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[BETA] The Sims 4 History Challenge

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  • Dglbr1969Dglbr1969 Posts: 854 Member
    Hi All, I am having an issue. I think it's a bug, but my dog, a cheetah, lol I found in gallery, is awesome by the way!!) is always sick from the toilet bushes, has anyone come across this? Is there something you can make on the grill to fix them? I know there is a vet treat, but we can't go to vets :( and I'm really hoping there is a natural way of curing their illnesses, as would have happened back then. I had to restart the challenge and of course they neither of them rolled Outdoor enthusiast, so no herbalism skill, although I don't know whether that helps me, any ideas?
    2zin9xt.jpg?raw=1
  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    Dglbr1969 wrote: »
    Hi All, I am having an issue. I think it's a bug, but my dog, a cheetah, lol I found in gallery, is awesome by the way!!) is always sick from the toilet bushes, has anyone come across this? Is there something you can make on the grill to fix them? I know there is a vet treat, but we can't go to vets :( and I'm really hoping there is a natural way of curing their illnesses, as would have happened back then. I had to restart the challenge and of course they neither of them rolled Outdoor enthusiast, so no herbalism skill, although I don't know whether that helps me, any ideas?

    Unfortunately pet illnesses in the early eras of this challenge are largely untested. I haven't had my pets get sick all that often on my other saves, so I don't know the ins and outs of the illness system for pets. If it's really a problem, then you can buy/use the station that lets you make treats. I don't think the Herbalism skill will let you make anything for pets, but do keep in mind that you don't have to randomize your starting Sims' traits/aspirations. It's only the rest of the family born afterwards that you have to randomize. Hope that helps!
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • Spacey72659Spacey72659 Posts: 1,479 Member
    Dglbr1969 wrote: »
    Hi All, I am having an issue. I think it's a bug, but my dog, a cheetah, lol I found in gallery, is awesome by the way!!) is always sick from the toilet bushes, has anyone come across this? Is there something you can make on the grill to fix them? I know there is a vet treat, but we can't go to vets :( and I'm really hoping there is a natural way of curing their illnesses, as would have happened back then. I had to restart the challenge and of course they neither of them rolled Outdoor enthusiast, so no herbalism skill, although I don't know whether that helps me, any ideas?

    I got my medieval family a 'wolf' and he kept getting sick too - and since I didn't have a vet office in my medieval world I just gave them the grungy vet station and made them heal him themselves. Sure, it's not really fitting in most generations but there's not much else you can do since resetting the pets doesn't get rid of the illnesses (and I have the Playable Pets mod and even deleting the illness buff doesn't make them better) so...
    I figure you can just have it in your family inventory and just pull it out and pretend they are using herbal remedies to heal their pets. Just need to imagine harder with it I guess LOL
  • ashlynette92ashlynette92 Posts: 37 Member
    @Snowie I second that maybe the challenge could have a normal and extreme. Or even easy, normal and extreme. The challenge hasn't been as easy for me as others, it's more like the perfect level.
    I also can't wait for the Get Famous update.! I'm wondering if right now I should just play with Fame turned off for the household and not use the new items until the update comes?
  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    @Snowie I second that maybe the challenge could have a normal and extreme. Or even easy, normal and extreme. The challenge hasn't been as easy for me as others, it's more like the perfect level.
    I also can't wait for the Get Famous update.! I'm wondering if right now I should just play with Fame turned off for the household and not use the new items until the update comes?

    I haven't updated for Get Famous yet because I didn't want to do too many updates at once, especially since I'm thinking of revamping it more entirely. From what I've played of Get Famous, the fame system with the paparazzi and Sims taking photos of you all the time would be fairly intrusive in this challenge, I think. (Which is too bad, since I really enjoy the idea of your Sims being famous throughout history.) If I were to add an update for Get Famous right now, I would keep the fame system turned off until the Middle Ages. Pretty much everything else new with the pack would be allowed in Modern Day, since it's very technology based. However, I would want to allow the acting career/aspiration as early as the Roaring 20's.

