Smaller Beach lots!

[MutantBunny]

Smaller beach lots! Info about them is in the post. Please test these! They need it!

http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?p=1839440#post1839440  - post number 1384!

[Emma]

Excellent! I'll try these out later, I have my game running atm.

Incidentally, I tried out all those other lots posted a while ago made using the lot adjuster and they were all fine in my game. No crashes or anything. Hopefully these will be the same.

[MutantBunny]

Thank you Emma!

The other lots worked fine for me too.

[Sleepycat]

now I wouldn't mind giving the 2x3 and 2x4 sizes a try but are those 3 hack files included in the sims2packs needed? 

ijBuyableBeachwavesPatch
ijBuyableCarPortalsPatch
ijBuyablePedestrianPortalPatch


*needs more info*

I'm pretty clueless about these shrunk lots. I've never used any of them before but I find the 3x5 beach lots to be too big (I prefer 2x2/3x2 lots).

[MutantBunny]

oo, Thanks Sleepycat, I should have mentioned those: No they do not need to be loaded. Just uncheck them.

What they are: pedestrian, car, beach and wave effect portals. Inge made a buyable version of these and that is what got packaged up with the lot. Don't load them into your game and then you won't have the buyable versions, the lot will simply grab the maxis originals and all will be fine.

OR go ahead and load them into your game and have fun placing them whereever to see what they will do......

She made a buyable people portal--like those found at the sidewalks. I have used these, for example, placed on the back corners of lots on corners, they allow sims to walk onto the lot from the side sidewalk as well as the normal front of lot sidewalk. Very nice.

[Sleepycat]

ok, thanks for the quick reply     

[morriganrant]

Well, I downloaded them to give them a try but I can't seem to get them to want to place. I am even using SleepySandbar2 as a hood.
Is there something that I could be missing, or something required that I am unaware of?

[MutantBunny]

Try a different terrain?

I have placed them on one of Sleepycat's terrains available here, not sure which one, and one called Vulkano, made by someone I don't remember the name of. But I can chase that down.... again....

I think the EA terrains were too far from water to fit the shorter lots. The smaller lots are hader to place then the EA lots because they are smaller--the length of lot to water edge and the slope of the water front both come into play.

My only advice is to try another terrain. It could be the lots simply won't--but this is why they need to be tested. So far they have been DLed 16 times--perhaps others will give us a report on how they've done with them.

[morriganrant]

I will try another one later, I had picked this one because there were several locations on the terrair that had a very short distance between road and water. By looking at some of the lots while trying to place, they should have placed in these locations. Any advice on how much land should be on land and how much in water?

[MutantBunny]

If there are any neighborhood objects in the area you try to place a lot on, the lot won't place. Like if there are any of the hood wave boxes, or rocks there, lot won't place. Try moving those items to see if the lot places.

It might be a good idea to keep track of the terrains beaches won't place on....

This is where you can find the Vulkano terrain: http://www.dreamlandsims2.de/ (click the orange pencil)

[twink]

Thanks so much...I did miss this original post but will try them now. The 3x5 is just a little to big for me too.
Twink

[Sleepycat]

Mutantbunny, I've tried them on 2 of my terrains (SleepyMountain1 and SleepyValley6) and they (2x3, 2x4, 2x5) won't place. I made a new hood with the bluewater terrain to see if they worked there and they did.

nothing was in the way that would stop them from being placed in any of the terrains I tried.

I thought maybe it was a slope issue since my beaches are all flat but you say it did work on one of mine (which one, could you check?). If it had been a 'distance to water' issue then the 2x5 should have placed but it didn't. They were all able to 'reach the water'

Now I'm perfectly willing to make some terrains where the road is even closer to the water, *really liked the 2x3 & 2x4 sized beach lots*  thats easy enough to do...but if it's a slope issue... hmmm maybe I'll pop in my two terrains that have a small 2/3 tile slope and check them... *runs off to do just that*

[MutantBunny]

Sleepycat, have you tried any of the other sizes on those spots that won't let you place the 2xs? Have you tried the EA lots?

I worked off of your haven3 terrain (is that right--sleepycathaven3 or sleepyhaven3?)

I would be interested to know if they'll place on Vulkano for you on your system too, if you'd be willing to try that.

Also, over at MTS2 boatnana has a slope value change file that allows regualr lots to be place don more terrain slopes. It might work for beach lots too, you might try that. Just run a search on the member list for boatnana and it'lbring the right pagfe up--only one entry there I think

When trying to place them--what do you THINK is holding it up?

[Emma]

They won't place for me either I have tried with lots of different maxis and CC beach terrains too. Deleting hood decorations, leaving and re-entering the beach hood isn't allowing them to place either. I haven't a clue what is stopping them placing. Even regular beach lots are really buggy and they must be placed in the exact location they were built for even a slight chance for them to work. Sorry MB. Nice try though, I'd have loved some little beach lots.

[MutantBunny]

  I'm so sorry they are acting like this. I don't know for sure what it could be. Only the continued testing will tell us. They are so much funner to play than the large EA lots.

Emma, try the vulkano terrain? And have you tired all the sizes?

[Sleepycat]

I'm back, with some good news and some bad news.

I tried the 2x3, 2x4, 2x5 on 4 more of my terrains. (sorry but I have no interest in any of the other sizes so I never installed them, I only installed the 2x5 for testing).

in:

SleepySmallHood2 - they wouldn't place (totally flat beaches)

Sleepy4Bridges - they wouldn't place (totally flat beaches)

(in the above 2 terrains, 2x3 couldn't reach the water - was already altered by maxis Xx5s beach lot. I don't think the 2x4 was able to reach the water either)


SleepyTown2 (not officially released by me) - they all placed (2x3 were limited to were to the spots they could reach the water) - Slope NOT flat, maybe a 3 or 4 tile slope (depending on how to want the slope) (if I remember right, my flat beach lots wouldn't place an that terrain)

SleepyTown3 (also not officially released by me) - None of them would place - Slope Not flat (although all my flat beach lots work on that terrain), has maybe 1or 2 tile slope.


as I said before, nothing was in the way to prevent them from being placed.

