More than one player asked me to describe Will's Ship in Sunshine Islands. I promised to make a brief video tour of his yacht. This is the result. In the process, I added footage of various boats from previous Harvest Moon games, including the mysterious boat at the pier in Mineral Town (FoMT/MFoMT), the small boat that takes you to the Island in HM DS/Cute DS and the Ship that brings Mineral Town visitors to and from Sunny Island in Island of Happiness.
A Website for all Harvest Moon fans providing Links to all Guides by Freyashawk: Actual Links on Right Side of Webpage
Showing posts with label HM DS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HM DS. Show all posts
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Legendary Sword and Unlocking the 4th Mine in HM DS/Cute DS
I am writing this post simply because of the sheer volume of emails that I continue to receive with respect both to the Legendary Sword and the 4th Mine in HM DS and Cute DS.
Although the two games are very similar in most respects apart from the choice of potential spouses, there are a few small differences and one of these is the requirement for taking the Legendary Sword from the 255th floor of the 2nd Mine.
In the original HM DS (aka the 'boy version'), your character in theory needed to have the necessary experience to be able to upgrade ALL tools to mystrile level in order to be able to take the Legendary Sword from the mine, but experience was all that mattered. If only one tool actually had been upgraded to Mystrile, that was sufficient. (Some players have reported that even with other tools BELOW Mystrile level of experience, they were able to take the sword. This will vary from one version of the game to another. Remember that the European version of the game is quite different from the North American Natsume version.)
In HM Cute DS (aka the 'girl version'), your character actually must upgrade ALL tools to Mystrile in order to meet the requirement for being worthy to take the Legendary Sword from the 255th Floor of the 2nd Mine. Having the necessary experience is not sufficient.
In some circumstances, players in both games have gone to the 255th Floor of the Mine believing that all their tools had been upgraded to mystrile when in fact, this was not the case. The Fishing Rod IS one of the tools in both games and if the player fails to gain sufficient experience to upgrade it to Mystrile, the Legendary Sword will remain on the lowest floor of the mine.
Although all of this information is included in my General Guide for HM DS and HM Cute DS, I probably should include one final point about the Legendary Sword here.
Although the Legendary Sword can be used rather effectively as a weapon against the Dark Creatures in any Mine, that is not its primary use in either game. It is the ONLY item that can be used to destroy the two large boulders that bar access to the Super Field Cave behind the waterfall. It is not only access to the Super Field that is achieved when you destroy the two Boulders but a shortcut that is created as well. The shortcut can be quite useful on occasion.
Despite the instructions that are included in my Guides, players often attempt to bash away with the Legendary Sword, failing in every attempt to destroy the Boulders as they mistakenly assume that the Legendary Sword, used as a tool in the Mines in combat, should be used likewise as a tool against the Boulders.
This is where Harvest Moon has been a little tricky, making the use of the Legendary Sword in this particular situation one of the 'secrets' in these two games. You do NOT use the Legendary Sword as a tool to destroy the Boulders. Instead, its use is magical in nature and is initiated by standing in front of one of the two Boulders, then pressing the 'A' or action button. This will initiate an actual 'Magical' Event that will destroy the Boulder.
Note that each Boulder requires a separate Event. You therefore need to go to the other Boulder, then press the 'A' Button again.
Keira is a pivotal character both in HM DS and HM Cute DS. Where the 'Magical Girls' are concerned, the player in HM Cute DS can experience all of their 'heart events' even though they are not 'eligible' for marriage in Cute. In fact, where Keira and Leia are concerned, their 'heart events' are 'plot events' and should be experienced.
If you wish to be able to complete your Items/Shipping List, you must bring Leia to yellow heart level as you will not be able to catch a Bottled Message until you do. In fact, this is another reason to upgrade your Fishing Rod to mystrile as you will not be able to catch the Bottled Message with any lesser Fishing Rod.
There is a minor difference with respect to the two games in terms of the Fishing Rod and the Bottled Message. In the original HM DS, you only could use a fishing rod of a level HIGHER than Mystrile if you CHARGED IT ONLY TO MYSTRILE LEVEL. If you gave a Blessed or Mythic Rod the full charge, you could not catch the Bottled Message with it!
In HM Cute DS, you can use either a Mystrile Fishing Rod or any Fishing Rod of higher level to catch the Bottled Message without being required to reduce the charge of any higher Level Fishing Rod.
Take the Bottled Message to Daryl's house in order to experience her 4th and final Heart Event BOTH in the original HM DS and Cute DS. It is the 'Yellow Heart Event' that allows Leia to return to the sea and makes it possible for her to visit the beach once each week if you encourage her to do so at the end of the Event.
Incidentally, there is one small difference between the two games in terms of 'triggering' the 4th Heart Event. In the original HM DS, you had to equip the Bottled Message before you visited Daryl's house. In Cute, the Bottled Message simply needs to be in your Rucksack.
In the original HM DS, Leia is one of the eligible girls and you can continue to woo her after she returns to her mother by meeting her on the beach each week.
Keira is important to the plot in both games as well. If you do not meet Keira by experiencing her 1st Heart Event on the 255th floor of the 3rd Mine either in HM DS or in HM Cute DS, you will not be able to unlock the 4th Mine.
Remember that, once you have married, you no longer can experience ANY Heart Events in any Harvest Moon game. You therefore need to trigger Keira's 1st Heart Event by visiting the 255th Floor of the 3rd Mine AND defeating all the Dark Creatures on that floor (without cheating!!!) before you marry any one in either game.
When the barrier crumbles, enter the small chamber beyond to experience Keira's 1st Heart Event in both versions of the game. If you do not defeat all Dark Creatures on the 255th floor manually, the barrier will not crumble. In other words, turning your DS on and off to wipe the Dark Creatures off the floor will NOT work! If you fall through the floor and then reload your game to the 255th floor, that will not work either. I suggest that players save one file at the 254th floor as a back-up if they wish to make certain that they can visit Keira on the 255th floor.
One final point should be made here in view of the common error made by players with respect to the Mines in HM DS/Cute DS:
The 255th Floor is significant both with respect to the 2nd Mine and the 3rd Mine. In the 2nd Mine, the 255th Floor is the lowest floor of the Mine. You must defeat all Dark Creatures on that floor (again without cheating) in order to dissolve the barrier that leads to the chamber where the Legendary Sword awaits. Once you have 'cleared' the 2nd Mine by performing this action, you will be able to unlock the 3rd Mine by visiting the Excavation Site outside of 'working hours'. In other words, go to the Excavation Site either before 8.00 a.m. or after 8.00 p.m. to trigger the Event with Carter that will unlock the 3rd Mine. (A similar Event unlocks each of the Mines when all requirements are met. To unlock the 1st Mine, the only requirement is that you have your Hammer with you.)
The 255th Floor of the 2nd Mine may be the 'home' of the Legendary Sword but it is NOT Keira's home. She lives (or rather sleeps like the Sleeping Beauty of the fairy tale) on the 255th Floor of the 3rd Mine. Going to the 255th Floor of the 2nd Mine will not trigger any Heart Events! You need to go to the 255th Floor of the 3rd Mine in order to experience a proper introduction to Keira in her 1st Heart Event BOTH in the original HM DS and in HM Cute DS.
Experiencing Keira's 1st or Black Heart Event is only one of the requirements for unlocking the 4th and final Mine. As with each of the previous Mines, you need to visit the lowest floor of the 3rd Mine and 'clear' it of Dark Creatures before you can unlock the 4th Mine. There may be only one Dark Creature on the lowest floor of the 3rd Mine... as I am writing this post from memory alone, I cannot recall specifically if the Dark Sheep is the Creature you will meet on the lowest floor of the 3rd Mine but that detail is of no consequence. Simply do the job as before and, provided you have experienced Keira's Black Heart Event, you will be able to trigger the usual Event with Carter at the usual hours at the Excavation Site afterwards.
Finally, the 4th Mine is by far the deepest and largest Mine in the history of Harvest Moon. It does contain the Wonderfuls, however, and they appear on floors that end in 0. My Guide gives details as to the designated floors for each of the Wonderfuls.
Wonderfuls have little use in Harvest Moon games prior to Island of Happiness. In HM DS/Cute DS, you need to collect a full set if they are to be useful at all. When you have done so, the Harvest Goddess will appear to grant a wish.
In Island of Happiness, on the other hand, Wonderfuls are the items that will 'upgrade' your tools in every conceivable manner. They can be won at Festivals, obtained from the Harvest Goddess, purchased from Chen in Winter or obtained as prizes in wi-fi farming competitions.
One of the most wonderful aspects of Harvest Moon games is the way that items introduced in earlier games gradually make their uses known in later games. Players of FoMT and MFoMT will recall the four Suns that could be created in their own kitchen but which had no practical use.
It was only in HM DS/Cute DS that we discovered that the Suns could be used in our Basements as artificial sources of light for seasonal crops.
Likewise, the Wonderfuls that only served as a trigger for the grant of a single wish in HM DS/Cute DS are essential to tool use in Island of Happiness.
Exotic animals are not items but where, in former Harvest Moon games, they existed only to enrich the landscape and provide topics for conversation among characters, it is only in Tree of Tranquility that the player actually CAN tame them and have them as pets. All the false rumours about the animals in 'A Wonderful Life/Another Wonderful Life' became reality in ToT. Harvest Moon fans who yearned to domesticate the large Turtle who won a race against Nina finally can do so in ToT!
Although the two games are very similar in most respects apart from the choice of potential spouses, there are a few small differences and one of these is the requirement for taking the Legendary Sword from the 255th floor of the 2nd Mine.
