Rimworld 1.4 Mods Review

Rimworld crashed. Probably due to one of my 348 active mods. To find out which one it was, I started uninstalling them. Turns out the problem was actually an operating system update that messed with Steam and caused my other Steam games to crash too. I rolled back my computer and the problem was gone, but my mods were still gone too. Doh!

So now I get to re-install them one by one. Maybe now is a good time to ask, "Do I really need this mod?" So, I'm going to classify them as I go - essential, recommended, situational, unnecessary or broken.

All the mods mentioned are available on Steam and are compatible with Rimworld 1.4. They are not in any particular order within a category (the numbers are just to show how many mods have been reviewed).

Essential Mods

To me, an essential mod:

• improves the display of important information in the game, or
  
• fixes an annoying quality of life issue, or
  
• is a dependency for other major mods

Here is my list of essential mods:

1. Harmony - required by other mods
   
2. Hugslib - required by other mods
3. Vanilla Expanded Framework - required by other mods
4. [LTS] Systems - required by other mods 
5. Music Expanded Framework - adds music manager in-game
   
6. ReGrowth Core - required by other mods (improves biomes)
   
7. RimHUD - shows character information at a glance
   
8. Replace Stuff - replace structures and items without deconstruction
   
9. Allow Tool - haul items urgently, mine connected ores, select similar items, ...
10. Minify Everything - most items can be packed up and moved
    
11. Wall Light - lights on the wall instead of cluttering the floor with cables
12. Common Sense - QOL improvements like cleaning the kitchen before cooking
13. Evil Tactician's Rimworld Tweaks - QOL improvements (recipes, power use rebalance, ...)
    
14. Pick Up and Haul - pawns can carry more than one item in inventory
15. Snap Out! - try to stop pawns that are having mental breaks
16. Ugh You Got Me - most pawns stop social fighting if they get hurt 
17. Achtung! - more control over pawns, e.g. command to do specific task NOW
    
18. Bionic Icons - adds icons to prosthetics to show what it is
19. Better Pawn Control - set policies for colonists/pets about zoning, outfits, food etc.
20. Smarter Construction - stops pawns trapping themselves while building
21. Animals Logic - QOL improvements for managing pets
22. Defensive Positions - control positions of pawns or groups of pawns during combat
23. Search and Destroy - pawns will hunt down nearby enemies
24. Realistic Rooms Rewritten - pawns don't need big rooms to be happy
25. Door Clearance - prevents items on the ground from holding doors open
26. Stabilize Here - pawns can apply first aid out in the field
27. RimSaves - preview saved games, organise save-game files
28. Better ModMismatch Window - clearly shows changes to modlist since last save
29. Vanilla Expanded Royalty Patches - makes Vanilla Expanded mods Royalty-compatible
30. Vanilla Expanded Ideology Patches - makes Vanilla Expanded mods Ideology-compatible
    
31. Reasonable Components - makes crafting components easier
32. TD Enhancement Pack - QOL improvements including overlays and UI tweaks
33. Use Bedrolls - colonists try to find a bedroll if no beds are available
34. No Job Authors - multiple people can work on the same crafting project
35. Trade UI Revisited - splits trade UI to clearly show what each trader can buy/sell
36. Trading Spot - traders will wait here to trade
37. Walls are Solid - buildings and walls not so easy to damage/breach
38. Set Owner for Prisoner Bed - assign beds to specific prisoners
39. Permeable Terrain - liquid filth (e.g. blood) disappears more quickly
40. Self Dyeing - pawns can dye clothing to match ideology or favourite colour
41. Persistent Precepts - when adding new settings to ideology, don't randomise existing
42. Research Info - show current project and progress when research table is selected
43. Hunters Use Melee (Continued) - enables hunting with melee weapons
44. Offspring Inherit Xenogenes - passes on xenotype genes to offspring
45. Pawn Badge Fan Fork [Adopted] - adds skill icons to colonist portrait
46. Aligned Turbines - makes wind turbines and solar panels the same width
47. Hospitality Vending Machines - guests can buy food or items
48. Device Standby - turn appliances off when not in use (save power)
49. Misc Endgame - new town charter win condition
50. Expanded Roofing - transparent roofing (greenhouse) and solar panels on roof
51. New Game+ - saves settings used for every new colony
52. Improve This - mark existing buildings to improve quality, no deconstruction
    

