3rd Generation meeting Townies

[Skyberry]

I am playing the Immortal Dynasty challenge so am not sure if this should go there or not.

 I forgot to get my 3rd gen heir to meet new friends at school and as such he has no girls as potential partners. I waited at the school a few afternoons but there is a small dearth of high school females. What I would like to know is, without cheating, the best, easiest, fastest way to meet eligible girls in the neighbourhood?
 And just a thought but can you pick the sex of a child if you adopt? And is that allowable in the Immortal Dynasty challenge?
 Thanks for any and all help 

[Pam]

Yes, you can choose the gender if you adopt a child.  No, it's not allowed in the Immortal Dynasty Challenge.  All children must result from natural pregnancies.

One way you can find new people is to read the newspaper every day.  It will tell you the names of new families that have moved to town.  If your Sim is already a young adult, you can get to know the NPC Sims in town, like maids, repair people, firewoman, etc.  The park during the day is also a good place to meet townies.  Most of the NPC Sims visit the park regularly.  If your Sim has level 5 in any musical instrument, he can play for tips in the park or at the theater.  Anyone who comes to watch becomes an acquaintance and eventually a friend.  Then they show up in your relationship panel and you can see who is the right age.  Also, if you throw a party, you can see the age of the Sims by hovering over their names.

I hope this helps.

[cathyknits]

If you're playing in Sunset Valley, besides the places Pam mentioned, there always seems to be a crowd at the Little Corsican Bistro. And generally, the gym is empty when I go there, but other sims start showing up within a few minutes.

Throwing a party might be helpful - usually, in addition to the people you've invited, a couple "plus ones" and a crasher or two will turn up. (My current "active" generation in my Dynasty met her spouse that way). It may also be the case that one of the older sims in your family has an acquaintance of the age and gender you're looking for - no shame in having Dad set you up.

And then there's the time-honored strategy of walking up to a random house and knocking on the door in hopes someone cute answers...it's probably not ideal, but if desperation is setting in it's worth a shot.

[Hosfac]

In Sunset Valley, another good place to meet sims is outside the bookstore.  Head out there during the afternoon with a couple of books, sit on the bench and read.  For some reason, people love to congregate by those benches in the evening.  My guess is that they come out of the theater and go there to have a seat and talk with other townies.

[Skyberry]

Thanks everyone! Some great ideas and advice. I am playing in Barnacle Bay though but I don't see why these ideas wouldn't work just as well there as in Sunset Valley. I mean sims are sims right?
I have yet to try hosting a party in Sims 3 and am not sure I am game enough to try in my Immortals but no harm in playing a trial town for a little while and practicing.

On a side note does anyone think EA will ever add seed spawners to BB or is what we have all we are going to get? Would be nice to get more spawners to make challenges more viable for this hood as I really like it.

[Pam]

I have yet to try hosting a party in Sims 3 and am not sure I am game enough to try in my Immortals but no harm in playing a trial town for a little while and practicing.

The easy way is to buy the Legendary Host Lifetime Reward (5,000 happiness points).  It will guarantee that everyone comes and that the party is a success.  If you want to do it the "regular" way, here's an article on the Guide written by Metro.

[Seabody]

You can also meet spouses by their traits. General list:
Sims with the bookworm trait: Library
Athletic: Gym
Artistic: Art Gallery
Angler: Fishing Hole

And so on.

Try hunting by career. This means, if you want a police-person spouse, try standing by the workplace and waiting for the shifts to end.
Worst comes to worst, try going door to door. 

EDIT: 100 posts! Woo!

[TheChronicR]

I won't recommend meeting papergirls in childhood. Those townies are NPC and usually have the weird aging bug. Like two days after marrying them you get the notification that they'll age up soon, but the meter shows that they have still two weeks till the next stage. And they DO age up when the notification says! 

[Seabody]

When my 2nd gen. dynasty heir married a papergirl (she looked nice. ), she aged up the day he married her. And also, she aged up a little while after that. I've abandoned that attempt.
Lets get back on topic, now, shall we?

[TheChronicR]

Umm...Was it off topic?

[Seabody]

Sorry Chronic, I meant I was off topic.

[TheChronicR]

Ah, I see. No worries.