xewohsims2

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy, pt. 1: We're so glad to have caught up!

So, now that I've finally caught up with my legacy challenge, I feel it's finally time to document it as it happens.

My current heir, Camilla, has finally made it off to college and is living independently of her parents - but with such a huge responsibility on her shoulders of not only carrying on her family name, but also attending a world-renowned university where only the best of the best can get in (and clearly she got in very much off her own back), can she live up to the responsibilities put on her shoulders?

So, we lift off with a wave from the woman herself - proud heir to the Kirigoe name - hello, Camilla!

"Hi!"

And what are you doing today?

"Well, my final exam is coming up very soon after a semester here. It's been the best semester EVER! I've found a secret society of people who all wear these funky uniforms, and they live in a castle, and they've promised they can help me fly through college!" Sounds great, Camilla! I hope you do well in your exam, and I hope you've been studying!

"Yeah... it's kinda hard, living at such a college. I thought college was meant to be fun? But everyone here seems to just want to talk about grades and homework all the time, I don't know where the party spirit is."

The party... spirit. Hmm. Isn't Académie Le Tour extremely prestigious where only the greatest minds can attend and enter? That might mean...

"Yeah, yeah, that's what everyone says. Anyhow, I'm late for work at the campus coffee shop and I've some errands to do. Bye!"

I-- okay.

-10 hours later-

Uh... Camilla? Aren't you supposed to be in a super important final exam tomorrow? You don't want to be late for that, after all--

"Yeah! But it's fine though, I agreed these extra shifts so I could make some more money for party supplies. I could just get Mother or Father to wire me some extra Simoleons, but they'll start asking questions about why I need a little §100 here and another §250 there, and I don't need the line of questioning about why I have so many "books" to buy, if you catch me. Plus, have you even worked on a campus coffee shop!? You get to hear all of the latest gossip on campus! Anyway, it's almost hometime now."

I-- okay. I hope you can get up tomorrow for your big exam - you wouldn't want to be late.

"No chance! It's only 12AM now, and my exam is at 3AM! College students don't need sleep - only coffee!"

I didn't even know a coffee shop stayed open so late... or that universities did Final Exams so early... Well, goodnight, and good luck for your exam!

Uhhh... Camilla? It's 2:45AM. Isn't your exam in 15 minutes?

"zzzzzzzz...."

Hmm, okay.

"Oh, hi! Looks like I took a little powernap whilst waiting for my final exam."

Yeah, ya don't say. You do know it's 4:00AM, right? You're an hour late.

"I-- WHAT!? I better go get ready!"

"Get out of my way! I have an exam I'm late for!" wheezes, "Jeez! I shouldn't have taken that 10 hour shift the day before the finals! But who even sets an exam for 3AM!?"

I'm unsure myself, it seems like a weird time to have a final. Well, good luck, and I hope you get a good grade!

Oh, hi again, Camilla. How did your exam go?

"Terribly - They gave me a D+ and forced me to repeat this semester! Mother and Father did not donate §500,000 to this university only for them to put me onto academic probation straight away! They will hear of this."

Wait, is that your phone?

"Yes, it is. I'm calling my-- ah, Father, hello! Yes, yes I know it's early in the morning. We have a dire situation, Father, and I need your help. This smarmy, smug university has put me on Academic Probation already! ...yes, yes I definitely studied. ...no, I did not throw any parties!? ..You'll speak with them? Excellent, thank you Father! I expect a reversal of this decision before the end of today. ..Yes, love you too, Father. Bye now."

...you never studied, did you, Camilla?

"I... what? No, it's this stuck up college of stuffy academic types. They expect me to study, study, study, when everyone knows college is about fun! Just, please do not tell Mother or Father of this. They would hit the roof if they found out."

Hmmm.

"I'm being serious. They made a sizeable donation to this institution in good faith that I would get a degree and be made for life! But it's okay, I have a plan."

And what would that be?

"You'll see."

-that evening-

"Oh, hi again! This is our Secret Society, the place I told you about before? The one with the uniforms?"

Ah, yes, that one. And what's this you're doing on the PC? Studying, or your term paper, I hope?

"Ahahaha, you're so silly! But no, it's neither of those things. As members of the Secret Society we have... privileged access, shall we say, to the university databases. All it takes is knowing a little bit of code and I'm on my way to an A+ faster than you can say Summa Cum Laude!"

Wait, isn't that hacking? Isn't this not only against college code, but probably also illegal?

