SimTek
19th May 2011, 10:22 PM
The Sims 3 is about realism and fun, but "living" out a life for a Sim can get pretty boring. I mean, who really wants to spend valuable time, watching a fake human cook and clean their house? So, as the title says, welcome to The Busy Couple Challenge, which will hopefully help you have a fun and realistic game. As you read on, you'll realize that the challenge is very lax and probably a good choice for your first one.
Overview: The point of The Busy Couple Challenge is to hopefully raise a couple of children and have a couple raise them without cheats or mods. Sound easy, right?
Set Up: Before you can start raising the kiddies or building the relationship, you need to have a good foundation to do so on (and by foundation, I mean starting point, but a house is nice to have, too).
1. Make a nice Sim is CAS.
(a) The Sim must be female, as that adds to the whole challenge a bit. Feel free to use any traits you like, although using Absent Minded is not recommended. Also, finding a male NPC that is suitable for, ehrm, breeding, is quite a bit harder to do than finding a lady NPC. Males are also a bigger part in the whole process of family raising in this challenge.
2. Buy a Lot.
(a) We'll use Sunset Valley as our town here, but feel free to use any town you have available, but please keep it to "official" towns, meaning no towns made in CAW. It also makes following the rules easier for all of us.
(b) Hmm. Lots of lots, huh? Big houses and vacant lots fill the horizon, but do not despair! I have some lots that might make everything go a wee bit smoother for you and your Sims. Feel free to build or buy, but remember, freerealestate is not allowed.
The Redwood Parkway Strip - That row of lots up on the faaaar corner of Sunset Valley? Right next to Crumplebottom's dwelling? The lots there are a good size, offer nice views, and aren't too far from town. Though, be warned that they may seem a bit big for someone wishing to build the house themselves.
The Monotone - Probably your first Sims' starter house, this lot is close to town, in a "family" neighborhood of sorts, and offers lots of room for expansion. Do realize that The Monotone is only one bedroom at the moment, and it'll get hard to live the challenge out with the addition of only walls. Be prepared for the expense of an expansion.
Pre-fabulous - Um, well, it's close to town. This itty-bitty trailer like dwelling is just enough to get the relations on the roll. The width vs. depth of the lot also poses a challenge for future expansions.
Pinochle Point - The lots up there are big and flat, posing a nice set-up to faithful builders. But, being in a new sort of "district" up there, and the distance to town, can make your time on the game less than efficient.
Remember, it's your choice. This is only a list of lots, but use any empty ones you can find throughout Sunset Valley that you see fit.
3. Find a Mate (and I do mean mate.)
Oh, the horrors of NPC playing! This is where you Cheaters and Hackers may find a little bit of comfort. Read on, Simmers, read on.
(a) Scour the town! Young Adults don't have curfews, so use that to your advantage! Stay up all night until you find a male that fits your wish. If they're married/dating/idon'tknowwhatyoucallit, break it up! Be relentless!
***Your lady Sim shouldn't be working, so co-workers is not somewhere to look***
(b) Cheating time! Get those stats up to "Best Friend" and then "Boyfriend". We'll hold the proposal off, because a lady Sim on one knee is a bit... silly. Use the Cheat Window (Ctrl+Shift+C) and type in Good Ole' "testingcheatsenabled true". Shift+Click your prospective mate and choose "add to family". Now, have your male Sim propose to your lady Sim and get married, or use a bit more time to make sure everything works out. This is the last time you can cheat, so tun off "testingcheats" right now.
4. The end of set-up! Now for the Rules
(a) No Cheating!
(b) Have the male Sim get a job (full-time only) and keep your lady Sim from working.
(c) No LTRs! No "Fertility Treatment" or any other child-bearing/relationship effects!
(d) No Services! No babysitters, nannies, or butlers! Either baby comes or nobody goes.
-Oh, that was painful! So strict!
5. Gameplay/ How Do I Win?
You start off with 500 points, okay? That's a nice, small number. To win, you have to reach a total of 2,000 or more, which isn't too bad, by the time the child ages (naturally) to Y.A.
Every child born- +200 pts.
Every child that dies or is taken away by Services- -400 pts.
***Oh, look! You still have a chance to win! Points shouldn't be counted until the end of the challenge, so losing 1,000 pts. isn't auto-fail!***
Every child that reaches Honor Roll- +50 points
Every child that does max out a skill before Y.A.- +100 pts. (+50 every skill after)
Every time the plumbob of a child goes "red"- -75 pts.
Every time the plumbob of a parent goes "red"- -50 pts.
Every time a kitchen/fireplace fire happens on lot- -150 pts.
Every time a police officer brings a child back- -100 pts.
Every time you get a warning about a child's attendence/H.W.- -25
Every time the child does H.W. without help- +10
With help- +5
Notes-
***Father must go to work everyday and on time.***
***Keep actions with children to a minimum, unless of course the baby is screaming while the mum is out in the yard.***
***Adoptions do not count towards your score, but feel free to do so.***
Now, those are only 10 of the many rules you can play by! Post new idea for rules, and just maybe they'll make it to the list!
