As the FO4 STEP guide is new, and I've gotten a ton of benefit from STEP guides in the past, I figure it's high time I actually contribute a little to these. Having just gone through it, here are some thoughts/corrections/questions/requests.
The bottom of the guide, under "Help Build STEP", includes a link to the mod section of the forums. The link is for Skyrim's subforum, not FO4.
The "Mod List Cleanup" section is fantastic. I really appreciated that little list reminding me which mods need specialized LOOT rules. Despite years modding various Bethesda games, I've never actually made my own LOOT rules; the linked instructions were clear, concise, and appreciated.
I've never successfully made my own LODs before, only used pre-generated ones. I know the tools are much improved compared to the last time I tried to do this (back in 2012 or something), but I still appreciated the instructions and details given here.
There are multiple tools covered in direct and to the point detail, which is fantastic. That said, most folks will probably add an extra mod here and there. It is unreasonable to even attempt full tutorials on all these tools, but a one or two line explanation would be, I think, reasonable and beneficial. Here are a few possible examples:
The explanations for when to redo the dynamic patches/mods are already included and are a perfect example of what I'm talking about
What are the Synthesis patches in this guide doing? Would I want to add any other patches, such as the Clarity one found here?
When generating LODs, why does the guide specify to not select some worldspaces? Why would I want to generate LODs for Nuka-World but not Sanctuary? If I added other mods that appear in this list, how would I know whether I want LODs for them?
There are many topics not covered in this guide which are relevant. Covering them all is surely out of scope, but a "more information" section with links and a one-line reason to do/not do something would be useful. I'm thinking about Bashed Patches, ESMify (or Persistentify), and Merging Plugins, though there may be one or two other similar topics. ESMify is a particularly relevant topic considering the xEdit team's decision to not support .esp files in Starfield.
Item Sorting could really benefit from a "go here for more info" section. I spent hours on this step, which is entirely my own fault (it wasn't STEP's mods giving me issues). Explaining the full intricacies of CIS/FIS/etc is well beyond scope, but a line like "If you add additional mods and have trouble with this step, here are some places to go that might help you troubleshoot".
The links/articles/discussions already out there for this topic are scattered, imprecise, or not detailed enough. I'm considering writing an article on this topic, not a walkthrough but an outline of "this is how it works, the steps it goes through, and this is how you troubleshoot a problem". If a member of STEP's team is both willing and knowledgeable on this, I'd love to run it by someone before I make it public.
CAO is another tool that could use a line explaining when to use it or not. For instance, why does the guide have us use it on the LOD files and Jester's mod, but not the much larger FO4 HD Overhaul 2k?
I already mentioned I appreciate the guidance on LOOT rules. The guide has us create some for specific texture packs (but not all); this is another point where a one or two line explanation would be helpful. "When to customize LOOT rules" kind of thing.
The "Credits" section is in the guide twice. Additionally, it should probably include a callout to the xEdit team and/or ElminsterAU, or perhaps a catchall "all the developers of the tools we take for granted" kind of line.
Although FO4 is not new, and Starfield just came out, I was very happy to see this STEP guide released right after I finished playthroughs of F3 and FNV. I'd like to point out again how grateful I am for the hundreds of hours it must have taken from however many people to put this and other STEP guides together. Your work is appreciated!
