Ridiculous 'follow' obsession

[Sivany]

My toddlers are driving me mad. I don't know what's changed in my game but previously my toddlers were quite happy to autonomously play with the toys provided for them and only occasionally went to harrass the adults in the household. I always played with nobabyharrassment, but not the baby controller.

Now suddenly my toddlers seem to be obsessed with 'following' their parents around the house. Everytime I cancel the action it just comes back and they will only play with the toys if I literally lock them in the nursery. I've tried replacing nobabyharrassment with TJ's nobabytoddlerswarming in case this helped but it didn't.

Since my playstyle involves allowing sims to choose what skills they learn I hate having to direct them into using a specific toy, but this follow thing is driving me insane. I'm sure it never used to happen. Does anyone know how to stop it?

[J. M. Pescado]

Install and deploy the baby controller. Problem solved. Otherwise, use APO to lock the nursery against babies so that they are unable to leave without impeding anyone else from entering or leaving as needed. We are not interested in creating a product to address an already resolved issue merely because you refuse to use the existing solutions. All Sivanys suck.

[Sivany]

Heh ok I guess I asked for that. I didn't think of APO, I shall start using it immediately on nurserys. I guess my toddlers are doomed to not see any other parts of the house until they become children.

What was really puzzling me was why this had only just started happening. As I said previously they didn't have this obsession with following their parents around and rarely did it. I was wondering if I was the only one or if FT somehow altered this behaviour (unlikely, I know, since no one else here as mentioned this, I suppose it could be a weird hack conflict instead).

[J. M. Pescado]

I doubt it. More like it's EAxian autonomy stupidity. Why would toddlers NEED to see any other part of the house? It's not like any other objects are even toddler interactable.

[jolrei]

I keep toddlers in the barracks section, preferably on an upper floor of the house.  This secludes them nicely from adult sims who have other things to do downstairs.  They are very happy to chew on their crayons and pull the ears off the pink bunny all day then.

[J. M. Pescado]

I keep them on the viewing deck where I can see them! No hiding! Ceiling Cat is watching you!

[Kyna]

I've been letting my toddlers have free will since I installed FT, as I don't want them maxing out their skills too young.  I've also noticed the follow obsession, but since my toddlers haven't had free will since pre-NL, I can't tell if FT increased it.

One of my neighbourhoods is made up only of beach lots.  I was surprised one day when a toddler went outside and started eating sand.  He wasn't hungry, he just decided to toddle past all his toys, head outside past the adults (who were all out on the beach), and decided to see what sand tasted like.  I hadn't seen that interaction before.

[Zazazu]

Usually toddlers are either in a baby-gated & locked play area or on a different floor from the other sims. They can pine all they want, but mom & dad are busy making more babies. In pet households, the cats and dogs allow themselves to be squeeze half to death. That keeps them happy.

In my mega-lot, with 12 sims, three of whom just stopped being toddlers, they rarely had a moment to pine or skill. They were being fussed over 24/7.

[talysman]

I only notice "Follow" (or "Ask to Be Read to") popping up when the toddler is dead tired and no adult is immediately available to put the kid in the crib. Of course, since I *do* use the baby controller, it may be squelching excessive following. The downside is that, if the toddler isn't about to pass out, I have to keep cancelling toy interactions or turn off the controller in order to do anything else, like fulfill a bunch of wants immediately before grow-up. It's all a matter of trade-offs.

[J. M. Pescado]

Honestly, I'm not seeing the point of giving toddlers free will at all, it's not like they have anything to DO. The alternative to skilling is to just sit there and do nothing. Or scream obnoxiously. That just makes me inclined to want to murder them. The problem with the "follow" nonsense is that there is no corresponding countermove, "kick", like there is in real life. In real life, this doesn't happen because kids that follow around underfoot all the time get kicked. Usually after intercepting a few boots, they get the hint. A stiff regimen of beatings quickly teaches them that attention is a bad thing.

[Sagana]

I think FT did increase it. If you let them follow, and sit around next to their parents (which is all they do usually when they get there), the toddlers gain enthusiasm for whatever the parents are doing (dunno if that includes woohoo or not). As enthusiasm is a FT thing, the extra following probably is too. I still enjoy watching my toddlers dance and you can't have that without freewill. I'm easily entertained however.

[Zazazu]

I can click on a stereo and direct a toddler to dance. Not sure about instruments...I don't have many of them in play, and have just seen a toddler dance to a piano once or twice.

Honestly, I'm not seeing the point of giving toddlers free will at all, it's not like they have anything to DO. The alternative to skilling is to just sit there and do nothing. Or scream obnoxiously. That just makes me inclined to want to murder them.

Screaming toddlers. Wolves, who are more attracted to lots with young spawn. I can practically smell the "Dingo Ate My Baby" hack now.

[Kyna]

Honestly, I'm not seeing the point of giving toddlers free will at all, it's not like they have anything to DO. The alternative to skilling is to just sit there and do nothing. Or scream obnoxiously.

There's the doll's house or the toy box for them to amuse themselves with.  I really don't mind if they don't get 8 skillpoints in creativity, mechanical, charisma and/or logic as toddlers.  In fact I prefer it if they don't.

I used the baby controller for a few years in my game, and then had my simkids skilling away to get 9 or 10 scholarships.  It makes for a boring game when every sim is maxed out in skills, every sim graduates with 4.0 GPA, and every sim hits the top of their careers too easily (even with harder jobs).

