Welcome to my latest hub on Skyrim, the fifth game in my favourite series the Elder Scrolls. Today, I am going to look at how to best install mods manually. Mods allow you to enhance the original game, fixing bugs, add new content and upgrade the graphics. You can add new land masses, quests, in fact pretty much anything you could possibly think of can be added, changed or tweaked using mods.
You can see an example of how mods can improve the look of Skyrim in the picture below. A good place to start is the Top Files section which can be found by clicking on the Files button and select Top Files. It will give you an idea of what is popular and also show you some of the best mods made. Before you install mods, it is a good idea to organise the mods that you have and any that you download. This is true whether you use Mod Management tools or choose to install your mods manually.
Now that we have all our mods appropriately named and tidied into one folder, we need to check for any conflicts, dependencies or patches for our mods. Again, this is a step that you should perform for all mods regardless of the installation method.
It is important to always read the instructions closely. Even mods that you wouldn't expect to cause issues can and will cause problems, including the dreaded Crash to Desktop CTD. An example is ApachiiSkyHair by the talented modder Apachii. This mod can cause CTDs when you change hair, sex or race when selecting your character at the beginning of the game. Installing mods manually once you have checked the installation instructions and downloaded any patches is fairly straightforward.
Even if you use a Mod Manager, installing mods manually gives you a greater understanding of how the files fit together and what they do. There may also be other files. Copy all of these to your Data folder. Once you have installed the mod, continue to install mods until you have installed five to ten mods depending on the type of mod. If you are installing texture replacers or mods that add small amounts of new content such as new weapons or armour, you can install more mods at once.
If the change game play or make more significant changes to balance or objects in the game then install fewer. The next and most important phase is testing. You need to make sure that the mods you have just added have not introduced bugs, crashes or other problems. The reason that you install them in small batches is that this way it is easier to determine which mod is causing the problem. If you look at my load order below, imagine if I had installed them all at once and then I found there was a problem!
I would never be able to figure out which mod was causing it. If I only installed five to ten mods, it is much simpler to find that out.
But even the Dragonborn is not Superman — they cannot haul everything. Should you be running out of inventory space all too often, try these handy bags and pouches. Javelins, axes, knives, and even grenades can be equipped and hurled at enemies, and your skill with them improved via a skill tree. Daedra Hunter Armour This mod adds a suit of ornate armour to the game, but finding it requires you to embark on a little quest first.
Follow the diaries of a Daedra Hunter through numerous dungeons in order to discover the prize, along with a great collection of new one and two-handed blades. Start the quest by finding the Buried Tower southwest of Riften. Staves of Skyrim Staves of Skyrim is a staff overhaul mod that adjusts the way staffs work in Skyrim, as well as adding some beautifully detailed new staves to the game. Staves now come in heavy and light variants, as well as magic and defensive.
With a defensive stave you can block incoming attacks in a similar manner to a shield. Dragon Bone Weapons finally adds a full variety of weapons to the crafting system, allowing you to strike fear into the hearts of dragons everywhere by stabbing them with their brothers. Talos Armoury adds the armour of hero-god Talos himself to the game, and can be crafted only at the Forge of Talos.
Royal Elven Armour Some stunning armour as worn by the Elven Royal Guard, now available for the common folk to craft at all good forges. Immersive Weapons Working in exactly the same way as Immersive Armours, the Weapons version of the mod seamlessly adds new weapons to Skyrim. Cloaks of Skyrim For a fantasy game, Skyrim is severely lacking in cloaks. Everyone loves a swooshy cloak, and Cloaks of Skyrim adds wonderfully detailed cloaks to the game.
Skyrim is densely populated with areas to discover and explore. Open Cities — Legendary Edition More detailed environments bring with them a notable curse: loading screens.
Open Cities banishes loading between outside and inside cities, allowing you to pass through their gates and into the streets in one seamless movement. Now you can gallop through Riften on horseback, or coax a dragon into a city centre to fight the local guardsmen. Becoming a Lord grants you a plot of land as a blank canvas for building an entire city. Castle Volkihar If you prefer your fortresses pre-built then Castle Volkihar is about as grand as they come. A colossal vampire castle filled with winding corridors, turrets, and dungeons, it also comes bundled with its own questline.
Tundra Defence Tundra Defence grants Skyrim a minigame in the vein of tower defence and horde mode. Build your own outpost in the wilderness of Skyrim and then defend it from waves of attackers. Guards can be hired to help defend your land and citizens can live in your boundaries in exchange for taxes.
Enemy raids can be triggered manually for instant action, or set to random intervals so attackers can strike at any time. This adds an interesting element of responsibility to the game, as ignoring attacks can leave your camp in ruins.
Community College Located east of Whiterun, the Skyrim Community College is home to 18 trainers and 18 merchants who will aid you in becoming a master in the many arts of adventuring. Greystone Castle An exceptionally grand player house located on a cliff northeast of Ivarstead, Greystone Castle is an elaborate bespoke build containing chambers for every kind of crafting imaginable.
