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Why does a farm that only has two pigs even need an assistant pig boy?
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May 24, 2014 03:50
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Angela Christine posted:Why does a farm that only has two pigs even need an assistant pig boy? Tummy rubs.
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May 24, 2014 04:12
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Angela Christine posted:Why does a farm that only has two pigs even need an assistant pig boy? Humble origin stories don't just provide themselves, I'll have you know.
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May 24, 2014 04:40
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Angela Christine posted:Why does a farm that only has two pigs even need an assistant pig boy? be honest, do you think their nominal owner does anything for those pigs? Sam is pretty much 100% the reason they continue to live. of course this means they're doomed if he wins the Wandolier contest 
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May 24, 2014 06:40
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Angela Christine posted:Why does a farm that only has two pigs even need an assistant pig boy?
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May 24, 2014 06:42
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Ep. 5: How To Wand Friends And Influence Mana Having poofed all the hopefuls out of the castle, Marlon now appears near a beach somewhere, terrifying a local crab. He closes his eyes and makes mystical gestures and  POOF  POOF  POOF   I guess Marlon lives on the Isle of Magic! Fancy that!  Man, that is an abomination of a castle-thing. Wandoliers! Anyway, once Barney stops coughing out black smoke:  Marlon whips around.  thanks, dumbledalf  : For safety reasons, you will all be issued special training wands. They have limited powers, but will work for our purposes. sparkle sparkle  Suddenly, Sam pulls a wand pretty much directly out of his rear end.  Princess Butter follows suit. There is a pause while Sam and Princess Butter polish their new wands on their sleeves and try out fancy poses.  HEY  There we go. Wand for Barney. : Now, an important note: No wand can operate without a special Essence called Mana. You will need to gather a lot of Mana before you can use even these simple training wands!What's an Essence, you ask? Well, Marlon's not going to tell us. If you want an in-game explanation of Essence, go play the original MySims. ... okay, okay. Essences are, well, the essence of everything. Objects, actions, emotions: these all have the chance to create a magical essence, which a wand-equipped Sim can collect and then use to create stuff. For example, the gross organic matter dropped by the pig was really an Organic essence; we need certain numbers of essences to--well, do nothing right now. I'll tell you more when it becomes relevant. : I have placed treasure chests around this island that are filled with Mana. Find and open all of the chests, then come back to see me. Oh, and if anyone wishes to pause briefly before attempting these arduous trials, now would be a good time...And we're given a tutorial on how to pause and save the game.  : Fantastic! Now, open all of the chests and find the Mana. Then return to me. Ready... GOOOOOOOOO! She's super motivated.  Sam finds a chest! It springs open and releases a bunch of sparkly Mana, which bounces all over the place before Sam's magical pockets suck it all in.  Whoops, looks like Barney beat us to this chest.   Or... not.  More Mana for Sam! There are four chests in all, which easily gives us the twenty Mana that Marlon requires. Let's go check in. : Looks like Sam found all the Mana chests first! Well done! Now that your wands have been energized with Mana, we may begin to learn how to wield them...Or we can put our save tutorial to good use! --- Next time on MySims Kingdom: Sam wands things up! Forever, and ever, and ever...
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May 26, 2014 20:34
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So, wait, Marlon was the last person to teleport out but the first person to teleport in. Where did everyone go in between?
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May 26, 2014 22:03
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Bobbin Threadbare posted:So, wait, Marlon was the last person to teleport out but the first person to teleport in.  Nowhere good it seems.
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May 27, 2014 01:05
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That tower looks nice. Good thing for us that Barney isn't really trying and Princess Butters isn't putting in the effort needed to beat us.
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May 27, 2014 01:11
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ArchWizard posted:Dink Smallwood Hello new character name! 
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May 27, 2014 02:03
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Man, I love those teleport animations.
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May 27, 2014 02:37
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SystemLogoff posted:
"Longer than you think, Marlon! Longer than you think!"
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May 27, 2014 04:55
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Marlon should stop beeing so mean to Barney. Princess Butter will be so pissed, when she eventually gets the third place.
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May 28, 2014 09:42
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This is really cute I actually really liked the original MySims. It was sort of animal crossing-y, but with the weird building and essences mechanic bolted on. A game of surprising quality.