I no longer supernuke my toddlers.  Well, I do for as long as it takes to potty train them, then I force an error on them to remove the smartmilk effect.

I give them a reasonably well-equipped nursery with doll's house, toy box and a range of skilling toys, and I let them have free will.  Once they've passed the toddler stage they only skill if they want to earn a skillpoint, want to get a promotion and the skillpoint is required, or if they autonomously do a skilling activity.

[Jelenedra]

Can't you just lot debugger them to make them stupid?

[Alexx]

"Follow"obsession seems not only toddlers related problem.Attracted sim sometimes or mainly even more stupid animals than toddler.For examle "4 zits attraction"is most annoying thing that I ever seen in game.

[Zazazu]

It's actually 3 bolts. There is no 4. The icon being so small doesn't help, and a lot of simmers imagine it is 4 instead. But yes, I'm right there with you. At some points, the following behavior can have a creepy stalker overtone. I'm thinking specifically of sims following their target while the target is asleep. Reminds me of this roommate I had for a few months. I'd wake up in the middle of the night and she would be standing over me, staring at me. Very creepy.

I give them a reasonably well-equipped nursery with doll's house, toy box and a range of skilling toys, and I let them have free will. 

Mine usually get two skilling toys or the activity table, plus a teddy bear. Thank ?TJ? for that hack that stops autonomously talking through the teddy bear.  I usually don't give them the toybox as it can get unmanageable in large homes with multiple messy children.

[professorbutters]

I have more trouble with Sims who insist on stalking their loved one in defiance of the need to eat, sleep and pee than with toddlers "following" their parents.  It's an annoyance, but on the scale of annoyances it's at max maybe a 4.  My Sims do about 90% of their living on the ground floor, where the nursery is.  At the Legacy house, there are two snaps in the nursery, too, which means the babies and toddlers practically never need to eat or pee.  They do scream to be let out of their cribs when they wake up, but my Servos are smart enough to go do that right away.

What I AM sick of is adults carrying the toddler upstairs to Bathe Toddler when the Toddler is not dirty!  Hygiene 85-95% full, and still they have to carry them upstairs to the bathtub.  Cancel the action, and the kiddo is trapped up there. 

I've kind of been getting a kick lately out of playing the toddlers to Ask For Attention or Ask For Food and see if the adults have a clue what the kid wants.  Is there a challenge that involves toddlers and never playing the adult--just the kid to Ask For stuff?

PB

[jsalemi]

Screaming toddlers. Wolves, who are more attracted to lots with young spawn. I can practically smell the "Dingo Ate My Baby" hack now.

You know, it's occurred to me that I haven't seen a wolf (and rarely a stray) since I installed FT.  The skunk comes around all the time, as does the penguin.  I've been playing the Desiderata hood, though, and I'm wondering if Pesc's hack to cut down on strays being spawned has something to do with it....

[Jelenedra]

Same here. Not even howling at night. Maybe I need to plop down a Wolf Attraction sign...

[HeyYeah]

My toddlers only follow when their motives are too low to continue to skilling but the baby controller hasn't directed anyone to do anything about it.

What I AM sick of is adults carrying the toddler upstairs to Bathe Toddler when the Toddler is not dirty!  Hygiene 85-95% full, and still they have to carry them upstairs to the bathtub.  Cancel the action, and the kiddo is trapped up there. 

I fixed that by just not having any bathtubs until I need one, then selling it after it was used. Then I got nobabyharassment and the problem stopped.

[Count Four]

What I AM sick of is adults carrying the toddler upstairs to Bathe Toddler when the Toddler is not dirty!  Hygiene 85-95% full, and still they have to carry them upstairs to the bathtub.  Cancel the action, and the kiddo is trapped up there. 

I fixed that by just not having any bathtubs until I need one, then selling it after it was used. Then I got nobabyharassment and the problem stopped.

A lot of times I add a 2x2 'bath closet' to the nursery and stick a tub in it; if a sim gets an irresistible urge to bathe a toddler, they'll usually go for that one instead of dragging the kid all over the lot.

[Jess Maree]

I grabbed a toddler bed and eating station off MTS2 so the little ankle biters take care of themselves. Only need help when they shit themselves, but I potty train them early to stop that.

Then, they have free will. Except in Autumn, then they skill.

[professorbutters]

What I AM sick of is adults carrying the toddler upstairs to Bathe Toddler when the Toddler is not dirty!  Hygiene 85-95% full, and still they have to carry them upstairs to the bathtub.  Cancel the action, and the kiddo is trapped up there. 

I fixed that by just not having any bathtubs until I need one, then selling it after it was used. Then I got nobabyharassment and the problem stopped.

A lot of times I add a 2x2 'bath closet' to the nursery and stick a tub in it; if a sim gets an irresistible urge to bathe a toddler, they'll usually go for that one instead of dragging the kid all over the lot.

That's a good idea.  I absolutely would do that if there was room.  I don't think there is, but I'll check.

PB

[Surelyfunke]

You know, it's occurred to me that I haven't seen a wolf (and rarely a stray) since I installed FT.  The skunk comes around all the time, as does the penguin.  I've been playing the Desiderata hood, though, and I'm wondering if Pesc's hack to cut down on strays being spawned has something to do with it....

Same. I removed Wolfwatchers from DC and all is fine again, they prowlz my hoods and everyone wants to be friends with Kirby.

[jolrei]

I loaded petz after I had FT, and have never had a stray or a wolf at all.  I also get the skunk - have not seen the penguin yet.  I'll try removing wolfwatchers and see what happens.