 

Recommended Mods

 These are mods I use in every game because they significantly enhance gameplay:

1. Geological Landforms - adds more variety to the types of maps that can be generated
2. Biome Transitions - maps that are adjacent to other biomes become slightly blended
3. More Vanilla Biomes - adds more biomes
4. Regrowth Boreal - enhances the Boreal Forest biome
5. Regrowth Tundra - enhances the Tundra biome
6. Regrowth Temperate - enhances the Temperate Forest biome
7. Regrowth Swamp - enhances the Swamp biome
8. Regrowth Tropical - enhances the Tropical Rainforest biome
   
9. Regrowth Arid Expansion - enhances the Arid Shrubland and Desert biomes
   
10. Regrowth Aspen - adds new Aspen Forest biome (permanent autumn colours)
11. Regrowth Wasteland - adds new Wasteland biome (polluted, mutated plants/animals)
12. Regrowth Boiling - adds new Boiling Forest biome (colourful plants and hotsprings)
    
13. Interaction Bubbles - see what pawns are talking about at a glance
14. Dubs Bad Hygiene - adds bathrooms and water management
15. Hospital - patients arrive seeking medical aid, boosts faction relations on recovery
16. Hospitality - look after guests and improve faction relations
17. Hospitality Casino - guests can pay to use poker table and slot machines etc. 
18. Hospitality Spa - guests can pay to use swimming pool/sauna/hot tub
    
19. Map Preview - see what a map looks like before settling there
20. Misc Training - adds training dummies to improve combat skills and recreation
21. Quarry [Adopted] - adds a pit for mining rocks and resources 
22. Mend and Recycle - repair damaged clothing and weapons 
23. Utility Columns - combines lighting with heaters/freezers/trade beacons etc.
24. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Core - adds lots of extra furniture and recreation options
25. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Power - adds more power generators and batteries 
26. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Art - adds lots of art options
27. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Architect - adds more structures (floors, bridges, fences etc.)
28. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Props and Decor - adds non-functional decorations
    
29. Vanilla Weapons Expanded - adds lots of extra weapons
30. Vanilla Armour Expanded - add lots of armour
    
31. Vanilla Apparel Expanded - adds lots of clothing
32. Vanilla Apparel Expanded Accessories - adds useful accessories
    
33. Vanilla Hair Expanded - adds more hairstyles and beards so pawns don't look the same
    
34. Vanilla Fishing Expanded - adds fishing 
35. Fish Traps - adds passive fishing
    
36. Vanilla Animals Expanded Core - adds more animals 
37. Vanilla Animals Expanded Endangered Animals - save endangered animals
38. Vanilla Animals Expanded Waste Animals - adds animals that survive pollution
    
39. Vanilla Plants Expanded - adds more variety of food crop plants
40. Vanilla Plants Expanded More Plants - add more variety of food crop plants
41. Vanilla Plants Expanded Mushrooms - adds more plant life in caves
    
42. Vanilla Cooking Expanded - adds more food crops and cooking recipes 
43. Vanilla Brewing Expanded - adds more drinks and smokes
44. Vanilla Brewing Expanded Coffee and Tea Module - adds several coffee and tea types 
45. Vanilla Helixien Gas Expanded - adds natural gas power network
    
46. Vanilla Psycasts Expanded - adds lots more psycasting 
47. Vanilla Social Interactions Expanded - pawns affect others around them more
48. Vanilla Traits Expanded - pawns have more personality
49. Vanilla Backstories Expanded - pawns have more personality
    
50. Vanilla Events Expanded - adds more events (some long-term)
51. Vanilla Ideology Expanded Memes and Structures - adds more ideology customisations
52. Alpha Memes - adds more ideology customisations
    
53. Vanilla Factions Expanded Settlers - adds new factions and equipment
54. Vanilla Factions Expanded Viking - adds new factions, equipment and events
55. Vanilla Factions Expanded Medieval - adds new factions, equipment and tech-limiting
56. Vanilla Factions Expanded Pirates - adds new factions, warcaskets, hire mercenaries
57. Vanilla Chemfuel Expanded - new ways to obtain chemfuel and power appliances
    
58. Alpha Animals - adds lots of interesting wild alien creatures
59. Alpha Mythology - adds lots of mythological creatures 
60. Alpha Bees - breed bees that can produce all sorts of resources
61. Grains and Brewing [1.4] - adds more grain crops and alcoholic drinks
    
