This is a very small two files you place into your mods folder (non-destructively) that allows:

-Mods being discovered and loaded into the game even if they are too many folders deep.

-Script mods functioning when they are more than one folder deep.

-And the real point, the ability for modders to easily create patches that non-destructively modify other modder's mods (and still require the download of the original mod!!) without much learning curve. You just put your changed content into the Patch folder, and it will overwrite any other content that would have shared the same ID/Value. Please see below for some quick documentation.

Instructions as a Mod User:

1. Put the contents of this zip into your mods folder. Overwrite if asked. This will add a Patches folder to your Mods folder:

2. To install a patch made by another modder, simply place it in the Patches folder. That's it!

- - -

Instructions as a Mod Author:

~~Draw a summoning circle around yourself with off white chalk. Make sure no dogs are barking..~~

Basically any .package you put in the Patches folder will:

1. Load and play in the game.

2. Overwrite mods loaded into the game.

You can use this for two purposes. The first is if you have two mods from separate authors and they conflict on one entry, you can choose which you prefer and put that whole mod into Patches and that ONE entry will prefer the mod you picked, while preserving the functionality of both mods. A lazy man's compatibility patch!

The second purpose is you can (with respect of permission obtained by the original mod author of course) open an existing mod, find some values you want to change, and make a new package with ONLY those entries in the package. (See my included example below for clarification.) So for example if you have a huge mod that has several strings, graphics, and sims interactions- and you only want to change the gender (like a boarding school mod that you don't want co-ed) then you would delete EVERYTHING from the package except the Sim Filter Tuning file and add an entry for gender so spawned sims are the gender you want. AKA just mod the mod and only keep the entries you changed in the package you're working on. Keep all of the instance ID's the same as the original mod. (Also super lazy, isn't this great?)

Now just take the .package you made and put it into the Patches folder. The original mod will load, then the values you changed will overwrite the original values of the mod and the modified mod will play in game. If the mod author allows, you can then distribute your patch to others while ensuring that users still have to download the original mod from the original mod author.

I've included an example patch for the Boarding Stable mod by flauschtrud in the files section for this mod. I made the patch, but flauschtrud made the original mod- and as you can see in the comments, gave me permission to create a patch AND their boarding stable mod comes with a license text file that states editing of their mod is allowed. Thank you so much flauschtrud for allowing me to patch your wonderful mod!

My patch simply adds a new line to the Sim Filter Tuning file (you can compare the changes by viewing it in the original mod, and then my patch) and modifies a number entry in the Situation Job Tuning file. Therefore my patch .package looks like this:

Which causes their boarding stable mod to only spawn male horses, and spawn more NPC horses than the original mod, thus creating a stud farm instead of a boarding stable.

[PW] Mod Patch Framework & Enhanced Nesting Depth