A Twitch of a Tale (Nine Lives Dynasty) Complete

[Granny Lawlor]

A Twitch of a Tale (Nine Lives Dynasty) 1.4: All Cats Are Grey In The Dark

Nova: It has been a difficult week for the whole household. The small humans invaded my throne room and insisted on hugs. I tolerated it because, well, it is quite nice to be hugged.

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The best bit of the week was that Joy and her mate Don created a temple for me. It is in a colder world called Willow Creek but I must admit I approve of my new throne room. We must come here often, that people might pay homage to me. There are 7 frogs croaking a welcome and over nine different fish mounted above them. I see also that 9 treats are kept handily on some shelves.

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There is a separate small throne room for my slaves to use while we are here but Don gets confused and uses mine in the main room. That man has his failings.

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The smallest humans are now slightly larger. They arrive back from training and read books on my couch. That is acceptable. It is a big couch.

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When we return to my home territory, I sing a love song to my original throne to make sure it understands where my true love lies.

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Joy’s lap inexplicably gets smaller again. I am confused and disappointed. She is also confused because she left for work instead of working from home.

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A large pile of boxes have appeared. I ignore it. When they have been opened, maybe I will deign to sit in one.

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More tiny humans appear. I think this furry human brought them. I am not happy

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Joy is also not happy. She is making strange faces and collapsing. And suddenly she is not here.

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Don is seeing to the tiny humans who are making lots of noise.

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Maybe this person in black knows where Joy is. I cannot have my primary slave disappear like this. Who else knows where my favourite scatching spot is?

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Fasa and Simba have taken to giving me extra hugs

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I have accepted Don as my companion as I have no choice but to let him be my primary slave. He needs another mate and invites Dina to join my entourage. As she agrees not to bring the loathsome Tucker, I am content with this arrangement.

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I explain to Dina about my favourite scratching spot. She will be a suitable slave.

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The tiny humans grow a bit bigger as they all seem to do. They both have red hair and remind me of Joy. Me-ow. Sniff. Oh Me-ow! How could she leave me?

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Status: Week 4; Winter; Year 1
Cat: Nova; German Rex; Gen 1; Adult; Prowler, Curious, Fluffy

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Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Requirements:
•   Adoption requirement - Founder had level 9 Veterinarian;
•   4/9 Good Friends within household (Joy, Don, Simba, Fasa)
•   162k/900k Simoleans
•   410/900 Achievement Points
•   ?/9000 Simstagram followers
•   Spend 24+ consecutive hours in 1/9 different worlds (Oasis Springs)
•   9 each A’s/part-time jobs/scouting badges
o   2/9 part-time jobs (Life Guard, Manual Labourer)
o   5/9 scouting badges
Museum Items:
•   1/9 paintings (1st Life - kitten)
•   10/12 feathers to make sculpture
•   9/9 unique mounted fish;
•   7/9 unique frogs
•   9/9 pet treats made by a household member

Home Lot: Arid Ridge, Oasis Springs

Generation 1
Founder: Joy Leonine; Deceased; Cat-Lover, Good, Loves-Outdoors
Career: Gardener 8/10
Spouse: Don Lothario; Adult; Romantic, Active, Non-Committal
Career: Fisherman 2/3
Helper: Dina Caliente; Adult; Romantic, Active, Ambitious
Career: Culinary 2/10

Generation 2
Simba Leonine: Child; Active
Fasa Leonine: Child; Loves Outdoors
TC Leonine: Toddler
Benny Leonine: Toddler

L-to-R: Nova, Dina holding TC, Simba, Don holding Benny, Fasa.
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Notes

Combatting hysteria has been a constant problem and I lost Joy just before she got her level 9 career promotion which would have added items to the Museum. She was also near completing her Friend to Animals aspiration which is probably impossible to do now – Nova hasn’t got enough bad habits left to train out and she is the only pet allowed. Ah well. Farewell, Joy. You made a good start for Nova and left 2 ambrosia treats to use so there’s plenty of time to train up the next gen to make more.

