diff --git a/docs/help/Introduction-To-Load-Orders.html b/docs/help/Introduction-To-Load-Orders.html index ded1410..c050c60 100644 --- a/docs/help/Introduction-To-Load-Orders.html +++ b/docs/help/Introduction-To-Load-Orders.html @@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ title: Introduction To Load Orders

This page provides a general overview of load ordering in the games LOOT supports for those who are unfamiliar with the concept. For simplicity, "the game" will be used when the text refers to any of the games that LOOT supports.

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Mod plugins for the game are files that end in .esp or .esm. These files are created by the game's official editing tools, or by third-party modders' tools. They contain various data records, which cover almost all aspects of what is in the game – NPCs, items, races, interiors, worlds, quests, etc. – and can either be new or changes to the records added by another plugin.

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Mod plugins for the game are files that end in .esp, .esm, or .esl. These files are created by the game's official editing tools, or by third-party modders' tools. They contain various data records, which cover almost all aspects of what is in the game – NPCs, items, races, interiors, worlds, quests, etc. – and can either be new or changes to the records added by another plugin.

When the game is run, it loads each installed plugin one by one in a certain load order. The load order is important for two reasons:

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There are a few hardcoded rules related to load order:

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A plugin's position in the load order is often displayed by mod managers as a hexadecimal number, from 00 to FE (0 to 254 in decimal). The plugin with position 00 loads first, and the plugin with position FE is loaded last. Hexadecimal numbers are used to display the load order positions of plugins because these numbers form the first two digits of the code that the game uses to reference the records that the plugin adds, so knowing the numbers allows modders and mod users to determine from which plugin a record is from.

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A plugin's position in the load order is often displayed by mod managers as a hexadecimal number, from 00 to FE (0 to 254 in decimal). The plugin with position 00 loads first, and the plugin with position FE is loaded last (except for .esl files, see below). Hexadecimal numbers are used to display the load order positions of plugins because these numbers form the first two digits of the code that the game uses to reference the records that the plugin adds, so knowing the numbers allows modders and mod users to determine from which plugin a record is from.

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For Fallout 4 and Skyrim Special Edition, Light Master plugins (.esl files) are listed as position FE, but actually load in the position dictated by the load order.

In Oblivion, Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas, load order is determined by plugin timestamps, and the plugins you have accessed are listed in %LOCALAPPDATA%\<game>\plugins.txt. As such, it's best to use a mod manager to create a backup of your load order.