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Preparing for Adventure
Going Shopping

In each of the three new towns are market places. In the market can be found different types of stores that offer a range of product.

Relic Store - If your adventurer is impatient to get his hands on relics without the hassle of tomb raiding, this is the place to come. Relics here are not always related to the country where the store is and stocks change regularly. It is also a good place to come if your adventurer wants to sell some relics to make some quick simoleons. Sometimes, they might have something a sim needs to find on a scavenger hunt.

Café - This is where your sim comes if they want a meal or want to stock up on fresh foodstuffs. Each café also provides local foodstuffs. These are appropriate to the country. For instance, if you want to eat frogs legs, you must be in Champs Les Sims. You cannot be served this in Al Simhara or Shang Simla. I have noticed that in Shang Simla, even if you have a normal dish such as Autumn Salad, the adventurer eats it with chopsticks. Trying to blend in better, I suppose.

Bookstore - Each country has a range of new books. For those who want to cook the local dishes, each bookstore has the appropriate recipe books. Also, you will find some books on the new skills. As well as that, there are books of local fiction. Almost all of the books are appropriate to the country in which they are found. You will not find recipe books for egg rolls in Egypt, nor will you find textbooks on nectar making in China.

General Store - This is likely to be the first port of call for adventurers. Although it will provide things appropriate to the country such as localised treasure chests and incense holders, it contains general items that an adventurer will need in order to complete adventures successfully. As well as what I am calling adventurer's essentials, which I have detailed below, all stores sell basic cameras, incense holders and treasure chests unique to that country. Each individual store also contains certain unique items that cannot be found in one form or another in any other general store.

Every store has their own store keeper and sims can go into each store, unlike how it is back in Sunset Valley or Riverview. In order to buy something, they have to click on the store keeper or the cash register and a menu similar to those seen back at Divisidero Books or at the EverFresh Supermarket.

The Special Merchant does not have their own store as such but can often be found hanging around the market. From my experiences, this merchant regularly turns out to be a patron for adventures. Be sure to visit this person when you have got a visa of at least Level 1 and have some ancient coins to spend. Some of this merchant's items can help save time or even help an adventurer get out of a very tight spot indeed.

An Adventurer's Essentials

In order to go adventuring and have the most profitable experience, they need to have various essentials in their inventory. I pointed out that adventuring in The Sims 3 has various requirements that Lara Croft never found in Tomb Raider.

Sleeping Arrangements - An adventurer does not want to interrupt his tomb raiding because he is tired and have to return to the base camp. Bedrooms or dormitories are not a regular feature of tombs. That is why having a tent of one form or another is an absolute must. Tents come in various sizes but for the starting adventurer, the Sim Scouts Classic Camper is all that is necessary. It can be bought at the general store for §220. If our adventurers are on a long adventure, they will need to sleep and if a tomb is large enough, they can place their tent and rest in the tomb. Often, this comes up as a wish. Sometimes, even if a sim is just passing a tomb while on their way to somewhere else, it pays to stop off and have a nap inside. It might take a little bit of exploring to find a big enough area to place their tent. Once the sim has slept or napped sufficiently, the tent can be put back in their inventory.

For sims who go on adventures in pairs, which is something I admit that I have not done much of, there is the Colesim 2br Edition Tent. This can also be bought at the general store for §2,700. For the experienced adventurer with a high visa and plenty of ancient coins, there is the Sultan's Tabernacle. After having slept in there, the sim has a positive moodlet that they have slept like a King (or Queen). This can only be bought from the Special Merchant for 2,500 coins.

Food - Every sim has to eat at some time or other and while adventuring, there is no exception. They can fill their inventories with harvests from their own gardens or any gardens they find while on their travels and nibble on this food where necessary. However, dried food can be bought from the general store. It comes in three qualities - low, medium and high - which sell for §5, §20 and §40 accordingly. It might be a false economy to buy the cheapest as it does not really make a sim feel full. The most expensive fills a sim and also gives them a good moodlet that lasts for a few hours.

Personal Hygiene - A sim's bladder tends to remain fixed when adventuring. However, I have found the odd tomb with its own flush toilet. However, the hygiene bar will drop, especially if our adventurer has been physically active clearing piles of rubble, pushing things around or trying to force open stubborn doors. As showers or baths are exceptionally rare, That is why a "Shower in A Can" at §120 is also one of those essentials. The hygiene need is fully restored and there is a positive moodlet. One of these cans is also useful if a sim has caught fire for some reason or another.

To get an idea what these look like, they can be seen on the above General Store purchases.

Written at 05:35 on Thursday 21 January 2010 by Andy.

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