Skyrim Patches and tweaks

Warning, some of the mods below may not be in line with Todd's vision. Discretion is advised.
Warning to AE users: some mods may need a separate patch for AE compatibility or an AE compatible version might not exist.
If you regret being on AE

Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch (Optional)
SE version (hidden)
AE version and description of the mod
RUASLEEP (Load this after USSEP if you want, undoes certain USSEP changes.)
Purist's Vanilla Patch (Load this after USSEP if you want, undoes certain USSEP changes.)
USSEP Changes Reverted and Tweaked 1.0.0 (Director's cut patch, the author claims patches like RUASLEEP and Purist's restore USSEP changes too indiscriminately, causing some actual bugs and exploits to return.)
Unofficial Skyrim Modder's Patch - USMP SE (Includes many of the script fixes below and other tweaks, requires USSEP.)
USSEP is, usually unnecessarily, required by many other mods as a master.

BethINI (Third party tool to apply many recommended .ini tweaks.)

  • Consider installing Papyrus Tweaks (link below) and doubling or even further increasing the papyrus budget settings (fUpdateBudgetMS, fExtraTaskletBudgetMS) despite old reddit wisdom to the contrary.
  • This will increase realtime Papyrus script execution speed by allowing more operations to be completed per frame. At some point increasing it will decrease FPS as Papyrus execution is coupled with rendering.
  • Without Papyrus Tweaks this setting will usually do nothing because there is a hardcoded 100 Papyrus task limit per frame. Papyrus Tweaks removes this limit.

SKSE plugin bug fixes and improvements in random order
SKSE plugins don't take up .esp plugin slots and have easy drop-in installation (read the instructions and requirements).
They also do not leave any traces in your savedata, so you can enable and disable them at will.
(A few of the mods below do include additional .esp plugins and papyrus scripts. They shouldn't noticeably modify vanilla records or affect the game after uninstallation. Some things are still best done in Papyrus and the added script load is negligible due to the most important functions being offloaded to the SKSE plugin.)

Essential
Skyrim Script extender
Address library for SKSE plugins
powerofthree's Papyrus Extender
SSE Display Tweaks
Skyrim Priority SE AE - skse plugin
SSE Engine Fixes (skse64 plugin) (Some helpful settings are off by default, also some settings break AE at the moment, see specific troubleshooting tips at the end of this paste.)
Bug Fixes SSE
Scrambled Bugs (The optional Script Effect Archetype Crash Fix fixes the Vokrii/Odin ice spell ctd.)
Media Keys Fix
PrivateProfileRedirector SE - Faster game start (INI file cacher) (Can lower startup time by 20+ seconds when 250+ plugins are loaded.)
Sound Fix for Large Sector Drives (Fixes audio not playing when the game is installed to a drive with a sector size other than 512 B.)
Papyrus Tweaks (Enable the experimental: "Speed up native calls" and "Ignore Papyrus Memory Limit" options.)
powerofthree's Tweaks

