3 or 4 lightening bolts

[Regina]

Three bolts isn't as hard as one might figure, IF you create the sims for each other, and once in a while they'll be lucky and find another sim with which they're totally compatible.

As far as I can tell, the bolts are based on compatible aspirations, possibly compatible astrology signs and turn-ons.  Say for example you create two family sims, make one with brown hair and glasses, then create their partner with a turn-on for brown hair and glasses, and create the first sim with turn-ons that match features the second sims have you're going to have three lightning bolts.

Often if you find sims with two lightning bolts for each other, you can bring them up to three by either changing their turn-ons to match the other sim or changing features about the other sim to match turn turn-ons.   Of course that isn't going to work if their attraction is purely physical already, like my sims Burleigh and Ally.  He's a money sim, she's a knowledge sim.  His turn-ons are set to her features and her turn-ons are set to his, so the best they're ever going to get is two bolts.  Oddly enough, though, I have another couple of sims, one knowledge and one money and they have three bolts for each other.  I'm thinking in these two cases having or lacking that third bolt may be a case of their astrology signs.

[linolino]

Ok so.. I thought that you got a lightining bolt for each of the follwing:
one for matching aspirations
one for matching zodiac signs
one for matching turn-ons (only 1 match needed)
So you get 3 bolts if all of these aspects match. Isn't this right?

Here a doubt i have:
Are lightning bolts the same for 2 sims? i mean, if i have a sim with 2 LB for another sim, will that sim also have 2 LB with my sim? or LB is not necessaryly the same amount for both sims?

[knitro]

I have a pair of sims that I married b4 NL and when I got NL without changing any turn ons or offs, they had three, pretty good match on my part, if i do say so myself.

[Regina]

Ok so.. I thought that you got a lightining bolt for each of the follwing:
one for matching aspirations
one for matching zodiac signs
one for matching turn-ons (only 1 match needed)
So you get 3 bolts if all of these aspects match. Isn't this right?

Here a doubt i have:
Are lightning bolts the same for 2 sims? i mean, if i have a sim with 2 LB for another sim, will that sim also have 2 LB with my sim? or LB is not necessaryly the same amount for both sims?

As far as I can tell, that's pretty much the way it works.  I don't have the strategy guide so kind of have to make guesses and sometimes I guess wrong.

Yes--it seems to me that the two sims in question will have the same amount of lightning bolts.  Just as an example, I had a sim go to a Downtown lot last evening and check out another sim.  He thought she was ultimately hot, so I had him ask her if she liked what she saw.  She did the old, 'Oh my gosh I think I'm gonna throw up!' thing and when I checked his relationship bar the lightning bolt had a red X through it.  So even though he thought she was great, there was negative chemistry between them.

[linolino]

  HA HAAAA HAHAHAHAHAH, It just hilarious that "Oh my god i tihnk im gonna throw up" animation!!! and all those little red X flying around.. poor male sim of yours... hahahah...

Now, back to the topic, i don't know if i understood what you said. You mean that the male sim had some LB on the womans portrait, but then after asking her if she liked what she was seeing, a red X appeard over th LB?
Or the red X was always there?

[Regina]

HA HAAAA HAHAHAHAHAH, It just hilarious that "Oh my god i tihnk im gonna throw up" animation!!! and all those little red X flying around.. poor male sim of yours... hahahah...

Now, back to the topic, i don't know if i understood what you said. You mean that the male sim had some LB on the womans portrait, but then after asking her if she liked what she was seeing, a red X appeard over th LB?
Or the red X was always there?

I'm not sure I remember, but it seems to me there were no lightning bolts on her portrait until after he asked her, then the red X showed up.  I could be mistaken, though.  I've got a flu bug right now which is seriously affecting my brain function. 

[Sagana]

Really? Mine always have the same number, I think - so far. When my "hat sim" isn't wearing her hat and her husband's score drops to 2, so does hers. But when she's wearing it, they both have 3. Maybe turn ons and turn offs change for both sims, but the other compatability traits only for the sim in question or something (like if the signs were only partially compatable)?

I'm not sure I remember, but it seems to me there were no lightning bolts on her portrait until after he asked her, then the red X showed up.

I'm pretty sure lightning bolts don't show up until you've done some sort of flirt interaction (checking the other sim out or something). Just scoping the room or talking to a sim will give the ones on the possible socials but not the ones on the portraits (so you can tell they're attracted but not  how much chemistry there is).

[skandelouslala]

Okay, here ya go...

 Maybe I'm just stupid but I still see 4 there even when I press my nose to the screen.  Why am I seeing 4 and other people seeing 3 lol

[Velax]

Perhaps this will help. I've coloured the middle bolt on one of the characters red.

[skandelouslala]

Aha!  I think I see now...thanks haha..for a minute I thought I thought I was going crazy lol

[Hook]

I think I understand.  If you look at the edges of the bolts, you sometimes see 4.  If you look at the yellow part, you see 3.  I just tried it and saw 4 bolts myself.  Something weird about our perception.

Hook

[linolino]

wow! those are some ugly sims!

[Motoki]

I don't think they are ugly, but they sure seem to like they're makeup. They'd give David Bowie a run for his money.

[gali]

wow! those are some ugly sims!

LOL, the first one on the left is Alexander Goth - that's the most pretty I could make of him. I am going to use the surgery and see if I can fix his big nose...

The second is Beau Broke - he is very pretty, but he clapped hands on his tumbnail. I don't like the tumbnail, but it's his choise.

The third is Dustin Broke - same as Beau...

The fourth is Skipi Broke - the 3rd kid of Brandi; He was with black hair, but I changed it to blond.