    In general, if there is something new in the game that you're not sure how it fits in this challenge, just use your best judgment. I'll admit I'm not actively working on the updates for this challenge right now--I've got other things demanding my attention at the moment and want to do a good job if/when I overhaul this challenge.
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • TerraKnightsTerraKnights Posts: 103 Member
    If you do overhaul the challenge @Snowie I'm a bit of a history buff and wouldn't mind helping where I can. I'm playing through the current challenge but if it gets overhauled, I wouldn't mind testing it out or replaying it. Historical challenges are my favorite and like I said, I would love to help out any time!
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  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    I know it's taken me forever, but I've updated the challenge for Get Famous, along with some other general updates.

    Change Log (1/7/19)
    Update for Get Famous and game version 1.48
    • I am reverting the rule added in the last update that disallowed the use of crafted toilets and bathtubs in the Prehistoric Era.
      -While this will be less realistic, messing with pools and toddler pools all the time is far more frustrating than Prehistoric Sims having some kind of plumbing system. Toddler pools will still be allowed in this Era, so you can choose not to use bathtubs if you wish.
      -This means that the Challenge-Wide rule that your Sims may use anything they craft is once again in effect.
      -This effects toilets/toilet bushes too, as I know the toilet bushes can be a pain to deal with if you have your pet getting sick all the time from them. Now you’ll have the option to use real toilets instead, once your handiness skill is high enough.
    • Challenge-Wide Rule: Your Sims may visit a community lot as needed to purchase wellness treats to keep your pets healthy. Only the wellness treat may be bought here.
      -Pet health was always kinda iffy with how it would work in this challenge, so I’ve decided to let you visit a community lot (probably a vet clinic, but the lot type really doesn’t matter) where you can buy treats for your pets.
      -The wellness treat you can buy here is a preventative measure--as far as I know, it won’t cure your pets if they’re already sick.
    • Challenge-Wide Rule: Your Sims may not participate in the random “Lottery” holiday or buy lottery tickets.
    • Challenge-Wide Rule: Holidays can’t ever have the “Holiday Gnomes” tradition.
      -This includes Harvestfest, which you will have to edit to remove the tradition.
      -These Gnomes would be fine if you had to buy them first, or if they didn’t spawn around 100 seed packets when you successfully appease them...
    • Challenge-Wide Rule: Money Trees may never be purchased, grown, or harvested.
    • Your Sims may join the Style Influencer career in the Roaring 20’s and onward.
    • Challenge-Wide Rule: You may not enable the Fame system until the Old West.
      -I would love to let your Sims be famous throughout the challenge, but the paparazzi following them around in addition to their fans constantly pulling out their phones to take pictures are just too intrusive for an immersive playstyle.
    • Your Sims may have the World-Famous Celebrity aspiration in the Old West and onward.
    • Your Sims may join the acting career and follow the acting aspiration in the Roaring 20s and onward.
    • The music/video editing stations added in Get Famous will be restricted until Modern day, for obvious reasons.
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • FeatherPicklesFeatherPickles Posts: 14 New Member
    Since many of us are using MC Command Center for the History challenge, I wanted to check here about some bugs I've noticed. I sent my founders to the Outdoor Retreat world, and the strawberries will grow there after about three days. But the wild plants stay as clumps of dirt, even though the starter plants are in season. Or they will start growing, but then revert to clumps of dirt the next time I open the game. Its quite frustrating. Anyone else experience this?

    Another thing, if you, like me, cannot extinguish fires from the two outdoor firepits when they set your site aflame, you may enjoy this mod:
    "Campfire - No Fire", on ModTheSims

    I was ready to throw my computer at the wall before I found this mod. The stone seats (why, EA? Why? This game is supposed to be fun) would keep catching on fire. My starving cavemen would abandon their half-cooked minnow dinners, and flee to the end of the camp. And do nothing. The world would keep burning. And they could not extinguish. OR do ANYTHING. I like this game, but I seriously hate this game for all the gameplay crippling bugs. Sigh. Anyhoo, mod! Mod keeps Cavemen from burning. Enjoy mod.

