Traveller In Time Apr 4, 2009

You got anything to eat? I haven't eaten anything since later this afternoon. You got anything to eat? I haven't eaten anything since later this afternoon.





The last thread had a lot of outdated info in the op so here's the new one. This thread will give you the necessary information to install, mod, optimize and NOT gently caress UP your Oblivion game. I'll note which steps are essential, if you don't want to get too deep into all this, general troubleshooting, as well as mentioning the current most popular mods.



Step 1. Installing Oblivion.



Uninstall Oblivion cleanly before re-installing. That means deleting the installation folder, the folder in 'My Games' with the .ini, and using CCleaner's registry cleaning tool (or any registry cleaner) to get rid of any remnants of the game.



Install Oblivion, Shivering Isles, then any DLC you have. If you're on Vista or Windows 7 install outside the program files directory to avoid UAC issues.

Install the official patches. If you have the GOTY edition you don't need the Oblivion patch, just the Shivering Isles one.

Test your game. I mean it. Run around and play for at least a half an hour to make sure your game isn't making GBS threads itself every 5 minutes.

You don't need any of the official DLC if you don't want them, however it is strongly recommended you get Shivering Isles. Not only is it a fantastic expansion in its own right, it's required for many of the better mods. Go ahead, get it. It's cheap now.



Step 2. Mod Utilities and essentials.



Install the unofficial patches. The Oblivion one, the Shivering Isles one, then the DLC one.

Download and install Oblivion Script Extender (OBSE). It's required for most of the better mods.

Download and install Oblivion Mod Manager (OBMM) and Wyre Bash. These will be your mod installation programs, which make installing and uninstalling mods a breeze.

Download and install Better Oblivion Sorting Software (BOSS). This takes away the headache of setting up your load order and does it as if by magic!



Step 2.5. Using OBMM and Wyre Bash.



These two programs do primarily the same thing by allowing you to easily install mods and set your load order. However, they both have unique features that you will want to take advantage of to create a smoother, more stable game. If you're fully familiar with these programs then you can use them in whatever way is most comfortable. If not, your mod adding procedure should be as follows.



Select 'create' at the bottom of the OBMM screen.

Select 'add archive' and select your zipped mod. If it's a folder 'add folder.' If it's a single file just use 'add file'.



If you're adding a mod that has multiple .esp files (these are your standard mod plug ins) and your downloaded mod doesn't have an OMOD conversion data file/folder then you will have to read the provided readme and delete the files you don't need. Many of the bigger mods especially come with alternative plug ins and textures you can use and can't run them all together. Most mods that require this will usually come with a conversion script though. If they don't you can search for one on TesNexus. These scripts, when activating the OMOD, will give you the choice as to what parts to install.



Also, this isn't an issue for most mods but make sure (by clicking data files at the bottom) that all your mods are going to their right folders. The files should start with meshes\, textures\, sound\ etc. If they don't then they won't show up in game. This isn't an issue if it comes with an OMOD script.







Add any information you want (author, version etc.) and click Create OMOD at the bottom. This process could take a little while based on the size of your mod. It's normal for OBMM to become unresponsive with some of the bigger installations, just leave it and let it do it's thing.



It is recommended to add the name of your mod and the version, for the sake of updating your mods later.



Once finished the OMOD will appear on the right with a coloured box next to it. Select it and hit 'activate' at the bottom. Your plug in files (.esp) and any master files the mod may have (.esm) will appear on the left in your load order box, and all the other files will go into the appropriate folders in Oblivion's data directory. Tick the boxes next to the .esp and .esm files on the left to activate them.



The coloured box is only a big deal if it's red, which denotes a major conflict with another OMOD. It will prompt you to overwrite files from another mod when activated. Check the readme for any incompatibility issues.



Select utilities > archive invalidation on the right. Select BSA redirection and auto-update on exit at the bottom. This is needed for any mods that replace texture, meshes etc. so that Oblivion will load them, as opposed to the original files. By selecting auto-update on exit this utility will run everytime you close OBMM so you only have to do this step once.







Run BOSS. It will automatically sort your load order when you close OBMM.

Phew! Now we're done. Just do that 200 more times and you'll be ready to play!



At this point you can finish, having only used OBMM, but if you're planning on adding a lot of mods then you really need to do this next set of steps in Wyre Bash.



Open Wyre Bash. Right click the column header at the top and untick 'Lock Times' so that Wyre Bash won't gently caress with the load order you created in OBMM.

Go to the Oblivion\Mopy\Extras folder and copy the Bashed Patch, 0 file into your Oblivion\Data folder.

Right click the Bashed Patch (at the bottom of your load order) and click 'Rebuild Patch'. A pop-up box will appear with loads of options on the left. Click one and any mods that are 'tagged' with that option will appear in the box on the right. Tick the box next to your mod, and tick the box next to the option. Hit OK and it will load all the information into the patch.







To determine which boxes to tick use BOSS. After some of your mods it will have recommended bash tags to use. These tags will be automatically added to your mods, so it's just a case of ticking the boxes.



In your Wyre Bash load order some mods may have green text, as opposed to the standard black. By using the merge patches option under Rebuild Patch we can merge these mods into the bashed patch and deactivate them in the load order, giving us room for more mods. Before doing this make sure the mods with green text are deactivated, and then rebuild your patch. Once done, and your bashed patch is activated, all the mods in green will have little plus signs, instead of ticks. These mods will automatically be deactivated in OBMM too.



You're done. Make sure to rebuild the patch anytime you delete a mod than was used in the bashed patch, otherwise Oblivion will close when you run it.



The Bashed Patch feature of Wyre Bash will help increase stability in your load order, as well as allow all your mods to share and mix information, as opposed to overwriting each other. Your load order denotes the order in which Oblivion loads mods, so if two mods change the same information the one loaded last will overwrite the data from the one loaded first. This can be an issue when dealing with things like levelled lists (the lists that distribute items to vendors, NPCs and loot found in the game) and cosmetic mods, as well as any mods that add new items to the Oblivion world. Thanks to the combined brilliance of BOSS and Wyre Bash we can combine this information so that your mods don't eat each other. For more information about Wyre Bash and what you can do with it go here.



Step 3. Optional Utilities.



There are other things you can do to help optimize your set-up. TES4Edit is a utility that can view all your mods and look for conflicts which you can change yourself. It also allows you to edit some aspects of mods, or the original game, you don't like. It comes with a large manual but is easy enough to use with a little practice and reading. TES4Gecko is a utility that allows you to merge together the .esps of mods. Since Oblivion has a hard cap of 255 .esp and .esm files it can load in one game this can be helpful for adding more mods. Many things can't be merged without issue though, so read up first. Finally Python File Format Interface (PYFFI) is a new craze that allows you to optimize .nif files (meshes) to increase stability and even boost frame rates. I'm not entirely sure how it does it (some kind of defragger that gets rid of unnecessary data) but it's very popular. I won't bother writing up tutorials for these unless they're highly demanded. Certainly none of them are needed for a working, stable game.



Oh yeah, here are some mods too. To make your game better and such. Traveller In Time fucked around with this message at 12:48 on Oct 26, 2013