Archives

Generation 1 Legacy Accounting

Apr10

So, I backpatched my story into the Sims 3 Legacy Challege just b/c that made it more fun. I’m probably going to be rejected by any purists b/c I don’t want to keep 10 generations on one lot and build a big house. I want to use precreated houses (by people with far more aesthetic skill than I have) and move my Sims family around as it gains power. I still plan to score family net worth when I get to the end. And, honestly, with the inherent money loss that goes with selling a place and buying a new one, it seems like though I didn’t spend my first generation camping on a huge lot, I’ll be taking a bit of a hit to net worth over time.

At any rate, now that Generation 1 is dead, I can account points for their lives.

Generation: 1, a point for the first generation

Lifetime wants: 2, both members of the bloodline (Susie and Connor) fulfilled their lifetime wants

Portraits: 2, Lance painted portraits of both of his parents, getting them in just under the wire

Legacy House/Net worth: 1, net worth is over $100k at the time of Connor’s death

Aspiration Rewards: 2, both Connor and Susie reached 100k lifetime happiness points. Neither reached 200k. Geeze, I can’t imagine how I’d get them to do that.

Total for generation 1: 8 points

One more bit going forward. I decided that I wanted a family trait, but Lance didn’t actually share any traits with his mother. I really wanted the trait to be Brave, which neither of his parents had (Lance did inherit Good from his father, and aside from the fact that he’s not the Sample founder, I so do not want that to be the family trait).

BUT, remember that I only gave Susie four traits because I thought she could fill in the blanks as an adult based on her experiences? Well… serendipity! With a bit of Midlife Crisis, I gave her the Brave trait for her final trait after she retired. It didn’t disrupt anything she’d been playing with all her life, and thus I declare that it is not Against the Rules. Thus, the whole bloodline is backpatched into a Legacy.

1.15 Still Crazy

Apr3

Susie and Connor have been a really cute relationship to watch. They are just crazy about each other, and a good 1/3 to 1/2 of their wishes always involve each other. Sometimes, it’s just to talk. Or play a together.

Sometimes it’s a bit more.

But mostly, it’s Woohoo. Connor is a quiet little horndog. Once he and Susie have done the nasty, he immediately generates a wish to do it again. Sometimes during the afterglow of the time before.

Ah, Sim love. It warms the heart.

1.14 Time Stops for No Man Either

Apr3

Connor actually completed his lifetime wish of $4000 in book royalties before Susie did. He was a couple of days younger than she, but his birthday popped up as soon as Lance returned from France.

He was too shy to throw a party himself, but Susie threw it for him.

Connor immediately retired from his journalism career, where he’d reached Level 8. He’d only kept it this long so that he didn’t lose his vested pension.

(It took me a couple of Sim days to figure out why Connor looked weird. In the magic of Sims aging, his beard was shaved off. I gave it back to him, and he looked much better.)

Though he continued to church out best-selling mysteries (now the Simlish series of supernatural mysteries: Simmetry, Simplicity, Simmer…), he turned his fresh time to gardening, something he’d always enjoyed but never had time for.

And fishing.

Susie did not retire. She kept on performing in concerts several times a week, plus autograph sessions for her dedicated fans.

Some of them showing their age as well.

1.13 Indiana Jones Lives

Apr3

Lance has been working out, and you can tell.

Mrrawr.

His high school gave him a surprise project: interview someone from France. In France. Seriously? Well, hey, why not? Two celebrity parents left him with a bit of disposable cash. So he booked a three-day trip to Champs les Sims.

The food was pretty damn good, even for a Vegetarian.

(Lance can pick up the contents of an entire cheese plate and eat it like a sandwich. My physics-stomping boy.)

Someone here has great taste in cargo shorts.

Then someone hired him on a mission to find her missing lucky baseball. Yes, that’s baseball. And he was launched into the secret world of underground catacombs.

Lance excavated.

He hauled around ancient statues to open secret passageways.

He found ancient artifacts hidden in strange places.

He mourned the hundred-years-dead.

He found the baseball and returned it to the weird lady who lost it. In addition to her gratitude and her endorsement for him to get a longer visa for visiting France, he had a pile of antiquities to sell. To museums, right? These things should go to museums. More than that, he’d found his calling in life — to loot ancient tombs for priceless antiquities that he could sell for a ton of cash.

Lancelot, only heir of a rock star and a celebrity author, had a bit of a trust fund set up. He could afford the travel, and he didn’t need to get a day job. Eventually these trips would start paying for themselves. Who wouldn’t want to be Indiana Jones?

1.12 Time Stops for No Woman

Apr3

Susie threw a housewarming party in her new digs.

Here she accomplished what she couldn’t do before: charm enough people to max out here Charisma skill. She completed her life’s ambition!

Celebrating all around.

Or harrassment in Jared’s case.

(Love the wicked look on his face as he scares Susie.)

The victory came none too soon. Susie’s birthday was upon her. She threw a nice party in the back yard. (The back yard is a much better place for parties. It helps with the inevitable Sim party traffic jams.)

And aged into an elder.

Was Connor bothered by Susie being older than he was? Absolutely not.

We’ll close the curtains on the festivities here.

1.11 A Little Bit of Daring Is a Fashion Choice

Apr3

Lancelot set up his easel on the little balcony by his bedroom.

But his Brave heart called for a little more adventure. He decided to explore the catacombs under the Sunset Valley graveyard. With somewhat predictable results.

In the mysterious depths of the catacombs, he discovered a Mysterious Mr. Gnome and then lost a face-off with something more dangerous and explosive than he was.

Lance was exhilarated. Sure, the mysteries of the catacombs had blown up in his face, but he’d face them down! He couldn’t wait to go back.