    (BTW, campfire mod was installed post-dirt clump issue, so its not a conflict with that one.)
  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    Since many of us are using MC Command Center for the History challenge, I wanted to check here about some bugs I've noticed. I sent my founders to the Outdoor Retreat world, and the strawberries will grow there after about three days. But the wild plants stay as clumps of dirt, even though the starter plants are in season. Or they will start growing, but then revert to clumps of dirt the next time I open the game. Its quite frustrating. Anyone else experience this?

    Another thing, if you, like me, cannot extinguish fires from the two outdoor firepits when they set your site aflame, you may enjoy this mod:
    "Campfire - No Fire", on ModTheSims

    I was ready to throw my computer at the wall before I found this mod. The stone seats (why, EA? Why? This game is supposed to be fun) would keep catching on fire. My starving cavemen would abandon their half-cooked minnow dinners, and flee to the end of the camp. And do nothing. The world would keep burning. And they could not extinguish. OR do ANYTHING. I like this game, but I seriously hate this game for all the gameplay crippling bugs. Sigh. Anyhoo, mod! Mod keeps Cavemen from burning. Enjoy mod.

    (BTW, campfire mod was installed post-dirt clump issue, so its not a conflict with that one.)

    I honestly haven't played in Granite Falls in a while, so I'm not sure how those plants react to seasons. You say the starter plants are in season, but are the OR plants in season? That would be my guess as to why they're not growing. I would test visiting Granite Falls in each season to confirm that that isn't the issue before you start blaming it on mods. I also use MCCC, and I think an issue like that would be noticed and fixed relatively quickly by the team.

    The campfires starting fires really isn't anything that can be helped. I've seen the mod you linked as well and it seems like a good option for some, but personally I find it realistic that an open flame might start a fire from time to time. (The stone chairs drive me crazy too, but what can you do?)

    All in all, the game has a few bugs of its own, and mods can either help with that or occasionally make it worse.
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • ashlynette92ashlynette92 Posts: 37 Member
    > @Snowie said:
    > FeatherPickles wrote: »
    >
    > Since many of us are using MC Command Center for the History challenge, I wanted to check here about some bugs I've noticed. I sent my founders to the Outdoor Retreat world, and the strawberries will grow there after about three days. But the wild plants stay as clumps of dirt, even though the starter plants are in season. Or they will start growing, but then revert to clumps of dirt the next time I open the game. Its quite frustrating. Anyone else experience this?
    >
    > Another thing, if you, like me, cannot extinguish fires from the two outdoor firepits when they set your site aflame, you may enjoy this mod:
    > "Campfire - No Fire", on ModTheSims
    >
    > I was ready to throw my computer at the wall before I found this mod. The stone seats (why, EA? Why? This game is supposed to be fun) would keep catching on fire. My starving cavemen would abandon their half-cooked minnow dinners, and flee to the end of the camp. And do nothing. The world would keep burning. And they could not extinguish. OR do ANYTHING. I like this game, but I seriously hate this game for all the gameplay crippling bugs. Sigh. Anyhoo, mod! Mod keeps Cavemen from burning. Enjoy mod.
    >
    > (BTW, campfire mod was installed post-dirt clump issue, so its not a conflict with that one.)
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > I honestly haven't played in Granite Falls in a while, so I'm not sure how those plants react to seasons. You say the starter plants are in season, but are the OR plants in season? That would be my guess as to why they're not growing. I would test visiting Granite Falls in each season to confirm that that isn't the issue before you start blaming it on mods. I also use MCCC, and I think an issue like that would be noticed and fixed relatively quickly by the team.
    >
    > The campfires starting fires really isn't anything that can be helped. I've seen the mod you linked as well and it seems like a good option for some, but personally I find it realistic that an open flame might start a fire from time to time. (The stone chairs drive me crazy too, but what can you do?)
    >
    > All in all, the game has a few bugs of its own, and mods can either help with that or occasionally make it worse.

