Sim City (3000) Succession Session

[Quintillus]

Welcome to New Galway!

"A growing town with lots of debt, but lots of farms and lots of potential!"

With the recent release of Sim City 3000 Unlimited on Steam, I thought it would be fun to play it again, and was reminded of the Sim City 4 succession session that we had here at CivFanatics in 2013 - 2014. It proved to be a lot of fun to see the evolution of a city with multiple people running the show, and I thought, why not try it in Sim City 3000 as well?

And for the time being, you can grab Sim City 3000 Unlimited on Steam for $2 (regular price $5), or if you prefer, you can pick it up on GOG for $10. Either version, or, as far as I'm aware, a patched CD version, ought to work.

The SC4 succession session rules worked pretty well, so I'll keep them:

The way I figure this works is:

-One person controls the city for 5 years, and has absolute control for that period; nothing is sacred (although, don't be a jerk and go around razing everything your predecessor did)

-After their 5 years they save the city, compress it in Zip form and upload it here, along with a summary of what they've done. In what form and how long and detailed is at your discretion, but we're all pretty curious about what's being done.

-They then pass on the city to the next person who downloads it (to Steam/steamapps/common/Sim City 3000 Unlimited/cities) and opens it in game, and then can, again, do what they like

This carries on ad infinitum until we decide to start again on another city having left the first in total bankruptcy... or something

Rotation

In order to give people an opportunity to revisit the city later, I'll keep a limit of 6 people in the active rotation.

Active Rotation

Quintillus
*Your username here*

On hold

Having withdrawn from the active rotation due to insufficient time to play, these people have the first option to re-join

[no one]

On the Waitlist

Potential city council presidents, ready to step in should someone withdraw from the Active Rotation

[no one]

----

No mods are being used (one of the big advantages of playing SC3K), but if you experience the "too fast of scrolling" issue, you may want to apply the fix in this GOG post to get the game running perfectly.

The current version can be downloaded from this post (1905). Please note that the most recent reply should be checked for newer versions.

The Story So Far

The first five years has been played; look for a writeup soon!

 

[Kyriakos]

3000. How time flies ^^

 

[Quintillus]

Part One: Establishing a Foundation

Welcome to New Galway! Our group of settlers has found a promising new area to found a city, especially that island in the middle. But, for now, we have more modest ambitions - becoming financially stable enough to repay our starting loan.

The first Council President, Quintillus, decides that buying a power plant is too expensive. Instead, a connection to the neighbors is made. And the waiting begins...

Happily, we're soon notified that our neighbor of Sorenville has excess power capacity.

We happily accept, and when the power is connected on March 1, 1900, our city begins to grow immediately. 237 people have moved in by month's end - and hopefully more will soon, as we aren't making enough money to pay off our new electrical agreement yet, much less then loan.

By June, the census counts 666 people, and we are named to a top 10 list of most diabolical new cities as a result, prompting a flurry of religious concern over what this bodes for the future of the town . But the neighborhood is developing.

Unfortunately, not many of the residents are Amish, as their speed at raising barns leaves much to be desired. But by August, our first barn has been raised, and we have a full-fledged farm up and running.

Pity that so many children won't eat mono-colored cereals, as that's our economic specialty right now...

Demand for residential abodes proves to be nearly insatiable, and that only accelerates in November, when a group of urbanites move in from Albany, after the scandal in which the governor was discovered to be a mule. Our first motel opens the day after Christmas, and a few houses are redecorated for the holidays as gingerbread houses as well.

But not all is festive; the annual budget review meeting on January 2nd shows concerning signs.

$1200 per year of our expenses are loan repayment, so we aren't making enough money. We're also over-paying for electricity; although the rate is $9 per 1000 MWHr, which would be about $66 per year, the minimum payment jacks that up to $360 per year, or about $50 per MWHr. Still cheaper than an underutilized coal plant? Maybe, and it saves a lot of upfront cost. But it hints that more building might help.

Thus, the city decides to borrow another $10,000, to fund expansion. Critics point out that doubling the loan payment to $2400/year while doubling the income to $1500/year doesn't add up to profit, but finance degrees are not required to be on the city council.

Thus, expansion continues. New farms, new housing, and... hey, are those some strange clouds up there or what?

