More Awesome Than You!

Objective: Finish a complete sim lifecycle from birth to death of the first generation in accordance with the rules below. You may create any sim directly as an adult from CAS. You may create one or two adults at your option. They must be connected in some way on the family tree. No children: Children must be born naturally. Challenge ends when the founders and the last child of the founder(s) have died or are removed from play.

RULES:
1. No cheats except where specifically permitted. You are allowed to use any custom contents or FFS/Twojeffs hacks, but you may not utilize any of the functions to cheat. No magic mood refreshers. No grade adjusters. No free money. None of that. You may use move_objects or the debug cheat only to move or delete stuck objects and sims, or force errors on the same. You may not delete sims to refresh their moods. Examples of legal hacks include "No 20K Handout", "No Cheering", etc. Anything in "More Awesome Than You" is legal when used as directed.

2. No moving between lots unless required. Nobody who moves out without the use of No-20K-Handout (http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/ffs/uni/hacks/no20Khandouts.zip) may ever move back to the lot.

3. You may use the college clock or lot debugger to pick a new aspirationally-relevant lifetime want of your choice, at the age transition, aspiration change, or upon the fulfillment of an existing lifetime want. If you fail to achieve it, you incur an additional penalty. You may only reroll your LTW at these specific times. If you choose not to, you forfeit the opportunity.

4. You may use any of the career or aspirational awards, except where restricted, but they must be paid for. You may not purchase them with hacked collections.

5. No one may move off the lot except by death or marriage.

6. Time-sync must be maintained if anyone is married off the lot.

7. You may marry any townie or NPC. Playable sims may only be married if they were born naturally in game, and may only be married if your generation is equal to or greater than theirs. Nobody may marry a CAS(zero-generation) sim, a first-generation sim may only marry a first-generation sim(or townie/NPC). A second generation sim may marry a second or first generation sim, as well as a townie or NPC. A first generation sim may not marry a second generation sim. Only legitimate families are eligible: You may not marry anyone from a family who has used money or mood cheats. A sim may not move onto the lot by marriage if they have been to Uni, although someone may marry a Uni graduate and leave the lot as a result.

8. You may never move anyone new in. New sims can only join the lot from marriage.

9. You may not receive money from another lot outside of marriages. You may send money to other lots, but you may not receive any back.

10. Only babies may be adopted. Toddlers and up are ineligible for adoption.

11. NO SAVING AND RELOADING unless a bug occurs.

RESTRICTIONS:
1. Ethiopians are starving! No food or food items may be purchased. This includes cakes, buffets, fridges, grills, muffin ovens, pizza, smartmilk dispensers, restaurants etc. None of these items may be used by your sims on any lot they live on or visit. Items featuring real food are similarly forbidden (Energizer has potatoes and pizza slices!), even if the food is not used. Stealing food from other sims is permitted, but you cannot purchase or make the food. Eating from the garbage is permitted.

2. Ethiopians do not have running water! No items requiring the use of running water (terlets, sinks, bathtubs, showers, fire sprinklers) may be purchased or used at home. Using them on a community lot is permissible.

3. Ethiopians do not have electricity! No items requiring the use of electricity, unless they have self-contained power supplies (personal electronics, fire alarms, battery-operated devices), may be purchased or used at home. Using them on a community lot is permissible. EXCEPTION: The Phone may be purchased to turn off the ringer and then sold.

4. Ethiopians do not have birth control! You must always choose "Try For Baby" when woohooing if available!

5. Ethiopians do not have fine educational institutions! Nobody goes to Uni.

TERMINOLOGIES:
Controllable: Any sim that you can control and give orders to.
Playable: Any sim that is playable: A non-townie, non-NPC that lives on a playable lot or in the lotbin.

SCORING:

GENERAL:
-2000 points for every controllable sim that dies of anything other than old age.
-1000 points for every controllable sim that starves to death! (cumulative with above!)
-500 points for every controllable sim that dies of (non-choking) disease! (cumulative with above!)
-50 points for every time I am forced to insult you for your inept mismanagement if you share the story of an ongoing challenge.

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT:
Lifetime Achievement penalties are only assessed on death. Sims still alive at the conclusion of the challenge do not incur any of these penalties.
-500 points for dying of old age without a platinum tombstone.
-250 points for failing to achieve a lifetime want that you chose, regardless of whether it is the first one or not. Cumulative with above. Uni+ only!

ACHIEVEMENT - CHILDREN:
These penalties are not applicable for generation 0 (CAS).
-1000 points for every child taken by the SS. Penalty applied immediately on arrival of the SS.
-500 points for every teen that runs away. Penalty applied immediately.
-500 points if the police do not recover the runaway. Cumulative with above.

BONUS POINTS! This challenge is so brutal we'll actually give you positive points!
+1 point if all sims that have lived on your lot achieve their lifetime wants.
+1 point if all sims that have lived on your lot maximize all skills.
+1 point if no one grows up badly.
+1000 points if you also manage to beat E-Mail concurrently on the same lot!

AUTOMATIC LOSS CONDITIONS:
Automatically lose if everyone dies or is removed from play.
Automatically lose if you violate one of the rules or restrictions.
Automatically lose if no sims are in play at the end of the challenge.

Isn't it amazing what one can come up with, chatting randomly?

I think I'll give this challenge a go, Pescado.  But I'll never share the story with you.  ;)

lol, I won't play this challenge for sure!

It's a "food torture" challenge - the sim will die very soon; that's why we are asked to finish a complete life cycle...:). Keep him barely alive...:).

OT - I love Ethiopian food.
Anyone taste injera bread with piri-piri chicken and hardboiled eggs?

yummmm.....


Ethiopians DEFINITELY have food, JM.

Ill give it a go But I wont share the story 8)

Why Blue and Bangelnuts? Why you won't share the story? Because it's too harsh, even for a sim?...:)

So as to not give the Awesome one a chance to point and laugh, thus earning ourselves a challenge-losing penalty.  ;)

Exactly ;)

Eh, but you only get pointed and laughed at if you fail the challenge anyway.

:o This challenge is brutal.

I might give it a try. I'll use a Sim that's been sitting in CAS for a while and I didn't know what to do with. Might turn her male though, 'cause of the whole no toilet thing.

And I'll even share a story of it for everyone to point and laugh at (or poke with sticks, whatever everyone's in the mood for). Of course, that's going to take a while. I'm really slow with that kind of thing. But there'll be one eventually, probably around the same time as an E-mail one (had to start that one over due to a BFBVFS).

Which is why I would never share any sort of story about it with you, no matter the "punishment."

true  go right ahead and "punish" me as well Im not sharing my sims story :P

LOLOLOL, Bangel don't ask for it! - he may ban you again because of not paying the subsription...:). You don't need a second nervous break down...:)

Im all paid up for a while and  I have the renewal date marked on my calender :)

Forgot it! - for one month you are safe and sound...:)

Two months...she paid for one, and I paid for one.  ;)

Interesting.  Any hints on how to keep a newborn alive until they can go to school and eat?  Better yet - Any hints on how to keep a pregnant mother (or alien father) alive for three days without food?  Can toddlers eat from the trashcan?

You are not suggested to make kids. Just to keep the sim/s you choosed a wholw lifecycle. But as "try for baby" is imperative, I think that the kids will be taken by the social worker, as babies.

Edit: my apology, BlueSoup, forgot it too...:).

The CAS Sim is Generation 0, the child(ren) born to them are Generation 1.  You do have to have at least one child.

There is a way to get around the babies/toddlers/kids from being taken away, if you have NL.

that is correct

Blue/Bangel - I am very very curious, but I don't want you to reveal the secret. Will you PM me and tell me how? I am safe rival - you know that I won't play this challenge...:).
But I am curious...:).

