8 playable Sims, 1 Dorm

[windy_moon]

So, I've been setting this up "forever" (being nearly the world's slowest Sims player).  Had a group of children I was attached to -- added two male CAS Sims to make the number 8 and to even the genders (4 boys, 4 girls), brought them into teen years together.

We had a lot of fun being teens with NL, and finally it was time for college.  (Actually took me a couple of real life weeks to get everybody into college, combined into one "household"...taking over an 8 person dorm with just my Sims.)

Scholarship money amounted to about $28K (pats self on back), so we could afford a gorgeous makeover of the 8 person dorm in Academie Le Tour, and we're off and running. Just finishing up the first semester.

I never thought I'd say this about Uni, but this is actually fun.  I cleared all of the crushes and loves out of the relationships with SimPE  (college being a fresh start, after all) and sat back to watch whom my Sims would choose.  Totally shocked that within minutes of the first day two Sims I would have never put together made a bee line for each other and are inseparable.     Two bolts when three bolt choices are available, but who am I to mess with young love?  They are panting to be engaged but I am pulling out the fire hose until we get through at least a few more semesters.

I like being responsible for so many Sims at one time, it's a real challenge.  Peeing, eating, showering, term papers, class, assignments, study, aspiration meter, true love.  The pause button is my friend. . 

Got the idea from Ancient Sim, I do believe, who likes to take Sims through Uni in large batches.  So much better (IMHO) than one or two at a time when you just want to shoot yourself in the head from boredom.

What's the most Sims you've put through Uni at one time, in one household?  Did you enjoy it more than just one or two?

Do you have any tips?  My only tip so far is to remember that they don't have to go to class if they have accidently fallen into bad shape.  I've found I'm better off keeping a couple of them back to get into shape and then use research to boost the meter. (And, I compulsively complete term papers the first day for a healthy white bar as a base.)

AND, the "no meet professors"  hack or whatever the heck that is.  Professors are a plague.   

[gali]

All my Uni households are with...2 engaged sims, matched carefully to continue their life as adults.

The most sims I had once in a household was - 6, including half teen townies; thus I had 2 households.

[Karen]

Two words:  College Rampage    (It's part of Macrotastics, which I highly recommend if you aren't using it already.)  I have pretty much stopped sending my Sims to Uni, but for a while I was sending them in big groups, 6 or 8 at a time.  Trying to juggle that many Sims is enough of a challenge to almost make you forget about how boring and tedious Uni actually is.  Good luck!

Karen

[Gwill]

I put 8 CAS-sims through college together once.
My plan was to use them as breeding stock  (I'm addicted to the 6 wants-slots and I refuse to cheat), but I never bothered with them.

They all got out OK.  Not 4.0 GPAs all around, but no one ever got put on probation or anything like that.

It wasn't fun though.

[windy_moon]

Two words:  College Rampage    (It's part of Macrotastics, which I highly recommend if you aren't using it already.) 

You know, even though I use Macrotastics religiously, for every part of my Sims game, I've never used "rampage". That's one of those buttons that reminds me of Dexter's Laboratory "what does this button do?".  Scary.  I don't really  know what "rampage" does, so I'm too afraid to press it.  

I have pretty much stopped sending my Sims to Uni, but for a while I was sending them in big groups, 6 or 8 at a time.  Trying to juggle that many Sims is enough of a challenge to almost make you forget about how boring and tedious Uni actually is.  Good luck!

Karen

Grin. Isn't that the truth. I'm no fan of Uni, but I do love this group of Sims, so I'm hoping we'll be able to have a good time together.  At my rate of play, I should be ready to open them a business by the time they graduate!  

[Dark Trepie]

Make sure you've got a flamingo somewhere outside, Bathroom Uses You, Sleep Clock, and redily accessible food via the caffiteria worker.  Then sit back and let College Rampage do the rest.

Keep a close eye on that flamingo though.  The ones in my game have a habbit of sticking sometimes.

[Ancient Sim]

In my new Pleasantview rather than sending them in a batch, I staggered them, so they actually started at the correct times.  I did this partly so Angela & Dustin and Lilith & Dirk didn't go together, but also for realism.  Angela & Lilith started the dorm off, together with Lilith's townie teen boyfriend, Trepie.  A year later, Angela's boyfriend joined them (being a year younger), followed a year later by Dustin & his townie girlfriend, then Dirk and Angela's boyfriend's brother the following year.  I had 8 then, so Steven John came the year after when Angela & Lilith had left as he was best friends with Dirk (I only allow townie teens to go if they're best friends with one of my teens).  Two years later Alexander arrived, then the year after it was Lucy's turn.  It didn't have to be done that way, I could have sent them all at once and started them in the neighbourhood at different times, but I just fancied doing it how it would have been done in 'real life' so it seemed more realistic.  Starting off with 8 and building to 8 was a different way of playing for me, but I quite enjoyed it.  I actually like Uni, I like the 'in limbo' aspect of it, and I especially like it now I have the new dormie hack.  I've already got two gravestones in my new dorm and two other dormies have been resurrected because they were lucky enough to have a good enough relationship with one of mine.  I'm no longer cheating and teleporting in best friends - if they don't have one on the lot, tough.  I will use another dormie if I like the dead dormie enough to want to keep them alive, but that's as far as I'll go.

