Third Time’s the Charm

NOTE: THIS IS NOT MY CHALLENGE AND IS STILL IN TESTING PHASES.  I’M JUST ARCHIVING THE RULES HERE FOR MY OWN NEEDS.

Title: A Sims 3 challenge… (The Wishful Living Challenge [working title])
Post by: Arkali on January 24, 2010, 12:11:43 AM
So… I’m kicking around some ideas for a Sims 3 challenge. Who’s interested in giving it a whirl once I’ve got some rules in place, and would you prefer scored or non-scored? I’m thinking non-scored.

So! Just a warning – it will be a loooong challenge

OBJECTIVE:
Explore the ‘hood fully, try new things regarding sims personalities, have fun!

THE RULES

Cheats/Mods:
No cheats. Mods are okay, but if it feels like a cheat, it probably is (faster skilling, no need-decay, etc.)

Gameplay in a nutshell:
1)You start with a single founder. The sim ending the challenge should be able to trace their family line back to the founder through blood, marriage or adoption.
2) The challenge ends once you have achieved one of every life time wish. Sims eligible for “scoring” are torch-holders, spouses of torch-holders, and heirs.
3) Once the heir reaches Young Adult Status, they MUST move out as soon as they are able to afford a house (not an empty lot). At this point, the old family is no longer eligible for scoring. There is a three day grace period for last minute scoring of the previous generation’s lifetime wish. After this point, they are no longer eligible for scoring. This applies even if the heir is unable to move yet.
4) In order to encourage you to try the various houses, building is limited. You may not change the ORIGINAL foot-print of the home. If you want to tear-down or add interior walls, that’s fine, but the original foot-print must be preserved. You may NOT build additional stories. The exception to add-ons is that you may build a basement as a nectar cellar ONLY. It may not extend past the original footprint of the house, and may not contain any other furniture besides nectar maker(s), nectar racks and decor.*
* Please don’t use the basement loophole to get around moving. Basements are intended for nectaries, not to give you additional living space. If it’s living space you need… you got it, MOVE

Traits/Simology:
You may take whatever traits you want. You kind of need to in order to “win”, anyway :-p

Inheritance
You may pass along items that are not obtainable through Buy or Build mode. Heirs may take lifetime happiness rewards and items purchased in vacation destinations (nectar makers, tents, martial arts equipment, etc…). They may also take relics and collectibles. Collectibles are limited to one per item (one emerald, one space rock, once topaz, one goldfish, one tomato, one lime, etc.). All items the heir takes with them must have been purchased / gathered by the heir.

Moving Out / Passing the torch:
You must limit the heir’s home selection to those of value equal to or less than the generation of the heir x $10k. (Ex. The heir for generation 3 would be able to choose a house worth $30,000 or less.) After moving them out, it’s your option to either make them the active household immediately, or save and then select them from the neighborhood screen.

Optional:
You may want to change the heir’s “Starting funds” to something other than “all or nothing”. If so, you can use the FamilyFunds cheat to adjust their starting cash. If you choose to do this, it’s recommended that you give them a share split equally between the adults* of the previous generation.
Example: You have the current Torch Holder (TH), the spouse, the heir, and a younger sibling. There is $99,000.00 in household funds (isn’t that convenient!? :smirk:) The heir’s share would be $33,000.00
* “Adult” is used to just mean “grown” and does not refer to the specific age category. It includes Young Adult, Adult and Elder sims.

Scoring:
Scoring is pretty easy. It’s on a “par” system. The absolute quickest you can finish the challenge would be 14 generations. Any generations past this is +1, +2, etc. So… Par is good, and then lower is better after that. If you even bother to keep score If you have an heir that must stay at home because they cannot afford to move out, add +1 to your score for each transition they had to live at home. Each transition will count past a three-day grace period.
Examples (examples do not count take the generation into account):
The heir is 2 days into young adulthood when they move out. This would count as +0.
The heir is 5 days into young adulthood when they move out. This would count as +1.
The heir is 3 days into adulthood when they move out. This would count as +1.
The heir is 6 days into adulthood before they are able to move out. This would count as +2.

Bonuses:
You may subtract 1 point from your score for each of the following:
* Spare heir eligibility: Each generation you may designate ONE spare heir. That spare must be the same age or younger than the heir. If they achieve their lifetime want BEFORE the scoring window for that generation closes, you can count their wish fulfillment.

FAQ:
Q: What if my sim had two sets of twins? They need more room!
A: Move. Part of the challenge is to encourage moving to different houses to explore more of the neighborhood, so if you’re cramped for space, moving is better than adding on.

Q: What if they can’t afford to move?
A: That’s part of the challenge

Q: Okay. They’re moving because they need more space. Can they bring their furniture with them?
A: Absolutely. If you’re moving because you’ve run out of space, instead of because it’s the start of a new generation, then I would think you should be able to bring furniture with you. I mean, you would in real life, right?

Q: What settings are we playing on regarding lifespan and story progression?
A: Normal life spans, story mode on.