Gali, it's only theory at the moment, since I haven't started the challenge yet.  If it works out, I'll tell you.  :)

OK, thanks! *curiousity killed the kitten in a glass, lol*

You know, this makes me long for the days when I thought the email challenge was hard.

Well, you know I'll do it. I am bored with Email. This coasting to the end takes forever!

You could try Ethiopian E-Mail.

This is like a riddle that's driving me batty.

I'm more interested in hearing the strategies on this challenge than actually playing it myself. GAH.

Well then, good luck everyone :D

Thanks Veilchen .I figured out the loop hole last night so my toddler will eat

Oh, Bangelnuts.  There's another one.  ;)

I found two loopholes total but I need to test the second one

i think im really stupid, as i cant even find one. Although, i havnt really experimented away from standard gameplay for a while.

Hmm...PM me the second one you have?

Do toddlers get a hunger rise from the candy making machine?

I don't know, but it's not allowed anyway since it's been deemed to be electronical due to the push-button.  :-\

Ok I am confused, aspiration items can or cant be used? You say the energizer has potatoes and pizza slices? So they cant use the energizer in this challenge? And the candy mahine even though its a career reward cant be used because its electrical? How about spelling out what career/aspiration reward items can be used.

This looks really difficult-how the crap do you feed the babies and toddlers?  ???

I think I'm just going to try the plain email challenge first, since I never got around to that one. I always meant to do it after I completed the legacy challenge ... but I have a short attention span, and I never got past the fourth generation. I bet with the email challenge, I won't get past building the "house." Or should that be the "open-air prison"?

The engergizer has a pizza slice actually on it-although you cannnot click on it and eat it.

I have decided to try the email challenge first ;D Start with something 'easy'  ;)

You two are driving me nuts. I just got NL (B-Day present to self), and am still updating mods. I don't know the EP well enough yet to figure out tricky loopholes. :P

okay, the rules say no saving and reloading so does this mean this challenge has to be played all in one sitting? so, if you have to exit the game for whatever reason you have to start over again?

No saving and reloading just means you can't exit without saving to avoid something bad happening.

Oh, duh. thanks.

ahh but thats the beauty of the challenge you have to work at it to find the loopholes

I wanna try but can't stand the thought of babies/toddlers being taken away..somebody tell me the loopholes lol

What type of personality is required for a sim to snack from the trash can?

neat - 0->2

with  ) neat being the best

ok I cant figure out how you feed the baby the required once per day

Me neither nectere, that's why I don't want to do this yet-not unless some kind person tells me how to do it!

You know, I just now realized that the sims doesn't have breastfeeding, and that that is probably rather unrealistic (also, unhealthy for the sim-children! Maybe they have better formula in simland). If it did, however, this challenge would much easier. Also, that Jack Thompson guy would probably have an aneurysm.

Weeelll, not every one is as smart as Bangelnuts ;D ;D ;D

Bangelnuts-have I ever told you how much I love you? *bats eyelashes*  ;D

You all are too funny.  :D

I'll take a guess that you're supposed to just let the babies starve, but somehow prevent the SS from showing up.  Seems rather cruel even for J.M., if that is the case.  And I've seen those social workers walk right through a brick wall without blinking before, so it has to be something more hackish but still on the approved list.

Well, babies are easy.  They can be grown up in 24 Sim hours, and if you plan their birth right, it's minimal for wait times.  They can last for that 24 hours without being fed.  Toddlers present more of a challenge, but it can be done as well.

OK I guess this is too awesome for me, even if you pop out the kid at 5:59 and it ages at 6, it will technically still be over 24 sim hours the next day at 6, would should invoke the SS routine. And you cant buy a cake to grow it up early, so you have to rely on the parents tossing the kid appropriately at the right time, which never ever works for me, ever. I can only grow babies into toddlers with cake, and even then its dodgy, seems only the moms in my game can do it. Unless I can use a hacked object to select the baby and tell it to grow up (which has never worked either), but I dont know of any that are on the "approved" list.

I guess I will just have to try it and have oodles of kids taken away, not unlike my experience with Sims1.

Okay - Here's another guess: Vampiric Toddlers!  I'm going to go try that now and see if it works.

Followup: No, it didn't work.  You can't bite toddlers.  Disappointing, really.

Can toddlers be bitten?

I'm quite sure only teens and above can be vampires...nice thought though!

This is really bugging me-I am never going to get to sleep tonight!

you are correct only teens and above can be bitten thus become Vampires

I take it that the 'no cheats' rule means we can't use the agesims cheat to age toddlers out of toddlerhood?

I think you take it right.  ;)

They can only be grown up in 24 hours without cheats if you use the cake, and the cake is food. I don't get it.  >:(

My curiousity has gotten the best of me.  This is one challenge that I must defeat...rather  the social worker comes or not. 

(Do they even have social workers in Ethiopia lol)

I have created a custom hood..appropriatly entitled...Ethiopia :p

Let chaos insue.

C'mon Blue. It's my birthday. As a gift, tell me the secret?

I will tell you the secret answer Kit...since it is your birthday and all...........the answer is...

42

/me  sends her shirt ninjas after Twain

That was helpful  LOL

a half hour into it and I killed off my husband and wife.

Actually the wife died first during pregnancy.  I should have thought to remove her tombstone..starving ethiopians and ghosts do not mix.

I was getting really bored though.  Perhaps this is a challenge too awesome for me :p   

What are you supposed to do with them..they're always in a bad mood..can't skill build or anything....

*dies from laugh*

No mocking me dammit  :P

I was just reading the email challenge thread again...I have gotten some ideas from that ...I have decided not to admit defeat yet.  I have yet to figure out what I will do once a baby is born though...heh

**Edit...2nd attempt failed in record time.  I'm feeling like a real genious over here  :-\

*goes back to play sims HER way for a while*

*BlueSoup points and laughs at skandelouslala*

Better luck next time.  :)

skandelousa, I am the only one who won't point and laugh at you - I laugh at the idea of the "food torture". I said above that the sims will die - and they did...:).

I suggest you to wait for the "point and laugh" members (i.e. Blue and Bangel), to see how smart they are. Well, they are smart, because they don't want to share their experience with us...:).

OK I tried this with a husband and wife-and failed. Same as skandelouslala, my wife died in pregnancy. This is driving me bugshit-and I'm not playing this anymore *goes off to sulk* :D
I'm going to do the email challenge instead :P

I am sulking with you Emma lol

The email challenge seems simple compared to this.

That second attempt I got the baby born..I decided to try right away to get that out of the way.  It was born around 5 pm and was taken at 7 pm the next day.  The dad died out of nowhere the day before shortly after the baby was born.  I have gunmod's (think that's the name, forgive me if it's not) radiance lighting installed so at night w/ no lights it's almost impossible to see so I didn't see it happen in time to plead with death.  After the baby was taken, mom sim died..of what I have no clue...either the father sim's ghost came out and scared her or she died of her terrible bout with food poisoning.

If I could just use the damned b-day cake to age the baby and then delete it I could at least get the baby to toddlerhood, although I have no idea what I would do with it then lol

The only thing that has made it worth it to me so far was the little bit of sim torture in which hilarity ensued.  Since there is no toilet my sims would get down on their hands and knees and puke on the ground.   I watched them do this repeatedly from food poisoning and then stand back up, only to fall back down rocking back & forth in aspiration failure (apparently puking drove them over the edge..hell it would me too at this rate)  As cruel as it was...it was slightly amusing to my sick demented mind lol

Heh. That's sort of the point. Didn't you read the topic header? This was made because the E-Mail Challenge WAS TOO EASY! So now we have to have something HARDER!

