ISSUE 002. February 2021

ISSUE 002 // FEB 2021

Special Feature.

Intramoon

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Editor's note Hello readers, both new and old! We are so excited to share the second issue of S.Magazine with the community, and hope you all enjoy it as much as the last one. We have had many talented simmers join our team over the past couple months, and the whole team has been working hard to get this issue ready.

This issue is filled with winter themes, thoughts of love, and a welcome to the new year! We enjoyed hearing the community’s thoughts on Snowy Escape, and it allowed us to get a good insight as to how the community perceived the pack overall! Along with compiling reader’s thoughts on the pack, we’ve curated custom content to match and expand the CAS selection and are showcasing mods that enhance gameplay. As well as promoting amazing content created by the community, our builders have made some beautiful lots downloadable exclusively for readers!

S.Magazine will also be releasing an extended issue later in the month.

The extended issue will be solely dedicated to Black History Month. We are grateful to the wonderful creators who are working with us to get the extended issue ready, as well as generously sharing their stories.

The editors would like to take a moment before you continue reading to thank the rest of the staff for their talent and hard work. Thank you to the build team for your gorgeous and lively sets, the designers and their eye for style, the writers for their skill to compose, as well as the sim creators and their talent to make each one unique! Without this wonderful team the magazine would not be possible, and their hard work will never go unnoticed!

As always, suggestions, feedback, and comments are welcome! The S.Mag team is constantly striving to make this project one the whole community can enjoy, and that means hearing suggestions from readers. For more information on how to leave feedback, please see page 66.

Contents.

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Home for the Holidays Cozy Pajamas Lookbook

Valentine’s Picnic Date Downloadable Date Spot

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Welcome to Mt. Komorebi Snowy Escape Game Pack Review

Hopeless Romantic in all of us Writing Prompts

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New Years New Years Lookbook

A Date to Remember Valentines Date Lookbook

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The Electric Palace Downloadable Date Spot

Feature. Intramoon Content Creator & Storyteller

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What’s on your shelf?

Curated Simblr Stories

Valentine’s Date Spot Downloadable Lots

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Timeless Beauty Chinese New Year Lookbook

Scenes from the Flower Room Valentine’s Lookbook

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HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS Cozy pajamas for the whole family

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Mt. Komorebi 8

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Snowy Escape Game Pack Review

The cold winter settled in quickly, but there are always ways to make those snowy days exciting. Snowy Escape did just that! Following Nifty Knitting, Journey to Batuu, Eco Lifestyle, and Tiny Living, Snowy Escape was the fifth expansion pack to be released last year and is the tenth in total. Centered around a beautiful Japanese-inspired world with a multitude of activities to uncover, this pack certainly has something for most simmers.

The Sims 4 Snowy Escape introduces a number of cas items, build-buy assets, and much needed gameplay features while also providing exciting new activities for sims of all ages to enjoy. Snowy Escape introduces us to the beautiful, Mt. Komorebi.

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The world features three locations: Senbamachi the beautiful "old town" of the world, lush and green with the bamboo forest; Wakaba, the newer, up and coming area home to the Festival of Youth; and Yukimatsu, the tourist-y, permanently snow capped mountains of the world where more adventurous sims will find activities to keep their sim hours filled. We’ll be breaking down each part and giving the S. Mag Staff review as well as seeing what you, the simblr community, think of the pack as well.

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Create-A-Sim Snowy Escape introduces a number of hairs, winter sports gear, and Japanese inspired clothing all fitting for Mt. Komorebi. The new ombre additions for most feminine frame hairs stood out, providing much needed color choices in the limited EA palette. The meshes were clean and seemingly well made for each age group, but once again masculine frame hairs fell flat with only three choices in total.

Notably, many of the hairs were converted

for younger sims, expanding the catalogue; although, some found it frustrating to see only conversions, rather than one or two original hairs. Accessories and makeup were scarce, somewhat understandable, but missed opportunities nonetheless. It would have been great to see goggles in the glasses category for when sims are skiing down the slopes or an addition of barrettes and hair accessories instead of being stagnant on the hairs and accessories provided.

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Unlike previous packs, the items are evenly spread in terms of masculine and feminine framed clothing. Though most of the clothes play into the new world’s season and theme, items such as the big sweaters, casual bottoms, kimonos, and full body outfits could be seen on a sim anywhere. For those who don’t have Seasons, Snowy Escape provides a little bit of outerwear clothing options.

