I haven't got into the habit of checking Steam Workshop yet—I guess it doesn't include non-Steam games?—and I didn't know Epic had started… altho the game which twigged me to that, Total War Troy, isn't listed in that search result??
Links to Nexus and ModDB and ModDB offshoot IndieDB.
Anyway, where's your goto for mods, and do you know of any other reputable sources?
I know @ZedClampet can stuff more mods in a game than I can Christmas cookies in my belly, so what's your biggest installation? Mine is ~20-25 via the Resistance mod package for Far Cry 5, and via the BUG/BAT/BULL collection for Civ4.
I'm hugely grateful to the modding community, I signed up for the Premium membership at Nexus [& ModDB if they have such, I don't think so] years ago just to give back a tiny bit. Thank you all for improving the pastime we all love.
Here's a link to the Epic mods for Troy. They don't have nearly as much as Steam Workshop or Nexus, so you might want to look through the ones at Nexus. Unfortunately for you and me, Steam has twice as many mods as Nexus does. I refuse to buy it just for the extra mods, though. I'll keep playing my FREE game with fewer mods.
Nothing is easier than Steam Workshop, and they usually have the most mods of anyone. You just click the "Subscribe" button, and you're ready to play. So if a game has Workshop support, that's what I use. If not, then I just go wherever the mods are. Satisfactory and Farming Simulator have their own mod websites. Actually, Farming Simulator lets you download mods from inside the game, too. If there's no official mod site, I'll go to ModDB or Nexus. For some reason I can't stand Nexus, but usually they have more mods than ModDB. For instance, they have a little over 100 for Troy while ModDB has less than 20.
As for the most mods used at one time on a game, it was somewhere over 800 on Farming Simulator 19. Another cool thing about FS19? They continually updated the game for 3 years and never broke the mods.
My next biggest installation was much, much smaller than that at around 40 mods recently with Satisfactory.
Didn't you have hundreds in Skyrim? Could've sworn I saw that somewhere here. Then again, maybe a product of the same brain rot which netts me ~10 mods from ~120 available—yeah, that's more likely.
Vortex
Anyone use Vortex, Nexus' mod manager? Love it? Despise it?
I used Vortex, mainly for Skyrim Special Edition. It's better than their old program, which was called Nexus Mod Manager, and I've never had a problem with it I couldn't fix with a quick Google.
These days I get most of my mods from Nexus, though the Steam Workshop is where I go for Total War: Warhammer and XCOM, and sometimes a mod I want will be on GitHub or whatever.
Well great, my two efforts to locate 'em there got me 4 and 3 mods. I wonder do I need Vortex to see them all?
It gets better—I see 7. I assume that's a bit more less than you meant?
Didn't you have hundreds in Skyrim? Could've sworn I saw that somewhere here. Then again, maybe a product of the same brain rot which netts me ~10 mods from ~120 available—yeah, that's more likely.
Vortex
Anyone use Vortex, Nexus' mod manager? Love it? Despise it?
I've never even played Skyrim I do remember someone else saying they had a bunch of mods going on it, though.
Vortex is okay. Despite it being a mod manager, you still have a small hoop or two to jump through sometimes to get things working. It's far better than extracting mods into your game files, though.
Gods, where do I start? Apologies from the start if this ends up being a long post, but modding pc games, and the dedication of some mod authors is near & dear to me. Thanks to @Brian Boru for being a Premium Member of the Nexus as I still believe that is the best free choice location for mods, and as a Premium Member myself, I love to support that freedom of expression we have as PC gamers.
Note that the Premium Membership (as in Lifetime Membership) has changed since August of this year, and has been replaced by several different payment options; though those members having previously purchased Premium (Lifetime) will still be honored. If interested the details are here: Billing system and Premium pricing update at Nexus mods and community
I began modding games with the Steam Workshop, and it's still an easy way to mod games if you're only going to use a few mods. As @ZedClampet said, hit the Subscribe Button, and "Boom!" (sorry that's a credit to John Madden, may he RIP), and you're ready to play without configuration issues.
