Getting Started

Introduction

The gold standard for PC modding is the Nexus Mod Manager. The Nexus Mod Manager is free and easy to install. The mods themselves, however, are a bit more tricky.

With modding, there are a thousand ways to (temporarily) crash your game if you get ahead of yourself. Read this whole guide in full before you start hackin’ and whackin’ at your game files. If something goes wrong and the tinkering is only making it worse, uninstall your game and reinstall it.

I have structured this guide to be as user friendly as possible. The mods are curated with emphasis placed on ease of access. You can start tinkering once you’ve got the basics!

You’ll be a boss soon enough, playa.

I’ve also paid careful attention to keep the content as lore-based and immersive as possible. I’ve looked at and tested a great many mods for this guide. If your favorite mod isn’t here, it’s probably for one of three reasons:

I’ve avoided mods that allow the player to craft finished goods like armors and weapons from scratch. The weight limit on Survival strongly discourages hoarding, so these mods aren’t the best fit for Survival mode. I’ve also limited myself to one weapon mod. In order to have multiple mods that add new weapons, a process called “merge patching” is required. I’ve included a little bit about merge patching below, but the procedure might be a little confusing for the average newbie. I also didn’t include mods that require non-standard set-ups. Sometimes I forget or overlook things. This project was much bigger than I thought it would be.

Load Orders

A tool has been made to automatically optimize your load order. This tool and the Nexus Mod Manager should be your first downloads — besides, of course, the base game and any DLC you choose to buy.

On the matter of DLC: Far Harbor may be all the rage right now, but it’s an area geared for high-level players. That doesn’t mean it’s worth skipping, however, and it does add some items available for the entirety of the game.

If you’re just picking up the game and want to do a Survival mode run, I’d recommend sticking with Automatron. Automatron’s robot companion building is awesome for mad scientist types, and it’s always fun to battle the robot-themed Raider faction bundled in the release.

Author’s Note: Console modding is a far cry from it’s PC counterpart — it’s a great thing, but we all need to work together to hammer out the kinks. Not all mods are available for consoles yet, and while it sucks, it’s worth remembering that mods are created by real-life community members with normal lives. Please do not spam the creator of your favorite mod and ask them when they are porting it to console! **Since I started this project, there’s been great community outcry about the theft of PC mods and their illegitimate console ports. I don’t have much good to say about it, but it seems Bethesda is taking some action by making their guidelines for mod uploaders more stringent. Still, there’s a lot more than that going on — I’m not going into it here; but I will if there is demand.

Text Editin'

After you’ve downloaded and installed Fallout 4, Nexus Mod Manager and the Load Order Optimizer Tool (LOOT), it’s time to link them all together. From the Nexus Mod Manager, use the “Supported Plugins” button at the top and navigate to the folder in which you’re keeping LOOT.

Next, use a text editor (like Notepad) to add a few lines of code to a file. It’s a simple process that’s easy to see in this video created by prolific community member Gopher.

The file you’re looking for is called “Fallout4Prefs.ini.” It is found in the My Games folder. Open up the file in a text editor and add following line

bEnableFileSelection=1

Next, in the file “Fallout4Custom.ini,” add the block below.

[Archive]

bInvalidateOlderFiles=1

sResourceDataDirsFinal=

If you don’t have a file named “Fallout4Custom.ini,” you may have to make one. Again, locate this file by navigating to My Documents, then My Games, then locating the Fallout 4 folder. For a more visual instruction, don’t forget about the video.

Author’s Note: I recommend starting a new save game when enabling mods. While editing the “.ini” files, it’s smart to save a backup of your current save games — also located in the “My Games/Fallout” folder.

Enabling Achievements

By default, modding the game disables achievements in Steam. If you’re an achievement hound on PC, look no further. To enable this mod, you’ll need the Fallout 4 Script Extender, a modding tool. Download this as well. Many mods use it, so you might as well have it.

Don’t go any further till you have NexusModManager, LOOT, F4 Script Extender, and have edited the text files!

The Mods

There are a few mods so core to the experience that they might as well be bundled with the mod manager. First is the Armor and Weapons Keywords Community Resource. Without getting too technical, this file creates a standard framework for other mods to use. Install this first.

