SkyrimLE:2.2.1

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About STEP

A Forward

STEP is an extensive, STEP-by-STEP, guide to enhancing TESV Skyrim with the best mods, tweaks and settings. The focus is quality over quantity. STEP tries to stay as close to vanilla Skyrim as possible while improving visual quality and fixing game-play mechanics.

Created by TheCompiler, STEP is a collaborative project with input from the modding community, technical volunteers, and project administrators. The goal is to provide tested and validated methods for establishing and maintaining an enhanced modded Skyrim. The STEP team collects information from the modding community through detailed reviews, feedback, and suggestions exchanged on the STEP Community Forums. Posting rules apply, so be sure to read and follow the posting rules and enjoy a warm welcome and plenty of high-quality support from a large community of experienced STEPers. Thus, the Guide provides detailed, well-tested build instructions for a solid modding template. New modders can follow STEP explicitly, or more experienced modders may use it as general guide.

Check out the comparison screenshots on the Nexus. But remember: the only way to experience STEP ... is to actually experience STEP.

Don't forget to visit the forums and provide feedback related to STEP. Assistance and feedback are what is needed in order for STEP to grow and improve. Also visit the STEP Facebook page maintained by TheCompiler (Daniel).

To support hosting and maintenance of the STEP Community Project, contributions are welcome.

STEP Mandate

A Commitment

Core STEP is about enhancing vanilla Skyrim for the PC ...

• Texture replacements at minimized performance cost and true to vanilla Skyrim
• Continuity of all in-game textures, reducing immersion-breaking variation in texture quality (i.e., comparable resolution and style across all armors, weapons, clutter, terrain, etc.)
• Graphical mods (ESPs) including new content that "fits" vanilla Skyrim
• Gameplay & sound mods that improve the consistency and the perceived intent of vanilla Skyrim
• Interface mods that improve the menus and UI.
• Fix mods that truly "fix" malfunctioning aspects of vanilla Skyrim.

STEP is NOT about ...

• Content mods that conflict with vanilla Skyrim and/or TES lore
• Mods that change the perceived intent of vanilla Skyrim
• Sex mods or female body replacement mods
• Music replacement mods
• Gameplay overhauls

Performance, Baseline & Extreme STEP

STEP provides an enhanced vanilla experience by utilizing a minimum or “Core” set of game enhancements adhering to the original vanilla feel of the game according to the STEP Mandate. All Core mods are considered essential to all STEP "versions". Non-Core mods are optional but highly recommended. STEP is delineated at three levels according to relative performance impacts:

Performance STEP: Core mods only; performance options wherever possible.

My poor box needs all of the mercy that I can spare it, but I must have STEP!

Baseline STEP: Core and non-Core mods; performance/quality and balanced options wherever possible.

My box is decent, but I hate FPS even the tiniest drops and stuttering!

Extreme STEP: Core and non-Core mods; highest-quality options wherever possible.

My box is omnipotent!

STEP 1

Pre-Installation Setup

Requirements

• Official Patch v1.8
• Patience and attention to detail

Baseline System

The STEP Guide is written with the following system (or comparable) in mind:

• Windows 7
• Intel i5/i7 quad core
• 4+ GB system RAM
• GPU 1+ GB VRAM (DDR5)
• Resolution: 1680x1050

1.A. Install Steam & Skyrim

This guide assumes that the reader has installed Steam as recommended by the Skyrim Installation Guide (SIG). Please take some time to properly set up and configure Steam as recommended by the guide before continuing. Likewise, please refer to the Skyrim installation section of the SIG to establish a recommended Skyrim installation for STEP.

If needed, please refer to the Troubleshooting guide for how to revert Skyrim to a pristine installation.

