From Castaways to Celebrity Wellness Centres: Here’s 7 Unique Ideas For The Natural Living Skill

Besides Fairies, one of the standout features in The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature is the new Natural Living Skill and its associated features. There’s the obvious live in Innisgreen and make Elixirs gameplay, but what if you looked at it from a new angle? From foraging the shores of Sulani, to roleplaying as an Anthropologist from Sixam, here are 7 unique gameplay ideas to spice up your gameplay!

Urban Nomad – A Different Kind Of Jungle

The topic of homelessness is a tough one; it’s a real issue that affects many. A popular challenge in The Sims 4 is the Rags to Riches challenge, which tasks players with starting with §0 and working their way up the ladder of success. Of course, it isn’t that easy in real life. In my home city of London, an estimated 11,000 people are sleeping rough, a staggering number. I have decided to frame this gameplay as living as a Natural Nomad, a Sim who, instead of living in the wilderness, lives in the jungle instead.

Living in the wilderness poses significant challenges; however, with San Myshuno at your Sims’ disposal, the possibilities are vast. The lack of green space makes foraging a challenge, and making money even harder. Locations such as the Skye Fitness offer a place to exercise and shower, Planet Honey Pop karaoke lounge provides entertainment, and San Myshuno’s very own slice of greenery comes in the form of Myshuno Meadows. Players with packs such as Snowy Escape or Outdoor Living may find using a tent a little more enjoyable when dealing with the elements.

Worlds such as San Myshuno and Mt Komorebi have the added bonus of off-lot festivals. Try your hand at haggling at the flea market, or perhaps enter the Hackathon at Geek Con to earn some extra simoleons! Playing with the Natural Living skill in an urban environment is a game changer. While there are some benefits of living in the big smoke, there are added challenges.

Castaway – Stranded And Alone

Long-time players of The Sims will be more than well aware of some of the best spin-off games the franchise has ever seen: The Sims 2 Castaway and The Sims Castaway Stories. Many players, myself included, yearn for the return of a fully fledged Castaway experience. The Natural Living skill makes this style of gameplay somewhat possible, and what better place to stand my Sim than Sulani!

Sulani has everything your Sims ned to survive. Water for bathing, fishing spots for food, and plenty of open jungle to forage for your next meal. Throwing in a few Lot Challenges makes this experience even more enjoyable! Try out the Creepy Crawlies lot challenge to have your Sim constantly bothered by pests, or maybe Volcanic Activity, as after all your Sim is living next to the very much active volcano of Mua Pel’am!

Starting with only the bare necessities is challenging, but build your Natural living skill to level 5 and your Sims will be able to forage for collectables that can be easily sold off for a few “Simoleons”. Perhaps look at Simoleons more like resource points from The Sims Castaway Stories and use them to build a small hut or a massive waterside mansion, the choice is all yours!

Alien Anthropologist – A New Planet To Explore

Aliens are out there! It’s true, well, for owners of The Sims 4 Get To Work. Aliens were the first occult to be introduced in The Sims 4. Although they may lack a skill tree and other features we have grown to expect from occults, playing as one is still a blast. For this story, your Alien crashed their ship deep in the wilderness on their way back to Sixam. With the Off-the-Grid lot challenge, the spaceship is out of action, so why not take this opportunity to find out everything you can about SimNations’ life forms without arousing suspicion?

Aliens are able to don a human disguise to trick Sims into believing they are one of them. This is handy for heading into populated areas and foraging for frogs and insects to take back to your ship, and hopefully one day return home. The Sims 4 features many collections, so perhaps your mission is to complete every single one! You can keep track of all collections by heading to your Sim’s inventory and clicking the diamond icon in the top right.

While you’re on your quest for all things alien (to your Alien that is), why not join the Scientist career and work your way up the career ladder until you’re able to construct the portal back to Sixam to reunite with your Alien friends and family.

The Middle Ages – Between The Early And Late Ages I Suppose

The History and Decades challenges are popular challenges within The Sims 4 community. The aim is to recreate history within your game with accurate rules for each period/decade, and live as our ancestors did. The Sims Medieval gave us just a glimpse as to what it’s like to play as Sims in an era different to our own. The Natural Living skill adds a few new options for historical gameplay. Let’s take a look at playing as a Sim ‘outatime’!

For this style of gameplay, you can either follow the official rules or play your own way as you roleplay your way through the Middle Ages. Life was simple back then, no TV, no phone, no computer, or refrigerator, or even electricity! That all adds to the fun of this gameplay style. Why not create a whole medieval society on The Crumbling Isle in Windenburg? Craft elixirs and cures for ailed townsfolk, or play as a spellcaster, keeping their powers hidden from the human Sims in their village. Or keep it simple and raise livestock and cultivate plants. For an added challenge, try playing with the Simple Living lot challenge from The Sims 4 Cottage Living Expansion Pack, which requires all food to be prepared with sourced ingredients either from gardening or foraging.

