#it's so interesting to me that the twins have different skintones

[westerosims]

i aged up rhalla and aerea. it’s not as fun having them be tots when egg is gone. also i’m laughing so hard at benard’s face in the second picture. i agree, my man, tyanna’s forced pleasantry is absolutely terrifying. please stop singing.

[cardinal-carvings]

About: Archex Cal’lien

[ Physical Characteristics ]

Height: 5′11″ Weight: about 200 pounds, maybe give some Body build: well-built, muscular Eye Color: hazel

Glasses or contact lenses: n/a; Archex has better eyesight than any pureblooded human would and is even capable of seeing in the dark.

Hair Color: Best way to describe it is to say it’s not unlike a raven’s feathers-- it’s dark in colour, but not black-- a blue tint is obviously there, especially under the right lighting

Type of hair: somewhat thick, a little course but not in a way that’s unpleasant at all... it’s got a sort of soft, fluffiness to it if it’s allowed to grow out

Hairstyle: Military hair cut back in the Order, but after leaving it grows out and Archex takes to not cutting it down as much. In a way, it’s like breaking free from just another aspect of his life that was micromanaged back before he escaped. In his mercenary verse, Cal’lien actually allows it to grow out past his shoulders and keeps it done up in twin braids. Any other time, it usually doesn't grow past his shoulders.

Complexion and skin tone: Warm coloured skintone, oftentimes described as something akin to a ‘golden-tan’. Heavily covered in freckles.

Scent: The best explanation for back in the Order is ‘clean’, and perhaps the lingering smell of what he uses to polish his armour. Post-defection he tends to smell a bit earthy... like sunlight, if that makes any sense. Often times the scent of something he’s made recently to feed people may cling to him, or there’s a sort of wooden scent-- usually after he’s spent some time carving.

Voice: Hard to explain if you’ve never listened to the Phasma novel-- the narrator gives him an accent that has heavily stuck with me and will forever be associated to him (if I don’t hear the accent when writing, I know I’m not going to be satisficed)-- but I have sort of mashed it into Kalani’s voice. I also have a strong idea of his Jakku accent, but can’t find anything to point to for that... which drives me nuts.   Bonus; Archex pronounces words differently than everyone else in the book, despite it being the same narrator! It’s a fun little tidbit and it’s not exactly something that can be conveyed through writing.

Health: Aside from the factor he’d suffered greatly back on Jakku, and then just before he was dragged from the Order he sustained two major injuries that have permanently damaged him, Archex is rather healthy. The First Order goes out of it’s way to make sure those in it’s ‘care’ are always at their absolute best, even going so far as to ensure everyone’s getting vitamins they may well have missed out on for one reason or another. Between that, Archex’s stubborn desire to continue working out to stay in the shape he’d managed to reach, and the factor that Archex will be careful about things like eating healthy and staying hydrated... he’s healthy!

[ Intellectual | Mental | Personality Attributes and Attitudes ]

Native language: Not Basic, but I’ve yet to decide just what yet :) but he learns Basic properly once the Remnants of the Empire scoops him up. He understood a chunk of it due to his time on Jakku, but couldn’t form proper sentences.

Do they know any other languages: Plenty! Between being on Jakku, which housed enough different languages for a small handful of different phrases needing to be learned and the factor that it was important for him to learn them for his jobs in the First Order (comforting a kid who didn’t speak Basic yet, for example--)... that’s to be expected.

How smart are they: Smarter than he thinks he is, honestly. Due to the heavy programing and such thinking too much does tend to give him a massive migraine-- may also be a result from the drugs the FO put in their water, who’s to tell. Either way, there’s a roadblock to thinking too hard, so it takes awhile after his defection to break free of that.         It’s of note he’s capable of figuring out how to help just about any kid with learning things, no matter their strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes that is not an easy feat.

What is their strengths:  Kindness, stubbornness, a strong tenacity-- great with children and figuring out ways to survive despite all odds. Usually he’s one person who is sure to persevere.

Weaknesses: Kindness, stubbornness... his blind-loyalty. The touch of naïveté he actually has despite not realizing it-- he doesn’t quite understand the world he’s in like he thinks he does.

Short-term goals in life: Survive. End this war.

Long-term goals in life: Heal... help his children, however he can, to pay back for the role he’s played. Settle down, and provide a good home for any child in need of one.

[ How does your character feel... ]

... About love: He’s a romantic at heart, though there’s the probability he’d deny it if it were brought up. He’s not particularly looking for love, but if he were to settle down eventually he’d realize something is missing without a partner.

... About crime: Crime is... complicated. It’s not as black and white as he’d like it to be, and it makes it an ever shifting line in the sand. One that could be easy to pass over if you’re not careful.

... About Politics: ugh

... About People of a different sexuality: He’s pansexual... he’d date an alien. I don’t think he’d even bat an eye, honestly? I don’t think he’d even think to think it strange.

...  About Different nationality/Species: Despite being raised in the presence of those who survived the fall of the Empire, he’s not even a little xenophobic.

How does your character show affection/love: Acts of service and touch. His biggest way to convey that he cares deeply for someone is to be sure they’re eating healthily and staying hydrated. Making sure they get rest, and comforting them when necessary. If he knows someone's going through a rough time, he’s very likely to find a way to bring them something he knows they like-- usually food or a drink over anything else.

How does your character handle grief: He tries to keep to himself with it. Bottle it up and show no signs... it’s thanks to the Order, but also because of the role he had played when there. He didn’t have the luxury to grieve much, and what time he had alone had to be used for sleeping as much as he could manage it. Hate to admit this, but when the asshole Brendol died he had definitely thrown himself more into his work and nearly ran himself ragged because overperforming was more acceptable than underperforming... and it was a distraction.

Leader or a follower:  Not as much of a follower as everyone in the First Order wanted him to believe-- he’s a leader in his heart, it’s why he did so well as a Captain. He’s the kind of leader who will listen to those who follow and if they have valid concerns or a better idea, then so be it.

Are they 'big picture' or 'little details':  Big picture... sometimes little details, but usually big picture.

