I apologize for tagging other sims communities but we need all the help we can get!
My sister just accidentally deleted her Sims 3 mods folder that had over a decade worth of CC and mods (over 10 GB). She only noticed after she deleted them from the recycling bin.
She's been trying to recover them through the built in Windows recovering program and recuva but she couldn't find everything and anything she did recover seemed to be broken. Like she can't open the files.
Please suggest ANYTHING if you have any idea of what we could do. It would mean the world to us.
Edit: My sister found half her CC she set aside before it all happened so thankfully we didn't lose everything but she gave up on trying to recover them and decided to reinstall everything she was missing from scratch.
(I'll leave the post here in case anyone else runs into the problem)
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Getting back into TS3 posed a challenge for me as compared to TS4. It's a 10+ year old game and of course requires some extra TLC as compared to TS4. So I hope this guide will help y'all to get everything set up cleanly and smoothly! It took me three separate tries and if I can help the next person struggle less, then that's great. Happy simming!
You'll need a copy of TS3 and these resources:
The Sims 3 Performance & Bug Fix Guide 2023 by anime_boom
This lovely post from TS3 community extraordinaire @nectar-cellar
How Use CCMagic YouTube video by @florydaax
No Intro mod edited for 2023 (original by retired creator EllaCharmed)
The original mod from Ella does not work for current patch 1.69. I fixed it in s3pe with the help of some commenters on MTS so that it does actually remove the intro. If the creator happens to see this and would like this modified version removed, let me know.
How to clear cache by Carl's Guide
Got everything pulled up? Great! You're ready to start.
1. Download a FRESHLY INSTALLED copy of TS3 to your computer. If you're able, I'd highly recommend having all the packs you're wanting to own already so you don't have to do all of this again.
If you are redownloading the game for any reason (like me bc I was struggling lol), remove the existing TS3 folder in your documents and save it somewhere so you can keep all of your mods or worlds there. Back up any reshade stuff from the bin folder. Completely uninstall the game through the EA app/Steam. You may lose your saves and sims due to a change in script mods through this tutorial. This cannot be avoided, trust me I tried. But it's worth it for a smooth game.
2. Do a test launch so that the game generates a new TS3 Folder in your documents. DO NOT, I REPEAT DO NOT INSTALL ANY SIMS 3 PACKS THROUGH THE LAUNCHER! NO WORLDS, NO CLOTHES, NO HAIR COLORS, NOTHING. This will be very important later on when you merge your CC using CCMagic. If you need worlds or other CC there are alternative ways to obtain them.
3. CLEAR THE GENERATED CACHE
4. If you use EA and open to test anywhere between steps (which you shouldn't really need to after step 1 of the Bug Fix Guide) or after playing at any point, open up task manager and ensure that you end the tasks "EA" and "EA Background Services" before continuing. It doesn't really use much memory but I noticed that it caused stutters if it's open when launching using your shiny brand new Smooth Patch. It will look like this:
5. Begin following the steps in the Performance & Bug Fix guide. The first thing you'll do is set up your mods folder. Follow those steps exactly as they are in the guide, except use the No Intro mod I linked above instead of the one you get in that folder if you actually want the intro removed.
6. Continue to FOLLOW ALL REQUIRED STEPS IN THE GUIDE UNTIL YOU'RE DONE. I mean it, all of them one by one. Heck, if you're open/able to do the bonus and optional ones, I'd suggest doing those too.
7. Once you've completed that, go check out nectar-cellar's excellent post for tips and a fix to make the smooth patch to compatible with Master Controller. I will not be providing an edited version of this as LazyDutchess who created the Smooth Patch is still active and I want to respect their work.
8. If you've made it this far, you're doing great sweetie. Do another test launch through the patcher and if everything runs correctly it means you've done everything RIGHT. You're ready to start playing or downloading mods if you want!
If you do start downloading mods merging them will 100% be a must do if you want to maintain any sanity. You can use CCMagic to do so. I linked that handy lil video above!
Keep in mind script mods, overrides, patterns, and CC counters should NEVER be merged. Always check the creator's notes, yada yada. And always clean up your cache on a regular basis. Have fun y'all!
I need a little help over here on my Sims 3 game. It's been a while since I played the Sims 3 game (let alone installed mods and cc for it; I'm more of a Sims 2 and 4 gal), but I need technical help.
The short answer: My game won't load. In fact the launcher doesn't work.
Update: It does launch now, but thanks to the sims 3 setter, I found out the reason why it crashes. More on it from this post.
Okay now the long context. Before the mods and patches, I tried playing Sims 3 that "worked" before, but it kept crashing every time I went to CAS. So I searched online for tutorials and mods to fix that issue.
After some adjusting, I tried to play the game...only for the launcher to not load. There might be some conflict happening that is preventing the Sims 3 from launching but I don't know which mod is doing so.