In the original HM DS (aka the 'boy version'), your character in theory needed to have the necessary experience to be able to upgrade ALL tools to mystrile level in order to be able to take the Legendary Sword from the mine, but experience was all that mattered. If only one tool actually had been upgraded to Mystrile, that was sufficient. (Some players have reported that even with other tools BELOW Mystrile level of experience, they were able to take the sword. This will vary from one version of the game to another. Remember that the European version of the game is quite different from the North American Natsume version.)
In HM Cute DS (aka the 'girl version'), your character actually must upgrade ALL tools to Mystrile in order to meet the requirement for being worthy to take the Legendary Sword from the 255th Floor of the 2nd Mine. Having the necessary experience is not sufficient.
In some circumstances, players in both games have gone to the 255th Floor of the Mine believing that all their tools had been upgraded to mystrile when in fact, this was not the case. The Fishing Rod IS one of the tools in both games and if the player fails to gain sufficient experience to upgrade it to Mystrile, the Legendary Sword will remain on the lowest floor of the mine.
Although all of this information is included in my General Guide for HM DS and HM Cute DS, I probably should include one final point about the Legendary Sword here.
Although the Legendary Sword can be used rather effectively as a weapon against the Dark Creatures in any Mine, that is not its primary use in either game. It is the ONLY item that can be used to destroy the two large boulders that bar access to the Super Field Cave behind the waterfall. It is not only access to the Super Field that is achieved when you destroy the two Boulders but a shortcut that is created as well. The shortcut can be quite useful on occasion.
Despite the instructions that are included in my Guides, players often attempt to bash away with the Legendary Sword, failing in every attempt to destroy the Boulders as they mistakenly assume that the Legendary Sword, used as a tool in the Mines in combat, should be used likewise as a tool against the Boulders.
This is where Harvest Moon has been a little tricky, making the use of the Legendary Sword in this particular situation one of the 'secrets' in these two games. You do NOT use the Legendary Sword as a tool to destroy the Boulders. Instead, its use is magical in nature and is initiated by standing in front of one of the two Boulders, then pressing the 'A' or action button. This will initiate an actual 'Magical' Event that will destroy the Boulder.
Note that each Boulder requires a separate Event. You therefore need to go to the other Boulder, then press the 'A' Button again.
Keira is a pivotal character both in HM DS and HM Cute DS. Where the 'Magical Girls' are concerned, the player in HM Cute DS can experience all of their 'heart events' even though they are not 'eligible' for marriage in Cute. In fact, where Keira and Leia are concerned, their 'heart events' are 'plot events' and should be experienced.
If you wish to be able to complete your Items/Shipping List, you must bring Leia to yellow heart level as you will not be able to catch a Bottled Message until you do. In fact, this is another reason to upgrade your Fishing Rod to mystrile as you will not be able to catch the Bottled Message with any lesser Fishing Rod.
There is a minor difference with respect to the two games in terms of the Fishing Rod and the Bottled Message. In the original HM DS, you only could use a fishing rod of a level HIGHER than Mystrile if you CHARGED IT ONLY TO MYSTRILE LEVEL. If you gave a Blessed or Mythic Rod the full charge, you could not catch the Bottled Message with it!
In HM Cute DS, you can use either a Mystrile Fishing Rod or any Fishing Rod of higher level to catch the Bottled Message without being required to reduce the charge of any higher Level Fishing Rod.
Take the Bottled Message to Daryl's house in order to experience her 4th and final Heart Event BOTH in the original HM DS and Cute DS. It is the 'Yellow Heart Event' that allows Leia to return to the sea and makes it possible for her to visit the beach once each week if you encourage her to do so at the end of the Event.
Incidentally, there is one small difference between the two games in terms of 'triggering' the 4th Heart Event. In the original HM DS, you had to equip the Bottled Message before you visited Daryl's house. In Cute, the Bottled Message simply needs to be in your Rucksack.
In the original HM DS, Leia is one of the eligible girls and you can continue to woo her after she returns to her mother by meeting her on the beach each week.
Keira is important to the plot in both games as well. If you do not meet Keira by experiencing her 1st Heart Event on the 255th floor of the 3rd Mine either in HM DS or in HM Cute DS, you will not be able to unlock the 4th Mine.
Remember that, once you have married, you no longer can experience ANY Heart Events in any Harvest Moon game. You therefore need to trigger Keira's 1st Heart Event by visiting the 255th Floor of the 3rd Mine AND defeating all the Dark Creatures on that floor (without cheating!!!) before you marry any one in either game.
When the barrier crumbles, enter the small chamber beyond to experience Keira's 1st Heart Event in both versions of the game. If you do not defeat all Dark Creatures on the 255th floor manually, the barrier will not crumble. In other words, turning your DS on and off to wipe the Dark Creatures off the floor will NOT work! If you fall through the floor and then reload your game to the 255th floor, that will not work either. I suggest that players save one file at the 254th floor as a back-up if they wish to make certain that they can visit Keira on the 255th floor.
One final point should be made here in view of the common error made by players with respect to the Mines in HM DS/Cute DS:
The 255th Floor is significant both with respect to the 2nd Mine and the 3rd Mine. In the 2nd Mine, the 255th Floor is the lowest floor of the Mine. You must defeat all Dark Creatures on that floor (again without cheating) in order to dissolve the barrier that leads to the chamber where the Legendary Sword awaits. Once you have 'cleared' the 2nd Mine by performing this action, you will be able to unlock the 3rd Mine by visiting the Excavation Site outside of 'working hours'. In other words, go to the Excavation Site either before 8.00 a.m. or after 8.00 p.m. to trigger the Event with Carter that will unlock the 3rd Mine. (A similar Event unlocks each of the Mines when all requirements are met. To unlock the 1st Mine, the only requirement is that you have your Hammer with you.)
The 255th Floor of the 2nd Mine may be the 'home' of the Legendary Sword but it is NOT Keira's home. She lives (or rather sleeps like the Sleeping Beauty of the fairy tale) on the 255th Floor of the 3rd Mine. Going to the 255th Floor of the 2nd Mine will not trigger any Heart Events! You need to go to the 255th Floor of the 3rd Mine in order to experience a proper introduction to Keira in her 1st Heart Event BOTH in the original HM DS and in HM Cute DS.
Experiencing Keira's 1st or Black Heart Event is only one of the requirements for unlocking the 4th and final Mine. As with each of the previous Mines, you need to visit the lowest floor of the 3rd Mine and 'clear' it of Dark Creatures before you can unlock the 4th Mine. There may be only one Dark Creature on the lowest floor of the 3rd Mine... as I am writing this post from memory alone, I cannot recall specifically if the Dark Sheep is the Creature you will meet on the lowest floor of the 3rd Mine but that detail is of no consequence. Simply do the job as before and, provided you have experienced Keira's Black Heart Event, you will be able to trigger the usual Event with Carter at the usual hours at the Excavation Site afterwards.
Finally, the 4th Mine is by far the deepest and largest Mine in the history of Harvest Moon. It does contain the Wonderfuls, however, and they appear on floors that end in 0. My Guide gives details as to the designated floors for each of the Wonderfuls.
Wonderfuls have little use in Harvest Moon games prior to Island of Happiness. In HM DS/Cute DS, you need to collect a full set if they are to be useful at all. When you have done so, the Harvest Goddess will appear to grant a wish.
In Island of Happiness, on the other hand, Wonderfuls are the items that will 'upgrade' your tools in every conceivable manner. They can be won at Festivals, obtained from the Harvest Goddess, purchased from Chen in Winter or obtained as prizes in wi-fi farming competitions.
One of the most wonderful aspects of Harvest Moon games is the way that items introduced in earlier games gradually make their uses known in later games. Players of FoMT and MFoMT will recall the four Suns that could be created in their own kitchen but which had no practical use.
It was only in HM DS/Cute DS that we discovered that the Suns could be used in our Basements as artificial sources of light for seasonal crops.
Likewise, the Wonderfuls that only served as a trigger for the grant of a single wish in HM DS/Cute DS are essential to tool use in Island of Happiness.
Exotic animals are not items but where, in former Harvest Moon games, they existed only to enrich the landscape and provide topics for conversation among characters, it is only in Tree of Tranquility that the player actually CAN tame them and have them as pets. All the false rumours about the animals in 'A Wonderful Life/Another Wonderful Life' became reality in ToT. Harvest Moon fans who yearned to domesticate the large Turtle who won a race against Nina finally can do so in ToT!
Friday, October 24, 2008
Strange Problem with Cursed Tools in HM DS
A player emailed me with this problem: With a cursed tool equipped in the Tool, the player had the required amount of money and rang the Church for service. Carter told the player that he doesn't have the cursed item with him. (I am using 'him' because the character is a boy in HM DS.) The tool is equipped: in fact, the character is unable to remove it now because it IS a Cursed Tool.
This is not the first time I have heard of this, but I cannot recall any solution. Does any one have any helpful information about this?
This is not the first time I have heard of this, but I cannot recall any solution. Does any one have any helpful information about this?
Friday, September 26, 2008
Large Friendship Pendant in Island of Happiness
In Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS, the Friendship Pendants would act on a random selection of individuals to boost heart levels a little. If you equipped the Large Friendship Pendant before you leapt into bed at night, it would raise the affection/friendship levels of a random selection of individuals by 2 points. It did NOT raise every individual's levels but if you repeated this ritual nightly, it probably would select every individual at some point in time, thereby helping your character to achieve or remain at maximum popularity with the entire Valley.
