Siobhan Fyres married!

(Year 225) The well known Ms Siobhan Fyres (42), aka Joanna, got married this Winter to Dr. Nivert Hump (52). The ceremony took place at the Council House, and only a restricted group of close relatives and friends were invited to the following reception and dinner. Siobhan has been working as a Council House Secretary for Region 12 since many years and has therefor been featured on the As Sims Go By video series nearly from the start.

She is the oldest daughter of the noble House of Fyres. Her parents are Lord Dominic of Deadgrass, Lord von Dresden and Haunt, and Moira R. Fyres, Lady of Dresden. Her younger sister recently married to Baron Verde, obtaining the highest nobility rank ever reached by any member of House of Fyres. She also has two younger siblings, including a brother who is the house's main heir.

Christmas tale video: Super Power Dad

My seasonal video is out! «Super Power Dad» is a bittersweet Christmas tale, with a mix of happy traditions and sadness - and drama. Only 7 minutes, and 100% stand alone. Hope you like :)

Merry Christmas!

 Hoping you are all doing well in these restricted times. I'll celebrate the season alone, and if you do too, remember it won't necessarily be bad although a tad different. There are so many small and big pleasures to focus on and make sure to make the season good. We don't really need all the normal fuss to celebrate Christmas, and scaling everything down a bit makes me realize that less can sometimes be more.

Christmas short video «Super Power Dad» in production... 

I'm not sure I will find time to play my favorite game over the next couple days.

House von Kaching announces Engagement!

(Year 225) The rumor was already spreading, and today House von Kaching finally confirmed that their only son and main heir to the Gloom barony, Lord Edward Be. von Kaching (44) and Lady Merielle de Cavalier (32) are engaged.

The happy couple are currently both staying at Moss Dorm at Gibbs Hill in Rossie/Britechester. This is a dorm especially suited for nobility, and also Lady Merielle's two brothers currently stay there. 

As Sims Go By - More Sneak Peeks (season 3)

(Year 225) The first episode is as good as done, and will be released in a week or so. Here are a few more peeks just because I keep filling my screenshots folder :)

Season 3 will be different as each episode is more like stand-alone videos, meaning there won't be needed info dropped in previous episode, like in the first 2 seasons. You can watch just one episiode and understand most of it :) The Dougham household at Crestville in Newcrest is the main household of the first episode. With fewer households involved and less "15 seconds scenes" there will be less confusion - hopefully. I also think it might be more interesting to get better acquainted with just one family at the time.

Switched at Birth

 (Year 225) If you followed my video series As sims Go By, you might recall that a certain event took place at Gloomville Hospital about 5 years ago. Because the upcoming third season of this series will focus on the story of fewer households, and this event will only be mentioned subtly, I figured it might be okay addressing it all here on the blog.

Simandus Silverbone has been returned to his biological parents in Brindleton Bay.

Spring of year 220 both Fanny Silverbone and Claudia Tangerin, Lady Shine gave birth to a son. Claudia had a ongoing thing with a lover, her husband's political rival, Edvin Phlum. Becauase she kind of blackmailed him, she feared the chance of her son getting his father's white eyes syndrome, which would of course have spoiled her lie completely. Making this complicated story short, Claudia switched the two baby boys before leaving the hospital. It harmed her marriage when Baldwin Tazar Tangerin grew up to toddler, unveiling his red hair and brown eyes - genetics that did not match with neither Claudia nor Victor.

Just two tech questions

I think the game is quite easy to learn, but occasionally something happens that I just don't get. Or there are different appearances that is not explained say by pointing at the item. So, I'll start with two question here.

In one household I put the plasma fruit harvest on a counter, to allow anyone in the house to grab a fruit or two as needed. They belong to my Modern Vampire clan, meaning they try not to feed from sims, but fruits and plasma packets.

Investiture: Baroness Morgan of Verde

(Year 225) First day of Winter is Investiture Day, and in Verde this year was busy! Morgan Fyres (32) married to Baron Auphor Sax-Donnersmalt of Verde (84) this Spring, and now it was time to formalize her Baroness title as well as for her to become a worthy member of the exclusive Verde District Order.

As she is not the Peer to this high nobility barony, but only married to the Peer, I would normally not see this as a major event. Investitures like this normally take place at home, handled by the Peer himself, and it only requires two witnesses, who can actually be servants of the house. But this time so much is new at Verde in Oasis Springs, so I wanted at least to have a formal investiture photo of the fresh Baroness Morgan.

