Hey folks! So I'm close to finishing the 16 villager cycle, and I thought I'd post my method and some tips. I know a lot of people have done the cycle, but I also know folks post asking about cycling and safe ways to do so with some frequency. So I figure if I can help out with my experience in any way, I might as well.
Still, I don't think I'm any expert at this by any means, so I'm not going to call this a guide. It's just a like of the steps I took and tips I would give, but I just don't think I have the authority to call this a guide. I'm sure others know much better ways to cycle. So for now, it's just "guide-ish."
I'd like to get some things out of the way before I start, though. There seemed to be no proof for the 16 villager cycle when I lost my villager, so I thought I could get him back by talking to him while boxed in another village. I tried twice: once without moving out any villagers and once after moving about 3 or 4. Drake would not offer to move either time.
Furthermore, this was written on the basis of two assumptions: a) the cycling is being done for the purpose of getting back a villager who was lost, and b) the person cycling has a number of villagers they don't want to lose. If you just want to cycle villagers until you find your favorites while keeping some in your town, this method should work too, just keep in mind that was not my objective.
There may other ways to bypass the 16 villager cycle, but if there are I don't know.
To clarify for those that haven't heard of the 16 villager cycle: the game stores 16 villagers in its memory even after they leave. If a villager leaves by accident, the only way (that I know of) to get that villager back is to have 16 villagers move out, thus erasing the villager you want back from memory and allowing said villager to return. Another way you can tell is by Main Street. Villagers who have left will sometimes appear on Main Street, because their data is still stored on the cart. Once you've cycled through 16, they should stop appearing.
Furthermore: villagers move randomly. Being mean to them--hitting them with a net, etc.--does nothing to increase their chances of moving. Ignoring if helpful is you don't TT because, if they ping you and you allow them to move, they may refuse to move, saying it's out of spite or, as happened to me, because they want to be better friends :/
Without further ado, then, here is my guide-ish post to TT'ing 16 villagers out safely so that you can re-acquire a villager you lost:
1. Have the Beautiful Town ordinance.
By the end of this, your town will likely be filled with flowers, but that's a whole lot preferable to having it filled with weeds. I believe this also helps maintain perfect town status. I had perfect town when I started, and by the time I ended I had about seven Jacob's ladders, so I assume I maintained perfect town status throughout.
Another thing that may be helpful to have is the campsite. Recruiting villagers from the campsite is a great way to cycle out even more villagers, and that's very useful with how long the 16 villager cycle takes.
However, villagers moving in sometimes affects whether others will move out. Be aware of that when you check your villagers.
2. Carry less than 100 bells and no items besides tools at all times.
We're still on the preliminary stuff. This is important because if you carry items like clothing or furniture, you'll get pinged or trigger dialogue to buy or trade it. Likewise, if you have money, they'll ask you buy stuff. I've also found that villagers don't ask for unasssessed fossils or gyroids, for whatever it's worth.
(to be continued)
Looking for: Drake!
ruby_diamond (Topic Creator)3 years ago#2
3. TT two days forward, then save and quit.
Pretty basic, everyone seems to know this. If you haven't TT'ed prior to starting this, no villagers should move out due to step 3 or 4. Additionally, I believe that no matter how many days you TT forward or back, it will count only as one day. If a villager has not pinged you to move, and sometimes they don't while fully intending to move, then TT'ing too far can put them in boxes. Two days is safe, however, since it shouldn't force a villager into boxes if no one has recently pinged you.
4. TT back to the present.
5. Check ALL your villagers. Find the mover.
This is the the most important part. You have to check all villagers. What I mean is find every single villager in your town, stand within their line of sight for 2-3 seconds, and see if they ping. If they don't ping you, talk to them twice. The point of talking to them is to find the mover. Usually it's typical villager stuff, but often enough they'll tell you if someone else is moving.
But be prepared to be really, really bored. Villagers will also ping you to ask for fruit, to ask visit your house or for you to visit theirs, to ask about your favorite foods and books, and all other bits of dialogue. Villagers who you don't want to move will ping you to mo