Isn't it possible to come up with a hard challenge that doesn't involve banning normal bodily functions?

I dont believe this is actually possible. I think JM just wants to sit and laugh at us all until we realise this. So i refuse to do it. Im going to finish my legacy challenge (only on 2nd gen- might take a while), then try the email challenge. And i might move on to this if someone has finished it by then.

I wanna see Pescado do this first  :P

From what I understand, Pescado already successfully completed this challenge before he turned it loose for us to fail at.

How do we get to the community lots if the phone has been sold? Cars only?

I actually had fun planning and playing my couple, a brother and sister: Wren and Rufus Wretched.  I made them both fat hoping for slower metabolisms (didn't work), Rufus is a Fortune sim who has a LTW to be an All Star (I think.. whatever the top athletic position is), Wren is a Knowledge sim with a LTW to be Chief of Staff.. one of her first wants was to woohoo in a bed?

 But it really doesn't help that with a newly created sim you start out halfway on the hunger bar and unless you get lucky and get an 11:00 or later job.. you starve pretty badly.  It really shortens the amount of time to get a few skill points in before they start refusing to one's bidding.

Since I didn't build them a house I bought some of the best beds.. bad mistake... that just gave them more time to moan about needing to pee, eat and use a shower.  It was kind of funny watching them both try to bathe in the pool but of course that doesn't work (I think it should... or at least change the color of the stink cloud ;-)

So far I've had Therapist and a pink Social Bunny..

I think I need way easier challenges.. like they can only eat on alternate days, sponge baths only on alternate days, on alternating days LOL!

~misty

Hmmm...I have an idea or two of what these "loopholes" are. May actually give this one a go.

Does running water include pools and hottubs?

Hot-tubs are heated electrically.  And I'm pretty sure the Ethiopians don't have swimming pools in their backyards.  But they can have swimmable lakes.   :)

But a pool is not technically against the rules. You could even use pool lights, since they aren't electrical, right? And with Pescado's challenges, the only way to beat them, or even come close, is to find things that are not *technically* against the rules. That's what he expects. Be sneaky. Be inventive. Push the rules, but do not break them.

EDIT: Asking Pescado to make a ruling on the pool. It does not require running water, but in the real world it would have required it when being built.

Okay, can't you buy the cake and use it to age babies to toddlers but not eat it? Just blow out candles and then clean it up?

Nope.

well, the pool could have been filled with rain water, or lake water or something other than running water, theoretically speaking of course.

I can think of one loophole: Inge's no Social Worker abduction patch is not specifically on the banned list. However, this challenge looks too hard for me anyway. I'll just keep trying the email challenge.

EDIT: Whoops. I was just reading from the rules list at the top. If it's banned, it's banned.

He has said that you can't use the No Social Worker patch in the chat....(actually, anything that's not by him or TJ is banned, isn't it?)

Okay, I give up. Poor guy lived about two days. I'll try again when I'm in a better mood.

cell phones are allowed

Does a car constitute a self-contained device? Is a cellphone part of "personal electronics" and thus ok?

What counts as "stealing" food? could you have a Uni sim and eat as much as you wanted in the dorm?

<little bity voice> why does one buy a phone, turn the ringer off and then sell it again... if you don't own a phone, it won't ring, right? ...unless you have a cell, I guess... </tentative end little voice as the last time I asked a question like this it was a point and laugh kind of thing...>

Cell Phones and cars are allowed.stealing food could be as simple as running out on the bill at a community lot.ethiopians dont go to universities

Ahh...I hadn't thought of that....  Ethiopians may have restaurants, but they don't have any money....  So eating and not paying might just work.

/gross stereotypical generalization

LOL I bet he has ;D

I'm almost afraid to ask, but is there a penalty for getting caught when trying to skip out on a restaurant bill?  *embarrassed*  Apparently, my Sim is no good at sneaking....

I'm starting to get some ideas but the loopholes for making the babies/toddlers survive I am still stuck on.
Why do I have some feeling that it is just so blatantly obvious that once I figure it out I'm going to feel like a real dumbass lol

I'm also curious if bars or the little juice keg thing are allowed on lots?  I mean they aren't technically food after all.             welll not in my world anyways lol
I mean...sure one can live on meager scraps for a while..but w/o something to drink...you'd be dead in record time (not that my sims already haven't experienced that *cough* but anyways....                                           

The bar doesn't seem to be banned, but do the drinks have any food value?

Well...slighty..not much to make any real difference, but it would appear to make a difference between life & death in this case.  Since it has a teeny value that is why I asked.  But I still insist that it is not REAL food   :P

Oh yeah...

1. Ethiopians are starving! No food or food items may be purchased. This includes cakes, buffets, fridges, grills, muffin ovens, pizza, smartmilk dispensers, restaurants etc. None of these items may be used by your sims on any lot they live on or visit. Items featuring real food are similarly forbidden (Energizer has potatoes and pizza slices!), even if the food is not used. Stealing food from other sims is permitted, but you cannot purchase or make the food. Eating from the garbage is permitted.

^^If these items can't be used on the lots they visit..then wouldn't taking them to a resteraunt and skipping out on a bill still be banned?  Or is it that they can't pay for food at a resteraunt? 

Well, seeing as how the wording says that food may not be "purchased", I would think not paying for food at a restaurant would be within the rules.  If you skip out on the bill, you have never purchased the food...right?

Ehh it doesn't matter..I've figured out how to keep the adults alive with nothing but their trashcan if need be..just barely..but they've been alive about 10 sim days and I think I have it down.

I refuse to believe the baby thing is possible.  It does appear having the nanny there keeps the social worker from coming, rather its fed or not..but I can't keep the timing right to keep one always there and the moment she leave up rolls the social worker.  I have one more theory to try but if that doesn't work...I admit defeat and refuse to believe it's possible until somebody proves otherwise  :-\

*stumbles off to be a sore loser and go make dinner*  :P

Umm...me thinks you stumbled onto something that will help you beat the challenge there...keep at it.  ;)

Hmm. Once had a nanny get stuck on the lot. More than once, actually. That was . . . er . . . interesting. Old lady wandering around in her underwear, collapsing in the nursery, and peeing on things.

And by the way. Pescado, you are truly an evil individual. This challenge is the most twisted, diabolical thing I have seen in a long time. I applaud you!

If any of Pescado's hacks are legal as intended, doesn't that mean the security system is? It won't stop all social workers but seems like it'd help at least when waiting for a nanny.

Some of the rules confuse me (I'm easily confused) - can the 0 generation CAS sim marry a townie/NPC? (The 1st generation can, but can the 0?) It says you can't create children in CAS, all of them must be natural and one can only adopt a baby (no toddlers) so does adopting an infant count as a natural birth and a 1st generation sim? It says a 2nd generation can marry a 2nd or a 1st generation but a 1st generation can't marry a 2nd - does that mean the 2nd gen can or can't marry the 1st? :)

LOL Sagana...sorry but I couldn't help thinking of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello with your question!! Who's on first??  :D

The security system is considered electronic.   The 0 gen Sim can marry a townie/NPC...they just can't marry another player Sim (one that's been created in CAS, unless they are both created at the same time as married Sims).

Basically, the generations have to match.  You can't have a Sim that should really be dead marrying someone theoretically much younger than him/her.

What about adopting? That would at least save you the dang pregnancy and birth thing. And if you create a single male sim and adopt, no females at least til the baby grows up and no more babies for awhile.

