Skyrim Modding 101: 7 things you absolutely need to know for a stable modded playthrough

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Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a curious case when it comes to PC games. It sees a huge playerbase more than 10 years after its initial release. The lively modding community continues to develop and release groundbreaking mods.

Last year saw huge progress in terms of animation mods for Skyrim Special Edition, which has propelled the decade-old game’s third-person combat at par with any modern AAA action title. Visuals are also naturally a big draw for gamers who are willing to add some oomph to the dated graphics of the unmodded game.

However, anyone jumping for the first time into the world of Skyrim modding is bound to be flustered by the sheer complexity of the various concepts and intricacies of different mods. This article will cover the very foundations of this process and hopefully give players a footstone so that, down the line, they can rock an ultra-modded, yet stable mod list.

Bethesda released Skyrim Special Edition in 2016 - which was not only a decent visual makeover of the erstwhile Legendary Edition but also an all-around improvement in terms of engine stability among other technical things. Standing in 2022, many contemporary mod authors are publishing their mods exclusively for the Special Edition. Also, the Special Edition is much more stable with mods.

In this context, keep in mind, the paid Anniversary Edition upgrade is only a couple of Bethesda-approved mods sprinkled on top of Special Edition, and is not, at all, necessary to mod the game yourself. If you have the Anniversary Edition upgrade, it’s best to downgrade to the previous version - as a few key mods like .NET Script Framework etc. are yet to be available for the Anniversary Edition.

Installing Skyrim into Program Files in any of your drives, or