In Island of Happiness, the Friendship Pendants appear to operate in a similar fashion. The Large Friendship Pendant appears to raise the heart levels of a random selection of individuals by a couple of points nightly. Even when I have ignored an individual, his/her heart levels rose gradually provided I equipped the Large Friendship Pendant nightly.
Another variable here is Festival Attendance. I never miss a Festival and that is a way to gain points with individuals. The combination of regular Festival attendance and equipping the Large Friendship Pendant is an effective one.
The only reason I am writing this post, however, is to state that the Friendship Pendants do not appear to affect the friendship levels of any of the Subsidiary Characters at all. It is only through regular conversation and the giving of preferred items as gifts that I have been able to raise the heart levels of any Subsidiary Character.
I would be interested in confirmation of this from other players, but in four years on the Island, equipping the Friendship Pendants RELIGIOUSLY, the Subsidiary Characters with whom I have interacted little remain at low heart levels.
Note that, until a Main Character has reached Yellow Heart level or higher, that character WILL leave the Island if you fail to perform the requisite actions that keep him/her on the Island regularly.
In Island of Happiness, the Friendship Pendants appear to operate in a similar fashion. The Large Friendship Pendant appears to raise the heart levels of a random selection of individuals by a couple of points nightly. Even when I have ignored an individual, his/her heart levels rose gradually provided I equipped the Large Friendship Pendant nightly.
Another variable here is Festival Attendance. I never miss a Festival and that is a way to gain points with individuals. The combination of regular Festival attendance and equipping the Large Friendship Pendant is an effective one.
The only reason I am writing this post, however, is to state that the Friendship Pendants do not appear to affect the friendship levels of any of the Subsidiary Characters at all. It is only through regular conversation and the giving of preferred items as gifts that I have been able to raise the heart levels of any Subsidiary Character.
I would be interested in confirmation of this from other players, but in four years on the Island, equipping the Friendship Pendants RELIGIOUSLY, the Subsidiary Characters with whom I have interacted little remain at low heart levels.
Note that, until a Main Character has reached Yellow Heart level or higher, that character WILL leave the Island if you fail to perform the requisite actions that keep him/her on the Island regularly.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
The Magic of Alexandrite and Harvest Moon
One of my favourite gems both in Harvest Moon and in the 'real world' is Alexandrite. It is a gem that was discovered in Russia in the first half of the 19th century and named after the young boy Tzar, Alexander II, as it displayed the Russian Imperial colours. Natural Alexandrite was very rare when Russian mines were the sole source of the gem, but fairly recently, it has been found in other countries and on other continents, including Brazil and Africa. Alexandrite that is found outside Russia does not display quite the same colour change as the original Russian Alexandrite, however. Russian Alexandrite changes from green to purple in artificial light.
Alexandrite is one of the rarest gems that can be found in mines in Harvest Moon games and players who are observant will discover that it displays the same colour change as Alexandrite in the real world when your character takes it outside. It is details like this that make Harvest Moon games so exceptional.
In Harvest Moon, the Alexandrites found in the mines usually are faceted gems, but when it is fashioned as a cabochon, Alexandrite has the chatoyance that characterises 'cat's eye' gems. In fact, the word chatoyance is derived from the French 'oeil de chat' which means 'eye of cat'. A cat's eye gem is one with a magical lustre that gives the impression of an eye with a shining pupil. It is similar to a 'star gem', the difference being that a cat's eye has a single line of shimmering light that runs from one end of the cabochon to the other, while a star gem has three lines that cross one another in a star formation. Sapphires and rubies are gems that in cabochon, display stars. Alexandrite, like Tiger's Eye, displays a 'cat's eye'.
I am including some photographs of natural Alexandrite, both in faceted and cabochon form. (Cabochon is another word that is derived from French, in this case, a Middle French dialect, from the word 'caboche', meaning 'little head'.) It may surprise some individuals to learn that the central red gem in the ring that includes six small Alexandrite cabochon gems (3 on either side) is a Sapphire and not a Ruby. In the ring that has three faceted gems, the smaller purple gems on either side of the central Alexandrite are Tanzanite. Alexandrite as a fairly uncommon gem even now tends to be set in unusual ways, with other unusual gems. I included a gorgeous ring with three Alexandrite cabochons because the stones have a very defined chatoyance, unlike the small accent cabs surrounding the Sapphire on the other ring.
The two screenshots from IoH show Alexandrite from the Mine when it is in your character's Rucksack, both outside in the sunlight and inside under artificial light. What is interesting about this and quite different from Alexandrite in other Harvest Moon games is that the Alexandrite in IoH appears to be from Brazil, displaying an orange tone rather than the purple or purple/red of the original Russian Alexandrite from the Ural mines.
Among others, you will find Alexandrite in Friends/More Friends of Mineral Town, Harvest Moon DS/Cute DS and Island of Happiness. In Island of Happiness, its shape is quite different from the emerald cut found in FoMT/MFoMT and HM DS/Cute DS.
A Note of Caution: Two of the rings shown in these photographs are very expensive and I do not own these beauties myself. If you are interested in obtaining Alexandrite yourself, beware of synthetics. Very often, what is advertised as 'genuine' Alexandrite is lab-created and synthetic. If that does not matter to you, you should be able to find synthetic Alexandrites that are very inexpensive but if you are looking for a natural gem, find a reputable dealer. One of my own personal ambitions is to own a very fine Alexandrite ring someday. I do own one beautiful cat's eye Alexandrite but it is extremely small, far too small to be anything more than an accent stone in a custom-made piece. I bought it at a Gem Fair a few years ago. (I am a miner at heart, I suppose, fascinated with all gems, minerals and ores.)
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Choking on a Rice Cake
This Event was so hilarious that I had to share it. I often replay Events, including Festival Events in order to satisfy myself that I have experienced all possible variables.
In HM Cute DS as well as in other Harvest Moon games, characters attending the New Year's Day Rice Cake Festival often refer to the possibility that some one could choke on a rice cake. Here are some of these remarks:
Hardy: I was just worried that somebody might choke on something... But then, I may be the one who chokes on rice cakes...
Elli: If you eat rice cakes too fast, you might choke on them! Be careful.
Kassey: I almost died once, a long time agao. I choked on a rice cake!
Patrick: My older brother almost choked on a rice cake once.
In Island of Happiness, this sorry situation can occur to YOUR character randomly.
Sabrina warned me of the possibility, saying that: 'If you eat rice cake too fast, you could choke... So be careful.'
Even so, I never dreamed it could happen to ME.
The first couple of times I played through the Event, nothing untoward occurred. I took my 'share' of rice cakes home with me. The reason I replayed the event a couple of times actually was the realisation that the number of rice cakes given to you is random. One time I obtained only one; another time I received 12. I was trying to discover what the maximum number could be when I actually CHOKED on a rice cake at the Festival!
You can see my character doubled over in the centre of the group, choking on her rice cake while the Islanders watch. Another screenshot shows her actually pounding the rice cakes. I loved that detail.
What a wonderful game this is! Fans of Harvest Moon may be aware of the fact that there is more than one version of each of the Heart Events. The next Heart Event will vary depending on your response during any Heart Event. In other words, there are different 'paths' for the Heart Events for any Eligible Girl/Bachelor in Island of Happiness. You would be required to play a dozen games at least to experience all of them. The fact that you can play either as a girl or a boy means that Island of Happiness actually is TWO separate games in a single cartridge.
There are dozens of 'optional characters' that only will come to the Island if you complete specific goals. They tend to be linked to accomplishments in one of the activities such as mining, fishing or ranching. Some of them appear to be linked to Island improvements, such as paving another road.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
The Bewitching Witch Princess
The Witch Princess in Island of Happiness lives in a wonderful little Hansel-and-Gretel styled cottage deep in the forest. She has the same vast library of books that she had in HM DS/Cute DS but her collection of bears now is visible to the casual visitor as you can see.
Note the map of the Island that appears on the upper screen. This is a wonderful resource that displays the current position of every important character on the Island.
If you would like to know which Events you have experienced...
Players often become confused as to which Heart or Rival Heart Events they have experienced. This can occur because a player stops playing the game for awhile and then returns to it or it can occur simply because a player is unaware of the significance of an Event when it is experienced.
Whatever the reason for the confusion, I always include a section in my Courtship and Marriage Guides for the actual text of every Heart and Rival Heart Event in the game. Whether it is 'Friends of Mineral Town', 'More Friends of Mineral Town', 'Harvest Moon DS' or 'Harvest Moon Cute DS', you can find the text of all Romantic Events in the 'Heart Events and Rival Heart Events Guide'/'Courtship and Marriage Guide' for the game you are playing.
The section that gives the text of the Events therefore is not intended to be a 'spoiler' but rather an aid to gameplay. Much time and energy can be saved if you know which Events you have experienced and which you still need to trigger. Knowing which Events are Heart Events and which constitute Rival Heart Events is important as well. By including the text of the Events, heartache and heartbreak can be avoided! If you wish to marry the girl/bachelor yourself and have experienced three of the four Rival Heart Events without realising it, reading the Text section of the Guide can alert you to the situation, allowing you to avoid the 4th and Final Rival Heart Event that would deprive you of your intended spouse forever.
Separate sections in the Guides are devoted to each of the Eligible Girls or Bachelors in the game, giving the individual's birthday, schedule, likes and dislikes and a full schedule of each of his/her Heart and Rival Heart Events.
The Romance guides include detailed information on Courtship and Marriage in general, with all requirements for Marriage.