Ah, but if anything in "More Awesome Than You!" is allowed, then that means that "pregnancy for all genders" is allowed. Of course, adoption is still probably the best way to go.

That qualifies as a cheat. It's just like how the lot debugger is allowed, but you can't cheat with it, as cheats are banned. Besides, pregnancy for all won't benefit you anyway. :P

huh? how is using pregnancy for all the way it's intended cheating? I mean... not that I want to, I was looking for a way out of pregnancy and I assume "allowed" doesn't meant "required" but...

I did assume if I wanted my CAS sim to be gay, I could use the joined union equals marriage one (as only marriage is allowed to bring another sim in) and am now wondering if that counts as cheating too?

<even more confused>

Actually, I'm still having trouble with what counts as electrical anyways or at least what is or isn't self-contained. How come the security system is considered electrical... does that mean say the medical career reward or the science one are? How do you know if they're self-sustaining (battery or whatever) when there's no power grid to plug into? I think I'd need a list (imagines that isn't going to be forthcoming)...

Edit: Actually, the security system is specifically mentioned as allowed.

So it is actually ok, yes?

Pescado partially copy/pasted Email challenge, so that's why it's listed.  It's not allowed though, since it's electronical.

The medical career reward is electrical as well.  You just have to think about it - if it seems electric, it's not allowed.

As I recall, pools generally have some kind of pumping apparatus responsible for filling, emptying, and filtering it. So those are right out.

As for this "Swimmable lake" business, this is explicitly not mentioned in the manual, nor can I find any tool for doing this. I therefore conclude it either DOES NOT EXIST, or is a product of combining Atlantean House Construction with....regular pools.

Do Ethiopians have propane for the flame jet thingy?  And if so, are they allowed to toast marshmellows with it?

well, he needs to change it then, because it specifically says it is allowed, so how're we supposed to know? and it's not so simple as "thinking about it" - cell phones and cars both have electric systems, they just have batteries. It'd be almost like saying (as custom content is allowed) if I make my own generator, I can put up a whole lighting system. There's no power grid in the sims, so there's no way to know what's running on a battery and what requires plugging in. I don't know what powers the medical career reward - could be a battery...

He did change it after I told him it stated it was allowed.  ;)

He does say that things that are powered by a personal source (like batteries) are allowed, and Ethiopians apparently have cell phones and cars (although their cars aren't very good). 

Lights aren't allowed, unless they're of a torch-type (Kewian just asked this question.)

Yes, I understand that. So how do you know what is powered by a battery and what isn't? The batteries on cell phones and cars don't run out, so you can't use charges... there's nothing to simulate "plugging in"... How do you know the medical career reward doesn't have a "personal source"?

[Rohina]
"The bar doesn't seem to be banned, but do the drinks have any food value?"

Yes, - 1.
But beware, In one of my weddings, my sims made a lot of toasts, and after that they all were drunk. It was funny to see them simulate a drunk person...:).

Well, the medical career reward has an electric light and so it is assumed that it is electrical, not battery.  Really, the only two things I can think of that aren't electrical, but still have a power source are the cars and the cell phones.

You (in real life) own a cell phone you don't periodically have to plug in to recharge? I'd like one like that ;)

bah - I actually downloaded and put in the security system, as it said it was allowed :p <gives>

Maybe, and no. No free marshies, sorry.

I think I'm assuming that if it's portable, then it has its own power supply.  Like the electronic gadgets, yes, and the car (while not portable, it is mobile).  So, things like the Simvac and the fingerprint scanner and the helmet-thingy would also be allowed?  Or the remote control car if anyone still dared to use it.

By the way, after my Sim failed to sneak out on his bill at the restaurant, he learned how to steal people's food properly.  Simply lie in wait while others are ordering, and then click on their plate after the waiter brings it and before the other Sim starts to eat.  If your timing is right, your Sim will walk right up and take the plate out from under another Sim's nose!  Ha!

Not sure how many days my Sim's been alive now... maybe four or five, not quite a full Sim week yet.  But I can tell you this.... he's been spending a lot of time taking sponge baths in public restrooms!   

Legal Career and Aspiration Rewards

Money tree
Noodlesoother
ReNuYuSenso Orb
Cool shades
Thinking caps
SimVac
Elixir of Life
Political Teleprompter
Execuputter
Exerto Punching Bag
Military Obstacle Course
Fingerprinting Scanner
Cow Plant
Antique camera

Illegal Career and Aspiration Rewards

Smart milk
Energiser (although not electrical (battery-operated), it does have food on it.
Love Tub
Counterfeiting machine
Medical Career Reward
SensoTwitch Lie Finder
Hydroponic Garden
Chocolate Manufacturing Facility
Biotech Station
Cosmetic Surgery Machine
Resurrect-o-Nomitron

So, the Medieval lighting is allowed, right? Those are candles.

Yep.  :)  We asked about that.

So what happens if you get busted? If they make you pay, you instantly lose. :P

Where do I find the 'peeable' toilet shrub anyone?

The shrubs are in build mode. If this is some variant hacked shrub, you can't use that.

Ah damnit...my bad!! Thought someone mentioned it earlier!  :)

They weren't drunk, they just had to pee really really bad. I mean, the teens join in the toasts! This is my area of expertise, you know.  ;) Both the toasting and the peeing. After going through 3 bottles of champagne, they get a little cranky, what with all the bladder desperation and such.

Well, I've got litttle Lupe into childhood  ;D  Unfortunatly I have no idea what I'm going to do about her grades...hopefully there's a loophole for that...b/c even though Lupe can eat at school..she sure in the hell can't shower there  :P

She just had a very unwanted little brother, Minoru.  I was desperate to get her parents into platinum for a while and let them woohoo on a date..sure enough...baby!  Beh.

I'm -500 in the hole right now thanks to the SS removal of Olinda.  Maybe if I ever complete this I will try for a perfect score..until then screw that..I'm proving to myself that it can be done first lol

Brynne, my sims don't need to pee in my parties, because I make the party with the eternal booster. They aren't hungry either - nobody touches the buffet, and seldom - the wedding cake...:).

But they WERE drunk, I saw Tank swaying from side to side, Ripp too, making foolish interactions to the elders (school cheers), hugging them (getting - sign for it), and then swaying again. Really.

Ugh. Why do I never get the good glitches?

Ahem. Community Lot. Ahem.

Congrats for getting to childhood. I haven't decided if I'm doing this one or not. Screaming, starving toddlers *really* get to me.

[Reggikko] "Screaming, starving toddlers *really* get to me."

I agree! Just yesterday I saw the sad Sunny,  because he felt neglected (at night) by dad and mom. My heart melted...:).

[attachment deleted by admin]

So I can ship the little demons with me to the community lot.  Good...I'm sure that is common knowledge to a lot of people, but I never take kids to the community lot so I wasn't sure if you could or not.

Toddler stage has been the worst.  I wasn't going to build any rooms on the lot, but damned Lupe wouldn't shut up long enough for her exhausted starving parents to get any sleep so I had to break down and build a room to put their bed in.

Well crudmuffins!  I'd come so far since then too!  Errrr.  Well, I might keep playing this Sim even if I have already lost, just to see how much further I can get him.  XP

Can I use a coupon at the restaurant?

edit:  Hey, there is no penalty for little accidents (pee in pants, not babies).  Unless of course, you're a sucker for punishment and playing the email challenge as well.

I would say there is, seeing as even 0 Neat Sims seem to not care for that state and they don't have showers,
This looks insanely hard, so I don't see any reason not to include e-mail, may as well do it all at once.

Screaming starving toddlers are the best reason to play. It's even better when they are stinky, too. If only there was a slap interaction for toddlers and babies :'(.

