#johanssons world: strangerville

[kusin-tisdag]

Smith-Grunt

August Smith-Grunt (29) - Jackson Park by @puppycheesecake (59) - Lyla Smith-Grunt (57)

Not the most traditional of families. These three live on the heights of Strangerville and mostly keep to themselves. Well, Lyla interacts with all the tourists, but otherwise they just mainly hang at home.

Jackson Park

Jackson... doesn't really know hos he ended up here. He guess he was out exploring the world, painting and just going where his heart told him to go - and suddenly he found himself in a tiny town full of weird people (and the conspiracy theorists were hardly the weirdest).

Anyway, he had liked the place. And Lyla had been such a funny person to get to know! Sort of, before he knew it, he found himself living with her (still painting) and falling for her. Sure, she was just as weird as anyone else in this town - but he loved that about her.

He has tried to be a good dad for his son, but he knows he might not always have been the best of dads. Dads are supposed to teach their sons certain things, right? Jackson has just mainly taught August to paint, go on long walks, get lost and hitch-hike back. Perhaps not the most useful of skills for a now almost 30-year old man?

Lyla Smith-Grunt

Lyla loves all the weird theories about her town. She even host these events were tourists can go and (almost) visit the old lab. Sometimes she even guides them close to Strangetown (but she never lets anyone go there. It's too dangerous).

Otherwise, Lyla mostly sticks to her home and her family. Her husband is telling her to try something creative; like flower arrangements. Lyla isn't too convinced...

August Smith-Grunt

Sometimes August realizes that eh might not have had the most common of upbringings. His dad paints the landscape around him, and his mother guides introverts who want to meet aliens (not knowing that she has alien ancestors).

August isn't too bothered. He just wish he knew what he wanted to do with life. He, as in opposite to his cousin, doesn't necessarily want to leave Strangerville. He just wishes those freaky plants would disappear.

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Johansson, Michaelsson and Greenburg

Una Johansson (20) - Orion Michaelsson (22) - Jaycee Greenburg (20)

Three friends determined to solve the Mystery of Strangerville!

Well, at least Una is. Orion mainly came for the adventure and Jay to get away from her family.

As this trailer just got vacated (some say an old couple died here, but so far - no ghosts) they got it cheaply. Which is good, because they have nearly no money.

Una Johansson

Una has been hanging on the conspiracy theorists' websites and forums for years. She wasn't too sure her parents would let her go, but as she turned 20 she was determined. She's thankful her "sister" Orion choose to join, because even if Una is sure she can figure this out, she probably need Orion's calm to really do this.

Orion Michaelsson

Adopded by the Michaelsons at a young age, and then as they decided to divorce she was raised by Christopher. Until Bess showed up and they tried family life again. Only to have her beloved father die in a horrible fire.

Yeah, Orion has been through much. When she was 7, she and her brothers and Bess moved in with Una's parents. And in that way, Una became her sister.

Now, Orion is here to make sure her sister doesn't get lost too much in her head. And she also invited Jay. Yeah, Orion might've had a little crush on Jay once, but now she sees her more like her best friend. And why not bring your best friend with you to the end of the world, huh?

Jaycee Greenburg

Ok, Jay is actually scared. This place is so weird!

But to join her friends? Never a moment of doubt. Honestly, even though she hadn't told them the truth when asked about that baby (she was so scared of Vincent's mum), they had always been there for her.

She had never gotten along with her own family, always hated the little world of Evergreen Harbor. And after the baby... yeah, she just couldn't go back.

So here she was. Apparently to solve some mystery Una had read about online, in a town full of strange people. Life could surely be full of twists and turns sometimes.

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Smith-Grunt

Notzo (53) - Mae Jemison (by @oshinsimblr) (52) - Cassandra Smith-Grunt (23)

Both Notzo and Mae have to agree that something is a bit odd with Strangerville. But Notzo, who grew up here and never has experienced anything else, and Mae, who thinks it's a natural phenomena, doesn't put too much thought into it.

Their daughter, Cassandra, couldn't be more fed up with all the scientists, military people and conspiracy theorists that her small town seems to be made of.