"What are you with this "studying" and "code" nonsense? All it takes is a little--- Ah, plumbbobs!!! I've triggered one of the security alerts. Better log out before I---"

Wait, can I hear sirens?

"Ms. Kirigoe?" the intimidating-looking officer enquired.

"Yes, it's me. What is it, officer?"

"I'm Officer Kauker of SimCity Constabulary. We have received a trigger from this location for a security alert on the college database. Are you aware that this has made our forces privy to every move you've made on that computer for the past five hours?"

"I- what, no!? That wasn't-- I mean, why!? Aren't you invading my privacy by watching my every move on my computer!?"

"Ms. Kirigoe, please. Those PCs are college property, first of all. Second of all, you are not to touch the college database again. This is punishable by a fine to the tune of §450, and a reset of your college grades. Do not do this again, lest there be a more severe punishment.. such as you being expelled from this institution."

"I-- fine. Here's the penalty money. It won't happen again, officer."

Camilla waited for Officer Kauker to leave.

"What a fun-sponge that officer was. That was my entire days' wages down at the coffee shop, too! Oh, well. I guess I need to be more careful next time."

Yeah, or you could just not hack the database in future?

"Or not get caught."

-The next day-

"Oh, hi Camilla. Say, who's this?"

"Hi Orlando! It's the narrator of this legacy. Say hi! Narrator, this is Orlando, my roommate and one of the smartest kids on his major. They say he was sooooo smart, that he made it here on scholarship!"

Hi, Orlando.

"Hi, narrator! Say, Camilla, what are you doing?" asked Orlando

"Hm? Oh, this! See, I downloaded a firewall program. And a VPN. And a few other things. With this now I'm sure to get a good grade this semester without being caught! I'm on academic probation, you see, and I need to pass or--" answered Camilla

"Why do you not just... study like the rest of us? We can help! We usually have a research group going on, all majors welcome, every week at the libr--"

Camilla interrupted enthusiastically, "Pfffft. That's for amateurs. I don't have the time for study groups! Check this out. All I need to do is click here, type a little code here, aaaaand... bingo! I now have a passing grade for this semester. Easy as pie!"

"I... see. Well, I have a term paper to finish, and then I have class in a few hours. So I guess I'll see you later?"

Poor Orlando sounded like he'd given up with his advice, for now. Perhaps next time he may get through to Camilla?

Will she pass this semester of college and be able to live out her dreams of a party lifestyle, or will she have to dial back on the house parties?

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy: Gen 4, or: It could just be aliens

So, Part 4 (or, gen 4!) of this legacy challenge entails Barry - one of the younger of Maya and Alvin's children - becoming the heir of the family and taking on the reins of carrying on the family legacy.

So, weirdly, Barry ended up being a complete clone of his father, Alvin - they looked extremely alike, with only the eyes of his mother.

Barry, much like his father, became a Knowledge Sim when he hit his teens - possibly inspired by his father's interest in science and the unknown, and perhaps with a curiosity to know more of his half-siblings.

Barry chose to go to college with his teenage sweetheart, Meadow Thayer. They went through college together, having endured the chaos of university halls, and then moving into their own student home where Barry, with the help of his parents, made a little party pad where the two students would celebrate and throw the occasional party where they had passed and made top grades.

After graduating with honors from Sim State University, Barry and Meadow returned to the Kirigoe family home, where they continue to reside to this day. Not only following in his father's footsteps with aspiration, he also soon got abducted by aliens - an experience which was enjoyable only for him, and to the abject horror of his entire family barring Alvin, who himself had met aliens, he returned an expectant parent to two alien babies. Barry gave birth to Stacey and Henry, who, much like their aunt and uncle, were aliens like them.

Both children grew up and were raised with the help of Meadow, who herself wanted children. Once Henry and Stacey grew a little older and achieved an element of independnce, Meadow fell pregnant with the first of her three children - Leon. This was soon followed by Marina and Camilla.

Knowing the struggles of his predecessors, Barry wanted a good life for his children and ailing parents, and therefore used some of the vast family savings to renovate the Kirigoe family home. He made a vegetable garden for his parents, although neither he nor Meadow had the time to tend to it, it proved to be a positive hobby for Maya and Alvin, who had long since retired and were looking for hobbies around the home.