    I don't play with MCCC so I can't speak on that but I have a lot with all the plants in the game (I have every pack) and all the plants grow correctly and according to each season.! But I don't know if that's because they're on a residential lot or not so...I'll just be over here! :# :D
  • FaoiltearnaFaoiltearna Posts: 767 Member
    I'm really interested in this gameplay, but I'm curious if anyone has links to currently maintained (as in set-up for use with the new Python update that we're playing with now) mods for things like no phone use, typewriter instead of computer, that sort of thing? All the links I've come across so far are no longer maintained. :disappointed:
  • FeatherPicklesFeatherPickles Posts: 14 New Member
    > @Snowie said:

    > I honestly haven't played in Granite Falls in a while, so I'm not sure how those plants react to seasons. You say the starter plants are in season, but are the OR plants in season? That would be my guess as to why they're not growing. I would test visiting Granite Falls in each season to confirm that that isn't the issue before you start blaming it on mods. I also use MCCC, and I think an issue like that would be noticed and fixed relatively quickly by the team.
    >
    > The campfires starting fires really isn't anything that can be helped. I've seen the mod you linked as well and it seems like a good option for some, but personally I find it realistic that an open flame might start a fire from time to time. (The stone chairs drive me crazy too, but what can you do?)
    >
    > All in all, the game has a few bugs of its own, and mods can either help with that or occasionally make it worse.

    Gah, I had it wrong. It was spring and the OR plants in the starter area are summer plants. Thank you.

    Re: Fire. I agree that occasional fires are realistic. My problem is (a) when it happens almost every time (my cavemen may be n00bs, but c'mon), (b) my sims have routing issues when they try to extinguish it, so it just burns. If the fire can't be put out, your sims are just stuck until/if fire goes out. At that point, all their needs are in the red. That does not seem realistic to me. At the end of the day, to each their own. For me, its not immersive. And yes, stone chairs and the like should be treated as non-burning objects XD.
  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    I'm really interested in this gameplay, but I'm curious if anyone has links to currently maintained (as in set-up for use with the new Python update that we're playing with now) mods for things like no phone use, typewriter instead of computer, that sort of thing? All the links I've come across so far are no longer maintained. :disappointed:

    Hey! Sorry for taking so long to reply, I've been dealing with a password recovery as someone got into one of my older email accounts.

    I did notice today that there's a new no auto-phones mod on MTS by anonymouse85, which you can find here.
    As far as basic CC (like the typewriter) goes, those don't usually need as much upkeep as a mod like MC Command Center, and will be okay to use until a rare patch comes along that breaks all the CC. If you're having issues with your CC, you can try the batch fixes in the Sims 4 Studio and see if that helps.

    The challenge, while greatly enhanced by mods and CC, hasn't ever required them. This means that you can play the challenge as designed with literally just the base game and Outdoor Retreat installed. I know one of the Eras lists typewriters in the allowed objects, but it's further explained under that section that if you don't have the typewriter CC, you should just use a computer.

    I have been idly working on doing an overhaul for this challenge, and if/when that happens, writing as a skill will likely be moved into later eras due to the immersion breaking requirement of a computer or a mod (notebook mod) that notoriously breaks with just about every patch.

    In any case, I hope those batch fixes for CC help fix the problems you were having. If you have any more questions/concerns/suggestions, feel free to ask!
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    edited January 2019
    So I've been doing some testing with gardening (finally, I know) and have found gardening since they overhauled it back when seasons came out to be rather unfun if you're trying to grow and splice plants. I tested this with a single Sim, two of each required plant for grafting (one indoors, one outdoors), until my Sim had aged from a young adult to an elder. I chose this time frame because I think that's a reasonable amount of time to give for the Prehistoric Era of this challenge. My goal, of course, was to grow and harvest a death flower. I'll go into details on what I did and what I learned below, but if you don't feel like reading then here's the conclusion; it's unreasonable to expect the average player of this challenge to successfully complete the goal of growing and harvesting a death flower through grafting.

