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What This Involves
More than a retexture – you are building every part of the object
Retexturing changes how an existing object looks. Creating a new object means modelling a 3D shape, rendering it as flat images the game can display, and packaging everything into an IFF file. This used to be extremely tedious by hand – modern tools have made it achievable.
Why Objects Are Sprites, Not 3D Models
Understanding the rendering model that constrains everything else
Sims 1 objects are not rendered in real-time 3D. They are pre-rendered sprites – flat images displayed at fixed isometric angles. Each object needs sprites for 4 rotations (N/E/S/W) at 3 zoom levels (near/medium/far), plus a matching z-buffer depth sprite for each. The z-buffer tells the game how to layer Sims in front of and behind the object. Missing or incorrect z-buffers cause Sims to visually clip through objects.
This is why every custom object ships its own set of pre-rendered images. You cannot hand the game a mesh and expect it to draw – you have to pre-bake every angle and every zoom level the camera can show, and the game just picks the right image at render time.
The Modern Workflow: Blender + TS1 Tools
The pipeline replaces hours of manual sprite work
The TS1 Renderer and TS1 Compiler addons for Blender automate the hardest parts – rendering the four rotations at three zoom levels, generating matching z-buffers, and packaging everything into a valid IFF with the right palette indexing.
If you have not used Blender before, start with the official Blender Foundation tutorials. Learn the interface, how to create and edit basic shapes, and how to apply materials before attempting Sims 1 object work. Trying to learn Blender and the Sims 1 pipeline at the same time is painful.
Step-by-Step
Model your object in Blender
Open Blender and create your 3D model. Keep the geometry simple – you are rendering to small sprites, not real-time 3D, so complex shapes do not add visual quality. A clean low-polygon model with good textures looks better than a complex one at sprite resolution.
Resources for learning 3D modelling in Blender:
- Official Blender tutorials – start with the Donut tutorial (beginner-friendly, covers all the basics)
- Blender Guru on YouTube – widely recommended beginner channel
Install TS1 Renderer and set up the scene
Install the TS1 Renderer addon for Blender: go to Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → Install and select the downloaded ZIP. Enable the addon. Then follow the TS1 Renderer wiki to set up the isometric camera angles and lighting correctly. The addon handles the exact camera angles and sprite dimensions automatically – do not adjust the camera manually.
Render all sprites
Once your scene is set up, use the TS1 Renderer to batch-render all rotation angles, zoom levels, and z-buffer sprites in one pass. This replaces what used to be hours of manual screenshot-and-crop work. Each sprite will be saved as a correctly sized, correctly indexed image file.
Compile into an IFF file using TS1 Compiler
Install the TS1 Compiler addon the same way. Load your rendered sprites and run the compiler. It assembles the sprites into a complete IFF file, handles z-buffer packaging and palette indexing, and creates a basic OBJD (object definition) resource.
Open in TMog to set name, description, and Magic Cookie
Once the IFF is assembled, open it in TMog. Give the object a proper catalogue name and description, and assign a Magic Cookie number – use 0 for personal testing or your own number from the Magic Cookie Database for anything you plan to share.
Place in Downloads\ and test
Copy the finished IFF to your Downloads\ folder. Launch the game and check the object appears in the Buy Mode catalogue, displays correctly at all three zoom levels, and that Sims interact with it without visual clipping. Test all four rotation angles – rotate the camera to view the object from each direction.
Finishing Your Object
Catalogue thumbnail – the one piece TS1 Compiler does not produce automatically
TS1 Compiler generates a valid IFF and a basic OBJD, but the catalogue thumbnail (the small image shown in Buy Mode) needs to be added separately. This is the same process as finishing a retexture.
Create a thumbnail image
Take a screenshot of your object in game, crop tightly around it in your image editor, and resize it to match the dimensions of an existing Maxis catalogue thumbnail. The easiest way to get the right size: open a similar Maxis object in IFF Pencil 2, look at its BMP_ resource at ID 2000 (labelled Catalog), and match those dimensions. The thumbnail is small in the catalogue – it does not need fine detail, but it should clearly represent your object rather than a Maxis original.
Open the IFF in IFF Pencil 2
Launch IFF Pencil 2 (right-click the .exe → Properties → Compatibility → Windows XP SP3 mode and Run as administrator, if on Windows 10/11). Open your new IFF file. In the left panel, click BMP_ to expand it. The entry labelled Catalog (usually ID 2000) is the Buy Mode thumbnail slot.
Import your thumbnail
Right-click the Catalog BMP_ entry → Import → browse to your thumbnail and select it. IFF Pencil replaces the image. Save the file with File → Save. The Buy Mode picture now shows your object.
Made by [Your Handle] – [your site or contact]. If you are sharing your object, this is the only place inside the file itself that tells someone who made it and where to find more of your work.