Fallout 4 allows you to take on an American life after nuclear fallout, but instead of rescuing people, forming settlements, putting the Minutemen back together and finding your son, why not customize the experience to suit your needs? There are thousands of mods available for Bethesda's title and many of them share similar qualities to Skyrim counterparts.
We rounded up some of the best to get you started.
Another Life
Similar to how Alternative Life works in Skyrim, with this mod installed you regain control of your destiny .. or rather how it begins. You will be able to select from 36 different occupations, each dictating starting gear, faction relations, and more.
Armor and Weapon Keywords Community Resource (AWKCR)
Aside from the horrifically long name, this incredible mod allows for other mods to work some magic with a standardized framework for armor and weapons. Not only that but crafting menus, color and decals and slot usage are all affected, to help prevent conflicts. If you wish to add some more stuff for your character to use, you need this mod.
Armorsmith Extended
After installing AWKCR, you'll want to pick up Armorsmith Extended. This is a huge mod that does a bunch of things. It can allow for shirts and other wearables to be worn under armor — because who wears plated armor on the skin? — and even make it possible to wear bandannas and other accessories while rocking a helmet.
Other cool features include the ability to rename clothing and craft more item types.
Venturing out into the wasteland with only the companions Bethesda deems acceptable isn't much fun. There are a number of beasts that would make interesting followers, which is exactly what Beast Master unlocks. You will now be able to take a freaking Brahmin with you. Who doesn't want a friendly two-headed cow to take down some mutants?
Craftable Ammo
You can now craft ammo. Here's to never again running out of rounds mid-fight.
Darker Nights
Just like Skyrim, the nights in Fallout 4 are way too bright for my liking. And just like Skyrim, you can install a wonderful mod called Darker Nights, which — unsurprisingly — makes the nights darker. You have a choice of just how dark you wish the nights to become too for some flexibility.
DEF_UI
This mod not only allows for the customization of the HUD (health, XP, V.A.T and other elements) but also the inventory and storage screens. It achieves something similar to that of Sky UI in Skyrim, making it much easier to manage everything, especially with a keyboard and mouse.
Full Dialogue Interface
This mod allows you to see exactly what your character is going to say in response to NPCs. When in a conversation in Fallout 4, it can prove frustrating to realize that your character's voice lines differ from selections on the dialog wheel. This is what Full Dialogue Interface addresses.
Fallout 4 Installing Mods Nexus
You will now be able to immerse yourself, knowing exactly what you're getting into.
Homemaker
Homemaker (also known as Expanded Settlements) is a mod for settlement Gods. Ideal for the creative mind, this mod allows for the creation of larger buildings with ease, not to mention new build sets for unique styling of settlements and a massive amount of objects that can be placed at secured locations. If you're a fan of the settlement system, you need this mod.
Improved Map with Visible Roads
The in-game map is handy to get around, but it doesn't show roads, which are far more important in the early game and on harder difficulty settings. Improved Map with Visible Roads does exactly what the name implies. It improves the map and adds roads across the board so you know where the nearest winding route of concrete is located.
More Where That Came From
The radio makes for more pleasant long journeys and adventures. With More Where That Came From installed, you'll want to rely on fast travel less in order to enjoy the 111 lore-friendly tracks added to the list of songs available for playback. This mod, in particular, adds all the tracks to the Diamon Radio station.
True Storms
True Storms is an exceptional mod, by the same modder who made the similarly named mod for Skyrim. This mod adds new weather patterns, sounds, visual effects, and other configurable details that give the wasteland some variability when venturing out the front gate.
Unlimited Settlement Objects
This one removes the maximum number of objects that can be placed in any one settlement. Enough said.
Unofficial Fallout 4 Patch
Bethesda games need some fixing, even after official patches have been released by the company. The same authors of the unofficial Oblivion and Skyrim patches return with the Fallout 4 patch. Hundreds of gameplay, quest, NPC, object, text, and placement bugs and issues are addressed in the mod.
It's safe to use and shouldn't break the game unless you have a ton of mods, where incompatibility may exist.
Worthy mention
The Fallout 4 Script Extender (F4SE) deserves a callout in our list, even though it's not technically available through Nexus. This handy tool allows for the installation and running of more powerful mods that can take advantage of even deeper hooks into Fallout 4.
Agree with our list? Have some favorites of your own? Sound off in the comments.
This page contains instructions on how to install mods on the PC version of Fallout 4.
There are two main methods of installing mods: manually or via a program such as the Nexus Mod Manager. If you're playing on console, here's how to install mods on Xbox One.
WARNING Installing mods requires you to add to / remove / alter the main files of the game - ALWAYS use caution when installing mods.
NEXUS MOD MANAGER
MANUAL INSTALLATION
Before Installing Mods [edit]
The first step to modding any game is to make a backup of all of your games files, including any loose configuration files. In the case of Fallout 4, these are found (by default) in:
C: > Program Files (x86) > Steam > SteamApps > Common > Fallout 4
65% of the features are free (OS migrating and partition management). Alter partition scheme. It also has a commercial version, still cannot support dynamic disk.
C: > Users > [Your Profile] > My Documents > My Games > Fallout 4
Copying these files will ensure that, in the event of a catastrophic failure on your part (or if you just want to start from a clean install), you don't have to download and re-install the game.