Q: How do I adjust household funds if I decide to use the optional method of moving my sims out?
A: First, hold down “Control, Shift, C”. That will open up a window to type a code. Then type in “familyfunds [FamilyName] [EXACTamountyouwantthemtohave]“.

Helpful references:
http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/lifetimewishes/ (http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/lifetimewishes/) – This a guide to Lifetime Wishes. It lists all of them, and also the trait combinations necessary to trigger the Lifetime Wishes. There are also strategies for achieving the wishes.

Lifetimes Wishes At a Glance:
Original Game – (33 Total – 40 with WA)

Career Related – Become A ______: (15 Total)
Astronaut, Celebrated 5-Star Chef, CEO of a Mega-Corporation, Creature-Robot Cross-Breeder, Hit Movie Composer, Master Thief, Emperor of Evil, Forensics Specialist, International Super-Spy, Jack-of-All-Trades, Leader of the Free World, Rock Star, Super-Star Athlete, Star News Anchor, World Renowned Surgeon

Skill-Based: (7 Total)
Golden Tongue/Golden Fingers, Illustrious Author, Master of the Arts, Perfect Mind/Perfect Body, Renaissance Sim, The Tinkerer, Visionary

Miscellaneous: (11 Total)
Chess Legend, Culinary Librarian, Gold Digger, Heartbreaker, Living in the Lap of Luxury, Presenting the Perfect Private Aquarium, Professional Author, Super Popular, Surrounded By Family, Swimming In Cash, The Perfect Garden

World Adventures: (7 Total)
Bottomless Nectar Cellar, Great Explorer, Martial Arts Master, Physical Perfection, Private Museum, Seasoned Traveler, World Class Gallery

Title: Re: A Sims 3 challenge…
Post by: Christina on January 24, 2010, 12:13:11 AM
I’d be interested in hearing what you have in mind. By long, are you thinking something like legacy length?

Title: Re: A Sims 3 challenge…
Post by: Arkali on January 24, 2010, 01:01:15 AM
Probably. What got me to thinking about it was the whole thing of having my simmies move the other night. I’ve been playing Legacy style so long that I’ve never had sims move before. And honestly, I enjoyed it. Rather than count generations, though, I’m thinking of having the “End game” scenario be either there are no living descendants of the founder (lose) or you have a sim reach the top of every career path (win). Not the same sim, of course :-p I’m thinking that the only sims that qualify as “players” are the “torch-holder” (from ISBI), their spouse, and the heir. And once the heir reaches young adult-hood, I’m thinking they have to move. And I’m also thinking of seriously limiting the building :-p

Edit: Rather than the end game be the end of the career lines, I’m thinking have achieved each of the life-time wishes. That includes all the careers, plus some of the stay-at-home options and others :-p

Title: Re: A Sims 3 challenge…
Post by: Captain Angelia on January 24, 2010, 08:13:23 AM
Hmm. I’m intrigued. When you get more info posted about it, I’ll let you know if it’s something I would consider doing.

Title: Re: A Sims 3 challenge…
Post by: Christina on January 24, 2010, 09:06:09 AM
Quote from: Arkali on January 24, 2010, 01:01:15 AM
Edit: Rather than the end game be the end of the career lines, I’m thinking have achieved each of the life-time wishes. That includes all the careers, plus some of the stay-at-home options and others :-p

Being forced to try all of the LTWs sounds interesting. I know there are a few I’ve just avoided because I didn’t want to do them. Of course, if you want to randomize traits, this could take FOREVER to accomplish, since LTWs are so trait-dependent to even pop up.

Title: Re: A Sims 3 challenge…
Post by: Arkali on January 24, 2010, 10:41:42 AM
Nope. That’s something I don’t care for with the new Legacy Challenge. You should be able to play how you want to play (for the most part). Okay – here are my rules, so far. Give me some feedback and I’ll tweak on them so far.

The object of this challenge is to try new things

1) No cheats. Mods are okay, but if it feels like a cheat, it probably is (faster skilling, no need-decay, etc.)
2) You start with a single founder. The sim ending the challenge should be able to trace their family line back to the founder through blood, marriage or adoption.
3) The challenge ends once you have achieved one of every life time wish. Sims eligible for “scoring” are torch-holders, spouses of torch-holders, and heirs.
4) Once the heir reaches Young Adult Status, they have a 3 day window and then they MUST move out and start their own household. At this point, the old family is no longer eligible for scoring.
5) In order to encourage you to try the various houses, please refrain from building. Basements are okay (especially because I don’t think m/any houses come with them, and they’re necessary for nectar making), but by and large, if you need more room – MOVE!
6) Traits, rewards and etc.: Take whatever you want. You kind of need to in order to get “win”, anyway :-p
7) Inheritance – you may pass along items lifetime happiness rewards and relics to sims who are moving out. You may NOT buy them a house full of furniture as a going away present :-p

I think that covers everything… do you think there should be more objective / collections, or does that cover it? I’m of the mind that short and simple is better than long and convoluted.