Ok. I'll just make this my go-to post for talking about graphics mods for Witcher 3.
First and foremost, if you're going to install a lot of mods, you need this.
Mod Limit Fix. Otherwise the game will glitch out and mods won't work.
Lighting
*
Immersive Lighting Mod (nudel edition) - This is my favorite lighting mod, and I've tested most of them. Interiors are a bit dark though.
More screenshots:
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5
Textures
*
HD Reworked Project - Higher res textures all around. Must-have if you ask me. Just look at these
boat textures!
*
Monsters Reworked: Higher res monsters
Grass
* Elysium Grass - High quality grass that looks amazing in every area.
Make sure your
mod.settings file has the following
[mod0Elysium]
Enabled=1
Priority=0
*
Meadows - Very green grass that covers really well if you turn up the density, albeit with less variety. Great performance, too.
*
Beautiful Grass V3 - Higher quality grass with more variety.
LOD (and other tweaks)
*
Next Generation LOD (beta): Higher quality meshes/models/textures at a distance.
*
UGOM or
Tweaks (both give you higher control of graphics options in-game): this is how I increase foliage density and push out the grass rendering distance, among other things.
NPCs
*
High Quality heads/shadows
Misc Stuff
*
Beautiful Rocks - PERSONAL PREFERENCE. But I love this mod. Makes the rocks really stand out.
*
UHD Oaks
*
True Fires - Makes every fire/light source stand out from miles away. Really cool, but hits performance.
Check this out.
*
Next Gen Haystacks - Trust me, you want it. They look like shit from 30 meters out otherwise.
*
Next Gen Candles - I mean... why not
*
Alternative Chimney Smoke - Makes it look better and stands out more. I like option 4.
Here's a screenshot I took with it.
*
Dark and Leathery Wolf Gear - If you're a wolf lover like me.
Screenshot (black version)
*
Alternate Alnus trees
Non-graphical related mods
Alternate Appearances Menu Mod (AMM) - This is always the first mod I install. This mods lets you completely customize the look of Geralt and Roach, regardless of what you're actually wearing. So if you hate the way griffin armor looks but still want to wear it for the stats, this is the mod for you.
Can also give you a cloak and hood.
Photomode 2inOne - Essential mod even if you plan to use Ansel for screenshots. This mod gives you hotkeys to change the weather. Also has some effect toggles, slow motion (or super speed), Geralt visibility toggle, etc etc.
There's so much more on the Nexus, but too much to list here. I have 55-60 mods in stalled, mostly for little things here and there, and some AMM enhancements. Look around. There's a ton of QOL mods, gameplay enhancements, etc etc. But those are all down to personal preference.
Friendly HUD is a really cool one to check out, too.
(Screenshot examples are just some of my personal shots that feature the mods. Not official from the mod pages or anything.)