I think all those years of babysitting have ruined children for me ::).

How come the Teleprompter is allowed? Doesn't it need electricity for the scrolling text thingy?

Are you allowed the toddlers' potty? I'm not sure if that requires running water or not. (I'm guessing that it's ok.)

And I'd like an official ruling on the bar and keg. Are drinks = food in this context?

Also: No University. Fair enough. What about Private School?

I've become slightly obsessed with this challenge since I started it... a lot of my spare moments I've had I've been playing this thing.

*shakes fist*  Damn you Pescado!

Lupe is now an adult.  I've decided to give it a break for a few now that I will have to go through the whole thing again until she kills over. I've discovered certain personalities and aspirations make this thing waaaaay easier than others.

Vondra...Lupe's mom finally died of old age earlier this evening.  She died in gold but no platinum.  At least in gold she looked happy to go..it was a hard life *sigh* hehe   No LTW achieved either.  Marry off 6 kids?!  Hahah yeah right.  Papa EvilRubberDuck is still alive and kicking it.

Minoru joined his other sister in foster care.

So let's see..that puts me....-2750 in the hole I believe.  I think that's pretty swell for being completely clueless a couple days ago  :P

I think it sounds great.  Do you plan to do it again, once you're done with this one, to aim for the perfect score?

I never specifically addressed the teleprompter, but I suspect those things run perfectly fine on batteries.

It doesn't. It doesn't have any water at all. It's, well, a pot. That has to be manually emptied, where, if there is no terlet, they use the trash for that.

Drinks are not food.

Not forbidden, but also not required....unless you're doing E-Mail at the same time!

so if I can get my hands on an instant meal that qualifies since it is a drink and not food?

I hate it when I ask stupid questions and only discover just how stupid after the fact.

Other than that they come from fridges, sure.

OK, here's what I think (as if anyone cares).  I started playing Sims on PS2 and freaked out when the social worker came and took the baby that I could not get to because of a glitch.  That was the first and last time the social worker has taken one of my Sim children and I'm not going to screw up that record!  I'm with Gali - too cruel for my tastes. 

I guess I will have to give the email challenge another go.  It now pales in comparison...

Wouldn't the University keg be banned as it's a giant pineapple, and therefore food (although not eaten)?

It doesn't. It doesn't have any water at all. It's, well, a pot. That has to be manually emptied, where, if there is no terlet, they use the trash for that.


So using the potty is bad because they need to be emptied into the trash and if you get hungry enough and have to eat from the trash can...........*shudder*  :-X

Oh, yuck! But what does sim trash consist of anyway? I suck at this challenge, not because screaming, starving toddlers get to me, but because I'm having problems getting the baby to the toddler stage. And without cake, it can call for some very glitchy age transitions...

If you time the birth just right, then it should be relatively smooth with the Baby Controller.

This challenge rocks ;D. Never did E-Mail because I thought it was too cruel (and I'm entirely too lazy to go building special E-Mail legal community lots). But this is great! I love stealing food! The Townies are too stupid even to notice!

Now to get my guy a mate. I have a Townie in mind. I know it's all going to go horribly wrong once there's a baby to look after, but... ;)

My thoughts exactly baratron....

I thought there'd be flaming thought bubbles aplenty seeing as my challenge sim has nicked food off almost everyone downtown. How strange that something like that doesn't piss off sims, but puddles of water can enrage them to serial killer level!!

A mate and a baby is next on my list for my deprived sim....now, that's where the 'challenge' begins I would imagine  ;D

It's plastic.

LOL

I've lost the will to live already.

Can you have a baby taken away by the social worker, then have another non-Ethiopian family adopt it and raise it until it's a child, then have the social worker come again and have the original family adopt it back?

As far as I know, the original family can never adopt a child once they've had one taken away.  And the point of this challenge is to have your Sims survive the grow-up period.  ;)

Aaaaarrrrrrgggghhhhhh!!  :'(

Ah, I feel better now!!

You can only adopt babies.  No toddlers or children.

So has anyone found a way to feed the toddlers yet? While it's possible to put baby bottles into inventory, I can't see how this helps:
1) Ethiopians can't use fridges, no matter where the fridge is located. So the fact they could grab a bottle from someone else's fridge and take it home in their inventory is irrelevant.
2) I could get a non-Ethiopian to get a baby bottle from their fridge and drop it on the floor for an Ethiopian to pick up & take home - but the only way to control an Ethiopian at a non-Ethiopian's house would be Merola's Mind Control Mirror (non-Awesome) or boolprop TestingCheats (for cheating purposes). I presume this is not allowed.
3) I could get a non-Ethiopian to get a baby bottle from their fridge and put it in inventory, then get the Ethiopian to invite them over. But again, the only ways to control the visiting non-Ethiopian would be classed as cheating.

What I really want is a legal way to control visitors. It's a shame the new version of the Phone Hack doesn't let you control visitors on outings. I've been wondering if you can do something with Influence... To Serve Meal, but there's no way to take a toddler to someone else's house or to a Community lot where the Influencing could be done. No toddler stuff is enabled for use on Community lots as standard, you have to use changeLotZoning residential to get it.

Failing all other possibilities, I'll just go for the "toddlers can't die as long as you keep a Nanny there forever" technique, but I'm just intrigued as to whether anyone's managed it.

First, a question. The garden spike light. These are generally solar powered. Allowed?

Meet the Ethiopian Twins:

Peckish
(http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y124/reggikko/Peckish.jpg)

Famish
(http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y124/reggikko/Famish.jpg)

Both are lazy, sloppy, outgoing Libra Romance Sims. These are Sims created by BelovedWagon. I just think they're pretty. :)

It's do-able.  As noted above..keep with that idea lol

I haven't went back to my Ethiopian lot since Lupe grew up yet...I got burned out.  When I go back though I might upload my story somewhere if anyone is interested in some garbage eating, pee on bushes starving sims lol

Of course...this challenge has been taunting me..of course I have to aim for a perfect score lol ;)

Only next time I'm taking it slower and less obsessively lol..but that will be easier now that I get it.

If you "shoo" a sim on a community lot and interrupt them after they've ordered food (but before they've eaten it), they'll get up and you can eat theirs without chancing skipping out. Just in case you're tired of the trash ;)

Well, I'm stuck on how to get a baby to the toddler stage without the social worker arriving!?

 I know some have said keep a nanny on the lot at all times, Ive tried but It seems the SW always turns up to take the baby! Others have said time the birth just right...I have no clue how to go about that...I've lost two babies so far to the SW......any further hints or tips would be greatly appreciated  :)

If the baby is born right before 6 pm, then the next day at 6 pm, the baby can be aged to toddler.  So, since the pregnancy period lasts 3 days and 3 hours, you can plan your conception accordingly.

And the nanny is supposed to repel the social worker.

but you can't use the birthday cake to grow the kid up because it's (obviously) food.

No, but didn't someone say that Pescado's baby controller could grow them up?

I haven't seen that? Is it allowed and is that why it's been incredibly hard for me to get through that stage of the challenge....because if it is.......*shakes fist and mutters very colourful language* 

Pes number three had reached elderhood in perma plat with maxed skills and at the top of his military career whiling away his days meditating. His adopted kid Ethan was just one point away across the board skill wise also reaching for that perma plat status as well. I got the notice he was one day away from adulthood and in my giddy haste I selected grow up already! He was platinum and greened up and I figured no time like the present boy, lets get on with it - when all of the sudden to my dismay - the floor fell out from beneath him. He went from plat to aspiration failure in two seconds flat.