1.B. Skyrim Launcher Options

1.B.1. Launcher Settings

1. Launch Skyrim from Steam and click on [Options]. This will establish the INI file configurations according to the detected hardware. It will also establish the registry entries necessary for utilities and applications used downstream.
2. Click the [Ultra] button.
3. Under Antialiasing, select 4 Samples, as the difference between 4 Samples and 8 Samples is very subtle and not worth the performance loss (per Tweakguides). Drop down to 2 Samples as a last-resort to improve performance. NOTE: If using SMAA, set this value to zero.
4. Under Anisotropic Filtering, select 16 Samples (adjust down to 8 Samples to improve performance). NOTE: If using SMAA, set this value to zero.
5. Click the [Advanced] button and make sure FXAA is UN-checked. FXAA reduces the Anisotropic Filter effect as well as overall texture detail. It is a huge performance improvement over AA, but comes with a quality cost. For more information on FXAA, and to see if it is right for you, see this post. NOTE: SMAA is a superior alternative to FXAA.
6. Consider setting shadow detail to High rather than Ultra for video cards with less than 1 GB VRAM:

   HIGH: Better performance (much better on some systems). Shadows are sharper, and shadow view distance is reduced (less mid-distance landscape eye-candy).

   ULTRA: Worse performance. Shadows are more pixelated with less definition, but shadow view distance is increased (mid-distance landscape will look pretty).

7. Under [View Distance], make sure Object Detail Fade is UN-checked and adjust grass to 100% with all other settings around 50%.NOTE: High-end systems can handle max view distances just fine.
8. Exit and click Play from the Skyrim Launcher. This will create the necessary configuration files, and registry settings required by downstream applications (contrary to popular belief, the INI files are created immediately, and the game does not need to launch).

1.B.2. Performance Benchmarking

The following procedure is very important in determining baseline performance and ultimately helps the STEP team to assess performance variation across a wide range of computer configurations. This ultimately allows the accurate prediction of performance requirements for the various versions of STEP to come. User contributions in this regard are highly valued and much appreciated! Even more importantly, this routine should be used to assess the performance of the strict STEP versions as described above.

At this point, there should be a clean install of both Steam and Skyrim as recommended by the SIG (see above). This is a perfect point to collect some baseline performance data. This provides valuable information about the setup and the gaming environment. Detecting driver issues, software incompatibilities, hardware problems or other issues is essential while the build is simple, as these kinds of problems are much more difficult to diagnose and solve as the build becomes more complex. Use the following checklist:

1. Identify any unnecessary background programs that may be running. Most importantly, determine if it is possible to set any anti-virus/spyware to low priority or "game mode". Any running background processes will consume some proportion of resources that Skyrim could otherwise use and increase the chances for instability. It is fine to have processes running in the background, but it is a good idea to be aware of what they are for troubleshooting in case there are problems.
2. Launch Fraps or another light benchmarking utility in order to measure FPS. Set to output FPS to a log file.
3. Launch GPU-z in order to measure GPU and system memory-usage statistics. Set GPU-z to output the following to the log file (Sensors > Log to File; each variable log can be toggled by selecting the corresponding drop-downs):
   • GPU Core Clock (MHz)
   • GPU Load (%)
   • Memory Usage (Dedicated) - This is on-card-VRAM
   • Memory Usage (Dynamic) - This is the amount of VRAM transferred to much-slower system RAM
4. Launch Skyrim, and start a new game. Let the game progress through character creation, and then save.
5. Proceed through the Unbound quest (i.e., following Ralof through the Imperial Fort/dungeon).
6. Upon exiting the dungeon and obtaining the "Before the Storm" quest, save the game again and stand at the cave exit for a minute or two to capture some more performance data (this is a GPU-demanding area of the game).
7. Quit the game and go to the GPU-z log. Identify the point in the log where the GPU Core Clock first maxes out and stays consistently maxed after the point where the Dedicated Memory spikes (it should be around 10-30 rows from the top of the file). Note this row number and delete all preceding rows (keep the header row!).
8. Move down to the end of the file and locate the point at which the GPU Core Clock and Dedicated Memory begin to recede. Count the number of rows from this point to the end of the file, record that number and delete the rows of data. Save and quit.
9. Open the Fraps FPS log and delete the same number of rows from the top and bottom of the file, matching the numbers noted in the GPU-z log. The remaining records in each file are the in-game performance data, and the STEP Team would very much like to collect this data in addition to the related system specs system specs of each system used to obtain it (See format above.

1.C. Install Utilities

1.C.2. Better Oblivion Sorting Software

Better Oblivion Sorting Software (BOSS) is the recommended utility for managing mod plugins for Skyrim and is compatible with most mod managers. Download BOSS and install according to the instructions provided by the author.