He then ensured all five of his children made it into private school, a venture that proved fruitful, as Leon and Marina ended up in business jobs (although it could be argued that some sweet talk to some old friends from Maya's time as a media magnate was what sealed the deal), and Camilla going off to Académie Le Tour, one of the most prestigious universities in the world, renowned for its world-class teaching, and with a very strict entry criteria - very few students who apply make it through to attend, although it is an open secret that a little bit of.. "financial aid" may help a student's chances...

Barry and Meadow reside on the Kirigoe family land to this day, attending to the house and living out their final days of work before retirement whilst Camilla attends college with her roommate Orlando Centowski.

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy: Prequel, Gen 3, or: Holy moly, this gen feels quiet.

So now we move on to Gen 3, where Maya has grown into a Teen and following her on her adventures through adulthood.

More under the cut!

First of all, here's Maya as an adult:

So we start out from Maya being a teenager in a chaotic family of nine other siblings. As a teenager, she was no stranger to company, so it felt only right that she would seek out a lot of friendships and companionship as a Popularity sim. However, her ultimate lifelong goal was to work in media and journalism.

As a teenager, she had two very close friends in Samantha Jung and Alvin Futa. Samantha never had an interest in college, however Alvin, forever searching for knowledge, was eager to go to college. It was then that the friends decided that they would go to college together, and as such, make this Simmer's journey easier to choose the spouse.

Now, as a teenage Simmer, I was never a fan of Alvin - I could not exactly pinpoint why, although I think it may have been due to him and my Simself clashing at one point when I was a teen. Nevertheless, I thought I'd move them in at college seeing as they were such good pals.

During college, they realised that their close friendship was perhaps something more. They became a couple, and a committed one at that - Maya knew of her mother's penchant for romance, and whilst it was a life for her mother, Maya only ever had eyes for Alvin.

Alvin majored in Mathematics, seemingly a perfect path for a curious, nerdy Sim such as him, and Maya in Philosophy, chasing her dream of working in media one day. Both Sims knuckled down, studied and worked hard and both graduated from Sim State University with Summa Cum Laude honors - the highest granted honor.

Both Sims walked straight into high-level jobs - Alvin in Science, Maya in Journalism - until one day, Alvin was searching the stars for discoveries as yet unknown until he was abducted by aliens! He seemed pretty happy by it though - he came home much happier, but something strange was afoot...

He was later discovered to be expecting! He soon gave birth to alien twins - clearly his time with the aliens produced some unexpected results. These two aliens were called Anna and Jeff, but because they had no blood relation to Maya, these children were not considered part of the Kirigoe family and ineligible to carry on the Kirigoe line - though they were raised as if they were a Kirigoe themselves, eventually getting a place in college themselves.

Maya and Alvin later had four children of their own: Steve, Faye, Barry and Alexa. Barry was happy to take the reins and be the new heir to the legacy, and so the legacy carries on to this day...

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy: Gen 2, or: why did I have so many kids in quick succession when I can barely raise one at a time??

So after my adventures in Gen 1, I sent our chosen heir Charlotte to university, and she had rolled the Romance aspiration - I do not normally choose Romance sims, so this was a new, albeit fun, challenge for me to have as I'm always quick to marry my heirs together.

Below the cut is a photo of our lovely Gen 2 heir.

I had a lot of fun with Charlotte, heir of the 2nd generation, and her LTW to WooHoo with 20 different Sims (getting them to 70 LTR was the hardest part of this one!). Deciding to throw caution to the wind and add further challenge, I figured I'd also Try for Baby with this sim and see how many children she could have.

Ten. The answer was ten children. This generation was challenging, being someone who struggles to raise one toddler, let alone 2 at the same time or in quick succession of each other. The house ballooned up to 7 people, and I needed some help since Kimberly and Dongsool passed away after having lived a happy, long life. So I moved in Abhijeet Deppiesse, who despite not being the father to my eventual heir, became an honorary member of the family for being perhaps the best step-parent to the other nine children under his watch.

Over time, as the children became Teens, they too did their bit for their younger siblings, socialising with them, feeding them when Charlotte or Abhijeet were asleep or at work, and just generally being a big help where Nannies were not (thanks for watching TV whilst my toddlers were laid in their cots in dirty nappies, by the way!)

The time came to choose the heir for this legacy, and having many children to choose from, I eventually went for Maya, child of Remington Harris, the family maid.

After a long, happy life living out his dreams, Abhijeet passed away peacefully as an Elder sim, and despite not marrying into the family - or fathering who would ultimately become the heir to the legacy - he was well-regarded as a step-parent to the nine other children of Charlotte, helping raise the vast majority of them, and as such he became an honorary member of the Kirigoe family.

