Tips and Tricks for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind – How to install Morrowind Mods on Linux

Wine is used in this Linux tutorial to install vanilla Morrowind mods that require MWSE. It is compatible with both the GOG and Steam versions of Morrowind.

These instructions should work on most Linux distributions and have been tested on the following systems:

• Arch Linux with Wine 8.11
• Debian Bookworm (12) and Wine 8.0

 

Introduction

This guide was written because I wanted to try Kezyma’s Voices of Vvardenfell – [github.io] , a mod that adds AI-generated voices to the game. Link to YouTube demo.

It requires MCP – [nexusmods.com] , MGE XE – [nexusmods.com]  and MWSE – [github.io] .

If you want to install more mods, installing Mod Organizer 2 – [github.com]  is also recommended.

Use OpenMW – [openmw.org] if you don’t want to use MWSE mods to play Morrowind. It is a free and open-source Morrowind engine replacement. It is accessible in most Linux distributions, supports different mods, and is easier to install with Wine than vanilla Morrowind.

Install Wine packages

Read the Arch Linux Wine – [archlinux.org]  wiki page if you need help configuring wine. Even if you are using a different distribution, the wiki page is still useful.

First, install wine with Mono for .NET applications, along with winetricks. You also need unzip and p7zip. In Arch Linux run:

pacman -S wine wine-mono winetricks p7zip unzip

You can also download – [winehq.org]  the latest wine-mono MSI package from WineHQ and run it.

wine wine-mono-x.y.z-x86.msi

To avoid problems with wine due to missing fonts, you can install the allfonts package using winetricks.

winetricks allfonts

Before installing Morrowind, consider using a new/separate WINEPREFIX. This will keep Morrowind’s files separate from other Wine applications. You can set the WINEPREFIX to any folder you want. Here I will use ~/.wine as the WINEPREFIX, which is the default.

Install Morrowind

Install the game using the GOG installer.

wine setup_tes_morrowind_goty_2.0.0.7.exe

Go to the Morrowind folder where the game is installed.

cd ~/.wine/drive_c/GOG/ - []  Games/Morrowind

You can also install the Steam version. Then go to:

cd ~/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/Morrowind

 

Wine configuration

You need to adjust some DLL overrides in Wine to get Morrowind to work properly.

Source u/trymeouteh – [reddit.com]  in this Reddit post – [reddit.com] .

winecfg

Simply run winecfg if you used the GOG installer (using the default WINEPREFIX).

To set the WINEPREFIX for the Steam version, run:

WINEPREFIX=~/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/Morrowind winecfg

In the GUI, do the following:

1. Open the Libraries tab.
2. Add dinput.dll and d3d8.dll.
3. Set the added DLLs to native, builtin if they are not already.
4. Click OK.

 

winetricks

Run the following commands to install the required DLLs for Microsoft DirectX 9.

winetricks d3dcompiler_43
winetricks d3dcompiler_47
winetricks d3dx9_43

 

Install MCP

Morrowind Code Patch (MCP) – [nexusmods.com]  patches bugs in the Morrowind program, which cannot otherwise be fixed by editing scripts or data files. Cures many crash and save corruption problems.

Download the Standard exe version to the Morrowind folder and extract it.

7z x Morrowind\ Code\ Patch-19510-2-4.7z
wine Morrowind\ Code\ Patch.exe

Just use the default values, they can be adjusted later. Click Apply chosen patches.

Install MGE XE

Morrowind Graphics Extender XE (MGE XE) – [nexusmods.com]  allows you to

• Set widescreen resolution
• Use improved graphics shaders
• Generate distant land terrain
• and more

Download the manual installer to the Morrowind folder and extract it.

7z x MGE\ XE\ Manual\ Install-41102-0-16-3-1682285033.7z
wine MGEXEgui.exe

Changes are saved automatically, close the window.

Install MWSE

Morrowind Script Extender (MWSE) – [github.io]  makes additional functions available for use in Morrowind scripts, beyond those provided by the game’s construction set. These extra functions allow modders to add features and behavior to scripts that would otherwise be impractical or impossible.

MWSE is included with MGE XE in the Morrowind folder, but you must update it to the latest nightly build with LUA support.

wine MWSE-Update.exe

It should output e.g.:

Found install location: C:\GOG Games\Morrowind\
Installed version: 302fd2a64b73dad52e6a3feac4680f03ffdcb7cc
Newest version: 302fd2a64b73dad52e6a3feac4680f03ffdcb7cc
Currently up to date.