What kind of energy level does your character typically display: Back in the Order he actually had... alot of energy. He trained alot of kids, it was kind of necessary. It was a more contained sort-- nothing chaotic, but you could practically feel it when in his presence. Now...? He’s tired. Depression and the such has worn him out. But when he finds a task and dives into it, forgets everything...? He’s back to that level of energy he once had.

Describe their sense of humor: Self-deprecating.  Also, dad jokes but you don’t get those as frequently as you probably could-- again, FO shit. He also has a thing for irony, hah.

[ Hobbies ]

- carving: It’s something he had to do to survive back on Jakku, but has since turned it into a more proper hobby. Though he does usually sell the toys and such he carves, it’s not uncommon to see him gifting them to children who show extreme interest in them or to otherwise help distract / comfort them.

- cooking: Another thing he’d learned originally solely for survival, and something he’d been hesitant on exploring-- perhaps out of fear of messing up-- he actually picks it up rather quickly and loves to make food for others, especially those he cares about.

- does teaching count?: Especially with children, Archex has a love for teaching things. Even just something simple. It’s one thing the First Order never managed to take away from him.

        tagged by @irrfahrer​ <3

[simminglena]

🌈 RAINBOW BERRY! LEGACY CHALLENGE

     – I love berry Sims! You too? I know, right...? Aren’t they just so cute?

     I’ve been considering for a good while whether to do a Berry Challenge or not, but while @lilsimsie already​ shared her Not So Berry Legacy Challenge with us, I couldn’t click with it for some reason.      So, I’ve decided to create my OWN version. It will be a mix of the Not So Berry with the original Legacy Challenge and choose some new rules for my own Rainbow Berry! Legacy Challenge (´｡• ◡ •｡`)ﾉﾞ ♡

     If you want to join me in this adventure, buckle up, my friend! Here’s what you need to know (= •ㅅ• =)

     NOTE: In order to fully enjoy the Challenge, you must own ALL PACKS! Also, YOU WILL NEED BERRY SKINTONES!           You can find some here:

          • Noodle’s 16 Pastel Skin Colors           • SimplySimblr’s 25 Shades of Berries           • Noodle’s 64 Berry Skin Colors           • TheSimsperience’s 63 Custom Skin Colors

» The Basics:

     You will be playing with your Sims up to the 10th Generation. The perk of this Challenge is that each Generation will be represented by a signature color, wherever applicable. However, it is possible to choose whether their hair/eyes/clothes match their signature color (and skintone) or not.

» Rules:

          ▪ Cheats are not allowed. The only exception is for the FreeRealEstate cheat when you move into your first home.

          ▪ Your starter Sim must be created using random genetics.             NOTE: It is possible to tweak him/her, as long as none of the game’s presets is used. Keep in mind that some of your Sims’ traits, aspirations and careers must be randomly chosen by a Scenario Generator.

          ▪ The first born will always be the heir for the next generation unless otherwise stated.

          ▪ Every generation must complete both the Career and Aspiration unless otherwise stated.

          ▪ Lifespan must be set to Normal. Don’t forget to always keep track of your Sims’ aging! 

     In case you wish to share your Berry homes on the Gallery, or just wish to share your progress with the Challenge, feel free to do so by using the #RainbowBerryLegacy tag!

Generations list under the cut!

» The Generations:

     There are 10 Generations:           » CORAL (Red)           » PUMPKIN (Orange)           » CITRUS (Yellow)           » JADE (Green)           » MINT (Aqua)           » INDIGO (Blue)           » PLUM (Purple)           » LILY (Lilac)           » BERRY (Pink)           » ASH (Gray)

     BONUS! » EBONY & IVORY (Black & White)

     Each Generation has a list of goals you must achieve before passing over to the next one. Never forget your trustworthy Scenario Generator, because you will need to use it several times through your Challenge.

🌈 Generation #1:  CORAL

Gender: x // Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x // Career: x

     You are a fiery yet fun-loving young Sim with a liking for clubs and nightlife. You rarely make plans, and if you have to, you're most likely going to mess them up in order to follow your instinct. But you never give up, whatever result you get from your – sometimes reckless – decisions.

REQUIREMENT: Hot-headed trait.

» GOALS:

Get invited to a Club and become their leader;

Adopt a large dog;

Maximize Mischief and Dancing skills;

Have at least 5 lovers;

Get married and have one child after reaching the Adult phase.

🌈 Generation #2: PUMPKIN

Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x

     You're almost never seen without a bright, wide smile plastered on your face, and if you’re gloomy, it’s most likely because your batch of cookies didn’t turn out the way you wanted. Your heart belongs to the kitchen – and your furry minions – and your mission is to make your neighborhood a little happier everyday with your bakery. As you always say: Good Food is Good Mood.

REQUIREMENT: Goofball trait.

» GOALS:

Adopt at least 3 red cats;

Maximize Cooking and Baking skills;

Unlock and learn all recipes;

Run a bakery;

Find love, marry and have 3 children before Elder phase

The first Male will be the heir for next Generation.

🌈 Generation #3: CITRUS

Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x

     You are full of energy, with a big thing for gyms and good looks. You may be a bit narcissistic, but when it comes to your skills you’re so fond of yourself that you like to share your progress and enthusiasm all over the Social Networks. You're quite scatterbrained and perhaps a bit selfish, but overall, you’re a good noodle.

REQUIREMENT: Active trait.

» GOALS:

Social Media career;

Maximize Fitness and Videogaming skills;

Complete the Snow Globe and Postcards collection;

Propose to a childhood friend but leave her at the altar;

Get married to another sim and have at least 2 children before reaching the Adult phase.

The first Female will be the heir for next Generation.

🌈 Generation #4: JADE

Age: Young Adult // 1 trait: x // Aspiration: x // Career: x

     You must have been some kind of Flower Fairy in your past life. Everything concerning nature and its creatures is mesmerizing to you, to the point that you adore even the smallest flower and wish to live in extreme harmony with each living being surrounding you. 

REQUIREMENTS: Loves Outdoors and Vegetarian traits.