Links to ALL my Guides, including Courtship and Marriage Guides, are included on the right side of this page.
Whatever the reason for the confusion, I always include a section in my Courtship and Marriage Guides for the actual text of every Heart and Rival Heart Event in the game. Whether it is 'Friends of Mineral Town', 'More Friends of Mineral Town', 'Harvest Moon DS' or 'Harvest Moon Cute DS', you can find the text of all Romantic Events in the 'Heart Events and Rival Heart Events Guide'/'Courtship and Marriage Guide' for the game you are playing.
The section that gives the text of the Events therefore is not intended to be a 'spoiler' but rather an aid to gameplay. Much time and energy can be saved if you know which Events you have experienced and which you still need to trigger. Knowing which Events are Heart Events and which constitute Rival Heart Events is important as well. By including the text of the Events, heartache and heartbreak can be avoided! If you wish to marry the girl/bachelor yourself and have experienced three of the four Rival Heart Events without realising it, reading the Text section of the Guide can alert you to the situation, allowing you to avoid the 4th and Final Rival Heart Event that would deprive you of your intended spouse forever.
Separate sections in the Guides are devoted to each of the Eligible Girls or Bachelors in the game, giving the individual's birthday, schedule, likes and dislikes and a full schedule of each of his/her Heart and Rival Heart Events.
The Romance guides include detailed information on Courtship and Marriage in general, with all requirements for Marriage.
Links to ALL my Guides, including Courtship and Marriage Guides, are included on the right side of this page.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Once More, How to Marry Leia the Mermaid
In HM DS, you can marry Leia the Mermaid. In HM Cute DS, you cannot marry her, but you nonetheless can experience all four of her Heart Events (as well as those of other 'Magical Girls' in both games).
In order to experience Leia's 4th and Final Heart Event, aka the Yellow Heart Event, you must be aware of these requirements:
1. You must have experienced Leia's first 3 Heart Events and have Leia at Yellow Heart Level;
2. You must have a Mystrile Fishing Rod or Fishing Rod of a higher level than Mystrile;
3. You must catch the Bottled Message using any Fishing Rod at Mystrile Level which means, at least in the original HM DS, that you cannot have a Fishing Rod lower than Mystrile and, if it is higher than Mystrile, only charge it to Mystrile Level. (I think in Cute, you may be able to catch it with higher levels of Rod with a full Blessed or Mythic charge but I would have to look at my game journals to make certain).
4. YOU ONLY CAN CATCH THE BOTTLED MESSAGE IN SPRING.
In HM DS, you then had to go to Daryl's house with the Bottle in your hands to trigger the 4th Heart Event. In Cute, you can go there with the Bottled Message in your rucksack and it still will trigger. Either way, once the Event is experienced, Leia will return to the sea.
She will visit the Beach of Forget-Me-Not Valley after that each week. If you wish to marry her in HM DS and did not have her at full red heart level before her return to the sea, you can ply her with Big Fish then until she reaches red heart level.
In order to experience Leia's 4th and Final Heart Event, aka the Yellow Heart Event, you must be aware of these requirements:
1. You must have experienced Leia's first 3 Heart Events and have Leia at Yellow Heart Level;
2. You must have a Mystrile Fishing Rod or Fishing Rod of a higher level than Mystrile;
3. You must catch the Bottled Message using any Fishing Rod at Mystrile Level which means, at least in the original HM DS, that you cannot have a Fishing Rod lower than Mystrile and, if it is higher than Mystrile, only charge it to Mystrile Level. (I think in Cute, you may be able to catch it with higher levels of Rod with a full Blessed or Mythic charge but I would have to look at my game journals to make certain).
4. YOU ONLY CAN CATCH THE BOTTLED MESSAGE IN SPRING.
In HM DS, you then had to go to Daryl's house with the Bottle in your hands to trigger the 4th Heart Event. In Cute, you can go there with the Bottled Message in your rucksack and it still will trigger. Either way, once the Event is experienced, Leia will return to the sea.
She will visit the Beach of Forget-Me-Not Valley after that each week. If you wish to marry her in HM DS and did not have her at full red heart level before her return to the sea, you can ply her with Big Fish then until she reaches red heart level.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Harvest Moon and the Environment
Out of a hundred emails I receive containing questions about Harvest Moon, at least a quarter of these tend to be desperate appeals for help because the player gives gifts that an eligible girl or bachelor loves and yet, his/her AP keeps going back down to zero!
The reason for this, as I have stated again and again in my Guides, is because the Harvest Goddess who watches over the land is very strict with respect to littering. She has taught her people not to throw items recklessly into the roads, into the seas and rivers or anywhere else... In almost every Harvest Moon game, you will find rubbish or trash bins in the Village Square and in your own house. In some Harvest Moon games, you actually can ship rubbish items such as old boots and empty tins to obtain a little extra income. What you MUST NOT DO is throw the items on the ground or into any body of water.
If you 'catch' an old boot with your Fishing Rod, do not throw it back into the water. Take it to the nearest rubbish bin or ship it... or if you are playing a game that features the little girl May, you can give it to her as a gift and she will be thrilled with it. (She is one of the few individuals who actually LIKES rubbish, apart from the Witch Princess in HM DS and Cute who likes some rubbish items but not others. You can give the Witch Princess your empty tins and fishbones, for example.)
In some Harvest Moon games, you can pull weeds on your own land and toss them aside without incurring any penalties but in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS, throwing even a weed onto your own field is considered littering. The Witch Princess may give you her own gift of rubbish if you toss 10 weeds, but although you have been given that dubious award from her, you will lose AP with eligible bachelors/girls! Do not drop or throw ANY item on the ground or water ANYWHERE in Harvest Moon DS or Cute DS. Affection WILL decrease when you do...
In some games, it is only the affection and/or friendship of individuals within a specific radius that will decrease when you litter. In others, the effect will be general.
It may be useful to add a note here about throwing a small fish into the ocean in order to catch the King Fish. You must do it if you wish to catch the King Fish in question, but it WILL be considered littering and you will lose affection/friendship in every Harvest Moon game when you do it. Make certain to remedy the loss as quickly as possible... that's the best you can do.
In some games, you actually can go to Confession at the local Church and be absolved for the 'sin' of littering. This is worth doing, actually, if you either have dropped an item by accident or have been forced to throw a small fish into the sea to catch the King Fish. Those players who, when trying to give a favourite item to an individual, have dropped it by accident when the intended recipient has moved away suddenly will lose not only the item and the benefit of the gift but be punished with a littering penalty! We've all experienced this, I expect... I usually reload in such cases, even if I am forced to relive an entire morning...
The reason for this, as I have stated again and again in my Guides, is because the Harvest Goddess who watches over the land is very strict with respect to littering. She has taught her people not to throw items recklessly into the roads, into the seas and rivers or anywhere else... In almost every Harvest Moon game, you will find rubbish or trash bins in the Village Square and in your own house. In some Harvest Moon games, you actually can ship rubbish items such as old boots and empty tins to obtain a little extra income. What you MUST NOT DO is throw the items on the ground or into any body of water.
If you 'catch' an old boot with your Fishing Rod, do not throw it back into the water. Take it to the nearest rubbish bin or ship it... or if you are playing a game that features the little girl May, you can give it to her as a gift and she will be thrilled with it. (She is one of the few individuals who actually LIKES rubbish, apart from the Witch Princess in HM DS and Cute who likes some rubbish items but not others. You can give the Witch Princess your empty tins and fishbones, for example.)
In some Harvest Moon games, you can pull weeds on your own land and toss them aside without incurring any penalties but in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS, throwing even a weed onto your own field is considered littering. The Witch Princess may give you her own gift of rubbish if you toss 10 weeds, but although you have been given that dubious award from her, you will lose AP with eligible bachelors/girls! Do not drop or throw ANY item on the ground or water ANYWHERE in Harvest Moon DS or Cute DS. Affection WILL decrease when you do...
In some games, it is only the affection and/or friendship of individuals within a specific radius that will decrease when you litter. In others, the effect will be general.
It may be useful to add a note here about throwing a small fish into the ocean in order to catch the King Fish. You must do it if you wish to catch the King Fish in question, but it WILL be considered littering and you will lose affection/friendship in every Harvest Moon game when you do it. Make certain to remedy the loss as quickly as possible... that's the best you can do.
In some games, you actually can go to Confession at the local Church and be absolved for the 'sin' of littering. This is worth doing, actually, if you either have dropped an item by accident or have been forced to throw a small fish into the sea to catch the King Fish. Those players who, when trying to give a favourite item to an individual, have dropped it by accident when the intended recipient has moved away suddenly will lose not only the item and the benefit of the gift but be punished with a littering penalty! We've all experienced this, I expect... I usually reload in such cases, even if I am forced to relive an entire morning...
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Obtain your Horse on 3 Spring in HM DS and Cute DS
I have added a brief Walkthrough for the first week of the game to my 1st Year Events Calendar Guide for HM Cute DS but the updated version of the guide may not have been published yet by IGN. I believe I should add one to my 1st Year Events Guide for the original Boy version of HM DS as well. It offers many useful tips to make the game easier for players.
One of these is a way to obtain a horse on the very second day of the game. You need to spend a little time in the Excavation Site digging for jewelry, but you should do that anyway!
On Monday, 2 Spring, the day on which the game begins, the Supermarket will be open but you will have only 500G which should be spent on seeds. Never mind that. Van will come to the Valley on the 3rd to open his stall on the 2nd floor of the Inn. There you can sell jewelry from the Excavation site for up to 3250G each.
