Should I be using mod?

[Hibernian]

So, I just started playing the game less than a week ago and am really getting into it. I'm still playing through my first campaign and probably still have a lot to learn about the game.

I'm wondering if I should be using mods? And if so which mods?

Are there any mods which most people would consider "essential"?

What is the state of modding at the moment? How stable are mods? And can they be safely used in an existing campaign, without having to restart?

 

[Amechwarrior]

Some mods that only adjust QoL things are usually very stable and can be added or removed without risking a save. Mods that add new items, 'Mechs, pilots, Flashpoints and etc make saves with that content reliant on those mods being present almost forever.

My list of most essential mods would be QoL ones. Just two:

• BTMLColorLoS
• Mechspin

Color LoS changes the indirect fire line to a dotted yellow line and makes it much easier to spot vs the solid red arc of stock.

Mechspin allows you to rotate your 'Mech in the MechLab to see the paint scheme.

Besides those critical QoL mods, I'd recommend cFixes (disclosure I help maintain this and we don't have a 1.6.2 release yet) for fixing errors in weapons stats, pilot skills and typos in dialogue. So far, HBS has been knocking out stuff we put in cFixes pretty quickly and most of our time is removing bits that are now correct in the base game.

Besides those, the rest it up to you and how you want your game to play. You can go full 3070+ with RogueTech to expanded 3025 era mods like BT Extended 3025 or XLRP. You can also just add on a couple individual mods like Better Headlights or even fan made Flashpoints if a large mod pack isn't for you.

 

[Amechwarrior]

I forgot a critical one, because it doesn't add anything to the game or change how it plays. However, this is an absolute must.

BT Performance Fix

This mod makes my loading times twice as fast or faster compared to stock. Startup, contract population, loading in and out of combat and everything is snappier with BTPF. This is a mod everyone should be using even if they run the rest of the game stock.

 

[Morgan.Kell_au]

Many of us consider Amechwarrior BetterAI to be one of the top 2 mods to have

 

[unclecid]

To be honest in my opinion the vanilla campaign should be played as is the first time through.
After that go crazy.

 

[Hibernian]

Ok, thanks guys. That's useful information.

Now how do I find and download these mods?

 

[PauloBrito]

nexusmods is a good place to start

 

[starscream]

So, I just started playing the game less than a week ago and am really getting into it. I'm still playing through my first campaign and probably still have a lot to learn about the game.

I'm wondering if I should be using mods? And if so which mods?

Are there any mods which most people would consider "essential"?

What is the state of modding at the moment? How stable are mods? And can they be safely used in an existing campaign, without having to restart?

I have been playing with mods for a long time never had a problem

As for mods that are essential i would say the mechs that colobos gentle payload bloody doves and b4 have released you can get them on nexus also check out amechwarriors the raid flashpoint mod its great

 

[starscream]

Also check out the discord

 

[Hibernian]

One other thing. Do I use the Nexus Mod Manager program to install BATTLETECH mods?

How does that work with Steam?

 

[PauloBrito]

I copy the mods to the \mod subdir and use ModTek 7.2 to inject the correct code to start using mods.
I don't need anything more - but i don't use very complex mods like RogueTech.

 

[unclecid]

One other thing. Do I use the Nexus Mod Manager program to install BATTLETECH mods?

How does that work with Steam?

you dont really need a mod manager with how HBS set things up.

most mods are just a simple unzip into your Mods directory.
those that are a bit more complicated usually will have instructions on what to do on the mods nexus page or in a readme in the mods zip.

modtek is needed to use ANY mod.
there are instructions on how to use it on its github page.
simple put you use modtekinjector.exe from inside the mods directory and follow what is says.

the modding community for BT here is great....you can usually get help easily here or on nexus or on the BT discord.

 

[starscream]

I find modtek is the way to go just put it in your mods fold and inject

 

[Donvale]

If you only use mods that change mechanics, i.e. no new items or mechs, then in general it can be used for both campaign and career mdoe without save game issues.
For me I have a whittled things down to just a few small changes.
1: I manually slightly increase sight and sensor range by +50 metres, the game just plays better like this.
2: BTMLColorLoS - this is so essential for me it's astonishing it wasn't built into the game!
3: (semi) Permanent Evasion - makes the game slightly harder, but makes Light mechs so much more viable for longer, plus running around like crazy in a fast mech is great fun!
4: For career mode only i have mission time re-enabled, this just makes the Sim game more dynamic and realistic feeling and forces you to make some small decisions in between missions.

 

[Morgan.Kell_au]

And don't forget Panic System now that gnivler has updated it

 

[Donvale]

And don't forget Panic System now that gnivler has updated it

Ahh yeah another one of my favourite light mods that just adds flavour without fundamentally altering the game to much. It's always entertaining watching the last light mech pilot give it the old "aww hell no!" and punch out!

 

[starscream]

Also remember that with new patches especially major updates like 1.6 it usually breaks modtek it is usually back up and running in a couple days

 

[PauloBrito]

Also remember that with new patches especially major updates like 1.6 it usually breaks modtek it is usually back up and running in a couple days

Modtek yes, but sometimes mods need a lot more time to be operational again.

 

[Amechwarrior]

Yes, most major mod packs will take days for major patches if something drastic changes. Most individual QoL mods won't need much updating short of ModTek re-injection. Always assume any mod isn't going to work day one and you are going to have to feel out what does and doesn't work unless you want to wait for all of you mod authors to give the green light or release an update.

 

[Donvale]

Modtek yes, but sometimes mods need a lot more time to be operational again.

This is why I tend to stick with mods that only play game play and don't include assets of any kind, the mods stop working sure, but they don't stop you playing the game while your waiting for them to be fixed.