To mod or not to mod, that is the question

[Sgt Socks]

OK so I have been playing TLD since 2016 and love, love, love this game.

I am super impressed with Hinterland, I love their ethos and they obviously love the game too.

Unlike Fallout which had to be modded to be bearable, TLD is simply great as it is in my opinion.

However, there are three things that drive me crazy.

The first is the inability to place things where I want them, in nice organised piles. The amount of time spent in each run means I really want to make home as I want it. I'm a loot goblin and want to do something with all those random bits and pieces I keep even though I'll never use them. I feel a game which involves so much time and effort on a single run should allow you to be more creative with the spaces you spend time in, as you would be in real life. I believe the "Place Anywhere" mod addresses this?

The other is having piles of single but important items everywhere (sticks, scrap metal etc) that are simply too heavy for the meagre containers on offer. Plus having to pick them up one by one? Argh! I saw someone mention somewhere (I'm sorry I can't remember who or where) a mod that lets you bundle things together which would prevent this?

The last thing is the lack of crafting options. A member here put it beautifully, I'm a "tinkerer", I love making stuff. I think the creative options in TLD are sorely limited given the resources available and what a lone survivor would do to stave off boredom. I don't know about mods relating to this.

I am resistant to using mods however and would be interested in your views. It makes me feel like I'd be being "unfaithful" to Hinterland in some way. I know, I know it's silly but I've been so drawn to Hinterland as devs with ethics when it comes to their game and players. It is incredibly rare. I want to honour that.

Another concern is making the game unstable. There are some fantastic mods and modders out there but just as many, if not more, who are hugely questionable.

I also don't want to fundamentally change the game. It is so beautiful, immersive and engaging just as it is. I wouldn't want to ruin the essence of it by making it into another game entirely. But after all these years of playing these few basic things, which I feel would offer immense improvement to the long game, are finally driving me to distraction. I only want to tweak not change.

Given my reticence and reasons for it, I'd be really interested to hear what the community thinks in response.

Thank you in anticipation of your engagement with my ramblings!

 

[Glacia]

Unlike other games where you can literally see Thomas the tank engine as the character; TLD mods are mostly QoL features, improvements or tools to change the base game settings.

Even if you use custom mods with new features (Like furniture crafting or candle light), they fit on the game esence.

2 hours ago, Sgt Socks said:

The last thing is the lack of crafting options. A member here put it beautifully, I'm a "tinkerer", I love making stuff. I think the creative options in TLD are sorely limited given the resources available and what a lone survivor would do to stave off boredom. I don't know about mods relating to this.

DIY mod  (Furniture and stuff crafting):  https://github.com/stmSantana/DIY_by_Santana

Wall pictures mod:  https://github.com/stmSantana/InteriorWallDecorations

Statues mod:  https://github.com/ds5678/Woodenstatuettes

Remove clutter mod (This one is incredible for making custom bases): https://github.com/Xpazeman/tld-remove-clutter

2 hours ago, Sgt Socks said:

The other is having piles of single but important items everywhere (sticks, scrap metal etc) that are simply too heavy for the meagre containers on offer. Plus having to pick them up one by one? Argh! I saw someone mention somewhere (I'm sorry I can't remember who or where) a mod that lets you bundle things together which would prevent this?

Item piles mod:  https://github.com/stmSantana/ItemPiles

Quick pick mod:  https://github.com/brecheisen37/TLD-QuickPick/

2 hours ago, Sgt Socks said:

The first is the inability to place things where I want them, in nice organised piles. The amount of time spent in each run means I really want to make home as I want it. I'm a loot goblin and want to do something with all those random bits and pieces I keep even though I'll never use them. I feel a game which involves so much time and effort on a single run should allow you to be more creative with the spaces you spend time in, as you would be in real life. I believe the "Place Anywhere" mod addresses this?

Movable containers:  https://www.nexusmods.com/thelongdark/mods/9

Placing from inventory:  https://www.nexusmods.com/thelongdark/mods/10

And of course, placing anywhere:  https://github.com/Xpazeman/tld-placing-anywhere

(Remember, you need some 'base' mods to make most mods work and load)

Also, you can find all mods here:  https://xpazeman.com/tld-mod-list/

 

2 hours ago, Sgt Socks said:

I am resistant to using mods however and would be interested in your views. It makes me feel like I'd be being "unfaithful" to Hinterland in some way. I know, I know it's silly but I've been so drawn to Hinterland as devs with ethics when it comes to their game and players. It is incredibly rare. I want to honour that.