As far as trusted mod sources, I think @Brian Boru listed the major players. There are a possilbe two others:
Bethesda.net, and AFK Mods: Bethesda.net Mods Arthmoor - AFK Mods Bethesda, while a trusted mod source (this is not Creation Club content which is paid), only involves mods for Skyrim SE and Fallout 4. It comes into play for me only for those mod authors who have pulled their mods from the Nexus over the Mod Collections issue and moved them to Bethesda. Manuvering the site is a bit convoluted in my opinion, but remains a useable source for those two games.
AFK Mods I've never used (yet), but it bears watching as Arthmoor knows more about modding pc games than anyone I've seen. So it may be a limited source at present, but could possibly evolve.
I used Vortex, mainly for Skyrim Special Edition. It's better than their old program, which was called Nexus Mod Manager, and I've never had a problem with it I couldn't fix with a quick Google.
Vortex, I love it! And I think it's the absolute best Mod Manager for most games, especially Bethesda games. You can find various discussions online with haters & lovers for both Vortex and Mod Manager 2. I've looked at MM2, but found it difficult and more like working in a MS Excell Spreadsheet (though some may prefer that). Vortex was more visual to me and far easier to understand. Plus, if you're using Vortex, the downloading and installing is really simplified.
Just click "Download with Mod Manager"(you can still do a manual download if you desire)
Once mods are downloaded in Vortex, you can begin to install, or enable mods. There are a lot of variables involved which I won't go into, because, well, there are too many vairables. Dependencies, conflicts, patches, and load orders to name a few, most of which you should have learned from reading the mod authors instructions. Another nice thing about Vortex, is that includes Loot ( LOOT: The Load Order Optimisation Tool } which can be extremely important for some games, most notably Bethesda games like Skyrim.
I haven't modded every game (obviously), and requirements vary greatly. Most of my experience is with Bethesda's games (I inclued Fallout New Vegas in that group). Relating back to load order, it's not just the mods themselves, but the plugins (.esp or .esm files), and in what order the game loads them.
For example, my current Skyrim SE mod list contains 214 mods, but only has 139 plugins. Some .esp or .esm plugins encompase more than one mod. While some mods, especially texture mods have no plugin at all.
And here is the Skyrim SE plugin load order, with a spoiler tag because of length (Hey! @Brian Boru I used spoiler tags!)
0 0 Skyrim.esm
1 1 Update.esm
2 2 Dawnguard.esm
3 3 HearthFires.esm
4 4 Dragonborn.esm
5 5 Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch.esp
6 6 Apachii_DivineEleganceStore.esm
7 7 ApachiiHairMales.esm
8 8 ApachiiHairFemales.esm
9 9 UnlimitedBookshelves.esp
10 a SkyUI_SE.esp
11 b SMIM-SE-Merged-All.esp
12 c Gildergreen Regrown.esp
13 d RelightingSkyrim_SSE.esp
14 e Book Covers Skyrim.esp