Assorted
3rd Person Walk Fix Redux (Smooths player character's rotation.)
Actor Limit Fix (More actors in large crowds can move and make expressions.)
Alchemy Plus (Dynamic models, better item names, and more.)
Alchemy XP Fix
Allow Dialogue Progress Bugfix (Allows skipping lengthy NPC greetings when first opening the dialog menu.)
Resistances Rescaled (Effective health gained from every point of armor rating/resistance is equal. Removes hard cap for damage reduction. Will buff weaker armor.)
Auto Input Switch (For controller users!?)
Backported Extended ESL Support (Buggy support for AE's extended plugins in SE. Best to only use if required, or an extended plugin for AE is not working.)
Barter Limit Fix (Fixes trading with more than 32,767 gold.)
Better Combat Escape (Ends combat when enemies are very far away.)
Better Jumping SE (Jump while sprinting.)
Better Power Attack Direction Control - SSE (Power attack direction is decided by control input instead of character animation state.)
Bulk Enchanting Redone (Reduces time spent grinding in the enchanting menu.)
Classic Sprinting Redone (SKSE64)
Combat Music Fix NG Updated (Stops combat music if player is not in combat.)
Comprehensive Attack Rate Patch - SKSE (Fixes broken stacking of attack speed actor value modifiers. The problem especially affects debuffs. Details.)
CrosshairRefEvents script hang fix 0.0.1 (Fixes script events incorrectly firing every frame when player controls are disabled by certain quests or "scenes".)
Disable Follower Collision (Superseded by "I'm Walkin' Here".)
Disk Cache Enabler (May reduce stutter, especially on HDDs.)
Don't Stay in The Water - NPC Water AI Fix (NPCs won't stay in water.)
Dual Casting Fix (For modded spells.)
Enchantments and Potions Work for NPCs (Configuration file for SPID. Requires "Equip Enchantment Fix" below to work reliably.)
Encounter Zones Unlocked SE (Dungeons keep leveling up after visiting them.)
Enemies Respect Encounter Zones (Enemy scaling for certain enemies uses the dungeon level, instead of only player level.)
Enhanced Invisibility (Fixes visual effects of invisibility.)
Enhanced Reanimation (Undead thralls get stuck less, raise the decapitated, undead mounts.)
Equip Enchantment Fix (Fixes gear enchantments for shield or outfit manager users.)
Favorite Misc Items
First Person Paused Menus Light Detachment Fix (Light sources won't disappear when a menu is open.)
Forget Spell
I'm Walkin' Here (Disables player collisions in dialogue and with followers.)
Ingredient Priority Fix NG (Potion strength is no longer affected by the order in which the player selects ingredients.)
Instantly Skip Dialogue NG (Skip unskippable dialog such as daedric princes.)
Kaputt - Melee Killmove Manager (Only actual hits that should kill will trigger killmoves. No flashy killcam.)
Kill Caps Lock NG
Loading Screen Truce (Disables combat AI during post loading screen fade-in.)
Locational Encounter Zones (Enemies outside a dungeon are leveled according to the dungeon.)
Lockpicking for Barbarians (Break locks with two-handed weapons.)
Magic Leveling Fix (Spells with a manually set magicka cost grant correct xp.)
Menu Zoom
Mfg Fix (Adds console commands and Papyrus functions to modify expressions.)
Mu Joint Fix (Knee Fix dll edition) (Adjusts character knee positions when bent.)
No Dialogue During Killmove-v0.1.0-alpha
No Furniture Camera
NPC AI Process Position Fix - NG (See the comments for reported issues with the NG version.)
NPC AI Process Position Fix - SSE (Old SE only version of above. I haven't noticed any issues, but maybe I'm retarded?)
NPCs use Potions (Optionally distributes potions to NPCs. Allows NPCs to use consumables other than healing potions.)
Name Those Ash Piles (Solves the mystery of the anonymous ash piles.)
Native EditorID Fix (Fixes overly long EditorIDs causing CTDs. Allows EditorID lookup.)
No Follower Attack Collision (Disable friendly fire, including AOE spells.)
Persistent Favorites
To Your Face SE - AE - VR (Limits player greetings to npcs in front of the player.)
Recursion Monitor (Attempts to identify Papyrus scripts stuck in recursion and prevent script lag caused by many broken vanilla scripts.)
RemoveAllItems Freeze Fix (Fix freezes when going to jail and during certain quests when carrying huge stacks of certain items.)
Rogue Master Detector (Warns you of incorrect plugin load order.)
Save Unbaker (Always load certain records from plugins instead of save.)
Scattered Object Solution (Disables physics explosions once and for all.)
Simple Beheading - NG (Dynamic beheading without killmoves.)
Skyrim Outfit System SE Revived (Transmog/Change the visual appearance of your gear in a very versatile and nonintrusive way.)
Skyrim Skill Uncapper for SE and AE (Configure skill caps, perk points and leveling.)
Sprint Sneak Movement Speed Fix (Fixes the very common "slow sprint" bug.)
SSE Fixes (Optional. Mostly superseded by SSE Engine Fixes but is compatible with it. You can enable the ReplaceMutex option and disable the others.)
Stagger Effect Fix (Fixes enemies staggering in the wrong direction when hit by shouts and spells and makes "Force Without Effort" actually work.)
Subtitles (Show more subtitles at the same time.)
Items Stolen Bug Fix (May cause crashes.)
StealthExtensions v0.2.0 (NPC search range scaling with their number. Interactions cause noise.)

For the paranoid
Skyrim supposedly doesn't fully reset the Papyrus VM and other game states when loading a save a second time, sometimes leading to unexpected behavior. It's probably just best not to save in the middle of a scripted sequence.
Clean Save Auto-reloader

Large compatibility list and more SKSE mods

Vanilla papyrus script performance fixes
(Skyrim has many scripts that bog down the Papyrus VM with busy loops, causing decreased performance and possible scripted sequence breakdowns even without further script load from other mods)
Overall performance improvement
Script Optimization and Fixes Compilation (Includes most of the recent and some older script fix mods, included mods are listed in the description.)

