(SkyRem Guide)
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SkyRem Guide Pages
Home Page: Introduction <----- Section I: Stability Section II: Mechanics Section III: Content Section IV: Aesthetics Section V: Final Steps
SkyRem Guide Support
Discord: Discord Channel for all things SkyRem (Guide and Mods). Patreon: Support SkyRem development via Patreon. PayPal: Support with a one-time donation via PayPal. Trello: See guide development progress on Trello.
INTRODUCTION[edit | edit source]
What is SkyRem? Yes - SkyRem is an acronym (if you have delved into any of my mods, this is probably very apparent) for Skyrim Roleplay Enhancment Modding.
The SkyRem concept began with the desire to tweak character creation and development and has since developed into two (currently) series of mods and now a guide as I work to put it all together. The goal: the ultimate roleplay experience in Skyrim. Alone, it is a great game. With the involvement of the modding community, it has become a phenomenal game. This guide, along with the few mods I have authored, is my attempt to give back to that community (or at least contribute in some way).
There are great guides available already, with different focuses, different objectives, varying degrees of difficulty, etc. After countless hours of using other guides, adding, subtracting, altering... this guide is my "finished product" based on the concept above and the priorities below.
This is not a difficulty or beautification focused mod guide by design. One could argue that difficulty is incorporated simply by the nature of the roleplay focus and modifications, but the intent of the guide goes far beyond just making Skyrim more difficult. As for beautification - I include plenty of mods specifically for this, but do not spend an inordinate amount of time determining which texture from this mod should overwrite this one, etc. I have also incorporated these into the guide in a way that will make it easy for you to add / subtract / substitute... whatever you prefer (or whatever your system prefers).
Guide Priorities:
(1) Stability (2) Mechanics (3) Content (4) Aesthetics
SYSTEM INFO[edit | edit source]
| DrPharmDawg's Rig | Spec |
|---|---|
| Motherboard | ASUS® G751JY |
| CPU | Intel® Core i7 4710HQ @2.50GHz |
| GPU | Nvidia® GeForce GTX 980M 4GB GDDR5 |
| System RAM | 24 GBs |
| Operating System | Windows 10 64-bit |
| Monitor Resolution | 1920x1080 |
GUIDE INFO[edit | edit source]
The guide is divided into several Sections:
- Section I: Before You Start - Introduction, general information, preparing your setup, and "how to's" for modding.
- Section II: First Steps - The beginning of the mod list and installation. Primarily covers priorities 1-3.
- Section III: Next Steps - Continuation of Section II. Primarily covers priority 4.
- Section IV: Optional Steps - Continuation of Section III. Primarily covers priority 5.
- Section V: Final Steps - Patching and in-game setup, such as MCM settings.
This guide provides:
- A stable and Performance Friendly setup.
- Installation and instructions for the using various modding tools and techniques.
- Patches to make the various setups work together (available on Nexus).
- Support via Discord and regular updates (but hopefully not so many that you spend more time modding than playing).
This guide does not:
- Include ENB or Reshade: I do not use them nor do I care for them. The trade-off for performance is (IMO) not worth it.
- Include Dead Mods: Mods that need updating or mods with excessive (or unanswered) bug reports/comments) without simple solutions.
- Include CBBE: What little I do in this regard is UNP.
- Include 4k+: Whenever possible, I use 2k at the most. There are a few exceptions in which 2k is not available however.
Guide Organization[edit | edit source]
The guide is organized as follows: Sections >> Steps >> Parts
These three levels are used to organize the guide into increasingly smaller and more specific groups of information and mods.
Section 1: Before You Start Introduction, information about the guide and how to use it, and setting up your Skyrim to be "modding-ready". Section 2: First Steps Modding with a focus on the priorities #1 - #3 (Stability, Performance, and Mechanics). Section 3: Next Steps Continuation of Section 2 with the focus on priority #4 - Content. Section 4: Optional Steps Remaining mods for priority #5 - Aesthetics. Section 5: Final Steps Patching and any final touches before doing in-game setup (such as recommended MCM settings).
In addition to this three tier approach, Parts (the lowest tier) are tagged as follows:
Red (Core): Required (Either because they are key to the concept of SkyRem, or incorporated into the provided patches). Blue (Extended): Recommended but not necessary. Generally include content that should NOT be added/removed mid-game (so plan ahead). Green (Visual): Optional. Consist only of textures, meshes, and/or other assets that can be easily added/removed based on preference (or performance) at any time.
One final note on this organization: Mods may contain patches or FOMOD options that are based on your choices made about Extended (Blue) mods. Watch for mods, options, or information highlighted in YELLOW. This indicates you need it if you choose to use that mod, or not need it if you choose not to use it.
Mod Legend[edit | edit source]
Each mod utilizes this template:
Mod Name & Link[edit | edit source]
- Author of Mod
- Version used by SkyRem Guide
- Tags (See below)
FILES: File(s) to Download and Install
Note: Any additional installation instructions or steps to take following installation.
Mod Tags[edit | edit source]
Tags are described below. Read through the mods "card" prior to starting installation of that mod to prevent having to back track.
Dark Tags with Light lettering indicate new or updated mods and download and/or installation needs, such as Newly added or BSA extraction.
Light Tags with Dark lettering indicate post-installation needs such as optimizing meshes, ESLifying, merging, porting, or cleaning).
- TOOL: Tool utilized during the modding process. Not actually a Mod, but required for proper guide installation.
- NEW: Newly added Mod since previous version.
- UPDATE: Mod has been updated since previous version.
- BSA: During installation, select YES to extracting the BSA.
- CAO: Run the Cathedral Asset Optimizer (CAO) to properly convert the files for use with SSE.
- ESL: Plugin (ESP) can safely be tagged as an ESL using SSEEdit.
- : Plugin will be included in a Merge using zEdit.
- PORT: Mod needs to be completely converted from LE to SSE.
- CLEAN: Mod needs to be cleaned using SSEEdit.
- PATCH: Mod contains patches (either separate files or in a FOMOD) that need to be installed as an individual Mod.
- CORE: Mod contains a Master for the Core Patch.
- : Mod contains a Master for the Extended Patch.
Merging Mods[edit | edit source]
Merging is essential to adhere to the 255 plugin rule. ESLs help with this also, but not all tools are setup to handle ESL files, so we still want to keep the total number of plugins under 255.
Some Parts of the guide include Merged in the header. Mods within that Part will include the tag as well. Following Parts that include mods intended to be merged will be a Merged ***** "mod". At most there will be one merge per Step (one merge for Fixes, one for Gameplay, one for Immersion, etc.)
Versions[edit | edit source]
- The format for the Guide version is X.Y.Z.
- Z indicates minor changes such as small fixes, mods moving, minor mod version updates, etc.
- Y indicates changes that may require rebuilding merges/patches, mods added or removed, major mod version updates, etc.
- X indicates changes that may require a new game such as larger overhauls of the guide, etc.
Guide Notes[edit | edit source]
- Following completion of each Step, sort (Loot) and test your setup. This is much easier than troubleshooting after completing the guide if something goes wrong.
- Remember, anything highlighted YELLOW indicates a selection to be made if using the associated mod from an Extended Part.
Guide Stats[edit | edit source]
Upon completing the SkyRem Guide (assuming a full install of Core + Extended + Visuals) as of v2.1.0:
- Total Mods (Left Pane of MO2): 816
- Total Plugins (Right Pane of MO2): 249
- Total ESMs + ESPs: 207
- Total ESLs: 42
This leaves room for 48 non-ESL plugins - Enough to further customize your mod load.
