Here’s a ready-to-copy post for a forum, Reddit (like r/TombRaider or r/pcgaming), or a Steam guide. It’s written to be clear, helpful, and portable-friendly.
Title: ✅ Tomb Raider (2013) – How to Install Mods (Portable & Non-Steam Version)
Body:
If you’re running a portable copy of Tomb Raider (2013) – whether it’s from GOG, a no-install backup, or just moved to an external drive – modding works slightly differently than the standard Steam Workshop or automatic installers. But it’s still very easy. Here’s how.
Portable versions usually require TexMod or Special K / TR Mod Loader.
Easiest for portable: TexMod (old but works). tomb raider 2013 how to install mods portable
Some mods (e.g., Merlino's Reshade, or the "Better LOD" mod) claim to require Nexus Mod Manager (Vortex) or Mod Organizer 2. These managers will fail with a portable install because they cannot symlink files across drives.
The Portable Workaround for Manager-Dependent Mods: Here’s a ready-to-copy post for a forum, Reddit
For SKSE-style mods (there are none for TR2013) – but if a tool requires registry, use a Portable Registry Editor like RegFileExport.exe to manually create the keys on the target PC.
Recommended folder structure:
Tomb Raider (2013)/
│
├── TombRaider.exe
├── bigfile.* (original + modded versions backed up)
├── dxgi.dll (SpecialK)
├── SpecialK.ini
├── SpecialK64.dll
│
├── TexMod/
│ └── TexMod.exe
│
├── Mods/
│ ├── textures/
│ │ └── *.tpf
│ ├── tiger_backups/
│ └── readme.txt
│
├── SK_Res/
│ └── inject/
│ └── textures/
│
├── Tools/
│ ├── TigerTool.exe
│ └── TexMod_x64.exe (if needed)
│
├── Launchers/
│ ├── play_vanilla.bat
│ ├── play_texmod.bat
│ └── play_specialk.bat
│
└── Mod_Backups/
└── original_bigfiles/
Run TombRaider.exe directly. If it crashes, restore original bigfile.*.