1.C.3. BOSS Userlist Manager

Boss Userlist Manager (BUM) helps to make BOSS even easier by providing a GUI to edit the BOSS masterlist, which is used to define load order. Includes automated BOSS masterlist management and more as well.

1.C.4. Mod Manager(s)

There are several utilities that may be used to install mods for Skyrim and to maintain the STEP setup. The user also has the option of installing mods manually. Use of one of a mod-management utility is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED but nonetheless optional.

• Wrye Bash

Wrye Bash (WB) is perhaps the most powerful mod-management utility, and is full of features for both modders and advanced mod authors alike. A comprehensive STEP-installation walkthrough is presented in the Wrye Bash Guide. Presently, Wrye Bash lacks a mod update management system, so this will need to be managed by the user (or the following solutions can be used for that piece).

• Mod Organizer

Mod Organizer (MO) is a feature-rich management utility that utilizes data virtualization to keep your Skyrim folder pristine. See the Mod Organizer Guide to learn more. MO does keep track of mod updates on the Nexus, and is as accurate as long as the Nexus metadata is current.

• Nexus Mod Manager

Nexus Mod Manager (NMM) is a mod-management utility from Blacktree Gaming, the owners of the Nexus sites, and provides a convenient download manager, and mod tracker. The Nexus Mod Manager (NMM) Guide By TheStigma provides good instructions for using this tool.

1.D. INI Tweaks

INI files can be used to managed many aspects of the game and also ancillary mods to Skyrim. Following are relevant tweaks that apply to Baseline STEP. Go to "Documents/My Games/Skyrim" or "My Documents/My Games/Skyrim" (depending on Operating System) and find Skyrim.ini and SkyrimPref.ini. Make sure they aren’t tagged as read-only, and make a backup of the files. If using Mod Organizer, editing INI files is done by clicking [Edit Ini]; there’s no need to edit the originals.

For advanced and less reliable INI tweaks not recommend by STEP, like uGrids tweaks, max visible trees/grass/clouds distance, etc. see Tweaks Compilation on the Elder Scrolls forums and Skyrim Enthusiast Graphics on the Nexus.

1.D.1. Skyrim INI

Modify the following under [Actor]:

Increases the distance arrows fly. (From "Arrows and Bolts Tweaks").

fVisibleNavmeshMoveDist=12288.0000

Modify the following under [Camera]:

Places the camera just above your character's head in third-person view. (From "Centered Third Person Camera").

fOverShoulderAddY=0.0
fOverShoulderPosZ=18.0
fOverShoulderPosX=0.0
fOverShoulderCombatAddY=0.0
fOverShoulderCombatPosZ=24.0
fOverShoulderCombatPosX=0.0

Corrects the camera angle in third-person view while on horseback. (From "Third Person Horse Camera").

fOverShoulderHorseAddY=-72.0
fOverShoulderHorsePosZ=50.0
fOverShoulderHorsePosX=35.0
fActorFadeOutLimit=-100

Provides instant camera-angle switching when switching view types or when mounting/dismounting your horse. (from "Instant Camera POV Switching").

fMouseWheelZoomSpeed=60.0
f1st3rdSwitchDelay=0.95
iHorseTransitionMillis=001

Modify the following under [Combat]:

Shifts the point of aim to the center of the aiming reticule for arrows and crossbows (with this setting targets will be hit where the cursor is placed at approximately 100 feet from the target).

f1PArrowTiltUpAngle=0.7
f3PArrowTiltUpAngle=0.7
f1PBoltTiltUpAngle=0.7
f3PBoltTiltUpAngle=0.7

Modify the following under [Display]:

Fixes the shadow flickering issue. Shadow flickering is caused by updating sun shadows.

fSunShadowUpdateTime=0
fSunUpdateThreshold=2.0

Increases the time that blood decals remain visible (tweak from “Enhanced Blood Textures” mod).

fDecalLifetime=512.0

Helps reduce Z-fighting, but may increase clipping, especially with a higher field of view. See Gopher's More Z-fighting video for more information and examples.

fNearDistance=18.0000

Modify the following under [General]:

Disables the annoying intro sequence.

sIntroSequence=DISABLED.BIK

Prevents crashes when loading into a large interior area.

iLargeIntRefCount=262144

Helps prevent lighting “pop-in” by pushing back the distance at which the flicker/pulse animation loops begin.