Optionally, you can also install MWSE Logger – [nexusmods.com] , which lets you see MWSE log messages in-game by pressing the L key.

Install mods manually

Kezyma’s Voices of Vvardenfell – [github.io]  is a project to fully voice Morrowind using ElevenAI – [elevenlabs.io]  and MWSE.

Here we install the mod manually for demonstration purposes. MCP, MGE XE and MWSE are required.

NOTE: I recommend you install with Mod Organizer 2 instead.

Download the latest release – [nexusmods.com]  and extract it to the Morrowind folder.

unzip Voices\ of\ Vvardenfell\ 0.1.1-52279-0-1-1-1686873416.zip

Recursively copy/merge the contents of folder 00 – Core to Data Files.

rsync -av 00\ -\ Core/ Data\ Files

 

Install with Mod Organizer 2

Mod Organizer 2 (MO2) – [github.com]  is useful if you want lots of mods. It manages them for you and lets you enable/disable them easily, without manually manipulating the Data Files folder.

MO2 with GOG Morrowind

You can download the latest release of Mod Organizer 2 from the GitHub page – [github.com] .

Extract it anywhere, e.g. ~/Downloads/ModOrganizer2, and run it with wine.

wine Mod.Organizer-2.4.4.exe

The program will automatically find the Morrowind installation. It features an interactive tutorial to help you get started.

MO2 with Steam

SteamTinkerLaunch – [github.com]  is a versatile Linux wrapper tool for use with the Steam client which allows for easy graphical configuration of game tools, such as GameScope, MangoHud, modding tools and a bunch more.

In Arch Linux you can install it from steamtinkerlaunch – [archlinux.org]  in the AUR.

You can use Mod Organizer 2 with SteamTinkerLaunch:

steamtinkerlaunch mo2 start
steamtinkerlaunch mo2 list-supported

and also install nxm URLs from the Nexus website:

steamtinkerlaunch mo2 url nxm://morrowind/mods/47469/files/1000034292?key=XU6LygxGL5itAXeHAasd

 

Recommended mods

Check out Morrowind Themed Mod Lists – 2019 Edition – [github.com] . You can also find more mods on Nexus Mods – [nexusmods.com] .

The following list of mods is recommended for a vanilla-friendly experience (no new quests, items, etc.):

Sound mods

 

• Kezyma’s Voices of Vvardenfell – [github.io] : Project to fully voice Morrowind with AI-generated text-to-speech using ElevenAI – [elevenlabs.io]  and MWSE.
• Shut up – [nexusmods.com] : Makes NPCs greet you (and each other) only when you’re looking directly at them. Removes the babbling when you walk by groups of NPCs.

 

NPC graphics mods

 

• Westly’s Faces Refurbished – [nexusmods.com] : HD head and hair replacer aiming for a vanilla-like feeling.

 

Nature graphics mods

 

• Watch the Skies – [nexusmods.com] : A weather overhaul with randomized cloud textures, weather changes in interiors, seasonal weather, latitude/season changes etc.
• Morrowind Enhanced Textures – [nexusmods.com] : Upscales every in-game texture with the help of machine learning. 100% vanilla-friendly.
• Morrowind Optimization Patch – [nexusmods.com] : Greatly improves performance and fixes tons of mesh errors.
• Project Atlas – [nexusmods.com] : The goal of Project Atlas is to identify the most performance-heavy areas of vanilla Morrowind and some popular mods and target high usage/strain meshes in those areas.
• Weather Adjuster – [nexusmods.com] : Regional weather colors, skies and lighting. Visual weather editor and region-based presets. Seamless transitions between regions.
• Remiros’ Groundcover – [nexusmods.com] : Adds groundcover graphics to almost all regions. Read the sticky post on its Nexus page for installation instructions – [nexusmods.com] .

 

Run the game

If you are using the GOG version you can run the game from the Morrowind folder.

wine Morrowind.exe

Otherwise, launch it from Steam, or Mod Organizer 2 with SteamTinkerLaunch.

While the game is loading, you should see Loading MGE XE… pop up, unless your computer loads the game too fast. On the main menu, it should say e.g. MCP 2.4 in the bottom left corner.

It’s been a pleasure sharing The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind – How to install Morrowind Mods on Linux with you, inspired by an engaging article by j.sjolund. If you have any ideas on how we can refine this content, please let us know in the comments. Wishing you a fantastic day, and be sure to bookmark us for more fresh content and updates!