Notzo Smith-Grunt

Notzo grew up in Strangerville, and has been told about Strangetown from his parents and surviving grandparents. He is intrigued, but more so about all the stuff going on in his own town.

He hasn't ever been outside of Stagnerville - he met Mae when she came here for a conference and when she started working here they started dating.

She says that the pollution in the air is odd, but seems like a natural phenomena to the area. His parents, and people online in weird forums, seem to think otherwise.

Notzo tries not to get caught up in the conspiracies. He focuses on his job, his family and to hang out with his friends down at the pub.

Mae Jemison

Mae has been to space. And she is a scientist. Yet, she finds herself perplexed as to what exactly is going on here. Sure, she knows there is an old lab outside Strangerville, but she doesn't work there (no one has for over two decades) and she can't find that it's somehow connected to the odd plants that so often show up in her garden.

Anyway, apart from her work Mae focuses on their daughter. She hopes that Cassie will go to university - it would be good for the girl to get out and meet new people.

Mae is based on the real life woman, but I found it suiting that se would end up married into the most alien-connected family in Sims. I hope I did her as much justice as I could!

Cassandra Smith-Grunt

Honestly? Cassie needs to get out of this town. She has applied to university (she hasn't told her mum yet) but she has no idea if her grades from boring tiny high school at the end of the universe will be enough to get in.

Yes, she knows she descents from survivors of whatever happened in Strangetown, but when will her family stop living in the past? Cassie wants something more.

Or at least friends her own age (not just her cousin).

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Smith-Grunt

Jill Smith (83) - Buck Grunt (82) (After this, Jill and Buck passed away. Little did they know that their small house would be moved into by three young girls, determined to solve the Strangerville-mystery...)

Jill and Buck were quite young when everything began happening.

Buck had fought with his father and brothers since he was a kid. At the age of 16, he moved out and over to Jill’s. They were soon high school sweethearts and were busy being teenagers when things started happening over at the lab. They heard rumors that the Beakers (they were so creepy) had held a boy there, and their own children!

Not long after, Jill’s brother Johnny and Ophelia left. It was years later that she heard from them.

And then Olive disappeared. Maybe it was an omen?

Just as Jill and Buck welcomed their daughter Lyla - their Strangetown just went up in flames. Something happened over at the lab - killing the Beakers, Buck’s father and brothers Tank and Ripp; and Jill’s uncles Pascal, Vidcunt and Lazlo. 

Leaving only Jill's parents and younger cousin Tycho.

Grief struck over those who were still alive.

And they couldn’t stay, the air was too polluted. So Jill took her aging parents, her husband, her cousin and her daughter and moved. They named the place Strangerville and hoped to rebuild something here. They welcomed baby Notzo not long after.

Buck Grunt

It was perhaps a weird twist of fate that he too ended up in the military. But honestly, where else to find a job after everything had changed?

And maybe it was a way to honor his dad and brothers. As much as they had fought over the years, they had still been family.

Buck had to focus on his own family there for a while. Jill's cousin Tycho wasn't doing too great after the death of her father and uncles. And with Lyla and eventually Notzo, they had their hands full. Sure, Jill's parents tried to help, but they too weren't doing too great.

Jill built them a home, but Buck was then the one who managed to focus on the here and now. He took a job, raised the family and was a stability to Jill when she couldn't stop her mind for trying to find answers.

Sometimes, Buck figured, there were none to be given.

And so he had raised the kids, gone to work and tried to start over. Though he had to give it to Jill - those weird plants that started showing up around 25 years ago did freak him out a bit. And yes, he too had noticed how people acted so strange now and then...

Jill Smith

She's old, but that doesn't stop her. Lately, Jill has realized that even though everything had seemed like it ended in Strangetown, something new is happening here in Strangerville. Or is it connected?

When they moved here they had to build from the ground. People moved here from all over SimNation - most came from Del Sol Valley or Oasis Springs (as they are the closest areas). People who weren't afraid of the new and unknown.

The military had come too of course. Those first years they passed outside Jill and Buck's home almost daily - Jill assumed they had to see what had happened over at Strangetown. Jill and Buck had to give testimonies, but over the years the talk of Strangetown stopped.

