Tuxborn Installation Linux Jackify Premium - Omni-guides/Tuxborn GitHub Wiki

This is the recommended method for Linux/Steam Deck users with Nexus Premium. Jackify provides fully automated installation from start to finish, with native Linux performance and automatic Steam integration.

• Linux system or Steam Deck (SteamOS, Fedora, Arch, Ubuntu, etc.)
• Nexus Premium subscription (required for fully automated downloads)
• Skyrim Special Edition installed in Steam and launched at least once (to download all Creation Club content)
• ~344GB of free disk space (includes both installation and downloads - downloads can be deleted after installation)
• Downloads can be stored on a different drive/SDCard than Tuxborn is being installed to
• Steam installed and configured
• Proton available in Steam (version can be selected in Jackify settings. GE Proton 10-14 recommended)
• Protontricks installed - see Installing Additional Tools

By default, the Steam Deck allocates a starting 1GB of VRAM to the GPU. Increasing this to 4GB improves performance and stability in graphically demanding modlists like Tuxborn. This setting is changed in the Steam Deck BIOS (UEFI) and takes about two minutes.

1. Power off your Steam Deck completely
2. Hold Volume Up (+) and press the Power button simultaneously - keep holding Volume Up until the UEFI loads
3. On the boot screen, click "Setup Utility"

Screenshot: Steam Deck UEFI boot screen showing Setup Utility option

4. Navigate to the "Advanced" tab
5. Scroll down to "UMA Frame buffer Size" and select it
6. Change the value to "4G"
7. Select "Exit" then "Save Changes and Reset"

Screenshot: BIOS Advanced tab with UMA Frame buffer Size set to 4G

Tuxborn requires all Creation Club content downloaded through the in-game Creations menu - not the Steam-distributed version. This step must be completed before running Jackify.

1. Launch Skyrim Special Edition from Steam
2. If prompted to download Creation Club content on first launch, allow it to proceed
3. If no prompt is shown, from the main menu select Creations, then "Download All" to download any remaining content, waiting for each item to show as Installed
4. Exit Skyrim

Screenshot: Skyrim Creations menu with Creation Club content installed

The Rare Curios version issue: Bethesda distributes Rare Curios through Steam (uppercase filenames: ccbgssse037-Curios.bsa) and through the in-game Creations menu (lowercase: ccbgssse037-curios.bsa). Pretty much all Wabbajack modlists that require Creations content need the lowercase version. If you have uppercase files in your Skyrim Data folder, delete them and re-download from the Creations menu before proceeding.

1. Visit the Jackify Nexus Mods page
2. Download the latest Jackify 7z archive from the Files tab

Screenshot: Nexus Mods page showing Jackify with download button highlighted

1. Extract the Jackify.AppImage from the 7z archive
2. Open a terminal/Konsole window and make it executable:

   chmod +x Jackify.AppImage

3. Run Jackify:

   ./Jackify.AppImage

Screenshot: Terminal showing extraction, chmod, and execution of Jackify.AppImage

If you encounter permission issues, ensure FUSE is installed on your system (most modern Linux distributions and SteamOS include it by default).

For more detailed installation instructions and troubleshooting, see the Jackify Installation Guide on GitHub.

1. Launch Jackify (GUI mode is recommended)

Screenshot: Jackify main window - the starting point for all operations

2. From the main menu, click "Modlist Tasks"
3. Click "Install a Modlist"

Screenshot: Jackify main menu showing Modlist Tasks option

Screenshot: Modlist Tasks menu showing Install a Modlist option

1. In the installation screen, click "Select Game Type"
2. Choose "Skyrim" from the list

Screenshot: Game type selection with Skyrim selected

1. Click the "Select Modlist" button to open the Gallery
2. The modlist browser will load available Skyrim modlists
3. Search for "Tuxborn" in the search box, or scroll to find it
4. Click on Tuxborn in the list to select it
5. Click the "Install" button to confirm your selection

Screenshot: Jackify modlist gallery with Tuxborn visible

Screenshot: Tuxborn modlist card with Install button

If you haven't already authorised Jackify with your Nexus Mods account:

1. Click the "Authorise" button in Jackify
2. This will open your browser to complete the OAuth authentication with Nexus Mods
3. Log in to your Nexus Mods account if prompted
4. Authorise Jackify to access your account
5. You will be redirected back to Jackify automatically

Screenshot: Jackify installation screen with Authorise button

Screenshot: Nexus Mods OAuth authorisation page

Note: If you've already authorised Jackify with Nexus Mods in a previous session, you won't need to do this again.