Do not forget to buy at least one item from Karen's Supermarket each day it is open for the first 10 days in order to rescue the Sprite who runs the Shopping Network.
When Tuesday arrives, you can obtain the horse from Takakura by shipping 1000 items. This is easily done as follows:
Buy Bird Feed from Popuri and dump it in the shipping container. You can carry 99 portions of Bird Seed in every empty slot in your rucksack. Even though you will have only 18 slots in the small rucksack, it will not take long to ship whatever amount of Bird Feed is required to bring your total to 1000. As soon as you throw the 1000th item in the bin, you will rescue a Sprite. Go into your house then and when you exit, Takakura will be at your door with a Horse.
It's as simple as that. Even after investing in the Bird Feed, you should have more than enough money to order the first Bird Barn from Gotz.
The horse is not really that useful once you have a teleport stone but until Sunday, 8 Spring when the Casino is unlocked, the horse will make your life MUCH easier!
Unlike some of the other Harvest Moon games (FoMT/MFoMT and Harvest Moon Boy & Girl come to mind), the horse can be ridden anywhere outdoors on the map. Riding the horse will cut your transportation time in half until you have the very useful teleport stone.
One of these is a way to obtain a horse on the very second day of the game. You need to spend a little time in the Excavation Site digging for jewelry, but you should do that anyway!
On Monday, 2 Spring, the day on which the game begins, the Supermarket will be open but you will have only 500G which should be spent on seeds. Never mind that. Van will come to the Valley on the 3rd to open his stall on the 2nd floor of the Inn. There you can sell jewelry from the Excavation site for up to 3250G each.
Do not forget to buy at least one item from Karen's Supermarket each day it is open for the first 10 days in order to rescue the Sprite who runs the Shopping Network.
When Tuesday arrives, you can obtain the horse from Takakura by shipping 1000 items. This is easily done as follows:
Buy Bird Feed from Popuri and dump it in the shipping container. You can carry 99 portions of Bird Seed in every empty slot in your rucksack. Even though you will have only 18 slots in the small rucksack, it will not take long to ship whatever amount of Bird Feed is required to bring your total to 1000. As soon as you throw the 1000th item in the bin, you will rescue a Sprite. Go into your house then and when you exit, Takakura will be at your door with a Horse.
It's as simple as that. Even after investing in the Bird Feed, you should have more than enough money to order the first Bird Barn from Gotz.
The horse is not really that useful once you have a teleport stone but until Sunday, 8 Spring when the Casino is unlocked, the horse will make your life MUCH easier!
Unlike some of the other Harvest Moon games (FoMT/MFoMT and Harvest Moon Boy & Girl come to mind), the horse can be ridden anywhere outdoors on the map. Riding the horse will cut your transportation time in half until you have the very useful teleport stone.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Unhappy Baby Animals
Any player of Harvest Moon games will be aware of the necessity of keeping animals happy by feeding them and not keeping them outside in bad weather conditions. In a game like Harvest Moon DS or Harvest Moon Cute DS, the fact that you can have many Bird Barns and Animal Barns can make Animal Care a little more complex, as you must remember to enter EVERY barn to feed animals and perform whatever tasks are needed. If you have four Bird Barns and three Animal Barns and they are in different parts of the field, it is not difficult to forget one...
You can hire a Sprite Team to care for your Animals but as you only can hire one team at a time, you may wish to hire a Team for a different task such as Watering or Fishing.
When not fed, animals first become Unhappy and then Sick. Once an Animal falls sick, you will be obliged to purchase and use Animal Medicine in order to cure it. If you do not feed an animal for even a single day, you run the risk of having a Sick Animal on the next day in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS. Sick Animals when not medicated usually take more than one day to die but they will die ultimately if you do not medicate them.
The reason for this post is not to write about these basic facts but to share a more subtle aspect of animal behaviour in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS.
When an Animal is born on your farm, you then will have both Mother and Child. If you sell the Mother while her offspring still is a baby, the baby MAY become Unhappy. This is a random effect but it is rather touching. I have experienced it more than once myself. I therefore try not to deprive a baby animal of its parent if possible. Once the Animal is an adult, the relationship between parent and child apparently becomes more distant, but when the Animal is a baby, it needs its mother!
You can hire a Sprite Team to care for your Animals but as you only can hire one team at a time, you may wish to hire a Team for a different task such as Watering or Fishing.
When not fed, animals first become Unhappy and then Sick. Once an Animal falls sick, you will be obliged to purchase and use Animal Medicine in order to cure it. If you do not feed an animal for even a single day, you run the risk of having a Sick Animal on the next day in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS. Sick Animals when not medicated usually take more than one day to die but they will die ultimately if you do not medicate them.
The reason for this post is not to write about these basic facts but to share a more subtle aspect of animal behaviour in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS.
When an Animal is born on your farm, you then will have both Mother and Child. If you sell the Mother while her offspring still is a baby, the baby MAY become Unhappy. This is a random effect but it is rather touching. I have experienced it more than once myself. I therefore try not to deprive a baby animal of its parent if possible. Once the Animal is an adult, the relationship between parent and child apparently becomes more distant, but when the Animal is a baby, it needs its mother!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
My Valentine's Day Treat
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I promised myself I would do this on St. Valentine's Day. After all, what better way to celebrate the Day of Lovers than by experiencing a wedding in Harvest Moon? The only problem for me is that it is an experience fraught with a small degree of terror, as I always am afraid I will save the game by accident and be forced to live with the consequences! You see, I have all the ordinary Valley bachelors at deepest red heart level but do not intend to marry any of them. My heart is set upon Skye and I don't wish to marry him even until I have experienced all the Mineral Town Heart Events. I expect that my REAL wedding will have to wait until Spring...
Meanwhile, though, I need to begin to LOWER the Valley bachelors' hearts again so that I can set them up with my rivals in Spring for the Second Rival Heart Events. Before I do that, however, I would like to document their weddings. I have proposed to each of them and documented the proposal events, but a wedding is more involved. One must wait a week after the proposal in order to experience the wedding.
As I have three Bird Barns and three Animal Barns packed to the rafters, I either have to SELL all the animals before I sleep through the week or allow them to fall ill and deal with the repetitious Sprite announcements that something is wrong in the barn. Well, the course of false love runs no smoother than that of true love.
So far, I have experienced a wedding with Carter and one with Rock. I still need to experience the other three...
Weddings with any ordinary Valley bachelor basically are very similar. They occur at the beach and EVERY ONE attends. The configuration of the audience is a little different for each but the ceremony follows the same ritual, with the Harvest Goddess ringing the bells as a gift to you after you both pronounce your wedding vows to Thomas. The credits then roll.
You find yourself afterwards at your table in your farmhouse with your spouse. He will suggest that you choose a nickname for yourself but not for him. After that, you will see a little message to the effect that:
Tomorrow begins our new life together.
You will be taken directly to the next morning where you will be able to discover the way in which your spouse will speak to you every morning...
For those who are playing the original 'boy' version of Harvest Moon DS, the details of weddings are very similar. As you can see, the Harvest Goddess is one of the main participants in the ceremony. You therefore CANNOT marry until you have rescued the Harvest Goddess by rescuing 60 Harvest Sprites.
For the many players who ask which bachelor will make the best husband, I will post a little about each...
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The Delight is in the Details... Murrey's Birthday
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In most Harvest Moon games, the goal simply is to create a good life for oneself and to make a contribution to the village or place in which one lives. One isn't punished actively if one fails to remember a birthday but I personally love to remember every individual's birthday with a special gift he or she likes.
In the first two seasons of gameplay, one of my personal goals is to raise every individual's friendship level to maximum. In HM DS and HM Cute DS, maximum friendship level is 255 FP. Having done that, the birthday gift bonus of 5x the ordinary 'value' of the gift becomes irrelevant but I still try not to forget any one's birthday.
Thursday, 29 Autumn is Murrey's birthday. I have had him at 255 FP for quite some time now and have experienced most of his events, including the two with the Gourmet.
My main preoccupation today was Grey, who visits the Valley only on Thursday and whom I have at Blue Heart level now. I wanted to make certain, therefore, to experience his Third Heart Event.
Having done that earlier in the day, I was free to concentrate on Murrey. In general, Murrey can be found near the Goddess Spring in the morning and at the Villa in the afternoon. At night, he returns to the Goddess Spring.
Today, however, I did not find him at the Villa. Although I created a Schedule of Movements for HM DS, I had not expected I would need it and in fact, decided simply to search for Murrey... I remembered that Thursday was the day when he visited the Blue Bar in the evening, but where did he go today after he left the Goddess Spring? It took me a few minutes to find him... in the kitchen of the Inner Inn!
Yes, I should have remembered that Thursday was his day to visit the Inner Inn... I could have waited until evening to present him with his gift at the Blue Bar, but in finding him in the kitchen, I was able to experience some of his most amusing dialogue.
Murrey stands in a corner in Ruby's kitchen. One suspects that he thinks he is 'hiding'. In 'A Wonderful Life', Murrey often will raid your own storeroom and kitchen for food. He doesn't consider it to be theft. He feels that any food storage exists for his benefit in a way. Even so, his forays sometimes are clandestine.
In Ruby's kitchen, Murrey will tell you: 'Here's where the most food falls, and it's the tastiest too! Are you going to get some food too, Freya? Don't take Murrey's share.'
That appears to be his new theory of existence. Food simply 'falls' like manna from heaven...