Next, get the Unofficial Fallout 4 Patch. The “patch” fixes a ton of minor bugs not addressed by the developers. This mod isn’t as flashy as some of the upcoming pieces, but it’s a must-have.

Also, if you ever get stuck and need to use the console to fix a bug, it can be enabled in survival mode . There are many commands useful for getting out of buggy situations.

World Building

With over 10,000 mods available on Nexus Mods, it’d be easy to spend days installing mods to make every aspect of Fallout 4 prettier. I’ve stuck to popular, bug-free releases that add to the feel of the Wasteland and boost performance.

Again, the order these mods are listed in are more or less the order in which they should be installed — but don’t worry about it too much; we’ll optimize the load order later with LOOT. For now, just follow these links and use the “Download with Mod Manager” button. When installing, some mods will ask for your preference for a particular setting. Feel free to try whatever setting you prefer, but it’s wise to stick with the modder’s recommended setting at first.

Characters

Fledling modder Madmax713 says he loves Bethesda games, but notes that the difficulty of certain enemies tapers off as the player nears the end of their quest. He’s compiled two mods featuring other works by his friends in the modding community that serve to flesh out some of the common enemy factions. Together with these other great character mods, the people of the wasteland should be a lot more exciting — whether you’re talking to them or shooting at them.

Super Mutant Overhaul— This mod adds a lot of strength and diversity to a very common enemy, the Super Mutant. Included are some improvements to late game mutants, a variety of stealth mutants named the Nightkin, and new mutant loot. A super mutant companion available in the base game has been redone to be a stronger and more likable chap. Be sure to get the latest version, version 1.3 Tales From The Commonwealth — Not available on Nexus — this little known mod adds fully voiced quests and characters. This is a must have mod which adds a huge amount of meaningful content to the game! Raider Redux — Raiders are the most common enemy in Fallout 4, and Madmax’s other mod brings some much needed color to the raider faction. This mod adds several outfits and masks available to the Raiders, as well as upping the strength of the raider power armor. It also adds a special heavily armored raider called the Dreadnaught . We Are The Minutemen — In the base game, Preston Garvey’s Minutemen retain a generic appearance — even as the faction grows to immense strength. The “basic” version of We Are The Minutemen equips Minutemen across the commonwealth with more powerful weapons, specialty armor, and a variety of stylish headgear. It also increases the range and usefulness of the flare gun, and increases the chance of Minutemen patrols across the Commonwealth. Synth Overhaul — While this mod doesn’t add a variety of enemy types in the same way that Madmax’s overhauls do, the CAST Synth mod includes spiffy new Synth armors that really make the Commonwealth’s boogeyman a whole lot scarier. This is a cosmetic mod, and will take up a lot of console hard drive room! Better Settlers — Settlers in the base game are limited to a certain set of very boring equipment. This mod opens up options regarding settler equipment, and the end result is Settlers wandering into the player’s life in all sorts of zany gear. Everyone’s Best Friend — This well named mod allows Dogmeat and a companion at the same time with no console, and no hack. D.E.C.A.Y — Better Ghouls — Are ghouls notspooky enough? This mod adds scary new sounds and high quality textures for the Ghouls, both feral and civilized. Immersive Mouth and Teeth — Simply, this mod makes mouth and teeth look nicer. It really does add a lot, especially when so much of this game is watching people talk at you. Eyes of Beauty — This mod adds some additional luster and attractiveness to the eyes of Fallout. This mod also existed in Skyrim. More Durable Vertibirds — For some reason, these armored helicopters fall out of the sky incredibly easily in the base game. This mod corrects that. Outfit Switcher — Bethesda might have cut away many of the fun RPG-elements that make Fallout great, but there are definitely some aspects of the game, both good and bad, that tie Fallout 4 to it’s roleplaying lineage. One of the silliest features is the necessity of a charisma-boosting “trading outfit” in order to get the best prices at the shop. With this mod, it’ll be a lot easier to switch between different styles.

