Vanilla Plus Terrain
🟠 Updated over a year ago⚠️ Install Order · 5 steps
Install in this order, then this mod last — most mods fail to load without their framework and dependencies in place.
Preview
🔍 Analysis
- 👍 0.3% endorsement rate
- 🏆 #22 of 131 Visuals and Graphics mods in this game by downloads
📋 About This Mod
Huge thanks goes to WallSoGB for all the help.
Description
Vanilla Plus Terrain is a xNVSE plugin and shader replacer that improves the way the game renders terrain in several different ways:
-
[]Adds specular to the landscape, meaning it won't look as flat when the sun is at low angles.
[
]Specular also works for LOD - if you want to make use of it, generate LOD with format for normals set to DXT5 and make sure to have "Bake specular" enabled.[]Per-pixel fog, which gets rid of the annoying "blocky" fog on terrain when fog is very close to the player.
[]Replaces ILS (Improved Lighting Shaders), upping the pointlight limit to 24, meaning you definitely won't miss any (or at least most) lights on the terrain.
[]Also fixes the issue with Pip-Boy light sometimes missing from terrain (same as ILS), by sorting the lights by distance from the camera.
Specular as you might know requires a glossiness map in the normals texture. Curiously, most landscape textures in vanilla come with this already. I have also prepared a small optional normals texture pack for those landscape textures that miss it, obviously using the same resolution and compressed.
If this wasn't enough, it is fully compatible with GECK out of the box (pointlights are currently not rendered on terrain in GECK, but a fix is coming with the next GECK Extender version).
Technical Note
You are probably asking if adding as many lights and specular doesn't cost a lot of performance. Yes, some impact is expected, however, great amount of care went into optimizing this to the best of my, Wall's, and D3D9's capabilities. Compared to ILS, for example, the shaders are better optimized, and there are four different variants for different light counts that further alleviate potential performance issues.
For users of New Vegas Reloaded - update to version 4. 3. 0.
Requirements
- []New Vegas Script Extender (NVSE xNVSE)
[]Shader Loader - NVSE
[]LOD Flicker Fix - NVSE
Install as normal. Load after LOD Flicker Fix - NVSE.Installation
Source Code
- GitHub
Looking for more? Check out my and Wall's other mods:
Pr0bability
Vanilla Plus Terrain enhances terrain visuals in Skyrim Special Edition by adding specular lighting, per-pixel fog, and increasing the pointlight limit from 3 (or 13 with ILS) to 24. This is a performance-friendly visual upgrade for players who want better terrain shading without overhauling the game's look.
✨ Key Features
📊 Pros & Cons
✅ Pros
- Huge community trust with 2,906 endorsements and nearly a million downloads.
- Simple, focused improvement—no new assets or gameplay changes, just better terrain shading.
- Performance-friendly approach: specular and fog tweaks are lightweight compared to full ENB overhauls.
⚠️ Cons
- Requires a mod manager for proper installation, which might be a hurdle for newcomers.
- The pointlight limit increase may not be noticeable unless you use many light sources near terrain.
- No explicit compatibility notes for other terrain mods or weather overhauls—potential conflicts if you stack them.
For Skyrim players who want a subtle but noticeable visual upgrade to terrain without heavy performance hits. Perfect for vanilla-plus enthusiasts who prefer the original look but with better shading. Skip if you're after total visual overhauls or if you're on a low-end rig that struggles with any extra effects.
💡 Beginner Tips
- Use a mod manager like Vortex or Mod Organizer 2 to install this mod—it's the easiest way to manage and uninstall if needed.
- If you use ILS (Improved Lighting System), note that the pointlight limit is already 13, but this mod bumps it to 24—check for compatibility with your lighting setup.
- Test in an area with lots of torches or magic lights to see the pointlight increase in action; otherwise, you might not notice the difference.
📊 Mod Details
- Game
- New Vegas Mods
- Author
- Pr0bability
- Version
- 1.0.2
- Downloads
- 941,493
- Endorsements
- 2,906
- Category
- Visuals and Graphics
- Created
- 6/8/2025
- Updated
- 7/9/2025
🧩 Commonly Used Together
Users add these mods to the same collections — a real compatibility signal, not an AI guess.
🔧 How to Install New Vegas Mods
Download from Nexus.
📖 Full step-by-step install guide for New Vegas →
Visit the official mod page for specific installation instructions for this mod.
🎮 Need cheat codes or console commands? Check ur gaming wiki for New Vegas commands, item IDs, and more.
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