Very circular, not moving... oh well, the weather's odd around here sometimes. Although, sadly, those clouds obscure the February 1901 lunar eclipse.

By July, over 5000 people live in New Galway, and the mayor is awarded a house... hmm, where to put it?

Meanwhile, the 10th graders propose building an awesome haunted house.

So many things to build! And the next thing we know, people are asking for a Farmer's Market as well.



But of course! Farming is the heart of our economy, and what better way to encourage our citizens to buy our wheat, potatoes, and leeks?

In September, our new Haunted House opens, in the hills above the newest farmland.



It is also decided to start an industrial zone near the coast, with the hope of eventually being able to afford a seaport to help bring it all to market.



This is all well and good, but at the 1902 budget meeting, it's clear there's a problem.



The good news is, while we made $750 in new income from our first loan, we made $850 in our second - all while not increasing our power bill. The bad news is, each loan adds $1200 of new repayments per year, meaning we're still underwater.

Around the turn of the year, a proposal started to be floated around - what if New Galway became the landfill zone for our neighbors? The issue becomes more urgent as our financial advisor comes in and announces that we are broke.



But he says he's not overly concerned, so the City Council decides that this is fine, and takes another loan.



Not that everyone is unconcerned - the Fiscal Watchdogs soon call for us to cancel our power import agreement to save money.



On our City Planner's advice, we keep it. But we have built a landfill to pursue New Galway's dreams of being financially sustainable via garbage, built road connections to our neighbors to enable that, and soon enough, opportunity knocks on the door.



Unfortunately, it's far less money than we had hoped for, and it's clear this is not going to solve the problem. And at $6/100 tons, with 82,000 tons of capacity, that's 6 * 820 to fill the landfill, or $4900. We spent $50 per plot, for 25 plots of landfill, adding up to $2500 of landfill expenses. Thus it's profitable to import trash... but not nearly as profitable as we had hoped, especially given that we aren't importing whole landfills worth of trash.

Realizing that this won't solve the problem, the city decides to do what it does best instead, and take out a mid-year loan, of $20,000 this time.

Several new residential neighborhoods are zoned, as well as a higher-density industrial zone.



To serve this industrial zone, a water tower and the town's first central water system are developed, to serve that area. It will, of course, be extended to other areas as well... as soon as we stop bleeding cash.

The city passes 10,000 residents in the spring of 1902, and the rest of the year is spent frantically building new neighborhoods. By the end of the year, the population has doubled in a year, to just shy of 17,000... but the budget is still not in great shape.



Compared to a year ago, expenses have more than doubled, as has income. We've gone from covering just over 56% of our expenses, to just under 58%. That is progress!

It does improve somewhat as new neighborhoods are built out. But still, there is a problem.

By June, a new farm, new residents, and a developing industrial zone have bumped income enough to cover over 70% of expenses. Real progress, and we're excited to see the smokestacks in the industrial zone.



The milestone of 20,000 people is met, and a City Hall is approved.



But at the same time, complaints about not having the amenities of other cities are piling up - police, fire, parks, schools. Well, some of the kids don't mind the lack of the latter, but it is a problem nonetheless.

And it's no idle concern, as evidence by the news of a major shoplifting incident.



At year's end, it's once again time for the budget - which looks better.



Fully 78% of expenses are covered by income. Raising taxes to 9% would almost break even, and to 10% would create a surplus. But Council President Quintillus knows that raising taxes in the last year of your term is not a smart move politically. Issuing loans to fund your expenses and leaving the problem to your successor is a much safer alternative.

Thankfully, however, at just about this time, another opportunity arrives.



Just what we needed! The prison offer is gratefully accepted, and a location quickly selected.



Unfortunately, the water grid didn't quite reach the location, so another $10,000 simoleon loan was issued to extend the grid.

Satisfied that balancing the budget is a difficult job well done, Council President Quintillus decides it's time to build a proper City Coucil President's house, and chooses an idyllic location on a peninsula by the Hudson River for it.



The water grid is extended to the new house, and coincidentally through the neighborhoods along the way, and the city is up to three water towers.

City scientists make an important discovery that summer of 1904:



Now the only problem - where to find eckleberry marmalade???

By late summer, our financial advisor Mortimer Green has good news for us:



Quintillus celebrates by zoning a new neighborhood and a new farm. And, by year's end, the population has just reached 25,000 - 25,046 to be precise.

