Newcomers in Newcrest (Failed -- Move to Graveyard)

[reggikko]

I love how you've given all of your Sims such distinct personalities. Your story is really coming along nicely.

[KTK10]

Can't believe you are at a new house already! Well done!

[MarianT]

Baird, Week 6

Mom got her final promotion to Patron of the Arts on Sunday after setting up an art school at the museum to encourage community participation. All we had to do now was to pick up that last retail perk, Cheaper Re-stocking. It was a biggie, though, 2500 points, of which we had about 800. It would soon be time for me to move out and leave behind the epic saga that Uncle Gavin had written for me. I decided I'd better start learning how to cook while I was still in a place where I didn't have to actually eat what I produced.



The scrambled eggs turned out okay, I guess, but Aunt Zoe shooed me out of the kitchen so that she could start baking a cake.



She made us a hamburger cake and put candles on it for Maliya.



Then it was my turn. No more school, yay! I can get romantic with Joaquin, yay! Retail option requirements, oooh...But it was too late – I'd already blown.



I went out to the museum to say good-bye to my frogs, then Mom and I went to work.



At the store, my enemy Aniara and Lipitor's mother weren't too happy to find out that I was almost ready to move out. Those nasty aliens tried to put the whammy on Mom so she wouldn't be able to tend the store. Happily it didn't last long.



After a 17-hour session of answering questions, etc., the two of us triumphed. We took a selfie to commemmorate the occasion.



I went to my new lot first, where I sent off one of my violin songs and a piano song to be licensed. I also sold off my extra frogs and the crystals and metals I'd collected. Then I went to Windenburg and set up my new shop, Viols & Dolls. After working in Mom's store, I'd picked up a few ideas about store design. Since I rang up customers with a tablet instead of standing behind the cash register, I put the cash register against the wall so people could have plenty of room to move around. And I went for the octagon shape so that there wouldn't be any corners that customers could get stuck in. I set up the dolls I'd collected and bought a few violins, the two for children and the cheaper one for adults.



On the roof I set up a tent, a yoga mat, a firepit with chairs, and a cooler. I also bought a new violin for myself. Even though I'm at the highest skill, I still need to practice for my job. As a famous pianist once said, "If I don't practice one day, I know it; if I don't practice for two days, the critics know it; and if I don't practice for three days, everybody knows it."



It was late at night, but I still got a few customers – my good friends Maliya and Yuki Behr, and Yuki brought her sister Candy.



Then I closed up shop and went upstairs to have a veggie dog.



At 8 am Tuesday morning, I went to Joaquin's house and asked him to move in with me. I thought about moving in his housemate Sergio, too, but decided not to. It's not much fun being a dynasty helper – Aunt Zoe and Uncle Mitch had had each other, but Uncle Gavin was never able to find a girlfriend because he didn't get any attention except when he was working. So Joaquin and I would be poor for a while.

I met him over at our residential lot, where we now had a cheap bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. He surprised me by giving me a rose.



Joaquin's in the Entertainer career like me, but not making much progress. I gave him my violin and started mentoring him, but then he had to go to work.



I'm starting out as a C-lister because of my A in school, so I had the day off. I went to take a pregnancy test...yes, heir number two is on the way!



Joaquin is a big help in the store. We put in a speaker so that he can do some dancing when he feels like it.



He's taken up painting too. I could look at this view forever...and the sunsets are nice as well.



He's not painting masterpieces yet, but I have no doubt that he'll get there. He wants to become fabulously wealthy, and painting can be a big help with that.



In the evenings we sit around the fire and look at the scenery. It's really peaceful here, next to the sea.



But I'm not sure the sea air agrees with Joaquin. He keeps getting colds. We had to buy a tea maker so he could have green tea.



And the plumbing isn't the greatest. Luckily Mom and Dad came over for a visit, and Dad was able to fix the sink while Joaquin worked on the toilet.



We went back to our cheap little house so I could have the baby. Joaquin left for work just before I went into labor, the rat.



But I forgave him everything when I held our little sweetheart in my arms.



We're naming her Marigold. She's going to be a daddy's girl, but I don't mind. She's such a miracle that I kept picking her up and cuddling her until I had to give up and get some sleep.



I can't believe that my week is over already. Joaquin and I both got promotions, but Joaquin is planning to quit his job so he can stay home with Marigold and paint.

[oshizu]

Ooh you've started the third generation already!  Congratulations on Mangold.
From a strategy perspective, may I ask why you didn't move in Sergio and find him a partner? 
Would helpers you control benefit a retail store?  Or have you decided to take a more challenging path?  Just wondering.
Great story!  Reading it, I actually forgot that you're doing/writing a challenge.

[LenaLJ]

Caught up on your story again, i am glad the Bairds are still able to Stand against the alien force

I am wondering if the Zargons can catch up again.

[MarianT]

Ooh you've started the third generation already!  Congratulations on Mangold.
From a strategy perspective, may I ask why you didn't move in Sergio and find him a partner? 
Would helpers you control benefit a retail store?  Or have you decided to take a more challenging path?  Just wondering.
Great story!  Reading it, I actually forgot that you're doing/writing a challenge.

Thanks, oshizu! Actually her name is Marigold, like the flower. And you're right, it would be good strategy to move in Sergio, because having 3 people working at the store seems to be the ideal number. I've never tried employees -- heard too many complaints. But this way it is more challenging.