TLD is a single player game and you can do what you want with your runs and characters. As long as you buy the game, there is nothing bad about using mods (In this kind of game ofc). Mods give new and quality content to the base game, everyone benefits after all, even hinterland.

Hinterland announced official mod support a couple months ago, and i hope they keep their promise, because TLD modders are just amazing! 

[piddy3825]

I am all for modding when it comes to quality of life mods, particularly ones like Place Anywhere and Better Stacking.  Those types of mods do nothing to alter the games survival mechanics other than to improve the look and feel of the game itself.  My game play satisfaction has only improved with the introduction of the various mods made available from TLD's amazing modding community.  

Mods are helping to breath new life into this game, addressing many of the wants and desires that are typically posted on the Wish List thread. 
It wasn't so long ago that the only way a player could hang a pelt on the wall of their home base was to exploit a glitch in the games curing mechanic/algorythm, now just referred to as the "curing in place glitch."  shout out to @ajb1978 for discovering that little exploit.  That alone changed the game for me keeping me playing when others had already lost interest.

That being said, choose to mod your game or choose not to mod your game.  It's your game afterall, play the way you see fit.  

[Sgt Socks]

@Glacia  @piddy3825

Guys, thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate the thought & detail you've put into your replies.

Glacia, I am incredibly grateful for giving me such an easy to follow idiot's list based on what I said. It looks like all of these are exactly what I've been looking for in the game for such a long time.

Piddy, your clarification about the QoL mods not changing the essence of the game very much sets my mind at ease. I didn't want to lose the beauty and magic of this wonderful game because it is this which has kept me playing all these years despite the gaping holes in the long game (for me at least).

You know what? I'm gonna do it! I'm currently on a 200+ custom very very cold run but I am starting to get bored despite the challenge of the weather. I rarely abandon a game which has been successful because of all the work on it. However, I think I might just go and sit naked outside (except for a t shirt and longjohns to save a "lady's" modesty!) and submit to The Long Dark because reading your posts is making me excited to start afresh!

Oh it is exciting! To be able to make my cosy Trapper's snug just how I want it, tinker about making things and not having to pick up every single bloody item is giving me the TLD thrill back!

Thank you both again, you guys rock. Today I am going to get everything ready to take the leap tomorrow.

Edited September 15, 2022 by Sgt Socks

[Sgt Socks]

 

EDIT - I worked it out! Am leaving the post here in case anyone else has the same problem.

Because the file "isn't commonly downloaded" the browser download facility had paused the download.  I had reported it as safe but that didn't solve it.

However, what DID solve it.... As in  the image below, you need to select the relevant download then select "Keep".  This allows the download to complete.

Phew.  Now I need to go download everything again because I deleted it all to start afresh!  Am hoping this does allow everything to run smoothly.  Will report back if it doesn't.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umm, I'm stuck! I have searched to try and find the answer before asking but to no avail.  Anything technical to do with code etc is beyond me.

I went to Xpazeman's TLD Mod List page and followed, I thought, the how to install mods instructions.  I created a Mods folder within Steam TLD and downloaded the files into this folder.  Anything zipped I first downloaded the zip folder to my standard Downloads folder then extracted all to the TLD Mod folder.

I thought I had done everything correctly but the game would not load, so I looked at the MelonLoader log which showed the unconfirmed download file issue.

I have absolutely no idea what the problem is or how to solve it.  Nothing I Googled for helped either.

I would be incredibly grateful if you could again help me.  Thank you thank you in advance!

Edited September 15, 2022 by Sgt Socks
I worked it out!

[hozz1235]

Glad to hear you're enjoying mods!

[piddy3825]

12 hours ago, Sgt Socks said:

 

EDIT - I worked it out

outstanding!
the first rule to modding is to be sure you've got all the basic contingency mods in place first.  
then, only add one at a time just to make sure your game launches correctly before moving on to the next one.  That way you can always determine which mod is causing you any problems.  It isn't so much of a problem in this game as compare to some other games I've modded.  Here you don't have to worry about load order as you would with some other games.

 

[Sgt Socks]

@piddy3825

Thanks Piddy! It's silly but I was dead chuffed with myself for working it out ☺️

I am *very* grateful for this advice. As you may see from my "Help LMB" topic I, umm, got a bit carried away. When I'm excited I do turn into a mad Spaniel and now I've no idea what is causing the problem.