I gave him his 'Most Favourite', an egg and he duly confirmed that it was indeed his birthday, thanking me politely for the gift. He is more enthusiastic about eggs when it ISN'T his birthday, actually but the egg would have increased his FP by 45 points rather than 9 if it were not at maximum.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Most Favourite Gifts and the Pot in Harvest Moon
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It really is not necessary ever to give the 'Most Favourite' Item to a prospective spouse in order to win his/her heart in Harvest Moon. In the 'boy' version of HM DS, I was able to raise every girl's heart level to deepest red without ever giving the girl her 'Most Favourite' gift AND was able to do it by the earliest date when I would be able to marry in the game. In Cute, the same holds true. I had every ordinary bachelor at deepest red heart level before the end of Autumn in the first year.
What I did not notice previously, however, was the fact that every 'Most Favourite' item for any of the ordinary bachelors of the Valley requires the use of a Pot to prepare. You cannot acquire the Pot before the middle of the first Autumn, even if you upgrade your house once at the earliest possible date in order to be able to purchase the Kitchen and all Implements. The Pot is the implement that is offered LAST...
Here are the Most Favourites:
Carter: Candied Potato, prepared with a Yam and a POT
Griffin: Fish Stew, prepared with a medium fish and a POT
Gustafa: Hot Milk, prepared with Milk and a POT
Marlin: Elli Leaves, prepared with Bodigizer XL, Turbojolt XL and all six Failed Dishes (one of which must be made with the POT)
Rock: Cheese Fondue, prepared with Bread, Cheese, Wine and a POT
Skye: Finest Curry, prepared with Rainbow Curry, White Curry and all six Failed Dishes (most of which ingredients require a POT)
As for the bachelors of Mineral Town:
Cliff shares Skye's taste in his Most Favourite item, which is 'Finest Curry'. This dish did not exist in FoMT or MFoMT but Cliff apparently has acquired a love of it since he first became acquainted with Ruby's cooking. He formerly considered a simple Curry Rice to be the best gift of all! Grey's Most Favourite remains Baked Corn, always and forever. Kai's remains the Pineapple. Trent still loves Milk and Rick loves the Spa Egg above all other items... These Most Favourites date from their FoMT/MFoMT days.
The 'Most Favourites' for the Mineral Town bachelors are acquired in different ways. Only the Finest Curry requires the Pot. A Spa Egg requires the unlocking of the first Hot Spring by experiencing Flora's 255 FP Event. A Pineapple is a Summer Crop grown from seed purchased at the Casino window. Baked Corn is made in an Oven. Milk probably will be the first 'Most Favourite' that you acquire, when your first cow reaches maturity.
The eligible girls in the original HM DS are different from HM Cute Valley bachelors with respect to the means by which their Most Favourites are obtained... but in Cute, as you can see, if you wish to make the Most Favourite dish for any Valley bachelor, you must have the POT.
I have included some photographs of the bachelors and their responses when they are given their 'Most Favourite' item. Of all of them, it is Carter's response that is particularly poignant... one wonders if he were a lonely boy, sent off early in life to boarding school...
Saturday, February 2, 2008
The Little Things in Harvest Moon: Virtues of Cooking
In an earlier post, I listed the first Cooked Dishes that could be made in Harvest Moon DS and Harvest Moon Cute DS as soon as you acquire a kitchen but do not have any implements. In that post, I concentrated on the value of Cooked Dishes as gifts for other people. In this post, I am going to discuss the virtue of Cooked Dishes primarily in terms of restoring energy.
The first implement that you can obtain from the Shopping Network is the Mixer. With the Mixer, you can transform Fruits and Vegetables into Juices and Lattes and make a couple of very important basic items like Butter and Ketchup. You actually can make Fish Sticks as well.
Again, I am not going to list ALL the Mixer Recipes here but only the ones that can be made in the first half of the first Summer of gameplay.
Fruit Juice
1 Strawberry
Fruit Latte
1 Fruit Juice
1 Milk
Vegetable Juice
1 Cucumber
1 Milk
Vegetable Latte
1 Vegetable Juice
1 Milk
Mix Juice
1 Fruit Juice
1 Vegetable Juice
Mix Latte
1 Mix Juice
1 Milk
Strawberry Milk
1 Strawberry
1 Milk
Tomato Juice
1 Tomato
Peach Juice
1 Peach
Grape Juice
1 Wild Grape
Butter
1 Milk
Ketchup
1 Tomato
1 Onion
Fish Sticks
1 Medium or 1 Large Fish
Here are the energy values for each of these dishes:
Fruit Juice: +20 SR -15 FR
Fruit Latte: +30 SR -15 FR
Vegetable Juice: +20 SR -20 FR
Vegetable Latte: +30 SR -20 FR
Mix Juice: +50 SR -30 FR
Mix Latte: +60 SR -20 FR
Strawberry Milk: +30 SR -15 FR
Tomato Juice: +20 SR -20 FR
Grape Juice: +7 SR -13 FR
Peach Juice: +10 SR -10 FR
Fish Sticks: +5 SR -1 FR
Butter: +1 SR -0 FR
Ketchup: +1 SR -0 FR
It will come as no surprise to discover that the energy values of Butter and Ketchup are minimal. What is interesting is the difference between the Energy Values of a Medium Fish consumed without cooking preparation, the same Medium Fish blended in a Mixer into Fish Sticks and the same Medium Fish made into Sashimi as a 'No Tool' Recipe. Here are the values:
Medium Fish eaten raw: +4 SR -1 FR
Fish Sticks: +5 SR -1 FR
Sashimi: +30 SR -3 FR
The simple act of throwing a crop into a Mixer can enhance its energy values enormously. Not all crops can be made into Juice, but many can. Here are the differences between the raw crop and the same crop as Juice:
Strawberry Milk: +30 SR -15 FR
Strawberry: +5 SR -2 FR
Tomato Juice: +20 SR -20 FR
Tomato: +4 SR -1 FR
Grape Juice: +7 SR -13 FR
Wild Grape: +10 SR -2 FR
Peach Juice: +10 SR -10 FR
Peach: +2 SR -3 FR
As you can see, in most cases, the Stamina value will be far greater if the crop is made into Juice. The Fatigue recovery will be substantially greater as well. The only anomaly here is the Wild Grape. It has a much higher Stamina value when consumed raw BUT its value in terms of reducing Fatigue is far greater when made into Juice. Grape Juice, by the way, can be made either with a regular Grape from a grapevine or from a wild grape.
Very often, players of Harvest Moon games become seduced by the concept of Elli Leaves and focus on them exclusively when cooking for energy purposes, but as you can see, there are many easy recipes for cooked dishes that will restore energy significantly. Elli Leaves cannot be made until you have EVERY cooking implement in your kitchen. The recipes given here require nothing more than the Mixer.
The first implement that you can obtain from the Shopping Network is the Mixer. With the Mixer, you can transform Fruits and Vegetables into Juices and Lattes and make a couple of very important basic items like Butter and Ketchup. You actually can make Fish Sticks as well.
Again, I am not going to list ALL the Mixer Recipes here but only the ones that can be made in the first half of the first Summer of gameplay.
Fruit Juice
1 Strawberry
Fruit Latte
1 Fruit Juice
1 Milk
Vegetable Juice
1 Cucumber
1 Milk
Vegetable Latte
1 Vegetable Juice
1 Milk
Mix Juice
1 Fruit Juice
1 Vegetable Juice
Mix Latte
1 Mix Juice
1 Milk
Strawberry Milk
1 Strawberry
1 Milk
Tomato Juice
1 Tomato
Peach Juice
1 Peach
Grape Juice
1 Wild Grape
Butter
1 Milk
Ketchup
1 Tomato
1 Onion
Fish Sticks
1 Medium or 1 Large Fish
Here are the energy values for each of these dishes:
Fruit Juice: +20 SR -15 FR
Fruit Latte: +30 SR -15 FR
Vegetable Juice: +20 SR -20 FR
Vegetable Latte: +30 SR -20 FR
Mix Juice: +50 SR -30 FR
Mix Latte: +60 SR -20 FR
Strawberry Milk: +30 SR -15 FR
Tomato Juice: +20 SR -20 FR
Grape Juice: +7 SR -13 FR
Peach Juice: +10 SR -10 FR
Fish Sticks: +5 SR -1 FR
Butter: +1 SR -0 FR
Ketchup: +1 SR -0 FR
It will come as no surprise to discover that the energy values of Butter and Ketchup are minimal. What is interesting is the difference between the Energy Values of a Medium Fish consumed without cooking preparation, the same Medium Fish blended in a Mixer into Fish Sticks and the same Medium Fish made into Sashimi as a 'No Tool' Recipe. Here are the values:
Medium Fish eaten raw: +4 SR -1 FR
Fish Sticks: +5 SR -1 FR
Sashimi: +30 SR -3 FR
The simple act of throwing a crop into a Mixer can enhance its energy values enormously. Not all crops can be made into Juice, but many can. Here are the differences between the raw crop and the same crop as Juice:
Strawberry Milk: +30 SR -15 FR
Strawberry: +5 SR -2 FR
Tomato Juice: +20 SR -20 FR
Tomato: +4 SR -1 FR
Grape Juice: +7 SR -13 FR
Wild Grape: +10 SR -2 FR
Peach Juice: +10 SR -10 FR
Peach: +2 SR -3 FR
As you can see, in most cases, the Stamina value will be far greater if the crop is made into Juice. The Fatigue recovery will be substantially greater as well. The only anomaly here is the Wild Grape. It has a much higher Stamina value when consumed raw BUT its value in terms of reducing Fatigue is far greater when made into Juice. Grape Juice, by the way, can be made either with a regular Grape from a grapevine or from a wild grape.