    I was playing with seasons, hence the outdoor plants for testing. In the 48 Sim days I tested (boy, was that fun...) only ONE of my six spliced plants ever produced the grafted plant that I was looking for. And even then, it only produced it once. Evolution level didn't seem to make a difference, as it was one of my indoor plants which take at least twice as long to evolve than they do if they're growing outdoors. For the first 24 days I didn't use any fertilizer, and the last 24 days I used normal quality apples as fertilizer for all of my plants. I got my pomegranate while I was fertilizing the plants, so I think fertilizing does make spliced plants more likely to grow as has been said by the community. Maybe if you used a high quality fertilizer the whole time you *could* feasibly get a death flower through grafting, but I was also testing this with a (cheated) level 10 gardener. Fertilizing isn't even available until gardening level 3, and grafting isn't available until level 5. In addition, I'm not sure if it's quality (normal vs excellent) or rarity (common vs rare) of fertilizer that actually determines the fertilizer quality. You would think it would be the quality level, but with fishing the bait quality is actually determined by rarity.

    Once I was done testing the plants normally, I decided to buy a bunch of rare seed packets ($1000 each, unlocked at level 10 I think) and see how much money I would have to spend before I got a death flower. I think it took me about 20 packets to get my first death flower, and I had 5 by the time I was done opening all 60 of them. This means that death flowers are about an 8% chance, at least from my testing. While this could work for the Prehistoric Era goal, it would change the goal from something you achieve through growing and caring for your garden to something you literally just sink money into until it's done.

    So in light of all this, I'm considering changing the "Grow and harvest a death flower" goal in the Prehistoric Era once again. The goal I have in mind right now is completing a collection--either the rocks, fossils, frogs, fishing, or gardening ones would count for this. I think fishing would probably be easiest, but it would really vary based on playstyle. My question to you is, as you've been playing in the Prehistoric Era since Seasons came out (even if you don't have seasons), have you had any luck with grafting or completing this goal? If the general consensus lines up with my conclusion, then I think I'll change it. Please do let me know what you guys have found and what you think, so that I can update the goal if I need to.
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • EGrace93EGrace93 Posts: 95 Member
    Hi @Snowie I'm preparing to enter the industrial age and I noticed that one of the goals - Reach level 10 Handiness, Logic and Painting skill on the same Sim - is the same as the skill goal from the middle ages. I was just wondering if this was a typo or is it intentional?
  • SnowieSnowie Posts: 441 Member
    EGrace93 wrote: »
    Hi @Snowie I'm preparing to enter the industrial age and I noticed that one of the goals - Reach level 10 Handiness, Logic and Painting skill on the same Sim - is the same as the skill goal from the middle ages. I was just wondering if this was a typo or is it intentional?

    There's actually one skill that is different between the two--the Industrial Era has Charisma instead of Handiness. I believe this is intended, but it's a part of the challenge that I personally haven't touched, so those are the original three skills that Cloudseeker selected. If/when I finally get to the larger overhaul of the challenge, some of the era's goals will be changing, so if you have any ideas for it let me know!

    Also, sorry for taking so long to reply! I usually try to check this at least once a day, but I've been busy with school and work the last few days.
    Playing the History Challenge? Make sure you have the up-to-date rules here!
  • EGrace93EGrace93 Posts: 95 Member
    Snowie wrote: »
    EGrace93 wrote: »
    Hi @Snowie I'm preparing to enter the industrial age and I noticed that one of the goals - Reach level 10 Handiness, Logic and Painting skill on the same Sim - is the same as the skill goal from the middle ages. I was just wondering if this was a typo or is it intentional?

    There's actually one skill that is different between the two--the Industrial Era has Charisma instead of Handiness. I believe this is intended, but it's a part of the challenge that I personally haven't touched, so those are the original three skills that Cloudseeker selected. If/when I finally get to the larger overhaul of the challenge, some of the era's goals will be changing, so if you have any ideas for it let me know!