fFlickeringLightDistance=8192

Modify the following under [Interface]:

Speeds up the book opening animation.:

fBookOpenTime=200.0

Move the HUD elements closer to the borders of the screen.:

fSafeZoneX=10
fSafeZoneY=10
fSafeZoneXWide=10
fSafeZoneYWide=10

1.D.2. SkyrimPrefs INI

Modify the following under [Controls]:

Disables mouse acceleration.

bMouseAcceleration=0

Modify the following under [Decals]:

Enables higher resolution blood decals on NPCs.

bDecalsOnSkinnedGeometry=1

Modify the following values under [Display]:

Lower values (0, 1 or 2) will sharpen shadows (not the resolution), making vegetation more "vibrant." It gives a subtle increase in performance, but also gives more pixelated and striping effects to shadows. Higher values (4, 5, etc.) will make shadows softer and more blurred. Recommend changing this value to 1 or 2. WARNING: In most cases, when changing any options from the Skyrim Launcher, this tweak will revert to the default value "3"; you will have to re-apply it.

iBlurDeferredShadowMask=2

Enables shadowing on trees and grass.

bTreesReceiveShadows=1
bShadowsOnGrass=1

ENB users ONLY! Enabling these without an ENB will decrease performance with no visual impact and possibly introduce excessive shadow striping.

bDrawLandShadows=1
bFloatPointRenderTarget=1

Together with setting shadow quality set to High in 1.B.1, this tweak will improve shadows resolution at a performance cost. Shadow quality on Ultra sets this value by default.

iShadowMapResolution=4096

Improves the blood decals number per scene (from “Enhanced Blood Textures”).

iMaxDecalsPerFrame=256

Modify the following under [Grass]:

Allows grass to have shadows. Do not apply on low-end systems.

b30GrassVS=1

Modify the following under [Launcher]:

Allows selection of plug-ins from the Data folder (even if mod managers can do it instead), but more importantly, it will prevent Skyrim Launcher from un-checking all previously checked ESPs.

bEnableFileSelection=1

Modify the following under [MAIN]:

Helps reduce Z-fighting, but may increase clipping, especially with a higher field of view. See Gopher's More Z-fighting video for more information and examples.

fSkyCellRefFadeDistance=500000.0000

Modify the following under [TerrainManager]:

Helps reduce Z-fighting, but may increase clipping, especially with a higher field of view. See Gopher's More Z-fighting video for more information and examples.

fBlockMaximumDistance=500000
fBlockLevel1Distance=140000
fBlockLevel0Distance=75000
fSplitDistanceMult=4.0

Modify the following under [Water]:

Subtlety improves water reflections.

iWaterReflectHeight=1024
iWaterReflectWidth=1024

1.E. Video Card Settings

1.E.1. Nvidia Users

1. Download and install the latest Nvidia drivers (beta if available).
2. Download Nvidia Inspector.
3. Follow these steps. DEVNOTE: How outdated is this?

   Also see the Nvidia Inspector Guide (WiP).

1.E.2. ATI Users

1. Download and install the latest AMD drivers (beta if available).
2. Open Catalyst Control Center, and click on the [Preferences] button in the upper right. Select Advanced View.
3. Under the Gaming section on the left select 3D Application Settings.
4. Follow the ATI Pictorial Guide.

Reminder - Essential Guides

The following guides form the base from which STEP builds so that what is being done and why is fully understood. These guides will also empower the user to make decisions while installing STEP that will lead to a setup that is most appropriate for particular hardware and play style.

1. Skyrim Installation Guide (SIG) – Comprehensive installation and configuration guide to Skyrim and its DLCs, mods, extensions, and utilities.
2. Skyrim Tweaking Guide – Graphics, performance data, and detailed explanations of tweaks and INI settings for Skyrim.
3. Wrye Bash Guide – A practical, hands-on introduction to Wrye Bash using STEP as a working example.
4. Mod Organizer Guide – Using MO to manage your STEP installation.

Final Notes

A Final Consideration

Unless the reader is an experienced TES modder, install mods in the order that they are presented in the following tables. Unless you're using a mod manager installation mistakes will more often than not require a clean Skyrim installation as a starting point.