Religion was central to the way of life in the Middle Ages. While The Sims has shied away from including religious beliefs (with The Sims Medieval including The Watcher followed by both Jacoban and Peteran sects), that doesn’t mean you have to. Modders such as Lumpinou with their Rambunctious Religions mod have added forms of religion and religious beliefs into the game. If you are a console player or prefer to play without mods, then a good solution is creating a holiday via the calendar with the ‘Attend Holiday Ceremony’ tradition to simulate sending your Sims off to church.

The Medieval Era, as with many others until the late 20th to 21st century, was not a pleasant place for many people. Not just because of the constant plagues and wars, but because of class, race, and sexual oppression, for women especially. While activities for life were restricted for women who had to live with less agency, that doesn’t mean you have to play that way, too. The rules are completely optional in The Sims, so have fun roleplaying your Medieval fantasy.

Celebrity Wellness Centre – Remember You Are One

The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature brings with it a brand new semi-active career that allows your Sim to become a Lifestylke Coach or an Apothe-Curist. Who says those jobs have to be reserved for forest-dwelling Nomads and Pixies? Why not bring the holistic approach to medicine to Del Sol Valley’s rich and famous? Utilising the Small Business Venues lot type from The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies to open your very own wellness centre for the rich and famous is a great way to rake in the simoleons.

The ability to have a small business venue open while also taking in clients daily is a big money maker. While your Naturopath Sims coaches and cures ailed Sims, your employees can tend to customers at the massage chair or table, teach yoga classes or tend to a coffee bar for those Sims needing an energy boost after a tough workout.

You can take this concept a step further by opening an elixir and cure store attached to your wellness centre. Unfortunately, you can’t instruct employees to create apothecary items, but by the time your Sim reaches the Lifestyle Coaching branch, they are likely to have accrued many concoctions from levelling up their Apothecary skill.

Post-Apocalyptic Gameplay – Crawl Out Through The Fallout

Unlike medieval gameplay, post-apocalyptic gameplay is something we have yet to see in The Sims franchise. Whether you’re playing in a wasteland scenario or using Sacrificial’s Zombie Apocalypse mod, your Sim can rely on foraging, brewing natural elixirs, and crafting supplies to stay alive when traditional infrastructure collapses.

Without access to shops, electricity, or plumbing, survival becomes about working with what the land provides. Your Sim can scavenge for wild ingredients in remote areas nd create makeshift living spaces with limited resources. Pairing Natural Living with the Off-the-Grid and Simple Living lot challenges makes every meal feel like a hard won victory.

If you’re using the Zombie Apocalypse mod, Natural Living adds an extra layer of strategy. You can venture into the zombie-ridden wastes to forage for resources, or take a risky bath in the local river. Their growing knowledge of the natural world becomes their biggest asset and maybe even their only hope for survival.

Combine with rugged clothing, broken-down lots, and scavenging-focused aspirations to complete the survival fantasy. It’s a great challenge for players who want to test their Sims’ limits and their storytelling skills.

For the screenshots above, I used Devon Bumpkin’s Apocalyptic Factory Reno. Check it out on The Gallery!

Surviving The Jungle – Carla Loft Grave Robber

The Sims 4 Jungle Adventure Game Pack is all about exploration, danger, and discovery, but it can also be punishing if your Sim isn’t well prepared. Venomous bites, swarms of bugs, poison darts, and sheer exhaustion can quickly turn a promising expedition into a holiday from hell. That’s where the Natural Living skill steps in, offering a grounded, resourceful way to make jungle survival more manageable and immersive.

Sims with a high Natural Living skill are better equipped to live off the environment in practical, low-tech ways. When far from civilisation, they can keep clean by bathing in natural bodies of water, making use of ponds and swamps to stay hygienic without the need for plumbing. It’s essential when you’re deep in the jungle with no facilities nearby.

Foraging also becomes a core survival tactic. Your Sim can search the jungle floor for edible plants, berries, and other natural foods to keep their hunger at bay. This reduces the need to carry supplies or return to your Vacation rental for a snack, and it makes every expedition feel more self sufficient. Food doesn’t come from a fridge; it comes from the land.

And when night falls and there’s no bed in sight? With the Natural Living skill, Sims can sleep directly on the ground, turning any safe clearing into a makeshift campsite. It’s a small touch, but it reinforces the idea of truly roughing it. These abilities transform Salvadorada from a holiday destination into a survival scenario. Some players may find it makes the experience easier, but all Natural Living interactions are optional.

Do you have any other suggestion for Natural Living gameplay? Let us know in the commenst below, and stay tuned to Sims Community for all updates on The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature.