Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for My Star Wars: KotOR Same-Gender Romance Mods

(Note: This FAQ article was originally published on Nexus Mods. I decided to host this article on my own website instead for better management and formatting)

This article compiles the frequently asked questions I have received for my same-gender romance mods for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KotOR) series.

PLEASE READ THIS ARTICLE BEFORE ASKING QUESTIONS ABOUT MY ROMANCE MODS!

My same-gender romance mods for KotOR 1 include:

• Carth Onasi and Male PC Romance

My same-gender romance mods for KotOR 2 include:

• Alternate Revan Romances REDUX
• Atton Rand and Male Exile Romance
• Dahnis Flirt Option for Female PC
• Darth Sion and Male Exile Mod
• Handmaiden and Female Exile – Disciple and Male Exile Romance
• Visas Marr and Female Exile Romance

I have also compiled a list of all the same-gender romance mods various modders had created throughout the history of KotOR modding.

Please make sure you have downloaded and installed the latest version of my mods, and read the Read Me files of my mods to make sure you have followed ALL the information and instructions in my Read Me files before asking questions for technical support.

When you are asking for technical support, please provide details for the issues you encountered: when and how did your problem start happening and what mods you have installed. Simply saying "mod doesn't work" DOES NOT help the mod author to figure out the cause of your issue. When I ask you for more details, please answer my questions honestly, so I can identify how to solve your problems. Telling me ALL the mods you use will help me greatly in figuring out if your issue was caused by mod conflict or not.

If you play KotOR 2 on Steam, make sure there are no leftover Steam Workshop folders in your Steam directory, because Steam Workshop mods will likely conflict with my mods, and even unsubscribing Steam Workshop mods does not always remove all Workshop mod files completely. To check for any leftover Steam Workshop files, go to the Steam Workshop folder in your Steam directory (/\Steam\SteamApps\Workshop\), and delete all the sub-folders in the Steam Workshop folder if they are present.

Try to right-click your KotOR 2 folder or subfolders, go to Properties and uncheck the "Read-only", then try to install my mod again to see if it works.

First, go to the folder where your KotOR 2 game is installed, and go to the Modules folder, then check if the .mod files mentioned in the error messages are in your Modules folder.

For example, for Handmaiden and Female Exile – Disciple and Male Exile Romance mod, you need to check if these .mod files are in your Modules folder:

• 003EBO.mod
• 006EBO.mod
• 262TEL.mod
• 301NAR.mod
• 303NAR.mod
• 402DXN.mod
• 602DAN.mod
• 610DAN.mod
• 650DAN.mod
• 907MAL.mod
• 908MAL.mod
• 909MAL.mod
• 950COR.mod

If you cannot find those .mod files in your Modules folder, your issue might be caused by your computer registering two different installation locations for KotOR 2. I suggest you check out this guide on how to make sure your computer recognize the version of KotOR 2 game where you want to install KotOR 2 mods on. While the guide focuses on Steam version of KotOR 2, you could edit the registry to make your computer properly recognise the installation location of your KotOR 2 game.

Here are the default installation locations of KotOR 2 depending on the game version:

• Steam (32-bit Windows): C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\Knights of the Old Republic II
• Steam (64-bit Windows): C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Knights of the Old Republic II
• Retail CD (32-bit Windows): C:\Program Files\LucasArts\SWKotOR2\
• Retail CD (64-bit Windows): C:\Program Files (x86)\LucasArts\SWKotOR2\
• Steam (32-bit Windows): C:\GOG Games\Star Wars - KotOR2

If you do not know if you have Windows 64-bit or 32-bit, refer this article, "How to Tell if You Have Windows 64-Bit or 32-Bit", to find out.

NO. I do not use Steam Workshop, and frankly, I hate the Steam Workshop for how terrible it is for modding KotOR 2 and how much mod compatibility issues it causes. I suggest you read this post on why using Steam Workshop is NOT recommend for modding KotOR 2. Therefore, I DO NOT want any of my mods to be added to the Steam Workshop.

STOP ASKING FOR ANY OF MY MODS TO BE ADDED THE STEAM WORKHOP. MY ASNWER WILL ALWAYS BE A FIRM NO, FULL STOP. NO EXCEPTIONS.

See my answer to the previous question. I am not responsible for any bugs caused by you using any mods from the Steam Workshop. The only suggestion I will give you for compatibility issues between my mods and the Steam Workshop is to get rid of all your Steam Workshop mods entirely, and make sure there are no leftover Steam Workshop folders in your Steam directory. In order to do this, go to the Steam Workshop folder in your Steam directory (/\Steam\SteamApps\Workshop), and delete all the sub-folders in the Steam Workshop folder.

Please read the “Mod Compatibility” section of my mod description and Read Me files before asking. If there is a mod you want to use that was not mentioned in my mod description and Read Me files, you can still ask me. Just make sure you tell me the actual name of the mod and ideally, provide a link to the mod you want to ask about, so I can check the mod out myself to confirm if it is compatible with my mod. Do not expect me to know the existence of every single KotOR mod out there.