[windy_moon]

In my new Pleasantview rather than sending them in a batch, I staggered them, so they actually started at the correct times.  I did this partly so Angela & Dustin and Lilith & Dirk didn't go together, but also for realism.  Angela & Lilith started the dorm off, together with Lilith's townie teen boyfriend, Trepie.  A year later, Angela's boyfriend joined them (being a year younger), followed a year later by Dustin & his townie girlfriend, then Dirk and Angela's boyfriend's brother the following year.  I had 8 then, so Steven John came the year after when Angela & Lilith had left as he was best friends with Dirk (I only allow townie teens to go if they're best friends with one of my teens).  Two years later Alexander arrived, then the year after it was Lucy's turn. 

Well, you're my hero.  8 is hard enough when they are all undeclared (so far) and start and end at the same time! 

I have Alexander and Lucy in my batch, too.  They are so in love, I can't even stand it....absolutely adorable.  They went steady as teens, having "found" each other on their own in the NL bowling alley...I cleared the crush and love for college, but they wouldn't be denied and are a couple again.  I have the "first woohoo" want for each other locked, just waiting for the right time.

Angela, Lilith, Dirk and Dustin are light years older than this batch....not having had the benefit of the Awesome Lot Timer (TM)  to be closer in age.  Lucy and Alexander got held back with 2nd & 3rd gen  game born Sims. 

Man I'm a slow player.   

Trepie wrote:

Make sure you've got a flamingo somewhere outside, Bathroom Uses You, Sleep Clock, and redily accessible food via the caffiteria worker.  Then sit back and let College Rampage do the rest.
Keep a close eye on that flamingo though.  The ones in my game have a habbit of sticking sometimes.

I'll try that for the 2nd semester, thanks.  Everyone's bars are full and I just paused the college timer with the grandfather clock ... ready to get everybody together and go out for a night on the Downtown to smustle.  (Which, by the way, is the opposite of how I usually play Uni...I'm usually speeding things up, not pausing)  So far,fun.

[Sleepycat]

I haven't sent many sims to Uni but of the few I did, some I had fun with and some I didn't.

I noticed that if I decided to let my sims have fun while at Uni then I enjoyed it alot but if I just wanted to "get it over with" then it was boring.

Currently I have Angela and Lilith and Dustin and Dirk all waiting for me to play them in Uni tonight, I got them set up in a dorm last night. I plan to let them have some fun...maybe I'll nix their crush/love relationship ties to see if they end up together or pick someone else    I already altered the twins personalitys (shy popularity sims...no freakin way!) and I changed Lilith to the pleasure asp (I'm not wild about popularity sims)

[Brynne]

I always send as many as possible at once. Right now I have 7 YAs and sim me, sim me's husband, and our 7 children living in a dorm that was converted into a residential area. This is by far my largest Uni household, as far as playable sims goes.

[J. M. Pescado]

I like to send as many as possible, generally between 6-8 in a given place at a time, introduced at various intervals to keep the dorm stocked as sims graduate, based on time sync ratios maintained by the Lot Clock.

It actually goes faster to have a large crowd, because group research is really powerful when you have a huge horde going at it at once.

[Sleepycat]

*dies laughing* Love that pic JM!!!

[BeckerCheez]

Hehe, WoW...  I usually send several off to college at once, and split them up when necessary.  

[J. M. Pescado]

I think JM has a hack out that prevents the flamingo from sticking. Not sure what the hack is called anymore.

Stuck Flamingos defy all known solutions. Gnomes don't seem to get stuck at all, though, and are recognized as valid kickables, so gnomes are a valid upgrade to flamingos, albeit with different placement and security requirements.

[vecki]

I tend to send 2-4 together (usually in their romantic pairings: Angela&Dustin with Lilith&Dirk, Alexander&Ricky, Lucy&Randy).  If they're sims I want to keep as close to 'in sync' as possible to the main 'hood, I'll move them to Uni at the last possible moment and then push through the Uni years as quickly as I can.  Monotonous, yes, but we're trying to be efficient!

If they were created students or unattached townies, I have no problem taking my time and leaving them in the dorms for a while - although I've started moving them into houses as soon as possible because dorm living is getting far too expensive!  300 simoleons for 2 students with no extra amenities?  750 for 5?  Especially as houses are costing about 42 simoleons (2 students) each billing cycle - I thought dorms were meant to be the cheap option for students without piles of scholarship money!

