What Are Your Merfolk Doing Today 2.0

I forgot a few things from yesterday, 04/26, and wanted to share them first. Because I lost everything earlier, I'm going to do a separate post for today. I'm hoping that braking things up will help cause I don't want to turn to a word document for this kind of an update.

Yesterday, I also spent quite a bit of time working on builds for the lots around Mua Pel'Am. Each of the three lots will have builds that represent the 3 stages of conservation around Mua Pel'Am.

At Key Point, I created Wayfarer's Atoll. This is a Generic Lot that will become a beach lot. I chose the Generic Lot type because it has fewer townie sims appear. This is the version of the lot that is in decline. I have a version of it that is more alive, but it isn't fully developed. Working on this lot, I decided to represent the conservation efforts around Mua Pel'Am in my builds.

I plan on using the T.O.O.L mod by TwistedMexi to move the Underwater Cave by Spinning Plumbob to another part of Mua Pel'Am. The Underwater Cave will serve as the actual entrance to the Wayfarer's Grottos that Merfolk call home. The Grottos my merfolk live in are completely submerged underwater and inaccessible to anyone that can't breathe underwater. So, it makes more sense for the entrance to these grottos to be underwater as well. Naturally, in game, it doesn't work like this, but it helps with pretending.

The Caldera Ruins

Formerly Caldera Camp, the Caldera Ruins were built by the Ancient Islanders alongside the Ancient Merfolk to Seal a Great Darkness in the Abyss of the Deep Sea. Over time, the islanders failed to protect the seal on land, and it was broken by individuals seeking dark magic.

Present-Day Islanders know very little about these ruins or the nature of the glowing glyph on the second floor of the ruins. There is no indication of a power source or an explanation for how the glyph is glowing. Glyph on the interior of the temple depict Chaos, Fire, and Vigilance. The Glyphs of Chaos alongside the Glyphs of the Watcher seem to indicate the purpose of the ruins. Archeologists theorize that the ruins was a kind of outpost used to observe the Volcano up close, especially since it was built from material that could better survive a Volcanic Eruption. The surroundings of the ruins are in decline like the rest of Mua Pel'Am. Historians have learned that the current state of the ruins came just before the decline of Mua Pel'Am as an island. The volcanic smog and declining life around the islands and in the ocean is a concern to island conservationists, but undoing the damage the island has sustained has been a long process that has yielded very few positive results.

Present-Day Reef Merfolk know that the purpose of the ruins was to protect the seal that kept a Great Darkness at bay. The Seal Underwater continues to be protected by a Sea Witch and the surrounding oceans have been preserved by the Reef Merfolk. The Malevolent Deep-Sea Merfolk drove out the Benevolent Reef Merfolk and, after some time, they abandoned Mua Pel'Am as well. The Underwater Seal can be found deep within an underwater cave inside the ruins and deep inside the volcano.

The Vatore Grotto

Damion spent a long time living alone. His affinity for Sea Sorcery made other Reef Merfolk wary of him, and he lost his parents when the Ruins on Land fell. Damion inherited the Mantle of the Purple Tail Guardian and took over protecting the seal underwater. He is one of the few Reef Merfolk that remained in the Seas around Mua Pel'Am after its decline. 

Damion's Grotto became the Vatore Grotto after Caleb Vatore and him became life partners. Caleb Vatore was reborn as a Reef Merman thanks to Damion's Magic, and Caleb moved in with his husband. Caleb has been a source of light in Damion's life. Damion began to descend into the practice of Dark Sea Sorcery after Caleb's Death. This hasn't helped his reputation with other merfolk.

The Vatore Grotto is the home of the Vatore Pod and the only way to access the Underwater Seal.