Yes, all my KotOR mods, not just my same-gender romance mods, are compatible with KotOR Community Portal's mod builds.

That said, some of my mods require you to install at a very specific point of the mod builds:

• Handmaiden and Female Exile - Disciple and Male Exile Romance should be installed immediately after PartySwap and before Extended Enclave. If you also want to install Extended Enclave, you should use the compatibility patch included in my Handmaiden/Disciple romance mod, instead of the standalone patch I made for the mod build. If you plan on using Kreia's Fall In-Game Cutscene, you need to install the compatibility patch included in my mod.
• Atton Rand and Male Exile Romance needs to be installed after PartySwap. If you also use Kreia's Fall In-Game Cutscene, you need to install the compatibility patch provided by Atton Rand and Male Exile Romance.
• Visas Marr and Female Exile Romance needs to be installed after PartySwap.

No. I play and mod the KotOR game in English exclusively. Some of my mods in particular will cause your game to crash if you are playing a non-English localization of the KotOR games and TSLRCM, because those mods add custom dialogues that do not exist in the vanilla game in order to prevent characters from referring to the player character as the wrong gender.

The only solution to crashes caused by you playing on a non-English localization is to play the KotOR games and TSLRCM in English. Unless someone is willing to volunteer to translate or localize my mods, do not expect non-English version of my mods will happen.

If you are interested in making a non-English translation or localization of my mods yourself, you may contact me to ask for my permission to do so. However, since I am not familiar with any of the non-English languages officially supported by the KotOR games, I am unable to provide support for any issues players may have with using your non-English translation or localization of my mod. Therefore, you are on your own when it comes to providing support the non-English localizations.

No, I will not make a no-TSLRCM version of my mods that require TSLRCM to function. TSLRCM is widely agreed by players, including KotOR modders, to be an essential mod for the best experience with KotOR 2. Making a non-TSLRCM version of content mod like this would require me to spend extra time to replay KotOR 2 without TSLRCM, and therefore subjecting myself to a lesser experience with the game, which I consider a massive waste of my time. In general, if you see any KotOR 2 mod that requires TSLRCM to work (not just my mods), do not expect to see a non-TSLRCM version.

If you are having issues with using TSLRCM, I suggest you report the bugs you encountered and ask for help for solving your issues on the TSLRCM forum on Deadly Stream.

Unfortunately, I cannot directly help with modding the KotOR games on macOS or Linux, because I have only played the games on Windows. However, the KotOR games can be modded on macOS or Linux.

For macOS, you may refer to KOTOR Community Portal's guide for modding KotOR on macOS.

For Linux, KOTOR Community Portal's modding guide recommends installing mods on a case-insensitive file system, with VFAT recommended as an option by other users. Otherwise, you will need to rename a huge number of files. Additionally, the FAQ page of KOTOR Community Portal's modding guide notes that:

The Linux version on Steam (possibly also on GoG; this is unconfirmed) has two override folders, one in the main game directory and one in a "steamassets" folder. For the installation to function properly, all override files need to be placed into the override folder in this steamassets folder, and all executable installers need to be pointed to the steamassets folder as if it were the base installation directory.

Sorry, I cannot directly help with modding the KotOR games on any console or mobile devices, because I only own the PC version of the KotOR games. I make no promises that I will port my KotOR mods for those platforms specifically either.

Some of my mods require installers, namely TSLPatcher or HoloPatcher, to make the mods work properly, especially if you want to use other mods in addition to my mods and for KotOR 2, The Sith Lords Restored Content Mod. Simply copying and pasting files from my mod to your game's directory does NOT guarantee my mod will work as intended, and you may encounter bugs that could possibly game-breaking.

For Android and iOS users, I suggest referring to the KotOR Community Portal's modding guide, specifically their general instructions in their mobile mod builds. See this page for KotOR 1 and this page for KotOR 2.

For Nintendo Switch users, in order to mod the KotOR game on Switch, first you need to hack your Switch or install a modchip in your Switch, then use the KotOR Switch Modding Framework and KotOR II Switch Modding Framework to install mods. According to JacqylFrost, the creator of these frameworks, both TSLRCM and my Handmaiden same-geneder romance mod work with the KotOR 2 version of the framework. I suggest you ask JacqylFrost directly if you need help with modding the KotOR games on Switch.

For Steam Deck users, you may refer to JacqylFrost's Steam Deck modding guide on the KotOR subreddit.

No. The goal of my same-gender romance mods is not necessary to add new content, but to allow players to experience the pre-existing romance content in the KotOR series without the heterosexual gender restrictions. Kissing scenes are beyond the scope of my mods, and I do not necessary have the skills required (such as modelling, animations, etc.) to create them either, especially given how limited the animations in these old games are.