Big ups to Nexusmod’s registrator2000 for not freaking out when he sees I jacked his gif.

Combat

It’s clear the devs really put some time and effort into Fallout 4’s shooting mechanics. Gunplay feels solid and looks great. Still, if Fallout 4 has taught me anything, it’s that there’s always room for upgrades.

Weapons of Fate — This mod adds dynamic bullet physics to all the weapons, making them feel a lot more responsive. If you’re a fan of the combat in S.T.A.L.K.E.R, check this out. If these words all read like gibberish and you need to see explosions to be convinced, watch this video. See-Through-Scopes — Red Orchestra 2 players remember the sick pulled-back look in that title’s scoped weapons. This mod brings that enhanced feeling of battlefield awareness to Fallout 4. There’s a ton of immersion potential available with See-Through-Scopes, but it comes at the cost of the “hold breathe” feature. Available in the setup of this mod is the option to leave the default scopes in the game — I’d recommend it. Towbie’s Realistic Weapon Sounds — Here’s a video comparing the vanilla Fallout sounds and Towbie’s updates. The video isn’t quite up to date, but it gives a general idea of the sound swaps. ScratchMade Textures — This mod upgrades the textures on the Combat Rifle and Shotgun. They look beautiful. Here’s a reskin he did of the hunting rifle as well. P.A.M.S — Power Armor Movement Sounds adds weight to the incidental noise. Alien Assault Rifle — Tucked away in the Wasteland is an opportunity to encounter a foreign creature with an amazing gun. In the base game, unfortunately, that gun only made sense for pistoleers. Not any more. Tactical Weapon Mods — Adds a plethora of bayonets, laser sights, and tactical flashlights. The laser sights and flashlights are modding marvels in their own rights, as that technology is completely outside what is available in the game. The bayonet upgrades are pretty fantastic too, as the vanilla bayonet options are relegated entirely to low-level upgrades. Rechambering Plus — Warning! This mod is a huge but awesome change: It allows any weapon to be re-chambered to new ammo types. In vanilla Fallout 4, the ultimate hunting rifle upgrade is a .50 receiver. Now the player can chamber the weapon with a separate upgrade and take advantage of something like a hair-trigger receiver. Better Mod Descriptions — This mod takes a lot of the guesswork out of weapon and armor upgrading. Now; you can see exactly what you’re getting before you spent your hard-earned scrap. Spetsnaz Rifle — There are a host of features that made this unique weapon a great addition to the Survival game . It’s silenced, deals moderate damage, and converts easily from SMG all the way up to precision rifle. It also fires the otherwise-unused 5mm minigun ammo.

A note on weapon modding and merge patches:

Naturally, there are a ton of original weapons added to the game by users. Crossbows, modern weapons, ports of older Fallout weapons — anything you can think of has been added to the game.

Careful consideration led to the choice of the Spetsnaz Rifle for my curated list. I picked it because of the role it filled within the already present weapon selection. In addition, it’s low-damage enough that enemies with the weapon did not dominate the player. These are important things to remember before you go crazy adding weapons.

However, there’s a more complicated reason why I didn’t include multiple mods featuring enemy-carried weapons. In most weapon mods, the file includes a section that tells Fallout which enemies to supply with the added-in weapon. With several mods affecting the same enemy population, Fallout only features the weapon most recently added to the game. The process to overcome this inconvenience is called merge patching. I won’t go into it here, except to tell you it’s not that hard but you’ll need FO4Edit.

Don’t let me scare you away from installing F04Edit and creating a merge patch! I interviewed modder udyne777, creator of the featured Sptetsnaz Rifle, and he said merge patching was his introduction to modding just a few years ago. He works a day job in marketing, and now he’s creating badass weapons worth writing about. That could be you, a mod-making superhero.

Honorable Mentions

There are some mods I just have to mention, even if I didn’t include them in the list for whatever reason.

Some mods are awesome even when they don’t work.

