#what's up?

[thesimquarter]

ok, so i know not a LOT of my followers do ts4 renders, but i wanted to drop a quick little thing i figured out.

So, a complaint I've heard from some people who do TS4 blender renders is that SimRipper washes out the colors of Sims extracted from it. And. yeah. it totally does. But here's a way to remedy that!

By default, SimRipper has all textures in an sRGB color space. Which is fine. sRGB is the default color space. sRGB is meant to be 'realistic,' but it can look rather washed out when it comes to Sims (particularly for cartoonish & maxis-match Sim Styles like mine). So, I was experimenting with color spaces and found that Filmic sRGB looks MUCH closer to what Sims actually look like in-game.

Because it's... hard to explain the difference, here's a quick demonstration of the default sRGB in contrast with setting the base color of a Sim to filmic sRGB: (Taken in Cycles)

And this screenshot below shows where you can change color spaces (in versions of Blender that use nodes for their textures. This was taken in 4.4). This UI is from the Shader Editor, which is easy to access through the Shading tab.

Anyways, that is all. Have fun and don't forget to experiment!

[brozoneex]

Smoking Bros

What's up?

[catfindr]

[stabbyfoxandrew]

Okay so I just spent 2000 hours making the monsters in the Sims...

And as soon as I plopped these bitches into reality, Neil was Fine. And his two whims we're 'go for a jog' and 'become friends with Kevin'.

Incredible...

[brucieboy297]

“Mr. Wayne.” Jaina smiled, walking past Bruce in nothing but one of Bruce’s button up shirts and her lace lingerie underneath. She looked behind her, seeing if he was either looking back at her or following her.

Bruce was walking down the hallway of their beautiful Manor home as he was reading something on a tablet. His eyes glued to the machine that he failed to notice his wife approaching. Only when she spoke did he look up and see her in one of his shirts and a expensive set of undergarments. He smiled.

"Missus Wayne." He put the tablet down on a nearby table and followed her, curious where his wife was going and what she had planned for him.

[wheezecheese]

:3

:4

[frosty-sneasel]

Lumiiiiiiiiiii -(@tinkatinktrain)

Jylahhhhhhhh

[thesimquarter]

The Urbz in The Sims 4: Businesses and Hobbies: i totally didn't forget that the pack released oops

(final part unless i get real inspired or an ask or something)

Ok so, the pack with the Urbz Characters dropped over a month ago at this point, on March 6th. And, as I expected, the new pack had new "secrets"/gossip dialogues for the characters to build out the 'lore' of the characters a bit more (this is to-be-expected given its presence in the recent packs). and i, in my autistic, Sims handheld-obsessed ways, did immediately CTRL + F through the pack's string table to find what secrets it was holding (within the hour that my very legal source dropped the pack). I started this post, and... I didn't finish it until whatever timestamp is listed on this post.

Anyhow, the feature in this pack is called "Nordhaven Noise," where you interact with a resident of the neighborhood and learn a little about the world or the pre-mades. There's quite a bit of "noise" about the returning Urbz characters that are very... referential. So, I thought I'd point out what the references are and some of my thoughts about them.

Under the cut because long post!!

Sims 4 Text will be indented, other text will not be.

I heard Gramma Hattie went to jail once, everyone wonders what she did!

Reference to Mission 4, Goal 4, Running from The Law, where Hattie lands in jail alongside the player because of Daddy Bigbucks' new running law. I thought there was an implication that she's landed herself in jail multiple times though. I'd have to go and check.

I heard that Gramma Hattie's go-to drink at the Koffieboon was a quadruple grande decaf soy mochaccino with extra whip. She's the only one they allowed to order that thing.

Reference to Gramma Hattie's dialogue when asked about coffee shops: When I'm not thirsty I order a quadruple grande decaf soy mochachino with extra whip.

I hadn't picked up on the connection between having her comical coffee order and her marrying into a Coffee House Family, and honestly? That's a really sweet backstory for her and her late husband to have met through haha.

... Honestly, it's kinda making me want to headcanon the Urbz Coffee Barista as her daughter.

I heard Gramma Hattie helped save her home city from some oily corporate men. Shady business people better watch out around her.

Reference to Hattie's overall role in The Urbz, although the wording is weird. Corporate men? Plural? There was more than one?

Also, I don't feel like they actually acknowledged that Gramma Hattie is a career political activist. I mean, yes, she did that. But her character was established to have been doing stuff like this for decades. I'm also curious about the timeline here, because she met her husband in Nordhaven and yet...