High Nobility - Duke de Cavalier

(Current Year: 225) In this series I present the story of each of my High Nobility houses (see index after article), each representing one district (=world). Originally the current Region 12 had ten High Nobility peerages; 4 dukes, 5 barons and even 1 lord. Duke de Cavalier was the forth and last dukedom to be introduced by King Wizar I in Year 98. At this time the three dukes of Windenburg, Rossie and Meadows had been reigning for nearly a full century. The new dukedom was the smallest geographically, covering only the expanded land of Brindleton, today's Sable Square and Cavalier Cove. A high nobility lord was already answering to Whiskerman's Wharf and the Deadgrass Isle - and still is.

Dukedom de Cavalier is currently a well run peerage, with the region's most traditional castle including a highly awarded castle garden. Despite being only 127 years old, the house has an interesting story involving the myth of merfolk.

Coat of arms
Their shield (which is the only coat of arms element that I focus on) has changed three times, for each and every Peer. This is rather special, as a new peerage would be expected to at least keep its centered element which would help branding the peerage.

The original shield had a golden bone on purple background with two orange horizontal stripes. The bone was obviously a hint to dogs. Brindleton Bay had an extreme affection for cats, and dogs were introduced as the Sable Square hood was populated, around year 100. Purple is the main color, set by Duke Clauss Nicolai Ross (Lord of Rossie, he later changed his last name to de Cavalier), while orange might represent origin of the first Duchess (von Klasse).

Duke Leopold Demitris de Cavalier (Y142) replaced the orange stripes by turquoise stripes, probably reflecting his Duchess Mera's unconfirmed merfolk origin.

Today's shield is quite different as the golden bone was replaced by a golden flower (Y176). The background is still purple and turquoise. Duke Aquess Benedict de Cavalier never was clear on this change, and it might be a bit far fetched suggesting that it reflects his Duchess Claudine's love for the castle garden. There might have been some conflict between Aquess and his father, Leopold, but even such a conflict (small enough to escape the newspapers) would not be a legit reason to change a peerage's main symbol.

In Production: As Sims Go By (season 3)

 After completing season 2 of my soap-ish video series featuring real sims on real locations, this Fall I had to take a big step to the side. The series takes way too much time to create for a very small number of viewers. I can blame the latter on how hard it is to beat YouTube's logarithm, but I also must admit that the series' concept has become too hectic and complex. Especially in second season when I tried to squeeze in one extra story with an additional set of characters and locations. That was a huge mistake.

Mayor Charloman Au. C. Dougham's wife Corinne is a central character of the 3rd season's 1st episode.

So, after a couple months of reflecting, and based on the highly valued feedback from a few viewers, I've concluded as follows:

The many Cultural Stages of Region 12

 (Year 225) A few posts ago I mentioned the new platform tool. Now that I've played a bit more with it all my cultural venues have got their stage upgraded, and it's time to show you most of those venues. I were not aware that I had this many stages...

The largest venue in my region is the one of the culture house called Fun Factory. If you watch my As Sims Go By series, you might recall Wilhelmina Dougham playing the grand piano in a pretty poorly way. The house is filled with cultural and media activities, and the stage is in the basement. There are currently 24 seats, which doesn't sound overwhelming, but with the household limit of 8, 24 is plenty.

Free Will Show - New season, new Danger!

It's quite hard getting rid of sims on free will! They are too good at taking care of their needs, and they hardly ever cause a fire or anything else that might put an end to their participation to the Free Will Show, where the last sim standing will win the house and become resident of my Region 12.

So, in season 3 a new danger was added... muha! This season counts 6 episodes starting on day/year 13. Free will is on, aging is on, and the new pet has arrived...

Remember that you can affect the next episode through voting. Voting closes 7 days after video release.

Bon Voyage Retirement Home - Dead Lodgers

(Gloomville, Year 125) Earlier this year I started a mini series following the Bon Voyage Retirwement Home keeper, Tammy Oaksdale. More updates were planned, but then it took too long, and I decided to drop that series. I think anyone interested in ideas had got what was on offer, anyway.

Tammy Oaksdale still is the Keeper of this place, a residential lot where elders move in to rent one of four room units. She serves them food, manages the units, arranges flowers for decor purposes, does some cleaning, arranges a weekly activity - and now, as a few of the lodgers died, she also deals with contacting their relatives.

Penny Pizzazz - Aiming for Global Fame?

(Year 225) There's been a lot of upper crest nobility posts lately, so how about some celebrities instead? The next Reg12 NEWS with a celebrity section is weeks away, but actresses and musicians work hard on their careers - constantly.