Here are all the mods and methods I installed and the places I placed them in to see if anyone can recognize a mistake I made:
Mods placed in the Sims 3 Bin:
- Sims 3 Settings Setter (32 bits) including the wininwt.dll file (I could be missing the d3l9 file)
- Lazy Duchess' Shader replacer and shadow extender (no smooth patch as the setting setter already provides that)
Mods placed in the added mods folder with the overrides and package folders:
- Cowpatelcartel purple ui (including the bubble speech bubble default, and add-ons of these mods which some are included:
- Simsi45 Improved Shadows mod (dynamic), and improved EA lights
- Uranesia Lighting Mod (No green sunrise, brighter night, and brighter water)
- Cowpatelcartel silent time controls
- Game freak Karma Powers mod
- Lazy Duchess' catalog search, lot population (reduced), auto lights overhaul, and set hour cheat
- no intro mod
- HFO teeth defaults
- sim bouquet eye defaults and sliders
- Lyralei Snow default
- Wasset defaults (excluding snow)
- no build sparkles
- Noodle's Apple Cider Vinegar skin default
I also play all my sims games on a Lenovo laptop on Windows 11.
And I have the main Sims 3 BG on the EA app but got most of the packs from discs.
Any help or alternatives would be much appreciated. But for now, I'm sticking with the Sims 2.
[sims 3 tutorial] how to make lazy previews of objects with TSRW & GIMP 2.0
bordered, borderless, and borderless with transparency
You can download this tutorial in .docx form here or read it under the cut -->
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P.S for all of these, i made the drop shadow invisible in the mesh tab before starting.
Standard borderless previews for objects without special effects
this circle option is the bump map
this option turns the background white, which we need
Take two pictures of your object, one with the bump map on, and one without.
use the 'magic wand' tool to select the black parts of the bump map version
'copy' the entire regular image, and 'paste' 'into selection in place' on the bump map version. copy while the selection is still active, and paste as a new image.
[black to show no background]
How to make a bordered preview of a standard object with no special effects
this option turns the background white, which we need
Take a picture of your object in TSRW at your desired angle.
Open this image in your desired photo editing program. I am using GIMP 2.0.
Use the magic wand tool at threshold level 1.0 to select the white part of the image. you may need to shift select more parts of the image if they are closed off like the area between the prongs.
go to 'select' and 'invert selection'
depending on the image, you may need to use the 'remove holes' tool.
in the 'select' tab 'grow' the selection to your desired thickness. i like anywhere from 5-10.
'copy' your image while the selection is active, and 'paste' as a new image.
All done!
How to make a borderless preview of an object with transperency…
i have this fruit parfait that has 3 groups [drop shadow, glass cup, and the parfait itself. these groups can be hidden in the mash tab by toggling 'true' or 'false'.
im gonna mark these true or false depending on what i want to take a picture of.
this circle option is the bump map
this option turns the background white, which we need
I need a photo of the parfait only, one regular, one with the bump map on. a photo of the glass only, one regular, one with the bump map on. I do this using "windowed mode" with the snipping tool so that my pictures are in the same location.
Open all of these images in your editing program of choice, however i am using GIMP 2.0 so things might be a bit different.
Open a new transparent image 1000x1000
'select' the black bump map image with the magic wand tool, until it is completely outlined
Then copy the entire regular version and 'paste' into 'selection' 'in place'
copy this while the selection is active and paste it in place to your transparent image.
Now for the transparent part, do what we just did and paste it as a new layer on the transparent image. erase parts of the image that do not appear, for me i erased the top part since its actually behind the parfait.
Much better. now lower the opacity and merge this layer with the one below it
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So, since I don't have Simler90's Core Mod (I was getting so many errors when using Nraas mods together with this) I had to fix the Firefighter job myself.
Apparently, the issue is: Fire Jobs will not work on lots that have a foundation.
Houses MUST be flat for fire jobs to work.
Or, the foundation can be like this (as seen in several Twinbrook homes)
Yeah that's basically the issue it seems. It's not because (as said on Nraas forums) that the fire gets put out by rain or inactive Sims.
When a fire job spawns, its random. Its always at a random playable Sim's house (which again, may be on a foundation)
That's why they cancel!
The good news? You can spawn your own jobs with testingcheats!
If you're tired of the random jobs not panning out (I just treat these as failed emergencies or fake ones) then you can shift click on a lot (without a proper foundation) and choose "Spawn Job".
i didn’t expect this little sims 3 corner to be seen so quickly, but i’ve noticed the likes, reblogs, and follows — and it genuinely means a lot to me.
this blog was made so the game could feel calmer instead of frustrating… a place where everything is organized and explained without needing to be technical or overwhelming.
i’ll keep slowly adding guides, notes, and vanilla+ resources as i learn more, so anyone can build a smooth game at their own pace.
Does anyone know an easy solution to this problem by the lot's edge?
This is a fixed version of Ellacharmed's China World, which has broken Dragon Springs and Hot Springs lots.
I manually pasted all other fixes, besides changes made to those two lots. Which fixed lots, but now I have these weird visual bugs by them.