The city also, at last, has a surplus.



Thank goodness for prisons! And that extra $50K in loans that were issued to fund this growth - all in all, we've only spend about $2.20 per resident attracted to the city! Happy to leave the next city president with a little bit of cash, a small surplus, and an intact credit rating, Quintillus takes one last view from the Council President's house, before boarding an ocean liner from nearby Sorenville for a vacation to somewhere with more parks, schools, culture, seaports, railroads... and pretty much everything else that New Galway still lacks.



Continue the game with this save! Please leave a post to note that you'll be the next City Council President!

 

[Smellincoffee]

Mayor Smellincoffee, in a surprise result, has assumed office.

 

[Smellincoffee]

Mayor Smellincoffee roared into office channeling Huey P. Long, vowing to be a man of the people. He immediately legalized gambling, and people who flocked to suddenly play 'charity bingo' or bet on the SimCity Llamas were too distracted to notice he'd also imposed parking fines and hiked taxes to 9% across the board.




His first project was to begin expanding the water supply, establishing pumps and beginning a pipe network to serve the people. He expanded the network steadily throughout the next five years so that by the time he left office almost all neighborhoods would have water.






Trade with neighbors brought both income and outgo -- he had to begin buying power at a higher rate, but also agreed to accept garbage at a higher rate. After the drastic changes of the first year, the coffers began growing and the city began taking shape. Two schools were established, West and East Side elementary, and -- as the election year approached -- each neighborhood received a little park.


There was some minor growth these five years. Mostly what grew was government -- as police and fire departments were established, as was a hospital. A minor tremor acoss the river also led to earthquake retrofitting ordinances. Although the mayor did not accomplished what he wanted (he'd hoped, privately, to lure a casino into town, but his cousin Vinnie never showed up), he could comfortably say he'd left the town improved for its five years.

========
Note: I had to play this four times because I kept forgetting to slow down in December so I could save on 1/1/1910. I took the same actions in every playthrough, but the placement of buildings drifted a bit.

 

[Quintillus]

My goodness, you've introduced multiple government services! Fire protection, schools, water supply, parks - this town is becoming somewhere decent to live! Certainly a more pleasant place than when I left office and the main amenities were the prison and the landfill!

I had to play this four times because I kept forgetting to slow down in December so I could save on 1/1/1910. I took the same actions in every playthrough, but the placement of buildings drifted a bit.

Assuming it's kind of close, I don't see it as important that it's 1/1/1910. I know in the SC4 one we were occasionally off by a few weeks. Not really sure where the threshold would be, if it's 1915 already that's a bit far, but replaying three times is a lot!

There's also the "Auto Budget" option which is sort-of broken in the GOG/Steam versions. With the CD version, if that box is unchecked (the default), the budget panel pops up every January 1st, so it's hard to miss it. But in the Steam/GOG versions, while it's still un-checked by default, the pop-up/pause doesn't happen. You have to go to the preferences, check "Auto Budget", close the preferences, and then to the same and uncheck it, and then it will take effect (for that session). I wish there were a more permanent fix, but that sequence is still likely faster than replaying.

-----------

Does anyone else want to throw their hat in the ring for mayor? I'm thinking wait a week (until 4/17) to see if we can get a three-plus-person rotation, and if not, I'll play 1910 - 1914?

 

[Smellincoffee]

I can wait.. I have Imperial Ambitions' demo to try. I forget to mention: we were awarded a lighthouse (too expensive to build) and a courthouse and city hall. At least, in one of the saves. I think the save I uploaded only had the courthouse. I usually like to make those two the heart of a commercial zone, so I let them be for now.

 

[Quintillus]

1910 to 1915 has been played... screenshot formatting pending. Will replace this post with the story once it's ready!

 

[Smellincoffee]

1910 to 1915 has been played... screenshot formatting pending. Will replace this post with the story once it's ready!

Sorry, didn't see this before I messaged you. I was off at a concert in Georgia (followed by a day-hike) this past weekend. Looking forward to seeing what's transpired!

 

[Patine]

Sorry, didn't see this before I messaged you. I was off at a concert in Georgia (followed by a day-hike) this past weekend. Looking forward to seeing what's transpired!

Which Georgia?

