More Awesome Than You!

Here is my offering for the contest. I've got all the EPs, FFS and Glamour stuff packs sop it's likely I've used bits of Maxis content from all. Not using CC was so hard it hurt... trying to build something aesthetically pleasing using the stuff that ships with the game is painful. I often play with big families (think mad scientist with little simmie fruit flies) so have evolved building a style of house capable of coping with large numbers of sims (thanks to Jordi's hack).

It's a modern styled, full furnished, 3x3 lot. Cost 155,431

The main entrance is on the front of the building, only a short distance from the pavement. There is also a basement garage with internal access to the ground floor via stairs. Keen gardeners will be pleased to know that situated to the right of the house are a small orchard (1 apple, 1 lemon, 1 orange tree) and a greenhouse with room to grow 11 plants. Behind the greenhouse is a fenced off area with a small fishing pond and access via stairs to a barbecue area.

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/FrontView.jpg)

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/RearView.jpg)

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/Roof.jpg)

On the upper floor there is a master bedroom with en-suite bathroom and a twin bedroom. Here we also have an entertainment area (pool table/stereo) which would make a suitable skilling area in the future. A double door leads out a balcony area where your simmies can stargaze in the hope of abduction. The stairs to the upper floor are centrally located for easy access from the ground floor.

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/Floor2.jpg)

The ground floor is where most things happen. The main entrance leads into a large study area (for quick dumping of homework) and there are two bathrooms on the right. Opposite the bathrooms are the two spawn containment chambers, allowing for separation of the just-spawned from their larger brethern. The study leads through a double arch to the lounge area with a plasma screen tv, bookcase and chessboard. From the lounge you can access the garage (via stairs) and the upper floor. There is a door leading to the kitchen, double door to a raised patio/barbecue area and double archway to the pool/sauna room for that all important safe hot tub ACR action when running Seasons. The dining room seats 8 with 2 doors to the kitchen. The kitchen itself comes with top quality appliances and work surfaces.

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/Floor1a.jpg)

The basement has a single garage with access via stairs to the lounge on the first (ground) floor. There are also a series of external steps from basement level to the front door.

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/Basement.jpg)

The decor reflects the architectural style; simple and modern. Wooden floors and natural carpets are used throughout the living areas and bathroom floors are tiled. Wall decoration is simple yet elegant with judicious use of white wall tiles in wet areas (bathroom, kitchen, pool/sauna). A neutral gray flagstone has been employed inside and out. Paintings, wall decorations, rugs and pictures are located around the house. I have used some Maxis curtains (even though I hate them above all other Maxis content) and expect any sensible peeps who install this to replace those ASAP.

(http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j136/spacedcat/Eevilcat%20Haus/Lounge.jpg)

Should future expansion require it, you could easily knock off the roof above the study/bathroom/spawn containment areas and gain second floor space for several rooms. Roof angle is set to 25 degrees.

My bribe: I'm happy to offer a lot of your choice and type though I am more experienced at building residential and dorm lots. With this offer I will also include custom floor/wall coverings of your choice.

Pescado's phonehack has very generously added itself to the sims2pack file so please use the Sims2Pack clean installer.

Very nice, love layout, love original looking roofs.

I love the stairs going up to the entrance. Nice ;D

Thanks, I fought my way through several tutorial on the exchange and TSR before getting the hang of basement garages, wall heights and how to get CFE to do what I wanted. The house is playtesting nicely so far but I really miss my Holy Simoly and Sims 2 Life custom content.

1.8 for aesthetics. Really interesting house design; the interior was a little sparse.

! THIS LOT HAS NON-LEVEL EDGES !
Placement of this lot in your neighborhood will permanently damage the neighborhood terrain! Do not use this lot!

Bribe: 0.2
Functionality: 0.8
Scenarios: 0.8
Cost Effectiveness: 1.0
Expand 0.8
Physics: 0.1
Aesthetics: 1.8

Technical: 0.841
Total: 0.585

Correct Behaviors
Kitchen Firebreak & Visitor Raid Defense Good

Correctable Issues
No Anti-Wolf Fencing!
Nursery Partitionment Awkward
Bathroom Quality Uneven
Visitors Not Properly Confined To Viewing Deck
Hot Tub Not Access-Controlled

Fundamental Flaws
EDGES NOT LEVEL - Lot useless and cannot be placed anywhere other than original neighborhood's spot without damaging terrain!
Warped Driveway Produces Visible Car Clipping Artifacts

My stupid... I forgot to level the lot before starting building as the terrain was close to being, but not quite, level. I knew I wasn't going to get away with it.  ;D

You can't level the lot after placing it, it won't help. The edges of the lot are set the moment you place it, you have to flatten the terrain before you ever place the lot. Flattening the center is irrelevant, the center does not need to be flat, only the edges must be level.

Interesting, I didn't realise that. I will pay more attention to lot location in the future. I might build and make available another version of this house on flat terrain, as it certainly plays really well. I'm now onto the second phase of the Ramaswami alien breeding program with that lot so it's had plenty of playtesting. On a related note, your selfsim autonomously managed to track down yet another dance sphere - I think he's trying to set some sort of record for alien sproglets.

Try doing one without a warped driveway, by jacking the entire thing up on hill with flat edges.

Is there any way to flatten terrain in the neighbourhood view? Or do you have to choose what looks like a flat piece of land then check in build mode that it is indeed flat and reposition the lot if need be?

Place an empty lot template down on the uneven terrain and then bulldoze it away.  This will leave the terrain flat.  As for the second question, you would have to start over with a new lot.  Once a lot is placed, repositioning it will not change the edges of the lot, but it will change the terrain of the neighborhood to match the edges of lot if you move it.  This latter issue is the basis of El Presidente's objection.

Thanks, I took the better safe than sorry approach, placed a 5x5 lot and bulldozed. That way I had an nice flat area to place my 3x3 lot in. I fully understand where Pescado is coming on from this one, I'm just a bit irritated with myself for not picking up on it. Ah well it's the sort of mistake you only make once - my excuse is that I'm used to creating one-off in situ lots that will never be shared.

That works, but it's even easier to use a completely flat neighborhood for house construction.  I prefer Viper Canyon.

Sedona is also completely flat. The new one is flat too, the RiverBlossom(?) one, believe it or not. I always use it for my downtown. I never use the other ones. I have a couple of my own completely flat terrains that I use for the Business district and Uni.