You definitely recognize the blond actress below, but how about the one wearing a yellow dress? Well, it's Penny Pizzazz, in my region she was among the first sims to embrace an acting career.

Back then Penny had already done some modelling, and I don't really think she was ambitious, beyond getting her 6 stories tall outdoor commercial poster displayed to all San Myshuno citizens forever. That billboard is from her modelling, though. As an Actress she is more humble. She is now living with the famous Painting Artist Vince Remeréz, and their toddler daughter, Sandra.

Platforms tool = testing the new feature

 (Year 225) So, we got platforms with the November 10 patch, and this feature is really great! It gives variety to houses, larger floors can be sectioned in new ways, stairs can be built in endless versions and stages can finally be built without occupying the foundation.

I am currently rebuilding the Von Windenburg Estate, and I made use of the platforms to create a slightly more inviting staircase leading to the front door. The picture is from early stage, but I love that with this kind of arrangement we can now place potted plants onto the steps! I never missed that, but now I want this possibility on every lot, LOL.

House of Saxor

(Year 225) One of my favorite households is the House of Saxor. Duke Victus and Duchess Gloria of Meadows, resides 1 Torendi Tower Penthouse at Fashion District in San Myshuno. This is a picture post just to show a bit of their everyday life.

Duke Victus (51) and Duchess Gloria (69) have only one child, Lady Corva (19). She has teenage mood swings just like any other teenager. She is well skilled, and well aware that she can not inherit the dukedom because she is a girl - how unfair!

The Cat Woman

(Year 225) It's time to introduce you to the cat woman, Anima Purr!

Well, she is no longer around, at leeast not in flesh and fur, but her unique DNA made such a great impact on Count Vladislaus IV of Hollow, that it made its way into the Straud family tree. Who would not be tempted to ad a drop of a wild cat animal's energy and powers?

Anima Purr - circus attraction, prisoner and origin of the cat people of Forgotten Hollow.

It all started when Count Vladislaus discovered the cat woman traveling with a circus several geberations ago. He was facinated by her looks, despite being a person she had the skin of a wild cat. He immediately wanted her powers, and one way to achieve that would be to feed from her. Vlad bought her and brought her to Forgotten Hollow where she was gently thrown into one of the dark cells in the cellar of his castle.

Court House: Ella Hikes vs late Oscar Jupiter

(Region 12, Year 225) This Summer one interesting case at the regional Court House, located at Arts Quarter in San Myshuno, was Ella Hikes claiming late Oscar Jupiter to be the father of her child. Hikes was not aware that Oscar Jupiter died last Winter, so the charge was instead met by his children; Meteorologist Caspar Jupiter (Newcrest) and Journalist and Hood Contact Razira Jupiter (Oasis Springs).

Ella Hikes (71) first claimed that her daughter Emily Hikes (11) should have a yearly compensation of §2000 until her 15th birthday. She admitted that it was a high end claim, but that Oscar Jupiter could afford it!

Girl born to Baron and Baroness of Verde

(Year 225) House of Verde announced that Baroness Morgan has given birth to a healthy baby girl! The girl is named Vitorina Cordenza Sax-Donnersmalt, and shall be known as Lady Vitorina of Verde.

Yuma Heights was recently renovated, and on the wall behind the happy little family hangs the updated Verde coat of arms. Baron Auphor has replaced the yellow color with the brown, in order to state that it is a new House taking over this Oasis Springs high nobility peerage. He switched his last name to Sax-Donnersmalt, as a nod to his late mother. His son Duke Victus of Meadows is now Head of House of Saxor, a special arrangement approved by Royal Chamber, as death is normally the only accepted reason for any Head of a House to step down.

Residents of Forgotten Hollow

 (Year 225) My online Residents Registry is now updated with all - dead and alive - residents of the newly added Forgotten Hollow world. I've "played through" 200 years of history, mainly in CAS but still enough to leave a few traces like family portraits etc in the 5 homes.

I'll get back to a thorough introduction to my FH community in a couple weeks. Right now you can check their family trees, see their completed BIO pages, with life lines, genetics and design preferences. I put a bat on their portraits to make it easier to spot those plasma hungry vampires...

My vampire community is based on two rivaling clans.

The Sims™ 4 Snowy Escape: Official Reveal Trailer

Trailer was released few minutes ago, and this expansion pack seems to be packed with activities for the entire family. And - is it just me, or does that fabulous mountain top seem like the perfect final stop for my elders wearing their Summer outfit? Muha! :)

Free Will Show - Day 12

It's been a long wait (blaming on me getting the Vampire GP), but here is finally a new episode of the Free Will Show! It's day 12, which closes season 2 of this series.