» GOALS:

Maximize Gardening, Fishing and Herbalism skills;

Own a Cowplant;

Join the Garden Gnomes Club and become their leader;

Complete Insect, Fish and Frog collections;

Marry a coworker and have one child before Elder stage.

🌈 Generation #5: MINT

Age: Young Adult // Traits: x // Aspiration: x

     You don’t quite share your mother’s interests. You believe in balance and good health. Your main focus – quite literally – is on human beings and the wondrous way the human body works, both physically and mentally. You’re extremely dedicated to your job... although you really enjoy your moments of relax.

REQUIREMENT: Doctor career.

» GOALS: 

Maximize Logic and Wellness skills;

Meditate and do Yoga at least twice a week;

Adopt a cat or a small dog;

Have 3 failed relationships before finding love with a Veterinary;

Never have children, but adopt a child before Elder stage.

🌈 Generation #6: INDIGO

Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x

     Justice. There’s nothing that excites you more than investigate and solve crimes in order to punish those criminals. But your heart is a soft one, and at times one must consider and evaluate different paths before making their choice... heart or career? In your case, definitely heart.

REQUIREMENT: Good trait, Detective career.

» GOALS: 

Maximize Logic and Charisma skills;

Adopt a large dog;

Find love with a Criminal before level 7 of your career;

Quit career at level 7 and move to a different scenario;

Marry in secret and have four children. 

The first Male will be the heir for next Generation.

🌈 Generation #7: PLUM

Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x

    Your brains crawl with questions. Quite literally. Why do we breathe oxygen? How many stars are beyond our sight? What’s Sixam, and what wonders does it hide? Your curiosity is what pushes you forward, and you’re determined to find the answer to all of your doubts! 

REQUIREMENT: Genius trait, Scientist career.

» GOALS:

Maximize Logic and Rocket Science skills;

Build a Rocket Ship;

Complete Alien, Geodes, Elements, Crystals and Space Rocks collections;

Have a relationship on the job before falling in love with an Alien;

Have two children before reaching the Adult phase.

🌈 Generation #8: LILY

Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x  // Career: x

     There’s a gift in each of us, and deep within you there’s a star. Your truest passion lies in music, and you wish to make a living out of it. You may be a little frivolous, but you know what you want, and you know how to get it... don’t you?

REQUIREMENT: Music Lover trait.

» GOALS:

Maximize Singing and Guitar skills;

Write at least 25 songs and earn at least 50.000§ by singing;

Become a World Famous Celebrity;

Have an affair with an Actor;

Have 3 children from 3 different relationships.

🌈 Generation #9: BERRY

Age: Young Adult // 2 traits: x // Aspiration: x  // Career: x

     You may be born in the spotlight, but celebrity life is not all fun and games. Fun, however, are the many many colors that surround you as you paint. Creativity is your best form of expression... maybe you could also make a few extra simoleons out of it?

REQUIREMENT: Creative trait.

» GOALS:

Maximize Painting and Photography skills;

DIY — where possible — your own furniture and decorations;

Earn at least 50.000§ by painting;

Marry a Snob sim;

Divorce, remarry and have at least two children.

The first Female will be the heir of next Generation.

🌈 Generation #10: ASH

Age: Young Adult // 1 trait: x // Career: x

     Life is boring. So boring. Nobody is up to your standards, and the only places you find interesting are inside the books you read. In fact, you wish to belong somewhere else. Humans are ephemeral, empty shells. You want to become superior and immortal... like those mysterious creatures in your favourite books.

REQUIREMENT: Bookworm trait, Bestselling Author aspiration.

» GOALS:

Become a Vampire;

Maximize Writing and Vampire Lore skills;

Write at least 25 books and earn at least 50.000§ by writing;

Unlock all your Vampire Powers and become Grand Master;

Entice and marry Count Vladislaus;

BONUS: Have TWINS – you may cheat for this one!

🌈 BONUS Generation: EBONY & IVORY

Age: Toddler RANDOMIZE TRAITS + ASPIRATION FOR ONE TWIN, THEN CHOOSE THE OPPOSITES FOR THE OTHER.

     You two are the complete opposite of each other. To you, everything the other does is utterly nonsensical, and just gets on your nerves. And yet, how is it that you two just cannot have your own lives? Will this curse ever end? Maybe adulthood will finally let you part your ways... or reconcile with each other.

REQUIREMENT: The twins cannot part until the challenge is over.

» GOALS:

Maximize at least 3 skills;

Mess with each other until Teen phase;

One sibling must steal the other’s lover at least once;

Get the same part-time job during Teen phase;

Share the same room until Young Adult phase.

Will the siblings finally part? Will they reconcile? Choose your own ending!

     Thanks for reading this far! It may be cheesy and predictable at times, but I had a lot of fun writing this Challenge, so I’m excited to share it with you!

     I hope you’ll enjoy playing it as much as I do! So, good luck, and Happy Simming! ヽ(°´∀`°)ﾉ♪ .･:☆

     NOTE: REPOSTED, UPDATED FOR GET FAMOUS.

[emmelfish]

100 Followers Gift: Born-In-Game Sims (Free to Good Home)

What the hell? 100 whole people are following this nonsense? I barely expected even five people to be interested!

Well thank you, you absolute beautiful people on Tumblr – I feel like I should gift you something in return. And until I learn how to recolor sweaters (it is after all my dream to make special sweaters for all the fraternities and sororities in the game), you can have some born-in-game sims. Do with them as you please! Utilize their lovely genetics as face templates! Be wary of their alarming personalities!

They come CC-free, packaged in basegame clothing. I do have some Maxis Match in-between skintone blends by PurplePaws installed that I use in my game, so if any sim is not S1, 2, 3 or 4, I’ll make that clear in the descriptions so you can apply your own equivalent when in CAS. 

You’ve not seen them yet in my gameplay pics, but my defaults are now the beautiful Fountain Eyes by @dreadpirate. Just be sure to use Clean Installer so that these simmies pick up your own defaults :)

Satan’s Twins, I mean... Skip Jr and Susie Broke

From the loins of evil (uh, actually Brandi’s and deceased Skip Broke’s) come these cheekboned blonds with their horrible personalities, but at least they love each other, right? Susie’s always dragging Skip Jr to parties he’s too introverted for, but he enjoys being misanthropic with her once they’re there and dragging everyone’s outfits. Christ, how did someone as friendly as Brandi ever give birth to these chodes?

