SME-FT- VS modorganizer

To answer your question, though, I would look at SMEFT.

smeft is a wabbajack mod list containing all the essentials for modding, but it should be unnecessary if you're using dragonborn's fate, sorry for confusing you by throwing so many words lol

Pro tip: even if you don't want to use Wabbajack for anything else, install SME(FT) as the base to build on top of. The name is short for Skyrim Modding Essentials (Fixes and Tools) and gives you exactly that; bugfixes, engine improvements, and all the tools you could ever need to build your own modlist from scratch. This will save you a lot of time and hassle when building your own list, as almost all prerequisites are already installed and critical improvements to the vanilla game won't be skipped due to lack of knowledge. You won't regret it, trust me.

SMEFT is a wabbajack mod list that has exactly what you're looking for. It contains all the essential utilites, plugins, and bug fixes.

Just want to point out anyone looking for a good starting point should check out SMEFT on wabbajack. This will save you the headache of getting all the essential mods/tools. It's a perfect base to start. https://eziothedeadpoet.github.io/SME-FT-/

better yet, use wabbajack to download a solid base for modding with all the bugfixes included: https://eziothedeadpoet.github.io/SME-FT-/

Here some learning resources and a list that might be for you to start with. - https://github.com/LivelyDismay/Learn-To-Mod/wiki - https://eziothedeadpoet.github.io/SME-FT-/

Use a mod manager – pick either Vortex : https://www.nexusmods.com/about/vortex/ Or MO2 : https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrimspecialedition/mods/6194

I'd grab the one from gog-games.to, I can't link directly as that's against the rules. It's compatible with MO2 (Mod Organizer 2) as well as having a version of skse64 (Skyrim Script Extender x64 available for it.

I highly recommend Mod Organizer 2, but Vortex is an acceptable alternative. As a rule of thumb, the more advanced you want to get with your modding, the more strenuously I recommend MO2 as there are some differences in its technical approach that make a bigger and bigger difference as the complexity of your build increases.

Nexus GitHub Discord

I’m not running OBSE by itself. I’m running it alongside Mod Organizer 2. This script will setup MO2 for you and set it so that Steam launches it automatically when you press play. Then, you’ll need to follow this doc to install OBSE alongside MO2. Hopefully that would setup all of your pathing correctly.

MO2 is Mod Organizer 2.