Season 3 will open late November, and there will be some very very interesting changes! More pack specific features will be added, randomly if they take up too much space or focus. From the first episode (day 13) they 4 contest contenders will be joined by a brand new pet, which will stay for minimum 6 days, maybe permanently. And there will be a special guest moving in with them on day 15, staying for the rest of season 3. Voting and scores including red lamps will be kept.

Lots of drama ahead, I hope, because the point of this show is to have one standing contender while they are still young enough to settle in my Region 12 :)

Enjoy! And please note that because the between seasons break, votes can be posted (comment to video) for 14 days!

Vampires - What is My World Coming To?

(Year 125 - and 200 years back) I don't really play occults. I have yet not even set foot on Sixam, or explored space in a rocket. I always focused most on everyday life with just a little drama, generations, community structures and - well, in the past there were a couple alien extras, just to add some unexpected twists tight there in the background.

But I guess I needed a change, because I got The sims 4 Vampires game pack (on 50% sale until October 20th), and I'm having a blast from creating background stories! Love Vlad and his pipe organ, the generous system of vampire perks, the sweet little forgotten hood, and lots of the build and buy stuff.  Here's a picture thread from my early planning in case you are into these things :)

He is the link between Forgotten Hollow and one of my oldest dukedoms - but you never saw him before.

Old vampire tribes could fit very well with my existing nobility system, and there is of course a very old link that nobody in my game are aware of, but that is a minor detail right now. I'm rather focusing on Count Vladislaus Straud's attempt to turn Forgotten Hollow's wasteland into a functional little community.

High Nobility - Duke of Meadows

(Current Year: 225) In this series I present the story of each of my High Nobility houses (see index after article), each representing specific land. Originally my region had ten High Nobility peerages; 4 dukes, 5 barons and even 1 lord. Duke of Meadows was the third to be introduced by King Baltazar II in Year 5. The Meadows landscape includes everything on the southern side of Myshuno River, plus Del Sol Valley that is located farther south. San Myshuno city also includes the Barony of Myshuno (all land north of Myshuno River, including Magnolia Promenade), and together these two peerages controlled the fastest growing part of Region 12.

Meadows dukedom is still among the most successful peerages, both politically and financially.

Coat of arms
Their shield (which is the only coat of arms element I focus on) is still like it was set by the very first duke, Duke Victor Saxor of Meadows, back in Year 5. 

House of Saxor got their original coat of arms registered with the Royal Chamber as they were bestowed the Duke of Meadows peerage. The family's main color is green, which is said to be a reference to hunting. The secondary color is brown, a reference to farming, which must have been the family color of the first Duchess, Benedicta Roxenfox. The centered peerage symbol was two crossing silver swords, a strong symbol of Military involvement. Sovereigns of this peerage are still expected to lead a Military career.

The family color played a role when King Baltazar II decided the Holly and the Bell pepper to be this district's signature plant. The original version was used by all generations, except one sovereign. Prince Ottoman de Froux had this peerage Y38-69 and changed more elements than a new sovereign normally is allowed to do. There are rules limiting such changes, but some of those rules might have come later. He replaced the family color green with blue, which makes sense and replaced brown with hermine, but what is more shocking is that he was permitted to change the peerage's symbol (swords) - something that is not supposed to be done. His successor reverted to the original version of the shield, which has been used by the dukes of Meadows ever since.

Download: Want more Rocking Chair Pillows?

July 2022: Downloading from this blogger post no longer works, so please head over to a new page listing all my TS4  custom content. All free. DOWNLOADS

I designed a few extra rocking char alternative swatches for my game, and if you want them, too, you can grab them from the link below. You will need the Nifty Knitting stuff pack for them to work.

I love this chair, but wanted more styles for the pillow.

Your Noble Life - 3 - Young Adult to Adult

I've made my own set of rules to guide my nobility through life. Most rules regard heritage, economics and administration. Although nobility can take easier on this than real royals, there are certain obligations. Most of this can be used regardless of series (TS4, TS3, TS2). Here is the first of four guides based on a noble person's life stage - young adult to adult.

Jarret Ross and Ribra Lynn T. Ross, Duke and Duchess of Rossie.

Not too serious, but not without purpose and importance...