Susie Broke

Sloppy/Neat – 3

Shy/Outgoing – 10

Lazy/Active – 9

Serious/Playful – 3

Grouchy/Nice – 3

Hobby – Fitness

I was planning on setting Suse to Popularity (baaaahahahahaha) because of those bonkers max outgoing points, but also, her love of Fitness means her body skills would be on point come career time and potentially lead to a Hall of Famer situation. Nope, when I put prototype adult Susie in a different neighborhood for this shoot she rolled Cult Leader. Of course she did.

Download Susie Broke

Skip Broke Jr

Sloppy/Neat – 3

Shy/Outgoing – 1

Lazy/Active – 10

Serious/Playful – 10

Grouchy/Nice – 3

Hobby – Sports

I’ve thought about making SJ a Knowledge sim – I think he has an interesting personality for that aspiration. When I tried it in his test hood he opted for the top of the Intelligence Career, and if it wasn’t for those 10 Playful points I’d probably wholly agree with that. Maybe he’d be the inappropriate prankster of the SCIA office?

Download Skip Broke Jr

Frida and Remedios Broke-Dreamer

Twin girls of Brandi and Darren Broke-Dreamer (Brandi’s second set of twins GOOD LORD), conceived when that pair said not one word to one another upon meeting and proceeded to plow. Here they are, old enough to be truly horrified by that story. Named after surrealist painters because of their artsy parents, they’re the youngest of SEVEN GODDANG CHILDREN (related to Dirk Dreamer and all four Broke kids). Man I love these two. 

Frida Broke-Dreamer

Sloppy/Neat – 3

Shy/Outgoing – 7

Lazy/Active – 10

Serious/Playful – 7

Grouchy/Nice – 7

Hobby – Fitness

Given I imagine Brandi’s second set of twins to be a little more laid back and hippyish than their older siblings, I headcanon Frida as an aspiring yoga teacher (the more spiritual end of the Fitness hobby?) although she’s the one family member who could potentially beat Skip Jr and Susie in an endurance test. She’d take after her mama as a Family sim I reckon.

Download Frida Broke-Dreamer

Remedios Broke-Dreamer

Sloppy/Neat – 3

Shy/Outgoing – 8

Lazy/Active – 4

Serious/Playful – 7

Grouchy/Nice – 6

Hobby – Nature

Didn’t I tell you I’d make one of Brandi’s kids a Romance sim? Step right up Remy! Laid back and chill, with effortless charm and bags of confidence, I could imagine her being quite the success on the dating scene. I’d also really love to do something cool with her Nature hobby – maybe she’ll buy Florence Delarosa’s flower shop after Flo retires?

Remy’s skintone is between S2 and S3, so I’ve packaged her as S3... please remember to use Clean Installer just in case any of my CC lingers!

Download Remedios Broke-Dreamer

Matilda Caliente-Goth and Joséfina Caliente(-Lothario)

Remind you of a certain two sisters? Yep, I’m pretty excited at how much these cousin BFFs look like their mothers. Matilda is the laid-back and fun-loving daughter of Mortimer Goth and Dina Caliente, and Joséfina Caliente is the jaw-droppingly confident and energetic result of an ill-advised afternoon of passion between Nina Caliente and Don Lothario. They each only have four nice points so you can’t sit with them.

Joséfina Caliente

Sloppy/Neat – 1

Shy/Outgoing – 9

Lazy/Active – 8

Serious/Playful – 5

Grouchy/Nice – 4

Hobby – Fitness

There’s an interesting mix of both parents’ personalities (and looks) with Josie, and as the progeny of Don and Nina of course her hobby would be something that involves racking up Body points. Given how extroverted she is, I thought perhaps the perfect aspiration for the lovechild of two Romance sims would be Popularity. No doubt there’d be something sporty in her future but I do headcanon her as having serious book smarts, so we shall see... *strokes chin*

Download Joséfina Caliente

Matilda Caliente-Goth

Sloppy/Neat – 4

Shy/Outgoing – 6

Lazy/Active – 4

Serious/Playful – 7

Grouchy/Nice – 4

Hobby – Games

When you’re drowning in Fitness and Nature sims it’s so nice to get a Gamer. They’re super rare in the uberhood! I could imagine Matilda growing up on chess, stealing all of Alex’s video games, then maybe one day interning at Lucy Burb’s game development company (Luce rolled the LTW to reach the top of the Gamer career in my game) and likely becoming a vlogger in the field. She’s definitely a Pleasure sim, the spitting image of her mother Dina... and takes after her in the ‘well, black goes with everything?’ fashion stakes.

Like Remy, Matty’s skintone is between S2 and S3. I’ve packaged her as S3 like her mother, so add the skintone you feel suits her best – also, you’ll see that she appears in your CAS in Mama’s basegame dress, for funsies. 

Download Matilda Goth

Hope you enjoy! Please let me know if any links are broken or if anything borks with the files, I will gladly try to fix.

[mlek13]

Spring, Year 2: The Royals pt. 2

I split this round into two parts because a lot was going on not just with the party, but also with family life.  There were a lot of grow-ups even during the party itself.  First to age up were the cats.  When I first saw Midge’s icon I thought there was something messed up, but she just has this weird white face and dark striped body that don’t really go together.

Tiger was a little more normal looking (and true to his name) but his two gray legs and tail are a little out of place on his otherwise orange body.

Tiger:  Where’s the food?

The reason why Rosalin left her party was to help her favorite baby sister, Hyacinth grow up.  (She’s seriously like the kid’s second mom.  Hyacinth likes her more than their parents.) She’s really cute and reminds me a lot of Liliana around the eyes.  She’s a very outgoing sort of girl.

Once the last of the party guests finally go home, it’s back to normal life with family, school, and homework.

