To get a fair sampling of some of the mods available check out
this thread, its by no means complete but has a lot of visual images that will save you time in looking through hundreds of posts in the mods section.
For the must have's I'd download the manuals for the supermods where possible, like the GWX for example has a lot of technical information that if/when you use it will become relevant but won't make much difference in deciding whether or not its for you. Just flipping through the manuals should give you the basics and what the mods are built around; then choose one and install. GWX is the most widely used I believe, but that doesn't mean that any of the others are any less polished.
You're comp will run the game like a champ, wouldn't worry about anything there unless you do manage to pick mods that are incompatible (or in the process discover ones that are). In a nutshell here's a generic list that you can find which type fits your style and can then further specialize:
- Pick your prefered Supermod
- Crew Uniforms
- Officer Icons & Pictures
- Sub Skins
- Damage Effects (some supermods have some included by default, though others like the Torpedo Damage v 2.0 is a must imo)
- Sub Interior
- (additional) Sound effects
Along the way you'll probably find references to mods that are missing or scattered across the whole site, sometimes best to just ask if someone has a file front page with x's.... mods for skins (which can be hard to track down since there was no real repository for them made that was kept up) for example. Good luck and happy hunting
