So now as I can't go back to the sims and loose the social part of SL I prefer to try to bring what I loved of the Sims to SL :D
And an excellent job you do of bringing history to SL, Louis!
I was lucky to find Skye's SIMposium forum which provided the social aspect for me while playing TS2. That's probably one of the reasons I created RC which evolved into LHVW, to keep that forum type of community experience going 
… runs to the window to see if the san culottes are storming the gates of her tea room ...
I'm quite enjoying these conversations not only because they broaden my perspective but they help me to better define the environment I'm managing. Abbondio mentions "light" roleplay, Sombra, creator of G&S, talks about "active" roleplay. The term roleplay has been stuck in my head for over a decade with regard to historic estates and it has certain negative connotations which I continue to challenge. If you have read Abbondio's post just above you can perhaps understand why.
Then it struck me that what I have been actually implementing & managing since the discovery of G&S was a strategy game firmly based in a historical setting. This game is open-ended, flexible, and fun. It also has a co-operative component which enriches it. I'll keep calling it a RP for simplicity sake but I'll now be thinking about it in a more positive context.
Essentially I'm implementing a RP that I also really enjoy playing and where the management duties are light enough that I actually have the time to play (bonus!). I can relate to the other participants because I'm digging in the dirt right along side them. I can tune the system because I experience the same joys & frustrations. I can provide support to other participants because I've "been there and done that".
Which brings me to the point about attracting players. By its very nature I believe this type of RP is more appealing to a certain segment of SL, i.e. people who like to think & create. Abbondio is absolutely correct that it is the people that make the RP and so far my experience is that the people coming to play in the Queen's Hamlet are wonderful. I honestly don't worry about retention as these types of groups always cycle up and down but I'm sure enjoying our time in the sun right now
Well - mostly apples on the run for me, thanks to the fruit trees my lord of Rochefort has been sprinking around the Antiquity sims.
It just dawned on me why your mention of apples brought Anne Boleyn so strongly to mind. Not only was it her reported craving for them but her brother was George Boleyn, 2nd Viscount Rochford
In a word: CHEESE
For me it's the perfect G&S food. Being the keeper of many goats I have an abundance of milk which I collect on a regular basis and place in storage. This provides a constant supply for my four cheese tables. I really like the arrangement (shown above) as it saves me from placing jars out each time I milk. I also appreciate not taking any additional time in food preparation
I expend a fair bit of energy every day just caring for crops and I like to keep my energy level above 80 (it seems to work the best for caring). Cheese with an EP of 18 does this nicely.
For tasks that require more energy, think carpentry, smithing etc., I usually consume goat chops with a 30EP each. Again, I have an abundance of goat meat and this is a good way to help use it up.
My final staple is grilled fish which I am constantly cooking as I am fishing.
Ironically I am a master chef/baker but all that fancy food is sold at market. As I am constantly circulating coins for various QH goods I don't feel guilty about keeping my personal food consumption cost neutral.
I really appreciate the sumptuous banquets and displays that are the forte of Una, Abbondio, and Madame Ragueneau, among others. Not only are they are feasts for the eyes but they help to promote the rp itself.
I couldn't agree more with Abbondio's comment about food that talks. Make it stop!
Oh geeze, where did you find that? lol
I admit I had to delve into one of my backup drives 
Remember how you were a master (or mistress) of recolours, especially plants. That was very cool.
Yes, Skye was connected!!
Since she didn't post any, here's a picture of her sim-self from January 2007.
So how do bring new blood to our Historic Estates, retain them, get those who never read notecards to read them. I feel this is a direction that needs some investigation.
I've been in the Historic Estate game a long time (10+ years) and I can honestly say that I've never been happier with my SL experience than I am now. Knock on wood! Respecting that each individual has their own measure of satisfaction here are some of my hard-earned insights.
I feel zero pressure to attract "new blood" or retain "old blood" for that matter and this lack of pressure is probably what makes me the happiest.
I do my best to offer stability, sanity, and fun. I have zero tolerance for melodrama. I am willing to provide some of the infrastructure & resources necessary to facilitate roleplay as well as a certain amount of entertainment BUT I am not running a summer camp where I must cater to the whims of the world. This may sound a tad harsh on first reading but over and over again I have seen estate managers burn out in a futile attempt to please.
The people in QH Co-op RPG are just wonderful and I'm very fortunate to be able to share some of my SL with them. I'm not actively looking to increase the group size. I will thoroughly enjoy my time with the current members, welcome the occasional new member, and when the time comes for someone to leave I will wish them all the best.
All this to say that I believe controlling the size of RPGs is important and estate managers have to decide just how much they can realistically offer and then sustain over the long haul. If people are attracted to the environment on offer, that's great. If they're not, that's great too.
Enhancing our connections between different RPGs with ideas like RP economies & trade is just the icing on the cake
ETA: This really is a topic that deserves a discussion all of its own. If someone would like to start a new thread please do!
This is odd...but....the reason i came to sl was frustration with thesims. I used to love to play..download things to use....and it never failed i would down load object that would crash my scene or i would lose my work. So thank you thesims...for bringing us all together...lol
How cool is that (not the crashing but TS2 connection)! Please tell us more over at The Sims: Were You a Player?
On another note: I love the idea of social time giving you more experience points. Your whole strategy is very intriguing and I'll be taking up your offer to visit soon. Thanks!
So here's me back in the day (May 27, 2006). I used the name TatianaDokuchic which I then carried over to SL. This caused me a bit of trouble with people in SL who would accuse me of stealing my own identity. It took a bit of convincing to get them to understand that she was me
I didn't care much about my appearance (some things never change!) but really enjoyed building and playing (with a lot of cheats to avoid those endless hygiene & starvation issues). TheSims & then TheSims2 were my introduction to building in a virtual space and Tatiana's Tea Room was born.
I managed to cobble together Le Petit Trianon, The Queen's Hamlet and a bit of Versailles including The Hall of Mirrors ...
… and I STILL miss mirrors that actually work.
One of the reasons I came to SL was so that I could explore the architecture of these builds further.
I was very fortunate to make some fabulous friends including Skye, Bebe, & Wane over at the Simposium Forum which was run by Skye. We made the jump to SL together and the rest, as they say, is history.
I still have a profile over at Mod The Sims: Tatiana Dokuchic and apparently I'm still getting downloads. If only I had a dollar for every one of those!
I was delighted to discover that there are even more The Sims players involved in our VW Historical Community than I had previously estimated so I thought it would be nice to take a trip down memory lane and talk about our simmer experiences.
Feel free to brag about your builds, reminisce about the friends you made along the way and chat about anything else Sim related that might come to mind .
I'm also interested in how simming relates to your SL experience as it sure had a big impact on mine.
Woohoo!
