*flicks away a tear*

My gawd, Stevie is so wonderful.  Even before I read the line about his Ottomas lineage, I KNEW.  The Ottomas Ugly is very strong, bless it.

What about the stage/raised portion?  Is keeping it a bonus or a must?

I agree that the tree poses no challenge (hell, I don't even consider it a tree--more like a weed on steroids).

That's what I thought, just wanted to double check.

Rule question:

Can you change the external walls as long as you don't (re)move them?  Specifically, replace sections with greenhouse wall?

Hah, I'm using that Riverbend house right now (and just had to build on an addition).  It's just such an impractical house (the second floor is particularly phail what with those little wall hunks next to the bathroom).

I'd like to see this house re-done (and I have an idea for it myself). 

*tosses coinage into offering plate*

SalixTree:  I can't wait to see the rest of your house.  It already looks like a great addition to my newest hood (which is home to quite a few of your other houses). 

I wish I could get motivated to participate this month.

So is it ok to start a new "bring us your questions, give us your answers" thread to collect the most up to date info for the Wikka?

Thirding the "need a list" sentiment.

Now that sims2 won't be subject to changes with new EPs, it'd be nice to get the final yay/nay to "is this safe?" type questions.

The combination of creepy sleeping sims and the "eee, run away" conversation bubble is WIN!


*edit: while I am fail at quoting, RUN!

So it looks like adding all three unis (as is, not clean templates) isn't really worth all the extra character files it will create.

Guess I'll have some fun cloning all the maxis-made folks from the two unis I don't add.

I'm ok with seeing the same dormie faces in each university.  I was just concerned about conserving character files wherever possible.  Since it's a build a city challenge neighborhood, there will be a high number of playable sims (and the challenge is long).  I just want to do everything possible to prevent the neighborhood from dieing before I finish the challenge.

And a rather dumb question (which I think I know the answer to but need clarification).

Is the uni student bin shared between the three universities?  So any sim (from the neighborhood) who ends up in the bin will show up in any of the uni's until I place them? 

Aside from having different decor (and maxis made playables) is there any reason to have multiple universities (say one of each of the maxis made ones) attached to a neighborhood?

I really want all the maxis made uni students to eventually circulate through my build a city challenge 'hood but not if attaching multiple universities is a Very Bad Thing (or if it's just a redundant waste of character files, with uni NPC folks being the same in each uni).  I can always just clone the maxis made playables using simPe and re-create them (and only have one uni for the neighborhood).

For the record, I have all the "noregen" type hacks (found in the director's cut) and I have all EPs and SPs except Ikea.

Thanks.

Will keeping the existing tree be a bonus challenge?

In the Bad Parenting category:


[/quote]

I see nothing wrong with using Larval Baby as an air bag.

SalixTree:  That house did it for me.  It's the first house I've ever downloaded.  Now I just have to find a family in my build a city challenge neighborhood who can afford it (poor broke sims).

SalixTree:  I'm liking the looks of your house already.  (and underwater tree amuses me greatly)

*shudders*

As if the larval babies weren't creepy enough, now they're WRITHING!

Do not want.

Sipu_von_Sapu:  Beautiful house.  Is that greenhouse roofing?

As if the toddlers weren't horrifying enough.

And what's with the arms?

While I enjoy looking at some of the silly things sims3 offers (like stealing candy from toddlers, that's hilarious) I have NO desire to own it.

The thought of starting over with sims3 makes me think of those crazy folks who (after having raised their kids to adulthood) deside to squeeze out one more baby.  WHY?!  I have my sims2 game just the way I like it.  I just installed AL and M&G and everything is *knocks wood* going well.  And if I do have an issue I know where to go to help find answers. 

Sims3 (as it is now) doesn't have anything new to offer.  If I want weird looking sims, I can play the PS2 version of Sims Castaways.  If I want a GAME (collecting seeds and all that stuff) I can play Animal Crossing (for DS) or Castaways.  And if I want a litle of everything (GAME and "playing dolls") I can just fire up my new sims2 neighborhood and work on my Build a City Challenge (or get back to my neglected stories).