However, it was as if Strangerville inherited so much of Strangetown. Here she found herself once again surrounded by scientists and military personnel. She understood that a new lab had been opened. She tried to figure out what they did, but both she and Buck found their questions unwelcome.

And she didn't like that Roswell-family. Now Ted was Mayor, after his father's passing. But both Senior and Junior had something to do with that lab over there. Sure, Ted had only been 19 when the spores came, but Jill was certain he knew more - and probably knew something about why that lab closed...

And then, new scientists had shown up, and with them the conspiracy theorists. She had to give it to them, and their online forums - there was a lot of theories and sometimes some good facts to be found there.

But now she has to rest. She is old, and she knows she probably won't live to find all the answers she's looking for.

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2024

What a year for me! Looking back, I'm amazed at how much I have been playing and posting. ✨️

The first entry of the year was still with the Vasa-legacy, and Gunnel aging to teen.

In February, I said goodbye to the Vasa-family and moved Gunnel to a new save and had her "set up" the Johansson-legacy.

I have loved playing the Johanssons, but I have to say that upon re-reading it, Gen 0 really feels like Gen 0. There is a lot going on, but without a family in-game that Gen feels very... disconnected. I do wish I had done something like my big remake of the world to get to know all the families around Gunnel a bit more. I also wish I had kept Jade more in contact with her Partihaus-friends. Now, they just became background characters which feels odd in hindsight.

Also in hindsight is the realization that I should have set up my game, and my MCCC-settings, better from start.

All of this led to my big remake where I had to go through all the premade-families and sort of imagine where they were and how they got her by the time we had reached year 74 (counting Gunnel's 20th birthday, the start of the legacy, as year 0). Currently I am posting what happens until year 29 under this tag Johanssons World: Gen 0.

That was, however, a lot of fun! I do wish I had done it earlier, because I think Una's generation would've benefited - seeing as how I in the remake actually took time to tie Strangerville to Strangetown (and we haven't reached the end of that story). I have also taken time to create proper family trees - which means that yes, I created characters like Kitty Curious, Prudence Crumplebottom and the Behr-sisters' mother (I named her Mama Behr, haha) to make sure everyone knows who they are related to.

In remaking I also happened to create Bonnie Villareal-Romeo, whom I'm currently playing. I am for once letting myself get to know a Sim and tell a story. I even have aging off!

I have definitely changed how I edit my pictures. I learned about reshade, managed to install Topaz Clean for my GIMP and to use PSDs.

It's been a lot of fun, and I can't wait to continue to play and post in 2025! Also big shoutout to @cantseemtohide who have probably liked almost all my posts!!! 💜

A "few" selected pictures from 2024 under the cut :)

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Johansson Legacy

As this is the big master-post for this legacy, it goes under a cut until it will have passed further down your dashboard :)

Johansson-legacy

A gameplay-legacy but with a few ideas about each generation.

Recent / Chrono Gen 0 (chrono) Gen 1 (chrono)

Weddings Obituaries

Gen 0

Called Gen 0 because it has the heir of the Vasa-legacy, Gunnel, as it's "starting Sim". Gunnel grew up in Moonwood Mill, but decided to travel to an entire new save!

Gunnel is a Sim who cares a lot about healthy living and wellness. She wants to become a wellness-guru! She meets and fall in love with Jade, who wants to own a big and expensive home. While raising their young daughter, they also take on one of Gunnel's friends and her family.

To see what happened in the rest of the world while Gunnels generation happened, check out this tag.

Author's notes: Very much a prequel. Still figuring out this new save, letting myself be guided by the game and my Sims' own ideas. This gen might feel a little "long" but it's the setup for my following generations.

Gen 1

Deciding to solve the mystery of Strangerville - Una moves to the furthest part of SimNation with her friends. Will they manage to figure out what has happened here?

Gen 2

Amanda has always loved being outdoors, but grew up in the furthest parts of SimNation. Always having been curious about the rest of the world, but also dreaming of living off the land she sets off to explore the world around her, while building a life tending her garden and learning everything about herbalism. While she manage to find all the plants she need, and can she eventually settle down somewhere?