A few things I can't "sim"(seem) to figure out

[flosser 0]

Okay so I am sure I will get flamed for not searching for an answer before posting, but I did do a half ass search and checked most of the pins before posting this.

Anyways...

So I recently installed SC4 onto my computer when a friend of mine gave me his old game. I had not played sim games for years, I think the last one I played was Simtower waaay back in the day. I think I played around with SC3000, but never actually "played played" it.

With that being said I have some fairly general questions, mostly just to confirm a few things from the game. I also have been using money tree for my first region just so I can figure out the game before I play a real one and waste money on stuff that I don't actually need.

1. Zoning - Just from reading concepts on here has shown me a basic principle and correct me if I'm wrong, but the best way to make a general city in SC4 is outer layer industry, a few layers of commercial and then commercial and residential mixed in the middle depending on what demand calls for.

2. Growables - Lets say I have a city that is full residential. It is 150 years old and I have completely zoned the entire map(including roads, civics, etc...) and there are no empty zone spots. If the demand for residential grows high enough, Sims will automatically tear down the smaller buildings and build higher ones? Or do I have to tear them down?

3. Vacant Buildings - I have noticed that abandoned residential buildings will often get "re-occupied" if demand returns, however I am not sure if Industrial or Commercial buildings do the same. Should I be bulldozing any vacant buildings I come across?

4. Ploppables - I downloaded a few BAT's just because I got really sick of seeing the same buildings over and over again. I'm not a huge fan of the ploppables, just because I think growing them is way cooler, but I have used 1 or 2 of them that have CS$ or CO$ jobs if my demand is really high for them. However, when I open the tab of the building it says "Current Res caps 27%/24%/7%" what does that mean?

5. Farms - Do yall even build them? They are super easy to setup, but bring in almost no taxes, and take up a lot of space. However, will not having farms in my region at all, effect my overall economy?

6. Low/Medium density zones - Obviously these are needed in suburbs and smaller towns, but is there any need for these in the big city?

7. Taxes - Assuming money is not an issue, what is the ideal tax rate for your cities? Do you try to split them up and give different cities 0% tax resi/com/ind depending on what you want in that particular city? Or try leave all your taxes at a set point and only drop/raise to stimulate/recess demand?

8. Landmarks - Off the top of your head, what are a few of the landmarks(downloadable or not) that you MUST have in your cities?

Some of these are very broad, but a few are specific. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance

[benjames98 7]

2. Growables - Lets say I have a city that is full residential. It is 150 years old and I have completely zoned the entire map(including roads, civics, etc...) and there are no empty zone spots. If the demand for residential grows high enough, Sims will automatically tear down the smaller buildings and build higher ones? Or do I have to tear them down?

They'll tear down themselves.

4. Ploppables - I downloaded a few BAT's just because I got really sick of seeing the same buildings over and over again. I'm not a huge fan of the ploppables, just because I think growing them is way cooler, but I have used 1 or 2 of them that have CS$ or CO$ jobs if my demand is really high for them. However, when I open the tab of the building it says "Current Res caps 27%/24%/7%" what does that mean?

I believe it means that your R$ is at 27% of the cap level, R$$ is at 24%, and R$$$ at 7%. There's a limit to how many houses and apartments there can be. Some rewards will raise the caps.

8. Landmarks - Off the top of your head, what are a few of the landmarks(downloadable or not) that you MUST have in your cities?

If you mean ones that are essential for building a city, there really aren't any. I think the landmarks give a demand bonus around the building, but they aren't necessary for a city.

[CaptCity 4,752]

...I have some fairly general questions, mostly just to confirm a few things from the game.

1. Zoning - Just from reading concepts on here has shown me a basic principle and correct me if I'm wrong, but the best way to make a general city in SC4 is outer layer industry, a few layers of commercial and then commercial and residential mixed in the middle depending on what demand calls for.

That's one way of doing it. I don't know if there would be a "best" way of zoning, but there are things to keep in mind. There must be jobs available for the various levels of Sims that may exist in the city, and there must be a way for them to get from residential to industry/commercial and back. Also, commercial is better to be placed where traffic volume is high to get customers. The method you described would be efficient, but don't be afraid to try different things.

2. Growables - Lets say I have a city that is full residential. It is 150 years old and I have completely zoned the entire map(including roads, civics, etc...) and there are no empty zone spots. If the demand for residential grows high enough, Sims will automatically tear down the smaller buildings and build higher ones? Or do I have to tear them down?

Buildings will grow and upgrade when the need exists provided the zone density is sufficient. I have read where some just zone high density for everything in the beginning, although, nothing will develop until it is ready anyway. Zoning high initially will ensure that buildings will develop as they are needed, and you won't have to worry about it. Or you can zone low and re-zone where and when you want to have more control over what grows where. In the example you gave, if the city is fully developed, check for areas where it might be possible to re-zone to a higher density so greater capacity buildings could grow. It could also be time to expand by making some neighbor connections.