Mister & Missus Portraits

(Year 225) I play a diverse community consisting of 70+ households and certain community structures, not the least socially. There are several levels of society, and just like in real life, many of them strive to climb. 

Showing off your high standards was always important, not the least for the climbers - and that's where the "Mister & Missus" portraits come in. My high nobility households have plenty of old paintings and elegant photos to pimp their oh so exclusive walls. At some point of history the top social level copied the dukedoms' portrait traditions by inventing the "Mister & Missus of the House" portraits - round and quite elegant portraits in rather high class frames. Only top level of my community (the 4 dukedoms) do not have those round portraits, as they naturally keep clinging to their own traditions.

The Verde Peerage Trust

(Oasis Springs, Y225) There are several announcements from the Barony of Verde: First off, the baroness is pregnant, and birth is due this Winter! It's a relief that there will be an heir this early on, as Baron Verde himself is quite old. Only males can inherit the peerage, but also a girl might help indirectly on the line of future successors.

The Verde coat of arms was originally black and yellow with 2 crossing swords.
Auphor Saxor's new version is black and brown with a centered horse torso.

Next announcement is the Verde peerage Trust. Who are the board members?

New Dimension Day - Plant Project

 (Year 225) Every year the New Dimension Day (commonly referred to as «Dim Day») is celebrated on 2nd Sunday of Fall. There is normally a community gathering in each district, perhaps including a speech by a Councilor or nobility person. This year was no exception, as a totally new project was introduced!

The Horticultural Society, in cooperation with Region 12's high nobility, this year ran a very symbolic event where each district gets a line up of 5 plant boxes, each representing one district, but in the local district's traditional color.

Download - 13 Curtain floral recolors

July 2022: Downloading from this blogger post no longer works, so please head over to a new page listing all my TS4  custom content. All free. DOWNLOADS

I always wanted more floral curtains in this game, so I created some recolors of the curtains that I use most often. These are the Simplistic Curtain from City Living, and the Billionaire's Hand-Me-Down Curtains from Eco Lifestyle. You will need either of those packs for these recolors to show up in the buy catalog.

13 recolors - all floral.

I did not recolor all sizes though. You get the short size for both, and the medium version for one. Probably not perfect, but pretty enough for adding some flowers to a room :)

Behind the Scenes - my Screenshots Folder

I constantly take loads of screenshots - we're talking gigabytes, and decided that I can share them! Luckily I have a routine for scrolling through them to delete duplicates or pictures that definitely are no-keepers. But there are always lots of files that I do choose to keep, although I don't plan to use them. Starting these days I'll share from my Screenshot folder in weekly Behind the Scenes videos!

In the long run the motives will be totally random, a mix of portraits, builds, landscapes and pets, but mostly everyday living. Some unexpected humorous stuff might occur, but mostly plain dull stuff. It might still be fun to watch, and there might even be ideas to steal.

Lady de Sür-Blyth married

 (Brindleton Y225) Elvira Leonora de Sür-Blyth (41), also known as Lady de Sür-Blyth, finally married! After a full year long engagement to Hugo Villareal (31), they are now husband and wife.

The wedding ceremony took place at Club Calico, and it was a sweet, although small, event.

Your Noble Life - 2 - Teenagers

I've made my own set of rules to guide my nobility through life. Most rules regard houses, peerages, heritage, economics and administration, although nobility naturally takes easier on this than the real royals would. Most of this can be used regardless of series (TS4, TS3, TS2). Here is the second of four guides based on a noble person's life stage - teenager.

Students at Chateau Cavalier have their private class room for homework and studies.

Not too serious, but not completely without purpose, either...

Region 12 - Community portrait

 (Year 225) Hey, why didn't I try something like this long ago? It's quite cool to see some of my families gathered for one huge community portrait, like a time stamp for my memory book. There are 70+ active households in my game, so they could not all get in, but I will definitely do this again in the future!

This group portrait is meant to document the start of Year 225. The most essential families are represented here, they are grouped by household, although it appears to be rather random and chaotic, LOL. Grown ups that already moved out are not included, neither are babies.

Here is the new Council

(Council House, Year 225) It's already been a while since the election, and it's time to present to you the new Region 12 Council. Bud von Kaching was not running for another period due to age, and the RIGHT party chose to withdraw their support for Victor F. Tangerin, probably as a result of him being sued for murder some yeas ago. Although he was found not guilty, the court case harmed his popularity.

So, for the next 5 years we have 2 new Councilors, representing Gloomville and San Myshuno!

