Many of us have been discussing things in the various "we want religion" threads and some ideas have emerged that are VERY good and applicable to a wide array of players. It was suggested a seperate thread presenting these ideas be started in such a way that the non-religious don't feel like they are being forced to participate in religion when it's discussed. So here it is.

Please respond below and keep this thread going if you agree that EA should add the following items, interactions, topics of conversation and lot type.

Lot type -
1. Meeting Hall (where sims are attracted to meet with others and listen to other sims giving speeches, or to find counseling for their problems, or to get whipped into a frenzy by a motivational speech)

Items -
1. Podium - your sim clicks this and has the option to deliver lectures. They can be political, scientific, educational, motivational or inspirational

2. Soap Box - like a podium, only your sim can pick it up and put it in their inventory. They can plop it down where ever they are and stand on it and talk about what ever is closest to their heart (ie, same interactions as Podium, only it can be picked up and placed).

3. Sitting rugs - rugs that sims can sit on to listen to speeches.

4. Microphone - Also similar to podiums and soap boxes, but sims can ALSO sing into them.

5. Counseling couch - your sim can click on the couch and choose to counsel another sim, or receive counseling from another sim.

Interactions -

1. Discuss lecture topic - after listening to another sim talk at the podium, at a microphone or on a soap box, your sim can discuss the topic thereof with other sims.

2. Throw tomatoes - if your sim really hates what is being discussed, they can throw tomatoes at the speaker.

3. Cheer - if your sim really likes the topic of conversation they can stand up and cheer for the speaker.

4. Whip into a frenzy - if your sim has a high enough Speaking skill, they can whip the crowd into a frenzy, where other sims will stand up on their chairs, jump up and down, applaud, foam at the mouth and pass out from not getting enough oxygen.

5. Initiate political protest - instead of waiting for a protest to happen at City Hall, your sim can start one themselves. This could dovetail nicely if they have the Whip into a Frenzy ability.

6. Counsel - your sim can counsel other sims through their problems as they gain speaking skill using the counseling couch.

7. Give Advice - like counseling, except you don't need the couch, and you must be friends with someone in order to give them advice that they will heed.

8. Lead Convocation - this can be used at the beginning of meetings to call the meeting to order, to have other sims take a moment of silence, or to set the stage as they conduct a funeral or wedding.

9. Conduct funeral/wedding - if your sim has a high enough speaking skill, they can Officiate at funerals or weddings.

10. Send flowers for funeral - using the phone, your sim can send a bouquet of flowers to the funeral service for a dead sim.

11. Give Wedding gift - your sim can either send a wedding gift via the mail box, the phone or the computer to friends who get married, or they can attend the service and leave a gift on the gift table.

12. Tell jokes at microphone - set this up in a night club and your sim can be a stand up comic



Skills -
1. Public Speaking - your sim gains skill as they practice speech. It is influenced by Charisma.

2. Counseling - as you give advice, your sim gets better and better at this.


Careers -
1. Counseling - I just came up with this one, but it could be really cool if they based it out of the hospital. They could have such levels as Psych Ward Orderly, Psych Nurse, Guidance Counselor, Behavioral Counselor, School Counselor, Spiritual Advisor, Psychologist, Shrink and Jung Freudian (yeah, that's a joke )

Service NPC -
Wedding/Funeral Officiant - if you don't have a sim who is qualified to conduct the service, then the game will spawn an NPC to do so for you.

Topics of Conversation -
1. Talk about speech.

2. Talk about counseling.

3. Praise good speaker.

4. Heckle bad speaker or bad comic .

5. Ask advice (like you can w/ the butler, but can do with anyone - friends will have better advice than non-friends)

6. Remark on beautiful wedding.

7. Congratulate wedding couple well.

8. Comfort grieving sims about lost loved one.

9. Remark about beautiful funeral service.

Lifetime Rewards -
1. Podium of power - gives huge bonuses when you use this object

2. Super Counselor - any advice you give will always help the recipient to the highest degree.

Wishes -
1. Hear a sim's speech

2. Listen to speech

3. Give Speech at podium/on soapbox/using microphone

4. Get counseling

5. Give counseling

6. Go to wedding/funeral

7. Conduct wedding/funeral

8. Talk about speech/wedding/funeral/conseling

New Concept -
1. Faction - you can choose to join and existing faction of sims (like a secret society, ladies club, biker gang, community improvement group, or what have you) Or you can start your own. You can invite friends to join your faction, and you can have friendly or not so friendly rivalries with other factions.