Included fixes:

  • Scripts Carefully Reworked Optimized and Tactfully Enhanced (SCROTE) - Simply Optimized Scripts AIO (Multiple fixes to performance and quest progression.)
  • CritterSpawn Congestion Fix (Fixes broken instances of the handler script for critters such as butterflies multiplying, slowing down Papyrus processing and even the spawning of new critters.)
  • Modern Brawl Bug Fix (Fixes brawl scenes breaking due to script related magic effects on the player being detected as hostile spells.)
  • MQ104PlayerScript Fix (Prevents a harmless, but slightly janky situation in the main quest.)
  • Neloth's Experimental Subject Quest (DLC2TTR4a) Fix (Fixes yet another situation where Papyrus misses a beat due to a random hiccup and a Vanilla quest gets stuck.)
  • OnMagicEffectApply Replacer (effective version)
    • A common method to apply scripts to NPCs is applying them via a magic effect. Quests in Skyrim sometimes constantly poll for certain magic effects. The polling is performant, meaning the engine can pass much more work to Papyrus than it can handle. The checks required to see if the magic effect is the one expected to progress a quest are handled in papyrus, very slowly. Coupled with the very limited resources Papyrus has by default and the way it can just give up running code until the next frame can lead to scenes requiring more exact timing breaking down and broken instances of scripts accumulating, until they start taking up resources from other scripts. Using a savegame cleaner, it's possible to find hundreds of instances of some useless script active at the same time. How much a single script instance actually takes up Papyrus resources depends on the contents of the script in question and is less clear. Before mods like Papyrus Tweaks it was very common for Papyrus to momentarily or permanently slow to a crawl without a clear reason.)
  • Simplicity of Seeding - Better Hearthfires and Farming CC Planter Scripts (For Hearthfire users?)
  • World Encounter Hostility Fix (Fixes casting certain harmless spells making travelers on the road attack you.)
  • Word Wall Suspended Stack Fix - Shearpoint (Another unnecessarily hanging script.)
  • WIDeadBodyCleanupScript Crash Fix (Fixes situational crash.)
  • Vanilla Script (micro)Optimizations (Sweeping changes to many vanilla scripts without documentation. In personal testing this seems okay to use at this point.)
  • Vanilla Scripting Enhancements (Similar fixes to OnMagicEffectApply Replacer.)

Dragonactorscript infinite loop fix (Another unnecessarily hanging script if you fail to suck up a dragon soul.)

Probably won't notice the difference
TrapSwingingWall Script Fix
WE05 Script Fix
dunPOISoldiersRaidOnStart Script Tweak
Nchuanthumz Papyrus Load Fix (AE content users only. Moving many items in or out of the player's inventory causes script bloat even if you haven't visited the dwemer player house in question.)

Visual improvements
Mostly bugfix adjacent, but prevent strange visuals.
Animated Static Reload Fix (Fixes animated statics like waterwheels freezing on game load.)
Aurora Fix (Fixes Auroras following you into other dimensions.)
Beard Mask Fix - Beards Use Slot 44 SKSE Plugin
Detached Lightning (Fixes strange lightning spell visuals.)
Enhanced Volumetric Lighting and Shadows
Face Discoloration Fix (Dynamically generates decent faces for NPCs. Alternatively for running NPC face overhauls see EasyNPC).
Grass Sample Fix (Anisotropic filtering for grass.)
Green Water Cubemap Fix
Players Eyes Blink Fix
Simple Dual Sheath
Twilight (Compatible, but probably unnecessary with ENB.)
Splashes Of Skyrim
Splashes of Storms
Enbseries (Superior graphics modification at the time of writing. Follow the instructions on some ENB presets Nexus page.)
Community Shaders (Improved graphics without ENB.)
ENB Helper SE
ENB Helper Plus (If you use one the 4 ENBs that make use of this.)
ENB Image Space Fix - ENBISF (Removes tints from all imagespaces.)
ENB Light Detection Fix (Normally ENB lights are not accounted for in Skyrim's stealth calculations, with this mod ENB lights make you easier to detect as may be expected.)

Skyrim Upscaler
Free frames with no visual difference if you squint and cross your eyes.
Skyrim Upscaler - DLSS FSR2 XeSS (Non ENB users.)
aHR0cHM6Ly9rZW1vbm8ucGFydHkvZGlzY29yZC9zZXJ2ZXIvMTA1MjQxNTQ1MDMzNzc5MjA2MQ== (Info for ENB users.)
The developer of Skyrim Upscaler has added DRM to the newest ENB compatible versions of his upscaler. You can find a cracked version on Google. You need to have an IQ above 85 to correctly install the crack, or install an old unprotected version.

