OFF THE GRID Gameplay ideas [graphic]

Thats a really good mind map, made me more interested in a "Off The Grid" pack. I am a "aspirations/lifetime wishes" lover, so i kidna converted a Sims 3 lifetime wish that would fit this pack. They would just need to expand it to match Sims 4 aspirations style, were we have 4 different levels to achieve. It is the Bottomless Nectar Cellar were in Sims 3 the goal was to have at least 50 bottles in your nectar cellar totaling $50,000 Simoleons in value. In Sims 4 it could be something like that:

_______________________
Bottomless Nectar Cellar
https://www.emoji.co.uk/files/apple-emojis/food-drink-ios/411-wine-glass.png

Total Satisfaction Gained: 5,500

Aspiration Objectives:

Milestone I: Anastasia Necteaux's Apprentice
- Build a basement and buy a Nectar Rack (25 SPs)
- Buy a Nectar Making Machine (25 SPs)
- Achieve level 1 at the Nectar Making Skill (25 SPs)

Milestone II: Master of Nectar Making
- Have 2 different types of grapes (75 SPs)
- Achieve level 4 at the Nectar Making Skill (200 SPs)
- Make 50 bottles of Nectar (300 SPs)

Milestone III: Flavorful Feet
- Achieve level 6 at the Nectar Making Skill (350 SPs)
- Have 4 different types of grapes (500 SPs)
- Have squished 40 bashes of fruit (500 SPs)

Milestone IV: The Vizard of Vine
- Achieve level 10 at the Nectar Making Skill (700 SPs)
- Have all 7 types of grapes (800 SPs)
- Turn 400 bunches of homegrown grapes into Nectar (1000 SPs)
- Make 15 different Nectar combinations (1000 SPs)

Reward Trait: The sim that has the Winner of the Champs Les Sims Prize trait will make more nectar bottles per batch, all nectar mad by this sim will be worth more, all grapevine varieties grown by this sim will yield more grapes and said sim will be able to predict a Nectar recipe's final quality before making it. Also, Sims with this trait will unlock 2 special recipes with a special ingridient. The first one is called "Jean Necteaux"s Blessing" and the special ingredient required is the Inspired emotional state while preparing this nectar. Each glass of this nectar can return one day that a sim has already lived. The other nectar is called "Admiral Landgraab's Envy" and the special ingredient required is the Angry emotional state while preparing this nectar. Each glass of this nectar has the ability to withdraw a day of life from a sim. (Those 2 nectars would be good for us that like to micromanage how old our sims are).

these ideas are really interesting and I like the aspiration write-out above as well. it'd be great to be able to compost or recycle. a bunch of "off the grid" alternatives, like the wood stove, outhouse, etc. you mentioned, would flesh this idea out nicely in-game. I feel like nectar-making might be more suitable to a different type of pack though, maybe a French-esque vacation pack akin to the one in TS3. on a side note, I remember sims getting upset when throwing out (and not recycling) leftover food and I'd be interested in having that back alongside recycling/composting. could only affect sims likely to feel that way, i.e. not evil/mean/slob type sims.

"Armilus616;c-16812688" wrote:
Collecting rainwater? Seasons is out there...

But if you don't own Seasons it never rains, so a rainwater collector wouldn't make sense. That's why I'm suggesting a manual water pump. :)

If you don't own Vampires, you can't make a Vampire Clan with the clubs from Get together.
Get Famous lets you get famous by being an awesome Vet, right?
two packs can be combined, and they do it here more than on any other Sims game so far.
there was the totem in Sims 3 that spawned in the world if you had Seasons and Supernatural installed that allowed Occults to summon special whether you couldn't get otherwise. And I really like that.
I don't see how it makes sense to exclude stuff just because it would require two packs. Why not just hide it if the requirements are not met?

"FreezerBunnyCowplant;c-16814335" wrote:

"Armilus616;c-16814332" wrote:
What if the rainwater collector was only accessible through buydebug as long as seasons was not installed? Still a terrible Idea?