3. Vacant Buildings - I have noticed that abandoned residential buildings will often get "re-occupied" if demand returns, however I am not sure if Industrial or Commercial buildings do the same. Should I be bulldozing any vacant buildings I come across?

Buildings will re-occupy as needed for all zone types. You might be able to help things along by demolishing abandoned ones, but I've never noticed any particular benefit.

4. Ploppables - I downloaded a few BAT's just because I got really sick of seeing the same buildings over and over again. I'm not a huge fan of the ploppables, just because I think growing them is way cooler, but I have used 1 or 2 of them that have CS$ or CO$ jobs if my demand is really high for them. However, when I open the tab of the building it says "Current Res caps 27%/24%/7%" what does that mean?

This sounds like your custom content is letting you know how close you are to the demand caps that the game puts on population growth. The three numbers represent the three wealth levels (Low/Medium/High). If you reach 100% of a cap, then no more growth of that level will occur until some type of cap-relief is used - such as placing game items that will increase the demand caps. I believe there's a list of these somewhere around - I'll see if I can find it.

5. Farms - Do yall even build them? They are super easy to setup, but bring in almost no taxes, and take up a lot of space. However, will not having farms in my region at all, effect my overall economy?

They're not absolutely necessary - unless, of course, you want an agrarian society. As you stated, farms are an initial, quick way of getting development. Additionally, the cap for farm industry is reached very early in the game cycle and won't develop further anyway.

6. Low/Medium density zones - Obviously these are needed in suburbs and smaller towns, but is there any need for these in the big city?

Again, this is one of those things that's up to you. Are they "needed"? Not if you want the highest capacity buildings every where, but that is a "Mayorial" decision.

7. Taxes - Assuming money is not an issue, what is the ideal tax rate for your cities? Do you try to split them up and give different cities 0% tax resi/com/ind depending on what you want in that particular city? Or try leave all your taxes at a set point and only drop/raise to stimulate/recess demand?

I don't do a lot of fiddlin' with taxes - usually keeping them between 7% and 10%. They can be used to encourage or discourage certain growth levels.

8. Landmarks - Off the top of your head, what are a few of the landmarks (downloadable or not) that you MUST have in your cities?

Well, if you mean standard game landmarks, many provide positive game effects and might be worth having. Also, some custom content might require some as dependencies. The characteristics of downloaded landmarks would depend on how the makers set them at, which should be noted in the item listing. There might be a list of Game Landmark effects posted somewhere, too. I'll look around for that also.

There are also articles in the Reference and Tutorial sections of the Omnibus you might glance through for more tips that could help.

[jacksunny 741]

1. Zoning - Just from reading concepts on here has shown me a basic principle and correct me if I'm wrong, but the best way to make a general city in SC4 is outer layer industry, a few layers of commercial and then commercial and residential mixed in the middle depending on what demand calls for.

Yes, that is a good zoning technique, however it depends on what your city is going to be used for. For example, if you are going to make your city pollution free, your city will probably not have any industry in it, but the industry will be in a neighbouring city. I try to make my zoning as realistic as possible, but other people do different things. Try several techniques and see which one you like the best.

3. Vacant Buildings - I have noticed that abandoned residential buildings will often get "re-occupied" if demand returns, however I am not sure if Industrial or Commercial buildings do the same. Should I be bulldozing any vacant buildings I come across?

Industrial and Commercial buildings will do the same. You can bulldoze vacant buildings if you are trying to make a nice city with no ugly buildings, but just remember that it costs money to bulldoze so don't go on a destruction spree!!!

5. Farms - Do yall even build them? They are super easy to setup, but bring in almost no taxes, and take up a lot of space. However, will not having farms in my region at all, effect my overall economy?

Probably not. If it does it will be very minor. Farms don't usually provide many jobs and don't bring in that much money. I usually just use farms for fillers between my big cities. If you are going to build farms though, you should definately download the SPAM. It replaces the game's default farming system and adds many new farms. You will also want to download some of the add-ons.

6. Low/Medium density zones - Obviously these are needed in suburbs and smaller towns, but is there any need for these in the big city?

You can't just get high density residential right off the start. You should first zone low wealth, then gradually upgrade to medium and high. If you plan everything right, you will get the result you want. If you are building suburbs, only zone 1X2 or 1X1 lots. Zoning 1X3s will cause Maxis mansions to grow and you don't want that unless you are building a residential area for the rich.

7. Taxes - Assuming money is not an issue, what is the ideal tax rate for your cities? Do you try to split them up and give different cities 0% tax resi/com/ind depending on what you want in that particular city? Or try leave all your taxes at a set point and only drop/raise to stimulate/recess demand?

You should always plan what you are going to have in your city. If you only want farms, set the farm rate low and the other industries high. You probably shouldn't make the tax rates zero. As you go along, slowly raise the tax rates if you have a high demand, or if you have too low of a demand, lower them. The tax rates have a big effect on demand, so don't make any major changes too quick.

Hope this helps!!!

Jack

[flosser 0]

Wow, you guys are on point with quick responses. I appreciate all the help!