🚧🎓 [S4S] First Steps: PartFlags & Tags - An introduction. -- [5/25] ⚡ This post needs an overhaul.

ONWARD [🌐] to "Outfit Type a.k.a BodyType + AdditionalTextureSpace" and hopefully an end to improper PartFlags and Tags!

🚧 I need to overhaul this post now that it has been split into (15) posts.

🎙️ Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto!

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I've been asked to explain the "Miscellaneous" section and the TAGS that appear in there to the best of my ability, and I think it would benefit everyone if I refine and expand my response in a public post.

I'll try to make this as layman-friendly as possible, but first (second, third, seventh) drafts can sometimes be very convoluted. I apologize. My IBM brain doesn't do simple sentences when explaining things. "Trust me bro!" is like the best "simple sentence" I can manage. 😹

There are a few things to unpack and we need to lay some groundwork first, so strap in.

Also, keep in mind that I am not an expert - I am not a developer for S4S, I do not work for EAxis, and I have no background in game development - I've just dedicated a lot of time to trying to understand PartFlags and TAGS because of my desire to fix CAS.

If I've said something that you know or believe to be incorrect, you're welcomed to point it out in the comments and we can compare notes. If I am indeed wrong, I will make the necessary corrections.

Just please, don't have a meltdown just because what I say contradicts what you "know", like what I happened in [X].

I'll add some screenshots later.

☆// - A COLLECTION OF POSTS:

🎓 Stunt 101: PartFlags & Tags - https://../collection/view=condensed

☆// - TABLE OF CATENTS:

...

🚧// - SIMS 4 STUDIO 3.2.4.3 IS KINDA BUSTED:

DO NOT USE THE "APPLY TO ALL SWATCHES" IN STUDIO » CATEGORIES » MISCELLANEOUS UNTIL THE BUTTON IS FIXED OR UNLESS YOU INTEND TO FIX EVERY "CATEGORYNUMBER" IN EVERY "CAS PART" IN WAREHOUSE.

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The "Apply To All Swatches" button in STUDIO » CATEGORIES » MISCELLANEOUS is broken in Sims 4 Studio 3.2.4.3 (Windows). I don't know if it's broken in the Mac version too, but it probably is.

I explained this in my "CAS Filters" post.

CAS TAGS have a "CategoryNumber" and a "TagValueNumber" and they need both to work properly. The "Apply To All Swatches" button in the "Miscellaneous" section is removing the "CategoryNumber" from all Miscellaneous TAGS in all swatches except the TAG in the swatch it was used on, effectively breaking all TAGS on all other swatches.

☆// - DIFFERENTIATING "PARTFLAGS" AND "TAGS":

I generally refer to everything as a "PartFlag", but that's not exactly the proper thing to do.

I (and even S4S, I think) differentiate "PartFlags" and "TAGS" like this:

• A "PartFlag" includes any checkbox option seen in STUDIO » CATEGORIES that doesn't appear in WAREHOUSE » TAGS » "Editing Tags...". There are more "PartFlags" in WAREHOUSE than seen in STUDIO.

• A "TAG" includes any checkbox option seen in STUDIO » CATEGORIES that appears in WAREHOUSE » TAGS » "Editing Tags...".

"TAGS" can be further broken down into TWO (2) groups:

• "Generic" - All TAGS except those that appear in the "Miscellaneous" section.

• "Special Condition" - These TAGS are only seen in the STUDIO » CATEGORIES » MISCELLANEOUS section. If I'm not mistaken, there are HUNDREDS of "special condition" TAGS and I assume that the "Miscellaneous" section in S4S was configured the way it is because showing a list of every "special condition" TAG as a checkbox would be kinda insane. Most folks have no need for these things.

🚧// - AS SEEN IN "STUDIO » CATEGORIES":

STUDIO » CATEGORIES doesn't highlight the difference between "PartFlags" and "TAGS".

