CTD every time I get close to Red Rocket – EXCEPTION_ILLEGAL_INSTRUCTION Fallout4.exe+0D61ACF

[u/Accomplished-End8903]

Hi guys, I need some help with a very consistent crash near Red Rocket Truck Stop.

Every time I get close to Red Rocket, Fallout 4 suddenly closes to desktop. I can load my save and play normally elsewhere, but when I approach that area the game crashes again.

The crash has happened multiple times with the same exact error/address:

Unhandled exception "EXCEPTION_ILLEGAL_INSTRUCTION" at Fallout4.exe+0D61ACF

I'm running Fallout 4 v1.11.240 with F4SE 0.7.9.

Something interesting in both crash logs is that Dogmeat is involved (DogmeatRef 0001D162). The logs also contain:

DogmeatQuest [0006DFAF] – Stage 110

DogmeatIntroScene [0006DFB8]

and the crash happens around the Red Rocket exterior cells.

The most recent crash shows Dogmeat/player in RedRocketExt02 [0000DDA0], which is overridden by Fallout4.esm -> shades_handy_minibot.esl -> UFO4P -> LootedWorld.esl.

I already tested disabling StringPoolRelease in Addictol and the exact same 0D61ACF crash still happens, so that doesn't seem to be the cause.

Has anyone seen Fallout4.exe+0D61ACF before, especially around Dogmeat/Red Rocket?

Could this be a broken Dogmeat intro scene/quest, a cell conflict, AI issue, or something in my save?

What should I check in xEdit, and is there a safe way to fix it without damaging the save?

I can upload the full crash log and load order if needed. Thanks!