The Queen gives birth to her sixth child.  I’m wondering if (and maybe hoping that) this will be the last as my adults only have 8 or so days left of adulthood.  The older kids are excited.

Baby girl, Dahlia, is the fourth daughter and the second of their children to inherit King Anton’s medium skin tone.  She has brown eyes (like everyone but Anton) and brown hair (like Anton and three of her five siblings.)

The twins are on baby duty.  Prince Florian takes Dahlia and Princess Rosalin gets Hyacinth.

The parents chip in too.  Hyacinth is not interested in her parents in the slightest, so to get her aspiration up Anton teaches her to talk.

With the older kids gone to school, the house is quiet, so Queen Liliana invites the ladies over for some social time.  (They aren’t that good at it.  As a popularity sim, Liliana really needs to make more friends.  Her life has been consumed by having children and her own wants have fallen by the way side.)

She’s still Queen though.  (This may be the first time she’s even sat on her throne. )

Florian brought home Trevor from school (which was a shock to me.   I thought they disliked each other.)  They must have worked out their differences because they haven’t had any more problems so far.  (I think he’s really there for Rosalin though.)

Sporty Laurel happens to jog by and Florian greets her.  They officially become best friends, something they both wanted.  (And I approve.)

Princess Violette has her teen birthday.  I had to change her out of the boring default hair and tried to do something with her lips.  She and Rosalin both inherited these massive lips from somewhere and the lip coloring on the skintones they have looks really weird.  It’s a struggle to find a natural looking lipstick that looks right on them.  She has some really nice eyebrows though.

Like her big sister, she’s a knowledge sim.  She likes brunettes who don’t work (someone like her dad, apparently . . .) and they can skip the stinky cologne (not that any of my sims would bother with that . . .)

If I was worried about Trevor being prejudiced against Emmaline for being a Peasant, I didn’t need to be worried.  I think he’s skittish about romantic attention in general (or maybe just from girls, I don’t know . . . His face his hilarious.)

The sisters being too similar might be a problem, because even though Trevor doesn’t seem comfortable with being flirted with, he doesn’t seem too shy to try flirting with Violette.

Violette:  Yeah . . . no thanks.  Not interested.

I wish I had caught this shot a second earlier because Oliver’s proud face at showing off for his sister was too much.  (He still looks proud here.)  Trevor is not impressed.  He’s not comfortable with attention, but doesn’t want anyone else to have any either?  He has a lot of emotions he needs to work out.

And last but not least, another sim that hasn’t got much attention this round is, Brigid.  She had a lot of general social wants, so I decided she needed to have a friend over.  Things were too hectic over most of the round and then when she tried to send out an invitation, Ronan was busy working.  But finally he made it over for a short visit.  They didn’t spend much time together and Brigid kept getting distracted by other household things, but at least they got this romantic kiss on the bridge over the moat.

And a sweet little dance too.  Brigid is also quickly approaching her elder years.  If she’s going to have a chance at romance and marriage and children, the time is now.

[dramallamadingdang]

emeraldfalconsims replied to your photo

“You know…I think Sandy Bruty might be a little bit insane. All during...”

You know, it occurs to me that with the way sim genetics work and the way you've set up the experiment, you have a very real possibility of breeding some hair/eye/skin colors right out of the population entirely.

Oh, I think that’s inevitable, actually. Partly, it’s because of my “selection bias” from the start, in that I knew I was going to have four specific characters in the mix -- Goopy, Sandy, Ben, and Komei -- because they’re my favorite pre-made Sims. They, unfortunately, have lots of “duplicate” genes between them -- 2 S1s, 2 S2s, 2 blond(e)s, 3 with light blue eyes, etc. Then, for the other four, it was a conscious attempt to bring in all the other genetic traits (and I succeeded in that I’ve got an S3, an S4, and all the hair/eye colors represented, although I’m a bit light on dominant genes...which actually might be good thing) while also not duplicating face templates, having four of each sex, AND trying to represent all 5 aspirations available in the game. It was difficult, and I didn’t actually succeed with the aspirations, as I had no Popularity Sim. But I’ve fixed that in the Horde of Nine. Not deliberately, though, since I did end up randomly assigning aspirations. Anyway, those biases resulted in a rather limited gene pool where certain traits have a high chance of propagation while others have little chance.

So, all that said:

I'm pretty sure green eyes are going to die out quickly. They're recessive and only Andrea Hogan has them and she's been one of the weakest breeders of the bunch. To date, she's only had two children, and the non-alien one has his father's light blue eyes. Both her kids likely have recessive green genes, but those might not ever be expressed in their own offspring. We'll see what the second born-in-game generation brings...

For that same reason and because of how skin genetics work in the game, S4 skin might go fairly quickly, too...although it'll be helped by the fact that I only have default replacement skins in the game, no custom gene-expanding skintones. So, an S4 parent breeding with an S3 would have a 50% chance of having an S4 kid...but of course not nearly so high a chance if they breed with an S1. Sooooo, we'll have to see how Andrea's one non-alien kid, who's also S4, breeds and, more importantly, with whom he breeds. I'm pretty sure that'll be the only other kid Andrea has, besides Elizabeth the alien kid, as she's nearing the age where conception is impossible.

S3 could possibly be weak because only Orlando has it, and it can easily be "diluted" by breeding with lighter-skinned Sims...which is all that he's done, so far. Although one of those kids does have S3, so...

Brandi has gray eyes, also recessive, but she's breeding well with multiple partners, so I'm pretty sure those genes have been spread around enough to last for a while, at least as a recessive that might pop up randomly.