Thank you all for the ideas and help I needed to create this challenge!
Overview: The point of The Busy Couple Challenge is to hopefully raise a couple of children and have a couple raise them without cheats or mods. Sound easy, right?
Set Up: Before you can start raising the kiddies or building the relationship, you need to have a good foundation to do so on (and by foundation, I mean starting point, but a house is nice to have, too).
1. Make a nice Sim is CAS.
(a) The Sim must be female, as that adds to the whole challenge a bit. Feel free to use any traits you like, although using Absent Minded is not recommended. Also, finding a male NPC that is suitable for, ehrm, breeding, is quite a bit harder to do than finding a lady NPC. Males are also a bigger part in the whole process of family raising in this challenge.
2. Buy a Lot.
(a) We'll use Sunset Valley as our town here, but feel free to use any town you have available, but please keep it to "official" towns, meaning no towns made in CAW. It also makes following the rules easier for all of us.
(b) Hmm. Lots of lots, huh? Big houses and vacant lots fill the horizon, but do not despair! I have some lots that might make everything go a wee bit smoother for you and your Sims. Feel free to build or buy, but remember, freerealestate is not allowed.
The Redwood Parkway Strip - That row of lots up on the faaaar corner of Sunset Valley? Right next to Crumplebottom's dwelling? The lots there are a good size, offer nice views, and aren't too far from town. Though, be warned that they may seem a bit big for someone wishing to build the house themselves.
The Monotone - Probably your first Sims' starter house, this lot is close to town, in a "family" neighborhood of sorts, and offers lots of room for expansion. Do realize that The Monotone is only one bedroom at the moment, and it'll get hard to live the challenge out with the addition of only walls. Be prepared for the expense of an expansion.
Pre-fabulous - Um, well, it's close to town. This itty-bitty trailer like dwelling is just enough to get the relations on the roll. The width vs. depth of the lot also poses a challenge for future expansions.
Pinochle Point - The lots up there are big and flat, posing a nice set-up to faithful builders. But, being in a new sort of "district" up there, and the distance to town, can make your time on the game less than efficient.
Remember, it's your choice. This is only a list of lots, but use any empty ones you can find throughout Sunset Valley that you see fit.
3. Find a Mate (and I do mean mate.)
Oh, the horrors of NPC playing! This is where you Cheaters and Hackers may find a little bit of comfort. Read on, Simmers, read on.
(a) Scour the town! Young Adults don't have curfews, so use that to your advantage! Stay up all night until you find a male that fits your wish. If they're married/dating/idon'tknowwhatyoucallit, break it up! Be relentless!
***Your lady Sim shouldn't be working, so co-workers is not somewhere to look***
(b) Cheating time! Get those stats up to "Best Friend" and then "Boyfriend". We'll hold the proposal off, because a lady Sim on one knee is a bit... silly. Use the Cheat Window (Ctrl+Shift+C) and type in Good Ole' "testingcheatsenabled true". Shift+Click your prospective mate and choose "add to family". Now, have your male Sim propose to your lady Sim and get married, or use a bit more time to make sure everything works out. This is the last time you can cheat, so tun off "testingcheats" right now.
4. The end of set-up! Now for the Rules
(a) No Cheating!
(b) Have the male Sim get a job (full-time only) and keep your lady Sim from working.
(c) No LTRs! No "Fertility Treatment" or any other child-bearing/relationship effects!
(d) No Services! No babysitters, nannies, or butlers! Either baby comes or nobody goes.
-Oh, that was painful! So strict!
5. Gameplay/ How Do I Win?
You start off with 500 points, okay? That's a nice, small number. To win, you have to reach a total of 2,000 or more, which isn't too bad, by the time the child ages (naturally) to Y.A.
Every child born- +200 pts.
Every child that dies or is taken away by Services- -400 pts.
***Oh, look! You still have a chance to win! Points shouldn't be counted until the end of the challenge, so losing 1,000 pts. isn't auto-fail!***
Every child that reaches Honor Roll- +50 points
Every child that does max out a skill before Y.A.- +100 pts. (+50 every skill after)
Every time the plumbob of a child goes "red"- -75 pts.
Every time the plumbob of a parent goes "red"- -50 pts.
Every time a kitchen/fireplace fire happens on lot- -150 pts.
Every time a police officer brings a child back- -100 pts.
Every time you get a warning about a child's attendence/H.W.- -25
Every time the child does H.W. without help- +10
With help- +5
Notes-
***Father must go to work everyday and on time.***
***Keep actions with children to a minimum, unless of course the baby is screaming while the mum is out in the yard.***
***Adoptions do not count towards your score, but feel free to do so.***
Now, those are only 10 of the many rules you can play by! Post new idea for rules, and just maybe they'll make it to the list!
Thank you all for the ideas and help I needed to create this challenge!