Tabitha Catt is no ordinary Sim. Little does she realise that she has not one life to live, but nine. Who can say what will happen in each new life? Will she meet her soulmate? Get that ultimate promotion to her dream job? Settle down and have a family of little Catt's? Or will there be less happy conclusions to her lives...?
Her futures are as yet unwritten, and the only guarantee is that no life will be like the last.
Preamble Pre-Ramble
This story has been inspired by a little challenge I set myself. I’ve realised that I always tend to stick to the same careers and aspirations in my games, and I rarely maximise a skill. I started thinking about how much I might be missing by not exploring these avenues and it gave me a new idea for a challenge. I also thought it would interesting to see how each life will be different depending on the traits, aspiration and career they’ve rolled. They could get a lucky streak and get Athletic, Self-Assured and Genius traits, and then roll the secret agent career. What a lucky Sim!
But they could also get really unlucky: imagine a Sim that rolls the Business career, but they also have the lazy, loner and commitment-phobe trait! They’d have a hard time working their way through a career that relies on charisma and dedication! That’s where I think this challenge is going to be a lot of fun. Chance plays a big part in this challenge and it’s going to make it unpredictable – but, personally, I love that!
The rules are really just for me – to push me out of my comfort zone and try new things, but if anyone else wants to try this challenge too I would be delighted! It would be awesome to compare notes
Nine Lives Challenge RulesStarting Out
- Create a young adult Sim, and choose their traits and aspiration. These cannot be changed during a life. Note that once you have used an aspiration you cannot use it again in any of the following lives. You don't have to randomise your Sim's traits the first time, but you will for following lives. *Note*: There is a website that randomly generates traits for you! createarandomsim.com/
- Move your Sim into a lot and get them settled in. No motherloding!
- Randomly select a career for them. I actually wrote them all down on pieces of paper, folded them up and put them in a bag! Lol. (I don’t believe there is a Sims 4 career randomiser online, but I could be wrong.)
- Randomly select a hobby. They can naturally level up in any of the skills (indeed, some might be needed for their career) but randomly select one that they specialise in.
- Play them through their life. Make friends, enemies, bromances... the choices are endless!
In the event of your Sim’s death
- Download your Sim from your library back into CAS. They're a young adult again with their whole life in front of them. At this point you may change one of their traits (randomise). You can also change their hairstyle/colour and change their outfits, but you cannot change their facial features, body type or eye colour. You still want them to resemble the original Sim!
- Again, randomly select an aspiration, career and hobby for them. Remember that you can only use each option once. So if your Sim was a serial romantic secret agent, with a passion for writing in their last life – you can’t use those options in any of their following lives.
- Move them into a lot and settle them in (De Ja Vu anyone? ) It does not have to be the same lot as before.
Life begins again! It should be interesting playing your Sim now that their career, aspiration and even their traits have changed! The way they interact with the world and the Sims around them will be different. You might just discover something new!
*Note*: you
can change the life span of your Sim, but only at the beginning of each life (so not during a life). Your Sim could have a life that seems to go on forever, or they could have a life so short you wonder where the time went! Let's not even mention the possibility of accidental death...
Repeat this process for as long as you like! I chose nine lives because it fit well with the theme and the name of my character - I hope I can last
Chapter One of Tabitha's story will be coming soon - thanks for reading!
Comments
Aww thank you @FloorRaisin! *hugs*
Do you also play The Elder Scrolls Online? You can find me there as CathyTea, too!
Thank you @CathyTea!! I've haven't actually considered a blog. Would you recommend it over posting straight on here?
It's fun to do both--announce your updates here and then do the actual posts on the blog.
Do you also play The Elder Scrolls Online? You can find me there as CathyTea, too!
Before I begin, here is a little background info on leading lady, Tabitha!
When I started creating her, I wanted to give her a sort of classic beauty - after all, she's going to be around for a while! Who knows what hairstyles will be popular nine lives from now?
I also gave her unusual purple eyes, as a nod to her uniqueness.
Trivia time: it was actually a few days after taking this screenie that I noticed the painting behind Tabitha has cats in it!
Before I'd created my rules and made this an 'official' challenge, I'd given Tabitha the following traits and aspiration: loner, cheerful, squeamish, and computer whiz. I chose them because I've not really used them before, so I've decided to keep them since they fit the purpose of this challenge - making me try new things! I also got her started on the Tech Guru career - again I've never played this career before so it will be interesting!
Tabitha likes to read by her log fire, and play video games. Her hobby is writing (this was randomly selected! )
Today, I moved into my new home in Willow Creek. It’s a little house called Woodley Cottage, and I love it! It is on the small side, but it’s perfect just for me. I think the water features out front are what sold it to me really. Oh, and the log fire! The area is stunning; and many of the surrounding houses are actually mansions. I’m surprised I managed to afford this place at all.
I did get quite a fright when I realised I only had 18 simoleons left to my name though. That house cost a bit more that I was expecting. I panicked a little and raced straight out the door to collect rocks and flowers – anything I could sell quickly to boost my funds. It was going really well until I tried to be brave and catch a frog – gross! I still feel a little ill thinking about it to be honest.
Whilst I was out collecting I met a few of my neighbours, Eliza and Dina. I noticed we all had the same hairstyle... It was uncanny. I guess that style is just popular at the moment. What spooked me was that Eliza even had the same glasses as me! I was tempted to race to the hair stylist and get a makeover, but then I remembered my money situation. Maybe later.