Red hair might not last long. Of the original bunch, only Komei has it, and the double-redhead alien kid of his (GUESS WHICH ONE?) likely won't be breeding. But, if I'm remembering right, I think it's possible for two blond(e) parents to have a redhead kid out of nowhere. I could be remembering wrong, though. Also, Komei, to date, has had kids with four different partners, only one of whom was also a redhead, so there's lots of recessive redheads around. If they breed with the multitude of blond(e)s and blond(e)-recessives, red might be OK. I hope so. :)

Sooooo, in the end, it's looking like I'm probably going to end up with a bunch of folks with:

The alien, S1, or S2 skin tone 

Alien or light blue eyes

Blond(e) hair, because of Ben and Sandy and their double-recessive-in-all-traits kids. Plus Marisa who had an alien kid with the blond-haired pollinator... with whom Sandy also had TWINS!) Lots of blond(e) genes floating around! (But at least I fixed Andrea's genes so that her genetic hair color is indeed black, not blonde. *eye roll* )

Also a good amount of brown hair, thanks to Brandi, Orlando, and the brown-haired PT, with whom Brandi had two kids.

ANYWAY! This is all very interesting to me for non-Simming reasons, too. (Warning: Lampooning creationism and a bit of politics ahead...)

I like engaging young-Earth Creationists (those who believe that the Earth is about 6000 years old because Genesis is a science book) in discussion/debate. They will often talk about "genetic information" by saying that evolution is impossible because it "requires an increase in genetic information, and that's impossible." (Even though it doesn't require such an increase in "information," -- whatever that is -- AND it's also not impossible to increase "information" -- if information = alleles -- anyway, via mutation. But that's all beside the point when it comes this.)

Anyway, I like to ask them to explain how post-Flood world human repopulation works from a genetic point of view. Since ��genetic information can’t increase” and the Bible says that only Noah and his wife and his three sons and their wives survived the Flood and no one else, you start with only 4 people of each sex (which I did, too). You also (presumably) limit them to holy monogamous matrimony, so only four possible breeding pairs (which I didn't do with my 8, so I have 16 possible breeding pairs). Also, the Bible's sample is limited not just to 8 people from the same ethnic background but the four men are a father and three sons (thus making 3 of the 8 starting individuals virtually genetically identical unless they were born to different mothers and...oh, hey, I did kind of duplicate that with Ben, Sandy, and Marisa! Go me!) So, from that, how on Earth do you account for the "increase in genetic information" required to have the sort of genetically-diverse human population we see now?

To date, I've gotten three answers:

"Goddidit" from those who have no other answer, which is always the answer when they can't answer a question. 

"Well, there might have been more people that survived somewhere" from those who don't perhaps realize that's not Biblical-literal at all, and also means that Godly genocidal global flood they love so much wasn't quite so global after all, so there goes their entire house of cards because the global Flood hypothesis is downright central to their entire theory...using that word in the non-scientific sense, of course.

And, my favorite, from those who tie themselves in knots so as not to invoke God in their creationist rhetoric in order to appear more "This isn't religion at all! It's science that ought to be taught in place of -- I mean, alongside of eviolution in public schools, all in the interest of ‘fairness!’" in their stance: "Those 8 people had 'more genes' to start with." Which, of course, means that 1) They have absolutely no idea what genes are or how they work and 2) Even if they were somehow right, then Noah and his family clearly weren't human, so...What? Humans as we know them today evolved (Or maybe "devolved," in their minds) practically overnight from those 8 super-non-humans even though God never said anything about creating any super-non-humans and, if he had, then the super-non-humans would all trace their lineage back to Adam and Even and they would be the ones made in God’s image, not us? But even if that was the case, then losing that extra "information" over time  -- in order to somehow allow for humans with non-Israelite genetics -- ought to result in increasingly less diversity, not more, so...Yeah.

It's just so entertaining! (Well, except for the part where this is what the current administration as well as the newly-confirmed Secretary of Education would like to see taught in our public schools as science. It’s downright terrifying.)

Still, here I am in my little Sim-scenario, watching traits decreasing in frequency and perhaps eventually disappearing altogether right before my very eyes in an isolated population of eight. And that's without monogamy and with adding "information" in the form of alien alleles, too. Because -- Guess what?! -- TS2 genetics are based on real-world genetics. It’s greatly simplified, of course, but still... There we are. Never let it be said that Simming isn’t educational. I mean, with the way the US is headed, it might eventually be a better teacher of genetics than the public schools. :P

[bwprowl]

We’ll be running down a collection of intermittent classics tonight, with new toys based on old shows like Duck Tales and Superfriends, and continuing into more recent childhoods with a surprising Gundam Wing statue and a toy-accurate Beast Wars tribute! All this, plus motorcycles and the masked men who ride them, here on Tuesday Night Toys!

New Stuff: A Little Help From My Friends

Superfriends is probably the quintessential cheesy superhero cartoon of yesteryear. The later Challenge of the Superfriends season that pitted the heroes against the Legion of Doom (still the best villain team ever) was probably the most deservedly classic, but people also have fond memories of the second season with the Wonder Twins. It is, however, always worth going back to the very first lineup, which included more mundane civilian companions Marvin, Wendy, and Wonder Dog. This trio has popped into modern DC productions in various ways throughout recent years, and now the human members of the team will be getting ‘Retro’ clothed toys from Figures Toy. This company is actually putting out a ton of superheroes in the ol’ not-Mego style, but these two are the ones that most caught my eye, naturally. Might be the best choice for Marvin and Wendy until they get the DC Collectibles figures they deserve.

Megahouse is putting out this interesting little thing: An SD figure set of Relena and Heero from Gundam Wing, in cute little themed outfits even! Heero’s naturally got the big dumb angel wings from the Wing Zero Custom (Relena gets some wings of her own too), and the piece looks like an entertaining tribute to the Gundam series most of us here first got familiar with, for better or worse.

The success of their weapons and subsequent figma deal must have gone to LittleArmory’s head, since they’re moving up to a full recon bike for their next piece! Done up in a suitably realistic military style, this should provide the perfect contrast to your well-armed candy-colored schoolgirl figures.

I mean, you could probably also use it for that figma Captain America or something, but where’s the fun in that?

Wishlist: Dukk not Munkey!

Herocross is going back to the series that made me sit up and take notice of them in the first place, with Hybrid Metal releases for Huey, Dewey, and Louie to accompany their Donald. Even better, they’re releasing them all in a pack together with a reissue of Donald that includes some new accessories, and it’s going for a steal of a price at just $80 for the lot. This line is quickly becoming the definitive one for high-end posable Disney action figures, and it’s one I’m always happy to see. Bring on a full Duck Tales cast!