.Net Script Framework and mods using it
May be incompatible with AE. A required mod, "DLL Plugins loader" is already included in Engine Fixes but installing both at the same time does no harm.
.Net Script Framework
(This mod is preferred to Crash Logger SSE AE VR if you can use it. This crash logger will also show the actual in game records/forms loaded at the moment of the crash, making debugging most crashes much easier.)
Better Telekinesis
Fix of Steel (Fists of steel perk scales with smithing improvements, allowing your damage to finally reach integer overflow like the other melee weapons.)
MiscFix (Situational crash fix for a thread safety bug you will never run into.)
No Lock Picking (Lightweight automatic lockpicking, consumes lockpicks based on skill.)
Skyblivion Lockpick menu (Oblivion style, AE compatible alternative that also includes automatic lockpicking. Does not require .Net Script Framework.)
SSE Gameplay Tweaks (For example: allowed skill training times accumulate and are not lost on the next level up, hp regens slowly while sleeping scaling off your characters regen value and is not instantly restored.)

Troubleshooting QOL
ConsolePlusPlus
Crash Logger SSE AE VR - PDB support
(This logger will only show stack and register information, but not obvious references to ingame records, making debugging crashes harder. Use .Net Script Framework instead if you're on SSE.)
HelpExtender
More Informative Console
Shovels Bury Bodies
Sweeping Organizes Stuff - Use Broom to Clean Mess
Whose Quest is it Anyway NG
Papyrus Profiler (Note that a script taking a long time to complete is mostly a (minimal) memory issue unless it's busy-looping or performing costly functions. Sleeping/waiting scripts could be harmless even if they fill the flame graph.)
AreYouThere SE - Actor NPC Follower (Find missing NPCs.)
MCM Recorder (Save your MCM configurations for easy import into new playthroughs/saves by painstakingly clicking through every relevant option in your current save.)

Savegame cleaning
Remove leftover data from your save after uninstalling mods. Is uninstalling mods during a playthrough safe? Almost always yes, but may lead to usually harmless lingering effects as certain data is left over or "baked in" to your save. See "Save Unbaker" above.
FallrimTools - Script cleaner and more

UI Improvements
SkyUI
SkyUI Vanilla Menus (For vanilla-like UI with SkyUI features.)
MCM Helper
Constructible Object Custom Keyword System
COCKS patch for SE
Inventory Interface Information Injector
Better Third Person Selection - BTPS
Convenient Dialogue UI - SE (Similar fixes included in most UI texture overhauls.)
Better MessageBox Controls (Similar fixes included in most UI texture overhauls.)
Contextual Crosshair
Yes Im Sure (Disables message prompts asking you if you're sure.)

Camera improvements
Camera Follows SKSE
SmoothCam
True Directional Movement - Modernized Third Person Gameplay (Requires Nemesis or Pandora behavior engine for optional features.)
Kill Camera Misalignment Fix (For TDM.)
Improved Camera SE

Non SKSE plugin fixes and tweaks
Crash fixes
Chillwind Depths CTD Fix (Never fixed by Bethesda.)
Dwemer Ballista Crash fix (This was fixed by Bethesda in a post AE patch, only ten years after the bugs introduction.)
Probably won't notice the difference
Accurate and Realistic Fast Travel Time
College of Winterhold Quest Start Fixes
DLC2 March of the Dead Fix
Durak Teleport Fix
Favor Quests Separated
Finding Susanna Alive - A Blood on the Ice Trigger Revision
Logical Crime Report
Magic Student (WIChangeLocation04) Quest Fix
Modern Toggle Walk-Run Fix (The custom controlmap in Skyrim's main directory, created when changing controls in game, will overwrite this.)
Motionless Rocks Killing People Fix
Multiple Floors Sandboxing (NPCs path to idle spots higher above and lower below.)
NPCs Take Cover - Smarter Anti-Cheese AI
Off Limits - Trespassing Behavior Expansion (Adds private areas for trespassing. Nearby NPCs telepathically sense this and enter lockdown sweep mode.)
Opening Scene Overhaul SE (Tweaks the opening scene to be more reliable for modded games, but also makes further tweaks and adds content.)
Race Attack Data Inconsistencies Fixed
Realistic Smart Bleed Damage (Limbsplitter and Hack and Slash Perk Fix) (Rebalances unimpressive bleed damage.)
Robber's Gorge Fixes
Rock Traps Trigger Fixes
Safer Spikes
Scare my Enemy Bug Fix
Simple Tempering Balance (In vanilla tempering bonuses are additive and boosted by tiered perks, giving greatest returns for low level gear and favoring light armor and fast weapons disproportionately. Combines with Resistances Rebalanced to solve the armor rating hard cap issue.)
Source of Stalhrim Quest Fix
Standing Ambusher Fix (Draugr won't stand outside their coffins.)
Use Telekinesis on Traps
Werewolf Claws Affect Spider Webs (XPMSSE compatible version in optional files.)