62. RPG Style Inventory Revamped - changes visual display of pawn's gear
63. Stack XXL -  increases stockpile storage limits
64. Tech Advancing - researching increases colony technology level so takes less time 
65. Giddy-up 2 - can ride mounts 
    
66. EPOE-Forked - adds more prosthetics 
67. Smart Farming - turn off planting if crops won't survive, auto-cut blighted crops etc.
68. Windows - adds windows 
69. Simple Utilities Fridge - small freezer that stops food rotting
    
70. Rim of Madness Bones - butchering provides bones that can be used like wood
71. Sometimes Raids Go Wrong - chance for unexpected events during raids
72. Altered Carbon Ultratech Unleashed - adds transfer of consciousness to another body
73. Project RimFactory Revived - adds automation
74. Jewelry - adds gemstones and craftable jewelry (boosts social impact) 
75. Animals Are Fun - play fetch or take pets for walk etc.
76. Romance on the Rim - pawns can go on dates and lovers have more social interaction
77. Temperature Control Unit - over-wall combined heater/cooler
78. Housekeeper Assistance Cat - pet cat that hauls and cleans
79. More than Capable - pawns can do work types they hate but mood will suffer
80. [LTS] Furnishing - adds more furniture and structures
81. Nurse Job - adds nursing job for non-medical patient-care tasks like feeding/visiting
82. Run And Hide (Continued) - marks a spot for people/animals to flee to when in danger
83. Farmable Neutroamine - grow neutroaleaf that can be processed into neutroamine
84. Research Whatever - if no research is set, automatically choose cheapest project
85. Erin's Decorations - Adds doormats and decorations for the home
86. [ATW] House Decor - adds pot plants and decorations for the home
    
87. [T] More Floors 1.4 - adds lots of flooring variations
88. Stuffed Floors - adds flooring styles that can be made from various materials 
89. More Vanilla Fences - adds impassable fences
    
90. Appliances Expanded - adds more appliances that run on chemfuel
91. P-Music - adds a lot of background music to the game
    
92. Music Expanded Core - adds lots of background music
93. Music Expanded Wasteland - more background music
    
94. Actually Vanilla Music Expansion - adds more background music
    
95. Remedies - adds more medicine options
96. RT Power Switch - can auto-connect/disconnect batteries to manage power storage 
97. Custom Prisoner Interactions - more options for converting and releasing prisoners
98. Modular Table and Chairs - can make L-shape tables or long benches 
99. River's Tribal Shoes - adds neolithic shoes
100. Smokeleaf Industry Reborn [Adopted] - lots of new uses for smokeleaf
101. BallGames - adds basketball, volleyball and soccer as recreation activities
102. Carbon - make synthetic materials from chemfuel at biofuel refinery
103. ShowModDesignators (Continued) - shows which mod an item or research comes from
     

 

Situational Mods

These are mods I might use occasionally, are nice-to-have but not essential or would be useful for a themed save-game:

1. Dubs Rimatomics - nuclear power and advanced weapons
2. Rimefeller - drill for oil and process into synthetic materials
   
3. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Security - adds more defensive structures
4. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Production - adds more crafting benches
5. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Farming - adds more planters and hydroponics
6. Vanilla Books Expanded - write skill books that others can read and learn from
7. Vanilla Outposts Expanded - send pawns to a resource gathering campsite 
8. Vanilla Factions Expanded Empire - adds more depth to Royalty expansion
9. Vanilla Factions Expanded Deserters - go to war with the Royalty empire
   
10. Vanilla Factions Expanded Ancients - search vaults for advanced tech
11. Vanilla Factions Expanded Classic - adds pseudo-Roman empire and neolithic tech 
12. Vanilla Races Expanded Sanguophage - adds more depth to vampire xenotype
13. Vanilla Races Expanded Phytokin - adds more depth to dryad xenotype
14. Vanilla Races Expanded Hussar - adds more depth to hussar xenotype
15. Vanilla Races Expanded Highmate - adds more depth to highmate xenotype
16. Vanilla Races Expanded Genie - adds more depth to genie xenotype
    
17. Vanilla Races Expanded Saurid - adds lizard-people xenotype
18. Vanilla Races Expanded Android - adds sentient robot xenotype
    
