Mended Morrowind: A purist Morrowind guide

[fast]

I suggest you don't use the link you posted recently, and wait until Half11 re-uploads the patched add-ons.

WHOOPS

Thanks for the clarification!

 

[Sigourn]

fast Half11 has confirmed he isn't planning to re-upload the patch because of certain issues in it. I'm updating the guide to reflect the alternative he recommends. It should be done in 30 minutes.

 

[Darth Canoli]

Any mod that makes the game turn-based with party members and remove those empty hiking path ?

 

[Curratum]

Holy autism Batman... Why would you want to stay close to the vanilla game anyway? Almost all of its systems are absolute bollocks...

 

[Sigourn]

Holy autism Batman... Why would you want to stay close to the vanilla game anyway? Almost all of its systems are absolute bollocks...

I don't. That is why there's a second guide coming (using the Cleve calendar) that adds many gameplay mods and a few overhauls.

 

[zapotec]

I remember that if you are playing an Argonian and using BTB you cannot progress in the main quest because of the costant water breathing effect.

 

[fast]

fast Half11 has confirmed he isn't planning to re-upload the patch because of certain issues in it. I'm updating the guide to reflect the alternative he recommends. It should be done in 30 minutes.

I see your edit. Should I just uninstall UMOPP through MO2?

Have you seen this? It might be related to an issue I'm having when I start the exe. Doesn't stop the game from loading, but it logs into the Warnings.txt:

Spoiler

One of the files that "VGreetings-Hit.esp" is dependent on has changed since the last save.
This may result in errors. Saving again will clear this message
but not necessarily fix any errors.
One of the files that "VGreetings-Thief.esp" is dependent on has changed since the last save.
This may result in errors. Saving again will clear this message
but not necessarily fix any errors.
One or more plugins could not find the correct versions of the master files they depend on. Errors may occur during load or game play. Check the "Warnings.txt" file for more information.

The game plays very well, and I'm extremely satisfied with how it looks, even with the low-poly models and the low-res textures. Those UV meshes were much worse than I ever realized.

I remember that if you are playing an Argonian and using BTB you cannot progress in the main quest because of the costant water breathing effect.

they patched that ages ago, ya lark

 

[Serus]

which mod fixes the awful combat?

And the idiotic skill progression system.

 

[Sigourn]

I remember that if you are playing an Argonian and using BTB you cannot progress in the main quest because of the costant water breathing effect.

Sounds like something to blame on Bethesda.

I see your edit. Should I just uninstall UMOPP through MO2?

Yes, go ahead.

Have you seen this? It might be related to an issue I'm having when I start the exe. Doesn't stop the game from loading, but it logs into the Warnings.txt:

Spoiler

One of the files that "VGreetings-Hit.esp" is dependent on has changed since the last save.
This may result in errors. Saving again will clear this message
but not necessarily fix any errors.
One of the files that "VGreetings-Thief.esp" is dependent on has changed since the last save.
This may result in errors. Saving again will clear this message
but not necessarily fix any errors.
One or more plugins could not find the correct versions of the master files they depend on. Errors may occur during load or game play. Check the "Warnings.txt" file for more information.

This is nothing more than an annoyance that can be fixed using Wrye Mash IIRC to update master files to the latest version. Don't worry about it.

 

[Barbalos]

I remember that if you are playing an Argonian and using BTB you cannot progress in the main quest because of the costant water breathing effect.

I think that's a temple quest, which is not main quest, where you have to 'drown'.

 

[zapotec]

Yes you are right, it's the puzzle canal quest

 

[PorkyThePaladin]

which mod fixes the awful combat?

The same one that also fixes the awful dead cities, awful NPC AI, awful animations, and the awful copy-paste exploration: Uninstall.exe

 

[fast]

Sigourn Any progress on the second part of the guide?

 

[Sigourn]

Sigourn Any progress on the second part of the guide?

Honestly: none. I've been busy catching up with college: turns out watching five episodes of LOST a day takes a lot of time out of your schedule.

