Also a smart thing to do: find and download the Neo-Standard pictures as soon as possible, as many mods use the neo-standard pictures (and I believe that there is even a Neo-Standard ++ version, though I have only seen one race with those pics). Also, go to the
Image Mod web page and download it - thought it is a very large download - as a lot of mods use the Image Mod, too. Also, having these two addon packs (they're almost basic requirements for modding/mod playing), you can easily create your own mods for use in the game. If you've got a mod that you think is really cool, post it here so that other people can give you their opinions/advice on it.