How To Fix Starfield Mods Not Working Bug (Vortex)

Soon after Betsheda embraced the modding community, players started complaints that the Starfield mods not working issue. Even if you are using Vortex Mod Manager from NexusMod players are unable to use or load mods manually or using mod manager.

For many the Vortex mod is installed and unable but still not work in Starfield. After skimming forums like Reddit & Steam community we can say that Starfield mods may not work because the game’s settings are complex, needing changes recognized by its executable file. Problems can arise from mod conflicts, outdated game versions, or incorrect installations.

If you are also dealing with Starfield mods not working bug then here we have tested solutions to fix this issue.

How To Fix Vortex from Nexus Mods Not Working Issue?

To keep VORTEX working with Starfield, follow these simplified steps:

  1. Navigate to your “C:\Users<username>\Documents\My Games\Starfield” folder.
  2. Create a new text document and rename it to “Starfield.exe“.
  3. Open Vortex, go to your Games tab, and click on the three dots (…) next to the Starfield game.
  4. Choose “Manually Set Location” and browse to the “C:\Users<username>\Documents\My Games\Starfield” folder.

Now, VORTEX should work seamlessly with Starfield, and everything should function correctly.

Solution 2: Vortex Nexus Mods Not Working

It’s possible that users who install Steam on a separate drive from Windows/My Documents may encounter issues like the one you experienced. Sometimes, modding tools and game configurations may expect certain paths to be on the same drive as the game or the system drive.

In such cases, as you found, creating a fake “starfield.exe” in the “My Games/Starfield” directory and placing the mods folder in “My Games” can serve as a workaround to make the mods function correctly with VORTEX.

While this solution may not align with the recommended modding practices, it can sometimes be necessary to adapt to specific game or tool configurations to ensure everything works as intended. It’s essential to stay flexible and seek community support or forums for guidance when facing such challenges in modding.

How to fix Starfield mods not working issue

1. Check “StarfieldCustom.ini” filename

Make sure the file is named “StarfieldCustom.ini” and hasn’t accidentally turned into a “.txt” file or has all small letters in its name.

2. Edit “Starfield.ini”

As it worked out for many players, you can edit the StarfieldCustom.ini file to resolve the mods not working issue.

To fix the Starfield mods not working or loading issue, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Starfield’s main directory, usually located in “Documents\My Games\Starfield.”
  2. Check that the file is named “StarfieldCustom.ini” with the correct capitalization.
  3. Open “StarfieldCustom.ini” using Notepad++ or regular Notepad.
  4. Replace its contents with the following text:
    • [Archive]
      bInvalidateOlderFiles=1
      sResourceDataDirsFinal=
  5. Save the file without the “.txt” extension.
  6. In the file properties, make sure it’s set to Read-only.

These steps should help resolve the mods not working issue for many players.

3. Placement of mods

To troubleshoot Starfield mods not working:

  1. Put your mods in both the “My Games” and the game’s “Data” folders. Vortex might install mods in the wrong place (Steam folder).
  2. Try launching the game directly from its “.exe” file to test if the mods are functioning.
  3. Be aware that mods might not work if the files are saved in the Steam folder. To fix this, move all mod files to both “My Games” and the game’s main directory. This ensures the “.ini” files can correctly modify the game’s executable.

4. Enable Hardlink Deployment in Vortex

To ensure Vortex Mod Manager correctly saves mod files in the game’s main folder, follow these steps:

  1. Open Vortex Mod Manager and go to Settings.
  2. Click on the Mods tab.
  3. Choose the Deployment Method.
  4. Enable Hardlink Deployment to ensure your mod files are placed correctly.
  5. Launch the game to confirm that your mods are loading and working as expected.

This can help resolve mod loading issues.

How To Fix StarfieldCustom.ini in Starfield

Here’s a step-by-step guide in simpler terms for your solution:

  1. Create a new text document in your game’s main folder, which is usually in “steamapps/Common/Starfield.” You can name it anything you like; for example, you could name it “Heil Spez.”
  2. Inside this text document, copy and paste command lines from your mod text files that start with “setgs.” These mod text files should be in the same “steamapps/Common/Starfield” folder where you installed your mods. Your text document should look like this (these are just examples):
    • setgs fJumpMinimumOxygenSpend 2.5
      setgs fSprintOxygenEndBase 0.525
      setgs fHandScannerBaseRange 500.0
      setgs fNPCHealthLevelBonus 0
  3. Save this new text document in your “steamapps/Common/Starfield” folder.
  4. Now, open your “StarfieldCustom.ini” file, and under the [General] section, find the line that says “sStartingConsoleCommand=” and add “bat” followed by the name of the file you just saved. It should look like this
    • sStartingConsoleCommand=bat bluh
  5. To make sure everything works, open the in-game console, and you should see your mods activating. If you have other mods that also use bat commands, just paste their commands into the text file you created. Additionally, you can delete any .txt mod files in your game’s main folder if they contain “setgs” commands, but this step is optional.

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