The mix of parties is the same as before, RIGHT party has 3 Councilors, LEFT party has 2, and MIDDLE has 0. This does not mean that RIGHT party politics will win and MIDDLE party is not represented, because while some of the Councilors do represent one party, they might also represent a district where the main N.A.P. is from a different party. Silverbone represents the LEFT party while Brindleton Bay's main N.A.P. is from the MIDDLE party. Dougham represents the RIGHT party, while he is the Newcrest Councilor and Newcrest's N.A.P.s are dominated by the LEFT party. This will of course affect their voting, as it should be a balance between the party, the N.A.P. and their personal opinions. The other three will probably be stronger voices as each of them won't need to vote on behalf of several parties.

Charloman Au. C. Dougham (52), Mayor, Law & Justice
Party: RIGHT - District: Newcrest - BIO
This is Dougham's 4th period on the Council, and his 2nd as Region 12's Mayor. He has a background from a successful Business career, and is married to Corinne Dougham, Lady Crestville. They have 3 children (triplets) aged 14.

Family tree - huge update adds 225 years of history!

 (Year 225) Ha! - I just could not stop myself from going the full way! A week ago I proudly presented my new The Sims 4 family tree for all today's 70+ households, including 3-4 generations for most. Then I thought, why not add all that I know? All their known ancestors, siblings, aunts and cousins - whether I played them or not? Especially for my nobility I keep detailed notes of most of their family lines, and just because I don't have their portraits shouldn't stop me from adding them to the tree! Now there is even a touch of long gone royals!

The family tree grew rapidly, of course, as most nobility can be traced back to year 0. That's 225 years of family history. And I got myself a few surprises too, seeing how some of today's families actually connect a few generations back. That is the point of a genealogical tree, right? Seeing how they all connect. It helps understanding their background, and possibly also their presence and future. It's not only useful for locating cousins with a couple clicks, it will also help me finding a person's heirs.

Nifty Knitting - short review

(The Sims 4 Stuff Pack) Yes, I love this little community voted pack! It might not be adding the bold content to my game, but it's actually perfect for adding those small bits of realism. It really feels like a personal interest and hobby, or it could of course be seen as a way to make a very small living. I use it for both.

Pilots can knit, too!

Although this pack has limited content, I have not yet explored it all. It will take me a while to have sims reach the top skill level as I rarely play any house for more than a couple simdays in my rotational routine.

Your Noble Life - 1 - Baby to Child

I've made my own set of rules to guide my nobility through life. Most rules regard heritage, economics and administration, although nobility naturally takes easier on this than real royals do. Most of this can be used regardless of series (TS4, TS3, TS2). Here is the first of four guides based on a noble person's life stage.

In your first year you will be more interested in that bottle of milk than your rank in the line of successors.

Not too serious, but not totally useless , either...

New feature: Family Tree

Long ago I decided to keep my TS4 residents registry simple, but as you know it has been growing over the years with more and more detailed info. I also decided never ever to add a family tree feature - so yesterday I programmed one :)

All personal details were already in the script, so the job was not overwhelming. The result allows you to easily jump between a person's bio page and family tree. It will certainly be easier for me to keep track on relations.

Nobility: Rank and Titles

 (Year 225) It's been a while since I introduced nobility to my Region 12. Historically, the first peers have been around since Year 2, and I know the detailed story of each house.

Nobility from several districts gathered at the wedding of Auphor Saxor, Baron of Verde. Left to right: Elvy (Rab-Saxor) Ross, Baroness of Shiningham. Bennet Ross, Baron of Shiningham. Ribra Lynn (Thebe) Ross, Duchess of Rossie. Jarret Ross, Duke of Rossie. Gloria (Roxenfox) Saxor, Duchess of Meadows. Victus Am. Saxor, Duke of Meadows. (Groom) Auphor Saxor, Baron of Verde. (Bride) Morgan (Fyres) Saxor, Baroness of Verde. Dominic Fyres, Lord von Dresden, of Deadgrass and von Haunt. Moira (Rattle) Fyres, Mrs Dominic Dresden. Miss Siobhan Fyres.

In this post I want to focus a bit more on how my nobility ranks, and their titles. There are four levels, royalty (they reside far away and I don't play them), high nobility, low nobility and noble titles (which often counts as low nobility). I did some RL research over the past year, and I was amazed by the complexity! I had to make my own routines, but there are still certain elements based n RL nobility.