It will take some really interesting expansion packs to make me open my wallet for Sims3.

Post coital death.  Nice.

(in ts2 I had a prostitute spontaneously combust from too much woo hoo)

Hooray for just installing AL.

(but thank you for having a non AL version)

This looks like a good specimen.  My goal:  NO FLAT ROOF!  (I'm roof impaired, so Flat Roof is rampant in my neighborhoods)

I don't have sims3 and don't plan to get it until there is an EP that appeals to me.

The rumored Bon Vacation 3 (re-re-hashing of the blandest EP from both of the previous sims games) will not do it.  Nor will a Hot Night Life 3 (aka "open up the rabbit hole") EP.

What would pry cash from my penny pinching fist?

Farms.

It would draw from some of the better sims2 EPs (seasons/OFB, and a bit, pets) to make a full fledged farm career.  Farms would be zoned "agricultural" (versus "community" and "residential") and sims living on an agricultural lot will be the only ones allowed to raise farm animals.  As you advance in the career, you get to maintain more difficult animals (perhaps start with chickens, then move to larger animals).  More difficult animals cost more to maintain but earn you more when you sell them. 

Barns woud be rabbit holes (so if your sim goes to clean the barn, they just disappear for a bit) but paddocks would be viewable.  A few animals would mill about in the paddock and make little messes or have basic needs (like food/cleanliness/happiness).  Kind of like a hybrid of sims and Zoo Tycoon (so simple interactions with the animals).  Your sim would have to maintain a certain level of happiness amongst all animals or the farm could be shut down (there would be an inspector who comes, kind of like a farm animal social worker).

You would buy different paddocks for different types of animals.  Only a set amount of each animal could be held on a farm (but they would not be considered family members--kind of like caged pets in sims2 Pets), either all of one kind or a mix (as long as you don't exceed the total animal allotment).  Animals would breed until they reached that point.  Selling the animals (either live or as meat) would reduce the population allowing for more breeding.  Animals would also produce sellable/edible products (eggs, wool, milk, even manure--though isn't there already a "cheese plant"?  if so, that's crazy and should never have been). 

Farms could either sell the farm products via buy mode or start an OFB style business.  ONLY sims in the farm career would have access to this option (running a farm based business--other types could be available for non-farm folk).  Farms would be passed down through the generations.  If a farm goes under, it is just absorbed into the community (becomes an NPC rabbit hole or some such).  For a teen to take over a family farm, they have to enter the teen version of the job which would be akin to joining a Future Farmers of America or 4H program (meaning they'd have to have certain skills and do certain farm based activities before they can take over the farm).

A farm EP could also include pets stuff (to calm the OMGPETS folks).  Dogs, cats, and ridable horses.  Companion animals would work a lot like they do in sims2 (having their own allotment in the family and all that) and could be bred, sold, and be employable.  Dogs and cats could be put to work on the farm (as protection/vermin control) or farmed (see my pun!) out to neighbors for the same activities.  Horses could be used on the farm or just for recreation (or you could sell pony rides or something).  Companion animals would have basic personalities (a la sims 2) so you could have bitchy cats and mean dogs or untamed horses (a sim being thrown from a horse would be a very amusing animation).

IF they wanted to have a paranormal sim it could be a scarecrow.  Only sims in the farm career would have access to everything to make a scarecrow sim.  It would be vulnerable to fire or perhaps not too smart.  It would be akin to servos so it could be male or female (though with more variety in the looks department than a servo) and fall in love but not breed.

Ok, I think I've dorked out over this enough.

(oh and sims3 needs aliens, too.  or at least a way to make passable ones.  fully black eyes, please)

I like the smaller lots, too.  This lot just didn't appeal to me (even after I realized I was using it in my story neighborhood).

I'm not sure if it's been done, but I like the lots in Veronaville that have the two houses on them.

Also, I assume "house of phail" is only limited to houses.  If not, some of the community lots might be fun to re-make.