Monthly Modder: CaptainUltima

Longtime modders often develop their skill over many years and across multiple titles.

This month’s Featured Modder, CaptainUltima (Bethesda.net, Nexus), is a perfect example of this type of modder, as he began honing his skills with Oblivion and releasing mods for Fallout 3 and has been releasing a variety of mods ever since, from weapons, to outfits, to festive seasonal content for the holidays.

In our interview, CaptainUltima tells us about his modding development over the past couple decades, how his love of sci-fi draws him to the Fallout franchise, how he’s looking to further develop his skills, and more. While his seasonal content may be most relevant to this time of year, he has a long catalog of mods to keep you entertained all year long, has formed connections across the BGS modding community, and offers great insight about modding.

Tell us about your background with mods - when did you start playing with them, and when did you start making them?

I started practicing making mods during Oblivion after my cousin gave me his old copy of Photoshop though, oddly, I never ended up releasing anything I made for Oblivion. I started using mods and had my first own mod released on nexus for Fallout 3 and have been modding Fallout games since.

Looking at your catalog of mods, it's obvious you love the Fallout universe. What is it about the world of Fallout that most attracts you to it?

I’ve always been a huge sci-fi nerd, I love Star Wars, Star Trek, RoboCop, marvel’s Iron Man and so on. It’s this same aspect that pulled me in to Fallout. The Power Armor in the cover of Fallout 3 is what initially got me to get the game and when I received my Pip-Boy in the vault I was hooked.

In addition to the Pumpkin Pack we are featuring this month. you've also made a Santa Power Armor suit. Why do you like to make these seasonally themed items, and what's the response from the community to them?

Seasonally themed mods seem generally well accepted, people seem to like to decorate their settlements, weapons and power armor with seasonal holiday themes so they make for great mods to make.

Are there any mods still in your head that you're looking to create or challenge yourself with next? How would you like to further develop your modding abilities?

Yes, I do have a few more ideas in my head for Fallout 4 and plenty I’m already planning for Starfield, additionally I have been making assets for other fellow modders. I would like to improve my 3D modeling skills, it’s something I’ve not quite managed to grasp well enough as well as my skills in scripting.

What modding resources have been helpful to your development that you would recommend to people looking to learn?

Both YouTube and Discord have been invaluable in my modding journey. Many people much more talented than me have posted tutorial videos on YouTube for nearly any subject and through Discord I’ve met many amazing modders who have either helped me or taught me.

Lastly, what are some of your favorite mods or mod authors?

NewerMind43 is an amazing 3D artist who doesn’t get the exposure they deserve. They make amazing clothing and power armor models completely free.
Elianora, my dear friend who doesn’t need introduction. Her skills in cluttering and house mods are just beyond this world.