These sections and these checkbox options are "PartFlags":

• Age & Gender Flags

  • All SEVEN (7) "age" checkboxes are "PartFlags" - These control which age groups the item is visible to in CAS.

  • Female - This is connected to "AFR" randomization and does not actually control whether or not the item is visible to female sims in CAS. Only when used together with a "Restrict Opposite" flag does this restrict access/visibility to an item in CAS.

  • Male - This is connected to "AFR" randomization and does not actually control whether or not the item is visible to male sims in CAS. Only when used together with a "Restrict Opposite" flag does this restrict access/visibility to an item in CAS.

• Part Flags

  • Allow For Random - I abbreviate this as "AFR" and "AFRandom".

  • Restrict Opposite Gender - I abbreviate this as "ROG" and "ROGender". This is almost never needed on anything ever, except in rare occasions.

  • Restrict Opposite Frame - I abbreviate this as "ROF" and "ROFrame". This is needed on some item categories but not others.

These sections and their checkbox options are "generic" TAGS (this list isn't comprehensive; more sections are available depending on the "Outfit Type" / "BodyType" of the CAS item):

• Age Appropriate - Is "AFR" randomization.

• Fashion Choice - Is "AFR" randomization and CAS categorization.

• Occult - Is "AFR" randomization and a plague upon Occult sims when used improperly.

• Outfit Type - Is "AFR" randomization and CAS visibility in outfit categories, and I so hate that these two things are cobbled into one TAG.

• Color Palette - EAxis has abandoned these TAGS recently. You should too.

• Fabric - If in doubt, just use "Synthetic".

• Archetype - Is kinda "AFR" randomization and is mainly/only used for "genetics".

• Style - Has some internal use but other than that, is pointless.

• Vampire Style - Is "AFR" randomization and should only be used for vampy fashion.

• Colors - Is fun, but kinda useless. Does anyone even filter by color?

• Eye Color - Is totes important.

• Sub Part Type - Is CAS categorization and also, EAxis doesn't understand the difference between a "sweater" and a "sweatshirt".

• Hat Type - Is CAS categorization.

• Hair Growth Level - EAxis' Body Hair is low-quality trash.

• Hair Length / Color / Texture - Is CAS categorization. "Hair Type" appears abandoned.

• ...

This section and anything that appears in here are "special condition" TAGS:

• Miscellaneous

TBC...

🚧// - AS SEEN IN "WAREHOUSE":

This entry is where all TAGS seen in STUDIO » CATEGORIES are found in WAREHOUSE:

• Tags » "Edit Items..." button » "Editing Tags..." popup window.

These sections include the "PartFlags" seen in STUDIO » CATEGORIES:

• AgeGender - This is "Age & Gender Flags".

• PartFlags - "AFRandom" and "ROGender" are found here. This section also includes:

  • AllowForLiveRandom - Is a thing that exists and I have no idea what it does, but I wonder... Some testing is required to verify that fixing our Update 10/22/2024 "outfit generation" issue isn't as simple as this flag.

  • ShowInUI - This controls whether an item is visible in CAS or not.

  • TBC...

• PartFlags2 - "ROFrame" is found here. This section also includes:

  • DefaultForBodyType[X] - CAS items flagged with these will automatically be worn by the sim when all other items are removed. In CAS, if you strip a sim down to their underwear, the bare FEET and UNDERWEAR that the sims wears has these flags on them. These flags are also used when making "DefaultFor[X]" replacement custom content.

  • TBC...

These sections contain "PartFlags" not seen in STUDIO » CATEGORIES:

• HideForOccultFlags - This disables the item from being used by the selected Occult types. "U1" and "U2" appear to have a similar function.

• PackFlags - You can toggle the little Pack/Kit icon that appears in CAS if your custom item was cloned from a Pack/Kit item, though why anyone would ever turn this off when their item has Pack/Kit requirements is beyond my understanding. S4S turns this off when cloning an item and I can't comprehend why.

• U1 - Has a similar function to "HideForOccultFlags".