I heard that someone once wrote a biography about Cannonball…I wonder what kind of life that man must have lived.

A reference to the following dialogue that Coleman says while talking about books: I don't want to brag, but I had a book written about me last year. It was a biography called "Cannon Fire!"

I heard Cannonball also goes by King Cool, cool.

King Cool is Cannonball Coleman's name in the French translation of The Urbz. I'm actually super glad they referenced that haha. It's one of my favorite translated names from the handheld Sims games.

Cannonball apparently used to play at a place called Club Zydeco, I wonder if that venue is still around?

Very factual. This is both prominent from Coleman's schedule (where he's usually at Club Zydeco at night) and the goal Get On The "List". The second part is probably referencing the fact that its said to be closed by the time The Sims 2 for Nintendo DS is released. The text that references this is as follows: "Cannonball" Coleman's Sax Lounge has become the spot for new music since the Zydeco Club closed in '04. Eat, drink, dance or record your own music!

Cannonball said his hat used to be his grandfather's, how sweet is that? And also, how durable must that hat be?

Reference to the dialogue that Coleman says when you tease him: That's low, man. My grandfather gave me this hat. And I think his grandmother gave it to him.

I have the same question too, random Sims 4 Sim.

I've seen Crispin hang out near that dark alley in Iverstad. I wonder what's up with that.

To my knowledge, this isn't a reference towards anything in The Urbz. It is a reference to a pack feature though. In the new pack, there's a new NPC named Trashley Reelpearson, AKA 3 raccoons in a trenchcoat. This NPC sells um... a new art collection themed around raccoons. Crispin runs an art museum, so the implication is probably that he's buying Trashley's art.

I heard that Crispin used to run an art gallery in another city…then he set his eyes on buying the Konst Modern when he moved here.

Reference to Crispin Black running the Foundry in The Urbz.

Cannonball used to be an amazing saxophone player, but he hasn't touched any since his last one broke.

This is just an In-Universe explanation for why Coleman doesn't have his saxophone anymore.

As a note, there's an object named "King Cool's Framed Sax" whose description reads:

This framed, broken sax reminds you of those failed dreams and passions that you lost, with the silver lining of adding some sultry, jazzy vibes to your decor.

Tragic, I guess.

And some other stuff I don't have the brain power to organize properly into this post:

Crispin Black has a special interaction with every single Sim. He can judge a Sim's outfit, and Sims will get an embarrassed moodlet if he dislikes it and a confident moodlet if he likes it. That's a fun detail, although I do not trust the fashion opinions of anyone who willingly goes to bed in only underwear and dress shoes (seriously, what is UP with that?).

There's also another object that mentions Gramma Hattie, that being "Gramma Hattie's Bakery," whose description reads:

Ever since Gramma Hattie appeared on the Great Nordhaven Cake Off, her bakery stall has been the talk of the town. Just don't try to ask her about her secret ingredient (it's cardamom).

No comment.

Now onto the secrets...

From other NPCs, but there's also 3 from Coleman, 3 from Crispin, and 3 from Ollie themself.

From other Nordhaven residents, you can hear:

Apparently Ollie's birth parents keep in contact with Crispin. Everyone wonders who they are.

From Cannonball Coleman, you can hear:

Yeah I met Ollie's birth parents once. They got good vibes, but those cats seriously couldn't get along. Mad that Skid Mark would have such a sharp kid.

Oh kid, you didn't know about Ollie's birth dad? It's Father Winter. I'm joking cat.

Yeah Crispin adopted Ollie many years before they moved to Nordhaven. The kid's got good vibes.

From Crispin Black, you can hear:

Jayde didn't think their fling would lead to anything, just some fun…few years later Skid shows up at my door asking if I could look after his child. Never saw myself as the fatherly type before, but that's my kid now.

… Yeah I know the birth parents. I still talk with the mother from time to time, I keep her updated on how Ollie is doing and what not.

Why of course, I found baby Ollie in a silver conch I fished up from the deep seas. It's mad what can come from the water. Take care of your oceans or they'll give you kids.

From Ollie Mark, you can hear:

It's funny. People say I look like them. I've never properly met them, but I don't really mind. Crispin is the only parent I need.

Only thing I know for sure is that they both skidded out of my life without much hesitation.

A stork brought me to Crispin on a rainbow cloud made of jellybeans. Wait you actually believed that?

