Ok reinstalled now, patched, ran played for a bit. Decided to go download the mods I made (just textures nothing big). Seems the patch has some sort of encription that has gone haywire and keeps me from playing again (even the error seems to know its broken). I'm going to reinstal, is there much downside in not patching? I think I noticed it patching mdl's.

well, i'd go ahead and get the patch due to the many bug fixes it makes, but i'd recommend getting the patch from a third-party in *.exe form instead of the autopatcher. check out sites like dlx.gamespot.com and www.filefront.com) for the self-extracting executable. ;)

and just a notice, you may want to try installing any mods after you patch the game. i'm not sure if it'll make a difference, but its definately worth a shot.

if you need more help, don't hold back from asking. that's what we're here for. :D