However, there is a lot of specific scenario clothing like snow & utility pants, outfits, tops, and especially footwear that are very specific to what the pack brings, but could potentially cross over into Eco Lifestyle.

Similarly in style, kids & toddlers received a lot more full body outfits geared towards cold weather which ended up being a supplement to what we got in Seasons. With these limited options however, it becomes a bit more difficult to crossover the content with other packs and worlds. It’s still possible, but very limited in choice.

Overall CAS ended up rather successful in mesh design and color swatches were full of fun and unique color choices while still sticking to the basics, something we haven’t always seen from the sims team.

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Build & Buy The build and buy items stuck to the Japanese-inspired theme, and fit into the new world seamlessly. In build mode you won’t find as many items and swatches as you’d expect from a game pack but the addition of sand lines, circles, and rocks leads to new landscaping concepts, but would have been more customizable with terrain paints which are lacking from recent packs. There’s also a lack of flowers and plants; in the Snowy Escape neighborhoods you see plants unique to the world like bamboo, bushes, and flowers that you are unable to find without debug or hidden objects.

The average player will most likely not utilize the debug objects, leaving their selection limited. What they did include in the build section is really well done and could be used across the sims universe in both style and swatches. Always a concern, the swatches are different but still stay true to the main color palette and can be used with other packs without having that weird difference in tone.

In buy mode, swatches are perfect for other pack builds and also fit a neutral color palette. A large concern falls onto the ski and snowboard equipment. When your sim stores their gear, the only options are to drop the item into your sim’s inventory or lay the item flat on the ground. A usable rack for snow equipment would have been a great addition, and would have allowed for a more practical use of space. Aesthetic wise the items looks and colors will please any player when building lots and not just residential but vacation homes, lodges, shops, etc.

The objects, like signs and plaques now having an impact on gameplay, specifically in actions, is a new feature that EA hopefully explores further. With the Hot Pot and Kotatsu table, your sims can create sentiments and ‘core memories’ by using them with other sims. This tie between an item’s use and outcome for a sim adds important depth that the game has been lacking.

Though there were missed opportunities, the overall design style will admittedly lead to using the items frequently in building and the concepts that we’re starting to see is a step in the right direction in correlation to gameplay.

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Gameplay

Snowy Escape followed a base game update that allowed all worlds to be vacation worlds with the introduction of the rental lot type. Mt. Komorebi came with two rental lots at the top of Yukimatsu, perfect for a snowy vacation. If your sim is looking for thrills or has the new Extreme Sports Enthusiast aspiration then this is your place to be.

With the base game update of sentiments, these two features can create a bit more variety to sims with the same traits.

The community thought the gameplay was overall enjoyable, especially thanks to the assortment of activities included. The introduction of sentiments and lifestyles also intrigued players, making it a favorite feature of the pack.

If your sim is more about the idyllic life, Mt. Komorebi has plenty to offer. Japanese onsens, hiking trails with the family, or visiting one of the festivals in the three neighborhoods are all available for this kind of sim. It includes Lifestyles, a brand new gameplay feature aimed at adding more personality beyond their mere traits and tutorial-like aspirations.

While many of the lots are solely shells, most agreed that the surrounding environment made up for it with its complexity and beauty.

The neighborhoods each had their own appeal, and the community was split as to which was their favorite!

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P

JustGeo Waist Bag

CC Finds

Druidsim SE Bob Ombre Hair Accessories AHarris00Britney SE Add On Pack

Spice up your mods folder with these Snowy Escape inspired cc finds.

Nucrests Solstice Jacket

Joliebean Summer in Mt. Komorebi

Oydis-cc Kanzashi Style Hair Ornaments 16

Reader’s Poll Favorite CAS Items

CAS

Build/Buy

Gameplay

7.6

8.7

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Reader’s Answers

Were you able to explore all 3 neighborhoods throughout the gameplay? Were there parts of new aspirations that can be improved?

Off Shoulder Top Favorite Neighborhoods

I wish the gameplay aspects were more in-depth, in terms of the activites introduced into the game. Particularly with skiing and snowboarding, there is little that involves the players, aside from watching your Sims repeatedly traverse to the top of the mountain, then make their way down. Some variation in that respect, and the opportunity for some more active involvement by the player, would have been much better, I think.