I think the above ideas relevant enough to really broaden the game for everyone. For those who want to pretend there's religion in their game - this would let them do that. For those who would like to create a post-apocalyptic world where the green mutants fight with the norms (non mutated sims), they can do that. You could actually have a REAL vampire hunter faction fighting with the vampires! If you like druids, you could create a druid grove in your world on a meeting hall lot. If you favor book clubs, you could do that. You could even create a Mental Health Services Center and offering counseling sessions. You could make a Richard Dawkins sim and have him give lectures in your town. The possibilities are endless!



These ideas - conceived of by MANY different simmers over the last few months - are worthy of being kept alive and in front of the Gurus (who do occasionally read this form). Keep this one going so they will see it, and maybe we'll see it in game at some point

God Bless,
mik

I like these ideas very much. The interactive podium can be used for many different purposes , like at the protests at city hall.

As someone who very strongly does ot want religion added to their game, I must say I LOVE all of your ideas! I agree with you, they add a great compromise for everyone AND can be very fun concepts as well! I give your idea a BIGGGG thumbs up !

Thank you ladies

Everyone, let's keep this one going!

God Bless,
mik

Nice one Mik.
You`ve clearly thought this one out, and it shows. I think this might just placate everyone (and about time too ).

I think those are great ideas.

I love this idea, it sounds GREAT!
Hope it'll actually be an ep of some sort some day.

Oh, I just thought of one more thing ... Sing along with sim ... when you have a sim singing, other sims can sing along with you. You can click on them and choose "sing along with" or if someone else is singing, you can click on them and choose to sing with them.

You can use this to set up concerts, choirs, camp fire meetings (remember those scout meetings where you sang the funny songs?), sing a hymn at a funeral, sing protest songs at City hall (I can see a Mamma Cass sim here ) or even just have a singer added to your band.

God Bless,
mik

mikitta47 wrote:Oh, I just thought of one more thing ... Sing along with sim ... when you have a sim singing, other sims can sing along with you. You can click on them and choose "sing along with" or if someone else is singing, you can click on them and choose to sing with them.

You can use this to set up concerts, choirs, camp fire meetings (remember those scout meetings where you sang the funny songs?), sing a hymn at a funeral, sing protest songs at City hall (I can see a Mamma Cass sim here ) or even just have a singer added to your band.

God Bless,
mik

The camp fire option is pretty neat. Now, all we need is a campfire akin to the one from Bon Voyage in Sims 2. Maybe the campfire can be placed in a sims` inventory and placed whilst out camping (a wee bit like the picnic basket). Cue for a singalong whilst eating campfire cooked roast potatoes, Ah, bliss

Wow, great ideas Mik. I like how it isn't really tied to religion at all, but it still feels and sounds like some "meeting place" or something. I really like the item ideas.

I LOVE all of these ideas and agree that it isn't anything truly religious or political that might cause unwanted controversy, it's all about giving our sims ways to interact and express themselves. You've come up with something very doable that gives players tons of options and adds depth to gameplay -- two thing that I know I and others have often lamented as missing from Sims3.

One additional suggestion is to let the microphone also include an option for reciting poetry. It would be so cool to have poetry readings at our coffee houses.

In the meantime, for anyone just wanting the "look" of a microphone or podium in their "churches" or bars, there is a microphone decor item in the store. Sims can't interact with it put I have used moveobjects_on to put the microphone into one of the tall dressers to make a decent looking "podium".

Good idea with the poetry!

God Bless,
mik

Johnny - I agree - I loved the campfire we could use in BonVoyage. The fire pit just isn't the same.

God Bless,
mik

bump

Really great ideas Mik, i see you combines yours with Jarsies from the church thread I LOVE how you turned them into something non controversial and made them a bunch of really interactive items in game that will open up the world of TS3 SOOO much Again, WONDERFUL ideas