...These are the sims the game give us - I complainted a long time ago that most of them are ugly. I put a lot makeup on them (eye shadow, eye lashes, lipstik, etc) to make them more attractive....

It seems it didn't help much....

But my CAS sims are beauuutiful, really....

[linolino]

hahaha nevermind, it's just that i hate make up, specially on male faces.
I actually like sims with some different or noticeable facial features, because most of the sims with regular facial structure look very similar. if you put the same hair on them, then it's almost impossible to tell who is who

[gali]

Weeelll, I, as a female, prefer the makeup on the males' faces... - I hate beards and mustaches. Once I ate near a male with beard and mustaches, and almost puked, because all the food he ate was glued on his mustaches.... Just waited to get out fast this restaurant....

[Muisie]

hahaha nevermind, it's just that i hate make up, specially on male faces.
I actually like sims with some different or noticeable facial features, because most of the sims with regular facial structure look very similar. if you put the same hair on them, then it's almost impossible to tell who is who

Yeah, don't you just hate it when your sim comes home unpromoted and you realize that you've sent his brother to gain the necessary skill point instead?   Gah!

[Zeljka]

I try not to put obvious makeup on my male/toddler/child Sims, but some really need it.
I pretty much use the same 'eyeshadow' (no makeup, just eyelids) eyelashes that look real, (but not made up) and I have 2 lipsticks (Helaene and Getskintight) that are natural looking. I don't like facial hair either though I have a few good scruffs and goatees.
It's hard to get a decent looking Sim when you put the Maxis defaults into the gene pool.

[Regina]

Isn't it funny how different people's tastes run?  I like manly-looking men, rugged, nice noses (think Harrison Ford, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellan, Christopher Lee, Sean Bean, Cliff Simon), and facial hair is awesome!  Oh yes, I've seen guys with beards who end up with half their food in them and I know a lot of men who have really ugly, scruffy beards, too.  But both my hubby and best friend's hubby have very nice beards and amazingly enough you generally won't find food crumbs in them.

To me, those sims in make-up look like *gasps* girls! 

[cabelle]

Isn't it funny how different people's tastes run?  I like manly-looking men, rugged, nice noses (think Harrison Ford, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellan, Christopher Lee, Sean Bean, Cliff Simon), and facial hair is awesome!  Oh yes, I've seen guys with beards who end up with half their food in them and I know a lot of men who have really ugly, scruffy beards, too.  But both my hubby and best friend's hubby have very nice beards and amazingly enough you generally won't find food crumbs in them.

To me, those sims in make-up look like *gasps* girls! 

I like your sort of man too Misty. I perfer a guy who isn't afraid to get a little dirty. I still drool over Ewan McGregor in Revenge of the Sith, in fact I made a sim of him for my neighborhood. Very nice addition to the gene pool.

[linolino]

I also like facial hair. i like beards . not long beards though. just that kind of beard very well trimmed. and i don't like mustaches.

[lefty]

I think everyone has very different standards of beauty, which is reflected on thier sims (some of those beauty pagents at MTS2, hooo-boy) ^_^

Nobody wears makeup in my game, except maybe some custom eyeliner (to give some sims that tired baggy eye look)
I think too much make up on sims makes them look like streetwalkers 
Even ladies go around without any make up, no false advertising going on in my game!
Full beards are ick, but trimmed is cute. Sideburns have gotta go!

For the guys, I like the less rugged looking ones, but for the simple fact that the handsome rugged ones tend to pass on thier more dominant features to the female children    quite scary to pop out a kid with daddy's schnoz 

When a sim is just beyond help, hair in the face or the mime makeup  is what I slap on them. Lets me know from a distance the fugly ones are coming 

[Regina]

When I first started playing I didn't use much make-up.  Then during the past few months I've got into it a bit more.  I don't like to use gaudy-looking make-up, just a little here and there to help bring out their features.  Of course once in a while I have a Romance sim that I dress and make up so she looks more the part.  I've got to where now I'll grab hold of any Townies and service people on my lot and fix them up, too.  With the new turn-ons and such in NL it just doesn't seem right letting the poor service workers look like peasants all the time.

[Motoki]

I use some 'makeup' that really just gives the sims a more realistic look like eye folds, eye bags, sometimes I'll use one of the realistic normal lip tone color lipsticks I have etc. So my male sims don't really look made up at all. I also use contact lenses to change eyecolors, particularly on dark skinned or Asian-looking townies with light eye colors :p

Funny thing is, with NL for a while I was giving my straight female and gay male sims makeup or full face makeup as a turnoff and completely forget that a lot of my sims have what the game technically considers to be make up. 

[AllenABQ]

Funny thing is, with NL for a while I was giving my straight female and gay male sims makeup or full face makeup as a turnoff and completely forget that a lot of my sims have what the game technically considers to be make up. 

Yeah, I've had the same issue.  Full face makeup often is used in the context of changing appearance with age lines, not actual "makeup".  Hairfish has also created some excellent subtle effects that give your sims eyelids, but they are classfied under "eyeshadow".  And just recently I got into Dr Pixel, et al, earrings and jewelry creations forgetting the fact that these are classified as "glasses".  So now I have to be real careful when thinking about Full Face Makeup, Makeup, and Glasses as turn-offs.

I know it would be adding yet another couple of bitmaps, but we really need a "genetic mods" layer for the face similiar to full face makeup as well as a whole body "non-genetic" makeup layer so that people can do body scars and tattoos and not resort to making them skin tones.  Uni gave us some clothing skins that have tattoos in them, but the tattoos disappear when your sim takes a shower!