I'll be a good girl today and start again.... slowly and methodically this time! 🤦‍♀️😁

[piddy3825]

indeed!  I too excited when I see the plethora of available modding content for this game and yes I've learned the hard way too.  Nothing's worse than getting excited about trying new mods for your game only to have the game crash in the midst of playing or not having it launch at all.
So now, if you don't mind sharing, which of the many fine mods have you choosen to use in your game?

[conanjaguar]

13 minutes ago, piddy3825 said:

indeed!  I too excited when I see the plethora of available modding content for this game and yes I've learned the hard way too.  Nothing's worse than getting excited about trying new mods for your game only to have the game crash in the midst of playing or not having it launch at all.
So now, if you don't mind sharing, which of the many fine mods have you choosen to use in your game?

You’re the expert with mods. Which ones would you recommend?

I’m looking to maybe try the “Place Anywhere” and (sadomasochism coming up) the “Timberwolves Everywhere” mod in particular.

On another tangent, are there any mods that you have found to be... how shall I put this... substandard?

On 9/14/2022 at 4:43 PM, piddy3825 said:

It wasn't so long ago that the only way a player could hang a pelt on the wall of their home base was to exploit a glitch in the games curing mechanic/algorythm, now just referred to as the "curing in place glitch.

Is this glitch still around?

Edited September 16, 2022 by conanjaguar

[Sgt Socks]

3 hours ago, piddy3825 said:

indeed!  I too excited when I see the plethora of available modding content for this game and yes I've learned the hard way too.  Nothing's worse than getting excited about trying new mods for your game only to have the game crash in the midst of playing or not having it launch at all.
So now, if you don't mind sharing, which of the many fine mods have you choosen to use in your game?

I'm glad it's not just me Piddy! 😁

So I've gone with:

1. Placing Anywhere

2. Santana's DIY

3. Movable Containers

4. Item Stacking (umm, I think that's what it's called, the one where you can make piles of things so you don't have to pick up, say, millions of sticks individually)

5. Remove Clutter

These are the ones which target my main areas of irritation with the game so thought I'd do a run with these to see how it goes. I probably won't get to properly play with them until I get to PV then ML as these are the only two places where I stop for very long. And that's where I want to build my fun cosy bases!

I was tempted by a few others but I restrained my Spaniel Self... which was as challenging as HRV Blindfolded! 😄

PS. Oh how could I forget the *most important one*.... SKIP THE ANNOYING BLOODY GAME LOADING SCREEN! Sorry... that has been driving me batshit crazy for years so it was definitely the first one I got!

[piddy3825]

2 hours ago, conanjaguar said:

You’re the expert with mods. Which ones would you recommend?

I’m looking to maybe try the “Place Anywhere” and (sadomasochism coming up) the “Timberwolves Everywhere” mod in particular.

On another tangent, are there any mods that you have found to be... how shall I put this... substandard?

Is this glitch still around?

lol, hardly the expert, but I do like trying out the various mods made available by our outstanding community of mod creators.  
I'd definitely recommend Place Anywhere and Place from Inventory in combination at the top of the list for a must have mod(s)  considering the amount of versatility these two mods provide a player in organizing their home base.    As to substandard, the one that really pops into mind is Bleak Bridge.  Honestly I was excited when it first came out, but was so disappointed that I immediately uninstalled it as soon as I could.  what a waste, it coulda been so much better with a little more effort.

As to the "cure in place" glitch.  Yeah, still alive and kicking!  Just takes a lot of effort to make it work.  Interesting side note, if you don't mind me rambling for bit.  But back when this glitch came to light, I posted a pic where I had used the glitch to place dozens of rabbit pelts on the peg board in the quonset garage.  It literally took hours of game play to stage this for the single screenshot that I posted.  Only to have it be removed by admin claiming it had been done created by using unsanctioned mods!  lol   It took some effort and lots of protesting on my part but after messaging Raph himself, the dev team finally conceeded that I had done no wrong.   
Whew, we sure have come a long way since then...

[piddy3825]

3 minutes ago, Sgt Socks said:

I'm glad it's not just me Piddy! 😁

So I've gone with:

1. Placing Anywhere

2. Santana's DIY

3. Movable Containers

4. Item Stacking (umm, I think that's what it's called, the one where you can make piles of things so you don't have to pick up, say, millions of sticks individually)

5. Remove Clutter

These are the ones which target my main areas of irritation with the game so thought I'd do a run with these to see how it goes. I probably won't get to properly play with them until I get to PV then ML as these are the only two places where I stop for very long. And that's where I want to build my fun cosy bases!

