Skyrim Modding Recommendations

Skyrim is a game that I come back to every few years though and I like to mix up the experience a bit when I do. This game, along with maybe Minecraft, has the greatest modding community I have ever seen. Personally I like to go with Lore Friendly mods that add to the experience rather than trying to completely change it. I think this is an amazing way to add more to an already great game.

Below are some of my favourite mods divided into categories. Many of these will have dependencies so this is by no means a complete guide but The Nexus should tell you what you need. Under Modlists you will also find some lists of mods which have installers which will install all the mods for you.

• Modlists
• Gameplay
• Quests
• Graphics
• Overhauls

Modlists

I haven't tried many modlists but there are two that I would recommend:

• Gate To Sovngarde by jayserpa is a complete overhaul of Skyrim. This man already makes some of the greatest Skyrim mods but I think he may also have the greatest modpack here too. The modpack included most of the mods I would recommend for Skyrim or alternatives that probably do a better job. This is basically a remake made by the community.
• Fus by Kvitekvist and Cangar is the easiest way to get Skyrim VR into a playable state. It has multiple install tiers, the first is basically just getting the game working in VR and the final one adds a bunch of new content. I think this is vital to playing Skyrim in VR.

Gameplay

I do not play without a mixture of EnaiSiaion's mods these days. My favourites are:

• Ordinator This mod completely overhauls Skyrim's perk system allowing you to build far more unique and interesting characters.
• Apocalypse - This one adds a tonne of great spells that fit well into Skyrim
• Imperious Races - Makes the race you choose have more of an effect on your character and abilities
• Andomeda - Overhauls the bonuses you get from Standing stones
• Summermyst - Adds a bunch of new enchantments to the game

With all of these mods combined you can really mix up the gameplay in Skyrim and create some really varied characters too. Enai also has lots more mods such as ones that overhaul vampire and werewolf gameplay, and a few more spell mods too. I recommend browsing their mods page and trying out any that look interesting to you since they are all very well made.

For other gameplay stuff here is a quick list:

• Honed Metal - Allows smiths and mages to upgrade and enchant your gear respectively so you don't have to do it yourself.
• Sky UI - An essential UI overhaul that makes using a mouse with the UI considerably better
• Wet and Cold - NPCs react to the cold, there are also cold breath effects
• Sentinel - Seamlessly integrates a great variety of new armour into the game
• More to Say - Adds extra dialogue using lines from the base game
• Relationship Dialogue Overhaul - Also adds a bunch of extra dialogue using vanilla lines
• Anbeegod's Follower Dialogue Mods - Greatly expands the dialogue of the various followers in the game
• AI Overhaul - Overhauls the AI of friendly NPCs in cities so they are more realistic
• Precision - Physics based combat
• Quickloot - Quick popup menu that speeds up looting
• Jayserpa's mods - Lots of minor tweaks and fixes
• Know Your Enemy 2 - Adds weaknesses and resistances to the enemies in the game
• Dragonborn's Bestiary - Adds a bestiary with enemy weakness and resistances.
• Extended Encounters - Adds more encounters to the world.

Quests

I have played a lot of Skyrim Quest mods, these are my favourites. Some are small some are huge:

• Beyond Skyrim: Bruma - Adds in the Northern part of Cyrodill (where Oblivion is set) with a bunch of quests. This is as well made as an official DLC. This was a teaser to a full Cyrodill release which I am still waiting on.
• The Forgotten City - A murder mystery in a lost city, this one got made into a game later.
• Project AHO - An underground village where you get abducted and have to try and escape.
• Lucien - A unique follower with a full and well made questline.
• Clockwork - Horror themed Dwemer dungeon.
• Immersive World Encounters - Adds more random events to the game some of which lead to some fun quests.
• At Your Own Pace - Provides more natural breaks in some quests
• Timing is Everything - Adjusts the starting points for a lot of quests and allows you to tweak them yourself.
• Dungeons Revisited - Overhauls a bunch of dungeons making them longer and more interesting.
• Easyrider's Dungeons - Adds some well made dungeons to the game.
• Hammet's Dungeons - Another dungeon pack.
• Inconvenient Dungeons - Makes it so less dungeons have a quick secret back exit.
• Even Better Quest Objectives - Better Quest descriptions

I also recommend just trying out some quest mods that look interesting to you.

Graphics

I don't like to go too over the top with graphics. I think the Cathedral Overhauls do a great job.

Overhauls

There are a few massive mods on their way for Skyrim. The one I am most looking forward to is Skyblivion which is a remake of Sources/Oblivion in Skyrim's engine with fully updated assets and quests. There are also the Beyond Skyrim mods which aim to create the rest of Tamriel in Skyrim and allow you to explore beyond the original borders of the game. Beyond Skyrim Bruma is a preview for one of the Beyond Skyrim releases. I will be playing any of these as soon as they come out.