The festivals are somewhat lacking, as well, with few or no activities to do, aside from various forms of eating.

Having new activities, unique to each festival, would have been welcome.

Yukimatsu

Senbamachi

Favorite Gameplay Feature

I do like the hiking trails, however, and the various sightseeing opportunities that emerge along the way, as well as the opportunity to uncover new, hidden locations.

As for rock climbing, I do like how involved this activity is, and the fact that preparations and skill building have to take place before an excursion can be done successfully.

The peril involved in lack of preparedness and skill does add an element of thrill and excitement to the gameplay, in this regard.

Overall, the gameplay is decent, but I think it could be improved in key areas, as mentioned.

Are there any other comments you have about the pack as a whole?

Introduction of sentiments and lifestyles

My actual favorite thing about the pack is the world itself.

The landscape is very well crafted and has lots of nooks and crannies to explore just with your eyes.

Information is based on answers from 17 the s. magazine poll to readers.

New Y LOOK

Hair by Sleepingsims Top by Grimcookies Acc Top by Trillykke Skirt by Daisypixels Shoes by Sentate

Hair by Okruee Glasses by Magnolia-C Jacket by GorillaGorillaGorilla Jeans by Darte77 Shoes by Rona-sims

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Years BOOK

Hair by Clumsyalienn Suit Top by Joliebean Bottom by MysteriousDane Shoes by Ddaengsims

Hair by Enriques4 Acc 1 2 3 by S-Club Earrings by BlahberryPancake Jumpsuit by Saliwa Shoes by Madlensims

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the

ELECTRIC PALACE cinema

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Download Lot

The Electric Palace Cinema

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20 Happy New Year

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S Inheritance

by Cyberthot

Trigge strong lan blurred n

Trigger Warnings: NSFW, some violence, heavy themes.

Meet me in the ods Wolitera lite

The Montolvo’s

by

by Ambrosiaicecream

t death, old ings: Violen gun Trigger Warn mentions, blood, drug ce. age death, violence, violen

Trigger Warnings: 16+, Mature themes, supernatural horror. Tags - Trigger TW & Trigger CW.

Raskland by boolproppin

Clover Loves Color

Trigger Warnings: Adult topics, strong language, abusive relationships, drug use/addiction, navigating sexual identity, broken families, rape, and more.

by Solunasimmer Trigger Warnings: PG-13, bullying, mental health, teen pregnancy.

Rotation Play The Shit Show

r Britecheste NSB Redux

by Dettea

by Sammyshuno

ol

ings: Alcoh

Trigger Warn

What's On Y

Here is a curated list of ongoin that are sure to draw you in. Br pick something that interests and there are plenty of

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Southern Crest by fakeplasticsims

er Warnings: Violence, drugs, nguage, implied sexual content, nudity, child abuse mentioned [post is tagged]

Sims of the Dead

by Ladykendalsims

Ulterior Motives by glitch-sim

Trigger Warnings: Occasional strong language, discussion of prostitution.

Trigger Warnings: NSFW, horror, blood, violence, grief, death, dead bodies, nudity, sims spice.

Indya’s Story The Light Legacy

by Simblrinterests

by cinamun

Trigger Warnings: NSFW, 18+, sexual content, adult themes, nudity, and violence.

Trigger Warnings: PG-13, NSFW, Violence, blood, abuse, drugs, depression, grief, death, smoking, drinking.

Frozen Pines

by Softpine

Trigger Warnings: death, murder, mentions of child abuse & super natural elements.

Norman Legacy dern

by Deadlymo e& ings: Matur Trigger Warn bad language, es, sexual them race & ds gender, prejudice towar emotional abuse, ation, mption, sexual orient alcohol consu & ing injuries, smok ng, blood, underage drinki death. pregnancy,

List of all TW

Your Shelf ?

ng or completed Simblr stories rowse through the shelves and s you! No two stories are alike genres to choose from.

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XĪN

HAPPY

NIÁN

KUÀ I

NEW 26

LÈ

YEAR

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Timeless

Beauty 29

Hair by Curbs Earrings bySentate Dress by Joliebean

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Left Hair by Anto Earrings by Yakfarm Brooch by Yakfarm Watch by Madlensims Dress by Sentate Shoe by citronart Right Hair by Curbs Earrings by Sentate Necklace by Sentate Bracelet by Sentate Dress by Sentate

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Left Hair by Simpliciaty Earrings by Natalis Necklace by Natalis Watch by Madlen Dress by Bedisfull Right Hair by Curbs Earrings by Murphysims Necklace by Sentate Dress by Gladlypants

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Wishing you an

ox-picious year!

