This is why I do not advertise or beg people to read my legacies or stories or whatever.  I am not devoted to any version of my game apparently, and I fiddle with it a lot.  That means, I have to do complete reinstalls now and then.  So currently I am running a Royal Kingdom Challenge using the Maxis TriHood (found at MATY).  In it, Pleasantview, Veronaville, and Strangetowns are all different kingdoms (with Downtown and Bluewater being Outland areas common for all).  Also, I am now no longer using Enayla defaults and am enjoying a much more Maxis-like appearance for my sims.  Also, as this is a Maxis hood I'm using Maxis-like rules instead of any actual historical style rules.  Except I wanted to use all my cool historical content, so I decided that the different kingdoms have different historical styles as their traditional costume/decor/style.  Hence, Pleasantview will be vaguely Victorian, Veronaville will have Regency style, and Strangetown will have Medieval.  Outlands will have Maxis style.  So, for starters, here's a pic of King Mortimer and Queen Bella of Pleasantview.

I left the budding new family in a state of anticipation.  Will Zoe and Milton have only one child or will my triplet and quads hack strike again?  Let's find out!

So far my experiment is working.  My hood is fairly empty, but I am enjoying my sims.  Perhaps for me, the fun can be measured in time actually spend with individual sims.

Today is an auspicious day in the venerable Goth house.

The Grilled Cheese aspiration is repetitive and funny, right?  Well, for the sims in my world it is their version of O.C.D.  It is an anxiety disorder that focuses on Grilled Cheese, which is the ultimate Maxis comfort food.  Unlike other mental problems on Sim, the Grilled Cheese Syndrome does not respond to usual  treatment and is almost never cured.  Recently, the severity of Grilled Cheese Syndrome has been lessened by the new Aspiration Treatment.  This substitution exercise allows for the afflicted sim to gain the comfort of the Grilled Cheese but also allows for other interests to emerge.  It has allowed for a marked improvement for the G.C.S. sufferers.  They live fuller lives without every waking thought revolving around Grilled Cheese....mmmm....warm....toasty...cheesy.... 

Spring is not getting off to such a great start for the Dreamer family.

While disease has been nearly completely obliterated on Sim by alien technologies, a few illnesses still occur.  Lycanthropy is one of them.  Carried by some wolves, this blood bourne virus causes the sim to transform into a werewolf every night.  However, as the major effects of the disease are temporary hairiness, increased energy and voracious appetite, it is not considered a worrisome disease.  Also, although the aliens have not cured this condition, a natural herbal cure has existed on Sim for many generations.  Most sims will simply avoid getting too friendly with wolves, which is not difficult as they do not often encourage familiarity.  However, if the worst comes about, most sims will call the neighborhood herbalist and match-maker, referred to colloquially as The Gypsy.  Rarely, there are sims who enjoy the nightly surge of energy and have no problem with the loping gait and furry face.  These sims are regarded as eccentric, but not scary.  
Currently, the Tric-City area has only one resident werewolf - Kitty Litter, an eccentric sim who loves animals way more than sims.  She has a household full of cats and dogs, and makes her living writing animal care articles for the newspaper from home.

I am now finally ready to begin blogging about my Maxis Tri-Hood. I have been playing it for awhile, just rotating rounds of one season (or four semesters at college). It was fun, but a bit mindless I realize. After reading the http://www.sfwa.org/writing/worldbuilding1.htm as reccomended by JadeElliot, I have begun to think about my attitudes and feelings about the Maxis world that I enjoy so much.

First off, I thought about time. A sim only lives about 85 days. That said, they are not human, they do not live on Earth, and they in fact do not live in our reality at all. This is a alternative universe here. So, for the record, my sims live on Planet Sim, their year is 20 days long, and they live about 85 days.

So, now I will playing in one day rounds, or four days in college areas. I will be attempting to utilize a little Simprov, as advocated by Jade. Also, I will be beginning my Maxis Tri-Hood narrative in media res, or in the middle of the story. We all know the Goths, the Burbs, the Caliente sisters...well, this is not really their story. This is the story of their world, of which they are only a part. So, instead of finding them at the beginning of their story, we join them here...after awhile.

All entries will be marked either Tri-Hood Narrative, or  Tri-Hood b.t.s. The b.t.s. Indicates behind-the-scenes commentary, like gameplay notes or world explanations.

Originally, each of the three cities had thier own Mayor (rough translation from the Simmish).  They didn't wish to give that up, but still wanted a more unified government.  So, now they have the Mayoral Coucil, which consists of one Mayor from each area.  The term Mayor is actually slightly misleading, as it suggests that this is an elected position.  It is not.  The position is reached by hard work, and dedication.  The Maxis community appoints such positions based on experience, and skill.  It is sort of a lifetime position, as it can only be rarely taken from the current holder.  However, elders are encouraged to retire, so that a new Mayor may be appointed.  This is not generally a problem, as Sims regard their golden years as opportunities to connect with their families and friends, and to explore new hobbies and interests.  They are generally very happy to retire.  
However, back to the Mayoral Coucil.  Each mayor represents their own city, but all major decisions are made as a group.  The coucil also makes all major decisions regarding the Tri-City Downtown.  In case of total disagreement, or three firmly opposing views, the options are put to the populace of all affected cities for open voting. 

I have been looking at JadeElliot's lovely orphanage for her Isle of Thyme and it got me thinking that I should post pix of my as-yet untried orphanage.

I've been playing the Maxis Tri-Hood, available at MATY with the addition of Bluewater Village.  I have decided to use this livejournal to record the ongoing saga of my Maxis sims and their many progeny.  In gameplay these are not humans and this is not earth.  These are sims, who are tiny beings who live about 80 days.  Their year is twenty days long, with each season being five days.  This does not bother them, as that is what their world is like.  They speak simmish.