On A Whim - My TS4 Whim Challenge
Hi everyone!
I've always been interested in Challenges, but I could never settle with one. Many that sound interesting in concept are too structured for my taste (I don't like having every step planned and having to look at the rules every few minutes to make sure I don't miss anything), so in the end, I decided to try a simple mix of Free Will and Whim Fulfillment Challenge. I plan on documenting this run on my blog, which I'll link to HERE once it's finished and a couple chapters are ready to go.
Here are the rules for my challenge!
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Overview
The age of stolen autonomy is over. Sims have finally regained their own will and are free to lead their lives as they please. With the Watcher reduced to little more than a helpful hand, will they be able to live life to the fullest or fail miserably?
~
The goal of this Challenge is simple: I have to guide my main Sims through a set count of generations to help fulfill their Whims, and, if they so please, their Aspiration. However, I may not command them to do anything unless absolutely necessary to fulfill whatever Whims they currently have.
Settings
1. Autonomy must be ON for every Sim in my household.
2. Aging must be ON for every Sim in the world.
3. Lifespan is up to own preferences; I will be playing on Normal.
4. All pack features (e.g. weather, fame, NAPs) are enabled.
5. Cosmetic CC, QOL & additional feature mods are fine, cheats to make aspects of the game easier are not.
Creating the Founder
1. The founder must be a single YA Sim created with the CAS Story feature.
2. Name, appearance and gender settings can be customized freely.
3. Likes may be given based on the assigned Traits and Aspiration (e.g. a Foodie wouldn't dislike Cooking), but other Likes and Dislikes must be found via gameplay.
4. The founder may settle down on any lot.
Gameplay
1. If the founder is unemployed at the start of the game, a fitting career based on Traits and Aspiration may be chosen unless the Sim is Lazy. They can also remain unemployed, though I may not command them to do activities that can help earn money unless the Sim gets a Whim or does it autonomously (e.g. Painting).
2. The lot may be decorated freely with home necessities and items that the household members would actually like (e.g. an instrument for Music Lovers).
3. On one of their days off work (or a specified day of the week if unemployed), I may let my Sim travel to any venue or residential lot of a Sim they already know to build relationships. However, who they interact with and how is up to them. Loners may not be forced to go to other lots while Outgoing Sims may be commanded to travel twice a week.
4. Whims are to be fulfilled as soon as possible. One Whim may be pinned to save for later (mostly those that take a while to complete). Emotional (coloured) Whims fade quickly, so these should be prioritized.
5. Only the founder and the succeeding heirs may be controlled.
6. Pets may only be adopted if the Sim gets a Whim to do so.
7. Decisions required to be made by the player (e.g. career situations & naming babies) will be rolled randomly.
Moving on to the next generation
1. Trying for a Baby is interchangeable with adoption; to keep it short, I'll refer to both as TfB.
2. TfB is, of course, only to be commanded by the player if the Sim gets a Whim to do it.
3. On Normal Lifespan, a Sim takes 26 days to grow up (pregnancy included). Since a child may not be left alone in a household (resulting in a Game Over) when the last teen or adult dies, a Sim may be commanded to TfB once they have aged up to Adult to ensure the start of the next generation.
4. The heir will be chosen with a random roll or a heir vote (depending on you guys' interest in my run).
5. Every Sim born in-game must have their Traits rolled upon aging up. No rerolls allowed.
6. Aspirations may be chosen based on Traits or rolled with an external random generator.
7. For Sims born in-game, careers can be chosen based on Traits and Aspirations or rolled randomly. Lazy Sims will remain unemployed.
8. I may switch control to the next heir once my current main Sim either completes their Aspiration somehow or the heir ages up to Young Adult (which is the latest point at which to switch, since completion of Aspirations can't really be guaranteed in this Challenge and aren't the focal point anyway).
Completing the Challenge
Since this is meant to be a casual Challenge, there isn't a specific point at which to end it - I'll play for as many generations as I'm interested. Once I feel like bringing it to a close, I will end it by having the current heir (or their wife) giving birth to their first baby.
---
And that's about it! Not many rules and restrictions, mostly basic stuff that's easy to remember for me. Also, I'll try to remember to screenshot each main Sim's stats just before the Grim Reaper takes them so I can compare how well everyone did at the end of the Challenge.
I came up with this not too long ago, so if anyone feels like playtesting it, I'd certainly appreciate the feedback!