254 FE 0 BetterQuestObjectives.esp
254 FE 1 BetterQuestObjectives - BCS Patch.esp
15 f Guard Dialogue Overhaul.esp
16 10 1nivWICCloaks.esp
254 FE 2 Frost Meshes Patch.esp
17 11 ThaneWeaponsReborn.esp
18 12 LessIntrusiveHUD.esp
19 13 iHUD.esp
20 14 UnreadBooksGlow.esp
21 15 LKVM by Nimee - Part I_ SE.esp
22 16 NeutralHjerim.esp
23 17 Obsidian Mountain Fogs.esp
24 18 RealisticNeedsandDiseases.esp
25 19 Remodeled Armor - Vanilla Replacer.esp
26 1a Legendary Skyrim Crossbows.esp
27 1b Holidays.esp
28 1c LKVM by Nimee - Part II_SE.esp
29 1d Better Vampire NPCs.esp
30 1e HF_Lakeview_PHB_EX.esp
31 1f Run For Your Lives.esp
32 20 TimingIsEverything.esp
33 21 The Blackest Reaches.esp
34 22 EMCompViljaSkyrim.esp
254 FE 3 Qw_BookCoversSkyrim_USSEP Patch.esp
35 23 Inigo.esp
254 FE 4 Finding_Derkeethus.esp
36 24 HF_Heljarchen_PHBXB1_EX.esp
254 FE 5 Finding_Derkeethus_EBQO.esp
37 25 Apachii_DivineEleganceStore_Patch.esp
38 26 Plocktons Culling Glitch Fix.esp
39 27 TheAmazingWorldOfBikiniArmor.esp
40 28 The Paarthurnax Dilemma.esp
254 FE 6 BugJarReplacer.esp
41 29 WhiteLighthouseSE.esp
42 2a BreezehomeBasement.esp
254 FE 7 BetterQuestObjectives-PaarDilemmaPatch.esp
43 2b Holidays SFO Patch.esp
44 2c PersonalWeddingGuests.esp
45 2d HoamaiiSleepingBags.esp
46 2e TakeNotes.esp
47 2f GoToBed.esp
48 30 GoToBed-RealisticNeedsandDiseases-patch.esp
49 31 SeranaDialogAddon.esp
50 32 THMeeko.esp
51 33 Falling Leaves in Riften.esp
52 34 cheery_AetherArtifactsCrafting-r2.esp
53 35 Enhanced Enemy AI.esp
54 36 VanderolTattoos.esp
55 37 HN66_Earrings.esp
56 38 circletswithhoods.esp
57 39 Fantasy Soundtrack Project.esp
58 3a Fantasy Soundtrack Project - Combat.esp
59 3b nordicrangerarmor.esp
60 3c Armor of Intrigue.esp
61 3d HN66_NAILS4ALL.esp
62 3e HN66_NAILS4ALL_GauntletSupportSSE.esp
63 3f TGLNordArmor.esp
64 40 OvLeatherArmor.esp
65 41 Seraphine Outfit.esp
66 42 SolstheimLighthouse.esp
67 43 DawnguardArsenal.esp
68 44 Bijin Warmaidens.esp
69 45 SPTDiverseGuardsSkyrimSE.esp
70 46 DragonPriestMasks.esp
254 FE 8 FSA_FindingSusannaAlive.esp
71 47 Ember_Sword.esp
72 48 CosmeticVampireOverhaul.esp
73 49 BVNPC CVO Patch.esp
74 4a TheEyesOfBeauty.esp
75 4b Light Elven Armor.esp
76 4c ApachiiHelmetWigs.esp
77 4d PrinceandPauper.esp
78 4e Neith - Timerigan Priestess.esp
79 4f NS_Eilhart_Dress.esp
80 50 XIVSummerSwimsuit.esp
81 51 Perk Points at Skill Levels 50-75-100.esp
82 52 Thief skills rebalance for Ordinator.esp
83 53 Ars Metallica.esp
254 FE 9 DGA-ArsMSE CompatPatch.esp
84 54 Ars Metallica - LSC Patch.esp
85 55 LuminousAtronachs.esp
86 56 Skysan_Icicle.esp
87 57 DYNAVISION Dynamic Depth of Field.esp
88 58 Cathedral Landscapes.esp
89 59 icepenguinworldmapclassic.esp
90 5a StormLightning.esp
91 5b Cathedral Weathers.esp
92 5c WetandCold.esp
254 FE a CathedralWeatherMCM.esp
254 FE b Obsidian In Cathedral.esp
93 5d Cathedral Dynamic Snow.esp
254 FE c GloriousGlaciers.esp
94 5e Skyland Imperial Forts and Dungeons.esp
95 5f Ero_CACOIngredientBook.esp
96 60 EllaViljaOverhaul.esp
97 61 EMHearthfireMoveKidsfix.esp
98 62 EMViljaInSolstheimAddOn.esp
99 63 JS Barenziah SE - Johnskyrim.esp