 

[Smellincoffee]

Which Georgia?

The one furthest from Russia!

 

[Quintillus]

Part Three: 1910 to 1915

Quintillus re-entered office to see New Galway a different place than he had left it. True, it was about the same size, but it had a school system that was receiving A grades, a properly-sized hospital, and a police and fire department. It had even paid off one of its loans, and Mayor Smellincoffee had managed to make so many improvements without issuing any more loans.

Quintillus therefore elected to pursue financially responsible stewardship for a change.

One of his first petitioners was the Mayor of Sorenville, who offered to solve New Galway's garbage problem.



Wait a second... aren't we importing trash? Sure enough, Sorenville was offering to import trash at the same rate at which we were importing it... essentially making our roads a garbage conduit at no profit to us. The landfill was only 62% full, and the cash from the deal was more than half our annual surplus, so we declined.

Quintillus did find one problem to solve - rampant crime in the industrial district. Goods being stolen before they could be shipped to customers, horse-drawn carts hijacked - something had to be done. And thus, the Industrial District Police Station was built.



The police chief still complained about cops being as scarce as hen's teeth after the expansion, but considering the five large farms on the outskirts of town, the Mayor reminded her that hen's teeth were not particularly rare in New Galway. There was still time to find a new police chief and secure their endorsement before the re-election campaign!

With most of the remainder of the funds, Quintillus built a small new neighborhood by one of the schools.



This wasn't sufficient to cause the population to reliably stay above 25,000, so the next year, the land on the opposite side of the school was developed, and another neighborhood was built.



The next project was in 1912, an attempt to develop an area of apartment buildings. The area by the fire station and first police station, and one of the two schools, was chosen as a hub of amenities. It took a few months to sort through the paperwork and utilities, but by year's end, some drab new apartments were opening their doors.



In the middle of 1912, the mayor of Sparks requested a change in the garbage deal.



This amounted to an 80% increase in trash that we'd import, for the same rate-per-hundred-tons. The increase in funds was welcome, and the problem of where to put the trash not immediate (despite what the Mayor of Sorenville may tell you), so we gladly accepted.

Water, however, was another matter. A new pumping station was built to handle the increased demand, which had reached 99% of capacity.

Also up for debate was the Junior Sports Ordinance.



What a frivolous waste of money! Or... actually, Quintillus agreed with his health and education advisor. At two simoleons per month, the benefits of this vastly outweighed the costs. It would stay on the books.

This also provided the motivation for the first project of 1913 - the opening of the Junior Sports Community Ballpark.



A request to save 24 simoleons per year had resulted in an expenditure of 2500 - be careful what you petition about!

On the other side of that zone, Quintillus inaugerated New Galway City College.



Over 10% of the population immediately enrolled, a demand that surprised everyone at the Mayor's House. Combined with the school system, over 10,000 Sims were now students, out of a population of just under 29,000.

The population surpassed 30,000 for the first time in September, 1913, and the area around the ballpark was proving to be the most desirable part of the city, with medium-value properties springing up. The first midrange rowhouse opened in October.



Things were looking bright. That is, until the sky darkened under a plague of locusts.



Quintillus figured the locusts probably had arrived based on faulty intelligence, as the last farm had recently closed, taken over by light industry. Indeed, they ate a few trees, and departed towards Sorenville.

1914 saw a new type of development - New Galway's first power plant.



This would save about $450 per year in electric imports, paying for itself in a little over a decade. Yes, it was a bit dirty, but building a cleaner oil-burning plant would have required taking out a loan, something Quintillus had vowed not to do.

The central apartment area also continued to receive investment, with a park built next to the baseball diamond for parents to walk while their kids participated in junior sports, and a library opened next to the City College.



That summer, Quintillus received good news about the clean New Galway air.



Good thing the report was due when it was! It probably would have been less rosy had it been released a little bit later.

By mid-1914, the annual report card on the schools had dropped to a "B" grade, with overcrowding cited as a problem. Similar problems were occurring with healthcare. It would soon be time for new schools and hospitals - but what could have been spent on them had been spent on the library instead.

Another looming problem was garbage - the landfill was approaching 90% full. The sweet smell of money flowing into city coffers had masked the problem for years, but that wouldn't be a viable path indefinitely.

