New Taken and Kingsfield

Sorry everything’s taken longer than expected; work was pretty hectic last week, my gaming computer had to go back to the repairers after they failed to fix it last time they had it, and yeah, life and stuff.

Anyway, new Taken: 39. Encounter and three new Kingsfield posts, a prologue, When You Least Expect, a Behind the Scenes, Meet the Jolina-Mosses and Keatons and a new ‘regular’ chapter, Beginnings.

There will be updated house tours and biogs next week (along with more Dayes, I hope) – am away at the moment and relying on flaky public wifi and my netbook.

New Kingsfield!

It’s time to meet the Goths in their Prologue: This wasn’t in my dreams. I’ve also started Building a university.

Expect Taken within the next couple of days, then another Kingsfield prequel later in the week. Hoping to update Dayes at the weekend or early next week.

New Taken!

Join Bryan and Esther in 38. Inside the Council.  Another update due some time this week, possibly the weekend (trying to prep a few in advance so the postings can be more regular).

Expect the first stories from Kingsfield within the next week or so as well.

New Dayes!

Can you tell I’ve had a week off work?

Things will slow down a bit from next week, I expect, but for now, here’s a new Dayes of Our Lives update: F is for Fantastic, right?

Sim site of the month: Ani’s Dwelling

I’ve linked a few TS2 hoods on here before, but there haven’t been many people doing hood blogs in TS3 yet. Ani’s Dwelling has been a real pioneer in this area and I’ve really enjoyed reading Ani’s blog about how the sims in this hood are managed, and how the different things like finances, loans and businesses are micro-managed. It’s been really useful for thinking about how I might run Kingsfield and I’m really impressed with how thorough it all is. You can read the latest updates on the new site, but it’s also worth checking out what happened before on the old site. Lots of food for thought here!

Welcome to Kingsfield!

At long last, Kingsfield is here! I’ve been waiting to get this off the ground since Sims 3 was launched, pretty much, and have actively been waiting to launch it for over a year. But now OP and RK and my PhD are over, I finally might have time!

Kingsfield is my neighbourhood blog – I’ve just settled a whole load of sims in there and the blog is going to tell the stories (and the behind the scenes action) of their lives. Right now there’s not much up over there but there will be soon – there’ll be a mix of behind the scenes updates and story updates. I’m really looking forward to getting to know these sims, tell their stories and play a whole hood.

Happy New Year!

Hope you all enjoyed the festive season! You may have noticed some unfamiliar faces in my banner header (although you will actually have seen a couple of them before if you’re really eagle-eyed). All will be revealed this weekend, I hope.

Oh yes, a new project is on its way now that Operation: Population and Rainbow Knights are over (or kind of over in the case of RK… heh heh heh)

But whilst I am very excited about the new project, I haven’t neglected my other projects. Looking forward to some heavy Dayes-playing this weekend and I’ve got a few more chapters of Taken up my sleeve – one of which you can read now:37. Contemplation. Expect another chapter this weekend and one more next week…

Expect another site recommendation imminently too (apologies for the lack of one in December).

Operation: Populated!

After 65 chapters, 26 births and innumerable glitches, Operation: Population is over. You can read the final two chapters: 64. Running a Sanctuary and 65. Bidding a Farewell now. Thanks so much for reading – I’ll miss Bebe and Asa a lot but I am very excited about the new projects I have up my sleeve…

Festive fun: Christmas Day

Festive fun 2011: Day 4

Festive fun 2011: Day 3

OK, so this one isn’t particularly festive in nature, but I hope you’ll forgive me…

Festive fun 2011: Day 2

And seeing as it’s December 5, I’m glad I didn’t go for a full-on Advent Calendar after all…

Festive Fun 2011: Day 1

I don’t know if I can promise a full Advent Calendar this year like I did last – so much on with work that I don’t know if I can make that level of commitment. However, I am going to have a number of festive treats for you. For the first one, click more…

Casting call

Do you have a sim who is a tired of being a poor spare? One who you unceremoniously dumped from your legacy/DITFT/ISBI/etc house without a care when you knew they would not be siring the next generation? Do you regret never giving them a chance of life?

In order to spice up some of my plans, I am looking for you to nominate one of your neglected spares whom you would like to see get a second chance. The winner will be featured in my top secret* super-new project and will get a new life of their own. I might also choose one or two runners-up for other nefarious purposes.

Here’s what I’m looking for:

- Sims who are teen or YA; or pets of any age. They should be ‘spares’ or side characters.
- If they’re a ghost/vamp/mummy/IF, you must be prepared for me to turn them ‘normal’. No Simbots, it’s not that I don’t love them, but they don’t fit with my plans.
- If you have a sim you’re volunteering, leave a comment here or on my Facebook with a link to their download (preferably non-exchange sims), a list of where I can grab any vital CC (i.e. if they simply have to rock the same hairstyle etc), and a link to where they appear in your own story (if they do).

