Okay, my current setup:
- Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch
- Static Mesh Improvement Mod
(leaves a strange untextured bit on weapon sharpening wheels, but otherwise nice)
- Verdant - A Skyrim Grass Mod
(I'm probably going to remove this, as it now feels like I'm traipsing through a much more temperate climate)
- Skyrim Flora Overhaul
- Vivid Weathers
(I don't know if this or True Storms would be better)
- Wet and Cold
- Reverb and Ambiance Overhaul
(everything sounds more natural and less "recorded in a warehouse" now)
- Unread Books Glow
- Ethereal Elven Overhaul
(I really, really, really hate Elder Scrolls elves with their low-polly hatchet-faces)
- Cutting Room Floor
- Open Cities Skyrim
- Immersive Citizens - AI Overhaul
- True Eyes
Yeah, really I don't need to have a different game experience, since I've never finished it once anyway. "Darker Nights" is probably the only other game-changing mod I'd install.
Well, until SkyUI is ported. SkyUI was downright fantastic.
Oh yes, and the Achievements Mods Enabler, linked to by @Derp. Only for us PC users, but what in there is going to make it easier for me to earn mods? Really only the Elven Overhaul so I don't have to suppress a gag reflex when playing the game.
A re-link: http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/245/
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p.s., while the vampirism thing is really annoying, I appreciate a game having the chutzpah to force conditions on a character that you have to play around. now if it would only tell me what the hell a "black soulstone" is. Yes, I looked it up on my own, but it's certainly not explained in context.