And Quintillus's political opponents would capitalize on these potential problems in 1915. With the police union backing his opponent, the re-election campaign was narrowly lost. The central area by the ballpark was his stronghold of support, but Sims elsewhere wanted change, and perhaps some investment in their neighborhoods as well.

Population: 29,065
Annual surplus: $7104
Life expectancy: 54 years
Education Quotient: 60

The save is now attached! (That would've been helpful!)

 

[Smellincoffee]

With a brass band inexplicably booming "Pennsylvania Polka", Mayor-Elect Smellincoffee has promised to attack the garbage problem head on.

 

[Smellincoffee]

At his first State of the City address, Mayor Smellincoffee addressed the People. "Now lissen here, when I first got in office, you didn't have SCHOOLS! You didn't have HOSPITALS! You didn't have NUTHIN! This administration, we're bringing you the services you NEED. Now, I took some years off, I enjoyed myself fishin', and talkin' to the People, but now I'm BACK! And we're gonna bring the PEOPLE what they need again, now."

Turning to his advisors, the Mayor chuckled. "Truth is, it was that coal power plant did the campaignin' work for me. If I'd had the money I'd done it myself, but the way it turned out my opposition built it, and instead of that ballpark and whathave you alll they remember is the black smoke and Daddy dyin' of lung cancer. Well, that's politics."

The Mayor had an eventful first year. He eyed the new industrial district taking over the farms and said with a shrug, "I'm glad they went during HIS term instead of mine", and then ordered the expansion of roads and water service to meet the new demand. He established a new school, ordering West Side School to redesignate itself Central High School, and then realized he'd need to built another and figured all this re-naming would get very cumbersome. "You just name yourself after somebody admirable for the time bein'. We aim to grow so fast that these little names won't make much of a hill of difference, none."


Giving The People what they needed, the Mayor steadily added more fire stations, police stations, hospitals, and schools throughout his administration.


No more will trash overshadow the people, sir, we're buildin' a park, a genui-wine nature reserve, and we're sending their trash elsewhere.

In his second year, a big ol' casino became the centerpiece of a new commercial district. The govnu- err, the Mayuh -- was visibly delighted. Everyone was so happy to go losing their money playing blackjack that they didn't pay any attention whatsoever to trailer parks and the like bein' taken over by apartments. Shrugging off accusations that he was in the pockets of dirty money, the Mayor pointed to his actions otherwise. "You got garbage pilin' up in your back yards? No more, sir, no more. From now on that garbage is goin' across the river. And never you mind how the logistics works, it just does. God works in mysterious ways, and so does your mayor. You need a jail? We got a jail. And it's right next to the dump. And we're moving the dirty coal, too, oncet we get enough money to power electricity across the river."


The beginnings of the new city dump, far away from The People.


The taxes too high? Let's ask Mr. Green.


.....okay, fine. We'll lower commercial and industrial, but not residential because you people keep wanting in.


That's a fine idea, that's fine. I am the Mayor, and I am You! The People!


That's a fine staute of The People, only make his jawline a little stronger. The People has a fine jaw, a manly jaw.

In 1918, the City held its first Christmas Parade in front of a newly-minted statue of the Mayor, later surrounded by parks and fountains.



One issue the Mayor was not able to address was traffic. "I got an idea," he said, "I got an idea of big long cars that come pick everybody up whose goin' to the same places, from the aparment block to the factory, say, only we haven't quite got there yet. Nobody's building the big long cars. But It's going to happen. If not in my administration, then in the next."


The City at the Mayor's next exit. Don't mind them random libraries none, they investments. For the Future.



State of the City, 1920:
Pop: 53, 630 (+++)
Budgeted Surplus: 7, 632 (+)
Life Expectancy: 54 years
Education Quotient: 64 (+)


--

My "mayor" is entirely based on interpretations of Huey P. Long....a crook, but a crook with a heart for The People.

 

[Smellincoffee]

(My mouse was having an issue, so there are .....weird piping paths and libraries in the middle of nowhere, but let's just attribute it to good old-fashioned corruption...)

TLDR version of that mayoral report: I focused on moving the dump to the far end of the map, and maximizing our layout by upgrading low-density zones to medium-density. I added city services as needed. I had hoped to destroy the exiting coal plant and move everything to a map border, but didn't have enough money for electrical bridges across the river.