All will be revealed in time…

*Well top secret to all but the few who know what it is.

New Taken!

A short chapter, but hopefully an informative one! I did intend to shoot another chapter today but a sim I wanted to use for it keeps crashing my game. >< 36. Waiting

Still, updates for Taken should (hopefully) start to be a bit faster now. She says…

Uh-oh, the Dayes have pets…

I was the worst TS1 Pets player ever. I feel I should warn you, ahead of the impending carnage that the Dayes having pets will become. Meet the first victims: This will not end well.

In other news, I passed my PhD! (Well, subject to minor modifications/ amendments, which is normal). You may now call me Dr Rad. My PhD supervisor even emailed all my colleagues with the message headline Dr RAD because she’s sweet like that.

Time to fire up my game and get some shots for Taken, and then try and get to the end of the Populouses’ story…

Sim site of the month: Different Rain

I can’t believe I haven’t listed this story before, but now is the perfect time, as yesterday it celebrated its one-year anniversary.

Different Rain is Orangeplumbbob (aka OPB)’s DITFT patriarchy challenge – but it’s so much more than that.  It’s an epic story of the lives of a family of men whose lives have in various ways caused them to be damaged, yet who seek to achieve great things amidst their often messy personal lives.  Not only that, it is a story written with real heart and conviction, with a real sense of care for the characters (even when they’re being bad!) and with a great sense of shot-taking.

OPB put up a load of cool anniversary stuff yesterday as well, so now is the perfect time to acquaint yourself with the Rains and to wish OPB congratulations on a year of fine storytelling!

In other news, I now have Pets and have begun the giant reinstall/check CC process – and after that, I’m looking forward to updating again!

CC and Pets etc – what do I need to know?

I’ve kind of stayed away from the whole CC mess to do with the Pets install until I was ready to get the game, but my computer’s been away, come back and has had everything wiped from it, so I need to do a clean reinstall, and Pets is now on the way so I can install that too.  So what’s the latest on CC/mods?

I know there are multiple tools for ‘fixing’ CC – which tools are the best, which should I avoid?  Do they do both .package, and .dbc?  Is there any CC that’s totally stopped working post-Pets, even with the tools?

Now to figure out where on earth all my SPs and EPs are to do the reinstalls…

New Dayes!

But some things never change… If at first you don’t succeed, fail and fail again.

A seasonal greeting

My entry for Boolprop’s Halloween screenshot event…

A Snap of Life #6

Here’s the latest Snap of Life update. If you want to see the rest of the indigo gen Knights again, the outtakes are on my Facebook page. I think you should be able to see them even if you don’t have a Facebook account but let me know if not.

Round Six – The Big Day.

Today’s the day. The exchanging of rings.
White meringue dress? Or simple and elegant?
Traditional Wedding? or something completely unique?
Headshot, Bodyshot, Freestyle.
Extra shots (max 4)

In the Pink

It’s been a long time, but Pink gen of the Knights finally get their time in the spotlight in 9. Pink Sunshine. A Snap of Life 6 and Taken next, then I’ll try to work on the Dayes and OP some more.

I don’t yet have Pets or the patch – lack of money and lack of time to fiddle about fixing CC – I expect it’ll be another month or so before I get it but I’m enjoying seeing shots from it in all of your games!

A Snap of Life 5

Here’s my latest Snap of Life entry…

Round Five- Last Night of Freedom.

Your wedding day’s just around the corner.
This is the last night you get to do all the things a married person can’t.
Good clean fun? Or law pushing activities?
Keep ‘em PG. Headshot, Bodyshot, Freestyle.
Extra happening. (max 4)

New Taken… and good news

Another new Taken chapter: 35. New York. Next up, the latest Snap of Life entry and then back to playing the Dayes, Populouses and Knights. Updates are not that far off, honest

In other news, I submitted my PhD thesis last week. I won’t be officially Doctor Rad for a little while, as I have to have a viva (oral exam) and then do whatever corrections they suggest, but the bulk of the work is done. I’ve taken on a new role at work and a lot more responsibility, so I’m never going to have as much free time as I did a couple of years ago, but the updates should still be more frequent than they have been of late. I’m slowly catching up on my reading as well, though I’ll probably always be behind!

New Dayes!

Well, it’s been two months, but we finally have a new Dayes of Our Lives chapter: Guess who’s back, back again?

I get my thesis back from the proof-reader tomorrow, then I have the edits to do on that and it’ll be handed in some time this week, which means I don’t have to think about it until my viva (oral exam) in November. Although I’ve taken on a new, more intense role at work, I should still have more simming time from now on, so everything will be updated more often than it has been of late. I’ve started playing through the next Knights and Populouses chapters and plan to get another Taken chapter shot soon as well. I’ll also be able to start catching up on months’ worth of reading now. So hooray for that.