Dialog tweaks
Dynamic Mercenary Fees
How Hard Is This Persuasion Check (This mod fixes many inconsistencies as well as turns many false speechcraft checks (= checks that you will always succeed, or always fail.) into actual checks.)
Mourning Restored
Realistic Pirate Sounds (Fixes lack of realistic pirate sounds.)
Reset Random Dialogue Scenes
Sensible Bribes - Based on Speechcraft Not Level
Wait I know You - Forcegreet Tweak (Guards actually stop you if you have a bounty.)

Bonus:
jayserpa (Every "NPCs react to x" and "X lines expansion" mod for added reactiveness and variety)
Relationship Dialogue Overhaul Lite (Classic dialogue expansion trimmed. Use Synthesis to apply its AI Overhaul patch instead of the mentioned "AI Overhaul patch" if you use both.)
Old People Sounds All In One

Fixes for your skeleton replacer causing script bloat
Really you should just disable the XPMSE.esp plugin. You will lose the "weapon styles" functionality of the mod, but the skeleton itself is probably why you downloaded it.
XP32 Maximum Skeleton Special Extended - Fixed Scripts
XPMSSE - Nemesis - Papyrus Stack Fix
Optimised Scripts for XPMSSE
XPMSSE Weapon Styles Uncloaked
XPMSSE Spazzing Skeleton and Corpse Fix (bonus.)
Immersive Equipment Displays (Better performing, more robust alternative to XPMSE weapon styles including support for displaying favorited weapons and many carried items on your character. The configuration seems intimidating, but with default settings it's easy to install and use.)
Weapon Styles - Draw-Sheathe animations for IED (More animations for the alternate weapon carrying styles of the above mod.)

Fix for your Racemenu causing a memory leak
RaceMenu 0.4.16 Memory Leak Hotfix (SE)

Animation loading fixes
Animation Limit Crash Fix ("May also give you increased fps and loading speed", set AnimationLoadSignedCrash to false in SSE Engine Fixes, it is an inferior version of this fix.)
Open Animation Replacer (Disabling Skyrim's animation preloading in this mod makes the following mod optional.)
Animation Queue Fix (optional.)

Animation related fixes
May require running FNIS or Nemesis or installing Open Animation Replacer. Dynamic Animation Replacer is outdated. Old DAR mods should be compatible with OAR
Pandora Behavior Engine (Upcoming, very broken, behavior patching tool to replace FNIS and Nemesis. Finally with cr*ature support!)

Pandora Behavior Engine currently has multiple issues, mostly with german mods. Check the issues section on Github, check if the issues affect you and download any WIP patches there. Note that you must copy the useful default patches included in Nemesis over to Pandora if you want to keep using them.

Nemesis includes multiple older behavior mods by default. The original mods are optional to just ticking the patches in Nemesis.
Animals Swim (Sort of)
Assorted Animation Fixes
First Person Animation Teleport Bug Fix
First Person Sneak Strafe-Walk Stutter Fix
Horse Behaviour Improvements (Makes riding horses up steep slopes look more natural.)
Ice skating fixed for real - No more attack sliding movement (NEMESIS compatible)
Improved Table Sit Transition Animations
No More Swimming In Air - Fixed Floating SwimIdle
No Spinning Death Animation SE
Paired Animation Improvements
Precision - Accurate Melee Collisions (More visually accurate weapon hit detection and more.)
Pristine Vanilla Movement
Recoiltimed Animation Fix for Two-Handed Weapon
Recoiltimed Skating Fix (Ice skating fixed fr fr.)
Retimed Hit Frames (Included in Nemesis.)
Self-targeting Staff Animation Fix - Dynamic Animation Replacer - Open Animation Replacer
Shield Block Direction Bandaid Fix - OAR (Keeps your shield in front with blockrunner.)
Some Creature Behavior Bug Fixes
Sprint Frame Fix Mirror (Fixes a split second A-pose when sprinting. May be subtle, but you can't unsee it.)
Stagger Direction Fix - NG (Superseded. See Stagger Effect Fix above.)
Turn Animation Fix (Disables turning animations to reduce jitter. The whole body version is an SKSE plugin.)
Vanilla Werewolf Sprint Fix (Optional file in this mod fixes the werewolf stanky leg.)