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May 28, 2014 14:47
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Ep. 6: Blah Blah Blah Tutorial Blah I'm gonna come clean with you here: this update is long and it mostly covers tutorial stuff, which is not the most interesting thing. I am showing it to you because I hate you. Uh, I mean, because if I had to suffer through this, then so do you. No, wait, it's because I am an anal-retentive completionist. ... okay, fine, it's really because there's just enough cute dialogue and stuff sprinkled throughout to make me feel bad about leaving it out. I'll elide some of the duller 'press A to' stuff. To make things a little more interesting, I will sprinkle some random MySims Factoids(tm) throughout the update.  Uh oh. A box. : But the power does have limits: one can only use the scepter within special regions like this one, and only if the Wandolier has collected enough Mana to power it.In short, we can only build on these suspiciously-flat bounded areas instead of flinging boxes anywhere all willy-nilly. Marlon also explains how to pull out our wands and use them to pick up and drop existing items, wanding the heck out of our fourth wall in the process. : So simple! Marvel at the elegant design and usability of the scepter! It is truly fantastic! Ready to try it for yourselves, my students?Sam looks at the box, then nods. : Fantastic! You should start by picking up that box and placing it in the red goal on that platform. Only the first contestant to finish this simple task will get credit. Let the race begin!OH NO OH NO GOTTA HURRY pffft yeah right sure  Most of the MySims games were developed by EA Redwood Shores, now known as Visceral Games. They're probably best known for the Dead Space series; they also made Dante's Inferno and a bunch of random LotR and James Bond games. And somewhere in the midst of all this, they made a bunch of strangely good children's games. Who knew?  And now we have access to the blue shield, which is our Wand Powers.  Wand powers, engage!  Sam grabs the box--  --and moves it to the target zone, which is super easy because it snaps to the grid. Guess he gets credit for the task!   : Wow, Sam! You're a cube-moving master!So true. So true. : Fantastic, Sam! You won the second challenge. Let me know when you're ready to continue!Let's party! : It's time for the third challenge... your next task is quite simple, really. Marlon trails off, then goes "BWAH?" and runs forward.  See? : What the-?! Marlon flails helplessly at the scattered Beanie Babies. : Don't worry little friends! We'll save you!Marlon turns back to us. : Okay, my students, change of plans. One of you must use your wand to place my stuffed animals back onto their shelf. Huge points for whoever can do this first! And make sure they're facing outwards! Collectible Kingdom Pals have feelings too, you know! Princess Butter is a bit more optimistic.  : Those bears are so cute! Please help them, Sam! So, yes, this is a tutorial that teaches us how to flip and rotate blocks using the D-pad. Hooray. Sam carefully flips all the collectible Kingdom Pals upright and sits them on their shelf. It would have taken about half as long to just pick them up with his hands--but, of course, he stinks of pig and failure. : Argh! You're too good at this wanding stuff!: What an amazing saver of bears you are, Sam!: Aww! There we are, Sam! All my little friends are back safe and sound!Man, this could go to a guy's head. I've tried to avoid using the terms 'chibi' or 'superdeformed' to refer to the MySims characters, since these aren't Japanese games. As it turns out, though, I might as well have done so. The concept artist who is largely responsible for the look of the series is named Emmy Toyonaga; she's on record as saying that her Japanese background influenced the design of the characters, since she's accustomed to fun, lighthearted games having short and stubby characters. She also cites urban vinyl toys as a major influence, which leads me to, once again, bemoan the fact that MySims toys were never made. : Whew! Okay, let's move on. A bigger box! : Let's learn how to use the power of the wand to create an entire house! Sadly, a house will not fit here--the yard is too overgrown! And how do we do that? Marlon explains how to delete items that we've picked up. If we pick up an item and delete it, it stops bothering us and we also regain the Mana it cost to originally place it. Destroying the hard work of previous Wandoliers is satisfying and lucrative. : What an ugly place! My mushroom garden back home is much prettier.: This overgrown lot reminds me of the harbor. Sure wish that place had a nice big house for me...Sorry to hear that, Barn. Maybe some day you can hire a construction firm and have a place built. Anyway! We grab the bushes one at a time and magically crush them into a fine powder of Mana that recharges our wand WOO HOO  And then we open the catalog to see what we can create.  