Sims 4 Royalty Mod Guide

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Erin Jamieson fell in love with Sims because of the lack of consequences. She's always been one to live on the wild side, but Sims allows her to explore all of the possible outcomes from risky decisions she'd never make in real life. That's half of the fun for her!

Has the Sims Ever had Royalty?

The Sims franchise, for the most part, has been focused on contemporary life. In fact, some of the most popular packs over the decades have focused on aspects like modern dating; nightlife; bustling modern cities, and staying digitally connected.

And the Sims, although now enjoying an international player base, is still produced, and often quite reflective, of life in the United States, with an occasional pack, like Sims 4 Island living, or Sims 4 Snowy Escape, offering a look at a few other cultures.

However, there is one exception, which came in the form of a spin-off game: The Sims Medieval.

Sims Medieval

The Sims Medieval was first launched in 2011 for PC and Mac, two years after the beginning of The Sims 3. Later available for the Nokia Windows Phone, this game had much in common with the Sims in terms of customization and graphics, but an entirely different focus.

Sims Medieval was meant as a stand-alone game, not to replace the Sims 3. Instead, it was set in an entirely medieval era, where you could construct kingdoms, embark on quests and play out rulers, heroes, and common people.

Nobles and royalty were of course fundamental to this game, though some things, including character customization, ambitions (not entirely unlike aspirations), and a degree of character and build customization felt familiar and in line with Sims games. The main difference was a focus on quests with specific objectives, vs the sandbox nature of most Sims games.

What is the Sims 4 Royalty Mod?

Luckily, the Sims 4 Royalty Mod is a respected and fairly tested and updated mod, at least as of when I’m writing this article, and it also has a lot of interesting gameplay and content it can bring to the game, all working fairly smoothly with systems already in place. I also like that, though there are a few elements to it, the Sims 4 Royalty mod is fairly easy to learn the ropes of.

Main Concept

The main concept of the Sims 4 Royalty mod is a gameplay package that allows you to play out a monarchy, with the ability to exact titles, impose a tax system, build a reputation, and establish heirs for the throne. While mostly focused on gameplay, the Sims 4 Royalty mod also comes with a few CAS items to get you started in creating a somewhat ambiguous historical aesthetic. As a gameplay mod, the Sims 4 Royalty mod itself is classified as a script mod.

How do you install the Sims 4 Royalty Mod?

Installing the Sims Royalty mod is just like any other mod, but has a few specific and important steps.

Start by downloading the package file from Patreon (it’s free).
Download the Required XML Injector. The mod doesn’t work without this.
If you’ve installed a version of the Sims 4 Royalty mod in the past, make sure you delete those first before downloading the update package.

Important Requirements

In addition to the XML Injector, the Sims 4 Royalty Mod is best experienced with the Sims 4: Get Famous expansion pack. While technically a few things will work without it, the main gameplay, including reputation, requires this expansion pack. For this reason, I don’t recommend the Sims 4 Royalty mod for anyone who doesn’t have that expansion pack.

On a lesser note, keep in mind that mods can slow down your game, and the more mods you have and the more expansive those mods are, the more likely you may experience issues with performance; you’ll have to test this in your individual game.

What CAS and Build/ Buy Items Come With the Sims 4 Royalty Mod?

CAS and Build/Buy are not the main focus of the Sims 4 Royalty mod, but there are still a few nice items to enhance your experience.

CAS Item

There is a single create sim item that comes with your download, which is a pair of rococo style shoes. It’s a new mesh and features a classic look, available for teens, young adults, and adults.

Build/ Buy Items

Build/ Buy is not extensive but does include some nice assets to help create a more authentic kingdom.

Easel Replacements

This is an optional file and will change all classic paintings to portraits of Sim monarchs

Music Boxes

Music boxes are both decorative and functional: they work just like radios do in the game. There are a few varieties, including fairy; knight; princess; dragon, and pegasus designs.

Chairs

Two chairs come with the Sims 4 Royalty mod: a stone knight’s chair and a velvet-trimmed dragon’s chain meant to serve as a throne.

Floors/ Miscellaneous

Two cobblestone floors and pavilion flooring are useful not only for this mod, but, in my opinion, other builds, especially in worlds like Wittenberg. Other items include decorations: gold bars; stocks; a coin sack, and a beer cask. These are not functional items.

How do I Play With the Sims 4 Royalty Mod?

The heart of the Sims 4 Royalty mod, and the reason I admire it, is the gameplay, from creating monarchs to ruling and building a reputation.

Starting a Royal Family

Once you have the package files in your game, go into CAS and assign your Sim the new Monarch trait (under the lifestyles category). This will be your main monarch who’ll be able to assign titles and more.

And of course, if you want to start off with a family, you’ll want to create the family in CAS. A spouse will automatically be assigned the title of Royal Partner, and children will be given the title of Crown Royals.

Heirs and Children

Of course, as a monarch, heirs ensure that your kingdom continues. Illegitimate children, or those born out of wedlock, can be titled as Illegitimate Royals, but the monarch can opt to allow them to inherit the throne. Children born from the monarch and their Royal Partner still must be declared an heir by the monarch to inherit the throne.

Fighting for the Throne

In the case that your monarch dies without an heir apparent, this sets the scene for Sims fighting for the throne. I actually find this situation makes the gameplay that much more unique and dynamic. Sims hoping to be declared the heir have to build a reputation and will be given interactions to prompt other Sims for support, convince royals to step aside, and promise to be a good monarch. Their success is dependent on relationships and reputation.

Bestowing Titles

As a monarch, you have the power to assign titles to other Sims, which impacts the running of your kingdom. Navigate to the actions menu to assign a title to any Sim. Titles are not gendered specific and names can be changed to reflect different cultures or genders.