 

[groke]

Another mod worth adding to the mix: Improved Thrown Weapon Projectiles which fixes thrown weapons to fly pointy-end first (or spin in the air) rather than handle-first as they do in vanilla.

 

[Sigourn]

Another mod worth adding to the mix: Improved Thrown Weapon Projectiles which fixes thrown weapons to fly pointy-end first (or spin in the air) rather than handle-first as they do in vanilla.

Yes! This is a great mod and definitely a fix.

 

[Funposter]

Correct UV Rocks is not perfect

 

[Sigourn]

Mended Morrowind has been updated. Some mods have been updated, others have been removed as a consequence.

I said a second guide was coming but I'm just not in the mood for it. What I have, on the other hand, is a list of 150 mods.
But HOLD ON! Don't bring out your pitchforks just yet. Let me break down that list a bit.

1. Twenty-two fixes.
   1. Four are actual "bugfixes". I'll be frank: of the four, the only MUST HAVE is the fix for MGE XE, which removes the Ghostfence from Distant Land after you have defeated Dagoth Ur. The other, strongly encouraged fix, removes the artificial acceleration when running diagonally.
   2. Fifteen consistency fixes. Of those, you will reasonably come across only 9 with enough frequency to make them worth your time.
   3. Three continuity fixes. For people who have played Skyrim.
2. Three extenders.
   1. Two are required for most cool mods coming out lately.
   2. One, that I know of, is required by just one mod: Frostwind.
3. Seven interface mods.
   1. Two expand on the UI's functionality, and are heavily recommended.
   2. Five add item descriptions to weapon, armor, and ingredients. Since they are flavor texts, people may not be interested.
4. Six miscellaneous mods.
   1. Of these, two are particularly interesting. One of them is Service Refusal Expanded, which makes trading certain objects more difficulty. The other is Morrowind Randomizer. What this one does is randomize the location of legendary and powerful items and artifacts. Particularly cool if you already know the game by heart and feel the need to avoid certain locations because you KNOW what lies there.
5. Thirty-one gameplay mods.
   1. This is interesting because it is the category where I can recommend basically all of these. All these mods add new gameplay features (poisong crafting, lockbashing, critical hits, etc). Some even restore cut content. The reason I recommend these is because they are not only good mods (many of them are great, actually), but because you won't forget they exist, as opposed to mods that fix the aspect of one item you will barely ever use in the game.
   2. The only exception is Loot Well Urned. This mod adds many new weapons and armor into Ancestral Tombs, and you may find them to be unbalanced. But at least it makes tomb dwelving entertaining.
6. Twenty-nine rebalance mods.
   1. I present these to you "as is". They rebalance different aspects of the game. All of them are good mods, but it is up to you to decide which ones you find interesting. You won't be able to install all of them at the same time, as many of them are incompatible with each other.
   2. I've abstained from posting BTB's Game Improvements and HotFusion's Economy Adjuster. That is because those mods are controversial and the ones I posted are much better, more compatible, and less controversial alternatives.
   3. Of note are the leveling mods. Particularly the SLATE leveling mod. If you like Gothic, give this mod a try. You will have to pay for training, therefore slowing down leveling up, making gold genuinely useful, and making the world feel more dangerous. AND having more control over your leveling up.
7. Forty-nine (!!!) aesthetic mods. These are divided between:
   1. Concept art: mods based on official concept art. These look AWESOME.
      
   2. Content restoration: mods that restore cut content.
      
   3. Immersion: mods that alter significant graphical aspects of the game to increase immersion.
      
   4. Replacers: simple replacers based on personal preference.
   5. Again, decide for yourself which ones you find interesting. All of these are simple to install.

There you have it. By no means I'm saying "INSTALL THESE 147 MODS", since it's impossible to install all of those because of compatibility issues. You will most likely end, at worst, installing about 120, but I expect most Codexers will probably find about 20-50 mods they will find interesting.

