Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley

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      ConcernedApe
February 2016
PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox, PS4, and more
Open-ended farming-RPG

Personal enjoyment: 09/10

      Stardew Valley Map
Stardew Valley is at its core a farming game where you receive a parcel of land on which to build, grow crops and raise livestock. Secondary you can also interact and befriend the villagers of Pelican town. If you don’t like farming then alternatively there is also fishing, foraging, mining and monster hunting, although farming is by far the most lucrative.

Games like this can get me hooked pretty easy and I’ve spend over 348 hours on four+ characters. Playing more than two characters is probably a bit much.. it’s basically playing the same game over and over.. During the fourth play-though it did begin to feel like I was following a ToDo list. My latest character started on the ‘new’ (1.5) beach map and she’ll probably become my ‘main’ as I really enjoy that map.


I’m currently still playing this game so I might change or add to this page in the near future.

Characters


Beach Bunny

With the latest 1.5 patch also came a new farm layout; the beach farm, which seemed like the perfect map for lots of fishing ponds! At first glance the beach map looks very limited in space but it’s been my most profitable farm so far! Beach Bunny is my little ocean princess :D


Namira

This is a character I might focus more on in the future.. Namira was created to be a “malicious” character, something I’m not usually good at.. being mean just makes me feel really bad T_T even to NPC’s. But because a part of me always wonders what would happen if you choose the ‘bad’ answers in conversation I’ll be using this character to find out. There are a few rules involved though..
  • Pet: Refuse to adopt the pet presented by Marnie.
  • Garbage can: Always check every garbage can, especially if someone is watching. Wear ‘Garbage Hat’ if found.
  • Skeleton Mask: Wear the Skeleton Mask when available.
  • Animal names: All animals are named after diseases.
  • Void chickens: Only void chickens.
  • Slimes: The focus will be on farming slimes. Once enough slime eggs are available; release them in town.
  • JojaMart: Fix some of the rooms in the Community Center to get extra items, but in the end Join the JojaMart anyway.
  • Events: Don’t partake in events unless I can win something or ruin it for others.
  • Conversations: Always choose the bad option in conversations.
  • Graveyard: Create a graveyard in the middle of the farm.
  • Marriage: Marry each bachelor and make them miserable, then divorce. Do not erase any of their memories.



Honey Bun

I seriously love her name! Everyone calling me ‘Honey Bun’, which is a term of endearment just makes my day. For her I chose the Hill-top farm. This farm is very playful in its design and has a bit of everything. She’s pretty much finished all quests up to the 1.5 patch except for the ‘Reach level 100 of the Skull Cavern’ quest.


Rocksy Crush

This was the first character that got to the second year. She’s completed the Community Center, got the Skull Key and the second house upgrade.. but.. I became annoyed with her. After a while I didn’t like her name, the forest map wasn’t great, she didn’t get the ‘Special Charm’ and that the children’s room couldn’t be modified (which thankfully can since the 1.5 update).

Tips and Tricks


Useful Links
Steam Store
Stardewvalleywiki.com
YouTube – Call Me Kevin
      Stardew Valley on Steam
Stardew Valley Wiki
YouTube channel – Play-through

General
  • Relax, and have fun! The game doesn’t have a clear-cut ending. It basically ends when you feel you’ve done everything you set out to do. It doesn’t matter if it takes one or ten years, take your time, enjoy the ride.
  • Automate: Unless you’re planning to never leave your farm again, you might want to find ways to make farm-life easier. Sprinklers, Coop/Barn upgrades, Auto-Grabber and if you are willing to go that far.. marriage ;P
  • Collect: Pretty much every item has its use, even trash. Try to keep everything you pick up unless you need the inventory space or the money.
  • Inventory upgrade: At the start of the game, getting the first backpack upgrade should be a priority.
  • Villagers: Befriending villagers can be very beneficial. Many will share cooking recipes, blueprints and items.
  • End of day: Try and make the most of your energy. Do you have any left at the end of the day? Why not chop a few trees, dig around or fish for a bit?
  • Horse: Tired of running everywhere? It might seem like a big investment, but being able to speed across the map is really worth it, especially in Berry picking season.
  • Artifacts: Some artifacts will be found multiple times. Most don’t sell for much but they do have other uses. Fish in fish pools may ask for them and they can be used to create shirts & hats