With Masterpiece Optimus Primal just released, TakaraTomy’s already revealed the first repaint for that outstanding mold: The ‘Legendary Commander’ version, doing the previously-show-perfect figure up in the colors of the original Ultra Optimus Primal toy! This release will be complimented with new toy-based accessories, including a bit to hold both swords in one hand, a battle mask based on the old Mutant Head, and most importantly, the skull mace weapon! They’ve even recreated the jagged outlines of the gray patches from that original toy, and this deco incidentally also matches Primal’s appearance in the Beast Wars II anime movie, so if you’ve got a LioConvoy, this is the one to get to hang out with him (provided we don’t get a Masterpiece LioConvoy later down the line anyway). And it’s another shot at this terrific mold for anyone who missed it the first time, so winners all around!

Kamen Rider Ex-Aid’s villainous Rider GENM ascended to a badass new form on the show a few weeks ago, and the accompanying toys have released, and I want to talk about how *brilliant* I think the Buggle Driver is. See, it was originally released as the ‘Bugvisor’, the signature weapon of GENM (who otherwise just used the same belt as everyone else to transform). Well after obtaining the next-level ‘Dangerous Zombie’ Gashat, the evil CEO reveals that the Bugvisor could actually be used as a transformation belt this whole time, slaps it onto a buckle, says Buggle Up motherfucker, and goes to town. It’s the equivalent of ‘hacking’ a handheld console to work a way it wasn’t originally meant to and fits in wonderfully with Ex-Aid’s video game motif. GENM even enters a ‘cheat code’ on the device by pressing and holding both buttons in a way that you normally wouldn’t do on any of the other similar weapons.

So Bandai is selling a pack with just the belt part and the Gashat to unlock the new functionality on the Bugvisor, or a bigger set with all three of them, if you decide you want the thing now that you know it’s a Driver. Either way, it’s cool as heck to have such an elaborate ‘secret’ built into a toy like this, and I look forward to any similar shenanigans Ex-Aid wants to pull.

On-Desk: Dennou Senshi Polynian

Daibadi's Polynian line is an eye-catching one, and they certainly piqued my interest. Maybe not quite enough to go in on the basic 'naked' generic figures Clover and Shamrock, but once actual characters started being made, I knew I had to get one of these things. After missing out on a couple at first, I finally got a pre-order in on the reissue of Yume, and just received her a couple weeks ago.

This reissue lacks the matte panel-lining of the original, a detail I'd really liked the look of, but otherwise the design is spot-on to the appeal of these things: Cute anime robot people. In Yume's case she's a seifuku-wearing, wooden-sword-wielding ponytailed schoolgirl type, with the requisite white skintone of the Polynians contrasting well with her splashes of blue and pink colors. I especially dig the clear-plastic ties most of these things have.

The overall figure is surprisingly figma-ish, moreso than I expected. The joints are big like Revoltech joints and insert similarly, but behave more like the smooth joints of a figma, and the overall articulation setup is about the same. This means Yume is quite posable, and the joints hold their pose well.

That said, getting her *into* whatever pose you want is going to be the tricky part, and might not hold as well on the way. Daibadi is a newer, smaller company, and maybe doesn't have the resources to keep QC and polish *quite* as held-down as a company like Good Smile or Bandai. So there's bits on Yume that don't hold together as consistently as you'd hope. Her hip pads in particular were a source of great frustration out of the box, one of them flat-out refused to marry the peg to the hole; I had to take an X-acto knife to it to get it to fit! It's in there now, but those pads still like to pop off sometimes when I'm handling her. Her right leg also likes to slide out from her hip on the joint's peg, which can be annoying.

These imperfections aren't enough to turn me off the figure, of course! Yume is still a great design and a figure that, when posed and displayed, looks wonderfully unique. She has a selection of three faces, and three different kinds of hands (the accessory-holding hands have their own peg with a fused joint for them, oddly). And she comes with schoolbag and sword accessories, either of which can peg to her back. There are plenty of options for display there, and the rather context-free nature of the figure means you're free to imagine up whatever situation you'd like. I need to have her fighting some of my other sword-wielding figures.

I don't know how much my enjoyment of Yume here will affect my desire to get other figures from this line. Mel looks cool, but I'm not sure how much I want to commit. For now though, I'm happy to have Yume on my desk; she's not like anything else on there.

Hope you have fun with whatever you've gotten, everybody! I'll talk to you next week!

[notbellabutcassandra]

Livingsim Legacy

I just kind of want to keep info about them on here as I rediscover them. lol

1. This legacy is descended from the very first sim that I made in Sims 4. That is why the last name is so on the nose lol. She was just supposed to be my tester sim to explore the game. I had this family before I got anything other than Get to Work

2. I actually recently madeover the founder--and her twin. Somehow she was in my library, just not her descendants. 

3. I will probably never change the name because it helps me remember they’re the OG sim family. 

4. Each generation has a letter in the alphabet that everyone has to have in their names. So gen 1 was Artemis and Athena. Gen 2 had Bia and Batia. And Gen 3 has names like Circe and Calliope. Looking at the names made me realize that I was exclusively naming my sims names from Greek mythology mostly because it makes it easier to pick names. Though Batia is Hebrew which is fine. 

5. In gen 3, there are 4 kids, 3 girls and 1 boy (technically five if you include Bia’s son). One of the girls is a product of alien abduction because she is definitely an alien and is not actually related to Batia. She’s the other gen 3 kids’ half sister because they all have the same dad. That kid’s name is Circe which I love since she can change her appearance similar to a sorceress. 

6. Bia died before I changed computers, but she has a son with some C name and he also counts as a part of gen 3. Weirdly enough, he also has blond hair. That branch has such random hair colors.  

7. Bia and Batia are not twins. Bia was older which is why she died of old age and why Batia is very clearly, even before the makeover, a middle aged adult and not quite an elder.  