100 64 GIST soul trap.esp
101 65 RUSTIC SOULGEMS - Sorted - GIST.esp
102 66 LeveledItemsLevelWithYou.esp
103 67 Remodeled Armor - Underwear.esp
104 68 FNISSexyMove.esp
105 69 XPMSE.esp
106 6a CBBE.esp
107 6b FNISspells.esp
108 6c FNIS.esp
254 FE d maplightfix.esp
109 6d Complete Alchemy & Cooking Overhaul.esp
254 FE e Inigo_CACO_Patch.esp
110 6e RNAD_CACO_Patch.esp
254 FE f CACO_USSEP_Patch.esp
254 FE 10 Qw_CACO_ArsMetallica Patch.esp
254 FE 11 Qw_CACO_BookCoversSkyrim Patch.esp
111 6f Ordinator - Perks of Skyrim.esp
254 FE 12 CACO_Ordinator_Patch.esp
112 70 ImmersivePerformance_Ordinator.esp
113 71 Ordinator - Half Leveling Speed (with 10% weapon boost).esp
114 72 nwsFollowerFramework.esp
115 73 Luminosity Lighting Overhaul.esp
116 74 RealisticWaterTwo.esp
254 FE 13 Qw_Luminosity_RW2 Patch.esp
254 FE 14 RealisticWaterTwo - Needs Mod Patch.esp
117 75 Underwater Visibility Fix - RW2.esp
And here's my current Fallout 4 modlist (249 mods but only 201 plugins):
0 0 Fallout4.esm
1 1 DLCRobot.esm
2 2 DLCworkshop01.esm
3 3 DLCCoast.esm
4 4 DLCworkshop02.esm
5 5 DLCworkshop03.esm
6 6 DLCNukaWorld.esm
7 7 Unofficial Fallout 4 Patch.esp
254 FE 0 Slower Leveling 50%.esl
254 FE 1 Mors Sit Anywhere.esl
8 8 VotWMaster.esm
254 FE 2 VotWSpecialVideos.esl
254 FE 3 VotWTheatre.esl
9 9 ACS Master.esm
10 a Snap'n Build.esm
11 b Homemaker.esm
254 FE 4 Horrorghouls2.2.esl
12 c CWSS Redux.esp
13 d TrueStormsFO4.esm
14 e ArmorKeywords.esm
15 f HardcoreMode_ON.esm
16 10 PlayerComments.esp
254 FE 5 Clean and Simple - Vault 88 Startup.esp
254 FE 6 Clean and Simple - Sanctuary Startup.esp
17 11 PiperCaitCurieDialogueOverhaul.esp
254 FE 7 Clean and Simple - Spectacle Island Startup.esp
254 FE 8 Clean and Simple - Mechanist Lair Startup.esp
254 FE 9 Clean and Simple - Hangman's Alley Startup.esp
18 12 Crimsomrider's Likable Strong.esp
19 13 M8r_Item_Tags_UFO4P_EN.esp
20 14 M8r_Item_Tags_Vanilla_EN.esp
21 15 M8r_Item_Tags_AWKCR_EN.esp
22 16 HN66Fo4_Rings.esp
23 17 HN66Fo4_Rings AE.esp
24 18 HN66-SiriusArmor.esp
25 19 WestTekTacticalOptics.esp
26 1a WestTekTacticalOptics-AWKCR.esp
27 1b CROSS_Uni_BosUniform.esp
28 1c funcweddingrings.esp
29 1d XunMicroBikini.esp
30 1e DlxClothesPack.esp
31 1f See You Sleep CW editon - Beta.esp
32 20 Explosives_AWKCR.esp
33 21 MoreWeaves.esp
34 22 free_downgrades.esp
35 23 free_downgrades_DLCCoast.esp
36 24 free_downgrades_DLCNuka.esp
254 FE a LegendaryModification_alt.esp
37 25 Gnome Problem.esp
38 26 dinoshelf.esp
39 27 dinoshelf_extra_ammo.esp
40 28 dinoshelf_retex.esp
41 29 Clean Wasteland Workshop.esp
42 2a ShipmentsExpanded.esp
254 FE b ExplosionKnockdown.esp
254 FE c EK - Reduced Force.esp
43 2b SlowTime.esp
254 FE d Feral Ghoul Bite Skills.esp
254 FE e Deathclaw Grab Skills.esp
254 FE f Radscorpion Stab Skill.esp
44 2c CraftableAmmunition_Adjustable.esp
45 2d CraftableAmmunition_FarHarbor.esp
46 2e HarcoreMode_ON-DLC03-TrueStormsFO4.esp
47 2f Better_Notes.esp
254 FE 10 Phoenix Lab AAT.esp
254 FE 11 Phoenix Lab GTB.esp
254 FE 12 Phoenix Lab GAB.esp
254 FE 13 Phoenix Lab MSJ.esp
254 FE 14 Phoenix Lab TAT.esp