For Carth Onasi and Male PC Romance mod for KotOR 1, if you want your male PC to kiss Carth, you may install cjt0202's Carth Romance Fix mod, then install the compatibility patch provided in my mod.

No. Due to the fact that these characters were never intended to be romance options for the player character, creating romance content for these characters require extra work and effort, namely writing new dialogue, scripting and animating new scenes, and ideally, finding voice actors or using voice synthesithers for these new content, because some people (myself included) find it immersion-breaking to see party member suddenly become silent in certain lines despite being voiced in every other dialogue. This goes beyond my modding capabilities, and I do not have enough time and desire to put this large amount of work in video game mods for the foreseeable future.

I am a lesbian who would like to see more representation of LGBTQ+ people and relationships in media, including Star Wars, and I am not the only one who feels this way. I made these same-gender romance mods for fellow LGBTQ+ players who want more gay content in KotOR as well. I find KotOR 2's complete lack of same-gender romance options especially disaappointing, since the first KotOR at least has Juhani as a canon lesbian romance option, so I made these mods to fill the void. In fact, after releasing my same-gender romance mods, many other LGBTQ+ players have expressed gratitute for the existence of these mods, and consider these mods a huge improvement to their KotOR experience.

Cisgender heterosexual people already get countless representations in media, including Star Wars, bcause cishet people are considered the default and the norm. If the idea that everyone in your favorite piece of media could be gay makes you uncomfortable, perhaps you meed to examine why you feel that way. Keep in mind that LGBTQ+ people already have to see countless pieces of mainstream media filled with cisgender heterosexual characters without a single LGBTQ+ character even existing.

Frankly, opposing the concept or existence of same-gender romance mods for video games is homophobic. As a gay person, this is a stance I will not change my mind on. Any comment or message that tries to argue with me otherwise will be ignored or deleted without response.

That is just your opinion, and an opinion I will never agree with. Like it or not, there will always be someone who would like to see gay content for any of the characters affected by my same-gender romance mods.

No. I will never make Juhani a romance option for male characters under any circumstances. I also do not support any mods that make Juhani a romance option for male characters.

It is my firm belief that Juhani should remain a lesbian and her romance should remain exclusive to female characters because she is an officially confirmed lesbian character. Read this article about my stance on protecting Juhani's status as a lesbian, and why.

I know an AI cannot beat a human voice actor when it comes to delivering emotions, but getting a voice actor doing a Juhani impression instead of an AI for those new lines is much easier said than done. I do not have the money to hire voice actors, and whether I can find a voice actor who is able to do a Juhani impression is another big question, especially given how unique Juhani's voice is. An AI voice synthiser is genuinely the best option for me with the very limited resources I have as one person and fan of the game who makes mods for free. Unless someone is willing to volunteer to voice Juhani for a mod, likely for free, I can never make any promise that there will be an actual voice actor for Juhani's dialogue in this mod.

If Handmaiden does not join your female Exile's party when you are using my Handmaiden romance mod, the possible causes for this happening include:

• You did not install my mod correctly. Either you get errors when installing the “Default Installation” option, or you did not install DarthTyren's PartySwap mod first before installing the “PartySwap Compatible” option of my mod.
• You have a holorec.dlg file in the Override folder, either from a mod you are using or a mod you previously used. If there is a holorec.dlg in your Override folder, delete it.
• You may have some leftover Steam Workshop folders in your Steam directory that overrides the portion where Handmaiden is supposed to join your party. To solve this, go to the Steam Workshop folder in your Steam directory (/\Steam\SteamApps\Workshop\), and delete all the sub-folders in the Steam Workshop folder.
• Similar to the above, you may have some leftover files from a mod you used in your previous playthrough in your KotOR 2 game directory that interferes the portion where Handmaiden is supposed to join your party. The best way to solve this is to uninstall your game, delete your KotOR 2 game folder entirely, and then re-install the game and the mods you want to use.

No, and I see no point in making such mod when DarthTyren's PartySwap mod already exists to allow you to recruit both Handmaiden and Disciple in a single playthrough regardless of the Exile's gender. Additionally, my mod's primary goal is enabling same-gender romance options, so neither male Exile/Handmaiden nor female Exile/Disciple romance is a priority of my mod.

Therefore, if you want Handmaiden or Disciple in your party regardless of your Exile's gender, my recommendation is to use PartySwap. If you also want same-gender romance with Handmaiden or Disciple, install the PartySwap compatible installation option of my mod after PartySwap. Even if you prefer Handmaiden to Disciple, or vice versa, I will still recommend you to use PartySwap instead so you can get the most out of the party members in a single playthrough.

This is not a problem with my mod. The FAQ of The Sith Lords Restored Content Mod (TSLRCM)'s mod page and Read Me file already addressed this:

Due to a bug, sparring with Handmaiden while in outer space (directly after leaving the Telos Academy) made the fight unwinnable. So for TSLRCM you will have to travel to another planet, exit and re-enter for the option to appear, giving a glitch-free sparring. It's not gone, no worries!