This Sims 2 blog follows the lives of the Nuidya tribespeople of the southern plains, as they try to survive, thrive and figure out what exactly it means to be a dragonspark. Along the way, there'll be drama, romance, utter silliness, high-fantasy worldbuilder rambling and lots of cats. Just watch out for those storm demons - they're sneaky. :)

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Traits and Elements and Matchmakers (Oh My!)

I'm alive! Just been busy with assorted stuff, without much time to work on rebuilding Kulo Seeri. However, it is very much a WIP right now. Still cutting downloads, then I've got to create and decorate the hood, build, recreate the Sims... *sigh*

Anyway! Here's one thing I'd like to share now: my trait system for the new Kulo Seeri. I've been working on it for the past week or so, and finally got it finished! Rambling ahead, so read on under the break.



Credit where it's due: My list was inspired by traits from TS3, TS4, TSM, Ledesia's trait list (also TS3-inspired) and also a couple of RPG character trait/flaw lists. I just adapted the systems to fit my style of TS2 play. Here's how it works...

I have a list of 128 traits. All my Sims have 3-6 traits, depending on age. The first three traits are assigned randomly at birth. I choose a fourth when the Sim is old enough to go through the rites of adulthood, usually between the ages of 13-15 (though 11 or 12 isn't unheard of for some girls). The fifth trait is assigned when the Sim ages from teen to adult, and the sixth is assigned on the elder birthday. Note that by the time the teen trait comes into play, I have a clearer idea of who that Sim is, and all traits from that point onward are chosen by me, not randomised.


I assign traits at birth like this:


The first trait is chosen at random from the entire trait list. Second and third traits are (usually) inherited from the parents. I put the parents' traits in a separate list and roll a d12 twice. Of course, since both parents can't be elders, the maximum number of traits on this list is 11 (if dad is an elder) and the minimum is 8 (if the birth is the result of a teenage fling at Teal Camp, for example). Usually, though, it will be 10 - but I roll the d12 regardless of how many traits are actually on this list.


If the die roll gives me one of the parents' traits, the baby inherits that trait. If a duplicate trait is rolled, or I roll a number higher than the number of traits on the list, that means I go back to the full list and pick randomly from that. Sound needlessly complicated? Think about it - a child's personality is sometimes similar to one parent's, sometimes a mix of both parents, and sometimes something else entirely. I wanted that to be part of my Sims' characters too.


Now, here's where it gets really needlessly complicated: sooner or later these little Simmies will grow up and get into ACR territory, and eventually the elders will start nagging them about settling down. Typically every older relative and their cat will have an opinion about who's a suitable mate and who's not. And traits will play a big part in their matchmaking attempts from now on.


You see, Nuidya believe in eight elements. They're already associated with the eight half-moons (two-day rotations) of their calendar, the seasonal festivals, the points of the compass, and the major types of spirit within Nuidya mythology. Now they're associated with traits and personality types, too. I divided my trait list into eight sub-lists of sixteen traits each, and linked each one to an element.


The elements are, in calendar order: Freshwater (south, first half of spring), Earth (southwest, second half of spring), Wood (west, first half of summer), Saltwater (northwest, second half of summer), Metal (north, first half of autumn), Air (northeast, second half of autumn), Fire (east, first half of winter) and Stone (southeast, second half of winter). Each element is balanced by the one on the opposite side of the compass.


The ideal marriage, as far as the Nuidya elders are concerned, is one where the couple's elemental traits are as evenly balanced around the eight points as possible: someone with a lot of Air traits, for example, would do well to find a partner who favours Earth. This doesn't mean young Sims will always listen to the elders when choosing partners, nor does it mean that marriages will always work out when they do listen to the elders - but it does give the inevitable nagging some direction for story purposes! :)


Wait, I'm forgetting something. What is it? Oh yes - the actual traits! Here they are:



FRESHWATER TRAITS
1. Adventurous
2. Athletic
3. Childish
4. Curious
5. Excitable
6. Friendly
7. Impatient
8. Jokester
9.  Loves Cold
10. Optimistic
11. Over-Emotional
12. Reckless
13. Slacker
14. Snarky
15. Troublemaker
16. Vain

EARTH TRAITS
1. Animal Lover
2. Frugal
3. Gardener
4. Gatherer
5. Kind-Hearted
6. Loves Family
7. Loves Outdoors
8. Lucky
9. Morning Sim
10. Natural Cook
11. Nurturing
12. Practical
13. Protective
14. Ruthless
15. Squeamish
16. Worrier

WOOD TRAITS
1. Clumsy
2. Competitive
3. Dislikes Children
4. Hard Worker
5. Heavy Sleeper
6. Jealous
7. Loves Dogs
8. Loyal
9. Morning Sim
10. Obsessive
11. Patient
12. Perfectionist
13. Socially Awkward
14. Strong Constitution
15.Stubborn
16.Supernatural Sceptic

SALTWATER TRAITS
1. Ambitious
2. Angler
3. Chameleon
4. Clean
5. Dislikes Cats
6. Impractical
7. Insecure
8. Light Sleeper
9. Loves Drinking
10. Loves to Swim
11. Materialistic
12. Modest
13. Natural Performer
14. Pessimistic
15. Unforgiving
16. Whiner

METAL TRAITS
1. Coward
2. Dislikes Animals
3. Glutton
4. Greedy
5. Handy
6. Hunter
7. Mean-Spirited
8. Needy
9. Night Owl
10. Pack Animal
11. Progressive
12. Social Butterfly
13. Uncreative
14. Unlucky
15. Wasteful
16. Weak Constitution

AIR TRAITS
1. Absent-Minded
2. Artistic
3. Commitment Issues
4. Do-Gooder
5. Dreamer
6. Eccentric
7. Genius
8. Hoarder
9. Kleptomaniac
10. Moocher
11. Musical
12. Perceptive
13. Rebellious
14. Supernatural Fan
15. Superstitious
16. Virtuoso

FIRE TRAITS
1. Brave
2. Charismatic
3. Compulsive Gambler
4. Confident
5. Dislikes Dogs
6. Dislikes Swimming
7. Flirty
8. Hopeless Romantic
9. Hot-Headed
10. Loves Heat
11. Night Owl
12.  Party Animal
13. Salad Burner
14. Slob
15. Sympathetic
16. Trader

STONE TRAITS
1. Disciplined
2. Dutiful
3. Forgiving
4. Grumpy
5. Logical
6. Loner
7. Loves Cats
8. Mature
9. No Sense of Humour
10. Perfect Memory
11. Proper
12. Sculptor’s Hands
13. Spiritual
14. Studious
15. Traditional
16.  Unflirty

Stay tuned for Part 2, where I'll show how this applies to Kulo Seeri's current couples!

1 comment:

  1. Oh, this is a fantastic trait system. I'm very earthy, and my significant other has a lot of saltwater, freshwater, and some metal so I guess we're ok :-) This is really complex and has a lot of room for interpretation and individualizing. I like how it isn't a straightforward binary system, and even more complex when you consider the relatives and clan of the sim.

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