Skyrim SE (Special Edition) question...

[Rath Darkblade]

... so, I started playing Skyrim SE. Why would I do such a thing after 11 years of having vanilla Skyrim? Well, SE apparently has lots of mods that are specifically written for it, so I thought I'd give them a try.

After installing the damn thing (all 15 gig of it), installing the mods, and reinstalling my old mods (e.g. Inigo, SKSE, SkyUI etc.) using Nexus Mod Manager, I finally started up the thing ... and ... nothing. No mods.

But I was very careful to make sure that the mods were compatible with Skyrim SE. And there were well over 100 of them, so they couldn't have all disappeared.

I've noticed that the Skyrim SE menu has a button called "mods", but I have to create a Bethesda account, which seems like a pain when the old vanilla Skyrim would happily install mods without me having to sign up for it.

So that's my question: any ideas what's going on?

Thanks!

[Tawmis]

Never played Skyrim. I can't not give any insight.

[DeadPoolX]

... so, I started playing Skyrim SE. Why would I do such a thing after 11 years of having vanilla Skyrim? Well, SE apparently has lots of mods that are specifically written for it, so I thought I'd give them a try.

The big difference is that Skyrim SE has visual upgrades built into it and it's a game that can take advantage of all the RAM in a 64-bit OS.

But I was very careful to make sure that the mods were compatible with Skyrim SE. And there were well over 100 of them, so they couldn't have all disappeared.

A general rule to follow is that NONE of the mods for Skyrim will work (or at least work without complications) for Skyrim SE. You need to download mods that're specifically written for Skyrim SE.

You can find Skyrim SE mods on Nexus Mods under "Skyrim SE" (not Skyrim!) or better yet, go to the Steam Workshop. In most cases, you're better off with the Steam Workshop as those mods get updated more frequently (and automatically applied), plus these mods are easier to install and uninstall.

Mod compatibility/availability (and the fact your saved games DO NOT transfer) is why Maia has stuck with the original version of Skyrim over Skyrim SE, despite SE being technically superior.

I've noticed that the Skyrim SE menu has a button called "mods", but I have to create a Bethesda account, which seems like a pain when the old vanilla Skyrim would happily install mods without me having to sign up for it.

No clue. You're best bet is to ask about this on the Steam boards for Skyrim SE. In fact, if you had searched the Skyrim SE Steam boards you might've already found an answer to your questions or you could've posted your questions there. That's a much better use of your time than asking here where our knowledge of this is limited at best.

[MusicallyInspired]

A general rule to follow is that NONE of the mods for Skyrim will work (or at least work without complications) for Skyrim SE. You need to download mods that're specifically written for Skyrim SE.

This. I don't think any mods for Skyrim work for Skyrim SE. If they do it's a fluke. Most MODs that support both will have separate entries for the Skyrim and Skyrim SE versions individually. As DPX said, go to the Skyrim SE section of Nexus and get your mods from there. Delete everything you've downloaded and start over. Think of them as two completely different games.

Skyrim's SKSE DEFINITELY won't work in Skyrim SE. Gotta use the Skyrim SE version. There was a long stretch of time after Skyrim SE came out where we were all waiting for a SKSE release for SE. And then it finally came out. It was a painfully long wait.

As for the Mods button in Skyrim SE, that's for Bethesda's Skyrim "Creation Club" which is Bethesda's own modding platform (unfortunately, Skyrim SE on Steam doesn't use Steam Workshop like the original release did). However, you don't need to use Creation Club or make an account to use mods. You can do it the manual way as always just like how Skyrim didn't need to use Steam Workshop.

[Rath Darkblade]

But I was very careful to make sure that the mods were compatible with Skyrim SE. And there were well over 100 of them, so they couldn't have all disappeared.

A general rule to follow is that NONE of the mods for Skyrim will work (or at least work without complications) for Skyrim SE. You need to download mods that're specifically written for Skyrim SE.

I completely understand that, and I did. (See examples here or here.

As I said, I think I got something like 100 mods for Skyrim SE, but they didn't show up. Any ideas why, or how I can check?

I know that when I start Skyrim (non-SE), there's a little menu with options like "Play", "Data Files", "Exit" etc. If I click "Data Files", I can see the mods I've installed. But this doesn't exist for Skyrim SE.