Extended Weapon Mods — Have you ever wanted to convert the 10mm pistol into a SMG or carbine? This mod allows that and so much more. Edit: Okay, so this mod doesn’t work very well. I used it for a long time, but it has serious bugs. It is awesome, though. Like…really cool. Keep an eye on this one, it’ll be glorious when it’s fully functional. WRVR Radio and New Companion — DJ Casey Kessler is a fully fleshed out companion voiced by mod’s creator Casey Mongillo. Companion Command — If I would have used companions, I definitely would have put the effort forth to use this mod. Not only does it allow the player to strategically control their companions during battle, but it also allows the player to open the companion’s inventory from a distance with a hotkey. It requires a little effort to set up, and use of the F04 Hotkeys mod. V.T.D.S — Bullet Time VATS Replacer— I don’t care for V.A.T.S. In Survival, I used the 90% damage reduction (VATS defense) as a crutch. This mod adds lore friendly bullet time in replace of VATS, which will consume AP and still work with many of the perks. Caliente’s Beautiful Bodies Enhancer — **NSFW** This mod is a must-get starter kit if you’re into modded female armor and looks. I don’t have it, or know much about it. I’ve heard it adds a lot of curves. Armorsmith Extended — This mod does a bunch of things, including adding the ability to wear armor over clothes. However, it also has a ton of finished-goods armor crafting. It’s hugely popular, but not, in my opinion, for a serious Survival player. Still, the beauty of this is that the choice is up to you, huh? Full Dialog Interface — People love this mod because it shows them, in full, the potential dialogue options. I don’t care because I press sarcastic every time (and it was acting up on me during the Survival Mode beta.) Smart Dogmeat — In survival, it’s often smart to avoid tangling with some of the wasteland’s most dangerous baddies. This mod ensures Dogmeat doesn’t start any fights the player can’t finish by revamping his behavior. In the newest version, everyone considers Dogmeat a friend — be warned! **I have not tested to see if it works with Everyone’s Best Friend. Gunner Overhaul — I didn’t use it myself, but this mod turns the Gunners from generic baddies to a more fleshed out minor faction. Interestingly, Gunners will be neutral towards the player if this mod is installed. If you’re looking for a Gunner graphical mods, check out Wasteland Grunts. All kinds of settlement mods — There’s a ton, folks, but all you need is a bed and a magic water spigot (more on that in my upcoming Survival tips article.) Saving Solutions — I really enjoy the inability to save on command. I think it adds a lot of tension to the game. Still, I understand how a new player could might not need more tension. Two of the best mods for introducing saving in a lore-friendly and balanced way are Campsite, and Combat-Disabled Quicksave and Usable Cigarettes.

Fadingsignal’s camping mod is sweet, but I didn’t use it myself!

Conclusion

Congratulations! You’re ready to start your fully-modded Survival playthrough… or are you? There’s a ton of content I haven’t touched on, and you should look through as much as you can handle. Also, I plan to do another couple articles on the subject, one on player builds and another on general Survival tips. In the meantime, go slow, aim true, and keep drinking water.

Also! I’ve noticed chatter describing Survival Mode as a trial-and-error experience akin to the movie “Edge of Tomorrow.” While there may be some repeat experiences — especially when you get in the good habit of sleep-saving on dirty bedrolls deep in enemy territory — don’t accept the Tom Cruise paradigm. If you keep dying and waking up in the same bed, go a different direction — do something else!

Author’s Note: As a working journalist, I tried my hardest to sell this article to the many fine videogame publications and websites from which I read my news. Unfortunately, none of them bit immediately — and somewhere along the way, while I was talking to the wonderful modders who inspired this project — I realized the value of creating content for the pleasure of my community and for the sheer love of creation. Enjoy. (Besides, I don’t need food — endurance means nothing to the stealth archer)

Special thanks to MadMAX713, udyne777, my handsome editor Jason Ludwig, my loving partner, my MSI Apache GE70, and Bethesda.

Version 1.1|7/25/2016 | |coryetc (at) gmail.com | coryathompson.com

—

Things left to be done:

Include mod author for each mod link. restart my FO4 Playthrough will all mods update with 1.6 Table of Contents (anyone know how to link in-article with medium?) Console compatibility, console side project side articles — / Player Builds

© 2016 Cory A Thompson | Email me if you want to put this on your site.