TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Custom body shapes & their limits
--A. clothing assortment
----i. casual/everyday
------a. full-body
------b. top
------c. bottom
---ii. formal
--iii. underwear
---iv. sleepwear/pyjamas
----v. swim-wear
---vi. active-wear/sports apparel
--vii. outer-wear <-- Seasons EP only
--B. shower-proof skin tone
2. The parts of a shower-proof skin tone
--A. the skin tone
--B. the top mesh
--C. the bottom mesh
3. Possible errors of a shower-proof skin tone
--A. Maxis normal shape in the shower, bath tub, or hot tub
--B. floating head in the shower, bath tub, or hot tub

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1. CUSTOM BODY SHAPES & THEIR LIMITS

The addition of new body shapes to The Sims 2 is limited by two factors: The lack of foresight of EA and the complexity of use forced on players due to the lack of foresight of EA. The lack of foresight of EA has caused it to be impossible to add more shapes to the range of CAS body forms for sims through EA leaving no room for the addition of custom body shapes as a button selection as seen for fat and normal in the creation of a new sim. In the absence of an easier means, creators in the sims community have discovered the means to add more variety to The Sims 2, but this requires patience and understanding to master.

Adding any new body type to the game is a bit of an exercise in patience, regardless of it being bodybuilder, skinny guys, or girls with different cup sizes. The shopping list is as follows for any novel body type:

1.A. CLOTHING ASSORTMENT

This requires that you download at least one item for each clothing
category:

---i. casual/everyday
------a. full-body
------b. top
------c. bottom
--ii. formal
-iii. underwear
--iv. sleepwear/pyjamas
---v. swim-wear
--vi. active-wear/sports apparel
-vii. outer-wear

Failure to get all of these will result in a less than satisfactory experience.

1.B. SHOWER-PROOF SKIN TONE

This means having at least one mesh-linked, or "shower-proof", skin tone that has been linked to use the desired body type and its associated meshes. Usually a spectrum is available. You make the sim by first selecting a custom skin tone that is "shower-proof" for the custom body-shape you want to use (click the * next to the dark maxis skin tone). Then dress him/her in the custom body-shape clothing you downloaded.

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2. THE PARTS OF A SHOWER-PROOF SKIN TONE

A shower-proof skin tone is a specialised form of genetic material for The Sims 2 that causes the sim using this type of skin tone to display in a true nude state with a usually custom content set of meshes. Possible examples are numerous. All shower-proof skin tones make use of three parts: The skin tone, a top mesh, and a bottom mesh.

2.A. THE SKIN TONE

A skin tone, or commonly "skintone", is the component of a sim that most closely parallels the epidermis of a human being. The colour range and level of realism of a skin tone is limited only by the imagination and skill of the creator. A skin tone may include especial detailing for additional mesh shapes such as a devil's barbed tail, a satyr's goat legs, or so on. The skin tone must be installed to the normal downloads location in order to be used.

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2.B. THE TOP MESH

All sims in a true nude state will make use of a top mesh and a bottom mesh. The top mesh controls the shape of the body from the waist line to the neck, including the hands and arms. In some instances other items may be included (e.g., piercings, angel wings, etc). The top mesh must be installed to the normal downloads location or visual errors will occur (see below).

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2.B. THE BOTTOM MESH

All sims in a true nude state will make use of a top mesh and a bottom mesh. The bottom mesh controls the shape of the body from the waist line to the feet. As with the top mesh, other items may be included. The bottom mesh must be installed to the normal downloads location or visual errors will occur (see below).

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3. POSSIBLE ERRORS

The primary benefit of shower-proof skin tones is that they retain a custom mesh's body shape in a true nude state. The true nude state occurs only in three instances without outside influence: the shower, the bath tub, and -- in some instances -- the hot tub. There are potential errors that will be noted that will inform us that something is not working.

3.A. MAXIS NORMAL SHAPE IN THE SHOWER, BATH TUB, OR HOT TUB

Firstly, it should be understood that not all skin tones are available in a shower-proof condition. Sims using these non-shower-proof skin tones will not make use of a special mesh in a true nude state. When you see a sim revert to the Maxis normal meshes in the shower, this is most likely due to the misunderstanding that because a sim is a bodybuilder in clothed states, that the skin tone magically knows to stay a bodybuilder in the shower. This could not be farther from the truth. There is no way to add a new body shape to the game so that it operates in this manner.

You must make certain to use a shower-proof skin tone when making your sim to prevent this sort of error.

If you have used a shower-proof skin tone for the sim, then one of three things is at fault (in no particular order):

--1. The skin tone may not have been made properly shower-proof.

--2. There is a mod interfering with the operation of the shower-proof skin tone.

--3. There is a mod interfering with the operation of the sim entering into a true nude state.

Generally speaking, the appearance of Maxis normal meshes indicates that the skin tone in use was not made shower-proof.

3.B. FLOATING HEAD IN THE SHOWER, BATH TUB, OR HOT TUB

If either or both the torso and/or legs go missing in the shower, bath tub, or hot tub, this is almost always a clear indication that the required mesh is not installed in the downloads folder, or -- rarely -- is not being used by the game due to some internal error of the game's custom content catalogue function.

If you are certain that you have installed the mesh(es) in the downloads folder, make certain that it is not in a sub-folder. If it is not in a sub-folder, try moving the problem mesh to the SavedSims folder.

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If moving the mesh(es) to the SavedSims folder does not correct the problem, it may require re-installing the game to get the mesh(es) to function properly. Before moving to this extremity, it is usually a good idea to politely inquire in the location you downloaded the shower-proof skin tone if anyone else is having a similar problem, sometimes even the best creators make mistakes, and certainly downloading an updated mesh is far less trouble than re-installing The Sims 2.

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This File Last Revised: Wednesday, 17 October, 2007

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� Copyright 2007 Yakov Izakyn

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