I find it interesting that they went with Jayde and Skid instead of, like, Mazuiko and Skid. I could probably say more about this if provoked, but my opinion at the moment is just: meh.

I think it's funny that they canonized Skid's name into First Name: Skid, Last Name: Mark. Imagine being born, your parents looking at you, and deciding you shall forever be known as: Shit Stain. (I know Skid Mark also refers to the mark that wheels leave behind in some instances. Because skateboarder. But it's pretty clear to me that both meanings of the phrase were probably intended.)

The Loden family (which contains Gramma Hattie) also has their own unique secret-thing. A notable part of their household is that they all share one thing in common: they hate two Sims, Felix and Bruno Hoffman. Obviously, there’s a family feud. However, it’s kind of a boring one?

The incident is supposed to be a stolen recipe for Jellybean Cookies. Boring but ok. Both the person who supposedly stole the recipe and the person who accused them of stealing the recipe are both dead and don't even have graves... :/

As a side note, I was disappointed to discover that, despite implementing a new 'Family Recipe' feature, they didn't give the Lodens a family recipe! [Pointing] Missed potential! [Pointing] Missed Potential!

Anyways, for brevity’s sake, here’s all the dialogue referring to the feud. I don’t know who says what, and I don't care to know either.

I tried talking to Bruno after his wife died, but he just ignored me! I don't know why it all spiraled so badly between the Hoffmans and my late husband. Was it truly over who came up with the Jellybean Cookie?! How juvenile.

They upset Gramma and Nora. I couldn't forgive them for that…and selling our family recipe! Truly no respect.…

I trusted them once, then I learned my lesson. Never trust a cookie swindler.

I've never gotten the full story from Gramma Hattie. Maybe if she swallowed her pride and talked to Bruno they could be friends again.

They were quite rude. I tried to be nice, but it was just pointless! I even heard they used to call us the Great Cookie Fraudsters.

My dad once gave my son Erik a secret recipe for the Jellybean Cookie. Then I saw the same cookie sold by the Hoffmans. I wonder if it's got something to do with how the feud started?

I'm not sure how it all started, but they upset my dad and then had the gall to not show up to his funeral!

My mom said they used to be tight, like family. Then one day they were like sworn enemies. I was very young at the time, I only vaguely remember some shouting about a cookie.

We used to be good friends, we even looked after Nora when she was young. Then Hattie's late husband called my wife a thief and cut all ties. I still can't believe he'd do that.

I miss them a lot. But Hattie's late husband called my wife a liar. I felt bad not going to the funeral but…I was pretty sure they hated me anyway, and all over that stupid cookie.

Calling us thieves, they're the real thieves. I can't believe the gall of them! We came up with the Jellybean Cookie, not them. It's OUR cookie.

It was difficult to trust them. They were nothing but catty with us after our families stopped hanging out. Why should we have been nice to them?

I used to play at theirs all the time. I don't know how they started arguing, I just remember one day I was minding my business, eating my cookie, and they looked at me in absolute disgust.

We were good friends once. I don't know how it spiralled so badly…but they were so spiteful to steal our recipe!

I don't know the whole story, but they hurt my grandparents. They called my grandma a thief. I don't know if my grandpa Bruno has it in him to reconcile with them.

[brozoneex]

Eye Candy

Hey, what´s up?

[fidjiefidjie]

Bon Soir ❤️ 🎸🤩 ❤️

Dolly Parton & Linda Perry 🎶 What's Up?

(Rockstar)

[maryjaneszombies-blog]

25 years and my life is still..

Trying to get up that great big hill .. of hope

For a destination

[caddy-whump-us]

A Visit to Ruslan

This is woefully incomplete but tl;dr: Viktor finally goes to visit his (wilder, less formal) brother, Ruslan, during one of Ruslan's huge gatherings. Of course he bring Etienne with him.

A handful of frail-looking figures, men and women both, were gathered on high-backed couches drawn up near the fireplace and all of them wearing red ribbons tied loosely around their necks; one of the young women wore a white bandage under her red ribbon.

As Etienne crutched towards them, they turned to look at him and, as he drew closer, Nikolai rose up slowly and came to meet him.

Nikolai’s black eyes flicked down at the brace around Etienne’s leg and the crutch under his arm. He drew in closer and whispered with some fear in his voice,“Etienne, what did you do?” And then, without waiting for an answer, he hissed, “You are an absolute fool.” But he still took Etienne’s free arm and led him over to the couches.