Bonus, the only two modders making decent attack animations for creatures:
sgtoy259 (Mostly more animation variety for draugr, including spear support.)
stuxjr (Over the top, perhaps immersion breaking, attack animations for many creature types. You may get roundhouse kicked by somersaulting goblins. Some of the more acrobatic moves are optional downloads and due to using OAR the whole selection may be tweaked at will.)

For HDT-SMP users
FSMP - Faster HDT-SMP
SMP-NPC crash fix (AE users only, SE doesn't have this crash.)
Clean up the physics outfit - Collision Reset

Visual or performance improvement mods
Overall quality or performance improvement
Cleaned Skyrim SE Textures (Replacer for all vanilla textures, slight visual improvements, saves up to 500 MB of VRAM for going into immersively crowded 8k hd booty and butt physics Winking Skeever without freezing.)
Quality CubeMaps - HD Cube Maps (Vanilla cubemaps AI upscaled to eliminate visible blockiness.)
SC - Cubemaps (HD redesign, will severely change how objects look and might not fit in with your particular texture and mesh modlist.)
Water Effects Brightness and Reflection Fix (Fixes bright waterfalls at night and the incorrect bleakfallscube_e making water appear neon green in many places.)
Probably won't notice the difference
FYX - Water Mesh Optimization (Pick the 72 or 128 tri version, may cause inaccurate visuals in foggy weather.)
Lightened Skyrim - Base Object Swapper edition (Removes some rocks and algae for a slight fps increase.)
Shadows Of Sunlight - In Small Exterior World Spaces

Unnecessary polish
Argonian and Khajiit Teeth Fix
Further tweaks and redesigns of vanilla meshes
Markarth - A Reflective Experience
Orc Brow Horn Tweaks
Static Mesh Improvement Mod - SMIM (16x the detail for ropes and chains you will never look at.)
Static Mesh improvement Mod - SMIM - Quality Addon
Static Mesh Improvement Mod Improvement Mod
SMIM 4K - Cleaned and Upscaled Textures for Static Mesh Improvement Mod (Also includes performance optimized textures for SMIM in 1k or 2k size. Overwrite SMIMs files with all the addons to save disk space.)
SUEMR SSE with Bijin AIO 2019 Support (Combined eye mesh fix.)
Eyes AO Clipping Fix
Unofficial Material Fix
Vanilla hair remake
High Poly Vanilla Hair (Alternative or gap filler for Vanilla hair remake.)
Vanilla Warpaints Absolution
Vanilla Makeup HD
Vanilla Hair - Salt and wind Grayscale (Requires original Salt and wind.)
Brows
Beards
Flawn's Vanilla Argonians Redux - UNP CBBE SOS - 4k 2k
MONSTERaider (Khajit and alternative argonian textures.)
Authentic Eyes
Mystic Eyes
Vanilla Hairs Fixes (EFM Compatibility) (For hyperattentive purists.)
High Poly Head 1.4 (Time to make an account for a gay porn site to make a Skyrim waifu.)

Mesh improvements for ENB users, mainly fixes for extreme brightness of some objects in the dark
All mesh mods above apply, especially "Water Effects Brightness and Reflection Fix", "Fixed Mesh Lighting" and "SUEMR".
Bright Falling Leaves Fix
Bright Snow Fix for ENB
Fixed Mesh Lighting
Particle Patch for ENB
Spider Webs and Particles for ENB
Spider WIP (Further improvements of the fucking spiderwebs.)
Word Wall Transparency Fix for ENB