A huge sunken dungeon accessed by a boat from the Dawnstar Sanctuary, Atlantis is teeming with mermen, goblins, traps, whirlpools, and even the agents of Hades. Val Lyrea Val Lyrea is a vast dwarven citadel located in the field of Whiterun, made up of cavernous halls with gilded monuments and great hissing clockwork machines. Wyvern Rock Castle A beautifully designed castle, and your new home, the fun in Wyvern Rock comes from its multiple secret rooms.
The Dwemer were well known for their ingenuity and, surprisingly, airships are actually part of The Elder Scrolls lore. The Asteria is inspired by the Morrowind quest Bloodmoon, and not only looks fantastic, but has decks kitted out with all the forges, enchanting tables, and tanning racks you could possibly need to lead a life of luxury in Skyrim. It eliminates moments of unnatural silence with birdsong and wind out in the wilderness, and the hussle of human life in cities.
Effects change depending on the time of day too, with nocturnal animals sounding out at night and children shrieking during the day. To keep it lore friendly, the places have been reimagined as they would be years on — the time difference between Arena and Skyrim.
For long-term players, this a true piece of fan-service. Falskaar Falskaar is a particularly famous mod. More expansion pack than a simple questline, the mod adds 25 hours of campaign content and a whole new continent. Velicky created it to gain the attention of Bethesda. He now works at Bungie on Destiny, which should shout about the quality of his work. An absolute necessity and the most ambitious mod on this list.
These are the mods you need to keep you journeying for that extra mile. Voyage to the Dreamborne Isles is the most beautiful world created for Skyrim; all saturated colours and neon fauna. As the name suggests, it burrows down 50 levels deep. Each floor contains enemies, and defeating them unlocks the door to the next cavern.
An arena-style combat challenge, this dungeon also randomly changes on every visit to encourage multiple replays. Lore friendly and prioritising exploration and story, each one of the five quests in the collection adds new areas to discover, all littered with a vast collection of heavily researched texts.
Fight against the Thalmor More a campaign than a questline, Fight against the Thalmor is comprised of four Workshop files each containing a chapter of the prolonged struggle against a bunch of racist elves.
Rather than offering up standard quests to the log, the mod provides the locations within the game and allows the story to play out naturally through the use of letters and journals, NPCs, and a few side-quests. While not as narrative heavy as most quest mods, Fight against the Thalmor offers some stunning locations to spill blood in. Expect the classic moments — including those dreaded dogs — all made over with a Skyrim-friendly feel.
And with the mansion cleared you can settle in and make it your home. Wolf, Tiger, Bear, and Tree forms will be at your disposal after proving your worth in the druid trials, each offering indefinite periods of animal form and a selection of special abilities.
Arissa A mere two quests long, this is certainly the shortest adventure on our list, but the reward is quite special: Arissa herself. Fully voiced with lines of dialogue, and fleshed out with a substantial backstory, Arissa is a well-travelled Imperial rogue looking to help out the Dragonborn. The Dark Brotherhood Resurrection An extension to the Dark Brotherhood questline, Resurrection adds 22 new quests and contracts to murder the six most powerful men in Skyrim.
With its washed-out colours and constant threat of death by dragon fire, Skyrim is quite a grim game. Take a break from the weight of saving the world by being a bit silly. Skyrim is no exception, and lightsabers are fore and centre in the Jedi of Skyrim mod. Squeaky Toys brings that same joy to Skyrim without the need to be uncouth.
Massive inflatable hammers and bats with just the right squeak pitch on every impact. Call of Trainwiz Nothing demonstrates the power of the one true Dragonborn like an airstrike. Call the contents of London Euston down upon your foes with this most deadly of shouts. You can also make arrows for your bow in the Minecraft style.
On the way are Creepers, Ender Dragons, Skeletons, and craftable armours. Explosive Chickens Turn bwark bwark into boom boom with these highly volatile poultry explosives. Simply fire projectiles at them from a safe distance for instant fire, burst eardrums, and chargrilled wings.
Who needs Skyrim: Special Edition, eh? Search for:. Skyrim Special Edition brought advanced support for modding with bit on PC, meaning players can load up more heavy mods with fewer issues and instability. For all the mods listed in this round.
Her design does seem to fit the general style of Skyrim, though, which is great to help this mod blend into the Skyrim universe. These creatures are known to be humanoid aliens that made their appearances in the original trilogy as well as in the second set of movies released in the s. You will be able to play as a Twilek yourself with the addition of this mod, and you might even turn them into Jedi if you install other mods on this list!
But one thing remains: detailed sound effects. Both are totally free of course and pretty easy to install without any risk of glitches or bugs between them.
This mod turns the entire College of Winterhold into what you would expect a Sith Academy to look like. But hey, the College itself is pretty grim — why not turn it into something that looks a bit better? It works the same way as the Sith mod and it serves as one of the best Star Wars visual mods that have been made for Skyrim. Always best to play it safe. The Falcon is a player home, but this mod adds much more than that into your game.
With this mod you also get some new characters, quests, and other cool goodies. It allows the Dragonborn to cast them to their will, and in combination with other mods they allow you to feel like a true master of the Force itself. The effects are certainly noticeable. That title goes to our number 1 pick so keep reading if you want even more features.
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