Noble wedding - Baron of Verde & Miss Morgan Fyres

(Year 225) This Spring has been packed with events! The biggest is probably the announced wedding of Auphor Saxor, Baron of Verde and Miss Morgan Fyres from Windenburg. Auphor, who is the ex-Duke of Meadows, has decided to start a new house as he is still head of House of Saxor and one house can not hold multiple high nobility peerages. The new house is rumored to be House of Sax-Donnersmalt, a nod to his mother who was of House von Donnersmalt. 

Despite the age gap of 51 years (!) they both look so good together! Guests flocked to the Church of Similius in Gloomville this cloudy morning. 

A baron's wedding does normally not attract the masses like some duke weddings might do, but let's say that Auphor and Morgan got their fair share of cheers :)

Calendar Year 225

It's yet another year in my Region 12, and the high nobility has shared headlights from their events calendars. The year is planned roughly before the previous year ends, making it easier for their busy network to reserve certain dates for the upcoming celebrations, and to avoid that big events conflict. Most events are now set for a season rather than a specific date, details will be shared later in formal invitations. Each district will normally run just one major event with guests per season, and most houses will accept only one invitation per season.

The Sims 4 - Star Wars announced!

 The Sims 4 - Journey To Batuu - new game pack to be released on September 8th 2020.

Just some quick fun in CAS :)

Not decided yet whether my Bon Voyage Retirement Home residents shall be sent on a last journey. Could be fun sending them to Batuu, perhaps making a video from their adventures...

Update: Community Section and Residents Registry

 (Year 225) Isn't it fun how you decide not to build a detailed online community page for your TS4 game, but you just do it anyway? I didn't plan this monster that the registry has grown into, but now I just added even more sections! And - I'm seriously thinking of scripting the family trees, as well *looking away*!

Right now the Residents Registry has been updated with all events that took place in Year 224. I do add them to the script as they happen, but upload the new version to the site only at the end of the year.

But there are loads of brand new content as well! I don't remember everything that was added or improved, but here's a few highlights:

Jespers Jewelry Broker

(Magnolia Promenade, year 225) In previous post Angela Pleasant gave you a tour of the Hotel Roadstead, located at Magnolia Promenade. The exterior is hardly changed, but the indoor is all new. The lot is available on the gallery (by Simmerville). At the northern end of the large building there is a store that the hotel owner allows another business to rent.

Since Year 194 this store was home to Jespers Jewelry Broker, run by the Jespers family for 30 years. This is not an ordinary jewelry shop, though.

Welcome to Hotel Roadstead

(Magnolia Promenade, year 225) I actually have several hotels in my region, some are private lodging (roommates) but Hotel Roadstead at Magnolia Promenade is as close to the real thing that I can get. You can download it from the gallery, info below. I never quite got it how a retail store could have such a splendid location - it's the nicest view in all Magnolia Promenade! This community lot is now categorized as Restaurant. It's not fully functional as such, but at least it attracts visitors making it easier to imagine there are guests at the hotel.

You probably recognize the Receptionist! It's Angela Pleasant. When her uncle, Oliver Pleasant, bought the hotel and offered her a job, she paused her ongoing University studies and moved to San Myshuno (in my region Magnolia Promenade is a hood within SM, between the northern part of the city and Gloomville (aka Willow Creek)). If you've got a few minutes, Angela will now give you a tour!

Reg12 NEWS - Election Day (with Nerd Alert warning!)

(Current year 225) It's finally Election Day, and here is the tv special guiding you through the day! News anchor Paolo Caliente (and reporter Sabrina Grossing?) at your service!

Perhaps you find inspiration to run a similar Council election in your own game?

Oasis Springs: Surprise engagement

This morning Oasis Springs woke up to surprising news as the high nobility Barony of Verde published its first announcement in ages. That is, back on first day of Winter it was announced that Auphor Saxor (83) from San Myshuno had moved in at Yuma Heights right after his coronation - as he was found to be the correct successor to the Verde peerage, but that was already kind of public, following the massive court trial.

Auphor Saxor, Baron of Verde (83) with fiancée Ms. Morgan Fyres (31).

This morning the elderly Baron Verde announced that he is indeed engaged! Local gossip dealers certainly got busy as the woman turns out to be the 52 years younger Ms Morgan Fyres (31), daughter of Dominic Fyres; Lord von Dresden, Lord of Deadgrass and Lord von Haunt. Nobody saw this coming, and locals are now questioning whether the engagement builds on economical interests rather than pure love.

Tumblr trouble

So, I'm having major problems with Tumblr ever since the Weekend. That's already 3 days. I was expecting them to fix it come Monday, but no...

