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You might see people refer to "texture packs", but you're not quite sure what they're talking about. The most common usage of the term "texture pack" means, basically, "a large-scale texture replacer". There are several mods that fall under this description; two of them (Darooz's and AmpolX's) are split up into individual components and are thus listed in separate categories, but we'll discuss them all here.
Almost All Oblivion Vanilla Textures Replacer (AAOVTR)
A compilation of (the author's opinion of) the best replacements for 6187 (+1/3 in number,+1/2 of all textures in sizes) of the vanilla textures in the game, resized to that of the original textures. Consequently, the original mod or hirez texture might give a better aspect. The download page lists the sources of the replacements used. This compilation is repackaged as a replacement for the vanilla 'Oblivion - Textures - Compressed.bsa' file, so be sure to place a copy of the original in a safe place.
- Link to file Link is currently dead. Author was banned from Nexus for failing to get the proper permissions from authors of art used.
AmpolX's Textures
AmpolX's textures focus solely on landscapes and caves - he'd planned to do more, but life got in the way and he was forced to abandon the project. These textures are high-res (2048) and a lot darker, so if you like a "grim-n-gritty" Oblivion, they could very well be what you're looking for. These files are separated by type, so you can pick and choose what to add.
Bomret's Texture Pack for Shivering Isles
A texture replacer for the Shivering Isles. Optimized normal and mip maps, meshes for parallax shader effects, detailed normal maps. Changes: New Sheoth (Crucible, Bliss, Palace, Arden Sul etc.), Landscapes, Statues, Ruins, Rootcaves, Rocks, Obelisks, Clutter (stuff like rugs, tombstones etc.). Files on Nexus have been PyFFied. Note: due to size limitations, the RAR archive has been split into three files for downloading on Nexus. The files need to be recombined by RAR into a single archive to be useable. Follow instructions on the download page. TheElderScrolls.info link is a single 7z file of 704 MB.
CorePC's Vibrant Textures
This texture pack is the most comprehensive (it covers everything, including Oblivion planes and Shivering Isles), and is the only one with standard-resolution textures. VT focuses on making things more vibrant and colorful instead of higher-res; the result is that everything is brighter and clearer without a major performance hit.
Darooz Texture Pack
Darooz's texture pack isn't technically a "texture pack" so much as a bunch of separate archives that enhance various things - clutter, landscape, and a couple cities. These textures are very high-res (4096), so should be used only on high-end systems. That said, Darooz's pack has an advantage in that you can pick and choose what you want without having to sort through a single archive, and these textures are quite beautiful.
Since Darooz' website has been taken down, there is no central location for all the files; most of them can be found listed separately on TESNexus, however:
HiRes Oblivion Textures
A WIP replacement of vanilla textures with HiRes (no size specified) versions. Currently this mod replaces:
- Landscape textures
- Caves
- Oblivion gates
- Citadel textures
Insanity's Texture Pack
Unfinished but final, a different view of an overhaul. Higher resolution optimized textures (1024x1024 for small stuff like clutter, 2048x2048 for most), new more detailed normal maps, additional color, more depth and a few other tweaks here and there to make things suit the author's taste more. Architecture like Ayleid ruins (half completed), caves, Imperial City (ISIC Beta), farmhouses, more clutter; blood effects; landscape; dungeon water.
Low Oblivion - The Total Package
Designed for low performance / minimum spec systems, this is overhaul reduces the size of all vanilla, SI, and Knights of the Nine textures to the smallest size possible (2x2) to enable increasing the screen resolution and various sliders without FPS impact. Distributed as loose files rather than a BSA.
Mesh Improvement Project (MIP)
By InsanitySorrow, this ongoing project has the aim of (slowly) fixing or replacing broken/ugly meshes found throughout the game's world. While technically "meshes" are not "textures", the scope of this project warrants it's inclusion with the other texture related packs. According to the author: "Mostly it's just UV map textures". The included meshes should work with all texture packs, have been optimized where needed, and are compatible with UOP. Overwrite with MIP where there are conflicts with UOP. The release thread lists exactly which meshes are changed.
OTUP - Oblivion Texture Upgrades Pack
More details for original textures: armor; stonework: roads, stonewall, sidewalk and castle wall; and four types of grasses. The same resolution is maintained, except the grasses which are increased to 1024x1024.
Parallax Cities Giga-Pack (PCGP)
Parallax mapping gives depth to the textures, without fps drop. It's a kind of fake 3D if you will. It comes in 6 files, which are collected into a single archive, and is applied only to vanilla textures. Areas covered are:
- Anvil
- basement sections
- Bravil
- Bruma
- The castles
- Cheydinhal
- Chorrol
- Leyawiin
- Cloud Ruler Temple
- farmhouses
- Weynon Priory
- the sidewalks
- Skingrad
- the stonewalls
Qarl's Texture Pack (QTP)
QTP was one of the first texture packs; it primarily enhances landscape and architecture only. This is not a mod for low-performance systems; Qarl himself recommends at least 512 MB of VRAM and 1 GB of RAM. Most textures are in 4096x4096. The old TOTO site has a great discussion on QTP III. I highly recommend getting QTP III Redimized and maybe even Reduced (which is Redimized but strips out some apparently unnecessary files as well); Redimized gives better performance with no noticeable loss in quality. These are found in the Misc category.
