Family Jewels Name Game, Chapter 1-1

 

Hello, hello, and welcome to Family Jewels: Maximum Brood, a Sims 4 Name Game challenge. After enjoying MeadowThayer's The Disney Name Game for a while, she finally convinced me to give it a try. I'm going to be naming sims after gemstones (and minerals when I can't find a gemstone or need a better name). I quickly realized that beyond the basics, most names of gemstones . . . are really long. Like, really long. So I decided to embrace that, hence the subtitle of this story (Maximum Brood). We're just going to have tons of pregnancies left and right and see how many or how few generations it might take like that. I figure it'll be fewer generations, but harder difficulty to play with so many sims every gen. I'm also going to be scoring, but I'll only be tallying it when a new heir takes over, as I don't want to keep track of things like skills from day to day. Now, let's meet our founder . . . 

This is Quartz Cabochon. A cabochon is a polished but unfaceted gemstone, much like this challenge is on its way but not completed. If you don't know what quartz is, I mean, go look it up, hon. I'll wait.

Quartz has pretty lilac eyes and hair, and I've got unnatural hair mods for my toddlers and kids, so I'm hoping we'll see plenty of it. Let's take a look at her personality and start to get to know her.

I randomized Quartz's personality until I found a fun one. I think it'll be neat to have a dog (as I too am a dog lover), I haven't played much with maker, and a negative trait like jealous will keep things interesting. I gave Quartz the corresponding Master Maker aspiration because I really haven't done much with Eco Lifestyle yet and she's got the trait, so I might as well. This is an expensive goal for a founder who also has to have a lot of kids, I later find out. And yes, Quartz will be having six pregnancies, but on the plus side, if I keep everyone alive, Q and Z will be gotten out of the way right away.

Here's Quartz's horrifically ugly cottage-y house thing (???) that I built with her starting funds. I was really excited to be able to use money right away since I mostly play legacies (plus one ISBI), but I'm not sure the extra money actually helped, judging by this eyesore. The inside is pretty cute, though.

Quartz: "Hey, this is nice! Very cozy! I like my new house."

That's a bar in Evergreen Harbor we go to later, not your house.

This is your house.

Quartz: "It's . . . uh . . . very yellow."

And green!

Anyway, back to the bar. Quartz dives into the Civil Designer career right away, and she needs to interview homeowners for her work task for the first day. None walked by so we went to the bar to find them. Dominic Fyres is happy to help, as he apparently has strong opinions about utilities. We also came to Evergreen Harbor for one more thing . . .

Quartz: "Are you sure about this?"

Give it a try; I'm sure you'll learn to love it.

Quartz: "I doubt that."

*me from the future*: Muahaha.

And down she goes as a nice acid rain starts to fall. What a lovely place. At least we got a few bits and pieces.

I also thought I could use the bar as a meeting ground for potential spouses, but to my anger and disgust, every single sim in this picture is a premade! That's all that were coming by. My game was being really slow on generating random townies. One paparazzi that wasn't a premade showed up right as we were switching over to the loading screen to leave. I'm going to have to do something about this.

Amazingly, the paparazzi is at the next bar we stop by (look, Quartz enjoys a good bar, don't judge). Her name is Miracle Greene (amazing), she has interesting fashion sense (very good), and all we know about her so far is that she's cranky and also loves dogs (fantastic!). She is destined to either be the spouse or the best friend probably.

But then my game begrudgingly spits out another randomized sim. Uh oh, Miracle.

Quartz chats some more with Declan Flowers (another great name), and learns that he is a vegetarian. That's cool. They also have a much easier time getting to know each other than Quartz and Miracle were having as he is in a better mood.

Quartz: "So, based on the fact that we've known each other for an hour and I just learned that, like me, you love dogs, would you like to move in with me?"

Marcus Flex: "Oh, sorry, I already have some roommates."

Declan: "Not you, dude. Move. Yes, Quartz. I would love to move in with a relative stranger based on our shared infatuation with dogs, which is a deeply unique trait that few people have."

