The Journey Begins...

Before you begin your install, there are a few things that should specifically be noted. First - this guide does not support non-english language installs. This is largely because Lexy and the staff are all English speakers, so that is the setup they use when the guide is updated and maintained. While we understand that there are those out there who play and speak other languages, we don't have any on staff that can help with troubleshooting the differences in the base files. For that reason, official support on the Discord is for English Language installs only.

Second, we do not and will not support software piracy in any form. If you are having difficulties installing this guide and come onto our Discord server for help, and, in the course of troubleshooting it is discovered that the game, your O/S, or any other software you are using is pirated, you can expect an instant ban from the server. Illegal activity will not be encouraged or supported. Even if we did, this guide cannot be installed properly on a cracked or stolen game or system - almost everyone we've caught with pirated games or O/S's is because of this. Don't do it.

Tag Explanations

BodyslideMods that need to be processed by Bodyslide.
CAOMods that need to be processed by Cathedral Assets Optimizer.
CLASSICMods that are downloaded from classic Skyrim.
CONVERTMods whose ESPs need to be converted to form 44 in the SSE Creation Kit.
DARMod that uses Dynamic Animation Replacer.
ENBMods that are needed for ENB.
ESLMods whose ESPs can be safely flagged as an ESL to help further reduce the overall plugin count.
EXTRACT THE BSAMods whose BSAs need to be extracted using Mod Organizer 2's BSA extractor.
LOOTMods that need LOOT tags to be set on the Finishing Line page.
MCM Settings Loadermod with this tag denotes that an MCM Setting Loaders maybe used.
NemesisThis tag denote mods that need Nemesis.
NET Script FrameworkMods with this tag use the .NET Script Framework.
SKSE DLLThis tag denotes a mod that contains an SKSE DLL.
SPIDMods with this tag use Spell Perk Item Distributor Framework
TOOLA modding utility to be used during your modding adventure.
xEdit -- Quick Auto CleanMods whose ESPs are cleaned by xEdit
zMergeMods whose ESPs will be merged later using zMerge to reduce the overall ESP count.

Mod Installation Advice

When going through this guide, I strongly advise following it to the letter. For the sake of your sanity, please don't run LOOT until you reach the Merge Page. If you run it before you are instructed to do so, you will find that it throws numerous errors. These errors will be fixed later in the guide.

Note for Special Instructions sections.

Throughout the guide, you will find many places where you are instructed to remove files with a * in the path. For example, helgen reborn.esp\*.tga. In these cases, the asterisk means to delete all files matching this pattern.

There are a few 'best practices' to keep in mind while building this guide:

  • DO NOT run LOOT until directed to do so on the Merge Page as it will also help prevent any confusion that may arise over LOOT sorting errors that will be fixed with custom LOOT rules at the end of the guide. All required custom LOOT rules can be found the Finishing Line page.
  • Enable mods as they are installed. Some mods will not let you proceed with the installation properly unless other required mods have been activated.
  • Main Files: Are installed as normal. If the mod page has more than one Main File to install, each should be installed AS A SEPARATE MOD in Mod Organizer 2.
  • Update Files: Should be installed with its parent files in a single mod. (e.g Merge the files in Mod Organizer 2, allowing the update or hotfix file to overwrite the original files.)
  • Optional Files: Should be installed as A SEPARATE MOD in Mod Organizer 2.
  • Miscellaneous Files: Should be installed as A SEPARATE MOD in Mod Organizer 2.