This list can be safely installed on top of Mended Morrowind. I've already listed, next to each mod, compatibility issues with other mods present in the list. I've also listed, for your convenience, the amount of .esp and .esm files required by each mod.

• 55 will occupy no slots in your load order.
• 77 will occupy only one slot in your load order.
• 1 has one optional .esp.
• 2 have two optional .esps.
  
• 3 occupy one slot and have one optional extra .esps.
• 1 occupies one slot and has two optional extra .esps.
• 6 occupy one slot, but each can be broke down into different modules for you to mix and match.
• 1 has four modules, and offers no merged .esp. It is an overhaul.
  
• 1 has ten modules, and offers no merged. esp. It is an overhaul.

That's it. Each mod has a link to the mod page. Remember to read the mods' pages and their Readmes!

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

Of note are the leveling mods. Particularly the SLATE leveling mod. If you like Gothic, give this mod a try. You will have to pay for training, therefore slowing down leveling up, making gold genuinely useful, and making the world feel more dangerous. AND having more control over your leveling up.

This is.. interesting. I've always found that actually, the easiest way to level up is by paying for training because you get rich so quickly in morrowind. Does the mod make training way more expensive? Or do you recommend some specific economy rebalance?

 

[Sigourn]

Of note are the leveling mods. Particularly the SLATE leveling mod. If you like Gothic, give this mod a try. You will have to pay for training, therefore slowing down leveling up, making gold genuinely useful, and making the world feel more dangerous. AND having more control over your leveling up.

This is.. interesting. I've always found that actually, the easiest way to level up is by paying for training because you get rich so quickly in morrowind. Does the mod make training way more expensive? Or do you recommend some specific economy rebalance?

There are different economy rebalances in the list:

• There are two mods that focus on Daedric items. Because they are so expensive (and yet, very easy to get since Daedric Shrines are everywhere in Morrowind), they make breaking the economy way too easy. "No Daedric Drops" and "One of a Kind" (choose one) fix this by removing most Daedric items in the game.
• Price Balance alters the prices of items directly. This is also a good mod to have.
• Frostfire Morrowind Overhaul has a Services module, which makes Fast travel and training much more expensive.

 

[Don Peste]

The ride never ends.

 

[Wysardry]

If I just want Morrowind to recognise that my laptop has an Nvidia graphics chip (as well as an Intel chip) and allow widescreen resolutions, will installing MGE XE be enough?

 

[Deleted Member 16721]

The combat is fine, it's no different than Baldur's Gate other than the rounds are as fast as you can swing. I wish there was a RTWP Morrowind with 6 second rounds so you could actually use some of the cooler spells and artifacts in combat. That would be a dream game for me.

 

[Sigourn]

Just before I went to bed I decided to make a comparison between the three overhauls present in the mod list.

• Morrowind Game Overhaul (MWGO) sounds like a nice mod at first. But it incorporates way too much shit it does not need to incorporate. It goes beyond simple rebalance towards clusterfuck. The things it does that the other mods don't do, they are already covered by other mods in the list. The things it does that the other mods DO do, the other overhauls do better.
• Tizzo's Tiny Tweaks is more of a "Tizzo's Nerfing Compilation", which is perfectly fine in my book. It is modular, unlike MWGO.
  
• Frostfire Morrowind Overhaul, on the other hand, makes considerable more changes (all within the realm of "rebalance", mind you!). It is also modular.

I would like to make an in-depth comparison tomorrow, especially alongside BTB's Game Improvements, which, as much as it pains me to say, is one of the most comprehensive and well thought rebalance mods out there. Really, BTB left no stone unturned. Sawyer would be proud.

It will be a good opportunity to see how many of the mods of the list can actually supply some of these functions.

 

[Sigourn]

It's done, nignogs.

TL;DR
Choose BTB if you want to nerf and rebalance Morrowind to the Xtreme.
Choose Frostfire if you want to make Morrowind more balanced and difficult while still being able to break shit at your leisure.