All I get is a blue screen, no nothing. If I follow the link from this blog I get to my tumblr blog, but can do nothing. Clicking the archive gives the blue screen again. Still with no info.

I tried going to tumblr.com for possible info posted there, but can't even make that work... blue screen.

I'm obviously no longer logged in, but with no log in button (or info) it's impossible to get access.

N.A.P. voting closed - the results are in!

 

(Current Year 224) Region 12 has a political system with elections every 5 years. The year before the main election, where the 5 Councilors are found, there is a Neighborhood Action Plan voting. Each hood removes their oldest plan (each plan is on for 15 years), and then votes for a new plan to fill that spot. This might make no big difference, or it can get very exciting as these the valid N.A.P.s actually have an effect on the upcoming Council voting!

Each plan represents one of my three political parties, and the party with more active N.A.P.s in a district, becomes that district's dominant party. A dominant party will pick one of their N.A.P.s to be the 4th plan for all hoods in the district. On the Council election candidates will get some bonus votes if representing the dominant party! You could read about these details on this blog previously.

Well, tonight it's time to check the results, and to many hopeful candidates, it might make a huge difference whether they get those bonus votes or not.

Region 12 NEWS - Year 224

Year 224 is complete, and here's the annual NEWS edition!

The clip is just 4 minutes, and contains standard rubrics like News, Finance, Showbiz, Job listings, and of course various Family notes. The Y224 edition features Baron Auphor Saxor, jazz singer Olivia Clump, Plopsy and many more!

Hosts to tie it all together are Paulo Caliente and Antoinette Morck.



You might find a few how I play tips, and most news have more details in the community section/residents registry linked from top of this blog. There is also some info in my As Sims Go By video series. PS: Looks like I forgot to advertise Reg12 NEWS for Year 223. You will find it on the Youtube channel.

Welcome to Dusty Turf Bazar

(Curent Year 224) One of the oldest lots in Oasis Springs is the Bazar at Dusty Turf. This was a busy trading arena from Year 42, and was drastically expanded when Landgraab Retail, Inc. formalized the trades in Year 172. Today it's still owned by Landgraab Retail, Inc. who also run half of the 6 stores, while the remaining are rented by others.

From the start only the front building existed, while the outdoor ground area was the main market with many stalls selling fresh produce or collectives from distant corners of SimNation. The field behind the bazar was used for trading farm animals. In Year 172 Landgraab Retail, Inc. built the 2 stories block, which today is the main part of this business. Come for a tour!

Upcoming Election: 33 Candidates Introduced

(Current Year 224) Today the political parties LEFT, RIGHT and MIDDLE held a joint press conference at Hotel Roadstead (Magnolia Promenade, San Myshuno), where candidates for the upcoming Council election were introduced! Nomination Day was nearly a year ago (1 year before Election Day), and the lists of the 32 candidates went public on 1st day of Fall - but only with names, ages, hood and career. Now most candidates had 5 minutes on stage to share political plans and hopes.

This is the first time all 3 parties support a joint event. One should believe these candidates are rivals, as some are fighting for the same Hood Contact or Councilor position, but they all have a common mission of improving our community. Some candidates are aiming for the local Hood Contact position, and chose not to speech at today's event.

Baron of Verde Crowned

(Current Year 224) First day of Winter is "Investiture Day", the day for coronations and other investitures, and this year the region's main event was the crowning of Baron of Verde, Auphor Saxor (83). It's been busy days for him since court agreed that he is the correct successor to the Verde barony. Despite his high age he accepted, and has been busy moving from San Myshuno to Verde in Oasis Springs, where he will be the head of Yuma Heights - seat of the Barony of Verde.

The coronation took place at Church of Similius in Gloomville.

Lady de Sür-Blyth engaged

Lady Elvira Leonora de Sür-Blyth (40) is not living a very public society life. Her low nobility house, Sür-Blyth Farm, focuses a lot more on raising pigs combined with agricultural science, than red carpets and diadems.

She lived alone and worked real hard, and it’s great news that she is engaged, finally!

Painting collected motives

Not quite sure about that title, but I recently discovered something I never really was aware of. Painting became a lot more interesting, especially having your own atelier suddenly made a lot more sense.

Mandy Rosewood (38), you might recall her from the As Sims Go By video series. She was unlucky in love and traveled to Selvadorada to paint the jungle - and mend her heart - for a couple years. She fell in love mith Mirard Jumba and had a child, but that's another story - ongoing, in fact.

Mandy Rosewood in her rented atelier in Newcrest

When she was out in the jungle I had her try a different methode.