FEEDBACK v1.0 - Feedback & Bug Reports

[Taejang]

1 hour ago, GSDFan said:

There are two ways to determine this:

1. In the right pane select the Data tab, go to the filter at the bottom and filter for ".ba2" and count the results.

2. Launch "Explore Virtual Folder" from the run executable drop down. Explorer++ will open to the Data folder. Go to the View menu and select Details. In the right pane click the "Type" column to prioritize by type. Click until BA2 is at the top. Highlight the first file and scroll down to the last BA2 and shift click on it. It will take a little time, but in the bottom left of the window it will update the items selected.

Both ways reflect the games data folder.

The second method was perfect, thank you! ...332 .ba2 files totaling 128GB; methinks I need to do some trimming before I get any further in my gameplay testing. Or merging. Or unpacking some of the smaller ones into loose files. Probably all three. And after I paid so much attention to keeping my .esp files down!

What does it mean when a file is an .esp but marked as a .ba2, such as the screenshot?

1 hour ago, DoubleYou said:

In the future, we may employ this Synthesis patcher to rectify the ba2 limit issue. https://github.com/praecipitator/Ba2Repacker

Speaking of merging ba2 files... though it'll be tough to troubleshoot issues if I do this, especially if it introduces new problems just from it's own effort to merge files... something to think about before pulling the trigger on whatever solution I pick later tonight.

Edited November 8, 2023 by Taejang
punctuation, clarification

[DoubleYou]

5 hours ago, Taejang said:

The second method was perfect, thank you! ...332 .ba2 files totaling 128GB; methinks I need to do some trimming before I get any further in my gameplay testing. Or merging. Or unpacking some of the smaller ones into loose files. Probably all three. And after I paid so much attention to keeping my .esp files down!

What does it mean when a file is an .esp but marked as a .ba2, such as the screenshot?

Speaking of merging ba2 files... though it'll be tough to troubleshoot issues if I do this, especially if it introduces new problems just from it's own effort to merge files... something to think about before pulling the trigger on whatever solution I pick later tonight.

Keep in mind that Textures ba2 limit should be counted separately. You can have over 256 archives and not have issues, due to different handling of Main and Textures archives.

The mod you show does not appear to have been packaged or installed correctly. I am not sure what is intended, but I can say there is certainly a problem with it. 

[Taejang]

On 11/8/2023 at 9:54 PM, DoubleYou said:

Keep in mind that Textures ba2 limit should be counted separately. You can have over 256 archives and not have issues, due to different handling of Main and Textures archives.

The mod you show does not appear to have been packaged or installed correctly. I am not sure what is intended, but I can say there is certainly a problem with it. 

Ah, so it's a limit of 256 main files and 256 texture files? I doubt I have that many *main.ba2 files, but I can check that.

The messed up mod is this one, a compatibility patch that organizes existing mod-added weapon crafting recipes to a consolidated (logical) system, then adds missing recipes. The Nexus file listing shows they all come as .esp files, so I'm fairly confident it should be one- doesn't mean the download didn't get botched into somehow thinking it's a ba2 while still having the .esp extension, but it wasn't something I modified directly via some patcher/script/etc. I'll have to redownload it, reinstall it, then test that weapon mod, see if the guns and crafting recipes work as intended.

This has all gone rather far afield from the purpose of this thread, sorry for the lengthy sidetrack.

EDIT: The messed up file was repaired after a re-download and reinstall.

Edited November 10, 2023 by Taejang
Updated info

[GSDFan]

On 11/8/2023 at 4:10 PM, DoubleYou said:

In the future, we may employ this Synthesis patcher to rectify the ba2 limit issue. https://github.com/praecipitator/Ba2Repacker

What is the level of programming knowledge needed to write a Mutagen / Synthesis patcher? It looks like a powerful tool, but I do not have any programming background.

Are there any beginner guides or resources that you know of? 

[DoubleYou]

5 hours ago, GSDFan said:

What is the level of programming knowledge needed to write a Mutagen / Synthesis patcher? It looks like a powerful tool, but I do not have any programming background.

Are there any beginner guides or resources that you know of? 

It's C#. Probably difficult if no experience. I know I struggle a bit as an amateur.

https://www.w3schools.com/cs/index.php

https://github.com/Mutagen-Modding/Synthesis/wiki/Create-a-Patcher

https://mutagen-modding.github.io/Mutagen/

[Taejang]

C# is not the easiest language to learn, but it's close. If you're learning it as a first language, the roughest part might well be the concepts and methodology of coding, not the syntax or structures. That said, programming in general can be very difficult to pick up, especially if you aren't fully invested in it. It's a mindset that comes naturally to some, while for others it might as well be differential calculus written in music notation with a mostly-dead yellow highlighter. Like spoken languages, most people will never learn the deeper parts unless they are immersed in it for some time. It's like the people who use Duolingo 15min a day for a year and expect to be fluent in that language- it just isn't going to happen.

