Unleash Your Inner Equestrian: Mastering Competitions in The Sims 4 Horse Ranch
Master the art of horse competitions in The Sims 4: Horse Ranch expansion pack Discover the keys to success with horse skills, riding expertise, and understanding your horse's mood Compete, win, and pave your path to financial prosperity!
The Sims 4: Horse Ranch features an array of activities centered around ranch life and horses. Among these activities, horse competitions are a prominent and lucrative feature. Participating in these competitions not only earns Simoleons as a reward but also increases the horse's sell value and grants the coveted Champion Horse trait when reaching the Master rank. This allows players to breed horses with Champion Genes, making training and competing in these events a priority for those seeking a horse-centric lifestyle.
The game offers a total of 5 different competition categories, including the prestigious Ultimate Horse Championship. Each category has 4 difficulty levels: beginner, intermediate, expert, and master. While the basic mechanics remain the same across all categories, success rates depend on various horse skills and other factors. It's important to note that there is no foolproof method for guaranteeing a gold medal in each competition, but players can improve their chances by paying attention to certain factors.
How To Participate In Horse Competitions
The standard competitions are open daily from 7 AM to 7 PM, while The Ultimate Horse Championship is only held on Saturdays during the same time period. To join, players can either click on the Equestrian Center in the New Appaloosa neighborhood in Chestnut Ridge or use a Community Board. For convenience, players can purchase a Community Board from the Buy Menu if they don't live in the neighborhood or don't want to travel to a nearby community board before each competition. Once purchased, Sims and horses will enter a rabbit hole and players will need to wait a couple of Sim hours for the results.
After selecting the "Enter Competition" option, players can choose a category based on their horse's previous rankings. A horse must have participated in and received a ranking in the Beginner competition to enter the Intermediate competition in that branch. Riders can participate in multiple competitions in a day, but a horse can only compete in one competition on the same day. This makes it crucial for the horse to have the recommended skills to ensure a good placement and avoid losing a day of competition progression.
How To Win Horse Competitions
Striving for a gold medal should be the goal for players, especially in the Master bracket, to fulfill one requirement of becoming a Championship Rider and enhance the horse's value. Unfortunately, there is no foolproof method to guarantee a gold medal every time, making the task exceptionally challenging. However, there are certain factors that can improve the chances of winning.
For players who are determined to achieve gold medals as quickly as possible, the best approach is to save the game right before each competition. This allows them to exit to the main menu without saving if they fail to secure a gold medal and try their luck again by reloading the game.
Horse Skills
Horses can be trained in four different skills: Temperament, Agility, Jumping, and Endurance. Each skill can be trained in various ways. It is advisable for players to focus on improving all of these skills in their horses, rather than concentrating on just two skills for a specific category. This is because the Ultimate Horse Championship requires the horse to rank in all of the master competitions before it can be unlocked. Players have the option to either train their horses themselves or send them for training. However, it is recommended that players have their Sims train the horses, as this can help them increase their riding skill and be more efficient.
It is important to recognize that the recommended skill levels are merely guidelines for players to aim for in each specific difficulty. They do not guarantee that a horse with maximized skills will always win the gold, while a horse with significantly lower skills than recommended can still potentially earn gold, although with lower odds. The table below displays which skills are required for each category:
Skill | Competition Category |
|---|---|
Temperament | Western Pleasure (Primary) Show Jumping |
Agility | Barrel Racing (Primary) Western Pleasure |
Jumping | Show Jumping (Primary) Endurance Racing |
Endurance | Endurance Racing (Primary) Barrel Racing |
Horse Riding Skill
In contrast to the four other skills, the ability to ride a horse is necessary for every type of competition and becomes more essential as the levels progress. Therefore, it is advised for players to prioritize the development of this skill early on. Doing so not only facilitates more efficient and effective horse training, but also unlocks additional options like intense training.
Horse Mood
A horse's positive mood, such as happiness or confidence, generally improves the chances of winning. To ensure this, players should take good care of their horses' needs or hire a ranch hand to make things easier. Although the competition screen doesn't mention the impact of different positive moods, the Gold Medal requirement for the Master bracket in the related aspiration specifically emphasizes the importance of horse confidence, which may be more challenging to achieve.
To boost confidence, players can interact with their horses in various ways. However, the most certain method is for a Sim with the reward trait Grand Champ Trainer, earned by completing the Championship Rider, to ride the horse. This will give the horse a Confident moodlet. It's worth noting that there are no indications that the rider's mood affects the odds of winning the competition.
The Sims 4 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S.
