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Originally Posted by Mikemike47

I was a newbie once. I had to read all directions then and still do now. I asked a few questions now and then. Didn't have any major problems with mods because I read directions. I did play for hours and did not have to try to get it to work because I read directions. If I got stuck, then I simply asked for help when I ran into problems.

I fully agree with you, Mike.

My golden rules for beginners:

1. If you are an absolute beginner, the thread SH5 Mod Guide for Beginners, will give you the indispensable know how.
   
   
2. When creating your own mod list, try following as closely as possible one of the "safe" lists shared by Sober, Fifi or Sjizzle, and read attentively their detailed instructions.
   
   
3. If you are not sure whether to use or not one of the mods featured in the aforementioned safe mod lists, read mod directions to know what it is doing exactly and how it would suit your tastes/needs.
   
   
4. If you want to use a mod not featured in the safe mod lists, read mod directions to know what it is doing exactly and how to use it.
   
   
5. If you can't understand what a mod does, you probably don't need for it!
   
   
6. File conflicts reported by JSGME are okay as far as you stick to the mods of one of the safe mod lists, and you enable them in the same order suggested by the guys who devised those lists.
   
   
7. Unless you know what you are doing, absolutely avoid file conflicts reported by JSGME while enabling a mod not featured in the safe mod lists: continuing would probably result in loss of features, or unstable game in the worst cases.
   
   
8. How do you know what you are doing? The first source of information are mod install directions. Mod authors usually list other mods which their mod is compatible with. If two mods have conflicting files, and neither of them is expressely stated to be compatible with the other, it is likely that they are not compatible.
   
   
9. In general, the more similar are the game features affected by two mods, the more likely they will have shared files, the higher the chance that they are not compatible. An example: using two separate mods which make torpedoes more effective, won't make your torpedoes twice more effective. In the most fortunate case, the last torpedo mod enabled will overwrite completely the previous one, thus making its usage pointless. In the worst case you will obtain a mess, i.e. a mixture of uncoherent settings from the two mods, and soon or later you will learn it at your expenses.
   
   
10. In case of compatibility issues, mod enabling order matters. The last mod enabled will overwrite eventual conflicting files of mod(s) previously enabled. Not always compatibility is reciprocal: if a mod is compatible with a second mod, the latter is not necessarily compatible with the former. Always enable compatibility patches, or mods which are repotedly compatible with another mod, after the mod(s) that they are supposed to work with. Same goes for mod fixes: always enable them after the mod they are fixing. As a rule of thumbs the same rule is valid for optional submods which, unless stated differently, should be enabled after their main mod.
    
    
11. If a mod comes in multiple versions, one or more of them compatible with other mods, and you are not going to use those mods, just enable the regular version of the former mod, or you will likely suffer ctd's and other problems. Same goes for using compatibility patches or mods patches/fixes in absence of the mods that they are supposed to make compatible and/or fix.
    
    
12. Though not sharing any file, some mods are incompatible with each other due the way they are working. As an example, a mod might rely on a setting in a stock file (thus not included in the mod), which is removed or altered by a second mod. This is a rare evenience, but it can happen. How do you know that two not conflicting mods are nonetheless incompatible? Mod directions, my dear Watson!
    
    
13. If you are still not 100% sure about the compatibility of a mod you want to use, but you just don't want to give it up, the following rule suits your case: enable dubious mods one by one. Play a while before proeceeding to the next one, and beware that the side effects of a bad-placed mod don't necessarily show up immedialtely.
    
    
14. Some mods can be enabled any time, whereas some other mods require a campaign restart. In general, graphic and sound mods or the ones affecting AI controlled units, belong to the first group and mods affecting U-boat equipments, U-boat crew, campaign, etc, belong to the second category. There are many exceptions though. If you are not absolutely sure about the category that your recently enabled mod(s) belong to, make yourself a favour and restart your campaign.
    
    
15. In case of doubts or problems, don't esitate asking for help on the forum. You should post your questions (preferably one question at time) on the thread of the mod which is likely to cause the problem, adding details of your mod list and as much information as you can on when, since when, how often, and in which ways the problem presents itself. Spamming the forum with random posts full of unrelated questions or with generic requests of help where the one clue is a kilometric mod list, is like asking other members to look for a needle in a haystack, and it not going to help neither you, nor a possible advisor willing to track down your problem.

I am not saying that following the above rules is the same as having a ready-to-use megamod, but believe me: while we wait for it, a little starting effort will spare yourself a lot of frustration and wasted time