Now if you don't want fluency, you can absolutely pick up the programming equivalent of "saying hello, asking directions, and ordering a sandwich" without immersion. And unlike spoken languages, you can copy/paste code and spend hours on a "paragraph" that you just can't do in face-to-face conversations. But unlike spoken languages, computers don't "get the gist" of what you're saying, which can be extremely frustrating; you can expect to need hours on some "paragraphs". Fortunately, programming languages have fewer inconsistencies, as they are artificial constructs intended to make sense. There are still weird quirks, but nothing like a spoken language's complexity.

If you want to give it a shot, I'd recommend finding a course, book, or tutorial that teaches the actual concepts of programming from a C# perspective. Give it a few hours and if it's making sense or interesting, then continue with that in conjunction with learning some syntax. C# is plenty popular as a beginning language, so you should be able to find something (sorry I don't have any in mind I can refer you to). If you jump right into learning syntax, you might learn to ask the equivalent of "where is the bathroom?", but you won't understand how the sentence is constructed, meaning every new "sentence" you learn has to be memorized from scratch. That's not a fun way to learn any language, programming or otherwise.

W3Schools that @DoubleYou mentioned is a fantastic resource for learning the syntax, by the by. I've used it for other languages and recommend it for practice and practical examples. But it doesn't cover the "how" and the "why" in enough detail in my opinion, not for someone with no coding experience anyway. Without that how and why, troubleshooting a piece of code becomes much harder, which leads to frustration and burnout. That said, the pure conceptual stuff can be boring; best to use the two "styles" of learning in concert.

As a side note, @GSDFan you say you have no "programming background". If you are familiar with SQL, the intricacies of network protocols, scripting, etc, programming should be easier to pick up. For example, folks may not consider html and CSS work as "programming", but they share certain foundational concepts and paradigms. Modding with tools like xEdit also helps with some of those concepts, though not as many. It's like if you speak French, picking up Spanish is easier than if your native language is Cantonese.
 

Now after that "novel"...
Attached is a screenshot showing how my Sorter is editing scrapping recipes, replacing resources like steel or wood with straight bottlecaps. M8r Complex Sorter.esp is the name of the output from "Complex Sorter" and is stored in it's own otherwise blank mod at nearly the end of my load order. I didn't even know the CIS could alter scrap recipes; from initial testing it looks to be only household objects like furniture, not weapons/items/trees/etc, but I haven't tested everything by a long shot. It isn't every furniture piece, but it is enough that correcting it manually would suck. Any ideas how I might have screwed up?

Edited November 12, 2023 by Taejang
clarify, spelling

[GSDFan]

Add in the fact that my brain cells have been dying for 67 years, but it might be something to look at during the winter. I am retired with nothing but time on my hands.

Maybe I could grasp the fundamentals at least.

Thanks for the info.

 

[DoubleYou]

16 hours ago, Taejang said:

/snip

Attached is a screenshot showing how my Sorter is editing scrapping recipes, replacing resources like steel or wood with straight bottlecaps. M8r Complex Sorter.esp is the name of the output from "Complex Sorter" and is stored in it's own otherwise blank mod at nearly the end of my load order. I didn't even know the CIS could alter scrap recipes; from initial testing it looks to be only household objects like furniture, not weapons/items/trees/etc, but I haven't tested everything by a long shot. It isn't every furniture piece, but it is enough that correcting it manually would suck. Any ideas how I might have screwed up?

That's definitely wrong. Only COBJ record edits should be for holotapes and stuff using the ECO plugin. It looks straight up bugged there. Did you upgrade to xEdit 4.1.5? Perhaps there is an issue when using it with the new version.

[Taejang]

4 hours ago, DoubleYou said:

That's definitely wrong. Only COBJ record edits should be for holotapes and stuff using the ECO plugin. It looks straight up bugged there. Did you upgrade to xEdit 4.1.5? Perhaps there is an issue when using it with the new version.

I saw the xEdit update from 4.0.4 to 4.1.5 and deliberately didn't upgrade because I couldn't find anything in the patch notes pertaining to Fallout. It was all for Starfield; I figured I wouldn't chance any new bugs that might have popped up in the newer version. I'm sure they'd get patched relatively quickly, but it wasn't worth it for what seemed like no benefit to me.

I'll rebuild the sorter and check the details in xEdit, see if something weird happened in the last generation. Triple check my settings as well. I shouldn't have to redo Synthesis patches, LOD, or Tex generations just for the item sorter, correct?

[DoubleYou]

1 hour ago, Taejang said:

I saw the xEdit update from 4.0.4 to 4.1.5 and deliberately didn't upgrade because I couldn't find anything in the patch notes pertaining to Fallout. It was all for Starfield; I figured I wouldn't chance any new bugs that might have popped up in the newer version. I'm sure they'd get patched relatively quickly, but it wasn't worth it for what seemed like no benefit to me.

I'll rebuild the sorter and check the details in xEdit, see if something weird happened in the last generation. Triple check my settings as well. I shouldn't have to redo Synthesis patches, LOD, or Tex generations just for the item sorter, correct?

No. Complex Sorter is completely separate in our build.