Etienne half sat and half collapsed into a seat with his braced leg stretched out in front of him. There was laughter in the room beyond them but here it was warmer and quieter.

“This is Etienne,” Nikolai said softly. “His master is Viktor [Surname], my master’s brother.” And there were nods and demure looks among them all.

Etienne nodded to them and then silence fell among them. What was there to say? They all knew what their red ribbons signified, and that kept them separate from the gathering beyond them. Etienne cast a glance at Nikolai’s bandaged hands and Nikolai tucked them closer to him and turned away. There was loud laughter somewhere behind them. One of the young men looked out over the high back of the couch. Another young woman’s hands were trembling.

“Have you been to visit Lord Ruslan before?” the young woman asked at last–a soft voice; a sweet, rose-scented voice.

Etienne stammered a moment. “No, I–I have not.”

One young man was lounging back in his seat, swinging one foot idly. He had been eyeing Etienne’s brace for a while but now looked him full in the face. ”No wonder.”

Nikolai gave an irritated sigh and closed his eyes. “Phillip…”

Etienne, though, turned to Phillip and, smiling politely: “I do beg your pardon, but what do you mean?”

Phillip leaned forward, languid. “Yes, please excuse me. Perhaps I misspoke. I mean your leg. He was smiling now. “Lord Ruslan lives so far afield from anywhere. It’s quite a long journey. And, well, most of them like to keep us as perfect as possible.” His voice dropped low now: “Your lord and master wouldn’t hobble you like that unless you were inclined to run. And he wouldn’t risk you running on your journey here. He might never find you again.”

“And you haven’t tried to run?”

“Of course I have,” Phillip answered. “But only once. Unlike you, it seems I can learn my lesson the first time.”

“How disgraceful,” Etienne said; Phillip rolled his eyes. “You try once and then give up entirely. It’s pathetic, really.”

Phillip was lounging in his seat again. “I wonder if he thinks your leg will mend itself when he takes you.”

“He won’t–take me, I mean.”

“Are you so sure? What are you going to do–run away again?”

“Yes. As many times as I have to,” Etienne said, his voice rising. “I was taken against my will and I refuse to bend to his expectations of me.”

“Etienne, please,” Nikolai whispered, looking at him sidelong and through his eyelashes.

“Imagine a crippled vampire,” Phillip said, still staring at Etienne. “Imagine you hobbling along after your prey.”

Etienne jumped up unsteadily, balanced on his better leg. “I will never–”

“Etienne.”

The voice came from out in the room beyond the couches. Nikolai closed his eyes. The chatter in the room quieted. Etienne turned his head slowly to see Viktor in the crowd. He straightened up just as slowly; both wore faces like blank masks. Viktor held out one hand and crooked a finger to beckon Etienne over.

Etienne grabbed for his crutch and seemed fit to stab it through the floor as he made his way over. When he was within reach, Viktor caught him by the scruff of his neck and held him there, half hunched. The chatter in the room began again.

Phillip turned his attention to Nikolai. “He’s going to end up a wanderer. He’ll be half-mad and eating goats.”

“He’s a childish idiot,” the girl next to Phillip said. “To be given something so precious only to throw it back in his master’s face.”

“Please,” Nikolai said again. He was clenching his hands tighter now; he’d not been given his usual dose yet and the wanting was beginning to gnaw at him. And since he’d not been given it yet, then it would be later, which would mean that he was to be shared, which–and he realized The girl’s gray eyes were on him. He looked at her, then looked away.

She, though, tipped herself onto the couch so she was half-sitting, half-lying, and close enough to whisper with Phillip. Phillip dropped down with her and they lay there, propped on their elbows, face-to-face.

“Can you imagine,” she said, not whispering, “if Nikolai is taken and then that Etienne turns out to be his black swan?”

“Is it possible?” Phillip asked, beginning now to grin. “I’ve never heard of a black swan shared between two.”

“It must be! Only if they never meet, then they’ll never know.”

“But why our Nikolai?”

“Did you see how he was with our new friend Etienne?” And they both giggled.

“Lily–how badly do you think Nikolai wants him?” Phillip asked, his eyes sly and narrow.

“Terribly,” Lily answered, just as sly. “So many hours spent pining and weeping, perhaps even–” The girl beside Lily, with the white bandage under her ribbon, touched Lily’s shoulder gently, a warning. Lily paused for a moment. Then: “Nikolai, how badly do you want him?”

