Can you create half foundations?

[Alundra]

This is sort of an odd question but I've been messing around and want to create a sort of half foundation. I found an awesome houseplan online and it has a "patio" area that's the equivalent of a half foundation....but I can't make one. I'm considering just trying to make a wall really short but I wanted to use foundation.

Has anyone been able to do it or is it impossible?

[MdMaxx]

Pics please? You want to lower the foundation height?

[Aeschere]

I don't think I understand, can you provide pictures or a link to this?
I suppose you could always mess around by flattening regular walls with ConstrainFloorElevation False cheat to a size smaller than the foundation tool.

[llee]

Unfortunately it's not possible. The default foundation height (3 clicks) is the lowest height possible for foundations/walls.

[Alundra]

Unfortunately it's not possible. The default foundation height (3 clicks) is the lowest height possible for foundations/walls.

Aww :(. That sucks :(.


I wanted to create this:
http://www.eplans.com/contemporary_house-plans/HWEPL58362.hwx
http://www.eplans.com/content-images/common/plans/images/ADI0/ADI404/ADI404-FR-RE-CO-LG.JPG

I think it would look better with a foundation half the size...but if I can't get that I'll have to cheat and either lower the ground and hide it with plants (and soften it) or just deal with the big foundation...

Turns out I couldnt get the walls lower either so I have to cheat somehow lol.

[llee]

Without a foundation though you won't be able to have stairs at the entrance.

[Alundra]

Gees EA missed out on a lot of potential with this version :(. I got all excited over the half square thing till I found out windows, walls, etc could only be placed on full squares. It's like putting in a feature but not letting people use it lol.

Sims 2 sort of had that with diagonal placing. I remember trying to turn couches and it would then only have one seat, or maybe two instead of the three it came with...then I couldnt get them to watch TV if they were both diagonal...I'm glad Sims 3 fixes that! :D

[tjstreak]

Forget the foundation altogether. Foundations make it a little more difficult to add the basement, and basements are really nice. That house is small enough that your sims will appreciate the additional space a basement provides.

[Alundra]

Well I figure if I remove the left bedroom and shove the bathroom in there I've got it worked out. There's also the fact that sims don't have laundry rooms so that can be removed. I don't think I'll have an attic either.

I found a couple of nice plans to try out. I really wanted something small and modern with tonnes of windows, but I fell for this one over the patio sort of area. I just can't picture it with a full foundation.

[llee]

Forget the foundation altogether. Foundations make it a little more difficult to add the basement, and basements are really nice. That house is small enough that your sims will appreciate the additional space a basement provides.

Actually, wasn't there a trick to build basements under foundations? Or has that been corrected with the latest patch. I know for sure though that you can still build a basement next to a pool.

[moryrie]

It's easy enough to remove part of the foundation and stick 2 sets of stairs in, as far as basements go. I just did that today. o.0

[Alundra]

I built my house, and it was really good. Only issue is my kitchen, but that's my fault. I put an extra bench in and it causes a smaller walkway.

I had to extend the bedrooms double cause my sims had 6 kids. I had 3 boys, then I had 3 girls. Yeah, it surprised me too LOL. I was hoping for twins and that's it.

[Volvenom]

Can't you raise or lower the ground around the foundation? Use constrainfloorelevation true/false or something. I don't know how much you have been messing around with that cheat. It can make a real mess of your house, so look around this sight to find a good tutorial before you start.

[DaveyDaVinci]

In theory, you could lower the ground near the foundation, make another foundation, and use the constrainfloorelevation cheat to *Level* out the original foundation height to the lowered. However, in application, it just lowers the ground around the original foundation piece. This ground lowering also occurs when you use CFE on multistory walls too many times. So as of right now, unfortunately it's not possible.


Taking a look at the lot you want to build, it looks like it could be possible with a normal foundation size, and still have the same effect that you are looking for!

[armiel]

Actually, what I just discovered, you CAN make a half foundation, but there is a downside, you cannot put anything on it, so it is basically useless.
I saw this tutorial at a blog, that tought you how to make foundation windows without weird terrain near wall, so it made me try this half foundation thing too. Basicly what you need to do is:
- make a basement
- lower the terrain outside it one stair height.
- put on CFE and flatten the terrain
- build actual foundation all around the basement to be able to put floortiles, you need to make some foundation to the middle too to make the wall - there if the ones outside did not reach there. (sorry if confusing)
- then after floor is layed, put the cheat of and remove the foundation
- put the CFF back on, and raise the terrain near basement wall to the height you want, then just flatten the terrain to that height.
- and voila, you have a useles, but pretty deck.

Hope someone makes up a way to actually use those.
error i discovered was, that you need foundation/wall under it, to keep the floortiles usable, and if you built wall near the edge, the terrain would lower back to normal. also, you cant put stairs to the edge, they try to sit on the ground not on the "foundation"

[llee]

Could you link us to that tutorial?

[armiel]

Here is the link, http://fuzzylogicdishwasher.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-functional-exposed-basement.html.
Hope it's ok to post it here since Claeric was after all, banned from the site.

Anyways, here is what I was able to make, and also the clitch why it's at the moment useless.

EDIT: All thought I saw the tutorial, I still claim the idea how to make foundation lower mine, untill someone claims they have done it before. Selfish me :P

[TVRdesigns]

Firstly, Claeric got it from QBuilderz' tutorial over at Sim Supply :)

Secondly, this is definately not possible. It is in theory, but its not in a practical sense. For instance, you can do it, but sims cannot access the floor above the basement walls.

Sorry to dissapoint, but thats the way it is, till a very smart person finds a trick to get it done, like Flabaliki and Q did for TS2.

[armiel]

Ok, I didn't know where he got it, I only just saw it on his blog, haven't been to Sim Supply lately.
And I already knew it was impossible to use. Waiting for that super smart person to show up and make it possible :P

[Volvenom]

As a option ... can't you just raise the ground a bit. I know it's not quite a foundation but you will get the hight, and can put in some stairs at the front.

[llee]

No because it would end up being a slope, not a wall. Besides the minimum height for stairs is three clicks, which is the same as foundation.

[TingTong]

A normal foundation would work fine there....What i was looking and wondering at was the skylights in the roof! As far as i know theres no transparent floor tiles yet so making boxes and altering with CFE is useless right now.....very pretty house though! Could you post some pics when you've finished for us to admire? XD

[llee]

http://mysims3blog.blogspot.com/2010/03/pool-enclosure-setgreen-house-by.html

Looks like there's a piece there which you could make skylights with

[armiel]

I know this doesn't really belong to this thread, but you CAN make skywindow look-a-likes, just look at my Olives, or Arcana 4. They have "windows" in roof, that are made of just by using fences. As long as there is no weather in sims 3, they work just fine.