Mr. Gnome took a place by the fishpond in the back yard to be mysterious.

1.10 Conspicuous Consumption

Apr3

Connor dabbled in writing Science Fiction and Drama, which didn’t bring in much money. Then he launched the Whodunnit mystery crime series, and his writing career took off. (Whodunnit, Whatdunnit, Whendunnit, Wheredunnit, and Howdunnit. Whendunnit made a nice showing on the NYT Bestseller list and maybe be optioned for a movie.) With that, his respectable journalism career, and Susie’s superstardom, the money really started rolling in. It was time to upgrade their lifestyle.

They shopped around for quite a while. (Read: I browsed all over fan sites to find a house I really liked and they could actually afford.) But eventually they found one that worked for them and me.

The whole family packed up and said goodbye to the cottage across the street from the beach.

Piled into Susie’s limo.

And said hello to a three-story Victorian on a cliff overlooking the bay. The third story was unfinished, but it was ready for expansion in the future. It was perfect for their new budget.

The move in was confusing, of course.

Lance jumped on the space-themed kid’s room, because, you know, you don’t have to be a LITTLE kid to appreciate that. Jared got bumped to the lavender room. Connor and Susie bunked down in luxury in the master bedroom.

Lance moved his weight set the to the attic and turned that into his gym.

To top it all off, they went green and bought a 2010 Prius. Time to stop relying entirely on bikes and car services.

(An exact clone of the car that we bought this year, down to the color and the tinted windows. I’m sure that was part of Toyota’s marketing reasoning in releasing the car as a game object. I am probably not the only hybrid-interested Sims player.)

1.9 Into Success a Bit of Failure Must Fall

Apr3

Everything was coming up roses for Susie.

She drew crowds wherever she played. People recognized her on the street. Her band became popular and changed her role to make her more and more prominent. With every role change, from backup guitarist to lead guitarist to front woman, she had a new sexy absurd costume to wear.

Then she maxed out her guitar skill and was promoted to Rock Star (that’s a promotion, eh) in short succession. There was much rejoicing.

Oh, yeah, the rejoicing.

We’ll close the curtains on the rest of that.

If she turned the charm on to a few more people, she would max out her Charisma skill, which would mean she met her lifetime ambition — to be the best, most charming guitarist possible.

So, why not throw a party, where she would have a whole lot of people to charm? That would take let her reach her goal with the ultimate style.

She threw a formal party at Simplicity Wedding Garden (a cute public lot download that I wanted to try out).

The family drove there in her chauffeured limousine, which befits a proper Rock Star.

Yes, that’s a pink limousine.

Lancelot arrived, resplendent in a white dinner jacket, with Malika on his arm.

Um, Malika’s dress kind of stole Susie’s look. Imitating bitch.

But the real problem was noxious green haze surrounding Malika. She showed up smelling like she’d rolled in a sewer and then forgotten to shower for days. From the look on her face, even she could stand the smell of her.

The party started going downhill as soon as she arrived. The guests just couldn’t get over the stink.

Trying desperately to salvage things, Susie got out the guitar and tried to serenade the crowd, but it didn’t help much.

(Note Susie’s formals match Malika’s down to the hair.)

People left quickly, before Susie had much chance to charm anyone. Susie was furious, but Lancelot was crushed. This was Malika, the love of his life. How could she do that?

Susie tried to console him, but he had a lot to think about. The bloom was off the rose just a little too soon.

Eventually, in the twilight, after everyone had left, Susie sat alone and tried to clear her head.

There was a silver lining. The fiasco was the doorway to some long-needed mother-son bonding. So Susie kept Lance company while he painted… and played with his old dollhouse.

The next day they did what he wanted and spent a while playing catch.

Career isn’t everything, after all.

1.8 Massive Collision Detection Failure

Apr3

Lance aged up and became Brave just in time.

The morning after Malika stayed the night, she attempted to make breakfast for him and set the stove on fire.

While all the rest of the family panicked, Lance grabbed the fire extinguisher and put the fire out right through the wall.

Lance, you are so awesome you defy the laws of physics.

After Malika left, Lance had sudden desire to take up painting.

Tough but sensitive, that’s my Lance.

1.7 Sometimes You Get a Second Chance

Apr2

After his disastrous birthday party, Lancelot figured his best route was to stay as far away from Malika Williams as possible. There weren’t a lot of ways to recover from that kind of humiliation.

Then, out of the blue, she turned up at his locker and asked him if he’d like to come home with her after school to hang out. Hell yes!

They had a nice time playing catch in her yard, and after that they became friends.

Lance had no idea what he could possibly have done so right. He used to call her before, but she’d never have time to talk. Now he tried to call again, and she was eager to talk to him. It was almost as if his public humiliation was what had led Malika to notice him. He didn’t want to let the moment slip away.

He invited her over to his place as soon as he could come up with a good excuse. Both his parents were at work, and Uncle Jared was off being Uncle Jared, so he had the place to himself.

What would they do together? How could he impress her? Maybe she likes chess?

Or maybe foosball?

She kept smiling at him, and she seemed to enjoy anything he suggested. With all that encouragement, he was able to nerve himself and confess. He’d loved her since middle school.

Her eyes lit up. She loved him too.

Lance couldn’t believe it. He had a girlfriend. He had Malika as a girlfriend. Who could be more fortunate?

There was only one person in the world.

(This kiss was totally spontaneous. Clearly they were so crazy about each other that even the bathroom was fair game.)

Lance invited Malika to stay the night and even slept on the couch so that she could have his bed. (Wherein I discover that Sim teens are not allowed to sleep in the same bed.)