Mod Load Order - A deception broken into pieces.

In the first section of the load order, you should place the most basic mods regarding UI, visuals, (technical) extentions of basic stuff.

For me it was always the best to place stuff in first section, that you would also patch in for any Ironman variation you play Stellaris with.

This is ment to be the very basic stuff you want to load, that in most cases doesn't even change checksum. Besides UI-mods like Orrie's outstanding UI Overhaul Dynamic and it's submods + modpatches, colors and such, you want to include also building slot extentions and alike.

In 2025 it is reported that some mods want UIOD to be placed after their mods to work properly, so you have to consider and test if you re-place it into section #9/IX after all other mods (don't forget to move depending mods too) or count on one of the compatibility patches.

The second sector is related toward any stuff you like to color up your gameplay.

This should include any namelists like Cyberxkhan's namelist, star names, flags, species, pre-scripted empires, AI enhancements like Starnet AI or the new Beachboys Fair AI 2, origins, sound files, also advisors and more.

Ships, fleets, shipsets, visual enhancements to ships or shipnames.

Namely you should place here any shipsets, like Machine Shipset, you like to include, except mods that need a special position in the load order (like NSC, differnet blueprints, patches to them, aso.).

Here you place any mod, that would alter the galaxy shape, numbers of stars, hyperlanes + visibility, different system views, any planetary modifiers (growth rates, extra conditions for planets or peoples) up to Gatekeeper's wonderful Planetary Diversity + submods + UI patches.

This sector is related to traditions like More Traditions + possibly UI patches for more traditions, traits, as well as standalone civics and other society mods.

At this point you might consider to include different ethics, Petruxa's post-successors like Ethics and Civics Alternative - FunEFork or Ethics & Civics: Bug Branch and others + UI and other patches.

Here you put in everthing related toward Diplomacy like Government Variety Pack, Leaders enhancements, altered Federations or Laws, Vasal modifiers, Events like Caligula Ceasar's MEM mod and Stories packs you like to enhance your gameplay with.

This is the great dump, you'll include anything that doesn't fit into the other sectors.

If you like your Rulers proceed or upgrade differently, if you have new weapons or tech you like to test, if you have different battle behaviors or rules for your fleets up to the latest NSC mod and possible alternations for the game's pace by using Shio's No Space Race 3 or more dramatic affected engine or ship speeds ....just put it all in this sector and don't forget the obvious needed UI and other patches.

Reserved for any mods that tendent to do real gamechanging, that are big and bloated or need to be placed at the bottom, so it could overwrite any of the before included mod changes to their special needs. For me it was reserved for very unique and big stuff like Gigastructural engineering and similar mods.

Last and least you put here any unspecific and unrelated common patches like Universal Ressources Patch that are ment to be a base for several other mods to function correctly.

But you also might want to include quite unique stuff or hacks like No limit for influence that didn't fit to one of the above sections or at least should not be overwritten by any of the above mods.