You can find Skyrim SE mods on Nexus Mods under "Skyrim SE" (not Skyrim!) or better yet, go to the Steam Workshop. In most cases, you're better off with the Steam Workshop as those mods get updated more frequently (and automatically applied), plus these mods are easier to install and uninstall.

Unfortunately, the Steam Workshop doesn't exist for Skyrim SE (though it exists for Skyrim non-SE). Weird.

A general rule to follow is that NONE of the mods for Skyrim will work (or at least work without complications) for Skyrim SE. You need to download mods that're specifically written for Skyrim SE.

This. I don't think any mods for Skyrim work for Skyrim SE. If they do it's a fluke. Most MODs that support both will have separate entries for the Skyrim and Skyrim SE versions individually. As DPX said, go to the Skyrim SE section of Nexus and get your mods from there. Delete everything you've downloaded and start over. Think of them as two completely different games.

Skyrim's SKSE DEFINITELY won't work in Skyrim SE. Gotta use the Skyrim SE version. There was a long stretch of time after Skyrim SE came out where we were all waiting for a SKSE release for SE. And then it finally came out. It was a painfully long wait.

Sure, I completely understand that. I did download everything from the "Skyrim SE" section of Nexus.

As for this ...

Delete everything you've downloaded and start over.

Do you mean, I should uninstall original-Skyrim before installing Skyrim SE?

As for the Mods button in Skyrim SE, that's for Bethesda's Skyrim "Creation Club" which is Bethesda's own modding platform (unfortunately, Skyrim SE on Steam doesn't use Steam Workshop like the original release did). However, you don't need to use Creation Club or make an account to use mods. You can do it the manual way as always just like how Skyrim didn't need to use Steam Workshop.

Fair enough. I did, however, learn that the Skyrim "Creation Club" has some mods that are only available there.

Does the Steam Workshop exist for Skyrim SE? I couldn't see it yesterday, so I have no idea.

[DeadPoolX]

As I said, I think I got something like 100 mods for Skyrim SE, but they didn't show up. Any ideas why, or how I can check?

I have absolutely no idea. Your best bet is to ask on the Skyrim SE Steam forums and/or ask on Nexus Mods. There might also be official boards for Skyrim SE.

Do you mean, I should uninstall original-Skyrim before installing Skyrim SE?

I think what MI meant was to uninstall and delete all the Skyrim SE mods you grabbed from Nexus Mods, and then start over.

Before you do anything (beyond uninstalling the mods), I'd strongly urge you to go to each mod's specific page on Nexus Mods, and look at the comments and posts there. You might find out something important, such as the mod is broken or needs to be updated by its creator or that it overwrites a file that many other mods also overwrite, so you can't have more than one mod that affects that specific file, etc.

I don't know if you recall, but you definitely came across the "overwriting the same file" problem in The Witcher 2, so it's a very real possibility that out of those 100+ mods you downloaded, some of them are overwriting each other.

Fair enough. I did, however, learn that the Skyrim "Creation Club" has some mods that are only available there.

Does the Steam Workshop exist for Skyrim SE? I couldn't see it yesterday, so I have no idea.

It's my guess that Bethesda's "Creation Club" is their version of the Steam Workshop, which is why Skyrim SE isn't supported by the Steam Workshop at all.

[MusicallyInspired]

Sorry, you made it sound like you were trying to use Skyrim mods with Skyrim SE. Or I misunderstood something. Either way, they should be showing up. If not, look on the Steam forums or follow the instructions carefully on Nexus/read comments. And yes, I meant remove all your mods and start over making sure to use all SE mods. Having olskool-Skyrim installed affects nothing for Skyrim SE. You can leave it installed or uninstall it. Keep it if you still want to play it.

Like I already said, Skyrim SE does not support Steam Workshop. Bethesda removed this in lieu of having their own modding platform, as DPX surmised. And yes, some mods are exclusive there and if you want them you'll need to register an account. Some are also for sale there.

(also pro tip/trivia, the latest Skyrim Anniversary Edition that came out a couple years ago is really just Skyrim SE with a bunch of mods from the Creation Club added on. It's not a brand new third remaster of the game like many thought it was)

[Rath Darkblade]

Either way, they should be showing up.

OK ... is there some way I can check why they're not? Among other things, I installed some mods that would affect daedric artifacts (i.e. make them stronger) and unique items like the Jagged Crown (i.e. change its appearance), as well as little things that would create additional menus (e.g. Skyrim holidays, which creates a menu to set when the holidays take place, etc.)