19. Vanilla Plants Expanded Succulents - adds wild succulents and houseplants
20. Vanilla Animals Expanded Royal Animals - adds animals with benefits from Royalty
21. Vanilla Weapons Expanded Grenades - adds various grenades
22. Vanilla Cooking Expanded Stews - adds medieval tech stews
23. Vanilla Cooking Expanded Sushi Module - adds sushi and Japanese meals
24. Vanilla Nutrient Paste Expanded - pipe nutrient paste to dispensers 
    
25. Vanilla Skills Expanded - colonists with level 15+ skills gain specialisation bonus
26. Vanilla Backgrounds Expanded - new backgrounds for menu and loading screens
    
27. Alpha Biomes - adds new extreme biomes 
28. Alpha Genes - adds lots of new genes and xenotypes
29. Alpha Mechs - adds extra mechanoids
30. Alpha Vehicles Neolithic - adds simple vehicles for transporting items and people 
31. Vehicle Framework - enables vehicles
32. Vanilla Vehicles Expanded - adds lots of vehicles
33. Det's Xenotypes Stoneborn - adds a dwarf-like xenotype
34. Anthrosonae - adds new animal-influenced xenotypes
    
35. Beautiful Outdoors - plants and natural environments make pawns happier
36. Overflowing Flowers - adds more flowers and plant density
    
37. Megafauna - adds dinosaurs and other extinct animals
38. Dinosauria - adds dinosaurs
39. Regrowth Extinct Animals - adds extinct animals
    
40. Xeva's Rimhair - adds more hairstyles
41. Erin's Hairstyles Redux - adds more hairstyles
42. Erin's Auronya - adds a cat-person xenotype 
43. Erin's Fenrisulfr - adds a dog-person xenotype
    
44. Erin's Shisune - adds a nature-loving deer/fox-person xenotype
    
45. Erin's Japanese Furniture - adds Japanese style furniture
46. Erin's Japanese Cuisine - adds Japanese style meals
    
47. Erin's Cottage Collections - adds cottage-style furniture, clothing and decor
48. T's Samurai Faction - adds samurai factions, equipment and furniture
49. Edo Themed Expansion - adds bamboo forest, samurai equipment and furniture
50. Edo Themed Backstories - adds samurai backstories
    
51. VFME Simple Tofu - adds tofu production and recipes
52. T's Wild Child Rags - adds neolithic clothing for children
    
53. Simple Utilities Ceiling - adds ceiling lights
54. Fortifications Neolithic - adds more defensive structures 
55. Sparkling Worlds Full Mod - adds new factions and advanced technology
56. Statue of Colonist - immortalise important pawns as a work of art
57. Statue of Animal - immortalise important pets as a work of art
    
58. Medpod - advanced hospital bed for treating injuries, disease, missing body parts
59. Roo's Painting Expansion - create paintings at an easel
60. Autocleaner - simple cleaning robot
61. Gene Ripper - choose which gene to extract, but pawn dies
62. Power Tab 2 - shows what is generating and using power
63. Cyber Fauna - adds prosthetics and surgery for animals
64. Floordrawings - children can draw more pictures on the floor 
65. Childrens Drawings - children can draw more pictures on the floor
    
66. Signs and Comments - add signs to label rooms or leave comments on floorplans
67. 1-2-3 Personalities M1 - adds a personality type that affects behaviour 
68. 1-2-3 Personalities M2 - adds more social interactions based on personality type
    
69. Biotech Cloning - create clones 
70. Food Poisoning Cures - cure food poisoning
71. Gemstones - adds more precious gems that can be used for art, structures or trading
72. Tribal Warrior Set - adds more tribal clothing and armour
73. Plant Human - a unique way to get more wild (wo)men that could become colonists
74. [LTS] Tenants - guests pay to stay long-term
75. We Are United - easier to recruit family members of colonists
76. Cargo Container - condensed storage 
77. Cargo Waste Container - waste pack storage and degradation without pollution
    
78. Devilstrand Animals - animals that produce devilstrand
79. Pygmy Muffalo - cute minature muffalo that produce wool and milk
80. Flommel - like pokemon, these animals have many variations and uses
81. Wild Pokemon 1.4 - lots of pokemon creatures to collect
    
