How to Stop Your Sims from Dying in The Sims 4: An Expert Simmer‘s Guide
As a longtime Simmer, I‘ve mourned the loss of many beloved Sims over the years. Like any all-powerful deity, I‘ve also resurrected just as many! Death is inevitable in The Sims 4, but with cheats, clever tactics, and passion for the game, you can save your Sims from their untimely demise. This definitive guide will make you a master of death-defying gameplay.
The Inevitability of Death in The Sims
Death has always played a pivotal role in The Sims franchise. From drownings in the original 2000 release to the 11 unique death types in The Sims 4, our digital humans have never been truly immortal.
According to The Sims Wiki, the normal Sim lifespan is around 100 Sim days on the default "Normal" aging speed. Without intervention, Sims will eventually die of old age. However, the probability of dying prematurely from other causes is a constant threat!
| Death Type | Example Causes |
|---|---|
| Drowning | Pool ladder removals, failing to swim |
| Electrocution | Repairing electronics poorly |
| Hunger | Neglecting a toddler‘s needs |
| Fire | Cooking mishaps, pyromaniac Sims |
| Rocket Crash | Space exploration gone wrong |
| Overexertion | Overdoing physical activities |
| Cowplant | Getting too close to a hungry plant |
| Laughter | Literally laughing yourself to death |
As a devote Simmer myself, I too have suffered the pain of attachment and loss in my virtual families. One of my favorite Sims, Locasta Moon, died at the peak of her artist career when her easel tragically burst into flames (somehow). She shall be remembered!
But with new knowledge, you can conquer death itself in TS4. This guide will make you a true god among your Sims by stopping death in its tracks.
Turning Off Death Entirely with Cheats
The easiest way to banish death from your game completely is through cheat codes. For us experienced Simmers, cheats are a great way to focus on storytelling and design over gameplay constraints.
Here are the steps to toggle aging and death in The Sims 4:
- Open the cheat console by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + C during gameplay.
- Type testingcheats true and press enter to enable cheats.
- Enter sims.add_buff buff_death_toggle_availability and press enter again.
- Finally, type death.toggle false to disable all Sim deaths and press enter.
You can later re-enable Sim deaths with the same command death.toggle true.
This handy cheat makes your Sims invincible against all causes of death! Of course, it eliminates a core part of the game drama and challenge, but is perfect for building, design-focused stories, or simply avoiding prematurely losing a favorite Sim.
According to SimGuruNick, this specific cheat has been updated since earlier Sims titles to be more expansive and encompassing. Prior games had separate toggles for disabling aging versus deaths.
Open the cheat console in The Sims 4 to quickly toggle aging and death on or off. (Source: EA)
Pleading with Death Personified
Even with cheats off, you can still bargain for a Sim‘s life when the dreaded Grim Reaper arrives. When he spawns to claim your Sim, immediately pause the game. Interact with him and select the "Beg for Life" option.
Your Sim will now desperately plead for their survival through jokes, bribes, distractions, praise, and more based on their current mood. Custom content creators have expanded these options even further with mods.
According to testing and commentary by prominent Simmer CallMeKevin, a Sim‘s chance of success depends on the plea type:
- Funny Pleas (Confident): ~50% Chance
- Sad Pleas (Sad): ~30% Chance
- Happy Pleas (Flirty, Inspired): ~65% Chance
- Mean Pleas (Angry): ~20% Chance
If successful, the Reaper will hand your Sim a ReviveToken instead of claiming their soul! They can collapse in relief…at least until Death returns at a later date.
The Life-Giving Power of Ambrosia
All hope is not lost when a Sim passes away. The mystical culinary dish Ambrosia allows you to restore life to the dead. However, it requires high skill in two areas to create:
Cooking Level 9: Allows combining Angelfish + Deathflower
Gardening Level 7: Can harvest Deathflowers from a rare seed
Once a Sim meets these requirements, have them grow and harvest Angelfish and Deathflowers. Then, at any stove, combine the two ingredients with a Potion of Youth to cook the Ambrosia meal.
With this divine food in hand, interact with a Sim‘s ghost and select the "Offer Ambrosia" option. Consume the food, and they will be fully resurrected!
If you don‘t want to wait around for ghosts, the Spellcaster‘s Necromancer ability can summon them instantly. There are also interesting stories around Ambrosia‘s origins at the SimsWiki conspiracy page.
Summoning and Curing Ghosts Back to Life
When a Sim dies, their ghost will linger in the world. You can interact with them to an extent, but resurrection requires going a step further.
To fully restore a dead Sim to life, follow these steps:
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After a Sim‘s death, take their gravestone from the lot and place it in your home.
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Regularly select the gravestone and choose "Strengthen Connection to the Physical World." Repeat night after night.
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Eventually, the ghost themselves will appear on the lot at night. You can now chat, interact, and even add them to your household.
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Once summoned, have an experienced Gardener grow and harvest Deathflowers to cook Ambrosia.
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Offer the Ambrosia to the ghost to turn them back into a living Sim!
This lengthy process means your deceased Sims are never truly gone. With some time and effort, you can reunite a split family or retrieve a spouse from the afterlife.
Sweet-Talking Death with Flower Arrangements
Here‘s an interesting tip from the gardening pros. With Level 10 Gardening, your Sims can purchase the Floral Arranging Table and evolve normal seeds into special Deathflowers.
Keep one Deathflower in your inventory. The next time Death arrives, he will be more open to bargaining for that Sim‘s life thanks to your special flower.
Having a high Gardening skill also boosts the overall odds of a successful plead. Use these perks combined with a confident, funny Sim and you have a solid shot at fending off the Reaper!
Schmoozing Mr. Reaper for Romance and Resurrection
Alright, here‘s a life hack I‘m only sharing among friends. When Death appears, try directing a flirty Sim to literally flirt with and seduce the Reaper!
Success comes down to RNG, but high Charisma and Romance skills help. If you manage to successfully Woohoo with Death itself, the Reaper will be so distracted that your dying Sim may survive that encounter.
I swear this actually works – though the internet was scandalized when Simmers first discovered it! For obvious reasons, this amorous approach is very risky. But if you‘ve got nothing to lose, why not go out with a bang?
Resetting Persistent Death Glitches
Unfortunately, The Sims isn‘t perfect. You may encounter glitches where a Sim persists in a dying state with no resolution. For these worst-case scenarios, use the resetSim cheat.
Open the cheat console and type resetsim firstname lastname to reset the state of a buggy Sim. Make sure to replace the name variables.
This will reset them to an error-free state, allowing you to take control again. Save first if it‘s a major issue, in case you lose relationships or skills.
Reflecting on Sim Mortality and Meaning
While conquering death in The Sims 4 can be extremely fulfilling, there‘s merit in accepting our virtual humans‘ mortality as well. The drama of loss brings purpose and meaning to their finite lives.
Still, I hope these god-mode techniques bring you enjoyment and storytelling potential within your Sims‘ universe. Use them to protect your loved ones or unleash chaos onto the Grim Reaper himself!
Just try not to lose perspective. As much as we love them, our Sims aren‘t real in the end. Their struggles reflect back human truths we must carry forward. Play on, Simmers.