He now rests in Kirigoe Pines alongside the founders, heirs and spouses as an honorary member of the family, and remembered as a humble, if slightly grumpy, father figure.

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy: Gen 1, or: Why I made this 10x harder for myself.

First, a rundown of how we got here. I got stuck thinking of a surname for this lucky, "lucky" family. For a good half hour I sat and agonised over what to call them, until I gazed at the Mima Kirigoe (of the movie Perfect Blue) figurine and decided that's what I'll go for this time. ah, to have choice paralysis.

I ultimately created our lovely founder and field-dweller, Kimberly:

I placed her on a 5x6 lot because I love to make things harder for myself (and, let's face it, Legacy challenges become a lot easier over time) and gave her a luxorious 3-length drywall with a toilet and shower facing away from the street, with the most basic of bedding. At this point, I could barely even afford a pizza, let alone a fridge and microwave, so I ventured out into the great unknown that was Downtown. Luckily, one of the lots had a BBQ where you can cook food basically for free - this is how I got around this first few days whilst Kimberly tried to bring in some dough.

During this time, she met Dongsool (forgot his surname, doh!), who was a kindly, if a little unkempt, man who stole her heart. Little did she know she began to bond with the town slob, who would routinely wear (dirty) pyjamas whilst venturing out on his adventures. This did not deter Kimberly, though - quite the opposite, in fact!

Of course, since I haven't played in some time, I forgot how little marrying the Slob brings in - he brought in a whopping §14 and a low-level career on the Slacker track! This did however make for a good challenge though - normally I have great ease upgrading the house once I've got the spouse moved in, but I had to get both sims promoted a couple of times to even get close to that §20,000 lump sum for moving in. I built the shell of the house and ran out of money, so I had a McMansion with no stuff to fill it with.

A few promotions later to the top of their career track, and I was able to fill the house with some items. I wasn't very good at managing my money, however, so the house became a topsy-turvy, confusing mess of having an expensive, well-kitted out dining room, to a living room that had the cheap §500 TV with the old, beat-up sofa I'd had since day three.

They also still slept in a giant labyrinth of plain drywall and grass, but as time went on I was able to slowly decorate and remove any sense of this house being a shell on top of some grass; the house was finally beginning to take shape! And, boy, take shape it did.

Kimberly and Dongsool had three children; with Charlotte becoming the heir.

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy: Prequel pt.2

So as I mentioned in a previous post, I never actually thought to search out a Sims 2 community when I revisited it. Remembering the nostalgia of the "good old days" of the Sims 2 Exchange (RIP forever in our hearts and all that), I decided (halfway through the challenge, which is painfully on brand for me) to seek out a space that, reminiscent of the good old days of the Exchange, I could share the rundown of how my legacy is going. So, that's how I found this little corner of Tumblr. It makes me so happy to see that there's still a niche community out there for TS2.

So, without further ado, I'm going to provide a quick rundown of the "structure" of my current legacy tree and make a few separate posts summarising each generation, until I'm caught up!

Kimberly (starter); Married Dongsool (slob) Leila, Luke, Charlotte (Gen 2) Alexander, Maya, Maria, Rosie, Brianna, Jason, Shauna, Gemma, Liam, Sergio (Gen 3) Steve, Faye, Barry, Alexa (Gen 4) Stacey, Henry, Leon, Marina, Camilla (Current heir) (Gen 5)

[xewohsims2]

The Kirigoe Legacy: Prequel - Part 1

So as ever in my usual fashion, I only thought to actually document my Legacy Challenge halfway through, when my Gen 5-er is "enjoying" her life in college.

So, a rundown so far:

My sims are loaded. Loaded. They have a McMansion with a helipad, amongst other things. Quite an uneventful legacy, apart from the one gen where the heir decided she wanted 10 children. That was a long one.

Most of the spares are going to a sub-neighbourhood, aptly named Sparesville, where I'll decide what to do with them next.

I'm going to start documenting the "adventures" on my legacy here - namely, the adventures of my current heir and absolutely not-a-nepo-baby, Camilla, as she navigates life at one of the most prestigious universities in the world, Académie Le Tour (please do not ask her how she got in!). Will she flourish and score high with her peers, some of the greatest minds in the world, or will she need Mother and Father to provide some... favours to the university dean?