[Emma]

I usually have no less than 4-and I get townies to move in too. I always try to make greek houses with my sims.
It is so boring just having 1 sim to play through uni!

[flowerchile]

My most favouritest part about Uni was the Clock.  Times just flies!!

[Oddysey]

I think JM has a hack out that prevents the flamingo from sticking. Not sure what the hack is called anymore.

Stuck Flamingos defy all known solutions. Gnomes don't seem to get stuck at all, though, and are recognized as valid kickables, so gnomes are a valid upgrade to flamingos, albeit with different placement and security requirements.

It occurs to me that the Stuck Flamingo phenomenae could be a clumsy attempt by Maxis to over ride the macro use/abuse of the flamingo. Not likely, but possible.

Would it be technically feasible to devise an object that, at a preset interval, forces an error on all the flamingos on a lot and resets them? Because this would be a possible solution, albeit an extremely clumsy one.

[J. M. Pescado]

It occurs to me that the Stuck Flamingo phenomenae could be a clumsy attempt by Maxis to over ride the macro use/abuse of the flamingo. Not likely, but possible.

That's a bit much of a conspiracy theory considering that flamingos got stuck well before macros existed. Mostly, I think that the problem stems from the fact that Maxis did not anticipate that flamingos would be used as a fun object in such a manner, and therefore the timing issues on flamingos are not sufficiently robust to handle being serially kicked.

[Kristalrose]

That picture was cute and very unlike you, JMP.  I'm amused this afternoon. 

I usually play 8 in, I think, the exact same dorm you're using, Windy.  Is it the two-story dorm in Acadamie Le Torneau?  (Or however it's spelled)  I also use the college rampage and the TJ's college adjuster.  And, yes, it is a fun time.  I notice sims making romantic pairings that become marriages or storylines for the little soap opera that is my playstyle later on.  Sometimes I'll graduate or move out a couple of sims.  When the population drops to four, I will import another group of my in-born sims, so I always have 8 sims going in the same dorm. 

[Sagana]

My flamingos only get stuck if a maid or a nanny or another PC gets the bright idea to "clean" by picking one up inbetween my "low fun" PC trying to kick them. Then it won't behave as it's "in use" and gets stuck there... silly sims.

I'm only playing one household of PCs in my current neighborhood (it's going to get too big, I can feel it already) and I'm spacing out sending them to college by 2 years - so my first fella is there alone. Well his HS sweetie went with him but I set her to a dormie and stuck her in a dorm cuz I'm not happy with her as a marriage partner. She's just good for dates and the like for right now. So he's alone 'til his brother arrives, which is a shame as I love playing several at once, but it's gone fairly quickly anyway.

[Sleepycat]

I tend to send 2-4 together (usually in their romantic pairings: Angela&Dustin with Lilith&Dirk

well last night I only had a short time to play Uni, after noticing that none of them had any love ties anymore (don't know if I had already nixed them or if the game did it), I was getting Lilith sorted out (picking a major) the other 3 went happily off to class...and Dirk & Angela apparently decided they want to be together, not sure who flirted or kissed who (I didn't see anything, I was still focused on Lilith) but they are in crush now 

It will be interesting to see how all this turns out since I have no clue why Angela picked Dirk(2 bolts) when she has 3 bolts for Dustin. Dirk has 2 bolts for both Angela and Lilith. Dustin has 3 for Angela and 2 for Lilith...

meanwhile one dormie is drooling all over Lilith (hopefully she finds someone better looking) and another keeps trying to pick a fight with her 

[Swiftgold]

I just stuck twelve of them in a dorm last night... I usually send them by age a chunk at a time but I had fun with the last batch and didn't put them through on total speed to let them get to know each other, so I'll probably do that for a while until I get tired of it. Then it's complete the necessary skills, random grade, "finals in two hours", and out they go! *grin*

[windy_moon]

Used JM's "rampage" for the first time on Sunday.  Wow, that's a pretty powerful button to push, especially when 8 students start rampaging at the same time.

 

Not entirely sure how to best use it within the way that I like to play.  I'm obsessive about aspiration meters -- I always play wants to platinum.  Rampage does not stop to smell the roses and fill a couple random wants along the way.
 

Positively amazing, though, how quickly the performance bar filled up for everybody using rampage.  That man knows how to make Sims scurry!

[tunaisafish]

There's another cheat for getting the grade up that lies in between 2J's adjuster and Rampage, and this one is by Maxis.

Influence a sim to do your assignment.
Put your sim on another PC to write it themselves.

The bar fills up *twice* as fast, as expected.
But when they finish it adds *double* the credit.
If you have the influence to get 2 sims to help, *triple* credit, job done.

Either this is a bug, or a design feature.  I think it's family sims that get the want to write their own assignment directly after influencing another to do it.  So they end up in Platignum, and they can use their remaining semester time to seduce their future spouse.  Kind of like the girls I met at Uni