Farming
  • Silo: Build a silo or two as soon as possible. Any grass cut using a scythe will automatically be turned into hay (animal feed) and stored in the silo.
  • Ancient seed: Don’t plant these outside, only in your greenhouse when it’s repaired. If you do accidentally plant them outside then don’t worry, these seeds are not that rare.
  • Rare seed: The traveling cart usually provides at least one every Friday and Sunday (mostly during spring & summer). Buy them at every available opportunity. Although expensive, rare seeds grow into Sweet Gem Berries which sell for 3000 to 4500 gold each. It is advisable to plant them in your greenhouse at max level farming while using Quality Fertilizer.
  • Coffee: provides an extremely useful speed buff that stacks with the speed buff provided by food. Be sure to plant some coffee beans in your greenhouse for a steady supply.
  • Grass: Animals become happier when they can eat fresh grass. So it’s best to plant some grass near you coop and barn. Grass will spread and regrow but to keep your animals from eating all of it you can place an item on top. To create a grass ‘spawn point’ you can use a fencepost, bee houses, statues and other decorative items.
  • Level 10 – Artisan: If you’re planning to choose the artisan path, it might be worth keeping items that fall into this category like cheese, wine, jelly, mayonnaise until then.
  • Fish ponds: These are a very easy way to require a stable income. The base value of Aged Roe depending on the fish can range from 80g to 760g. And you can also use or sell the fish as they multiply.
  • Slime Hutch: Many people dislike farming slimes as it’s not (yet) efficient. If you have the space on your farm, I would still recommend placing this building as it makes Slime eggs available as monster loot.

Mining
  • Pickaxe: Mining becomes harder the further you descend. When it you can’t break a stone in one go you’ll know it’s time for an upgrade.
  • Farm / Quarry: If you have a mining patch on your farm or have unlocked the quarry then consider leaving the copper nodes. Clint the blacksmith will often request a number of copper ores and this is an easy way to get them.
  • Large boulders: These take more effort to break but are a good source of stone.
  • Chest: Place a chest near the mine entrance so you can unload your inventory.
  • Geodes: Keep geodes until a lucky day for better results.
  • Minerals: Keep at least one of every gem and mineral. Fish in fish ponds may ask for them and they can be used to tailor into shirts.

Foraging
  • Beach – wood bridge: Fix the bridge to the east part of the beach within the first few days. The items you’ll find there will fetch a good price.
  • Wild Seeds: Planting these is a good way of leveling your foraging skill. If you have a dedicated farming area then you can make use of it during the winter season.
  • Berry season: Bushes will provide berries twice a year and you can make a killing by simply running/riding across the map collecting them. Maximizing your skill to 12+ using food buff can get you about 800 in four days!
  • Berries: Berries don’t sell for much in the beginning. Use them for cheap food, turn them into Jelly or gift them to villagers.

Fishing
  • Endure: Fishing can be a real pain when you’re just starting out. But keep going, it will get easier and fishing can be very useful and profitable.
  • Giving up: If fishing really isn’t your thing than you can possibly buy fish for the Community center from the Traveling cart, or find them in garbage cans.
  • Fishing rods: Skip the Fiberglass Rod, save your gold until the Iridium Rod becomes available.
  • Tough fish: Some fish can seem almost impossible to catch. What will help is; a high fishing level, Iridium Rod, a Trap Bobber, +fishing buff and determination.

Combat
  • Slimes: The best way to combat slimes is to hit them once, knocking them backward. Take a step forward and repeat until the slime is pinned to a wall or object. Then rain down punches.
  • Don’t get cocky: Fight monsters one at a time.. Unless you’re only fighting slimes and have the ‘Slime Charmer Ring’ equipped.
  • Swords: There are many weapons in the game but I’ve found swords work best.
  • Lava Katana: Unless you get a lucky weapon drop or a Prismatic Shard, I’d recommend buying the Lava Katana. This is the only weapon I’d consider spending gold on.

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