The Star Festival and Marlin

If you spend the Star Festival with Marlin, you essentially spend it with his family at Vesta's farmhouse. Every one is warm and friendly but there is very little romance to the occasion. Vesta will remark, however, that Marlin seldom invites any one to the house, making you feel rather special.

Curiously enough, only one place has been set at the table. Farmers have a reputation for their great hospitality, for large tables groaning with food. The single piece of cake displayed on the tiny table is rather surprising in the circumstances.

Skye's Fifth Heart Event: A Moral Dilemma

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In Skye's Fifth and final Heart Event, you are called upon to declare and manifest your loyalty. Is it to your village and your neighbours or is it to Skye? I have to confess that, although my choice never was in doubt, I did experience a little qualm when I pretended not to know Skye's whereabouts. The village unites against him in force. If one didn't have sympathy (and love) for him at this point, one surely would feel a little sorry for him when Ruby, Rock, Nami, Marlin, Vesta and Celia march down the path in the manner of the Assyrian who 'came down like a wolf on the fold'. In a military wedge formation, they really did present an intimidating appearance.

A moment earlier, I had promised Skye that I would pretend I hadn't seen him... A moment earlier, he had gazed soulfully into my eyes before he disappeared south towards the beach. And yet... and yet, I am part of this village now. I owe my neighbours and friends some loyalty as well. In fact, the posse included two bachelors who are at red heart level now, making it doubly a betrayal to choose Skye.

Nonetheless, even if I weren't in love with Skye, I always would tend to side with the 'underdog' in any confrontation. To witness my lovely Skye being HOUNDED by the villagers of Forget-Me-Not Valley was a very distressing experience indeed.

I do believe in happy endings, though, and I have a feeling that Skye will be accepted by my neighbours and friends quite readily if I marry him. The people of Forget-Me-Not Valley are generous and forgiving. He never harmed any one really. His theft of a bottle of wine and a few vegetables and a possible artifact or two surely can be overlooked fairly easily, particularly if he 'retires' from his old career...

N.B. There is no error here. Skye's Yellow Heart Event is his FIFTH Heart event. He alone of the eligible bachelors has five rather than the four traditional Heart Events. The fourth is a Green Heart Event and the Fifth is his Yellow Heart Event. Other bachelors do not have a Green Heart Event, although there is a Green Rival Heart Event for each that will advance your Rival's courtship of the bachelor.

Marlin's Marriage Proposal Event

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Here are photographs of the Marriage Proposal Event with Marlin. The expression on his face is most peculiar. Marlin can be rather good-looking in his own way, but the expression he exhibited when I proposed was almost too much to bear.

Marlin has one grave flaw: his delicate health has made him hyper-sensitive, and he reacts with a rather unattractive machismo at times. When you propose to him, he will accept but then tell you that proposals of marriage should be initiated by the man! He then proceeds to propose to YOU.

When he tells Vesta and Celia of the engagement, Vesta threatens him with GBH should he misbehave. She takes the jest quite far in fact... curious when dealing with a man whom she won't allow out in the rain.

My Faith in Harvest Moon is vindicated!

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When I missed Part II of Skye's 3rd Heart Event because Carter failed to enter his tent BEFORE midnight on Sunday night, I spoke to Natsume to try to find out if it would ruin my chances of marrying Skye. I was told rather depressingly that I had to experience both parts of the event in order to be able to move forward with the romance. According to Natsume, my chance of marrying Skye had gone with my failure to experience Part II of one of his heart events.

At first I was filled with despair, even beginning a new game in the 2nd slot to try to make a new life that would allow me to court Skye. Then, however, my analytical mind set to work to dissect the entire process of Heart Events... and I began to believe that I still had a chance with Skye in my first game.

I am kind of an expert in Courtship matters in Harvest Moon, but how could I be more of an expert than the people at Natsume? Well, the fact of the matter is that Harvest Moon games are not linear. Many factors determine the progress of the game. Natsume constantly is at work on new games, not having as much time to explore existing games as players do. In my Harvest Moon games, I try to court ALL the eligible spouses, then marry each and every one of them, documenting the results of every response in any event as well. In other words, I am insanely devoted to Harvest Moon...

I began to think about Harvest Events in HM Cute DS in order to try to resurrect my own hope that I could continue to court Skye.

In every Heart Event with ANY bachelor, there is a 'positive' and a 'negative' ending, sometimes even two of each in Cute. If you reject the bachelor's advances or invitation at the very start of the Heart Event, often the event will terminate abruptly and you will not experience the 'main' portion of the event...

This does not prevent you from experiencing the next Heart Event, however. What it does is lower the bachelor's heart level, setting you back a little in your courtship.

Why would Skye's events be any different?

I continued therefore to meet Skye nightly when he entered the Valley, raising his AP by +300 points slowly but surely. I grieved for the event that I had missed, but hoped that it would not prevent me from experiencing the next one.

Tonight, I discovered that my faith had not been misplaced. At 6.00 a.m., I crossed the bridge towards Vesta's farm and triggered Part I of Skye's 4th Heart Event.

At 10.00 p.m., determined not to take any chances of missing Part II, I entered Vesta's Farmhouse.

Vesta, Celia and Marlin stood together at the foot of the stairs.

Vesta: We'll get that lily-livered thief tonight!

We split up into two groups. Vesta and I accost Skye in the midst of the ripened aubergines. He uses his Chick-Beam on us, then walks north where he is accosted by the second group consisting of Celia and Marlin. He uses the Chick-Beam on them as well. Only Celia is affected but Marlin does nothing and Skye makes a leisurely exit after telling Marlin that there is no mystique in being caught by a man.

It was amusing to witness Marlin's obvious hostility towards the charming thief. I had to include a photograph of the moment when Marlin cried: 'Back off, pretty boy!'
If you recall Skye's 1st Heart Event, you will note that he used the same line that he used there on Lumina on Vesta in THIS event. To tell Vesta that anger ruins her beauty is absolutely hilarious. It appears that older women such as Vesta are not as easily seduced by Skye's flirtatious manner! She remains obdurately fixed upon the threat to her precious vegetables.

You may have noted that, on the 1st day of ANY growing season, Vesta's crops are fully ripe and ready for harvest. Why does the Harvest Goddess favour her so???

Having waited so long and worked so hard to experience this event, I found I was a little disappointed in the lack of romance. Unlike other events, he did not say anything personal to me!

Well, there is one more event... and the Yellow Heart Event usually is the most romantic in any courtship. At least I am grateful that I still have a chance to court the elusive thief!

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.