Frickin premades cluttering up my game. I was a little worried because while the game was loading up the dialogue to move Declan in, he lied to Quartz about his career and then cackled. If this guy is evil and I didn't know that because I stopped learning his traits after dog lover . . . well, that one will be on me.

So Declan moved in to the Pastel House of Horrors and received his own colorful makeover, although just his everyday at this point. I waited a bit longer to do the rest of his outfits. But I loved his hair mesh and it also comes in this ombre, and it's just perfect for Quartz's potential future partner. Let's see if I've gotten more than I bargained for with an evil sim or not.

Oh thank goodness, he's just childish. Well, that's fine. Declan is very good-looking and very distinct from Quartz, so I'm looking forward to their kids. His face also gives me distinctly Sims 2 vibes. Amazingly, he has the same aspiration as Quartz. This kind of ends up sucking because we spent all our starting money on the Brightly Colored Atrocity and now I've got two sims that want to make candles and recycle stuff. Uh, with what money?

Declan: "Mine, perhaps?"

Ooh, Declan came with $20k. I didn't see anything in the rules about forsaking it like you do in a legacy, so I'll have to figure out how to use this wisely. 

In the meantime, they just have the stuff Quartz bought. Gosh, if only she had any seating on which you guys could sit to eat your salads.

Anyway, I have totally neglected to have these two flirt at all so far so let's cross our fingers that goes well. We start with the easy options.

And progress from there. It's all going well, so I decide they need to go -- where else? -- a bar, so that they can have at least one nice date in their life.

Unfortunately the bar in Glimmerbrook is downright dismal. For a magic-affiliated neighborhood, this place is like oatmeal that has lost its zest for life. I am disappoint. Anyway, on with the date.

Red Sweater: "Thanks for the invite! I've been meaning to get out of the house."

Quartz: "Would you people BUTT OUT of our conversations?!"

Also, shortly before this, I got mad at all the premades everywhere, thought "not this save!" and went through and deleted them. All of them. Well, almost all of them. I left Vlad because if I want to make a vampire, it's convenient to have one you can just roll up on and be like, "Knock knock. Hi! I'm here passing out flyers for the local park association, also can I be a vampire?" I also left this ghost because I don't know who he is and he looks like a gangster from the thirties so that's all right, I guess. Mayor Whiskers also got a pass. Now the game has to give me original faces.

Of course, with three premades at its disposal, the game saw fit to chuck two of them onto the very next lot we visited. *the biggest of eyerolls*

Back to the date! It's going well. Quartz and Declan (who hasn't had his cold weather wear made over, so it matches the bar's theme of "mildly-depressed sand") are starting to really settle into their attraction for each other, so it must be about time for that first kiss.

Quartz: "Is this how you do it?"

Declan: "I'm . . . I'm over here."

Quartz: "Say it again. I have my eyes closed really tight and I can't find you."

Declan: *makes dolphin echolocating sound*

Wow. So romantic.

Quartz: "Look, I was created as a YA with a blank void for my past life experience, and that includes kissing. Give me a break!"

Quartz: "She critiques my technique, eh? I'll show her!"

Declan: "WHY do you still have your eyes closed? You're going to drop me!"

Uh, is there something I should know about you, ma'am?

Plaid: "That I'm fashionable as hell?"

Hmm. Note, I do not have the MCCC pregnancy module installed.

Quartz: "Sigh, someday that will be me. Six times."

Wait, this guy is pregnant too? I think? Is my game really that mad that I deleted all those sims?

Declan: "Don't mind the voice, dear. We're back home and I've put the Murphy bed down."

Quartz: "Ooh, should we change into something a bit more comfortable?"

Declan: "Heh, definitely!"

Declan: "Oh, I thought you meant . . ."

Quartz: "Wait, were we . . .?"

Y'all need to get on the same page here.

Anyway, cut away from that scene for a bit. There's three things you need to know about Quartz at this point.

1.) She's got a "personal space" problem.

2.) She's got plenty of junk in the trunk.

3.) And she's got a bun in the oven! Congrats, Quartz! Here comes baby Q.