In old-skool Skyrim, when I start a new game, the game notifies me that the above mods are installed - or I can check in the menu system and see that, at least, the holiday mod is done. I haven't seen that in Skyrim SE ... but maybe I'm looking in the wrong place. I'll have a look.

Oh, yes: I think I have "Sounds of Skyrim" and "Immersive Sounds" both installed. Maybe they're interfering with each other? They didn't in old-skool Skyrim, but maybe they are now.

If not, look on the Steam forums or follow the instructions carefully on Nexus/read comments. And yes, I meant remove all your mods and start over making sure to use all SE mods.

OK, fair enough. I did make sure they were all SE mods before installing; in fact, if I try to install a non-SE one, Nexus Mods will start up and install it on the old-skool Skyrim instead.

I'll remove them all and try again, one at a time.

(also pro tip/trivia, the latest Skyrim Anniversary Edition that came out a couple years ago is really just Skyrim SE with a bunch of mods from the Creation Club added on. It's not a brand new third remaster of the game like many thought it was)

No, I didn't think it was. Oh, do I need a Bethesda account to install Skyrim AE? If I don't, will those CC mods still show up?

By the way, I saw something called Skyrim VR, but I don't have a VR headset, so I don't think I'll bother. I also saw a YouTube video of someone playing it and smashing their coffee table; is that real?

[DeadPoolX]

OK ... is there some way I can check why they're not? Among other things, I installed some mods that would affect daedric artifacts (i.e. make them stronger) and unique items like the Jagged Crown (i.e. change its appearance), as well as little things that would create additional menus (e.g. Skyrim holidays, which creates a menu to set when the holidays take place, etc.)

Check the Steam forums for Skyrim SE and the comments/posts for the mods you want to install. Those are the best ways to get your questions answered. Continuing to ask us here won't help you.

By the way, I saw something called Skyrim VR, but I don't have a VR headset, so I don't think I'll bother. I also saw a YouTube video of someone playing it and smashing their coffee table; is that real?

I have no idea if the video of someone smashing their coffee table is real, but Skyrim VR definitely exists and has for several years now.

[MusicallyInspired]

Skyrim VR is great. I play it with my Oculus Quest connected to my PC.

[Rath Darkblade]

Er ... what does Skyrim VR look like? Just wondering. How is it different to simply playing Skyrim in 1st-player mode?

Speaking of which -- I fixed the problem (yay). *waves a little flag* And it was far, far simpler than I thought. I had downloaded the Nexus mods, yes, but -- whoops -- I forgot to enable/install them. *blush* (Well, Steam installs them for you, so ... sorry).

Anyway, I took a few hours to enable them (carefully - one by one), and uninstall some that caused trouble (not many). Now it works fine.

Thanks for your help and patience. And yes, it was just a newbie mistake (sorry). *blush* Too much effort, not enough coffee. (In fact, not any coffee throughout the day, except one cup at breakfast. No wonder I'm tired and making silly mistakes!)

[DeadPoolX]

Er ... what does Skyrim VR look like? Just wondering. How is it different to simply playing Skyrim in 1st-player mode?

You know how VR works, right?

Did you check out that YouTube link I posted?

[Rath Darkblade]

I don't know how VR works, except that you put on a pair of special VR-glasses and wave a couple of wands around. *shrug* Never tried it, though.

Yes, I had a look at that YouTube link. It looks incredibly chaotic. "Ahhhh! Spiders! I hate spiders!" I'm also mildly arachnophobic, so maybe VR isn't for me.

It does look fun, though.

[Tawmis]

I don't know how VR works, except that you put on a pair of special VR-glasses and wave a couple of wands around. *shrug* Never tried it, though.
Yes, I had a look at that YouTube link. It looks incredibly chaotic. "Ahhhh! Spiders! I hate spiders!" I'm also mildly arachnophobic, so maybe VR isn't for me.
It does look fun, though.

VR does exactly what it stands for "Virtual Reality." Essentially puts you in the game, and not so much behind a computer screen. Your arms swing the swords. The sensory perception is all around "tricking" your mind.

[Rath Darkblade]

Ah, great. So when Skyrim throws Giant Spiders at you, and they spit venom and jump at you, it actually feels like actual venom and spider stuff ... *shudder* Sounds ghastly.

And when you step on a pressure plate and it throws up fire ... OK, you don't actually get burned, it just feels like you got burned?