the MM takes so much memory by itself that adding mods to it are not recommended.
I have megamod plus a couple dozen other mods I use, and if I minimize the game, it takes about 30 to 45 seconds to load. I have not had crashing or performance problems until I get to about 500 population, at which point I get flickering from low frame rate. My computer is two years old now, but it was on the bleeding edge when I bought it, so I guess that's why.
I would also add,
@grizz , that it matters what the mods actually do. Mods that just re-skin buildings, or that give you the option for larger families, don't seem to have any impact on performance. Mods that add flora with lots of polygons, on the other hand, absolutely do give you a performance hit, even on a machine like mine. One of the starting conditions from CC, Appalachian Forest, increases the number of trees, stone, and iron that generates on the map. Plus CC added a bunch of new types of trees. I do sometimes see flicker when I'm panning rapidly across the forest.
Another thing to consider with mods is that a lot of them really change the game balance. CC is noteworthy for being wildly unbalanced. There's no real consistency among production chains, and in some cases you actually lose trade value by refining products. (Rope making being the most egregious example.) RKEC is far, far better balanced, so if you want a total game overhaul, that's the one to play.
And then we have the flax problem. There are three or maybe four different types of flax, created by different modders. Megamod does unify those, but you can screw that up by placing other mods on top of it. There's a flax patch, but I've never used it so I can't say whether or not it covers all the possible varieties.
So, my advice is to understand that adding mods from all over the place might well cause problems, but that none of them will do lasting damage. Just tinker around with your mod selection and mod order until you find a combination that works for you.