I can only assume that in my haste I failed to realize that he must have had a HUGE fear of not going to college, and it had to have been monsterous to take him down that far. He was a knowledge sim like his father Pes but they had a good run at it, so good I had gotten in the swing of things and all was smooth sailing.

Ah well better luck next weekend...and victory shall be mine!

I have funny pics I am sure Motoki would have appreciated, Ethan had his own personal set of Nanny Guards at all times, it cost a fortune but it worked, and he would have made it too, with his own kid,  until his creator mucked it all for him. *sigh*

And your point is Nectere??  >:(

Nah just kidding....god for you getting that far....you have more patience than I  :)

One question if I may.....did you use the baby controller by any chance or did you just have the nanny army on duty at all times to stop the Social Worker from arriving?

I did not have the baby controller; the baby took an extra day to transition due to not having the cake. And yes we had quite the army of nannies on duty at all times (because you can never be too sure when they will flake out and decide to leave). I will leave it to you to figure out how to get them and keep them there.

I had thought about having Pes marry the nanny on the second try but I quickly found out that as soon as she is flagged a visitor the social workers no longer see her as a force to be reckoned with and come marching in (in an army of their own, literally  -glitch). I quickly learned from that mistake and made sure to have a full army at all times on the third try. Once two got stuck on lot and all they did was follow Ethan around, I had some cute pictures of Ethan flanked by his personal Nanny Guards.

I can't figure out the aspiration failure thing though, I looked at Ethan's memories to try to figure out what had just happened and it said he completed his freshman year of college. Which seems rather odd since he didn't go to college, I am not sure if perhaps when they don't go they flag them as dropping out or what, but the whole thing seemed rather strange with him taking such a huge hit to aspiration. The game also started to seem rather glitchy, even the regular nanny changed her schedule and starting coming at midnight until 9am, which wasn't what she had been hired for and Pes's schedule never changed. The regular Nanny continued to come even long after Ethan had turned into a teen and then would promptly leave charging them 10 dollars each time with some babble about there being no kids in the house.

Meh, there is always next weekend, I would like to try Ethiopian Email, its just such a pain to build all the needed lots that way, since you will def need a community lot thats both attractive to visitors yet still wthin the confines of the Email Challenge.

WAIT I just reread the rules again..

There is no hit for aspiration failure? If thats the case I am still in the game! Ethan grew up well but then went into aspiration failure afterwards.

What I've noticed, is that if I don't send my sims teens to college, they get the 'completed freshman year' memory even though they didn't go to college. I never thought much of it though.

Looking for another Official Ruling. Is it allowed to use hacked collection career rewards on community lots?

No, you have to earn all your career and aspirational awards. You can't use them on community lots, except the SS lot, which comes with them. Hacked collections are only for if something buggers up your career reward, causing it to become jammed.

I think it's a bug - there's a 'Never Went to College' memory but I too get the 'Completed Freshman Year' when I grew up a teen without the obligatory 'college on speed' sojourn :P Fixed it in SimPe but, yeah. Bug to begin with.

Yes. Drinks from the bar do replenish hunger.  Not by much though.  But they might not be allowed, "This includes cakes, buffets, fridges, grills, muffin ovens, pizza, smartmilk dispensers, restaurants etc.  I can figure out how to survive the pregnancies, but the infants and toddlers have me stumped.  Especially w/o the cake.  I might give it a go.

edit: Why is the Counterfeiting machine illegal?  It's not electrical.  Is there food on it?

I think earlier up the page JM said that 'drinks are not food'.

Yeah, I saw that after I posted.  I should finish the thread, not just the page next time.   :-[

I wonder why smartmilk dispensers are illegal if drink is not food. Milk is not food. Maybe smartmilk has illict food properties?

The smart milk dispenser is electrical.

Oh. I thought it was magical... :-\

Right. After much hassle, and the Exchange eating my story twice, here are the first two chapters of my Ethiopian Experience!

Chapter 1: Meet Extremely Tormented (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=66756&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)
Chapter 2: No food & A Baby! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=66613&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Feel free to point and laugh at my uploading woes. Enjoy the MATY in-jokes.

great story.  It makes me want to try this challenge... I just don't know if I can handle the starving tot... 

I think I have hit upon a sneaky, crafty way to survive this challenge.

Unrelatedly, my founder just married the Diva. The first baby-bump just appeared. As yet no one's died, hopefully due to my sneaky crafty completely legal survival technique. I may have to begin taking pictures, now it seems that I might actually have gotten it right.

Great stories baratron!  I'm not gonna try this one, but I would like to finish my email challenge.  I'm suffering severe withdrawal symptoms as the CD drive on our computer has been broken for three weeks and my only contact with sims is reading other people's stories.  I'm starting to think I may have an addiction problem!

And seventhson - are you going to tell us?

Very cool, Baratron!  You are indeed brave.  Thanks for the explanations - you give me hope for trying this myself.  And congrats on your toddler growing up!

Seventhson, spill the beans!

I feel like community lot skilling should count as a cheat because of the way time doesn't pass.

Time isn't really the critical factor in anything. Not starving to death is, and there's still need decay. Community lot skilling is considered "legal" in this sense. Even in the stock game, there already *ARE* skills that can be gained on a community lot. This just adds consistency without sacrificing sanity to the system.

I have to go wipe my eyes now.  Chapter Two ended just in time before my eyes blurred up to the point where I couldn't see anymore.  Your story is just hysterical, baratron! 

Thoroughly enjoying your experience with Ethiopian - please post the next chapter soon. 

For those who want to take their challenge to the next level, compete in Ethiopian Idol! 

http://www.adelphia.net/news/read.php?id=12481601&ps=1003&cat=&cps=0&lang=en (http://www.adelphia.net/news/read.php?id=12481601&ps=1003&cat=&cps=0&lang=en)

I have a possibly stupid question. Ethiopian Sims can have cell phones but not regular phones, however, without NL there is no way to go to a community lot and purchase a cell phone without using a regular phone to call a taxi. Correct? Can non-NL users be allowed one (non-cell) phone call? (Just pretend we're in jail.)

"No food and a baby" made me laugh until I cried. I'm going to have to try this. Although I have this feeling like I'll go totally berserk and send some poor soul to Sleep Through Email College in Ethiopia.

Oh, I am so doing that to a Pescado clone. RIGHT NOW!

edited to add: can I make a dorm that is Ethiopian and Email legal? Or is a dorm non-functional without dorm doors and a cafeteria stove?

You can make such a dorm, but only your controllable sim will be able to live there. No dormies (because no doors).

Ethiopians technically don't go to Uni at all, but you can construct a dorm that is otherwise Ethiopian-style.

Yes, you can make your jail call at the same time you shut off the ringer.

Ooh. No food. No toilets. I don't think the dormies would do very well in that kind of dorm. Heh heh heh.

Yes, I decided little Timmy Misfortune is an unorthodox Ethiopian who received a college scholarship. A special one that specified he wasn't allowed to so much as set eye on any walls or toilets. Or do any homework. And that didn't cover the cost of any plumbing or electrics. Or food. He just finished his freshman year! He's so proud! His friends in Ethiopia will never believe his extra want slots!

I have had the problem of bill errors because of trying to divide by zero dormmates, but well, life in Ethiopia is tough.

You know sending them to Uni is against the rules of the challenge, right?

My Ethiopian emailer is just living on a patch of dirt - not a dorm, just a lot. He got an incredibly generous scholarship from Pescado which enabled him to move in to the lot, and buy a cell phone.

Edited to add: Yes, I know Uni is non-Ethiopian, but you can't play all 3 challenges at once without exploring the exterior of the envelope.

Edited to add also, I figured out how to put the dorm doors into the Ethiopian Email lot, so now my guy is living in a dorm.

