Moving the butterfly spot

[Gwill]

I'm having problems with the seasons butterflies.  They keep spawning on an idiotic spot on concrete next to the driveway, when I think they'd be much happier in the large lush garden.
I've burninated them repeatedly with the stuck object remover, but they respawn at the same spot.  I've tried placing objects on the spot, but then they just spawn somewhere close by.  Can I manually place the butterfly/firefly emitter somehow?

[vcline]

I can't even click on the butterflies/fireflies.  I keep moving the cursor all around near them and on the ground but the little hand never pops up.  So I can never direct my sims to catch them, they just have to do it spontaneously.

[jsalemi]

You won't get a hand -- you only get the little star-like icon that appears when you're going to tell a sim to 'go here' or 'watch clouds' outside. When you click on the ground under the butterflies (or fireflies at night), a menu option is added to 'catch butterflies/fireflies'.


Gwill -- I usually see the butterflies/fireflies spawn near a tree or bush, and moving the tree/bush moves the spawning spot.  If you have a tree by the driveway, maybe try moving it and see if they follow?  Or put a tree/bush somewhere else on the lot and see if they move there?

[Gwill]

I was hoping for something a little more direct.  Would one of those collections of game items do the trick?

[Mens Mortuus]

Gwill -- I usually see the butterflies/fireflies spawn near a tree or bush, and moving the tree/bush moves the spawning spot.  If you have a tree by the driveway, maybe try moving it and see if they follow?  Or put a tree/bush somewhere else on the lot and see if they move there?

No, they don't. I have the same issue as well. There are no bushes or trees, in fact all plants are on the other side of the lot. At least Gwill's are next to the driveway... mine always hover at the garbage cans! Flies in disguise, maybe?

[Magicmoon]

I once had 'moveobjects on' while doing some remodeling and accidentally picked up the butterflies. I just put them back where they were, but I wonder if you moved them to another spot they would stay where you put them?

And not to hijack the thread, but there are a couple of other things whose 'Spots' I would like to move. Like where the pets decide to do their business. Some like the front porch next to the door. Burninating these spots don't help any more than burninating butterfly spots. The pet is technically peeing outside, so you can't even scold the pet for peeing in a dumb place. Then there is the invisible spot on Comm lots that every new visitor must go to before anyone can interact with them. Of course, the favorite spot is in the kitchen to get in the way of the cook staff. There is another "spot" that was bothering the dickens out of me last week, but for some reason I can't remember it just now.

So is there any way to Burninate these "spots"? I've tried "Nuke Attraction Markers" on the lot debugger. Evidently, these spots are not attraction markers. So I wonder what I actually nuked?

You won't get a hand -- you only get the little star-like icon that appears when you're going to tell a Sim to 'go here' or 'watch clouds' outside. When you click on the ground under the butterflies (or fireflies at night), a menu option is added to 'catch butterflies/fireflies'.

Mine won't turn into a 'star' like it does when you point to an object. It remains the 'footprint' but instead of just 'go here' or 'run here' on the menu, the 'catch butterflies/fireflies' is added to the menu. Having the cursor turn into a star would be better so I know I'm in the right place. So does everyone else's cursor turn into a star? Is it just my game that is weird?

[jrd]

Seems to be butterflies spawn near flowers or bushes, on the first patch of land with one land tile free on at least three sides. Therefore no floor tiles or lawn decorations can be placed too close to the flowers, or the flutterbys are shifted away.

My cursor becoms a star when I can catch them. Perhaps this is tied to the snow cursor?

[Gwill]

God knows I've tried picking up the darned butterflies.

My butterflies are definitely on paved ground, and nowhere near any flowers or bushes.
It also seems like my butterflies absolutely refuse to be caged in.  The butterfly spot is always outside the fenced in garden.

This is not just one lot either, it's five.

[jrd]

A fully fenced garden could do it. A caged in area (even with the steppable fences) is not always considered outside. Make sure at least one side (like a lot edge) is not fenced.
You can use water (a lake) as a border and still have butterflys,

[Zazazu]

My main issues with the butterfly spot is that they tend to spawn immediately on lot load with a bare lot (no floor tiles, no bushes or flowers or anything but the sims, mailbox, trashcan, and sidewalk) and a newly arrived family, during the video, before I can press pause. They then proceed to spawn right where I need foundation. And I can't pick them up in build mode. My only solution is to have someone catch the dratted things. Then I have to go back into build/buy mode, move the dumb sims who have decided to pelt each other with pillows or waterballoons and the jars of bugs, save and proceed.

[Invisigoth]

For some reason my game has a fixation with the lot debugger and macrotastics box.  I always keep them outdoors in the back yard and usually the butterflies will spawn there.  Although in my current lot I've moved the boxes around so many times that the buterflies gave up and went for the garbage can mailbox area.  My sims are equally interested in the boxes.  They MUST run alllll the way around the house to fingerprint scan both boxes every time they use the scanner.  Before I had nowhatsthis installed they would all line up and "what's this?" both boxes before even entering the house to look at their usable new toys.  I think its kind of funny and I sort of like them interacting with these objects or else I would just throw the boxes into a shack with no doors.  I hope to one day be quick enough on the trigger to catch them with a funny thought bubble while one of them is looking at/scanning/whatever one of the boxes.  They don't obsess over the visitor controller or ACR controller at all.

[jrd]

Zaz - shift-click error them. Or use Pesc's invisible object destroyer.

[morriganrant]

When i first enter a lot the butterfly spot always seems to be close to the mailbox. or sometimes near the center of the lot, never at the back. Its always somewhere near the front (usualy tiny) yard. This annoys the piss out of me when i have extensive gardens on the side or a woodsy area at the back of the house. They do not seem to be interested in the bushes. After a while they will spawn near the flowers (so long as they are near the invisible center line of the lot, and only on the front side of the invisible line) but thats only after a many sim hours of game play. The first firebug or butterly spawn  after lot load will always be near the mailbox.

[TaWanda]

If buttterflies were to be caught and released in a different spot would they stay in the new spot? I've never released any, so I don't know what happens to them.

Does anybody else think G-spot when they see the thread title, or am I just a perv?

[Li'l Brudder]

No, TaWanda, that's the same impression I get. 

[jsalemi]

Well, there was the famous 'Venus Butterfly' from the old LA Law series -- that comes to mind, too.

[vcline]

If buttterflies were to be caught and released in a different spot would they stay in the new spot? I've never released any, so I don't know what happens to them.

The couple of times I've released butterflies, my sim went to the back of the lot.  I don't remember how long the butterflies stayed there.

[dusty]

So is there any way to Burninate these "spots"? I've tried "Nuke Attraction Markers" on the lot debugger. Evidently, these spots are not attraction markers. So I wonder what I actually nuked?

I believe that option nukes the markers that cause farting hearts from thought bubbles.

[J. M. Pescado]

That's one of them, yes. They have been known to become corrupt, causing your game to crash or error repeatedly, which is why the option to pzorch them exists. As they seem to serve no perceptibly useful purpose, no harm is done by nuking them as often as you want.