A BOX  PLONK  ROOF : Oh, well done, Sam! You did it again! This makes Marlon so happy that he now likes Sam better, and as a reward he... basically secretes a bunch of bouncy Mana that gets sucked into Sam's magic pockets. Is that gross? It's gross. Okay, never mind. Instead, imagine that Marlon briefly turned into a Mana sprinkler. : Hmm, still needs something... well done, Sam! Still, that house looks a bit... austere. Let's dress it up with windows and such, shall we? There are certain items you can build with that satisfy Interests. You can see an item's Interest value when you point at it in the catalog.Inter-what now? Marlon doesn't want to explain that either. If you want an explanation, go play the original MySims. ... so, yeah. Sims have Interests, which are things that they are interested in. (I know! I was surprised too!) Depending on their personalities Sims can like things that are Fun, or Cute, or Elegant, or Spooky; also, they can be interested in Tech, Food, or Nature. Houses and buildings require Structure to not fall down; furniture and cabinetry and so on are all Domestic Interests. : When you place one of these items down you add its Interests to the area. When you meet the requirements for that area, your task is complete!Marlon pauses, then adds: : One other thing: Sometimes when you pick up a block you will see a blue ghosted version of it appear in the world. Unlike a red ghost block, which shows you where a block must go, a blue ghosted block shows you where a block COULD go. Feel free to choose the places that you think are best! Enjoy your house building, students!You guys ready to enjoy some house building? : These roses are so pretty! They're much more interesting than building that dusty old house.Nope. : Hmm... windows seem like a cost-effective way of fulfilling the Structure Interest requirement...Oh, crap, Barney is catching up, better hurry! Eventually EA decided to ditch the franchise and foisted SkyHeroes, the last game in the series, onto a developer called Behaviour Interactive. BI appears to specialize in quickie tie-in games of all kinds. They've won awards and stuff, so they're not precisely terrible, and they did make some cool moves: they released SkyHeroes across all the then-current console platforms and added an online multiplayer mode. Still, the franchise was most likely already dead when BI got it, and it was their job to tidy up the corpse and see it safely buried.  Somewhere in the pile of windows is the fact that a chimney adds one Structure Interest to a building. We need three Structure Interests.  ... aaaand as you can see we could add eight chimneys and no windows to this house if we felt like it. Wandoliers!  Sam will just drop some windows instead, totally stealing Barney's idea. : Yes! That's a nice looking house, Sam! Hmm... but something is missing...Oh, good, he's finally noticed that there's no door. : Ah, of course! Paint! : Lucky for us, the scepter can paint as well as create!He explains how to paint things, woo. : Have fun and be creative, Sam!Yeah, he's not even pretending that the others are in this race any more.  sometimes I take screenshots just because of facial expressions : Hmm... if I paint it really ugly, I'm bound to come in second, hehehe... Paint! Sam is an uneducated pig-boy whose potential for creativity has been stifled all his life, so he paints the roof a shade of gray shingles and the walls a shade of gray brick wall. Meanwhile, no one else even tries. : I blame the crabs! They're so distracting! Why can't there be ponies on this 'magic' island instead?: Sam wins again! That house is much better now with new paint, don't you think? Alright, my students, let us move on to the final trial...FINALLY THE DOOR THANK GOD  THAT IS NOT A DOOR AT ALL : Some things in this world can't work by themselves--they need to be powered! : This windmill turns cool gusts of wind into wonderfully useful rotational energy... that power is causing this gear to turn! Gears can be used to connect rotational power to distant objects that need it... but gears will not turn on their own; they have to be connected to a power source or another spinning gear! Okay, my students, give it a shot! Place gears to connect that spinning gear to the axle on the switch. Good luck!: Know what gears are made of? Metal. You know what else is made of metal? Toaster ovens. Just keepin' my eye on the prize.: After we finish this one, we get to go back to the castle!Yeah. After 'we' finish this one. Right. Probably the most obscure bit of MySims ephemera is MySims Camera, a bit of download-only DSiWare which allows the player to take pictures using the DS camera and then superimpose animated MySims characters onto the images. It's still there in the eShop and it runs just fine on the 3DS. I know this because I plunked down two bucks for it just a few days ago. I have already taken a picture of a tiny Morcubus laughing evilly atop one of my cats. If that's not worth two bucks, I don't know what is.  Sam creates a gear, and the game tells us how to place multiples of items without picking them out of our menu each time.  gear gear gear gear done! I can't help but think that there must be a more efficient way to connect gears to each other. Oh, well. : Yay! Time to go back to the castle! I'll win for sure!: Woo! Let's get off this crazy magical wonderland!: Sam aces the final task! I can't say I'm surprised, at this point... ah, Sam. You have exceeded my expectations. You are a most promising student! I've collected the training scepters from everyone, so it's time to return to the castle and hear the results of the contest!  : *ahem* If that's all, then we'll head back to the castle. Follow meeeeeeeeeeeeee!Marlon waves his hands in a familiar manner, and...  The three of us poof out, and Marlon follows. --- Next time on MySims Kingdom: Gosh, I wonder if Sam won. It sure was a close contest!
