Skyrim texture mod recomendations

[zinfamous]

I tried RCRN and it immediately made everything very DARK ( and set on legacy)...so dark I could not see anything in the Helgen Keep (Unbound). The only way I could find the chests was the white cursor leading the way. I had no other mods installed.Did I do something wrong? Another setting I missed? I uninstalled RCRN and could then see where I was going. Ideas?

The Wife

I don't think I have used RCRN--not sure, anyway--so this comment may be meaningless. For some of these mods the affect lighting, you will get a set-up process during the install with NMM that allows you to select specific settings (basically chooses which files to install) I use Climates of Tamriel, that has its own setting for lighting, and it gives you about 5 options for lighting during the install process. To check on this, simply go into NMM, deactivate, RCRN and then reactivate it. Careful, though: some of these overhauls require specifc installation orders depending on other mods you might have installed. Check the notes on mod's main page regarding conflicts and installation procedure. You might have to uninstall a few other mods that you have, then reinstall them as well, after RCRN, if you want to test this out.

If you have SkyUI, you can also check if RCRN has an in-game settings feature. Go to options with esc key, and it should bring up the mods that allow in-game settings through SkyUI.

I also got Skyrim for PC during the Steam sale. I've played in on the XBox and enjoyed it. I wanted to see how good it looked on PC. I've gone crazy at Nexus installing mods, but I'm not sure what an ENB is. It seems like it's another level of graphics overhaul.

I already have the enhanced textures and wires installed as well as body updates and UI improvements like SkyUI. What would I get if I install RealVision?

Yes, ENBs are a certain "class"? of graphics and texture overhauls.

I don't use ENBs because for the longest time, they could only be used on very high-end machines and for the most part, were meant for staged screenshots. The "best ones" basically rendered the game unplayable, but very nice to look at. They also tend towards oversatured, unrealistic environments, imo. I think if you like HDR photography (which I don't), they might provide the type of setting that you enjoy.

I think there are better ones that are less intense and more resource efficient now, but they still tend to require, as far as I know, installations (at least marginally) more complex than a simple NMM download and activate.

For my purposes, Skyrim HD, a mesh overhaul and some specific texture replacers (like W.A.T.E.R. and realistic snow) are perfectly fine.

I haven't tried it, but I think Realvision is pretty intense, and may not be suited for general gameplay. I could be wrong, though. Take a look at the comments in the post page regarding the mod...and/or try it out for yourself and see if you like it. As always, check for potential conflicts and proper installation wrg to your other mods before you download anything.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

I tried RCRN and it immediately made everything very DARK ( and set on legacy)...so dark I could not see anything in the Helgen Keep (Unbound). The only way I could find the chests was the white cursor leading the way. I had no other mods installed.Did I do something wrong? Another setting I missed? I uninstalled RCRN and could then see where I was going. Ideas?

The Wife

RCRN has really dark nights. Like really, really dark nights. I used the Classic setting (slightly darker than Legacy) when I tried it a few years back and it was borderline impossible to see at night or in dungeons if there was any glare on my monitor at all. I think there's a customization tool you can use to tweak the night lighting up, but it really is intended to be very dark, so if you're not a fan of that visual style, I'd look elsewhere.

 

[crownjules]

I also got Skyrim for PC during the Steam sale. I've played in on the XBox and enjoyed it. I wanted to see how good it looked on PC. I've gone crazy at Nexus installing mods, but I'm not sure what an ENB is. It seems like it's another level of graphics overhaul.

I already have the enhanced textures and wires installed as well as body updates and UI improvements like SkyUI. What would I get if I install RealVision?

ENB imports graphic effects that were not included in the Skyrim engine. Things like color shaders, sharpeners, enhanced shadows, volumetric fog and sun rays, SSAO, SSIL, and so on. The packages such as RealVision, Kountervibe, and TrueVision are then presets that tailor the ENB effects' levels to achieve an author's desired look. Some of them are extremely demanding and others are not.

 

[Stringjam]

I tried RCRN and it immediately made everything very DARK ( and set on legacy)...so dark I could not see anything in the Helgen Keep (Unbound). The only way I could find the chests was the white cursor leading the way. I had no other mods installed.Did I do something wrong? Another setting I missed? I uninstalled RCRN and could then see where I was going. Ideas?

The Wife

Have you tried increasing the gamma in the "Advanced" settings of the RCRN config tool?

 

[runzwithsizorz]

Will see if that helps...let you know.

 

[PowerYoga]

I have literally over 100 ENB modifications on various things, including the environment, and the game is still very playable. The trick is to not get the ultra high res textures (4096) but the "high" res ones (2048), and you shouldn't get it for everything. The graphics cards today should be very capable of rendering that stuff.