I was tempted by a few others but I restrained my Spaniel Self... which was as challenging as HRV Blindfolded! 😄

PS. Oh how could I forget the *most important one*.... SKIP THE ANNOYING BLOODY GAME LOADING SCREEN! Sorry... that has been driving me batshit crazy for years so it was definitely the first one I got!

Excellent choices, all!
You might wanna get Place from Inventory to go with Place Anywhere.  Those two mods in combination allows to take items right outta your pack and place them without having to drop items on the ground first.  And for fun, you should get the Fox Companion mod.  Such a cute little bugger, does nothing to change any of the game play mechanics, although he does get in the way every so often, lol.  

[Sgt Socks]

1 minute ago, piddy3825 said:

Excellent choices, all!
You might wanna get Place from Inventory to go with Place Anywhere.  Those two mods in combination allows to take items right outta your pack and place them without having to drop items on the ground first.  And for fun, you should get the Fox Companion mod.  Such a cute little bugger, does nothing to change any of the game play mechanics, although he does get in the way every so often, lol.  

I forgot about Place From Inventory. I'll drop that in before I continue tomorrow. Would have come in handy today, I had a session with a lot of swearing while I was fighting with a spray paint can, trying to put it on the table. I kept picking it up again by mistake and, well, it just descended into a farce! 

The fox sounds adorable! But I'm not sure, I think my survivor (or should I say me) will find it difficult having company after so much solitude. I'd also worry about him. Even if I knew he wasn't programmed to get hurt, I'm such a big softie I would still worry! 🤷‍♀️

[piddy3825]

Just now, Sgt Socks said:

I forgot about Place From Inventory. I'll drop that in before I continue tomorrow. Would have come in handy today, I had a session with a lot of swearing while I was fighting with a spray paint can, trying to put it on the table. I kept picking it up again by mistake and, well, it just descended into a farce! 

The fox sounds adorable! But I'm not sure, I think my survivor (or should I say me) will find it difficult having company after so much solitude. I'd also worry about him. Even if I knew he wasn't programmed to get hurt, I'm such a big softie I would still worry! 🤷‍♀️

oh, the fox is just such a cutie!  it's absolutely adorable the way he runs after you when you sprint away and he chases you to catch up.  the best part is when he lays down near near the fireplace and places one paw over the other, clearly content and obviously enjoying the warmth!  Oh, and yes, totally impervious to harm! 
You should definitely get him!  

[Sgt Socks]

17 minutes ago, piddy3825 said:

oh, the fox is just such a cutie!  it's absolutely adorable the way he runs after you when you sprint away and he chases you to catch up.  the best part is when he lays down near near the fireplace and places one paw over the other, clearly content and obviously enjoying the warmth!  Oh, and yes, totally impervious to harm! 
You should definitely get him!  

Gosh I'm welling up! Reminds me of my mad little Spaniel Charlie, he used to run after me like that, and cross his wee furry lion paws. Oh I'm so torn! I'm hugely isolated irl too and having company is scary in case... in case... 

But if he's impervious to harm....

I'll definitely think about it Piddy. I certainly wouldn't want to abandon a run to fade into The Long Dark if my wee fox buddy was with me...

[Digitalzombie]

On 9/16/2022 at 7:35 PM, Sgt Socks said:

But if he's impervious to harm....

Absolutely.

But the little guy is a bit dumb Prepare for cat like behaviour. Standing in your way, sleeping on items or sitting on your face while a moose is stomping on your ribs.

[piddy3825]

1 hour ago, Digitalzombie said:

Absolutely.

But the little guy is a bit dumb Prepare for cat like behaviour. Standing in your way, sleeping on items or sitting on your face while a moose is stomping on your ribs.

he does get underfoot sometimes and that can be a little pain, but I do love that little bugger!

[Sgt Socks]

@Digitalzombie @piddy3825

Oh I needed this! Am proper laughing at your descriptions... just like my dog was! I'm sure it was inbuilt to choose the most inopportune moment to demand a cuddle or stick his nose in my face 😁 But I wouldn't have changed him for the world. You're bringing me round 😉

Edited September 18, 2022 by Sgt Socks