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May 28, 2014 20:27
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Magic wand? Pfft. Should've gone for the toaster oven.
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May 28, 2014 20:34
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Gameplay and story segregation. Gotta love it.
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May 28, 2014 20:44
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Serious Frolicking posted:Magic wand? Pfft. Should've gone for the toaster oven. It would have been a vicious battle for second place with Barney so set on getting it. You gotta pick your battles. e: Oh, and cute Morcucat. 
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May 28, 2014 20:44
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I hope the princess does not steal the toaster oven from the guy who ACTUALLY deserves it! Such suspense.
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May 28, 2014 20:48
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It turns out that you actually did lose and the rest of the game consists of herding pigs and picking up their feces. At the end of the day parental influence can buy you anything. Sam would get the toaster, but isn't willing to crush Barneys heart. They didn't even pretent that there was any suspense in this.
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May 28, 2014 20:56
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I just love Barney. He sure knows how to keep himself in second for the grand prize.
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May 28, 2014 21:58
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The guy knows what he wants and is focused on getting it. Probably the only NPC in the game to do so .... everyone else makes Sam do it for them
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May 28, 2014 22:08
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I was so excited to see this on the forum list and I'm been laughing all along. So glad this, and you, are back!
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May 28, 2014 22:43
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Barney's face is priceless here. Nice.
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May 28, 2014 23:11
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grandalt posted:
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May 28, 2014 23:31
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Sketchie posted:He probably realized her dress doesn't match. I mean, baby blue with pink? Ick. She3's a princess, she probably just got her father to royal decree that the colours go together. I am going to be sad if Barney isn't a recurring character. He is the rock that anchors us.
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May 29, 2014 00:08
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Veloxyll posted:She3's a princess, she probably just got her father to royal decree that the colours go together. But, yes, he is a recurring character.
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May 29, 2014 00:32
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And absolutely everyone is OH GOD NOT THE TELEPORT at the end. I wonder if we'll learn to do that, and find out what's... IN BETWEEN.
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May 29, 2014 07:25
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Ep. 7: Hooray, We Win A Lifetime Of Toil In The King's Service Meanwhile, back at the castle, our friends are waiting.  POOF  And, with the usual mysterious gestures...  We're back! Marlon steps forward while the rest of us regain our balance. : Here are the results, Your Majesty.Marlon produces a scroll and hands it to the king, who unrolls it.   YAAAAY I CAN'T BELIEVE IT  : Hooray! : Yes!!!  Barney points at Sam and chortles. No, seriously, he chortles. I promise. : Yes!! In your face! He busts out some sick dance moves in celebration--he's pretty spry for an old dude--before hustling from the castle, toaster oven presumably in hand. : Awwww, I came in last?! DAaaaaaaAAAAD! : I'm so sorry, sweetie. How many ponies will it take to make it better? : Ooh, Butter, those are very rare, you know. However... I DO know a couple of elves who could probably set us up...That will surely never come back to bite us in the rear end. : Hooray!!! You're the best, Daddy!Mollified, Princess Butter heads off to her room, leaving the adults to talk. : Ah, Sam... congratulations on a job well done. Here it is, Sam: a brand new wand for you, and you alone, to wield! You've certainly earned it! Gasp!  Awww, he's so happy. Let's see how long that lasts.   Sam buffs that puppy up, then strikes a few poses while Buddy and Lyndsay cheer him on. : Way to go, Sam! We knew you could do it!: Indeed, Sam! And now, the honor of filling up this new wand goes to you.: 'Fill up'? What does that mean?: Yes, Buddy! You see, each Wandolier decides what powers their wand will have. Think of this new wand as a blank sheet of paper--a fresh start. In time, Sam will fill up this wand with new powers, and be able to build many different things!: But, Marlon, how do we add powers to the wand?!: Oh, I'm sure you'll find a way. Some things are best learned by doing!Marlon takes something from his pocket. : Incidentally, Lyndsay, I'd like you to hold onto this magic bag for me.Hmm.  Lyndsay accepts the bag. : Oh, okay... but, Marlon, what do you want me to do with this?: Ha ha! I'll tell you when the time is right, Lyndsay.Everyone considers this for a moment. : Umm... so what do we do now? We can totally do that! Who needs help?!  I... don't know how to fix that, Buddy. Sorry. --- Next time on MySims Kingdom: ... oh, did you think we were done with tutorials? Ha haaaa no. ---  Video: Barney Busts A Move Note Marlon cheering Barney on while the rest of us just stare blankly.