Does this mean...... you have dormies?? The idea of dormies at Ethiopian Email college makes me happy.

... Of course, Dormies stink, starve, and pee themselves even when they HAVE food and toilets, so....

Yes, I have dormies, but they are behaving a little oddly, and no wonder. They haven't died yet, and they aren't stinky, although they have been peeing on the floor/ground. Two of them are constantly fighting. The relationship between their rooms and the exterior world is a little peculiar. Also, they keep moving out when my sim brings a date home. This may be why they haven't died, of course.

I think they drank all my fruit punch, too.

Ouch. And without walls, it must be tough to keep a horde of starving dormies away from the keg.

Every time Timmy has a guest over they go right for his fruit punch. The worst is the stupid mascots. I have to put a trash can in front of it now. Spoiled fridge-owning elitist jerks.

I may actully try this challenge....

Hahahahahahaha hahahaha hahahahahaha hahahahahahahaha hahahahaha  ;D

I'm going to do Ethiopian, Email and Bohemian Challenge (non-awesome challenge, no going to work allowed) all at once.

Is it permissable to have babys/toddlers taken away? Like in case of twins or something... I hate to think of having to raise an unwanted ugly little misfit.

Child in the traditional sense, not age category. You break it, you buy it.

By the way, I asked Pescado about using Gwill's paintings (http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/smf/index.php?topic=2760.0) to achieve the "Buy a toilet" / "Buy a fridge" / "Buy a shower/bathtub" Wants, and was told they were technically non-legal. I'm guessing the same thing would be true of using them to achieve the "Buy a Guitar" or "Buy a Bass" Wants. Ah well.

Is TwoJeffs' Adult/Elder Age Duration Hack (http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/smf/index.php?topic=2697.0) valid for use in this Challenge? I'm guessing it probably isn't, but oh joy, I'm so looking forward to 30 days of shuffling, peeing Elders... At least they'll be Permaplat by then, though I'll pretty much have to find another Aspiration for them. What do Knowledge sims get as Wants when they've already maxed out all skills?

They want to see a ghost, be saved from death, stargaze with telescope, etc.  Elders seem to get stuck on wanting to see a relative get married, get engaged, have a grandchild, etc.  Rather annoying in my opinion.  It's good when they are permaplat, as you say.

Well Bleh!
First child is a girl with 6 neatpoints.
Okay by my calculations there is no way to get perfect email score because the toddler will be too busy moaning hunger and getting molested by the nanny-collective to possibly train any toddler-skills. I think I have to put this family on hold until I can figure out a way to get perfect scores on both ethiopian and email.

I believe the key to (stress-free) Ethiopian is Vampires, especially for females. Sims that need to (eventually) die can simply be cured and then meditate until death do part thee.

Vampirism will just drag out your challenge even longer since they won't get old and DIE. Since the idea is to plow through it, vampirism is counterproductive.

Nah, vamparism means no more hunger/bladder decay meaning no more heading to community lots. Then have ALL the sims meditate and set it to 3x speed. The vampire does fine meditating in full sunlight (that melting thing, all in the mind :P). And since sims who are alive at the end aren't penalized as severely any "surplus" sims can (and I think should) always be vamped so they don't need to be micromanaged...
I'm pretty sure vamping massively speeds up going for the bonus points anyway (but isn't that just player-torture?)

My other idea for rapid aging: getting red aspiration then chugging elixir. But I can't remember if that slaps motives around.

Just to report my progress, I finished this challenge a while back; I think it was two weekends after my last update on it. I continued to have Pes meditate while he wasn't needed for anything else. Ethan never married; he adopted a baby named Chuck. (it was total luck I guess to get another boy) which Ethan and Pes encouraged to the appropriate personality. Pes helped with raising Chuck while Ethan worked, again an army of Nannies was required, but since I had been through it before it wasn't a big deal this time around. Pretty much everything was smooth sailing, Pes died in perma plat and Ethan and Chuck are still on lot. I didn't have the whacky asp failure with Chuck that I experienced with Ethan as he is a knowledge sim as well; I don't know why or care.

Ethan is an old man in perma plat and Chuck is still in play as an adult (also in perma plat) and perhaps will go on to marry someday, I don't know. I quit playing the family once I had achieved my objectives and concentrated on Maty Island. None of the men in the Ethiopian Challenge ever actually "knew" a woman, I kept them all chaste. Pes did continue to see the Nanny for a while but I got sidetracked and their relationship dissipated pretty quickly with Pes being busy with Chuck - encouraging, training etc in all his spare time. All in all it was a pretty easy ride going the adoption route. I considered taking it to the next generation in the traditional sense with Chuck and a barista (as baristas are very hearty npcs for some reason) he was crushing on, but again I was fairly bored by now and wanting to play my Maty Island hood (or I should say build all those houses).

I haven't bothered to try Ethiopian Email because I haven't yet figured out how to skill the toddler in needs failure or how to get the tot out of needs failure at all. I suppose its something obvious that I just haven't thought of or discovered yet. Nor do I particularly want to build a bunch of Email community lots since I disposed of my Email hood long ago after I beat that challenge, not that I had any email community lots anyway, as it wasn't required or needed. So that is that. Maybe I will try and use Chuck and that barista chick to do Ethiopian Email someday...

I've invented the Sim Perpetual Motion Machine for the purpose of this challenge but it works well in normal play too.

Outings. The boosts from a rockin' outing are large enough to easily cover any decay during the outing itself, in fact it's possible to build up to a rockin' outing in about half a sim hour, using the Baby - Rub Belly interaction, handy for keeping the Pregnant sims needs up. So when making friends, the sim can just chain outings. In fact it basically makes sense to always be in an outing when socializing, free, unlimited mood boosts for doing what you'd be doing anyway. In fact outing abuse should make a "Bare patch of dirt" challenge doable.

Bah, you just ruined my secret weapon.

Oh my god! I totally forgot about that! Have a sim have a date, and for each level their mood gets a boost! My sims will be LIVING on dates! =DDDD

I may have to give this a try, now. ^^

There's a new chapter of mine up on the Exchange:
Tormented Family 3: All Ur Skillz R Belong 2 XT! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=70578&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

(I actually wanted to call it "Tormented Family - part 3: All Ur Skill Pointz R Belong 2 XT", but it didn't fit. No points for guessing what appalling "meme" of several years ago (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us) the title is riffing off... See also Andrew Kepple, a.k.a. Too Much Spare Time's Zero Wing Rhapsody (http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/222458).)

Enjoy! ;D

I'm loving your story baratron.

Hmmm... a hack that forces you to play chance cards? Dizzy2 has one. The option for Ignore is replaced by Random, which means you can't ignore at all anymore. I have to use that one for Prosperity Challenge because I'm so used to ignoring chance cards that I keep screwing up and clicking Ignore, which loses me points. Dizzy2 also has one that stops chance cards from appearing at all.

I'm playing a hobo-variant.
(http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/763/hobo5wo.jpg)

Unofficial Hobo Variant:
A phone-booth is the only structure on the lot, a 1x1 room with a phone, archway, windows on two sides and a decoration on the back.
No plumbing.
No food or drink.
No bed.
No electronics (other than battery powered).
No bookcases, telescopes or chess sets.
No stealing food (at least not when eating garbage is a reasonable alternative).
No working or going to school. Think unemployed and illiterate.
No dates.
Anything goes on community lots as per ethiopian rules, altough skilling, earning money and paying for stuff is forbidden.
   