82. Meat Blend 1.4 - combine different meats into generic meat blend (saves space)
83. Resource Trees - resources (e.g. components, silver) grows on trees
84. Rimworld Farming - adds tilled soil without being overpowered
85. AnyPlant - grow any plant in pots (including crops and miniature trees)
86. Gardens - adds a garden zone for random flowers and trees from options list
    
87. Diary - make daily notes to record your colony's story, saved to a text file
    
88. Simple Checklist - adds a To-Do list on screen, can be moved
89. Garden Light - small solar-powered lamp for outside
90. Lava Lamps - funky coloured indoor lamps
    
91. Metaflora - adds mechanical plants for decor, no green thumb required
92. Terrasecurity - grow organic weapons in the garden, for low-tech natural defence
93. Vanometric Generator - adds a fuelless power generator
94. Animal Discovery - notification when selected wild animals are on map (e.g. thrumbo)

Unnecessary Mods

These are mods that I have tried but either didn't like, didn't think it enhanced gameplay or there is another mod that does the same thing better. This is my personal opinion and some people may disagree and love these mods more than I do. If you enjoy them, that's great!

1. OgreStack - increases stockpile storage limits
2. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Medical Module - adds more hospital furniture
3. Vanilla Furniture Expanded Spacer Module - adds space-age furniture
4. Vanilla Base Generation Expanded - adds more layouts to foreign bases 
5. Vanilla Factions Expanded Insectoids - adds more insects, weapons and armour
6. Vanilla Factions Expanded Mechanoids - adds more mechanoids, technology and war
7. Vanilla Animals Expanded Caves - adds spiders and other cave-dwelling creatures
8. Vanilla Genetics Expanded - formerly GeneticRim, semi-obsolete due to xenotypes
9. Vanilla Trading Expanded - adds stock market
10. Pawnmorpher - mutate pawns, giving animal features
    
11. Door Mat - adds door mats to reduce dirtying rooms
12. Misc Robots - utility robots (similar to labor mechanoids in Biotech)
13. Dubs Skylights - lets light through the roof (i.e. for indoor greenhouse)
14. World Map Beautification Project - makes the world map prettier
15. Gloomy Furniture - different style of furniture
16. Victorian Decorations - different style of furniture/decor
    
17. Dubs Paint Shop - change colour of buildings and items (now part of base game)
18. SpeakUp - adds more dialogue options
19. Rah's Bionics and Surgery Expansion - adds more prosthetics
20. VGP Vegetable Garden - adds more food crops (similar to Vanilla Plants Expanded)
21. Simply More Bridges (Continued) - can build more types of bridges
22. [LTO] Colony Groups - advanced group management and pawn display 
23. Open the Windows - adds windows
24. LightsOut - turns off lights and machines when not in use
25. Gastronomy - create a restaurant with colonists as waiters
26. Infused - adds random enchantments to equipment
27. Vein Miner R1.1 - mine connected ores
28. Replimat - store ingredients in a tank then create meals on demand at replicator
29. Small Shelf - 1x1 shelf, now part of base game
30. Dreamer's Dreams - dreaming while sleeping impacts mood
31. Tribal Medicine 2.0 - new medical plants and restorative teas
32. LWM's Fuel Filter - options to restrict what types of fuel can be used for refueling
33. Quality Builder - control who can build items and set minimum quality for building
    

Broken Mods

These are mods that I uninstalled because they caused minor graphical glitches or performance issues or major problems like crashing the game:

1. JecsTools - caused errors for me
2. RimFridge Updated - caused errors for me 
3. Numbers - caused lots of lag
4. Where is my Weapon?[1.0-1.4] - caused lots of lag
5. Avoid Friendly Fire - caused lots of lag
6. Human Alien Races - caused graphic glitches with Biotech xenotypes
7. Doors Expanded - caused game-breaking UI bugs for me
8. Water Freezes - caused glitches and lag for me
9. Bunk Beds - some bugs with who can use bunk beds
10. Rim-Robots_ - caused errors for me
11. Turn It On and Off - UI bug doesn't show if it's working or not
12. [SYR] Prosthetic Table - doesn't work for me (no recipes assigned to bench) 
13. [KV] Save Storage, Outfit, ... Operation Settings [1.4] - not working for me :(
14. Research Tree - caused game-breaking bugs for me :(
15. Better Electronics - not preventing solar flares/breakdowns/short circuits