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Helpful Links and References


smr1957

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Posted (edited)

Initial Load Order

After installing mods, the following general load order needs to be followed:

Starfield.esm
ShatteredSpace.esm [if you have this DLC]
Constellation.esm [If you have this DLC]
OldMars.esm [If you have this DLC]
BlueprintShips-Starfield.esm
SFBGS007.esm
SFBGS008.esm
SFBGS006.esm
SFBGS003.esm
SFBGS004.esm
[Other Official Files TBD]
unofficial starfield patch.esm OR StarfieldCommunityPatch.esm (use one of the other, NOT both)
unofficial shattered space patch.esm (if you have Shattered Space DLC)
[Everything else you have installed]

 

Edited by smr1957
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Posted (edited)

There are still mod authors who are uploading mods containing .ESP plugins.  It is important to remind mod authors - and potential mod authors - that all plugins MUST be in the .ESM format, as per the following, when being uploaded for distribution:

Regarding Mods and Plugin Types
(from Section 4 - Modding the Game)


As for converting .ESP plugins to the proper .ESM format, see the following:

How to export mods from Creation Kit to upload on Nexus Mods - or any other site
(ADDED to Section 2 - Guides & Videos)

Edited by smr1957
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Posted (edited)

Taosecurity posted this vid in Helpful Links, References, and News over on Nexus, and I'll repost it here:

Keep Your Ship with Creation Kit: Starfield Essentials
https://youtu.be/6UM6WisOZZs

 

Also, there is this article by thecommabandit that covers how he created his mod Jemison Biome Overhaul (Plus Tutorial):

How to Make Your Own Custom Biomes
Gives a glimpse past the slowly opening door of the Starfield Creation Kit into the working of creation itself - at least as regards Starfield and the potential for the making of new worlds and systems.

Edited by smr1957
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  • 2 weeks later...

Today is the one year anniversary of the official release of Starfield.

 

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Just a quick reminder.  Even though it has been three months since the release of the Starfield Creation Kit, there are still some mod authors mistakenly uploading .esp plugins instead of .esm plugins as required. Plugins for Starfield should never be uploaded in the .esp file format - those cannot be used by the game.  All plugins need to be .esms as Starfield does not use .esp files - they WILL break the game (they are purely for development purposes). Starfield only uses .esm plugins and they are of the following 3 types - and nothing else:

Full Master
Medium Master
Small Master

as explained by Pickysausrus, here:
https://www.nexusmods.com/news/14993
(under New plugin types section)

So, if uploading a mod, make sure that the plugin is in the proper format, and when downloading one, always check the file contents first to ensure that if it contains a plugin, it is one of the 3 types of .esm plugins that can be used, and NOT an .esp

Thanks to all the mod authors for their co-operation - your passion and dedication in creating mods is something that is greatly appreciated by the entire community!

 

(And, as an added reminder to those downloading mods, ensure that the mod was made using the CK - simply DO NOT use any plugin mod that was uploaded prior to the CK's release on June 9 and not subsequently updated using the CK.)

Edited by smr1957
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7 hours ago, smr1957 said:

Just a quick reminder.  Even though it has been three months since the release of the Starfield Creation Kit, there are still some mod authors mistakenly uploading .esp plugins instead of .esm plugins as required. Plugins for Starfield should never be uploaded in the .esp file format - those cannot be used by the game.  All plugins need to be .esms as Starfield does not use .esp files - they WILL break the game (they are purely for development purposes). Starfield only uses .esm plugins and they are of the following 3 types - and nothing else:

Full Master
Medium Master
Small Master

as explained by Pickysausrus, here:
https://www.nexusmods.com/news/14993
(under New plugin types section)

So, if uploading a mod, make sure that the plugin is in the proper format, and when downloading one, always check the file contents first to ensure that if it contains a plugin, it is one of the 3 types of .esm plugins that can be used, and NOT an .esp

Thanks to all the mod authors for their co-operation - your passion and dedication in creating mods is something that is greatly appreciated by the entire community!

 

(And, as an added reminder to those downloading mods, ensure that the mod was made using the CK - simply DO NOT use any plugin mod that was uploaded prior to the CK's release on June 9 and not subsequently updated using the CK.)