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hold me in your arms even if i am fragile like a dream ~ A L E X A N D R A VA S I L I U

Download Valentines Picnic Lot

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PROMPTS FOR THE

Hopeless Romantic in all of us Valentine’s Day is truly what you make of it.

Whether it’s spending time with friends or a loved one, the memories make it magical.

Writing about these magical moments is a great way to enhance your story, and here are some prompts to help get you started.

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If you want more control over the scene, quote prompts are a great way to go. These prompts give you the creative freedom to construct your own setting, choose your interactions, and they can be interpreted in many different ways.

One quote can provide as many stories as your imagination allows. Here are some great starters:

I’m allergic to chocolate…

How did you know these were my favorite flowers?

I made this for you!

Will you be my Valentine?

Oh no… I forgot.

I want it to be special.

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Envisioning a scene can sometimes be difficult, but worry not, here are some full prompts to help start your story:

01.

You’re skimming the shelves of an old library and something catches your eye. The twinkling spine to a dusty book, just waiting to be opened, is whispering your name as you slowly weave through the narrow stacks to reach it.

Carefully brushing the dust off of the cover page you read "Potions and Spells for When You’ve Found the One." As you flip through the pages, the text seems to softly glow.

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The winter breeze bites at your nose as you walk along the sidewalk. The shops pass you by, and you feel the air growing colder the further you go. A familiar face clumsily waves at you from across the street. You can’t tell if you’re blushing or if the wind has finally frozen your cheeks, but you greet them back. They hand you a to-go mug and you feel the warmth from the cup intertwine with your fingers.

03.

The icy path in front of you is taunting both you and your friend. The winter sun glimmers off of its surface, almost as if to challenge you both. The two of you proudly accept and begin walking, trying to keep your feet steady as they glide over the glossy sheets of ice. One patch of ice was much more daunting than either of you expected, and your foot slips out from underneath you. Luckily, your friend was there to catch your fall. The clouded air falling from your lips dances through the wind as you struggle to catch your breath. It only worsens when you finally realize how close your frost-bitten faces are.

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A Date Reme

skin | outfit | shoes

dress | bag | shoes 42

e to ember

outfit | shoes

43

hat | top |

sweater | pants | shoes

sweater jacket | skirt | bag

shirt | pants | so 44

overalls | shoes sweater jacket | skirt | bag | shoes

choker | top | jumpsuit | shoes

ocks | shoes 45

Intramoon Content Creator, Storyteller

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with Intramoon

Please introduce yourself.

My name is Anastasia, although most people call me Asia! I am twenty-two, from Arizona, USA. I am in university majoring in Journalism and minoring in History. I am a story-teller, photoshop resource maker, and a somewhat retired ReShade creator.

How long have you played the Sims for?

I started to play around the time The Sims 3 Late Night came out! I can remember downloading sims off the Exchange for their custom content before I even knew what custom content was. I used to wonder why my game was always broken, now I know.

Do you have a certain style that you go for when creating your sims?

Not particularly but like how digital artists have a style with their artwork, we all have a style with our sims content.

I find myself drawn to strong facial features like sharp jawlines and strong brows. Although, I do have a soft spot for delicate features. I am regularly inspired by people within the community to step outside my comfort zone, and even though I am not always successful in those attempts it’s good practice.

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Where do you get the inspiration to begin editing and story-writing?

The two have different answers. My inspiration for my story content comes from my life experiences and my perspective on particular topics. My characters represent different facets of my personality. Their relationships are a reflection of my relationships, their selfimage is a reflection of my self-image, and the same goes for a multitude of other aspects of their lives. Writing is therapeutic and helps me process what I’ve experienced. I started writing my story when I was 12 as I struggled with understanding my sexuality. I used writing their story to cope with feelings of uncertainty and confusion. Having been able to unapologetically be me through my characters has helped me immensely throughout my teen and adult life.

My main inspiration for editing comes from others in the community. I did not even consider when I joined Simblr the possibilities of what you could do with sims screenshots and photoshop. After seeing what others were able to create with the game, I wanted to try it myself!