QTP3 Redimized (QTP3-R) with all patches merged, and including PyFIIed meshes (fixed), has finally (Nov 2014) been uploaded to Nexus by CarlosS4444 with Bomret's permission. This provides a single download with everything you need in a single optimized QTP3 pack.
- original QTP3 file on Nexus
- NMM version of original QTP3 file on Nexus
- Link to other misc. variations of QTP3, such as "Redimized and Reduced"
Be aware there are several patches for the QTP3, including:
- QTP-UOP Compatibility Patch
- QTP3FortFloorFix by zilav (no link; included in QTP3-R package)
- QTP3 Transparent Rock Texture Fix
Unofficial Elsweyr Anequina Patch
ELSWEYR, The Deserts of ANEQUINA is a popular, large scale mod (similar to but not part of, the 'Unique Landscapes' projects) that adds a new region just beyond the vanilla game border spanning the section of Elsweyr between Skingrad and Leyawiin. It includes four new landscapes (desert to jungle), four new towns, several villages, Khajiit sub-races, a couple of dozen small quests, three small player homes and a monster-filled wilderness to explore. The author (Iliana) no longer supports it, has withdrawn it from, and refuses permission to host the mod on, the popular NexusMods web site (having gone so far as requesting to have herself banned). Subsequently it has become difficult to find. It is now hosted with permission on the 'Dark Creations' site at the link given above.
What we present here is an unofficial patch by LogicDragon that fixes a number of textures and other issues with the original mod. Due to the broad nature of the textures included in the fixes, it's included among the texture packs.
Vanilla Essence
Vanilla Essence departs from the usual texture pack in that it deliberately avoids changing the current resolutions of vanilla textures. Instead it applies 'tweaks' to those textures, such as:
- Landscape texture hues, saturation and brightness levels tweaked
- LOD generations gaussian blurred 20% to reduce dark splotches on distant landscapes
- Vibrancy of plants increased, particularly on harvestable plants
- Saturation reduced on tree 'billboards', generally because you can easily see that they are sprites… which seems kinda ugly so I wanted them to be less noticeable
- Normal maps given contrast tweaks so 'edges' should seem more prominent
So far only outdoor environmental textures have been affected, excluding architecture. If your rig can't handle hi-res textures, or they do not appeal to you, this may be a better alternative.
Watch Your Step (WYS) - Ubanga edition
Watch Your Step is part 1 of a major retexure project designed for the Ubanga mod (which is a separate world-space) and covers mainly Ubanga's own textures with some overlap with vanilla. Make sure that you back up your Data/Textures/landscape folder before installing. Right now it covers the majority (or at least a large part) of southern Ubanga - Lawadia et al.
The author is working towards the northeast, so the next textures will cover those respective regions.
- Diffusion maps 1024×1024 or 2048×2048
- Normal maps 1024×1024 or 512×512 respectively
Texture Packs Table
Link | Author | Description | Screenshots |
---|---|---|---|
AmpolX's Textures | AmpolX | 'Grim-n-gritty' landscapes and caves. High-res (2048) | |
Bomret's Texture Pack for Shivering Isles (in 3 parts); Also (in a single file) | Bomret | Shivering Isles: affects New Sheoth, landscapes, statues, ruins, rootcaves, rocks, obelisks, clutter. | |
CorePC's Vibrant Textures | CorePC | Oblivion and Shivering Isles: standard-resolution textures making things more vibrant and colorful instead of higher-res. | |
Darooz Texture Pack | Darooz | Separate archives: clutter, landscape, and a couple cities. Very high-res (4096). | |
HiRes Oblivion Textures | xxXEVANDERXxx | HiRes replacements for vanilla textures: Landscape, Caves, Gates, Citadel. | |
Insanity's Texture Pack | InsanitySorrow | Landscape, water, architecture, farmhouses, clutter, Ayleid ruins, caves, etc. High-res (1024, 2048). | |
Low Oblivion - The Total Package | Blade & Bone | Maximum reduction of vanilla, SI, KoTN textures for low end systems | |
Mesh Improvement Project | InsanitySorrow | slowly fixing or replacing broken/ugly vanilla meshes | |
Mtgr Texture Pack V1.1 | Mtgr23 | enhances most vanilla textures. No other information | |
OTUP - Oblivion Texture Upgrades Pack | andreasgr | more detail for vanilla textures, at same resolutions, except grasses are now 1024x1024 | |
Parallax Cities Giga-Pack (PCGP) | tidus457 | Parallax mapping gives depth to the textures, without fps drop. Applies only to vanilla textures | |
Qarl's Texture Pack III | Qarl | Original OMOD version. One of the first; it primarily enhances landscape and architecture only. High-res (4096), not for low-performance systems. See the Misc category for less demanding versions. | |
QTP3-R | Qarl, Bomret, dev_akm | CarlosS4444 upload of patched, Redimized, and PyFFIed version of QTP3 | |
Misc QTP3 versions | Qarl | Other variations of QTP3, such as "Redimized and Reduced" | |
Qarls TP3 for NMM | Qarl | Original QTP3 repackaged for NMM | |
Unofficial Elsweyr Anequina Patch | LogicDragon | Collection of fixes to Iliana's "Elsweyr Anequina" mod. | |
Vanilla Essence | ichimitch | Tweaks vanilla textures without changing resolutions | |
Watch Your Step (WYS) | maczopikczo | Ubanga mod landscape textures |