8. Gen 2 are mixed. Athena married a white man whose name I have to look at again. So Bia had red hair--which no one else has--and dark skin like her mother and Batia is the lighter skinned one of the two with brown hair like her father. Back when I was playing I didn’t have CC and so for Batia’s makeover, I made her darker, but still lighter than what Bia’s skintone would have been. 

9. Gen 3 are multiethnic because Batia married a light eyed Latino man who is older than her. That makes them Afro-Latinx with some European--I’m going to go with Greek--on the side. 

10. As of Gen 3 when I opened the save for the first time in years, each age group is accounted for and so it’s been fun making them over and really trying to express the differences in age. 

11. When I play legacies, I apparently prefer a multigenerational house instead of them living in different houses. Though Bia’s son does live in Oasis Springs away from the rest of the family at the moment; however, I might move him back in. Because of that, I also prefer to not really have an heir; we’ll just follow that whole generation. But I might move them out so they can have their own lives and I would just do a rotational play like @allisas does it. SN: When I loaded up the save, Bia’s son was on the porch visiting so apparently I wanted him to still be close with his family. 

12. Speaking of Bia’s son, I think I’m going to make him an off the grid kind of sim because I really really want to play off the grid since they did the update. It’s going to be awhile until I can get eco lifestyle, but there’s still so much off the grid stuff. I might keep him in Oasis Springs or even move him to Sulani in order to explore those places more. 

13. Because I only had one pack at the time, it has really made it so that the make up of the worlds has been interesting. The Goths were probably culled. Katrina of the Caliente’s remains as a ghost but the other members of the household are gone. It is just my legacy family in that world now other than that. Oasis Springs has different people too. But the other neighborhoods have the usual people at the usual ages because they didn’t exist in that save before. 

[mlek13]

Winter, Year 2: The Royals

Things have calmed down considerably now that 3 out of the 4 (It is just 4 now, isn’t it?  This family has so many kids!) Royal children are in school.  With just Oliver, the toddler, at home during the day life is much more manageable.

They do get a parade of kids home at 3:00 though.  Some of them completely worn out from the day.

I went a lot of trouble to get the twins their kittens and I don’t think they’ve paid attention to them since.  They blend in with the white tiles, so half of the time, I don’t even see them.  Luckily, they keep each other company.

The Queen is pregnant again and it’s time for the newest member of the family to be born.

Hyacinth looks like the rest of her siblings (and her mom.)  Pale skin, black hair, and dark eyes.  (Anton’s distinctive green eyes must be recessive.)  She’s the only girl with black hair so far, so that is a little different.

Baby Hyacinth acknowledges the lady that will probably be her primary caretaker, while the lady that gave birth to her left her on the floor and wandered off somewhere.

While Florian is excited about having a new sibling,

His father, the family sim of the household, is totally freaking out over it.  I don’t know, what did you expect?  I definitely thought you already had enough kids already, but I wasn’t the one that went out and tried for another one.  (Okay, maybe they didn’t try.  And I was the one who upped the pregnancy odds.)  Look at his want panel though.  He’s in the middle of losing it over his fifth child being born and he’s rolling up wants for more babies and thinking of having ten kids.    Five kids send you over the edge, but ten would be a dream come true?  I don’t get it.  Maybe we’ll just focus on those kitten wants.  They need more attention.

Meanwhile, Brigid and Florian are discussing the new baby.

He’s not so interested in talking with her though.

She and Rosalin have a better conversation,

but maybe she should stick with Violette.  The other kids in the family don’t care for her too much.

Poor Oliver, he’s the neglected child in the family right now.  The new baby needs attention and the bigger kids need help keeping their needs up so they can do their homework.  I kind of forget about him up there in the nursery.  Poor baby.

Prince Anton has taken it upon himself to do some of the cooking in the household.  (I didn’t noticed and had already directed Brigid to cook.  I guess we were slacking on the job.)

I wish he’d leave it to her,because he’s not good at it.

And there’s a ton of waste.  (Rosalin is a doll, taking it upon herself to clean up.  Maybe she just has a lot of neat points.)

I think the Queen agrees with me.

Queen Liliana: Darling, I appreciate you making breakfast, but why don’t you let Brigid handle it from now on.

Oliver grows up cute.  I bet he’s glad to be out of that crib and able to do all of the things that the big kids do.

The parade of schoolchildren come through to drop of their homework in the throne room.  They pass by Russ who invited himself in while Brigid was playing with the kittens.

He stayed around for awhile.  I don’t know if he talked to anyone, but he spent some time shaking his booty while the family was busy with other things.  He is actually friends, somehow with the Royal couple.  I’m not sure when or how they got so close.

The family spends sometime playing together in the snow.  (I was trying to get Rosalin and Florian’s aspirations up as high as possible before their birthday.)  I really wanted to get a picture of all four children together once while they were all children, but I couldn’t get them all together.  I think Violette came home and went straight to bed.

I thought about having a party, but since the family needed to have the headmaster over to get Oliver into private school, I decided to want until the next night.

The twins grow up without much fanfare and at different times in the evening.  Rosalin actually aged up first this time.  Her skintone is kind of a weird one, so I ended up adding some makeup, but I think she ended up looking too made up.  I’m going to have to tweak her look a little more.  She’s a knowledge sim that likes athletic artists, provided that they shower well after their workouts.

Florian’s skintone definitely does not need any further enhancement.  He’s a family man like dear old dad.  He likes fit, raven haired sims, but not in bathing suits.  That might be too immodest.

I love teens that spontaneously help out with their younger siblings.  Little Hyacinth looks like she’s thrilled with her big sister too.

Her first morning as a teen and Princess Rosalin makes a big entrance on the staircase.

Has her Royal breakfast served to her, like the heir to the throne that she is.  (I just noticed while going through my screenshots that Brigid looks like she’s been enjoying a little too much of her own cooking.)

*Gasp* She’s actually paying attention to one of the kittens now!  I think this is the first time any of the kids have acknowledged the kittens that they wanted since they were added to the household.

Okay, everyone get ready to party.  Next round you’re going to host a coming out party for the upperclass teens in the neighborhood.  We’ll see who gets along and if any friendships or romances start to emerge.