Examples of titles include peasant; noble; princess; and trusted advisor, among others. Sims can climb or plummet in ranks as they establish negative or positive reputations. Servants work like hired maids and will automatically cook and clean. Other notable titles are royal nannies, court jesters, and court wizards. All of these titles will automatically assign those Sims unique careers/ assignments.

Trusted Advisor

The trusted advisor is a special title that you’ll want to assign right away. Not only are they close to the monarch, but they also help perform critical duties to keep the kingdom running. This includes adjusting taxes, opening up other Sims to vie for the throne, and permitting markets to run.

Imposing Taxes, Opening Markets, and Earning Income

One of the powers you have as a monarch is to impose, raise, and lower taxes. Taxes are the royal family’s source of income, but also play a role in your monarch’s reputation amongst citizens/ other Sims. Paychecks from taxes arrive on Mondays and Thursdays.

Monarchs also enter the Monarchy Career track, which works as a rabbit hole, with different career levels. This is a way to earn additional income. For even more income, monarchs can ask for donations from their citizens. Finally, Monarchs can opt to allow markets to run once a week. These markets will pop up with vendors.

Reputation

Reputation, as you can tell, plays an integral role in how a Sim is ranked, but also how beloved a monarch is–and potentially, how stable their kingdom is. That’s why, without the Sims 4 Get Famous Expansion pack, this mod really is not truly functional.

For citizens, reputation is influenced by relationships with others, and, of course, the monarch. A monarch’s reputation is especially influenced by the taxes they impose. Sky-high taxes run the risk, for instance, that the monarch will be named a Tyrant. Monarchs, on the other hand, can improve reputation by lowering taxes and opening and visiting weekly markets, as well as positive relationships with their citizens.

As is the case with Get Famous, there is a level/ ranking system for reputation. Royals who reach the highest level of reputation become a Beloved Royal; those who are at the lowest level become a Despised Tyrant.

Ways to Enhance the Sims 4 Royalty Mod

While I was impressed with the features of the Sims 4 Royalty mod, I also longed for ways to make the most out of the new gameplay, and there are several things I recommend. Keep in mind that, as always, downloading mods are at your discretion, and these partially reflect my personal preferences.

Additional Gameplay Mods

For additional Sims 4 gameplay mods, there are a few I recommend.

For Meals

I recommend LittleMsSam’s Ask to Cook mod. This mod allows sims to ask another Sim to cook, bake, grill, and even mix drinks. If you get frustrated with how long it takes to prepare food for a feast/ formal dinner, I’d also recommend a slew of Food and Cooking mods by Diechshaf Sims. These include faster cooking, better food quality, more food at bars, more ingredients, and banquet tweaks (requires Sims 4 Luxury Party Stuff)

For Reputation

Depending on your gameplay interests, you may want to consider a tweak to the reputation system, which the Sims 4 Royalty mod gameplay is based upon (and comes with Sims 4: Get Famous). The Faster/Slower/No Decay mod by ClaudiaSharon allows you to freeze a Sims’ reputation where it is, or make the decay slower or faster.

Additional CAS and Build/ Buy Items

One downside to the Sims 4 Royalty mod is that it’s a little lacking in the CAS and Build/Buy category, making it hard to create an authentic kingdom. Whether you chose to go for a more modern or historical take, you can fulfill aesthetic needs through a combination of packs and custom content.

Useful Packs

Sims 4 Get Together comes with European and Tudor styled build/ buy, as well as the more historical feel of the world of Windenburg. The Sims 4 Vampires game pack provides Victorian clothing and Build/Buy. Sims 4 Realm of Magic offers a rather unique, distinct almost fairytale-like style.

Where to find Custom Content Clothes and Build

For CC, you’ll have to do a good deal of searching, but I recommend The Sims Resource. You can search for keywords like royal, king, queen, etc. I do caution that many are more realistic in style. Another option is to take a look at Maxis Match World, and CC hauls by Sims content creators on YouTube. Mira Rae, who has a Royal Family LP series, also does Royal CC Hauls.

Useful Sims 4 Packs

I already mentioned a few Sims 4 packs that will enhance your experience with the Sims 4 Royalty Mod. Besides the non-negotiable Sims 4 Get Famous, I also recommend Sims 4 Get Together (build, world); Sims 4 Realm of Magic (build and if you want a magical kingdom); and maybe a pack like the upcoming Sims 4 Snowy Escape, if you want a traditional Japanese aesthetic and world or a location for a Winter Palace.

Sims 4 Luxury Party Stuff supplies helpful items like a banquet table and a fondue tower, though I recommend getting it on sale, as the $10 asking price is a bit much for the few items you get.

FAQs

Question: How do you get more than 8 Sims in a household?

Answer: If you’ve downloaded the Sims 4 Royalty mod, there’s a chance you have a large family in mind. Typically, Sims 4 allows players just 8 sims (pets included) per household. While there are a few mods to change the household size, some of these are outdated. I recommend using the trusted and frequently updated MCCC (Master Controller Command Center). This will allow you to set your maximum household size in the menu options. Just keep in mind that the more Sims you have in a household, the slower your game will likely run.

Question: Are Sims 4 mods free?

Answer: Most Sims 4 mods are free, or eventually free. Many content creators do link mod downloads to their Patreon, with an option to donate if you wish. It is not uncommon for Sims 4 mods to be available only to Patreon members for early access, then be followed by a public free release a week or two later. Some mods also are on sites that have advertisements.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the Sims 4 Royalty mod is a creative and innovative mod that offers the chance to refresh your gameplay. While it’s not a mod I personally use in everyday gameplay, it’s perfect for creating a royal family and trying something new, so long as you have the required Sims 4 Get Famous and that your game performance doesn’t decline.