Very often, players of Harvest Moon games become seduced by the concept of Elli Leaves and focus on them exclusively when cooking for energy purposes, but as you can see, there are many easy recipes for cooked dishes that will restore energy significantly. Elli Leaves cannot be made until you have EVERY cooking implement in your kitchen. The recipes given here require nothing more than the Mixer.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The First Hot Spring in HM DS and HM Cute DS
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In earlier Harvest Moon games, your village often had a Hot Spring when you first arrived at your farm. It was thus even in Mineral Town, but in Forget-Me-Not Valley in HM DS, you must discover the Hot Spring. Your first opportunity to do this is by experiencing Flora's 3rd Heart Event, otherwise known as her Blue Heart Event. Sometimes players fail to understand that experiencing Heart Events does not force you to marry the girl or bachelor involved in the event. It is best to experience as many events as possible, whatever you ultimately decide to do with your life.
In 'Cute', the discovery of the first Hot Spring remains tied to Flora's old Blue Heart Event. In fact, it is virtually identical to her Blue Heart Event in the 'boy' version of the game. The only difference is that you cannot raise her AP in 'Cute' but you must raise her FP to 255 in order to experience the event.
It is rather a curious event actually as it involves the discovery of an extraordinary lithograph. This purportedly is the entire reason Carter and Flora are working in the Valley but when Flora brings the lithograph to him, he tells her he cannot join her to search for the 'treasure' because he has 'other plans'. What plans possibly could be more important than his life's work???
It does give you the chance to take his place in the treasure hunt, joining Flora to dig for the hidden 'treasure'. That treasure is the Hot Spring. Unlike some events that transpire at night, this one takes no real time and you will find yourself outside your house at the end of it at the same time you entered the screen to trigger the scene.
Incidentally, what is odd about this is that I was able to experience it on a Tuesday night, ostensibly Flora's day off. It is rather annoying that I was able to trigger this event on a Tuesday, against all logic, but that the game continued to operate like clockwork on Sunday night when I tried to experience Part II of Skye's Event, denying me any opportunity to do so after allowing me cruelly to trigger Part I. (And Skye is disappointed with me!!! He reverted to purple heart level when I failed to appear.)
Tips on Cooking in HM DS and HM Cute DS
This information will be included in my new General Guide for Cute as well as my Cooking Guide but meanwhile, I have created a little tip section for players of either game.
If you are the sort of player who, like me, tries to unlock or acquire every item as soon as possible in the game, you will find that the earliest date when you can have a Kitchen is Monday, 14 Summer. When your kitchen is delivered, you will be fairly limited in the dishes you will be able to prepare, not having any implements yet.
Here is a list of the Recipes you CAN make without any implements with notes about the characters who like them. It is valid both for the original Harvest Moon DS and for the upcoming Harvest Moon Cute.
Your First Recipes:
Your First Recipes in Harvest Moon Cute will be 'No Tool' Recipes. Those that you will be able to make in the first half of Summer are as follows:
Mayonnaise:
Egg (S), Oil
Salad:
Cucumber and/or
Tomato and/or
Cabbage
N.B. In HM Cute, using more than one of these is simply a waste of ingredients. It will not change the SR or the FR. You could use a Carrot as well, but you won't have that until Autumn and by then, you should have all Cooking Implements and a wealth of recipes. Lumina, Karen, Rock, Cody and Vesta like Salad but the real advantage of making it is as a gift for Wally. It is the first gift you can obtain that will raise his FP by +9.
Sandwich:
Bread
Tomato and/or
Cucumber
N.B. In HM Cute, using more than one of these 'fillings' is simply a waste of ingredients and will not affect SR or FR. You can use a Boiled Egg as well, but you won't have a Pot at this point. Cliff loves sandwich and it is one of the first items that will raise his AP by +500 and FP by +9.
Fruit Sandwich:
Bread
Strawberry and/or
Peach
N.B. In HM Cute, using more than one 'filling' will not improve SR or FR. Later in Summer, you can make a Fruit Sandwich with a Pineapple and next year, with any Fruit, but at the moment, only Strawberries and Peach will be available.
Pickled Turnip
Turnip
N.B. This is one of the easiest recipes in any Harvest Moon game and is a dish that pleases most senior citizens. Of the bachelors, Gustafa alone loves it but it is one of the first items that will raise his AP by +500 and his FP by +9. Of other young people, Nami and Karen alone like Pickled Turnips. It is one of the first items that will raise Takakura's FP by +9.
Pickled Cucumber
Cucumber
N.B. Another easy recipe. The same individuals who love Pickled Turnip on the whole will love Pickled Cucumber. It is one of the first items that will raise Gustafa's AP by 500 and FP by 9 and one of the first to raise Takakura's FP by 9.
Bamboo Rice
Bamboo Shoot
Riceball
N.B. An easy dish but a few people actively dislike it, so be careful.
Sushi
Riceball
Sashimi
N.B. This is a great recipe and one that many people will like. Sashimi is a 'No Tool' recipe as well. Among bachelors, both Griffin and Cliff LOVE Sushi. Most of the older characters love it as well, including Galen, Hardy and Sebastian.
Raisin Bread
Bread
Wild Grape
N.B. Marlin loves Raisin Bread, and it is slightly less expensive than the Wine you have had to give him each day to boost his affection. Other characters who love Raisin Bread are Mary and Ruby.
Sashimi
Fish (M) or Fish (L)
N.B. Please note that you cannot use a Small Fish to make Sashimi. Sashimi' is one of the first items, apart from the Lithograph, that really excites Carter. Before you have a Kitchen, you will be limited to gifts of riceball or wine that only raise his AP and FP by +300AP +3 FP but with Sashimi, you can raise it by +500 +9 daily. Griffin loves Sashimi but he will be just as excited by a raw small fish, so Sashimi will not represent anything better in terms of courting him. He is one of the easiest bachelors to please. All the elders love sashimi as well.
Kate, Murrey love sashimi but the real plus here is that Takakura loves it. He is a difficult character in terms of gifts at the start of the game. Until you catch Big Fish, you will not have ANY gift that he will welcome. The advantage of Sashimi over Big Fish is that it can be made using a medium fish.
Ice Cream:
Milk
Egg
Optional: any fruit
N.B. Hugh, Chris and Van love Ice Cream and Lumina likes it.
This is not a comprehensive 'No Tool' Cooking Guide but it is comprehensive in terms of the dishes you can make if you order the Kitchen at the earliest possible day in the Summer of your First Year.
Some of the first 'cooked dishes' you can make have higher energy values than any other items you have been able to obtain, apart from the Medicines you can buy from Van.
Here are the Energy Values for the Recipes given above:
Salad: +20 SR -5 FR
Sandwich: +40 SR -5 FR (bread and tomato)
Fruit Sandwich: +40 SR -5 FR (bread and peach, same for bread and strawberry)
Pickled Turnip: +20 SR -4 FR
Pickled Cucumber: +20 SR -7 FR
Raisin Bread: +30 SR -4 FR
Sushi: +40 SR -1 FR
Sashimi: +30 SR -3 FR
Bamboo Rice: +30 SR -1 FR
Ice Cream: +30 SR -20 FR
Ice Cream actually is the best of these Cooked Recipes, if you suffer both from lack of Stamina and high Fatigue. If you add fruit to the basic Ice Cream recipe of 1 Milk and 1 Egg, you will raise the SR value even higher.
If you are the sort of player who, like me, tries to unlock or acquire every item as soon as possible in the game, you will find that the earliest date when you can have a Kitchen is Monday, 14 Summer. When your kitchen is delivered, you will be fairly limited in the dishes you will be able to prepare, not having any implements yet.
Here is a list of the Recipes you CAN make without any implements with notes about the characters who like them. It is valid both for the original Harvest Moon DS and for the upcoming Harvest Moon Cute.
Your First Recipes:
Your First Recipes in Harvest Moon Cute will be 'No Tool' Recipes. Those that you will be able to make in the first half of Summer are as follows:
Mayonnaise:
Egg (S), Oil
Salad:
Cucumber and/or
Tomato and/or
Cabbage
N.B. In HM Cute, using more than one of these is simply a waste of ingredients. It will not change the SR or the FR. You could use a Carrot as well, but you won't have that until Autumn and by then, you should have all Cooking Implements and a wealth of recipes. Lumina, Karen, Rock, Cody and Vesta like Salad but the real advantage of making it is as a gift for Wally. It is the first gift you can obtain that will raise his FP by +9.
Sandwich:
Bread
Tomato and/or
Cucumber
N.B. In HM Cute, using more than one of these 'fillings' is simply a waste of ingredients and will not affect SR or FR. You can use a Boiled Egg as well, but you won't have a Pot at this point. Cliff loves sandwich and it is one of the first items that will raise his AP by +500 and FP by +9.
Fruit Sandwich:
Bread
Strawberry and/or
Peach
N.B. In HM Cute, using more than one 'filling' will not improve SR or FR. Later in Summer, you can make a Fruit Sandwich with a Pineapple and next year, with any Fruit, but at the moment, only Strawberries and Peach will be available.
Pickled Turnip
Turnip
N.B. This is one of the easiest recipes in any Harvest Moon game and is a dish that pleases most senior citizens. Of the bachelors, Gustafa alone loves it but it is one of the first items that will raise his AP by +500 and his FP by +9. Of other young people, Nami and Karen alone like Pickled Turnips. It is one of the first items that will raise Takakura's FP by +9.