Enabling Mods in Fallout 4 [edit]
Fallout 4 Install Mods Manually
In order to make your copy of Fallout 4 mod-friendly, you need to edit two configuration files, Fallout4.ini and Fallout4Prefs.ini. By default, these are located in:
C: > Users > [Your Profile] > My Documents > My Games > Fallout 4
In Fallout4.ini, repalce the line sResourceDataDirsFinal=STRINGS (under the [Archive] section), with:
In Fallout4Prefs.ini, scroll to the bottom to find the [Launcher] section. Directly beneath the [Launcer] header, enter:
bEnableFileSelection=1
If this line already exists, make sure that the value is set to 1 and not 0.
How to Install Mods Using NMM [edit]
The video above explains how to install mods via NMM.
Before Installing any mods, follow the instructions above to back up your game files and enable modding for Fallout 4.
Nexus Mod Manager is the easiest way to install many mods for Fallout 4, as it eliminates most of the hassle of installing mods manually.
Once you've created an account and installed the manager, log into your Nexus account in the manager to enable direct downloads. To login, click on the profile icon in the bottom-left corner of the manager window - keep in mind, the popup may open behind the main NMM program window.
When you find a mod you want to install, simply click on the files tab of the mod's Nexus page and select the files / version you want to download, then click Download With Manager on those files. Halo combat evolved download completo.
Once the download completes and you have read all of the installation instructions provided by the creator, simply double-click on the mod or select it and press the Enable Mod button (the green checkmark on the left) to install and activate the mod.
If your game crashes during play or on startup, open the Plugins tab of the manager and make sure that your load order is arranged correctly.
How to Install Mods Manually [edit]
The video above explains how to manually install mods for Fallout 4.
Before Installing any mods, follow the instructions above to back up your game files and enable modding for Fallout 4.
While Nexus Mod manager has been update to support files for Fallout 4, some mods may still require players to install files manually. The best way to avoid errors in this is to read all of the installation instructions carefully before installing any files.
Where to Install Mods[edit]
Installing mods manually may seem like a daunting task, but in many cases it's a much simpler job than one might think. Apart from scripting tools (such as the FOSE for Fallout 3 / New Vegas) or lighting overhauls (like Boris Voronstov's ENBseries), almost all of the mod files will be installed into the Data folder of your game's directory. By default, the directory is installed to:
C: > Program Files (x86) > Steam > SteamApps > Common > Fallout 4
When you've downloaded your mod files, use a file extracter such as WinRar or 7zip to extract the files into the Data folder. If your mod contains plugins, such as a .esp or .esm, simply copy those files into the data folder on their own. If the mod contains loose files - such as a folder lablelled 'Meshes' or 'Strings' or something - copy the entire folder into Data.
Before launching the game, open the Fallout 4 launcher then exit it to activate your mods.
Activating Plugins[edit]
Until the official modding tools for Fallout 4 are released, it is unlikely that the launcher will feature a Data Files tab to configure your mod load order.
In order to ensure that your mods are installed, you'll need to manually check and setup the game's plugin list. This file can be found (by default) in:
C: > Users > [Your Profile] > App Data > Local > Fallout 4
IF YOU CAN'T FIND THE APP DATA FOLDER By default, this folder is hidden. In Windows Explorer, open the Tools section of the Menu Bar and select Folder Options. In the View tab of that window, under the Hidden Files and Folders section, check the box marked 'Show Hidden Files, Folders and Drives'.
In the Fallout 4 folder in App Data, open plugins.txt- if your installations were successful, you should see your .esp or .esm files listed beneath Fallout4.esm. If they aren't listed there, manually enter the file names and save the document, then launch the game.
Comments
This page will detail the process of installing Fallout 4 mods in the Xbox One mod release.
The new mod features are only available with the latest patch for Fallout 4. You can check if the patch is live by looking at the main menu for the game - if you see an option labelled 'Mods' you now have access.
Step Two: Create and Log in to Bethesda.net [edit]
In order to view, download, and play mods, you'll need to register your account to Bethesda.net. When prompted, enter your information and log in to proceed to the Mod Library.
Fallout 4 Mod Manager
Step Three: Choose Your Mods [edit]
You'll now be able to view an expansive selection of player-created mods. You can view the details of a mod, favorite for future use, download, rate, or report a mod by pressing A.
Much like a netflix style queue, the top row will list your current library of downloaded mods, while the row below will list current popular mods, and scrolling down will reveal more curated rows like ratings and categories on what the mod changes.
If you want to search for something more specific, you can also use the libraries search function too. Mods can run the gamut from spawning items, changing weapons, settlements, clothing, characters, and more - even cheats!
Note that upon choosing to install most of these, the game will create a copy of your save file with the mods, leaving your un-modded save files untouched. This is so if anything goes wrong with a mod you have installed, you'll still have a reference point before things went wrong. However - installing a mod that does this will also disable achievements.
Enable Your Mods [edit]
Once downloaded, head to the page for the mod you downloaded (easily accessed from the My Library row in the search list, or pressing Y to bring up the order that mods will be loaded), and under 'Favorite' there will be an option to 'enable' the mod. This will ensure that the mod is active when you load up your new modded game.
Load Order [edit]
Some - but not all mods - may be dependant on other mods to work. If this is the case, you will want to change the load order to have the primary mods at the top, with dependant mods lower on the list.
Mod Limits [edit]
It is important to remember that the Xbox One can only support 2 Gigabytes of mods at a time, and you can check your capacity in the top right corner. If this becomes a problem, simply deactivate other active mods and swap them in to build a collection that reflects what you want to do with your game.