I am consistently inspired to try new approaches and techniques from reading other simmers editing processes. As of recently, cinematography has changed how to edit. I’ll always have a lot to learn.

*Story visuals are not in order.

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with Intramoon

Read the visual story

Brutally Soft

Do you typically create all of your story scenes from scratch?

Building and decorating are not my strong areas by any means. Although I have managed to do some builds, I find myself editing other people’s public downloads mostly! There are lots of great resources out there and I try to take advantage of them when I can! Ideally, I’d love to improve my decorating and building skill so I can better create the worlds in my head.

What is your process when creating a new PSD or ReShade preset?

I have a technical process for creating photoshop resources and ReShade presets. For example, with ReShade I configure the shaders in a particular order. Some resources require some research on how to create them, especially stylist actions like glitches.

Aside from that, I do not have a process.

I’ve used color palettes to create ReShade presets, occasionally I will use reference photos for colorgrades but mostly it is just a result of me playing around in ReShade/photoshop for hours.

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Do you have any tips for simmers who want to create their own ReShade presets?

I have had people ask me for a tutorial on how to make ReShade presets in the past, which I am writing, but it’s difficult to have a definitive answer because there is not a right and wrong way to create a preset per se. My recommendation would be, start with editing presets you’ve downloaded from other creators, for personal use. It’s a good form of practice and will help you understand how each shader works. After you have gotten more familiar with the settings, using a clean ReShade file, start to work on your own.

It is a process of trial and error. The more you make, the more opportunities you have to learn.

Intraverrt Download Photoshop Resources

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*Story visuals are not in order.

with Intramoon

Finally, are there any PhotoShop editing tips you’d like to share?

Tutorials from simmers within the community are a great way to learn foundational editing techniques, such as shading and highlighting. After you’ve established a good foundation, I highly recommend branching outside of Simblr and looking through general tutorials about photoshop. For example, photo manipulation tutorials have loads of good information that can be used in your editing! My biggest tip would be learning how to colorgrade. Colorgrading can be the difference between a simplistic bedroom scene, a melancholy rainy scene, or an ethereal morning scene. It allows you to transform the world. It’s a bit of an underrated tool, but incredibly helpful if you choose to use it.

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Love runs out quickly, but eventually you will find someone willing to share theirs.

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Build by Mari

Download Valentines Cafe Lot 56

Build by Alka

Download Bookstore Cafe Lot 57

Hair by Sims Dress by Jo Rings by Christop Necklace by Dio 58

Made with Love

strouble oliebean pher067 osasims 59

NES FROM THE

Flower Room E SC

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Hair by QICC Hairband by Okruee Earrings by Diorasims Dress by Yunseol Socks by Trilykke Shoe by Madlen Pose by Helgatisha

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Hat by Hanraja Hair by Okruee Earrings by SakuraFlora Outfit by Yunseol Socks by Trillyke Shoe by Madlensims Pose by Roselipa

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Hat by Hanraja Hair by Savvysweet Earrings by Pralinesims Outfit by Marigold Tights by Daisypixels Socks by Trillyke Shoe by Madlensims Pose by Roselipa

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What would you like to see in the next issue?

Did you have trouble finding a certain piece of cc, or are you looking for something that matches your style? What about certain types of builds, but have had no luck when browsing the gallery? Send in some suggestions on what you might want to see in the next issue!

Submit Here

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We want you!

We are in search of dedicated simmers who would love to join our team and help produce more exciting and engaging issues! If you have the extra time on your hands, as well as the necessary experience, come and join us!

POSITIONS OPENED Designers & Builders

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Thank you.

Credits to our team members, both new and old, for all of their hard work and dedication throughout the process of this issue. Without them S.Magazine would not be possible, so be sure to click on their pictures and check them out!

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Tera, terrahji Editor-in-chief

Cara, hazelsnakes Lead Editor / Writer

Kate, snoozesims Sim Creator / Designer

Jasmine, pancakesim Designer / Writer

Alka, goldenhour-s Builder

Mari, marigolde Builder

Sierra, sierragracedesigns Builder

Rhii, instantrhiiplay Designer

Tati, lotusplum Sim Creator / Writer

additional credits go to Malley (littlegaycc), Charlie (anxiousmoodlet) & Samuel (goattrait) 69

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