Don't have Nexus Premium? See the Non-Premium guide instead.

1. Click "Browse" next to Installation Directory
2. Navigate to or create your desired installation location
3. Click "Browse" next to Download Directory
4. Navigate to or create your desired download location

Example Paths for Steam Deck:

Installation: /home/deck/Games/Tuxborn
Downloads:    /home/deck/Games/Modlist_Downloads/Tuxborn

Example Paths for Desktop Linux:

Installation: /home/username/Games/Skyrim/Tuxborn
Downloads: /home/username/Games/WabbajackDownloads/Skyrim

SD Card Users: If installing to an SD card, first find your SD card's mount name by opening a terminal and running:

ls /run/media/deck/

This shows the name of any mounted SD cards (e.g., MySdCard). Your full path would then be /run/media/deck/MySdCard/Games/Skyrim/Tuxborn.

Screenshot: Installation screen with directories configured

Tips:

• It is recommended to keep installation and download directories separate
• Installation directory should be on fast storage (NVMe/SSD) if possible
• Download directory can be on slower storage (HDD/SD card) and can be deleted after installation

Select 1280x800 for Steam Deck handheld play. If you plan to play docked at a higher resolution, select your monitor's native resolution here, or change it later via MO2 (see Additional Notes).

Screenshot: Resolution dropdown with 1280x800 selected

1. Review all your settings:

   • Game Type: Skyrim
   • Modlist: Tuxborn
   • Installation Directory: (your chosen path)
   • Download Directory: (your chosen path)
   • Nexus Mods: (authorised)
   • Resolution: (your chosen resolution)

2. Click "Start Installation" to begin

Screenshot: Complete installation configuration ready to start

Jackify will now automatically:

1. Download the modlist file
2. Download all required mods from Nexus Mods using your Premium account
3. Extract and organise all mod files
4. Install and configure the modlist
5. Convert textures
6. Build BSAs
7. Restart Steam (required for shortcut creation)
8. Create Steam shortcut with proper Proton configuration
9. Configure launch options and compatibility settings
10. Set up artwork

Screenshot: Installation in progress showing real-time status updates

Installation Time: On a Steam Deck, the process can take several hours depending on your storage setup - SD card installs take significantly longer than internal storage. On a more powerful desktop or laptop it could be done considerably faster. Download time is separate and depends entirely on your internet connection speed.

What to Expect:

• Progress indicators show download speed and file counts
• The process is resumable - if interrupted, restart with the same directories and it will continue
• You can monitor progress in real-time
• Detailed logs are available if you enable "Show details"

If you encounter issues during installation:

• Failed Downloads: Jackify will automatically retry. Nexus Premium significantly improves reliability.
• Interruptions: Simply restart Jackify and use the same directories - installation will resume
• Errors: Check the detailed logs by enabling "Show details" checkbox
• Curios Mod Issue: If you encounter errors related to ccbgssse037-curios, you have the wrong version of Rare Curios. See the Prepare Skyrim section above for how to resolve this.

Once installation completes, Jackify will display a success message with next steps.

Screenshot: Installation complete dialog with success message

1. Open Steam
2. Find "Tuxborn" in your library (or the name you configured - the default is "Tuxborn")
3. Click "Play" to launch Mod Organizer 2

Screenshot: Steam library with Tuxborn shortcut ready to launch

Steam Deck users: Once Jackify has finished and Steam has restarted, reboot your Steam Deck and return to Desktop Mode for the remaining steps.

Note: Jackify has automatically configured:

• Proton compatibility (using the version you selected in Jackify settings, or default)
• Proper launch options
• SD card mount paths (if applicable)
• Steam artwork (if available)

1. Click Play in Steam
2. Mod Organizer 2 will launch automatically
3. Wait for MO2 to fully load

Steam Deck users: DO NOT use the touch screen to interact with MO2 in Desktop Mode. Hold the STEAM button and use the trackpad to control the mouse pointer.

Screenshot: Mod Organizer 2 showing Tuxborn installation

Tuxborn includes multiple profiles optimised for different hardware:

• Tuxborn - Low-Deck: 40FPS experience on Steam Deck

• Tuxborn - Medium-Handheld: Additional visual quality, higher RAM/VRAM usage. Works on Deck but may have performance dips

• Tuxborn - High-Desktop: Expanded Community Shaders suite, higher INI settings for more powerful PCs

• Tuxborn MCO - Low-Deck: 40FPS experience on Steam Deck, includes MCO Combat Animation Framework

• Tuxborn MCO - Medium-Handheld: Additional visual quality, higher RAM/VRAM usage. Works on Deck but may have performance dips, includes MCO Combat Animation Framework

• Tuxborn MCO - High-Desktop: Expanded Community Shaders suite, higher INI settings, includes MCO Combat Animation Framework

Select your desired profile from the dropdown in the top-left of Mod Organizer 2.