---

if I remember right, I think my Sleepyhaven terrain has a few areas on the beach that had a small slope/weren't level - where the beach lots level in the spots you placed them?

---

I have a feeling it may be a slope issue after all.  I think you will need to make different slope versions. Personally I would like flat versions since I won't use terrains with non-flat beaches (which is why my SleepyTown terrains weren't officially released).


edit - to bold

[MutantBunny]

I made those on your haven3 terain--it is mostly flat, right? I know there was one lot made on one side of the terrain that I couldn't use because the terrain was 'rough' and the side seam wouldn't 'heal'. So I tossed that out in favor of the flatter side lot which is what you have.

I'm not sure what you mean by your 'flat beach lot'. Can you upload one or is it uploaded someplace? IF I can get it, I'll try making it into 2xs for you. Maybe they'll place a bit better.

[Inge]

All beach lots, even shrunken ones, have to be able to reach the water or they won't place.

[Sleepycat]

I made those on your haven3 terain--it is mostly flat, right? I know there was one lot mad eon one side of the terrain that I couldn't use because the terrain was 'rough' and the side seam wouldn't 'heal'. So i tossed that out in favor of the flatter side lot which is what you have.

I'm not sure what you mean by your 'flat beach lot'. Can you upload one or is it uploaded someplace? IF I can get it, I'll try making it into 2xs for you. Maybe they'll place a bit better.

very strange, yes the haven3 terrain is mostly flat.

I haven't packaged up my flat beach lots so they aren't available anywhere.  I tested two that I had in my bin that were made on one of my flat beach terrains - they work on all of my flat beach terrains except that one sleepytown terrain(and another sleepytown terrain that has a higher slope that I didn't test).

It's no big deal for me cause the only beach lot I have been using lately is my public beach community lot. I've found having sims living on the beach annoying with them constantly going off to watch waves and build sandcastles etc...  the smaller beach lots would have been nice but... *shrugs*  most of the testing I've done was just to help.

All beach lots, even shrunken ones, have to be able to reach the water or they won't place.

yes, I think we all know that here. I just wanted to point out that those couldn't reach the water because the land had already been altered by the maxis Xx5 beach templates.


/supper time, won't be back till later or tomorrow

[morriganrant]

If there are any neighborhood objects in the area you try to place a lot on, the lot won't place. Like if there are any of the hood wave boxes, or rocks there, lot won't place. Try moving those items to see if the lot places.

Completely empty hood, I'm too lazy to fill in hood objects. I do have three other empty beach lots, but nowhere near where I am trying to place yours.
Sleepycat said they worked on BlueWater for her, so I will try a hood with that template. I won't be able to test much for the next 3 days, I'll be on a trip, but I can get back to you about blue water tonight as my game is running right now.*grumblenearly20minloadingtimegrumble* I downloaded all of the smaller lots so I can try each one.

Edit: All placeable on BlueWater. I used the 3x4 to bring the water closer then deleted it to place the other, shorter, lots. Maybe slope is an issue? BlueWater has more of a gentle slope to the water then the other area I had been tring.

[Inge]

You can edit your config files to allow placement on steeper slopes.  That seems to count for beach lots too.

[MutantBunny]

You can edit your config files to allow placement on steeper slopes.  That seems to count for beach lots too.

Thanks Inge. I thought as much but was unsure.

This is what I referred to with the boatnana reference above. I just wasn't sure it applied to beach lots--but there is no obvious reason why it should not.

[morriganrant]

You can edit your config files to allow placement on steeper slopes.  That seems to count for beach lots too.

Ah, but I am the un-awesome and have no idea how to do such, might someone point me in the right direction? Then I will be all ed-ju-macated on the issue once I make it back to my own beloved computer.


*Morrigan would like it to be known that the oddities that appear in the sentence above are on purpose.*

[Inge]

C:\Program Files\EA GAMES\The Sims 2 Bon Voyage\TSData\Sys\Neighborhood.ini

The following two places I have edited:

[LotPlopTunables]
; If the neighborhood terrain slope within the area going to be occupied by the lot is greater than this, then, lot plop
; get disallowed. The angle is in degrees and is measured between the points having the highest and lowest elevations in the
; lot area.
; Default 20
MaxLotSlope=85.0

[SmoothingUnderNewLot]
; Parameters controlling the smoothing of the lot area when a new lot gets plopped.
;
; When the angle (in degrees) between two neighboring terrain vertices is less than this, the elevation of the higher vertex
; is lowered by a small amount and the elevation of the lower vertex is raised by a small amount. If the angle is less than
; this, elevations of the two vertices do not get modified.
; Default 18
SmoothingTalusAngle=45.0

Unfortunately the latter contradicts itself as to the meaning, and I am not at all sure it's doing anything anyway   It's the first one that is important for placing lots on slopes, anyway.

[eenaleor]

I tested the 3x3 as a dorm on a new terrain named "Enchanted Cove" from mts2. The only issue I had while playing was that I was getting no bills, since I was not particularly fluent anyways I didn't bother too much. I tried to remove stuck bills with the Lot Debugger but since this option was not available, I guess there were none. Oh and I noticed there is snow laying on the bottom of the sea in the sims' world. Looks funny. I will test the mail thing further.