and patches. Seriously, kudos.

For me, information technology was worth purchasing a month's worth of Nexus Premium, which allows multiple, uncapped downloads for getting the mods. Information technology's something I recommend considering even with that, a lot of the total time is devoted to understanding the files you need. I can't imagine how much longer it would take with the costless membership, which is why I decided the premium subscription was worth information technology for me. Information technology was but a couple of bucks for the month.

I started my journey on the intermediate side of a newb. I had spent most of my fourth dimension using the sometime Nexus Modern Manager, which is now Vortex (and I hate it). This guide required the use of Modern Organizer 2, which I didn't like at first but grew to beloved equally the hours went on. It's a robust programme and full of powerful features.

Over many hours, I learned about resolving conflicts (generally by deleting certain .nif and .tga files), converting "Oldrim" mods to Special Edition versions, cleaning master files with SSEEdit, merging ESPs with zEdit, and manually setting rules for the proper load club when running LOOT. Yeah, I realize that if you're new or have only dabbled in modding, all of that sounds similar gibberish. Don't worry, it did to me, too.

The signal being, Lexy's guide is comprehensive and teaches you lot virtually all that you demand to know. One user in the community even made a video playlist over on YouTube on going through the procedure, so if yous're a visual person, yous can see how it's done.

A whole new game

Source: Windows Central

I've been through Skyrim many times, and while the game packs in a ton of content, the ane thing that's been lacking is a challenge. Even on the greatest difficulty, the game has never pushed me. Frankly, I've died more than frequently to falling off of mountains trying to be Goatborn than to enemies. Dragon battles began to feel stale, and I lost my fearfulness of the Falmer and my dread at trudging through Blackreach. Even killing Skyrim'due south hundreds of bandits was just dull. Throw in cheat codes like tgm and tcl, and Skyrim lost almost of its appeal.

Lexy'due south guide promises that this overhaul is "non your dad's Skyrim," since it drastically ups the claiming. Like others, I took to adopting followers, fifty-fifty on my Dark Elf vampire assassin/stealth archer (which is still OP), despite my love of exploring the land alone. Well, I tin always brand an exception for Serana. Several mods accomplish a radical transformation, turning Skyrim into a more hardcore game. The virtually noticeable modern is Wildcat. This adds combat harm multipliers, both dealt and received, based on difficulty settings, injuries to body parts, and stamina used for all weapons, including drawing and holding your bow.

Some mods massively upgrade the enemies, so even Bleak Falls Barrow, the very first dungeon, is a severe claiming until level 20-30. If y'all caput at that place early on, the bandits with their starter gear will ane-shot you with their bows. If yous manage to survive long enough until the melee ones shut the altitude, you'll ragdoll off the mount to the ground below from one striking.

Source: Windows Cardinal

You might exist thinking, "Wow, it's like they tried to make Skyrim into Dark Souls!" Jokes about writers comparing everything to Nighttime Souls bated, it does feel that style. The problem is, Skyrim's core systems aren't meant for the Soulsborne gameplay. Stamina regens too deadening (and potions are quite limited early on) for you to set on and contrivance effectively. Bluntly, having the kickoff dungeon/requirement for the main quest require several hours of investment before you can even think well-nigh acquisition it is a flake over the top.

Even when y'all make up one's mind to try and fight another twenty-four hour period, the broader state of Skyrim outside of the Riverwood expanse, or fifty-fifty Whiterun, is as roughshod. One modernistic adds brigand patrols, which usually consists of three to 5 enemies. Like before, with an try to enter Dour Falls Barrow, they take an easy time with y'all. This is why I started with a stealth graphic symbol. I like that Skyrim is dangerous — the NPCs and lore approve this — only challenge needs to be balanced. Once you're adequately leveled, however, even the greater difficulties are a fun experience.

"Wow, it'due south like they tried to turn Skyrim into Night Souls!"

And so what do you exercise? Well, the first step is to turn down the difficulty to Apprentice if you're having problem. I started at Master, and then went down to Good before I got frustrated. My pride said not to go to Apprentice, but my want to savor the game won out. If you're still having trouble, and even going to Novice doesn't assistance, then information technology'southward time to caput into the Modernistic Configuration Carte (MCM) and tweak some settings. Alter the difficulty of dragon fights, damage multipliers, and the amount of enemy actors to your liking. The point, after all, is to enjoy the game you're playing. As great every bit the Soulsborne games are, their cadre concepts don't interpret all that well to Skyrim. It'southward okay to admit that and move on.

The core modernistic at all of this is Legacy of the Dragonborn, which adds a bunch of new gameplay features to Skyrim. First and foremost is a museum in Solitude right by the Blue Palace, only at that place are other things similar collectibles and cards to find. Mostly, however, the mods you'll exist installing boost that oh-then-sweet immersion factor. From NPC beliefs to massively improved visuals, Skyrim feels more alive in one case y'all kicking it upward for the first time after your modding process is finished.

Information technology was all worth information technology

Source: Windows Central

I didn't mention the mods that add new content like followers, quests, and new worlds similar Falskaar. One quest, the Newspaper Mirror, stuck with me. It starts off past finding a swain in Solitude'southward inn, who tells you about a strange woman in a shack near Riverwood. It turns out; it's Anise'south motel with the secret trap door underneath. Become there, and yous'll find a book that, when read, seems very odd. Follow it to the next destination, and things just keep getting meliorate. Information technology's a short quest, especially if you fast travel, but a great one notwithstanding.

While I practise accept complaints on some of the mods, remove them from your list at your peril. Some of them incorporate masters for other mods. Otherwise, you have a piddling wiggle room to add some other mods of your own, granted y'all stay below the 255 plugin limit.

I added a gorgeous and idyllic thespian home that spans the river looking out over Whiterun hold and the city itself. I added a Celtic katana for my Nord, who does her best to hold to the Manner of the Vocalisation while being a badass dragonslayer. And for my immersion, I installed a dual sheath mod so my character volition shop her shield on her dorsum. All of that, plus some confront presets, brought me to 253 agile plugins. Suffice to say, the game takes a very long time to load, fifty-fifty to the primary bill of fare.

Source: Windows Central

So was it all worth information technology? I think you lot've guessed it by at present. Without a dubiety, all of this procedure, from the grueling installation to the harsh difficulty, made Skyrim feel new once again. I've had a blast playing through it, with only a few crashes (especially in Blackreach), and I genuinely feel similar I've earned the mantle of Dragonborn. Facing down a dragon, wearing my Blades armor, and wielding Dragonbane, is so much fun. Information technology reminds of the kickoff time fighting Mirmulnir when he attacks the watchtower in Whiterun.

If you're looking to return to Skyrim (and not in ESO form), but want something new, I encourage you to undergo Lexy's Legacy of the Dragonborn. It'll take you the better role of two weeks if you take a busy life, just it'due south worth information technology, I assure you. And there is a nice spread of graphical options, and so the RTX 2070 in my laptop has a dissimilar set of texture and LOD mods than my desktop with its 2080 Ti. All the same, you should aim for a minimum of 6GB of VRAM (1660 Ti or equivalent), though 8-11GB is preferable if y'all desire a stable and playable experience.

A archetype reborn

The Elderberry Scrolls Five: Skyrim Special Edition

Return to Skyrim

A classic of the modern age, Skyrim is yet revered as one of the all-time games of the last (and current) generation. It spans a gorgeous open world full of dungeons, quests, and NPCs. Just take information technology all multiple steps forward with an extensive mod drove, and you have yourself a whole new game. If you desire more than, get a bit further, and then you hit the "ultra-modern" status.

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Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/skyrim-ultra-modding-2020

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