One crucial fact to understand about Skyrim is that information from the mods you use can be written into your save games, and may continue to affect your game even after the mods are removed or updated.

From the Bethesda document, Skyrim Mod Troubleshooting: Best Practices:

"When you play Skyrim with a mod, in most cases, the new data for the mod will be written into any new saved games you create. For example, if you play Skyrim with Mod X and create a save, the next time you load that save, the game will expect Mod X to also be loaded. If you no longer want to play Skyrim with Mod X, it is best to unload Mod X (by unchecking the plugin under Data Files in your Skyrim launcher) and loading a save that does not require Mod X, usually an older save or a backed up save."

The short version is “never continue with a save once a mod it relies upon has been removed.” Although this is good advice, there may be occasions when it is inconvenient to revert to an older save. The Troubleshooting Guide provides a procedure for attempting to ‘clean’ the effects of a removed mod from a save.

AND FINALLY...

ALWAYS read the ReadMe and other mod-related documentation that comes packaged with mods. This includes the mod's description on the Nexus. If the mod author has seen fit and taken time to create these reference materials, then they are relevant and important in the eyes of the mod author. This means that they are relevant and important to you!

STEP 2

Mod Installation

Template:Warning

	Mod Name	Baseline	Impact	DLC Required	Notes
	Mod Name	Baseline	FPS/VRAM	DG	Notes

	Core Mod	Core mods are indicated by the presence of a green vertical bar in the row at the immediate left-hand column of the table.
	Mod Name	Nexus mod name (where applicable) presented as a link links to Nexus for download.
		Link to the mod's Wiki page.
	Baseline	This notes the STEP Baseline version or option of the corresponding mod.
	Impact	Denotes if there is a performance impact associated with the corresponding mod:
		A performance-"friendlier" version also exists as another option.
		A performance-"costing" version also exists as another option.
		Both performance friendlier and costing versions of the mod exist.
	DLC Required	Any DLCs listed here are required for the mod to function. If all DLCs listed are not present do not use this mod.
	Notes	Brief notes that apply to the mod or installation. In some cases, mods with many alternative options will include a suggested option. These suggestions will take the form of: "STEP recommends 'Option A'." In other cases, there may only be one appropriate alternative option that fits the STEP Mandate. These instructions will take the form of: "Use 'Option A'."

Template:Notice Template:Notice Small

2.A

No mods defined.

2.B

No mods defined.

2.C

No mods defined.

2.D

No mods defined.

2.E

No mods defined.

2.F

No mods defined.

2.G

No mods defined.

2.H

No mods defined.

2.I

No mods defined.

2.J

No mods defined.

2.K

No mods defined.

2.L

No mods defined.

2.M

No mods defined.

Post-Installation Housekeeping

Once all mods have been installed and ready to play, be certain to either:

• Start a new game, or
• Load an existing game, and
  1. Save the game including all of the new mod info.
  2. Sleep within an interior cell for 31 days (use No Boring Sleep-Wait Menu to expedite the process).
  3. Save again (this will be the new modded save to fall back to).

STEP 3

Hints & Common Issues

3.A. Technical Tips

All of the following may be helpful, but be certain to also check the Troubleshooting Guide.

3.A.1. Maximizing STEP

A heavily modded Skyrim can bring even a very powerful system to its knees. Maximum visual quality is highly dependent upon total on-card graphics-dedicated video memory (VRAM), the number of GPUs, and native monitor resolution.

First, try using SSAO for better quality graphics and note the performance hit. If FPS is still 50 or higher, install the higher-resolution textures a few at a time until performance and quality are balanced. The goal should be to maintain 32 or more FPS on average. Again, the Skyrim Installation Guide provides a rather comprehensive overview of Steam and Skyrim installation. The guide also provides information on the installation and setup of several useful utilities that will make installing and maintaining STEP relatively simple and reliable. Users relatively new to TES modding are highly encouraged to familiarize themselves with the guide.

3.A.2. Fix game launch crash after installing STEP

If you’re experiencing crashes to desktop (CTDs),

• Set the Skyrim executable "TESV.exe" to run as administrator (right click TESV.exe > Properties > Compatibility > Check Run this program as administrator).
• If using RCRN or any other FXAA-Injector/ENB mod, turn off any on-screen display programs and monitoring tools such as Fraps, ATI Tray Tools, MSI Afterburner, GPU-Z, etc.
• Get the latest DirectX runtime installed.