Nexus Archive

Change is inevitable (except from a vending machine). Mods are constantly being updated by Mod Authors as bugs are fixed, improvements are made, and new features are implemented. As a result, there may be times when the version of a mod that the Guide calls for has been archived, meaning it is no longer available for direct download. It can, however, still be accessed by following these steps:

1) Get the FileID. a) If you have the download of the mod from a previous install, you can get the FileID from the Meta file that is in that mods directory.
b) If you don't have that, the go to the Mod Page.
i) Click on the Files Tab.
ii) Click on "File Archive" at the bottom of the page.
iii) Locate the file you need. RIGHT CLICK on this file and select INSPECT ELEMENT.
iv) Look for a line that reads something like <dt id="file-expander-header-xxxxxx" to find your file - "xxxxxx" would be the fileID you'd want for this mod.

a) https://www.nexusmods.com/Core/Libs/Common/Widgets/DownloadPopUp?id=YourFileIDHERE&game_id=1704
b) DO NOT change the 1704 at the end of the link! This identifies the GAME (SkyrimSE) that the FileID is associated with. Change ONLY the "YourFileIDHERE" portion, or this will not work.

3) If you are still having problems, there is a picture version of these instructions in the Discord's installation-help pinned posts.
4) If even that doesn't help, then let the Help Desk Minions in the installation-help channel know and they can help you out.

A Note On Extracting BSA Files

This guide recommends only extracting BSA files if they are distributed with a dummy plugin or as part of a merge.

To extract a BSA, you will use the BSA Extractor plugin included with Mod Organizer 2. Enable the plugin by following these steps:

  1. Click the "spanner and screwdriver" icon in the top left corner of MO2.
  2. Click the Plugins tab.
  3. Find and select the BSA Extractor plugin.
  4. On the right side, make sure the only_alternative_sources option is set to false.

At this point, you will receive a notification during installation for any mod that includes a BSA asking if you want to extract it. If the instructions tell you to do so, click Yes otherwise, click No. With the newest version of MO2, the BSA extractor will also ask if you want to delete the BSA after extracting it say Yes.

Mods that require BSA Extraction will show this tag: EXTRACT THE BSA

A Note On Converting Old Plugins

Throughout the guide, a few plugins are using the old form 43. These plugins must be converted in the Creation Kit (CK) to work in this guide.

Mods that require converting will show this tag: CONVERT

When converting mods in the Creation Kit, some will have masters that are ESPs, but the CK requires these to be ESMs or flagged as ESMs. Convert these plugins through the following process:

Converting the plugin with the Creation Kit

  1. Ensure the Overwrite folder is empty.
  2. Run the CK from the executable drop-down menu.
  3. Select the File menu and choose Data....
  4. Find the plugin to be converted and select Set as Active File.
  5. Click OK and allow the CK to load.
  6. Once complete, save the plugin (File→Save).
  7. Close the CK.
  8. The plugin is automatically saved over the older non-converted version.

Verifying the plugin with SSEEdit

  1. Run SSEEdit from the executable drop-down menu.
  2. Right-click in the plugin pane and choose Select None.
  3. Double-click on the plugin saved from the steps above and allow SSEEdit to load until the log says, "Background Loader: finished".
  4. Right-click on the last plugin in the left pane (it should be the new plugin), and select Check for Errors.
  5. The check should come back clean reading, "All done!". If there are errors, you will have to correct them before continuing to the next step.
  6. Right-click on the plugin again and choose Sort Masters.
  7. The last step is to run SSEEdit Quick Auto Clean on the plugin.
  8. Close SSEEdit and be sure to save the modified plugin.

A Note On Cathedral Assets Optimizer

Throughout the guide, there are some mods that use meshes and textures designed for classic Skyrim. These mods must be processed using Cathedral Assets Optimizer to work with Skyrim Special Edition. For these mods, use the following instructions to perform the conversion:

  • Close Mod Organizer 2, as CAO is designed to run outside of MO2.
  • Launch Cathedral Assets Optimizer.
  • Select either the Lexy's LOTD SE - BSA or Lexy's LOTD SE - No BSA profile depending on what is listed under Special Instructions
  • Click the Open Directory button and navigate to the folder containing the mod requiring conversion.
  • Click the Log button so you can see what CAO processes.
  • Click Run.
  • When CAO is finished, close the window.

We will also downsize the textures of a few mods in the guide to a more reasonable size. This uses the same process as above, except selecting the listed SSE - Downsize Textures profile instead.

Mods that require processing in CAO will show this tag: CAO

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