254 FE 15 Phoenix Lab TJJ.esp
254 FE 16 Phoenix Lab TTO.esp
254 FE 17 Phoenix Lab COM.esp
254 FE 18 Phoenix Lab UNS.esp
254 FE 19 Phoenix Lab WSG.esp
48 30 AllDeathclawsGlow.esp
49 31 detailedferalghouls2K.esp
254 FE 1a VotWCells.esp
50 32 HZS Easy Homebuilder and Working Double Beds.esp
51 33 BusySettlers.esp
254 FE 1b Busy Settlers SMM.esp
52 34 Better Cooking Stations.esp
53 35 Better Cooking Stations - Far Harbor + Nuka World patch.esp
54 36 ACS LuisRoyoModule.esp
55 37 ABP Paintings.esp
56 38 ACS Master.esp
57 39 ACS Paintings.esp
58 3a Eli_Display Shelves.esp
59 3b aes_rendeco.esp
254 FE 1c aes_rendeco SMM.esp
60 3c AES_Renovated Furniture.esp
254 FE 1d AES_Renovated Furniture SMM.esp
61 3d Siles - ModernMagazineShelf - All in One.esp
62 3e Evan_Modular Kitchen.esp
63 3f Stackable Brick Wall Foundations.esp
64 40 PlayerComments_PiperCaitCurieDialogueOverhaul_Patch.esp
65 41 Publick Occurrences Expanded.esp
254 FE 1e Clean and Simple - Egret Tours Marina Startup.esp
254 FE 1f Clean and Simple - Graygarden Startup.esp
254 FE 20 Clean and Simple - Warwick Startup.esp
254 FE 21 Clean and Simple - Croup Manor Startup.esp
254 FE 22 Clean and Simple - Sunshine Tidings Startup.esp
254 FE 23 Clean and Simple - The Slog Startup.esp
254 FE 24 Clean and Simple - Jamaica Plain Startup.esp
254 FE 25 Clean and Simple - Greentop Nursery Startup.esp
254 FE 26 Clean and Simple - Kingsport Lighthouse Startup.esp
254 FE 27 Clean and Simple - Coastal Cottage Startup.esp
254 FE 28 Clean and Simple - Abernathy Startup.esp
254 FE 29 Clean and Simple - Taffington Boat House Startup.esp
66 42 Warwick Homestead a Bridge to SpectacleIsland.esp
254 FE 2a Clean and Simple - Murkwater Construction Startup.esp
254 FE 2b Clean and Simple - Finch Farm Startup.esp
254 FE 2c Clean and Simple - Nordhagen Beach Startup.esp
254 FE 2d Clean and Simple - County Crossing Startup.esp
254 FE 2e Clean and Simple - Somerville Place Startup.esp
254 FE 2f Clean and Simple - Ten Pines Bluff Startup.esp
254 FE 30 Clean and Simple - Outpost Zimonja Startup.esp
67 43 Eli_Armour_Compendium.esp
254 FE 31 Clean and Simple - Oberland Station Startup.esp
68 44 W.A.T.Minutemen.esp
254 FE 32 Important NPCs essential edition 1.1.esp
69 45 VotWStarlightDriveIn.esp
70 46 KingsportLighthouseLit.esp
71 47 LanternBottles.esp
72 48 SwitchboxGenerator 5-512.esp
73 49 Passthrough.esp
74 4a VerticalConduits.esp
75 4b BetterGenerators.esp
76 4c ImprovedPowerRadiatorsVTWpatch.esp
77 4d PowerConduitRadiator.esp
254 FE 33 SolarPower.esp
78 4e BalconySupports.esp
79 4f StackDLCsFoundations.esp
80 50 DD_All_the_COncrete.esp
81 51 MoreColorfulFishyStuff.esp
82 52 DD_Khassar_De_Templari_Increased_build.esp
83 53 Custom Concrete with Glass.esp
84 54 CREAtiveGardens_Spring.esp
85 55 CREAtiveGardens.esp
86 56 OCDecorator.esp
87 57 OCDecoratorDLC.esp
88 58 OCDispenser.esp
89 59 Snappy_HouseK.esp
90 5a llamaCompanionHeather.esp
91 5b AkaWaterWorld.esp
92 5c GruffyddsSignsAndPosters.esp
93 5d SignsOfTheTimesCategorized.esp
94 5e FilledBrahminFeedTroughs.esp
95 5f Cozy Beds.esp
96 60 Cozy Beds - My Bed.esp