Pickled Cucumber
Cucumber
N.B. Another easy recipe. The same individuals who love Pickled Turnip on the whole will love Pickled Cucumber. It is one of the first items that will raise Gustafa's AP by 500 and FP by 9 and one of the first to raise Takakura's FP by 9.
Bamboo Rice
Bamboo Shoot
Riceball
N.B. An easy dish but a few people actively dislike it, so be careful.
Sushi
Riceball
Sashimi
N.B. This is a great recipe and one that many people will like. Sashimi is a 'No Tool' recipe as well. Among bachelors, both Griffin and Cliff LOVE Sushi. Most of the older characters love it as well, including Galen, Hardy and Sebastian.
Raisin Bread
Bread
Wild Grape
N.B. Marlin loves Raisin Bread, and it is slightly less expensive than the Wine you have had to give him each day to boost his affection. Other characters who love Raisin Bread are Mary and Ruby.
Sashimi
Fish (M) or Fish (L)
N.B. Please note that you cannot use a Small Fish to make Sashimi. Sashimi' is one of the first items, apart from the Lithograph, that really excites Carter. Before you have a Kitchen, you will be limited to gifts of riceball or wine that only raise his AP and FP by +300AP +3 FP but with Sashimi, you can raise it by +500 +9 daily. Griffin loves Sashimi but he will be just as excited by a raw small fish, so Sashimi will not represent anything better in terms of courting him. He is one of the easiest bachelors to please. All the elders love sashimi as well.
Kate, Murrey love sashimi but the real plus here is that Takakura loves it. He is a difficult character in terms of gifts at the start of the game. Until you catch Big Fish, you will not have ANY gift that he will welcome. The advantage of Sashimi over Big Fish is that it can be made using a medium fish.
Ice Cream:
Milk
Egg
Optional: any fruit
N.B. Hugh, Chris and Van love Ice Cream and Lumina likes it.
This is not a comprehensive 'No Tool' Cooking Guide but it is comprehensive in terms of the dishes you can make if you order the Kitchen at the earliest possible day in the Summer of your First Year.
Some of the first 'cooked dishes' you can make have higher energy values than any other items you have been able to obtain, apart from the Medicines you can buy from Van.
Here are the Energy Values for the Recipes given above:
Salad: +20 SR -5 FR
Sandwich: +40 SR -5 FR (bread and tomato)
Fruit Sandwich: +40 SR -5 FR (bread and peach, same for bread and strawberry)
Pickled Turnip: +20 SR -4 FR
Pickled Cucumber: +20 SR -7 FR
Raisin Bread: +30 SR -4 FR
Sushi: +40 SR -1 FR
Sashimi: +30 SR -3 FR
Bamboo Rice: +30 SR -1 FR
Ice Cream: +30 SR -20 FR
Ice Cream actually is the best of these Cooked Recipes, if you suffer both from lack of Stamina and high Fatigue. If you add fruit to the basic Ice Cream recipe of 1 Milk and 1 Egg, you will raise the SR value even higher.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Food, food, Glorious Food in Harvest Moon DS
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Cooking and food in general are the subject of great interest in Harvest Moon games and Harvest Moon for the DS is no exception. There are a number of events, some quite hilarious, that deal with food either primarily or peripherally.
More than one Heart Event deals with food and/or cooking. Marlin's 3rd Heart Event occurs at the Blue Bar and results in your character drinking too much and having to be carried home, either by Marlin or by Griffin, depending on the response you give.
Skye's 2nd Heart Event involves a diversion created by the delicious odour of Curry... Curry Rice is the centre of Carter's 3rd Heart Event as he seeks to escape it. In Leia's 3rd Heart Event, you are asked to be her 'taster' for a new fish dish. Ruby's 150 FP Event involves a mistake in seasoning on her part. This is an event that occurs on Thursday in both the 'boy' and 'girl' versions of the game, by the way.
A number of Heart Events involve Ruby's kitchen. You will share a meal with Griffin in his 3rd Heart Event and with Carter in his, unless you fail to confirm his small deception.
Murrey, however, probably has the greatest number of events associated with food. There are events with the Gourmet, one of which is included in a previous post. In one event, Van will offer you a rare delicacy but Murrey will take your place at the counter and instead of giving it to you, Van mistakenly will hand it to Murrey. (That event is included both in the 'boy' and 'girl' versions of the game.
Too much food is the subject of an event between Van and Vesta. They will become quite rude to one another as they bicker over the subject of weight. The event will end with a challenge: they decide to participate in a contest to see who can lose the most weight before their next meeting.
Knowing how to cook greatly, whether your character is male or female, always increases your chances of winning the hearts of every one, but especially of any one you would like to marry. In many cases, an individual's 'Most Favourite' gift is a cooked dish. Completing your Recipe Book always is one of the subsidiary goals in any Harvest Moon game.
Knowing the dishes that each individual loves or detests is extremely important. Giving a character a cooked dish that he/she hates is as bad as giving an ordinary item that is disliked.
Knowing the value of food items in terms of Stamina and Fatigue is vital as well. Your character needs to know which items will restore the most energy... Every item, whether raw or cooked, has different effects in terms of Stamina and Fatigue. Some items actually will increase your Fatigue.
Kai is a character whose appearance is based on food. In the summers, he will open a stand on the beach.
Many of the Festivals in Harvest Moon games are centred on food. Special items such as Rice Cakes and Buckwheat Flour are obtained most easily at Festivals. In some Harvest Moon games, the only method by which to acquire these items is by attending the appropriate Festival. In Harvest Moon DS, the New Year Festival, the Cooking Festival, the Beach Festival, the Harvst Festival and the Year-End Festival all are devoted to Cooking and Eating.
Food and Cooking play an important part even in games like Rune Factory and 'An Innocent Life'. Part of the challenge and enjoyment of any Harvest Moon game is learning how to cook, finding rare ingredients and completing your Cookbook.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Growing Mushrooms in HM DS
I am writing this post mainly because I have received 20 emails asking this question in the past few days. This post will be a reminder to add this information to my Quick Reference Guide, but in the meantime, it can help players who have a problem with this.
First, you need to ask Gotz to build a Mushroom Shed for you. When the Mushroom Shed it built, you will have three options to grow mushrooms:
1. You can buy Shitake Seeds from Vesta (in the evenings when her storeroom is open for business);
2. You can gather Matsutake Mushrooms from the wilds in the Autumn season, then convert them into Seeds (Spores really) using the Seedmaker;
3. You can gather Toadstools from the wilds in the Autumn season, then convert them into seeds (spores) using the Seedmaker.
Once you have a bag of Mushroom Spores/Seeds of ANY variety, you must do the following:
1. Throw a piece of Wood Lumber onto one of the wooden pallets in the Mushroom Shed;
2. Throw the bag of Seeds/Spores onto the Lumber.
You will see tiny spores or seeds in the piece of wood if you aim your throw properly. You then need to water the spores daily for MONTHS in order to obtain a fully grown Mushroom. Each of the three varieties has a different growing time, but all three can be harvested at three different stages:
1. Small;
2. Medium;
3. Large
You need to ship one of each size and variety to complete your Shipping List. Moreover, if you look at the Item Guide in the Farm Menu, you will see that you can grow and ship 99 levels of each type and size of Mushroom.
To grow upgraded Mushrooms, you must throw more than one bag of seeds/spores of the same level onto the wood on the pallet in the Mushroom Shed. Five or six bags of seeds (spores) usually will guarantee that you will obtain the next level of crop in at least 8 squares when you plant 9 squares in the soil. In the case of Mushrooms, I never have failed to obtain the upgraded level even when I threw only 4 bags onto the wood.
BE WARNED: Upgraded Mushrooms can contribute to the dreaded 'freeze glitch' that can corrupt your data and destroy your game completely. I personally would advise players to grow only Level 1 Mushrooms of each size and variety. Doing so will complete your List.
First, you need to ask Gotz to build a Mushroom Shed for you. When the Mushroom Shed it built, you will have three options to grow mushrooms:
1. You can buy Shitake Seeds from Vesta (in the evenings when her storeroom is open for business);
2. You can gather Matsutake Mushrooms from the wilds in the Autumn season, then convert them into Seeds (Spores really) using the Seedmaker;
3. You can gather Toadstools from the wilds in the Autumn season, then convert them into seeds (spores) using the Seedmaker.
Once you have a bag of Mushroom Spores/Seeds of ANY variety, you must do the following:
1. Throw a piece of Wood Lumber onto one of the wooden pallets in the Mushroom Shed;
2. Throw the bag of Seeds/Spores onto the Lumber.
You will see tiny spores or seeds in the piece of wood if you aim your throw properly. You then need to water the spores daily for MONTHS in order to obtain a fully grown Mushroom. Each of the three varieties has a different growing time, but all three can be harvested at three different stages:
1. Small;
2. Medium;
3. Large
You need to ship one of each size and variety to complete your Shipping List. Moreover, if you look at the Item Guide in the Farm Menu, you will see that you can grow and ship 99 levels of each type and size of Mushroom.
To grow upgraded Mushrooms, you must throw more than one bag of seeds/spores of the same level onto the wood on the pallet in the Mushroom Shed. Five or six bags of seeds (spores) usually will guarantee that you will obtain the next level of crop in at least 8 squares when you plant 9 squares in the soil. In the case of Mushrooms, I never have failed to obtain the upgraded level even when I threw only 4 bags onto the wood.
BE WARNED: Upgraded Mushrooms can contribute to the dreaded 'freeze glitch' that can corrupt your data and destroy your game completely. I personally would advise players to grow only Level 1 Mushrooms of each size and variety. Doing so will complete your List.
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