Information on how plugins and especially NPC face overhauls work and on how problems that you will never notice may arise
Records are engine/game objects or variables that can be modified in the Creation Kit or xEdit. Records from plugins (.esp files) with a higher load order priority override those from a lower one.
If two plugins edit the same record, only the last one loaded will have an effect.
Records include fields, which are the defining details or attributes of that individual record. The name, some script data, outfit, perks, stats and appearance, etc. of an NPC are included in the fields of a single record (NPC_). Two plugins/mods can't pick and choose which of those fields they want to edit. They will edit all of them, leaving the irrelevant ones with unmodified values. The problem is most apparent with list like records (can't dynamically add to or remove from a list, must provide full list) or versatile ones (NPC records include many fields that are relevant for multiple types of mods, increasing the chance of possibly unexpected conflicts).
This is also why when using multiple enemy or gear mods, you may need to find a patch, or preferrably generate a custom one, which combines their leveled lists. This ensures that the game can pulls enemy spawns or loot from all your mods.
When making new NPCs or face overhauls, the Creation Kit automatically generates the 3d model of the NPC's head (including hairs, brows, beards) and the NPC specific face texture, including warpaints and such, for each NPC. Modders also manually or in bulk by using scripts edit the face models and textures using 3d modeling software, Outfit Studio, etc. to have more freedom in designing them.
Correct load order and possibly a patch using EasyNPC or Synthesis' facefixer are required if multiple mods edit a single NPC. The patchers simply ensure that the right NPC face data is included in the last loaded plugin (the patch) affecting that NPC. If you have multiple NPC replacers active at the same time you can pick and choose their priority. The ordering of mesh and texture files must match the patch (or your load order, if not using a patch).
NPC faces will not look correct without matching plugin data, pregenerated headparts and facetints. Problems include NPCs losing custom sculpting (the shape of their face is not the intended one) or their head turning gray/black. If a face overhaul is loaded last, but is unpatched, the NPC may also have the correct face, but changes from another mod were lost.
Install "Face Discoloration Fix" above to avoid most issues. Face Discoloration Fix should not interfere with any correctly installed NPC face replacers. Note that Face Discoloration Fix can't restore custom sculpted headparts, but will generate a baseline face and only the customization that's possible in (the last loaded) .esp plugins will appear. NPC face overhauls may conflict with, for example NPC AI mods (changes to daily schedule and idling), stats, or enemy overhauls. Regenerating headparts yourself in Creation kit is the more involved alternative to using Face Discoloration Fix (once again losing custom sculpts unless you go in and sculpt them manually). Here's a guide: Regenerating FaceGen.

For autism modders
Synthesis
Create dynamic patches for your load order. High performance compared to zEdit/zMerge. Essentially takes care of patching that would take massive amounts of load order specific fiddling in SSEdit.
Examples of patches: PoisonBlocking (blocking stops poisons and optionally enchantments from applying), facefixer (lightweight alternative to EasyNPC), leveledlistresolver (combines leveled lists, usually to get enemies from multiple mods to appear), True Unleveled Skyrim (best deleveler solution so far).
Easy to use, but many available patchers have shitty Github zoomer documentation or none at all.
SkyPatcher (Make dynamic edits to certain records at runtime. Make limited patches without most of the compatibility bs.)
Animals Report No Crime - SkyPatcher (Modern take on a classic.)

Unofficial Mator Smash Updated
Successor to Oblivion style Wrye Bash. Can be used to selectively merge .esp records. Carefully pick what records to combine. You could think of this as a no-code alternative to the lack of a specific Synthesis patcher or SSEdit scripts. "Smash all" may lead to unintended effects. Notably all list like records like NPC inventory contents, perks and spells will be combined, sometimes leading to enemies being OP or carrying large amounts of gear depending on your modlist.

xEdit scripting reference
Pascal Online Documentation
Make programmatic changes to thousands of records in seconds. Remove all the bloat like cell edits, crafting recipes and books from your 32 outfit mods. Adjust the balance of enemy overhauls without changing 300 records by hand. Learn to code in your granddad's favorite programming language from college, Pascal. Save time appeasing your OCD by wasting time writing scripts to solve non-existent issues with your load order. Take the record count of your bloated personal compatibility patch to the next level.

DSOAL - True 3D Sound for Headphones (HRTF mod) v1.4
Stolen from Reddit: For those who don't know, direct3d sound was discontinued before Skyrim launched, and was replaced with a software, papyrus-based implementation that can get pretty lagged-out on script/performance heavy load orders. This old plugin for Fallout 3 fixes the audio stutter/lag with an open-source DLL implementation. In the case of Bethesda games, it overrides FMOD in TES3/TES4/FO3/FO:NV and overrides the creation engine sound system in TES5/FO4/TES5:SE, freeing up a thread, and rendering all the audio through emulated 7.1 surround sound upmixed to 44khz or 48khz(can be chosen). This does a huge amount of quality-boost for locational audio and multispeaker layouts as well as papyrus speed, since it nolonger keys the audio in-engine. If your audio cuts out, set sources from 256 to 1024 in the ini file. other configuration info can be found in the readme.
Unlocked version of Creative ALchemy (Referenced in the installation instructions.)

Ruddy88 ESLify
Safety check and mark most .esp files as light plugins, removing them from 255 max activated plugin count. This best suits patches to other mods and mods making changes to vanilla records.