Idk I like the idea of a rainwater collector, but if you don't own Seasons and it magically fills with water that would be really bad IMO and break the immersion. Where is the water coming from?

How do plants grow in all the worlds now, if you don't get seasons, and therefore no rain?

Also what if it snows in winter? It doesn't rain in winter so there would be no water for a whole Season

Snow is water.

"FreezerBunnyCowplant;c-16814362" wrote:

"Movotti;c-16814350" wrote:

"FreezerBunnyCowplant;c-16814335" wrote:

"Armilus616;c-16814332" wrote:
What if the rainwater collector was only accessible through buydebug as long as seasons was not installed? Still a terrible Idea?

Idk I like the idea of a rainwater collector, but if you don't own Seasons and it magically fills with water that would be really bad IMO and break the immersion. Where is the water coming from?

How do plants grow in all the worlds now, if you don't get seasons, and therefore no rain?

Also what if it snows in winter? It doesn't rain in winter so there would be no water for a whole Season

Snow is water.

Snow is water, I know, but the water in the water collector will also freeze. You'd have to wait until spring in order to have liquid water

There are many ways of dealing with that.
Underground tanks don't tend to freeze.
Insulation can prevent it from freezing above ground.
You can use a circulatory system that constantly heats a tiny portion of the water, the hot water returns to the tank, and cold water is drawn out to heat.

Also, would be cool if we had a France inspired world like we had Champs Les Sims in Sims 3. I was going to suggest something like Monte Vista, but i'd rather have an Italian inspired world in a Farming EP instead.

Oh, would be cool if they also added a new "Cotton plant" and a knitting skill.

Collecting rainwater? Seasons is out there...

"Armilus616;c-16813709" wrote:

I don't see how it makes sense to exclude stuff just because it would require two packs. Why not just hide it if the requirements are not met?

This.

Or add more interactions to rain water storage if you have seasons. If you don't have seasons, it just magically fills. If you do have seasons, it only fills if it rains, and you can run out if you use too much water when it's dry.

Off the grid without rain water storage is like off the gird without solar power.

Also, generators are ridiculously wasteful. They need constant refuelling. Their initial cost can be less than that of a full set of solar panels, but with solar, you're not paying for fuel. A major part of the off the grid lifestyle is about being more eco friendly while saving money. Generators are neither.

The food composer should only be for food scraps, not trash. Have a bucket in the kitchen into which you scrape the leftovers before washing dishes. Empty the bucket into the composter at the end of the day.

A modern composting toilet doesn't have to be an 'out' house. It can be in house.

A solid fuel oven is going to need a source for that solid fuel. Where is it going to come from? Are you going to send your sims to chop down trees? The game lacks fallen limbs.

Another option could be a methane fuelled cooker, powered by the toilet.

The solar cooker is a good idea, but painful to use if you have seasons! Cold, overcast and no hot dinner!

"Armilus616;c-16813709" wrote:
If you don't own Vampires, you can't make a Vampire Clan with the clubs from Get together.
Get Famous lets you get famous by being an awesome Vet, right?
two packs can be combined, and they do it here more than on any other Sims game so far.
there was the totem in Sims 3 that spawned in the world if you had Seasons and Supernatural installed that allowed Occults to summon special whether you couldn't get otherwise. And I really like that.
I don't see how it makes sense to exclude stuff just because it would require two packs. Why not just hide it if the requirements are not met?

Look at how well My First Pet Stuff was received which did exactly that

If they add a rainwater collector then make it only work with Seasons (because of rain) and add a groundwater pump as an alternative if you don't own Seasons. :)

"Movotti;c-16813840" wrote:

"Armilus616;c-16813709" wrote:

I don't see how it makes sense to exclude stuff just because it would require two packs. Why not just hide it if the requirements are not met?

The solar cooker is a good idea, but painful to use if you have seasons! Cold, overcast and no hot dinner!

That's part of the challenge! :) If cold days are coming, prepare by having enough harvestables or canned food!