⚠️ Starfield Mod Troubleshooting
⚠️ Troubleshooting
The game updated and now SFSE won't start, or mods say the script extender is the wrong version.
Every Starfield update changes the executable version, so SFSE must be updated to the build that matches your current game version. Download the matching build from the Starfield Script Extender site and overwrite the SFSE files in the game folder, then update any mods flagged as requiring the new SFSE.
A warning pops up that achievements are disabled.
Starfield disables achievements whenever a plugin mod is active. Install the Achievement Enabler plugin (by BakaGaming) so achievements stay enabled while you play with mods.
I installed a Nexus mod but it doesn't appear in the in-game Mods (Creations) menu.
Locally installed mods never show up in the in-game Mods menu — that menu only lists content from Bethesda Creations. Your plugin mods load automatically at startup; check the mod is enabled in Vortex/MO2 and the plugin is ticked on instead.
The mod shows in my mod manager but does nothing in the game.
The plugin is almost certainly not enabled in the load order. In Vortex open the Plugins tab, or in MO2 open the right pane's plugins list, tick the mod's .esm on, and relaunch the game.
Texture, UI, and other loose-file mods have no effect.
Loose files only load if StarfieldCustom.ini in Documents\My Games\Starfield has a [Archive] section with bInvalidateOlderFiles=1 and sResourceDataDirsFinal=. Add or fix those two lines, save, and relaunch.
The game launches completely vanilla when I press Play in Steam.
Steam's Play button starts the base game without SFSE, so script mods never load. Launch through SFSE_loader.exe via your mod manager (Vortex or MO2) instead of the Steam button.
All my mods stopped working after a Starfield update.
Updates reset the game build and often rewrite plugins.txt and disable plugins. Re-enable your plugins in Vortex or MO2, update SFSE to match the new game version, and redeploy before relaunching.
The game crashes at the main menu or on loading a save once I have many mods installed.
This is usually a mod conflict or a mod needing a missing master. Disable half your mods in the manager to bisect the culprit, then read the failing mod's requirements page to see which other mod it needs earlier in the load order.
Two mods edit the same file and one overrides the other incorrectly.
Resolve the conflict explicitly. In MO2 set the overwrite order in the left pane (or in Vortex on the Mods tab), and make the mod you want to win load later, so its files replace the earlier mod's.
I dropped files into a Data folder but the mod still doesn't work.
You put them in the wrong Data folder. Starfield reads mods from the game's Data folder at steamapps\common\Starfield\Data, not from a Data folder under Documents — move the .esm and loose files there.
Vortex says deployment failed or mods aren't appearing in the game folder.
Vortex deploys by hardlink by default, which fails when your staging folder and game folder are on different drives. In Vortex's Settings > Mods, switch the deployment method (e.g. to 'move' or 'copy') and deploy again.
A mod crashes or does nothing because it says it needs another mod that I don't have.
Check the mod's requirements section on Nexus and install the listed master mod first, placing it above this mod in the load order in Vortex or MO2.
The mod needs Starfield Script Extender but I never installed it.
Many Starfield mods require SFSE to run. Download SFSE, extract it into the Starfield game folder, and always launch the game through SFSE_loader.exe so its plugin DLLs are loaded.
My load order keeps resetting or plugins turn off by themselves.
Enabling or disabling things from the in-game Mods menu, or a game update, can rewrite plugins.txt. Re-apply your load order in Vortex or MO2 and avoid toggling mods from inside the game's own menu.
A mod's character or item just looks wrong, or the change is only half applied.
This usually means the plugin is enabled but its loose files aren't loading, or another mod later in the order is overwriting it. Confirm StarfieldCustom.ini has the [Archive] loose-file lines and check the overwrite order in your manager so the intended mod wins.
Game runs fine with mods but my old save won't load or acts oddly.
A plugin the save relies on is disabled or reordered. Re-enable the plugins the mod list on that save uses, keep their load order the same as when the save was created, and relaunch through SFSE.