As an aside, most of the .esp files are being created with xEdit/SF1Edit, a tool which is still not supported for making mods for Starfield.  This tool (as of this writing) is hidden by the author with the following message:
image.thumb.png.43ab64e6c12cdc3425acc5fb90f03650.png

From My Discord:

"The Creation Kit (aka CK, the official tool used to make the game, and mods for the game) creates two types of files.  BA2 files which contains assets like textures, scripts, meshes, etc.  The ESM files contain the forms which use the meshes and scripts and textures, etc,  DO NOT delete any of these files from the file system unless you are prepared to reinstall the game from scratch.  

"One of the issues people are experiencing is the mods which were made before the CK was released (10 June, 2024) were made with a tool which did not create the necessary files properly.  Even the maker of the tool warned against using the tool to make mods before the tool could be finalized following the release of the CK.  (This is why the tool is now hidden on Nexus Mods, it's incomplete.)  These mods do not work as they should, and will cause problems up too and including CTD.  And yes, this includes the NexusMods Corporate Sponsored Starfield Community Patch which definitely contains content made with this unsupported tool.  Bottom line, do not install any mods which contain an ESP file, as they are the mods with the exposure.

"I mention this because your next step is to validate any mods you got from NexusMods or elsewhere.  Make sure they were made with the CK and NOT this unsupported tool.  Basically, any mod published before the CK was released was made with this unsupported tool and is suspect.  If the mod predates the CK, check to see if it has been updated since the CK Release date.  If the mod hasn't been updated, dump it in the bin, quickly, without regret or remorse and don't worry about loss of whatever the mod gave you.  Better to have a game you know will survive a few months of playtime.

"If the mod has been updated, open the file (Preview File Contents) and check to see if the mod contains an ESP file with no corresponding (identically named) ESM file.  If there is no corresponding (identically named) ESM file, dump this mod too.  ESP files are no longer really supported by the game engine, and seem to be the root of most evils.   

"And finally, before you download ANY more mods from NexusMods or elsewhere, open the file (Preview File Contents) and ensure that it does NOT contain an ESP file without a corresponding (identically named) ESM file.  You do this because there are still people using the unsupported tool and mod managers which still support ESP files in Starfield."

Edited by Scythe Bearer
Added back dropped text
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Thanks Scythe Bearer - this issue cannot be emphasized enough!  I get the feeling we will still be seeing this for a very long time to come.

Edited by smr1957
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12 hours ago, Scythe Bearer said:

ESP files are no longer really supported by the game engine, and seem to be the root of most evils.

I think it's important to clarify here that .esp files were NEVER supported by the game engine, not "no longer supported", which implies they once were.

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55 minutes ago, Arthmoor said:

I think it's important to clarify here that .esp files were NEVER supported by the game engine, not "no longer supported", which implies they once were.

You are indeed correct,  That said, early on, Starfield tolerated .esp files, and many of the early "mods" were .esp.  Those mods no longer work, and in fact break the game. 

 

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Personally, if it were up to me, I would just hide any plugin mod that was not made (or has not yet been updated) using the CK - which basically means any plugin mod whose last upload date predates June 9.  And I would also automatically hide any mod whose main file was an .esp.  But, that'll never happen, and we will be dealing with these issues for years to come (just look at some dangerous and game breaking Skyrim mods that are still up and still being downloaded 10 years and more after they had conclusively been shown to break people's games).  All too often, there are many opportunities to do the wrong thing, and only one opportunity to do something right - and far too often it is the wrong thing that is picked, just because... "I want it, I want it, I want it!" 

Edited by smr1957
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The same thing happened with Fallout 4 as well when people got impatient and started using versions of xedit for Skyrim to build FO4 plugins. Naturally they were all broken as hell but people still used them.

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ADDED:

to Section 1 - General Information:

Starfield ESM Modules - What are they? by Arthmoor
https://www.afkmods.com/index.php?/topic/10297-starfield-esm-modules-what-are-they/

 

 

to Section 5 - General Troubleshooting

Creation Store Updates Don't Work by Arthmoor
https://www.afkmods.com/index.php?/topic/10298-creation-store-updates-dont-work/
 

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