It would have made more sense to get a younger partner for Don but with another set of twins to care for and Dina defaulting to the head of the family club, she was a convenient helper to move in. Their mutual Romantic traits keep them both happy.

Don is onto his 3rd part-time job. When doing my (minimal) planning, I’d assumed that any teens would do the 9 required but Don’s Noncommittal trait makes him want to quit all the time so he’s working his way through them.

Is there an easy way to find out how many Simstagram followers Nova has? A pop-up gives me the new ones when she posts but a total would be handy.

[oshizu]

Oh no, Joy passed away from hysteria! How tragic, especially when she was making such great progress.
The battle against death by hysteria has been a constant, daily (in-game) struggle in my past dynasty challenges.
My friend reggikko prefers keeping store-bought Focused potions in the sim's personal inventory.
I copy her in that strategy and also place 3 or so mirrors around the lot.
Rest in peace, Joy! It always hits hard to lose a founder. *grabs some tissues

I believe you can check Nova's total followers by having a sim use a computer's "Social Networking" option.
A mischievous pet works best for completing Friend of the Animals' Train out misbehavior tasks.
My pet of choice for that aspiration is a raccoon.

I won't be doing this dynasty so I haven't read the rules, but could you tell me the benefit of more children?
Did you enlarge the household as a way to earn more income and points?
Poor Nova!  You will prevail and succeed, Nova!

[Granny Lawlor]

Oh no, Joy passed away from hysteria! How tragic, especially when she was making such great progress.
The battle against death by hysteria has been a constant, daily (in-game) struggle in my past dynasty challenges.
My friend reggikko prefers keeping store-bought Focused potions in the sim's personal inventory.
I copy her in that strategy and also place 3 or so mirrors around the lot.
Rest in peace, Joy! It always hits hard to lose a founder. *grabs some tissues

I believe you can check Nova's total followers by having a sim use a computer's "Social Networking" option.
A mischievous pet works best for completing Friend of the Animals' Train out misbehavior tasks.
My pet of choice for that aspiration is a raccoon.

I won't be doing this dynasty so I haven't read the rules, but could you tell me the benefit of more children?
Did you enlarge the household as a way to earn more income and points?
Poor Nova!  You will prevail and succeed, Nova!

Good tip about the focussed potions and mirrors. I usually send them off for a nap but Joy collapsed before she got there.
I'll try the computer option for checking Pet Simstagram followers

Regarding the children, I'll need them to complete some of the requirements. All nine requirements and museum items are easily achieved over the 9 lives of Nova but making sure that one per resurrection is achieved in time is making my nervous. I've never played with cats before and I don't know if they can suffer premature deaths. I suspect I'll complete the requirements well before needed and then my Sims can continue with small households and have more fun.
The museum items include 9 unique level 9 career rewards which I should probably research to see which careers give more than one reward at level nine... otherwise I'll need to nearly max 9 careers without career extensions. I'm also thinking - university degrees that advance Sims in multiple careers...

Having done ultra-planning for my last challenge, I'm definitely winging this one!

[oshizu]

The best preventative is, imho, to send the sim to Calm Down at a mirror whenever they get Very Playful.
The exception is teens who cannot die emotion-induced deaths.
In my Power of 10 dynasty, I had one cat living through 4-5 generations.  I don't believe pets can die prematurely; I've only had pets die from old age.

Since the kitten phase is so short, one tip would be to use a camera (not phone) to take a medium or large photo of the kitten.
The photo can be hung on a wall later to Paint from Reference, if a sim still needs to level up their Painting skill.