    Also, sorry for taking so long to reply! I usually try to check this at least once a day, but I've been busy with school and work the last few days.

    Thanks for clearing things up :) I think there must be a typo in the google doc because it says handiness for both eras

    Btw thanks for keeping this challenge going, it seems like a lot of work and you're doing a great job
  • FeatherPicklesFeatherPickles Posts: 14 New Member
    > Once I was done testing the plants normally, I decided to buy a bunch of rare seed packets ($1000 each, unlocked at level 10 I think) and see how much money I would have to spend before I got a death flower. I think it took me about 20 packets to get my first death flower, and I had 5 by the time I was done opening all 60 of them. This means that death flowers are about an 8% chance, at least from my testing. While this could work for the Prehistoric Era goal, it would change the goal from something you achieve through growing and caring for your garden to something you literally just sink money into until it's done.
    >
    > So in light of all this, I'm considering changing the "Grow and harvest a death flower" goal in the Prehistoric Era once again. The goal I have in mind right now is completing a collection--either the rocks, fossils, frogs, fishing, or gardening ones would count for this. I think fishing would probably be easiest, but it would really vary based on playstyle. My question to you is, as you've been playing in the Prehistoric Era since Seasons came out (even if you don't have seasons), have you had any luck with grafting or completing this goal? If the general consensus lines up with my conclusion, then I think I'll change it. Please do let me know what you guys have found and what you think, so that I can update the goal if I need to.

    I've got a family in this period atm, and i'm just about to start grafting attempts, but based on previous gameplay, I'd be happy to see the Death flower goal for Prehistory ditched. EA really did a number on grafting. Maybe make it a part of the overall challenge goals? I like your idea of completing a collection or two (Fish will probably be a little easy).
  • MeTime85MeTime85 Posts: 142 Member
    Does anyone know where I can find the scoresheet and spreadsheet?
    For-forum.jpg
  • CCCCCCCC Posts: 1 New Member
    Does anyone know when the Soulmate aspiration starts being allowed? I can't find it mentioned anywhere in the Google doc.

    @Snowie I grew a death flower without too much trouble in the prehistoric era. Granted I was pretty into gardening at the time, but I think that's normal for the era? It's been a while since prehistoric for me, but I don't remembering it being too annoying or difficult. I didn't buy many seed packets, mostly just grafted. I did not have Seasons at the time.
  • PenguinBudgiePenguinBudgie Posts: 44 Member
    edited May 2019
    MeTime85 wrote: »
    Does anyone know where I can find the scoresheet and spreadsheet?

    @MeTime 85 In case you're still looking for it, I found this link to the updated rules document which has a link to the spreadsheet under the "Challenge-Wide Goals" section:
    https://docs.google.com/document/d/15az7tIFD2wu0CAIJ8T6NFSjjycXQqgITfVg3xK5xq_w/edit

    And then the direct link to the spreadsheet is here:
    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uxQjkIqVyzYJomZFWWDmRBWGv5dAHVEjMWzlpp4Zq30/edit#gid=822521778
  • dmama1314dmama1314 Posts: 262 Member
    @Snowie I saw it says that we have to randomize traits. I cannot find anything that talks about traits for each generation. Just aspirations
  • SarahkaySarahkay Posts: 362 Member
    @dmama1314 Unless I missed it, I don't think there is a particular rule about traits (as of yet) since they all have to be randomized. I know @Snowie is revamping the challenge, so maybe this is something that will be addressed later.
  • Dglbr1969Dglbr1969 Posts: 854 Member
    Oh Thanks for the update @Snowie I haven't been on for ages and just getting back into it!! I've decided to try and just get through it seeing though it is too hard to mate it with the other big cat strays and I guess this generation of prehistoric cat will die out eventually anyway :( . I'll see how it turns out but good to know we can get the wellness treats!
    2zin9xt.jpg?raw=1
  • nikkibuglovenikkibuglove Posts: 15 Member
    How fun!

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