It's basically Ethiopian + email + other nasty restrictions :D. Except with a concession allowing the phone booth and street light (walls are illegal for email, phone & light are illegal in Ethiopian, but they are intended to be "lot fixtures" rather than property of the hobos, modifying them in any way would be a breach of hobo-variant rules).

Ye flipping electrocuted gods. Are you insane?! Jeez. And I thought Pescado had a sick and twisted mind . . .

I may have to try this myself.

You know Grater, you can just put a sim on an empty lot and don't buy anything at all ever.  Sounds fun?

ah, the "make do with gifts from seducing passabys with "awesome" outings" challenge.

That would be funny. My ethiopian sim would have a hot tub and about 20 telescopes.

This is me requesting an Official Update to the rules for OFB ;D.

Snapdragons? Allowed or disallowed? (I was thinking of allowing them ONLY while there is a toddler on the lot - simply to make the toddler stage playable/bearable without needing to involve an entire batallion of buggy Nannies).
Ethiopians owning Home Businesses? Allowed or disallowed? (Do cash registers count as "self-contained" electrical devices?)
Ethiopians working in a Community lot Business? Allowed or disallowed?
Servos in Ethiopian families? Allowed or disallowed? (It seems that a Servo would have a helluva advantage, just based on what I've heard. Is he a self-contained electrical item? He recharges just from sunlight, apparently.)

If an Ethiopian sim is allowed to own a Community lot Business, is that business allowed to have toilets and food preparation equipment? As it would be possible for the Ethopian sim to have staff to do all the food preparation, and never touch those items themselves...

Ethiopian doesn't really translate to OFB at all, since OFB's content trivializes everything pre-OFB.

So, is Pescado going to come up with a new, OFB compatible challenge for us then? ;)

First time i've been to the site.

So, you're saying it is against the rules to use "cheats", but when people use realism mods thats against the rules? Then you people magically create a list of what you think is battery operated and what isn't? A list which I disagree with. Also, I suppose ANYTHING realistic that would make this challenge un-impossible without the exploitations of maxoid stupidity is dis-allowed?

Apperantly you just wanted to create this so other people could be like. "OMGOSH JM YOU MAKE UP SO TOUGH CHALLANGES, YOU RAWK!!

By the way, I get that idea from the fact that you change rules mid-challenge for some, there is many inconsitincies, and you make your own insane list of what you think is battery powered and what is not.

HolyForce.

Awfully hostile for your first post, about what is an otherwise friendly challenge. What axe have you got to grind anyway? Why don't you try writing your own challenge? It's a lot harder keeping everything consistent than you think, especially with all of the expansion packs changing the elements of the gameplay all the time. And, since it is his challenge, who are you to care what is defined as battery-powered, and what isn't? The point is that the challenge itself has rules, and that they are followed- the specifics about what is and isn't battery powered don't actually matter, so long as the specifics are given. And what sort of "realism" mods are we talking about? If you are using hacks or mods that change the gameplay to make the challenge easier, it is obviously cheating, because 1) the other players aren't using them and 2) it changes the dynamics of the game so that defeating the challenge isn't a sort of puzzle.

What a dick.

Sounds like a crybaby wussy to me.  Perhpas the BBS is a better place for  you.  News flash Holly ...you dont have to take the challenge if you dont like it..hello.

Hi all - I'm in Belgium! Photographic proof (http://baratron.livejournal.com/421519.html). But I'm pretty tired every evening after a long day of hauling my arse round looking at museums, so I brought the laptop with me & have been working on my neglected Sims photo stories. Thanks to the power of the internet, I can post them online even from here, & then point you to the new chapters as they get uploaded  ;). Hooray for the internet!

Tormented Family Chapter 4 - Profoundly Gets His Man! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=99125&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325). In which the founder's son, Profoundly Tormented, grows up and picks his partner, and the third generation of Tormented sims are brought into the world. Enjoy! A non-Exchange version will be posted when I get home & have sufficient motivation to do so.

Yep, I'm still going ;).

Tormented Family Chapter 5: Twins R Not So Cute! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=106230&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Two babies. No food. Oh dear.

Generation 2 grows up, while Generation 0 passes on (*sob* :'( ). Thus Extremely Tormented becomes the first ever sim to die in my game. (He'll be back, however - when this Challenge is over. Don't worry!)

Your story was amusing. I "enjoyed" reading it.  :D

Your stories are great! Well done on managing twins during the Ethiopian Challenge!

Thanks, baratron, enjoyed the stories. :)  I don't think I'd have the patience for this AND writing a story about it!

I officially finished the Ethiopian Challenge around 21:30 on Monday 13th November 2006. I'm sure Pescado will insist that I'm not awesome despite finishing the Challenge, because it took me something like 6 months of playing to complete it, rather than his couple of days. Oh well :).

My final score was, by the way, a very respectable +1. No sims Grew Up Badly. However, not all sims achieved their LifeTime Wants (damn Family sims!). I got caught short because Profoundly Tormented, my Generation 1 sim, decided to die at the end of his 73th day instead of at the end of his 80th day. He most definitely did die of Old Age, however, as many people in the Neighbourhood benefitted from his insurance policy. And it was impossible for all sims to maximise all skills because when the Challenge ended, two sims were still toddlers.

All my Ethiopian Challenge stories are up on my sim page (http://thesims2.ea.com/mysimpage/uploads.php?user_id=2003325&asset_type=story):

Tormented Family 1: Extreme Challenge Time! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=66756&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Tormented Family 2: No Food and a Baby! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=66613&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Tormented Family 3 :All Ur Skillz R Belong 2 XT! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=70578&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Tormented Family 4: Profoundly Gets His Man! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=99125&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Tormented Family 5: Twins R Not So Cute! (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=106230&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

Tormented Family 6: Teenage Trials (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=121967&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325)

and now, NEW!! Tormented Family 7: A Very Nice Relationship (http://thesims2.ea.com/exchange/story_detail.php?asset_id=126532&asset_type=story&user_id=2003325). Faithfully Oxfam describes his courtship of Very Tormented.

Chapter 8 will show Unearthly's new family, and Chapter 9 will finish Very's story and the Challenge. Now, it's collating the photos and writing the story that's taking the time, rather than the Simming . Hope to have it all up within the week so I can FINALLY install OFB. I've also put together a Best-Of featuring my favourite photos, many of which didn't make it into the main story for some reason.

Please read & rate :D.

Thoooo thweet! I enjoyed it very much, and how sneaky of you with the bottles!

I've enjoyed reading about your experiences with the Ethiopian Challenge.  You've shown how it can be done, but I just wouldn't have the patience to have to visit community lots all the time, nor would I be able to listen to those poor babies cry.  You've done a wonderful job, and you should be proud regardless of what Ye Olde Bastarde says.

Strictly speaking, you didn't have to wait for this to end to install OFB. You can play with OFB installed, you just can't use the super-powered OFB features to cover cases that weren't designed with OFB.

I'd love to try (and fail at) this challenge, but I need some clarification first:

Is "slobs be slobs" allowed?

What about the food bowls (or better, the fillings) that came with petz - are they considered *real* food (and thus banned) or not?

Yes, although I don't see why you'd bother, it won't add anything if you expect to do well and are thus ruling with an iron fist anyway.

No dog food in Ethiopia.

You're right, of course - and I've forgotten that neat 0 sims enjoy their stink anyway.

Pity - I wanted to see some toddler-bowl-incident, but this has to wait, then ;D

baratron, I really enjoyed your challenge story. Thank you.

Is giving a treat (? I don't know how it's called in the English Version) to a stray considered as "paying for food"? If so, I lost this challenge in record time because I turned free will off too late ;D ;D.

Another question: Does the programmable sleep clock run on batteries?

Yes, and yes. Don't do that.