3.A.3. Defrag your Hard Drive with a proper defrag tool

For hard drives (not SSDs), this is a very important task once most/all mods are installed. The Windows defrag utility may be used, but it is sub-standard. A couple of the best free utilities are Auslogics Disk Defrag and Puran Defrag Free Edition. Do NOT defrag an SSD as it will severely affect its lifetime.

3.A.4. Semi-Invisible People & Misbehaving Walls (ATI)

Be certain that ATI Antialiasing is set to Multi-Sample and NOT Adaptive. Also, remember to download the latest ATI drivers.

3.A.5. Using Windowed Mode (ATI)

If having stuttering problems or CTDs in full screen mode, try "full screen" windowed mode by downloading Simple Borderless Window. The "Simple Borderless Window" launcher SBW.exe launches SKSE, so start the game through SBW.exe.

3.A.6. Increase Overall Performance

If after following the whole guide and installing the enhanced graphics, the game is unplayable due to low performance, try one or more of the following:

• Disable SSAO or Supersampling AA (or both) if enabled.
• Reduce shadow quality from the Skyrim Launcher.
• Install the performance-friendly versions of textures where applicable.
• Consider texture optimization.
• Reduce The [View Distance] settings in the game launcher (see 1.B.1).

3.A.7. Texture Shimmering, Etc.

Refer to the Z-Fighting Guide.

3.B. In-Game Tips

The console can be activated by pressing the tilde ([~]) key, often located just below [Escape], while in-game.

3.B.1. Optimize Field of View (FOV)

DEVNOTE: Seems more like good advice and not troubleshooting, perhaps move it up in the guide? In the console enter the following using a number from 66-100, depending on resolution and screen ratio. Default is 65 (4:3 screens), but 70-75 works nicely for 16:10 screens and 75-80 works nicely for 16:9 screens:

FOV ##

This change will be permanent in the saved game. Other INI FOV tweaks don't require opening the console, but they don’t 'stick' and can corrupt the game. Also note that high FOV can cause a performance drop for some configurations.

3.B.2. Downgraded Skill

DEVNOTE: Does this still happen? When a skill appears in red and it's much lower than it is supposed to be (and this is NOT caused by an active negative spell effect), this is probably a game glitch. In the console enter:

player.modav <skill> 1

Reopen the console and enter:

player.modav <skill> -1

Exit the console (with the tilde key again) and the issue should be fixed.

3.B.3. BIG Frame Drops During Cell Loading

DEVNOTE: Does this still happen? For large FPS drops (from 32+ down to 5- FPS) when loading new cells during transitions in-game, [ALT+TAB] to Windows, click on the Skyrim tab on the task-bar, and ALT+TAB back to Skyrim. This seems to be a bug in the game. It can also indicate that VRAM is too often operating at or beyond capacity (see 3.A.6).

User Contributions

How YOU Can Help

STEP can only get bigger and better with help from the user community. Even simply maintaining the current STEP is too much work for a single person to ensure that the highest quality is maintained. We need people to help us identify mods that are thought to improve Skyrim while adhering to the STEP Mandate. We also need ongoing reviews and updates on mods that may be causing problems or stray from the STEP philosophy. STEP has always been about creating a better Skyrim through community resources. More detail is presented in the Mod Testing Guide.

In order to suggest a mod, visit the Mod Suggestions section of the STEP Forums.

Thank you for reading and enjoy the game!

Special Credits

• Roogal for the darker PDF theme concept
• MontyMM for the guide's dragon logo and z929669 for the new STEP-brand logo
• Authors of mods recommended in STEP
• The core STEP Community for feedback, suggestions and input
• The STEP beta testers for their good humor and rigorous analyses
• The Nexus community
• Bethesda Softworks for Skyrim (and TES in general)
• The STEP Community administrators for establishing the STEP community & specifically ...
  • Farlo for mod informatics and wiki development
  • frihyland for workflow solutions and general application development
  • Stoppingby4now for forum operations/development and wiki skinning
  • z929669 for the major PDF content rewrites
  • TheCompiler (Daniel) for creating STEP!

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