@LenaLJ, Luthor is going to be moving out soon, but he'll still be a teen. I don't know whether the Zargons can catch up; Aniara's not being able to find another alien in town (and I've never had that problem before) slowed them down.

[oshizu]

Thanks, oshizu! Actually her name is Marigold, like the flower.

Oh no,, sorry about butchering her name. When I saw the name, I thought it was odd for your flower-themed bloodline.
But my eyes seemed to have been fatigued from looking at the screen, so I read "Mangold" instead of "Marigold."  *facepalm

This challenge is really fast-paced and needs very different strategies, it seems, than the IDC.
I'm rooting for the Zargons!

[KTK10]

Welcome Marigold! I am in awe at how you got your first retail outlet done.. I used to love Open for Business in TS2 and really missed it in TS3, but now we have something more powerful in TS4 - I just can't seem to make it work! The photos you took of Windenburg are incredible, they really did a great job with that world. Can't wait to see what happens next. 

[MarianT]

Welcome Marigold! I am in awe at how you got your first retail outlet done.. I used to love Open for Business in TS2 and really missed it in TS3, but now we have something more powerful in TS4 - I just can't seem to make it work! The photos you took of Windenburg are incredible, they really did a great job with that world. Can't wait to see what happens next. 

Thanks! Retail is hard. If I hadn't done the retail challenge earlier this year, I don't think I would have attempted the option. Basically you have to keep spamming the "answer questions," etc. interactions. I recommend getting Serious Shopper first because then your customers come in with a higher blue level, but Nutella recommends Faster Checkout as the first perk to get. Either one is probably good. Keep your store area small -- I'd never try to run one of the stores that came with GTW. Both Dahlia and Azalea had epic sagas that they could read to boost their needs, but you can also use Moodlet Managers, as there aren't any rewards that they have to buy for the option. 2-3 sims under your control are the best.

[Joria]

I love marigolds!  Perfect name for such a sweet little flower.  Joaquin is also the best.  Just wish he was an alien so mine could marry him.

For my retail tries I found employees to be much more bother than they were worth!  So for me it's "family" all the way.  I have 5 members working my very large store and do quite well in sales, though am struggling with perks.  I found the hard way it's not so much the floor space in the store it's the clutter.  Mine was really full of all kinds of decorative things and furniture and it was a nightmare.  Now it's much more open and much easier to deal with.  I've also put some outdoor seating in mine and a couple of Lice Cold refrigerators full of food there.  Customers just help themselves and then sit and eat and keep the main sales floor clear.  Retail is one of my favorite ways to play.  Aliens, not so much!

[MarianT]

Zargon, Week 7

Aniara took up painting along with Guy and Luthor. One day Luthor asked his parents what they remembered about life on Homeworld. Aniara painted a picture of her pet gorica.



And Guy reminisced about the fun he'd had abducting sims before moving out of his spaceship.



It wasn't long before Aniara became an elder. Her hair didn't change much, but she realized that she'd need some different pjs.



Luthor got his grades up to an A and reached level 3 of the Barista job so he started making friends. He boosted his relationship with Kevin Bloom...



...and then helped Kevin become a teen.



He also got to know Rhonda Castillo better.



She was insane and a bit older than he was, but the only alternative was McKinley, who hated children. Also, his mother was prejudiced against green sims, claiming they were all in league with the Oirats.



The next thing he had to do was make an enemy of one of the Bairds. He began by threatening the sim with a probe.



Azalea just laughed at him, which made him mad, so he started yelling at her.



Having made his friends and enemies, Luthor just needed to paint one more masterpiece. His father had done his portraits.



And Luthor had 7 plants at the museum.



He and his parents did a last dance together, and then Luthor moved out.



His new house was on a very small lot, barely large enough for a rocket ship to be added.



He made himself a salad. He had three of his alien powers, but still needed Hardly Hungry.



Luthor put up the photos he'd taken of his parents and the Mastersons.



He felt very lonely, and painted a picture that expressed his situation – a lone child surrounded by people who were all grown up.



That night he went for a jog and ran into Zachary. "How's it going?" Zachary asked. Luthor said it was great being on his own. No one making him do homework, no plumbing breaking down.



Luthor went to school the next morning, but in the evening he started to work on his rocket



It was going to take him a long time to build this. Suddenly he had an idea. He called a meeting of the Zargon Club. His mom and dad soon showed up to help him build.



A yell from his mother and a fist pump from his dad let him know that the rocket was finished. Now he just needed to add the upgrades.



The finished rocket was beautiful.



Luthor couldn't wait to take it up into space.

[Joria]

Woot!  Zargon's catching up!  I like Luthor.  Hope he finds a better mate though.

[MarianT]

Well, Luthor still has to wait another 4 days before becoming a YA. I'm waiting until then to move Rhonda in, partly to give Luthor a chance to find someone else, and partly so that she won't get too much older.

And Joria, I like the idea of adding the Lice Cooler.

[oshizu]

Go Luthor! He was born late but did some rapid skilling, it seems.
Good luck finding more spouse options, too.
Haha, the farewell dance was awesome.

I haven't played Newcrest yet, so I'm enjoying how you set up the different lots.
As the watcher, is it hard to leave family behind? 

[MarianT]

@oshizu, actually my sims still see their families fairly often -- their parents are in the same club, so whenever one of the sims I'm currently playing needs to throw a party or wants to speed up skilling, they call a club meeting and their parents show up.

@Joria, I also discovered that my sim can't ask anyone move in while a teen.