[Granny Lawlor]

I had Simba, still a child, get Very Playful and I ignored it. Children don't get hysterical,  right?
He definitely did get Hysterical. I was gob-smacked! I wasn't prepared to let it play out see if children can die from it. One death in the household was enough for me. Phew

[PeregrineTook]

Oh no!  Poor Joy!!  She was an excellent founder and got some great stuff in place for the majestic Nova.  Also, from a purely tactical and non-sentimental standpoint, a major hit with the missing out on that 9th promotion and not getting that Friend of the Animals aspiration!  Still, you recovered gracefully and I'm sure Dina will be a wonderful replacement slave for Nova.  When the update started with mentioning the "difficult week," I had no idea it wasn't just going to be angsty cat stuff :=(
Well, I'm looking forward to how the crew regroups (or continues to regroup) going forward!

[oshizu]

Children can't die from emotional deaths.
Teens can't either, but if we age up a teen with one of those 50+ mood swings (specifically Anger or Embarrassment), the teen can immediately die as a YA.
I haven't had any toddlers or children die accidentally, but I've read about them dying from overheating and freezing.
Children can also die from pufferfish poisoning (an easy death to avoid, lol), drowning (except children with the Child of the Ocean trait), fire, and sauna.

The temperature-related deaths are weird. I had to place a thermostat in the High School Auditorium, because my sims were turning blue in their prom outfits. *rolls eyes
I no longer hold parties during a heat wave, because sims can die from overheating in their party outfits. 

[Brian_Z]

In another thread, Oshizu clued me in to a mod to fix the gardening bug, it's by LittleMsSam.  I haven't gotten it yet, I think that's what I'll do as soon as I'm done browsing here.
You bought your bassinets yourself, right?  I was a bit confused, wondering how the heck you got a werewolf baby!  I usually let the game give me one, and that way it also tells me immediately the baby's occult.

[Brian_Z]

Also, I second the idea of having emotional potions on hand to stave off hysteria.  If you can afford them, I also advise Death Flowers.  The vendors in Henford and in the magical realm will have them sometimes.  You can also graft to create them yourself, but that takes quite a while-- refer to Carl's gardening guides for that.

Lol, and I was confused for a moment by the pixellated shot of Joy holding the baby.  I was wondering why that would be censored-- Oh!  Duh!  I'm so used to the mods I use, and mothers just whipping them out shamelessly.

[Granny Lawlor]

In another thread, Oshizu clued me in to a mod to fix the gardening bug, it's by LittleMsSam.  I haven't gotten it yet, I think that's what I'll do as soon as I'm done browsing here.
You bought your bassinets yourself, right?  I was a bit confused, wondering how the heck you got a werewolf baby!  I usually let the game give me one, and that way it also tells me immediately the baby's occult.

I'm on a Hall of Fame challenge so no unauthorised fixes. Fortunately the plants are recovering at their prior quality so it will be OK.
I got the werewolf pack specifically for the build items. The bassinet is cute.

[Brian_Z]

I think if you message the rules creator and ask them, they'll be fine with it.  All it does, is run a check every few minutes to see if your plants have reverted randomly, and if they have, it fixes them.

[Granny Lawlor]

A Twitch of a Tale (Nine Lives Dynasty) 1.5: Catfishing

Nova: Things were a little tense after I allowed Don to invite Dina into our household. My beloved Joy reappeared but paid no attention to me. Romantic Don was pleased to see her but Dina was not.

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I later saw Dina pay homage to Dina’s Death Marker. I think that was what she was doing. I haven’t seen Joy since.

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Dina worked hard to fill Joy’s place. I think she will match up eventually.

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Don was my absolute favourite while he worked in the fishing trade. He smelled lovely in his work wear. Of course, his flighty nature meant he gave it up. He now smells of coffee which is not as nice.

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Dina is in the Culinary trade and I encouraged her to make a drink for me but it disappeared before I got it.

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She has started making me gourmet pet food which is a vast improvement on my normal kibble.

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The smallest members of my household, TC & Benny, like to spend time with me. And why wouldn’t they. I am adorable so they are adoring.

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Half-way through this week I matured with added gravitas. No more kittenish behaviour for me. I am full of wisdom and never chase my tail.

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They let me back into the kitchen but the demon fridge is still there. I will not go in again.