Nikolai was gazing into the coals at the bottom of the fire. “Not at all,” he said. And suddenly his hand felt emptier of the ring that should have been there.

[ker619]

Solo I didn't dislike you, BUT BECAUSE OF THAT BITCH JEY LOST HER TITLE I'M GOING TO GO CRAZY

although i'm happy that R Truth was able to get revenge, my boy looked so sad the other time ;(

[thesimquarter]

ok... now time to address some SIMNEWS. regarding the recent trailer.

what. i mean what. i mean. what. ok. the first sims handheld acknowledgement by the main franchise… like ever? ok. there was Tycho Curious mentioned in a description a while back, but.......

anyhow. i’ve always held the position that i didn’t want to see them bring back any of the handheld characters. (I do not trust them to bring them back "correctly." While also really, really wanting to see what they would do with them.) Given, this makes me VERY happy and thank goodness I didn’t find out about this at 10pm or else I wouldn't have been able to sleep until 4!

i do like the direction they took her design. The robe is a great interpretation of her original outfit. All the jewelry is great too! although i do feel as if they should’ve integrated the flowers into her headscarf. the silloutte definitely gives the illusion of it, so it's more of a nitpick. Oh, and no cane. RIP Gramma Hattie your disabilities are being erased.

and… running a bakery makes some sense. gramma hattie liking cooking is an established part of her character. cooking is her favorite topic to talk about (a +4), and she gives the player a cookbook after you ward off Daddy Bigbucks and Lily/Darius from her meeting. It’s weird to think of her character as a ‘Small Business Owner,’ but it’s not out-of-character either. She supports the local market (one of her favorite topics!) and views it as a way to connect with her community.

I’m going to be curious on how they characterize her in the final product. I’m hoping they don’t reduce her to just liking baking… because she’s a political activist at her core and everything else about her character works to supplement that.

I'm not sure why they would do Gramma Hattie over like, Phoebe Twiddle, who does actually own a small business. I'm guessing that it's because Gramma is easier to implement. But I'm glad she's here anyways!

Oh. and according to someone on the wiki (I have no idea what the source for this is), apparently they gave her a last name. (EDIT: ok i see where is comes from.) "Hattie Loden." I'm not a fan of that name right now, plus we refer to Gramma as "Mrs. Hattie" during the Urbz, so I assumed that her last name was Hattie due to that... Anyways. Just a nitpick.

And there’s also ummm

They don't call him "Cannonball Coleman" in the trailer, but that looks. way too much like Cannonball Coleman for me NOT to say anything. Green hat, green suit, goatee, and a hint of gold… could be a guy pulling from the same character archetype as Coleman but that would be weird to include in the same pack as Gramma Hattie.

And the fact that I can’t tell that it’s Coleman or not does speak to the design here. I’m not the biggest fan of the suit. It just doesn't seem right to me. But I like everything else! He looks much older than he did in his previous iterations, and honestly that's great. He was always meant to be an older cast member, but the Urbz (Handheld) has a disease where all characters in it have to look either 20, 35, or 70. So, it’s nice that they redesigned him to look older! The problem is that he doesn’t quite look like the character anymore (given, of course, that that IS him)

I can’t really say anything about him running a club because he just. Literally does that in The Sims 2 for DS, so great character choice!

I do have a question about both of them being in a world called "Nordhaven." Both Coleman & Hattie are very much characters made to live in Sims New Orleans, so that also reads to me as odd to add them to such a European world.

oh and one more thing

That’s… probably Crispin Black? From the Urbz (Console). Odd to have him and not any of Central Station or other tattoo artists in your Pottery and Tattoos pack, but I’m only complaining a little because. Dear lord. He’s like if you put him through a cheese grater and then tried to squeeze all the pieces together. A bit odd of a choice of character to take from The Urbz (Console), given that it's the Random Unrelated Hobbies Of Tattoos, Pottery, and Candy pack and there are characters who actually run a tattoo parlor in that game (Central Station. well. peircing parlor. but tattoos are something they do too.), but I'm guessing they probably didn't want to deviate from their Designated Pack Style to fit punks in it.

anyways! that is all. thank you for listening. my extremely low yet highly specific expectations from the 25th Sims Birthday bash ('mention the Sims handhelds') have been met.

[constantlyfalling]

I think you only joined Dauntless for the zipline