Sim of the Week

 

I volunteered to write this column for this week, and the first challenge I faced was: How do I choose a sim to write about?

 

While pondering this, my gaze happened to fall on the plastic Captain Jack Sparrow toy sitting (for some unexplained reason) on my desk. Aha, I would write about a pirate sim!

Entering the word "pirate" brought many returns, but most of them were Gorean sims. Among those that weren't, I spied Nefarious Wonderment, and I knew that would be the sim I visited. With a name like that, it has to be good, right?

Teleporting to the location of Nefarious Wonderment on the Temptress Falls sims, I landed on a circular pad with a pentagon and other symbols upon it. Looking around once things finally began to rezz, I noted that I was in a market.

Unlike most sky markets that seem to be built with a collection of same shaped cardboard boxes, the market here features varying architecture with a decidedly gothic vibe. I eagerly scanned the contents of the shops for pirate-y goodness.

I wasn't expecting to instead find attire for the demons among us. I also saw a shop with Gorean clothing, so my curiosity about this sim grew by leaps and bounds. With some trepidation and hope, I spied the sign "Nefarious Wonderment: What's (Bleep)ing You Tonight" over a store.

I lagged on over, crossing the bridge spanning a river of red hot lava, and found a mishmash collection of products for sale. One wall offered Temptress Turkey as well as a Bucket of Heads. Meanwhile, along another wall, a group of torture devices beckoned in an enchanting manner.

At this point, I started to wonder if I would even be able to write about this place, as it surely seemed to be dark and XXX-rated. But I pressed on, mainly in the hopes of playing pirate wench. Argh!!

I could rave about the ship I also saw for sale in this store, as it's a beauty aptly named Sea Witch, but since this article is already at 345 words, and I'm still in the market, I thought it best to move on. Though I will note that - yes! - the market did offer pirate attire. *adjusts the patch over one eye*

As I headed back towards the landing point, my single exposed eye widened in amazement: Each of the four teleporters into the sim had the word "roleplay" over them.

I'm a huge fan of roleplay, so I was excited to find myself exploring such a place. Now, if only I could get the rules of conduct notecard to load.

When it finally did, I found that the rules were pretty standard. Respect everyone. No underage roleplay. No griefing, abuse or harassment. A rule I had never encountered before was "Keep a respectable distance from anyone engaged in intimate acts unless expressly invited to watch."

I had hoped to find a notecard giving the roleplay background, but with none in sight, I clicked on one of the teleporters and headed down to "Cove of Despair."

Landing on the sim below, I found that the Cove of Despair truly lived up to its name, with pieces of a nearby wrecked ship floating away on swirling eddies. Among the ship's carnage were boxes that give out information, starters kits and combat meters. One box also provides the notecard on the roleplay background.

If this were an article reviewing the sim, I would have some harsh words for the story of this sim. Instead, I'll only say that a princess finds an island, promises the Neko Goddess there that she will take care of it and its people, and then "her minions began to harvest the essence of the island."

As I looked inland from the shipwreck, I saw a cave and headed in to explore. There were several tunnels leading off from the main portion of the cave, and the one that I followed led me to another area that had its own teleporter.

Temptress Sands is a small area to the left of the Cove of Despair. While I took the less scenic route to get there, I also could have simply followed the short path that led through rocks. Temptress Sands is a small area, but beautiful, with pretty blue water, a raft for relaxing on and plenty of palm trees.

My next teleport was to the Cave of Tranquility. On first landing, I was a bit confused, as a giant tree house greeted me instead of the expected cave. But after some exploring, I did find the entrance to the cave and was captivated by the beauty inside. A waterfall creates a pool of water, decorated with greenery and plenty of poseballs for cuddling with loved ones.

Teleporting to the Slaver's Dock, I realized I had unwittingly saved the best for last. The first thing to rezz was a gorgeous waterfall across from the landing point. Gradually, more and more of the area sharpened, and I found myself in a very dark and scary place.

An upraised slab of stone hosts a black tree, while nearby stakes set deep into the ground await hapless victims. A nearby open shanty provides blacksmith services, including collars, I'm sure. But what most caught my attention was the large building to one side.

It's a tavern which provides an instant visualization of dangerous looking men swilling ale while watching beautiful girls dancing and discussing the price of the lot of slaves held in the pens one floor below. Exploring it led me to a tunnel that was barred by a cage door.

There are more buildings high on a hill above the dock, and this area seems to be for a higher class of people then those who would frequent the docks. I spent a lot of time exploring this sim, and I am happy to say that there is still much left to discover.

I hope you'll head there as well and see the sim for yourself. I think it's well worth a visit.