Evergreen Harbor claiming Rights

(Magnolia Promenade, Year 226) Yesterday a group of loud residents from Evergreen Harbor took to the streets! They shouted and waved their paroles as they marched up to Region 12 Council House, where they kept protesting and annoying anyone who walked by.

Their message was clear: Evergreen Harbor must be included to the political system as a full worthy neighborhood, with its own Spokes Sim! This must be handled by the Council in time for the next election (Year 230).

Noble Houses and Unique Decor

(Year 226) Several of my many noble houses can trace their backstory for more than 200 years. Not only do I know their ancestors, but also what titles they had at a given time. Houses that held a peerage, would also collect unique décor, such as banners, portraits and miscellaneous items with the sovereign's Coat of Arms or monogram - custom content that I created over time.

I try to keep track on these heirlooms, as some still have a prominent disposure in a proper palace or other grandiose estate, while others were inherited by no-longer-so-noble branches of the family, were sold or stolen - or got lost in fires and what not. I need to know who owned what and how many. It's family history, but it also tells the story of a community. In the Community section of this site you can check belongings of all Houses.

In this post I share some info on recolors I made for some of my top nobility houses. I'll not include downloads, but if you think you can  make good use of some of these recolors, leave a note and I might share a file or two.

Old Banner
From the very beginning all noble houses were committed to war duties, and they had to bring a set of two simple, vertical fabric banners to the battle fields. The banners were crafted in the main color of the house they represented, and with the peerage's symbol centered (sovereign's Coat of Arms).

From left: House von Heimlich, House of Ross, House of Saxor, House de Cavalier.

These simple banners were in use from Year 2 to Year 120. Today most are lost, and only the four dukedoms can still show off their old battle banners: Heimlich (dated Year 118), Ross (Y116), Saxor (Y113) and Cavalier (Y117). These items are valuable due to their old age, despite their poor quality.

Property of House: House of Heimlich (2), House of Ross (2), House of Saxor (2) and House de Cavalier (2).

High Nobility House of Ross

(Current Year: 226) In this series I present the story of my most prominent Houses. Originally my region had ten different houses with one high nobility peerage each; 4 dukes, 5 barons and even 1 lord. Seven of those houses are still top of aristocracy. The Rossie dukedom was the second peerage to be introduced by King Baltazar II in Year 2, and House of Ross got it thanks to a sword duel win. The Rossie landscape includes Henford-on-Bagley, Britechester and Hollow (these days quite forgotten). The entire Rossie district is part of Region 11, but back then the region was much wider. Due to the common past, the high nobility House of Ross still holds very strong ties to my more highlighted Region 12.

This is among the most successful houses around, both politically and financially.


Coat of arms
This coat of arms was kept unchanged except when the 2nd Duke, Benedict II Ross (sovereign Y43-76), designed his personal version where the background changed from quarters to halves, using red on upper half and orange on lower half. The change was temporary, as the next Duke took back the original version, which has been used by the Rossie dukes ever since.

House of Ross got their original coat of arms registered as they were bestowed the Duke of Rossie peerage in Y2. Their main color was (and still is) red, as an reference to blood and their strong military position, lately also to red roses and apples (both of the Rosaceae family). Roses and apples are the Rossie district's signature plants and produce with the best quality coming from Henford-on-Bagley. The additional orange color was a reference to creativity, brought into the Ross family by the 1st duke's wife, widow of Lord of Volpe. A marriage will normally affect CofA only when the spouse hails from a higher ranked House - we don't know the widow's background, but nevertheless it might also have been a tribute to her late first husband. The centered symbol was a Capricorn - originally silver but for the latest generations golden due to their extreme wealth - probably representing strength and their military power, but a few historians have suggested that this fantasy creature actually holds some not yet discovered link to the mysterious vibe of the Bramblewood hood of Henford-on-Baglay.

WTG Travels' new Sulani Footage

(Year 227) Way To Go Travels just released their fresh photo campaign tempting more tourists to visit Sulani. The tropical location is already well known, and WTG has increased their activity there. The Science center near the volcano has been upgraded slightly and bunk beds makes it possible for larger groups to stay there. WTG arranges two trips - one for the typical beach life, and the other with a more environmental approach.

Recently they hired top model Penny Pizzazz to do some shots on location, and Penny was quite excited. 

However, it turned out that she had to hide inside the costume of the kidz club pet!