Stairway Sampler - My little idea
 

:howdy: Hi - I've been lurking, learning, and downloading for a while now - this is my first upload. I've read all the guidelines and I hope I've followed all the rules. If I haven't, you'll have to kill me, or worse, throw me into Inge's Sim Prison.

There have been many posts requesting modular stairs, and I really wish that was made possible. As for me, I have been struggling to learn how to make a reasonably interesting stairway. It took a long time studying tutorials from Jade Elliot, MikeInside, and Raphael (Thanks!) to learn how to do it. Finally I can do a decent-enough job to build what I want.

Since I can't come up with a modular stairway, my idea is to make a lot with an assortment of stairways on it. Anyone who was not yet mastered the variety of stairways that are possible can download the lot, choose the stairway they like, remove the others, then build their house around the staircase. The stairways are not on foundation. I'm sorry to say that that is too advanced for me. My lot has a stealth stairway, some split stairways, including L-shaped and u-shaped stairs, and a number of grand staircases for nightclubs, hotels, or dorms. (This lot is designated residential, though, so you'd have to redesignate it for commercial or dorm.) The lot can be loaded multiple times by installing the simsPack files as many times as you want.

The lot is 3x3. I did a clean-install. It's EP ready.

I hope someone finds my lot useful.

Gday Mrs D =)

I have been thinking about your upload for a couple of days - and trying to figure out the best place to actually have it on the site. As its not really a lot people can play their Sims in and relates more to creation I have moved it here to the Build Forum. This is where people are sent when they have questions regarding building anyway =)

This is a great idea and you have done a fabulous job! I am going to sticky the thread so it doesn't get lost and it will stay at the top of the forum. Perhaps you will inspire others to create similar example lots in the future!

I really like this idea, at least as an example basis. Good work!

Do you recommend any particular tutorials about making split staircases? I feel silly because I can't get any walls attached to my split staircases, or if I can, they look terribly deformed :wtf2:

tkdjunkie - I understand your frustration, but don't get discouraged. I think I've read and tried to follow every tutorial concerning split stairways, usually with only spotty success. I think I finally "got it" after I kept practicing the stealth staircase and got to where I could do one easily. Then when I went back to Jade Elliott's tutorial, it all finally clicked. Now I can do lots of different stairs. (Well, all except the stairway on foundation part <sigh>.)

If you want to have a stairway next to a wall or in a corner, you need to start with the walls up already. You're right, they won't stick next to the stairs made this way because, yes, the walls do get terribly deformed. The trick is to disguise it with the right kind of wall covering and skip the windows in the deformed wall area. You might be able to see from my pictures that the striped wall stairway has a window that doesn't fit right. I fudged it with curtains, but unless you really need the light there, it's better to skip it.

Keep at it. If I can, you can. Hope this helps...


Loverat, Thanks for your nice words and for moving my original post. I felt it belonged in "build" too. I wondered if the delay meant that it was going to be rejected. It made me happy that you accepted my lot and that you made it a "sticky."

kamyk, I'm glad you liked it.


Sue

Ooohhh...wow!

What a neat idea! Thank you bunches

Could you make them for larger lots?
 

3x3 is ok but I build big houses and haven't mastered the stairs yet!

I have a question... That you may know the answer to. When you put the stairs from the second floor to lets say the third floors with and open loft at the top. I have noticed that the bottom where the steps are suppose to end.. They go right to the first floor. It is not seen at each floor. It is just seen when you look from top to the bottom it is seen .. Is there away to keep that from showing up..? If you could see in the center of the photo the three set of stairs... Sorry but that is the best I can do on these photos

Hi John
Do you mean that the stairs are spanning from the 1st floor to the 3rd floor, or are you having an issue with the viewing of the stairs from different floors? I'm sorry I'm not really following and I'm having trouble seeing the pics.

if your placing your stairs on the third floor and they're going all the way down to the first without stopping on the second floor, it's probably because you aren't placing a floortile on the secondfloor for the stairs to end on (i'm gathering you are using the stair tool, rather than the stairways)
I can't see the pictures too well either, but if thats the problem you're having, make sure u place a landing on the second floor

Try the stairway tutorials on Mike Inside, they're pretty easy to follow.

You have to make sure you have 2 floors of walls, on say "L shaped stairs" so that you have a dummy level. You do all the "stair" work first (not worrying about the walls) and when the stairs are finished, you level up to the roof and flatten the walls to the correct height using floortiles on the roof.

You can then delete the floortiles and the walls will stay level. Turn the cheat off once the walls are levelled.

See Mike Inside - Internal Stairs on a foundation

Modular stairs are quite easy to do, and you dont have to have them near walls, See Mike Inside - Modular Stairs

Have a look around the site, I think there are printable versions of all the tutorials too!

Mikeinside's stair tutorials are good, but ralphaelninja's stair tutorials are also good. Worthy to learn several ways to do similar things. NOT THAT you can compare the methods in order to compare the authors, BUT THAT you'll know which one to use for ease and needs under different building conditions. So, no offense.

also check out
ralphaelninja's stair tutorials
http://thesims2.ea.com/mysimpage/my...?user_id=136631
http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/sto...&user_id=136631
http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/sto...&user_id=136631
http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/sto...&user_id=136631
http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/sto...&user_id=136631

SimsExile @ TSR
http://forums.thesimsresource.com/s...ad.php?t=260327

Thank you! You guys are awesome

Mrs. Dwyer, I am glad that my tute helped you so much...I tried to make it easy!

I am suprised that tute is still being looked at by so many after so many months! Inspriring me to make another one, I like doing them.

Best,

Jade

Sweet stuff. Can you make a house with them in and upload it?

great idea !

thanks for this, I feel like messing with the stairs is such a pain in the butt...

Thank you for sharing all your hard work! I was trying to find out how to do stealth stairs, and found these--treasure for my hunt!
BTW I did find a tutorial on how to do stealth stairs--my new project for the new year is to learn to build!

Edit: I found the stairs in my houses bin, on a 3x3 lot... How do I use them if I want a different size lot? And if using a 3x3 lot, do I just delete the ones I'm not using and build around the ones I want?
I'm a bit lost here...

I've come extremely close to perfecting corner stairs
but, never ended up working correctly...here is an example of what I'm trying to do...I'm building this house in game, all I could make work is the normal straightline stairs without Warping the crap out of the walls



http://www.tristyle.co.nz/houseplan.php?id=189#189

has anyone actually made this kind of staircase without having walls warp?

You have done a great job!=)It really helps me a lot, and perhaps you also help much more other people too. Thanks a lot for your post.

How are you making the garage on the right side? I thought garages can only be placed on the left.

good idear!!

I have recently started making modular stairs and would like to thank you for this it helped alot i am also building modular stairs on foundations and stage blocks so i figured out a little along the way myself

THANKS AGAIN

Garages can be placed almost anywere if you know how underground sideways backwards left side right side I have even placed them 2 stories in the air

garages are my specialty i have built them anyway i can think of

Okay, now for Pets???? Has anybody figured out how to create modular stairs correctly with this version? I'm pulling my hair out ... ooooops, I ain't got no hair!!

Anyway, I never tried multiple modular stair levels, but I'm having absolutely no luck with the landings ... can't get the tiles to stay at the bottom of each level of stairs; not to mention I'm doing this in the basement. None of the tutorials seem to talk about doing the same for basements; or are they the same as any other level? I'm just about tutorial'd out, I tell ya! Why are people having such a hard time relaying the information to us? I find that very strange ... don't you?