97 61 BuildableBurningCampfires.esp
98 62 BarnAdd.esp
99 63 CatDecoFloors.esp
100 64 Homemaker - Streetlights Use Passive Power.esp
101 65 Homemaker - Unlocked Institute Objects.esp
102 66 SkjAlert_All_DLC.esp
103 67 Snappy_DLC03.esp
104 68 BetterSettlers.esp
105 69 Truly Unique Nick - VR.esp
106 6a FO4 Landscape Overhaul HD AIO.esp
107 6b The Eyes Of Beauty.esp
108 6c TheEyesOfBeauty.esp
109 6d HN66Fo4_Nails.esp
110 6e KSHairdos_oel.esp
111 6f Tri-Companion 2 AIO CCP.esp
112 70 AzarPonytailHairstyles.esp
113 71 BetterSettlersCCAPack2.0.esp
114 72 AWPWandererCoat.esp
115 73 PanundrumRingBikini.esp
116 74 HN66Fo4_EarringsV1.esp
117 75 HN66Fo4_EasyGirl_BS.esp
118 76 Multiple Floors Sandboxing.esp
119 77 PlayerComments_UFO4P_Patch.esp
120 78 DYNAVISION.esp
121 79 LargerMoon.esp
122 7a luxor8071's HD Texture Pack AIO Pt 3.esp
123 7b Industrial HD.esp
254 FE 34 luxor8071's HD Texture Pack AIO Pt 5.esp
124 7c luxor8071's HD Texture Pack AIO Pt 4.esp
125 7d luxor8071's HD Texture Pack AIO Pt 2.esp
126 7e luxor8071 HD Texture Pack AIO.esp
127 7f FO4 Seasons - Spring - AllDLC.esp
128 80 Clean Water - Tropical - Rads.esp
129 81 TrueStormsFO4-FarHarbor.esp
130 82 TrueStormsFO4-NukaWorld-FH-Compat.esp
131 83 TrueStormsFO4-FarHarborExtraRads.esp
132 84 TrueStormsFO4-GlowingSeaExtraRads.esp
133 85 SettlementMenuManager.esp
134 86 PhotoMode.esp
254 FE 35 M8rDisablePipboyEffects.esp
135 87 CBBE.esp
136 88 DN Far Harbor.esp
137 89 DN Music.esp
138 8a DNMega.esp
139 8b Armorsmith Extended.esp
140 8c HN66S Sirius.16 Armorsmith Patch.esp
141 8d HN66 SIRIUS12 AE VIS Patch.esp
142 8e llamaCompanionHeather-AE Patch.esp
143 8f NukaRadBans.esp
144 90 rpampas.esp
145 91 2pacSkimpy.esp
146 92 Eli Armor Compendium AE Patch.esp
As for the most mods used at one time on a game, it was somewhere over 800 on Farming Simulator 19. Another cool thing about FS19? They continually updated the game for 3 years and never broke the mods.
I find both those facts amazing! My biggest mode load was around 300. And the fact that game updates never broke your modded gamed is even more incredible.
Yeah, I think it was me, back when I first joined I seem to remember a post about modding Skyrim. Hundred's of mods may be an exaggeration as I don't think I've ever gone beyone 300.
Love it, love it! Very easy to use for most games that are able to be modded. Very user friendly especially if you download from the Nexus. There are some exceptions, the most notable being the Mass Effect games (ether the original or LE) and with those it's best to use ME3Tweaks.
I think a lot of the variables when it comes to modding a game depends upon the game's engine. I know nothing about game engines, but it seems like some are more difficult than others. I think @ZedClampet has some experience in the Unreal Engine, maybe he could help define the differences?
Thanks for the links. I love it when mod authors get a bit of recognition. I'd like to see PC gamer do type article, like they do for "games of the year", but for mods taken from all sources.
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