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May 30, 2014 20:03
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This game should be about Barney and his toaster oven. Busts-a-move then busts it outta there. Now that's style!
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May 30, 2014 20:11
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Mehuyael posted:This game should be about Barney and his toaster oven. Busts-a-move then busts it outta there. Now that's style! Cooking Barney.
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May 30, 2014 21:03
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Barney is the best! I'm glad he's so happy. He certainly deserved it. Marlon will be unneccesarily vague for the rest of the game, right?
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May 30, 2014 21:14
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Air is lava! posted:Barney is the best! I'm glad he's so happy. He certainly deserved it. Marlon will be unneccesarily vague for the rest of the game, right? : That's something you'll have to find out yourself!
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May 30, 2014 21:16
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Excellent, and it seems like there might be some cool things we can do with that new wand of ours.
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May 30, 2014 23:06
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I just love the facial expressions in this game. Buddy's depressed little pout when waiting for everyone to come back, Princess Butter's angry/shocked face when finding out Sam won the contest...they're all really great.
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May 31, 2014 03:06
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At least the princess doesn't react to losing by going off on Sam. That's something.
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May 31, 2014 16:07
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I like how Sam and PB are getting used to the teleport. But now, man, so many people to meet.
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Jun 1, 2014 03:42
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Glazius posted:I like how Sam and PB are getting used to the teleport. But how many of them have a brand-new toaster oven?
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Jun 2, 2014 04:42
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Ep. 8: Wizard Attack In his first official act as a Royal Wandolier, Sam rummages through one of Princess Butter's dresser drawers.  And he promptly drops it on his foot, making him yelp and then laugh in embarrassment.  This does, however, net him a couple of red crayons--or, to be more precise, Red Crayon Essences. Ha ha! Mine now!  Sam also takes a moment to jump on the royal couch, shaking loose a bunch of Springs and Simoleons. Meanwhile, Marlon's ongoing research at the bookshelf produces a few Pencils, which Sam steals. We're learning things!  Still, the pressure is on us to leave the castle and go help Sims in need, so eventually we do just that. Leave the castle, that is. It remains to be seen if we'll be of any use to anyone. : Wow! A real adventure at last! Who'd have thought? Let's look for someone who needs our help!Sam nods in agreement, and we set off!  ... man, that didn't take long.  : Can you maybe wand those two wooden pieces back into place? Our first real job! Sam picks up the two platforms and magically glues them to the riverbanks, producing...  A bridge! Which we all make our way across. : Awesome! You sure are something, Sam.Our reward is that Barney likes us better and also turns into a Mana sprinkler. Yay!  We have crossed the bridge and entered the next area. Unfortunately, the way onwards appears to end in a small cliff. : Well... no way we're gettin' up there. Short game! : No way, Buddy! Sam can just build us some stairs or something!Lyndsay looks around the area. : But there's not even any stairs here to put in place...Suddenly:  STOP DOING THAT  Ahem. : So, Marlon, what do we do? : I AM?! How am I going to do that? : If the right Essences go into the bag, it will magically add a new power to Sam's wand.For no real reason, I feel like this is a good time to remind everybody not to be creepy in my thread!  : Just look for one of these! Marlon hands Lyndsay the scroll. : Magic Scrolls like that one are like recipes to unlock new wand powers! In this case, the recipe is for stairs!Marlon beams at all of us. : It's all yours, Lyndsay. I leave the rest to you. Good luck, Sam!And Marlon sparklepoofs back out.    Long pause.  Long pause.  Eventually, Elmira notices us all staring and puts her axe away.  Pause.  Well, crap. Sam and his friends go into a huddle.  Nothing wrong with this plan! --- Next time on MySims Kingdom: We acquire an axe through the abuse of eminent domain! Or something like that, anyway.
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Jun 2, 2014 21:54
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Stop that, you're making Gimli cry!
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Jun 2, 2014 22:32
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