Quartz is understandably a little hesitant to tell Declan since they just started dating the afternoon before.

But he's thrilled. What a great guy!

Declan: "Babe, your stomach . . ."

Quartz: "I know, it looks hella cute in this, right?"

Declan: "No, it's eating my arm. Can you back up a skosh?"

Quartz: *jealousy intensifies* "No can do, we are joined at the hip now . . . or elbow-to-tummy. Whatever works."

Declan: "The fetus just pinched me."

Ooh, heading off to the first day of work is a hell of a time to find out your hair has no hat chops.

Headband: *unhinges like a snake's jaw to swallow hard hat*

But it's okay, she'll still make a good impression since she matched her shoes and hard hat, lol.

Anyway, time to do something about the Saturated Abomination. Step out of the way, Declan, dear. There's going to be a bit of construction.

*WHOMP*

Declan: "A bit?"

Yeah, a bit. The house looks kinda terrible right now and the inhabitable parts are less than half the ground floor and none of the second floor cause I kinda ran out of money, but I have a vision, based on the exterior of a plan for a real house, and I think one day it's going to be good. I did really spend all their money though, so they have pretty much all the same furnishings.

Once Quartz is back home from work (without a promotion, disappointingly), she has to interview homeowners again. This punk thought this very serious and solemn occasion was a good time for his buffonery.

Quartz: "Ew, I hate your personality. Your jokes are so dull."

Clown: "Give me a break! I'm a teenager."

Quartz: "So, as a homeowner, tell me your thoughts on your utility bill."

Clown: "We just established my age."

Quartz: "More of a condo kind of guy then? No judgment."

Clown: "Ma'am! I. Am. A. Teenager."

Quartz: "That's fine. But what do you think about heating costs?"

Clown: "Sigh. They're, uh, bad?"

Quartz: "Yes, this is valuable intel that my supervisors will appreciate."

Maybe there's a reason she didn't get promoted.

Quartz: "It's fine, though, because we've got a rad new house with a computer, vertical gardens, and all of Declan's sweet, sweet money. I can't wait to start making candles finally!"

Yeah, you're broke again.

Which makes this the perfect opportunity to get engaged! How sweet! Right by the beautiful strawberry that failed to germinate for some unimaginable reason, even though I myself grow strawberries and know they would be fine in that planter. Plus the planter gave us that seed, so I'm really confused why it won't grow.

But all that aside, our founding couple are engaged! Congrats, Quartz and Declan!

Declan then heads off for his first shift as a secret agent. This wasn't especially strategic (in fact, considering some of the career rewards of other options, it was downright anti-strategic), but I've just never played the Diamond Agent branch and I'm trying some different things in this challenge. So ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

Quartz, who is home alone now, tries to occupy her time by introducing herself to passersby. I kinda had a thought to have her make friends to throw a wedding party with, but then I remembered they're broke. So she just got to know Dana here for friend material.

So instead, when Declan comes home, they get dressed up and head off to Myshuno Meadows since we also cannot even afford an arch. I'm managing their money really well, mmhmm. Anyway, isn't this sweet? They're very excited for the baby. Quartz will be entering the third trimester overnight, so it's a good time to get hitched.

They start their ceremony at the very atmospheric park.

Quartz looks absolutely gorgeous. She went all out and wore contacts (although she usually hates them). And I have to say Declan looks smashing in purple.

Which is part of why it's so infuriating that he couldn't wait two more minutes to change into his outwear right in the middle of the ceremony.

It was almost perfect, but I have to say the aurora is a nice touch. Good job keeping your city clean, San Myshunoites.

Congrats to Declan and Quartz Cabochon, who celebrate their union by setting fire to a random box they found, as you do.

Fireworks and an aurora? Very #aesthetic. Pinterest could never.

And with that, we're going to leave off here. I'm also trying for shorter-than-my-normal chapters, so hopefully I can update a bit more frequently. Next time we'll get to meet baby Q and see more of life in this new challenge, and maybe even get a jump on baby U or get a dog (not obtained in the same manner). Thanks for reading and be sure to check in with me at Boolprop!