• U2 - Has a similar function to "HideForOccultFlags".

🚧// - "GENERIC" TAGS V. "SPECIAL" TAGS:

"Generic" - All TAGS except those that appear in the "Miscellaneous" section.

"Generic" TAGS are... I don't really know what to say here other than most "generic" TAGS are pointless. The only "generic" TAGS that really matter are:

• Age Appropriate - Only matters if "Allow For Random" is enabled.

• Fashion Choice - This is the most important generic TAG. It should always match the Physical Frame that the item was made for. You should never use both on one item unless the item is truly unisex or you've enabled a "Restrict Opposite" flag.

• Occult - Only matters if "Allow For Random" is enabled.

• Outfit Type

• Archetype - Mainly/only for genetics.

• Style - Kinda. Maybe. Only in specific circumstances.

• Vampire Style - Only for vampy fashion.

• Eye Color - Is totes important.

• Sub Part Type

• Hat Type

• Hair Growth Level - EAxis' Body Hair is low-quality trash.

• Hair Length / Color / Texture - "Hair Type" appears abandoned.

• TBC...

"Special Condition" - These TAGS are only seen in the STUDIO » CATEGORIES » MISCELLANEOUS section.

Whoa, Nelly! Where do we start? How do we start?

There are numerous "Miscellaneous" TAGS that can appear on CAS items and each of them does a thing.

Some do things in CAS like filtering (eh, "CAS Filters" is a thing y'know) or custom tooltip text that appear when you hover over an item, or that cute little "gift" badge on items, or the "gold" highlight around Live Event FOMO BS - which disappears when I unlock the items for some odd reason and I never bothered to investigate why.

Others work with Tuning resources to do things in Live Mode, e.g. "Uniform" TAGS can be used to "generate" career outfits and special walk-by / townie outfits, and items with the "NudePart" TAGS are used to "generate" our Nude/Bathing outfit.

Unfortunately, EAxis has been known (well, I know) to mess up these TAGS or "forget" to add them entirely, e.g. the costumes that came in the LOVESTRUCK Expansion Pack were/are missing all of their "Uniform" TAGS.

☆// - DISCLAIMER + PROGRESSION:

I do not work for EAxis and I am not a member of the S4S developer team.

I am not an expert and there are gaps in my knowledge.

But I have devoted a considerable amount of time trying to understand these these PartFlags and Tags because I mean to fix the mess EAxis has created in CAS with my "CAS Overrides" project - every Pack, every Kit, every item in the BASE GAME. EAxis CAS is an incompetent mess and fixing the majority of it is as simple as checking or unchecking a box.

Some of this is straightforward.

Some of this you might already know.

Some of this might go against what you believe to be true or correct.

If you think (or know) that something I've said is incorrect, then comment and let me know and we can compare notes. If I am wrong or if we discover something new, then I will update the post accordingly.

I don't bite unless biting is the necessary response.

PROGRESSION:

• ⚡ 5/24/2025 - THE RESTRUCTURING HAS BEGUN!

• ⚡ 5/23/2025 - Eureka! We'll do separate posts for each section!

• ⚡ 5/20/2025 - I'm working on the "CAS Filters" update.

  • Since y'all have got me in this headspace and "Guided Access" just eliminated one of my major frustrations, I might as well go wild and knowledge dump.

• ⚡ 5/19/2025 #5 - NEW: MISCELLANEOUS TAGS AND "APPLY TO ALL SWATCHES"

• ⚡ 5/19/2025 #4 - NEW: "GENERIC" TAGS V. "MISCELLANEOUS" TAGS

• ⚡ 5/19/2025 #3 - EXPANDED: "AGE & GENDER FLAGS"

• ⚡ 5/19/2025 #2 - NEW: "OUTFIT TYPE" IS A SPECIAL SNOWFLAKE

• 🙀 5/19/2025 #1 - WE'RE FINALLY DOING THIS!

☆// - TBC...