I've always been interested in Challenges, but I could never settle with one. Many that sound interesting in concept are too structured for my taste (I don't like having every step planned and having to look at the rules every few minutes to make sure I don't miss anything), so in the end, I decided to try a simple mix of Free Will and Whim Fulfillment Challenge. I plan on documenting this run on my blog, which I'll link to HERE once it's finished and a couple chapters are ready to go.
Here are the rules for my challenge!
---
Overview
The age of stolen autonomy is over. Sims have finally regained their own will and are free to lead their lives as they please. With the Watcher reduced to little more than a helpful hand, will they be able to live life to the fullest or fail miserably?
~
The goal of this Challenge is simple: I have to guide my main Sims through a set count of generations to help fulfill their Whims, and, if they so please, their Aspiration. However, I may not command them to do anything unless absolutely necessary to fulfill whatever Whims they currently have.
Settings
1. Autonomy must be ON for every Sim in my household.
2. Aging must be ON for every Sim in the world.
3. Lifespan is up to own preferences; I will be playing on Normal.
4. All pack features (e.g. weather, fame, NAPs) are enabled.
5. Cosmetic CC, QOL & additional feature mods are fine, cheats to make aspects of the game easier are not.
Creating the Founder
1. The founder must be a single YA Sim created with the CAS Story feature.
2. Name, appearance and gender settings can be customized freely.
3. Likes may be given based on the assigned Traits and Aspiration (e.g. a Foodie wouldn't dislike Cooking), but other Likes and Dislikes must be found via gameplay.
4. The founder may settle down on any lot.
Gameplay
1. If the founder is unemployed at the start of the game, a fitting career based on Traits and Aspiration may be chosen unless the Sim is Lazy. They can also remain unemployed, though I may not command them to do activities that can help earn money unless the Sim gets a Whim or does it autonomously (e.g. Painting).
2. The lot may be decorated freely with home necessities and items that the household members would actually like (e.g. an instrument for Music Lovers).
3. On one of their days off work (or a specified day of the week if unemployed), I may let my Sim travel to any venue or residential lot of a Sim they already know to build relationships. However, who they interact with and how is up to them. Loners may not be forced to go to other lots while Outgoing Sims may be commanded to travel twice a week.
4. Whims are to be fulfilled as soon as possible. One Whim may be pinned to save for later (mostly those that take a while to complete). Emotional (coloured) Whims fade quickly, so these should be prioritized.
5. Only the founder and the succeeding heirs may be controlled.
6. Pets may only be adopted if the Sim gets a Whim to do so.
7. Decisions required to be made by the player (e.g. career situations & naming babies) will be rolled randomly.
Moving on to the next generation
1. Trying for a Baby is interchangeable with adoption; to keep it short, I'll refer to both as TfB.
2. TfB is, of course, only to be commanded by the player if the Sim gets a Whim to do it.
3. On Normal Lifespan, a Sim takes 26 days to grow up (pregnancy included). Since a child may not be left alone in a household (resulting in a Game Over) when the last teen or adult dies, a Sim may be commanded to TfB once they have aged up to Adult to ensure the start of the next generation.
4. The heir will be chosen with a random roll or a heir vote (depending on you guys' interest in my run).
5. Every Sim born in-game must have their Traits rolled upon aging up. No rerolls allowed.
6. Aspirations may be chosen based on Traits or rolled with an external random generator.
7. For Sims born in-game, careers can be chosen based on Traits and Aspirations or rolled randomly. Lazy Sims will remain unemployed.
8. I may switch control to the next heir once my current main Sim either completes their Aspiration somehow or the heir ages up to Young Adult (which is the latest point at which to switch, since completion of Aspirations can't really be guaranteed in this Challenge and aren't the focal point anyway).
Completing the Challenge
Since this is meant to be a casual Challenge, there isn't a specific point at which to end it - I'll play for as many generations as I'm interested. Once I feel like bringing it to a close, I will end it by having the current heir (or their wife) giving birth to their first baby.
---
And that's about it! Not many rules and restrictions, mostly basic stuff that's easy to remember for me. Also, I'll try to remember to screenshot each main Sim's stats just before the Grim Reaper takes them so I can compare how well everyone did at the end of the Challenge.
I came up with this not too long ago, so if anyone feels like playtesting it, I'd certainly appreciate the feedback!