Screenshot: Profile selection dropdown in Mod Organizer 2

1. Ensure your desired profile is selected in Mod Organizer 2
2. Click the "Run" button
3. Skyrim will launch with Tuxborn loaded

Screenshot: Mod Organizer 2 with Run button ready

Initial Launch Notes:

• Long load times: Via Proton, initial loading times can be longer than on Windows. On Steam Deck, launches can take 7-8 minutes. This is normal and sadly not just for the first launch. This is due to an efficiency issue with Proton.
• Shader compilation: The game compiles shaders on first launch. This is a one-off process that takes additional time.
• Possible crashes: You may experience 1-2 crashes during the first few launches. This is normal and should resolve after shader cache is built.
• Unusual main menu colours: The main menu background may show incorrect colours during initial shader building. This resolves once the game fully loads and stops happening after the first few launches.

Once loading completes and any prompts are dismissed, the Tuxborn main menu will appear. If you see this, the installation was successful and you are ready to play.

Screenshot: Tuxborn main menu - a successful launch

1. Start a new game and create your character
2. Before committing to your final look, test that you can type in the "Name Character" box
3. If you cannot type, restart the game once more and try again
4. If character naming appears to be working, you can continue with character creation
5. If typing still does not work after a restart, map the 'R' key to a back paddle temporarily

Note: This difficulty with character naming is due to Bethesda's attempt to achieve "Verified" status on Steam Deck, which affects keyboard input during character creation.

Once you have confirmed everything works in Desktop Mode, switch back to Game Mode and launch Tuxborn from the Steam library. Do not launch the vanilla Skyrim entry.

After confirming Tuxborn works correctly, you can delete the downloads directory to free up space:

rm -rf /home/deck/Games/Modlist_Downloads/Tuxborn

Only delete downloads after confirming everything works. You may need to re-download if you reinstall.

If you need to change resolution or frame rate limits:

1. In Mod Organizer 2, find "Tuxborn - Settings" in the mod list
2. Double-click it to open
3. Go to the INI Files tab
4. Select SSEDisplayTweaks.ini
5. Find the Resolution line and ensure it does NOT have a # comment symbol at the start
6. Edit the Resolution and FramerateLimit values as needed
7. Save and close

Screenshot: INI editor with resolution and framerate settings

Once you are 100% happy that everything is working as intended and you have no changes to make in MO2, you can use a Steam Launch Option to launch straight into the game, skipping having to first load MO2, and then clicking Play in MO2. This doesn't speed up the loading process any, just avoids having to click play yourself.

1. Right-click Tuxborn in Steam and open Properties
2. In Launch Options, add the following after %command% (leave anything before it untouched):

moshortcut://Tuxborn

Screenshot: Steam Launch Options with moshortcut entry added after %command%

Jackify won't start:

• (NOT on Steam Deck) Ensure FUSE is installed: sudo apt install fuse (or equivalent for your distro)
• Check file permissions: chmod +x Jackify.AppImage
• Try running from terminal to see error messages

Installation fails:

• Verify Nexus Premium is active on your account
• Ensure you have re-authorised with Nexus Mods if needed (click "Authorise" button)
• Ensure you have enough disk space
• Check internet connection

Mod Organizer 2 won't launch:

• Ensure Jackify completed the configuration phase (the success screen must have appeared)
• Check Proton is set in the Tuxborn Steam Properties
• Check the Tuxborn entry in Steam has the correct launch options

Game crashes repeatedly beyond the initial shader-build launches:

• Check Discord for known issues with the current Tuxborn version

• Tuxborn Discord: Join for support
• Tuxborn Wiki: Wiki Documentation
• Jackify Issues: GitHub Issues
• Jackify GitHub: Jackify Repository

System requirements vary significantly depending on which Tuxborn profile you choose. This section will be updated with specific requirements for each profile.

• Install on NVMe/SSD for faster load times
• Downloads can be on SD card to save internal storage space

On a Steam Deck, the extraction and BSA-building phase can take several hours depending on your storage setup - having the install directory on SD card takes significantly longer than internal storage. On a more powerful desktop or laptop it will be considerably faster. This does not include download time, which depends on your internet connection speed.