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Ah yes – finally I delighted my online acolytes with this post of me lying on the sleeping mat they sent me. It is far to big for my delicate frame but I choose to please my followers.

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All the younglings aged up. The teenagers both have hazel eyes but the children have green. Simba has become a Companion and has started making me treats. Fasa is taking care of my catnip plants and fishing for me. Benny lavished me with attention but TC is yet to become a Good Friend. He will in time.

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Simba & Fasa
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TC & Benny
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Don took Dina out on a date, to a museum I’m led to believe, and when they came back they had decided to become pair-bonded. They seemed happy about it but I note that both of them are happy to sniff out other pairings. They are not as settled as I would wish.

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Status: Week 5; Spring; Year 2
Cat: Nova; German Rex; Life 1; Elder; Prowler, Curious, Fluffy

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Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Requirements:
•   Adoption requirement - Founder had level 9 Veterinarian;
•   6/9 Good Friends within household (Joy, Don, Simba, Fasa, Dina, Benny)
•   222k/900k Simoleans
•   710/900 Achievement Points
•   786/9000 Simstagram followers
•   Spend 24+ consecutive hours in 1/9 different worlds (Oasis Springs)
•   9 each A’s/part-time jobs/scouting badges
o   2/9 A’s in school (Simba 1, Fasa 1)
o   3/9 part-time jobs: Life Guard (Don), Manual Labourer (Don), Fisherman (Don)
o   9/9 scouting badges
Museum Items (Bargain Bend, Willow Creek):
•   1/9 paintings (1st Life - kitten)
•   11/12 feathers to make sculpture
•   9/9 unique mounted fish;
•   9/9 unique frogs
•   9/9 pet treats made by a household member

Home Lot: Arid Ridge, Oasis Springs

Generation 1
Founder: Joy Leonine; Deceased
Spouse: Don Lothario; Adult; Romantic, Active, Non-Committal; Career: Barista 2/3
Helper: Dina Caliente; Adult; Romantic, Active, Ambitious; Career: Culinary 4/10

Generation 2
Simba Leonine: Teen; Active, Genius; Babysitter 2/3
Fasa Leonine: Teen; Loves Outdoors, Good; Barista 2/3
TC Leonine: Child; Music Lover
Benny Leonine: Child; Good

L-to-R: Fasa, Don, TC holding Nova, Dina, Simba, Benny
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Notes

The 9 part-time jobs do not have to be unique. It will be strange for Fasa to join his father in his job.

With Nova entering her eldership, I am becoming more focussed on getting a requirement completed. I think I can get 4 10-level skills maxed fairly easily to get the achievement points.

[PeregrineTook]

"They are not as settled as I would wish."  Nova has such great lines!  And yes, Don and Dina are a flighty pairing, but the younglings seem to be stepping up nicely in Joy's absence.
I clicked open your spoiler for the stats and you're just killing this challenge!  And only two generations in, no less!  You're on BDD speed  ;=)
Keep up the good work!!!

[Granny Lawlor]

"They are not as settled as I would wish."  Nova has such great lines!  And yes, Don and Dina are a flighty pairing, but the younglings seem to be stepping up nicely in Joy's absence.
I clicked open your spoiler for the stats and you're just killing this challenge!  And only two generations in, no less!  You're on BDD speed  ;=)
Keep up the good work!!!

I haven't actually managed to complete another requirement yet and one will be needed to resurrect Nova. She is unaware of the impending danger and demands other attentions. I keep getting distracted by the museum items which won't be needed until the finale. I'm not too worried yet. I just need some serious skilling to happen!

[oshizu]

How curious that your Odrades leaned so heavily toward female offspring, whereas your Leonines have been exclusively male so far.
i'm quite curious about the Simstagram followers.
Does that count continue to accumulate even after Nova is resurrected? Nova is the same cat after all.
Does your 9/9 scouting badges not count for the future resurrection of Nova, or do you need to complete the requirement while Nova' a ghost?
The timing seems tricky but you are progressing marvelously.