Before bed I settled in front of my fire to read a good book (Point Farmer No More: The Downfall of Grant Rodiek – it was gripping). I’m planning to have an early night, because tomorrow I begin my new job at Rainy Days as a Tech Guru. I’m really looking forward to this job, and it fits me perfectly. When I was offered the position I asked them what my daily requirements would be – they said just to play video games! I can’t believe my luck. The funny thing is I saw a black cat cross my path right before my interview – that is meant to be lucky. Thank you cat!
Aww thanks lovely!
I know! I'll take a trip into town and visit that bar - The Blue Velvet! I got changed and freshened up before heading out. I really like the bar, it has a grand piano and a mic for any budding comedians. They have live performances every Friday night - I'll need to come back for that. It has a great vibe, but the downside is it's so popular! I got a bit freaked out by the amount of people that were there. Stranger Danger! I made my way to the bar, and to calm myself down I pulled out my book and read a little while I waited on my Juice on the Rocks. The bartender was someone called Bob Pancakes. I tried getting to know him, but he just told me he was the least interesting Sim in the world... OK then. Back to my book.
The bustle of the place was starting to get to me, and my loner tendencies were coming out in full flow. But how was I ever going to make new friends if I couldn't break the ice and start up a conversation? Before I gave up completely, I plucked up the courage to speak to a few of the people around me. Zoe Patel seemed really friendly, and she was very witty. She made me laugh a lot. Then there was another Sim called London; she told us she was training to be a chef.
I'd forgotten how hard it was to make friends, but at least I'd made a good start.
When I got home, I was a little tense. Maybe I tried to push out of my comfort zone just a little too much. That, and I was starving!
The next few days I got into a little routine: breakfast, work, home, explore! Willow Creek is such a beautiful area. One afternoon I took a walk down to the river behind The Blue Velvet. It's really pretty. I collected a lot of rocks and gems, but all of that hard work had made me hungry. I could buy some chips in the bar, but funds were still a little tight. Then I spotted some burgers laying out on one of the picnic tables. They smelled delicious and no-one was around...so I grabbed one! Eat quickly Tabitha!
Each day is a little adventure for me. I like finding new places in town to visit. Of course, I still have to visit the library daily to keep my video gaming skills up-to-scratch. The library is such a great place, but the townspeople seem to treat it just like another meeting place. They're so loud!
I just need to save for a little longer then I'll be able to afford a computer of my own. Until then I'll need to keep coming here. There is one plus side to this though - I get to ride the tram. I think the tram is beautiful; it has a sort of vintage, old-style look. It passes by my house every night. I guess it's the little things in life that make us happy.
Thank you for reading!
A lot has happened since I last wrote! I'd been starting to feel a little lonely (yes, loners can get lonely!) and when I spoke to London and Zoe about this they both laughed and said I needed to get out and start dating. Yikes. I would like to meet someone and settle down - I'd love it actually - but my past attempts at flirting have been... disastrous. There was that one time I was chatting to Ethan Dreamer. We were getting along fine and I really liked his hair, so I gave flirting a try. Ethan laughed so hard he nearly choked. I was pretty embarrassed.
But one night when I was walking home from work I met someone... His name was Jarrod and he was really cute. I'd had a really bad day at work and I was pretty tense - I expected Jarrod to laugh awkwardly at my attempts at humour and then leave at the next opportunity. However, as we carried on chatting and joking he seemed to be enjoying my company. And when I looked at him he had a strange look in his eyes, it's hard to describe, but whatever it was it made my stomach flutter. That night I decided I'd give flirting another chance. I figured Jarrod was worth the risk.
He didn't laugh at me. In fact, I'm pretty sure he blushed! Jarrod said he had to go as he had work the next morning, but he asked if he could have my number. I gave him it with shaking fingers. As he was leaving, I just stared at him like an idiot. My heart was fluttering and my cheeks were warm - I guess I'd been blushing too! I liked Jarrod.
I couldn't sleep for so long that night, thinking about my meeting with Jarrod. He was so different to other men, and my insecurities seemed to melt away around him. I hoped we would meet again soon.
My hopes were to come true; the very next evening Jarrod called me. He asked me on a date over in Oasis Springs - I would have loved to go, but I knew I had a lot of work to do at home for work the next day. I'd just been promoted to Quality Assurance, and my daily tasks had increased. I didn't want to brush him off , so I invited him over to my house for dinner instead and he agreed.
As I hung up it dawned on me that I would actually have to make him dinner. Oh gosh! I can't cook! I was pretty stressed and raced over to the library to research some cooking recipes. I settled on Pan-Fried Tilapia which seemed quite simple and sounded like it would taste good. I was delighted at my cooking attempts, but I was a little embarrassed that I didn't have a dining table for us to eat at. I really didn't think this through! However Jarrod was so nice, and when he told me my Tilapia was delicious I could have melted with happiness!
We get along so well, and we spent the evening getting to know each other better. I discovered that Jarrod likes alternative music, just like me. He also told me he works as a waterperson, and hopes to become a professional athlete. (I have to say I've admired his muscular physique!)
When we'd finished eating we got... closer. Was it me or was it hot in here?! I didn't even have the fireplace lit. Jarrod made me feel strange fluttering's in my stomach when he looked at me like that.
At the end of the night I walked Jarrod to the end of the road to say goodbye. He told me he'd had a great night, and before I knew what was happening, Jarrod was kissing me.