List of records that may be baked into a save (by Shartmoor):
-Papyrus script properties. These become permanently baked in from the moment the game starts and/or when a new mod with scripts is added. Script properties can only be updated by forcing them to change via an update script, like what the USKP uses for retroactive fixes.
A script property in Papyrus is usually a reference to a specific record or a variable set in the Creation Kit. For example a designated NPC. When the script then runs, the property will always point to the originally designated reference. For example if a quest has a script where a specific npc will dance, and a mod tries to change that reference to a new NPC, it will not work after starting a playthrough, even if the original NPC is deleted and the reference becomes invalid.
-Objects pointed to by Papyrus properties. These can never be moved, even with scripted commands. This data is baked in from the moment the game starts and/or a new mod is added. Most attempts will simply fail silently, while others will log an error saying the objects can't be moved.
-Objects pointed to in forced reference aliases for quests. These are not supposed to become permanently persistent, but more often than not that's exactly what happens.
-Changes to any vanilla objects made via scripts. Including global variables and any other information. These changes are written as modification records in the save and can only be reversed with another script.
-Map Marker data. Specifically, if you alter a map marker, remove the name from it, then proceed to play, the map marker will permanently lose this information even after the mod is removed.
-Positions of havok enabled items in cells you've visited. Even if you move them in the CK and you haven't disturbed them yourself. This may reset itself upon the cell's next cycle, but so far all indications are that it won't.
-Positions of moveable static objects become permanent after your first encounter with them. Prior to this they will update.
-Changing ownership on a bed from nobody to a faction does not appear to update, while changing it from nobody to a specific NPC appears to work fine.
-Several fields on NPCs are known to bake in: Crime Faction, Faction memberships, Inventory items, Morality (AI Data tab), the opposite gender animations flag. These fields appear to only bake in if the NPC actually loads into memory at least once during play. (Also many other attributes.)
-Facegen Data for NPCs. This seems somewhat hit or miss, but more often than not, if you have encountered an NPC while playing, any changes to their facegen data that may be made later will be ignored. (NPC heads and even their face textures are loaded from pregenerated files. The face data in plugins may tweak it.)
-Timescale changes. You can make a one-time change to the game's timescale through an ESP, but after that, any changes to timescale must be done either via Papyrus or the console as the change is permanent in the save once made.

More technical breakdown of savedata. "Change Forms" are the permanent changes that are applied on top of the records in original plugins. For example NPCs have all the listed data dictated by your save from the moment they are first loaded in. After that only ingame methods like console commands or Papyrus scripts can change those attributes. If you absolutely must you can also use FallrimTools/ReSaver to delete or even edit individual changeforms.

Specific troubleshooting tips:
-The Papyrus log (in documents/my games/skyrim special edition/logs/) is meant for scripters troubleshooting Papyrus scripts. The vanilla logs are near useless for troubleshooting crashes.
-Crashes when entering a specific area are sometimes caused by corrupt meshes, these can be detected by the crash logger in .Net Script Framework as the log will usually include the exact object(s) being loaded when the game crashed. Note that it could always be a specific piece of gear or an NPC's hair.
-It is possible to run out of VRAM/backup RAM in Skyrim SE, causing the game to hang, usually in a loading screen. This happened to my son with 8 gb of VRAM and 16 gb of RAM, so it may happen to you. 4k textures and especially mods that add race or weight based textures can affect VRAM usage heavily. Overlay mods such as tattoos can also inflate memory use unexpectedly.
-Engine Fixes needs to have certain settings disabled for AE to work. https://forums.nexusmods.com/topic/13458736-a-fix-for-all-plugins-disabling-after-161130/
-Skyrim's sprint behavior is bugged causing characters to T-pose for a fraction of a second every time, noticeable at higher frame rates, see "Sprint frame fix" above. Other animations randomly changing to T-Pose for a fraction of a second signals too many loaded animations. Try to see if changing your OAR settings might help or reconsider cutting a posemod.
-If Alduin doesn't land to fight you and flies around invincible, it may be because of your weather and stealth mods (he can't see you).
-When utilities or plugins mysteriously fail to run at all, Windows user rights, file ownership, system locale settings or an antivirus might be the cause.
-If the game "randomly" crashes when someone (dual) casts a spell, it may be caused by the script magic effect type crash. This bug is present in some popular magic and perk overhauls because it's an engine level bug. See "Script Effect Archetype Crash Fix" above.

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Pub: 22 Jul 2023 22:37 UTC
Edit: 05 May 2024 11:01 UTC
Views: 1190