[Taejang]

I checked the settings, thinking maybe I had missed the ECO settings from the guide (specifically the "ignore vanilla items" under the recipe section), but my settings there matched the guide. Regenerated anyway, same effect. I disabled the COBJ Converter and regenerated, and that removed the faulty records overwriting good ones. I don't mind disabling COBJ Converter (it doesn't do anything I actually want, now that I'm investigating it further). At no point did I modify the settings for it, at least not until I disabled it entirely.

The first part of the default settings (at least, my default ones) for COBJ Converter are attached. Not sure if they are different than what your defaults were, or if something else is going on, but figured if your settings are different from these, it might be something to mention in the guide so others don't have this issue. I can list the entire default settings if desired.

To further clarify, I just checked, I downloaded only the main file from this mod, not the two optional files. I verified the installation instructions from "19-Utilities". If desired I can verity the other components that interact with it (4estGimp's addons and such) to see if maybe I have a different version of one of those. I did change some of the sorter tags, but definitely didn't modify the plugins themselves.

Edited November 13, 2023 by Taejang
Clarify

[DoubleYou]

We don't use the COBJ Converter in our instructions. We only use the CS plugins ticked in step 5. https://stepmodifications.org/wiki/Fallout4:1.0#Complex_Sorter

That COBJ Converter appears to come from this mod, which is not in the guide: https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/66438

[Taejang]

3 hours ago, DoubleYou said:

We don't use the COBJ Converter in our instructions. We only use the CS plugins ticked in step 5. https://stepmodifications.org/wiki/Fallout4:1.0#Complex_Sorter

That COBJ Converter appears to come from this mod, which is not in the guide: https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/66438

Man I'm a moron. I'm not sure how I missed that the first time, but the second time I made sure nothing in the STEP directions that was unchecked was accidentally checked in mine- COBJ not being in the STEP list at all of course means it wasn't "unchecked". That's what I get for trying to check it while tired and distracted. Makes me wonder what else I screwed up.

My apologies. I did have the linked mod installed, though I have no idea why. It wasn't even in my bookmarks; seems like a fine mod but nothing I want (it's uninstalled already). I need to go through my load order again, I clearly have a few things in here I shouldn't that are causing conflicts. Maybe before midnight this time.

Edited November 13, 2023 by Taejang

[Forze_x]

Dear STEP Team,

First of all let me congratulate you on creating the single best Fallout 4 (and other games) Mod Guide available. I've been using your guides for years now and love how easy and simple you made the insanity of modding Bethesda games. Now, enough ass-kissing, onto the issues.

 

Since mid january I've run into problems on xLODGen Object generation using your guide. I'll explain the issues step by step.

-I've used the guide last november (Windows 11, Core I9-9900KF, 32GB Ram, RTX 3080, Samsung 980 1Tb) to create a regular buid, customizing it later => xLODGen worked fine, everything ran normal, even with a large number of world altering mods.

- Mid january I decided on a new build, more Vanilla, starting over from scratch with newer versions of all the tools => xLODGEN gave the following results https://photos.app.goo.gl/sfcbw2wVps9oQvAy9 I tried going back to older versions of xLODGen, xEdit and LodGen Resources, but nothing worked.

- The end of january, I upgraded my rig (Ryzen 7 7800X3D, 32GB Ram, RTX 3080, Samsung 990 Pro 1Tb), performing a full reinstall (with Windows 10). I started a completely new build following the STEP guide to the letter => same result.

- I decided to upgrade to Windows 11, performing another full reinstall of everything, including the full STEP guide => same result

- I removed everything, starting from scratch once more, but the issue remains.

My findings when troubleshooting:

- the issues remain when not using CAO.

- I've tried using different xLODGen settings, but the result remains the same. I receive no errors during or after generating Lods.

latest xLODGen logs: 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gdPYCFF23keCHChHi8QuhPvZAYFqoEEK/view?usp=drive_link

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lUpYY61T9XK35ZBCuk6u8HYxWY_KU-lq/view?usp=drive_link 

- disabling the xLODGen Output mods restores regular LOD fine

- the terrain LOD generation works fine ( the usual Cloud z-fighting when moving fast during a TCL flyththrough). So the issues are specifically with Object generation. The terrain itself gets issues when the Object LOD is used.

- I've tried previous versions of xLODGen (back to the beginning of 2023) => same issue

- I've tried using Luxor8071 LOD's on top of the other => same issue

- I'm going to try and use different Texture overhaul mods to see if the issue remains, but I would like to let you guys know what I've found already.

 

Thank you for taking these issues into consideration!

 

 

 

 

[Forze_x]

Update:

- Same issue when using other Texture Packs: SavrenX - Vivid 

- Same issue when not using:

--High Resolution Texture Pack

--Jesters Better Destroyed Vehicles

--Langleys HD Textures Workshop

--FlaconOils Complete Retexture Project

-Same issue when using FO4LODgen - Guide settings https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/49362

 

Update 2:

I found the problem:

The new Dyndolod/TexGen is the perpetrator:

Lodgen after not using TexGen:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/geNgNF1Y2CPEUuqo7

Of ourse it's missing textures now, causing the purple coloring.

I'm going to look for an older Dyndolod/TexGen for testing.