One more time: Rules for Heart Events and Rival Heart Events

This information is given in ALL my Courtship and Marriage Guides for every Harvest Moon games, but in the past month while I have been away from home, I received 1000 emails with game questions and many of them ask the same questions about Heart Events, so although this subject is covered both in my guides and in earlier posts on this site, I will deal with it once more.

There are two kinds of Heart Events in Harvest Moon games: Heart Events and Rival Heart Events.

Heart Events occur between your character and eligible girls or bachelors and when your character responds correctly, advance YOUR courtship. Rival Heart Events are events that occur between the eligible girl/bachelor and your rival. Your character is not involved in those events actively but simply witnesses them. When triggered, rival heart events advance the courtship of your RIVAL.

The usual number of Heart Events in a game is 4. The usual number of Rival Heart Events is 4 as well. In most cases, all four Heart Events can be experienced in the first year of gameplay, provided you have reached the minimum heart level required for each.

Heart Events usually occur at the following heart levels: Black, Purple, Blue and Yellow. The eligible girl or bachelor must be at least at the required heart level in order to trigger the Heart Event. If he/she is at a higher heart level, you still can trigger the Heart Events. In other words, you can have the eligible girl/bachelor at deepest red heart level (60,000 AP) and STILL experience all four of the heart events, including the Black Heart Event.

YOU MUST EXPERIENCE ALL FOUR HEART EVENTS IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO MARRY A GIRL/BACHELOR. You can propose to any girl/bachelor if you have the Blue Feather, but YOUR PROPOSAL WILL BE REJECTED EVEN AT RED HEART LEVEL IF YOU DID NOT EXPERIENCE ALL HEART EVENTS WITH THAT GIRL/BACHELOR.

All heart events must occur in the proper order. It is impossible to 'miss' any heart event! You can experience them in ANY year of the game. My guides tend to give the earliest possible date at which any Heart Event can be triggered but you can experience ALL of them later... No time limit for heart events.

All Rival Heart Events, on the other hand, cannot be experienced in the first year. Harvest Moon games tend to load the deck in favour of your character, giving you at least four years to win the hand of the girl/bachelor before there is any threat from a rival. The first Rival Heart Event can occur in the first year, even in the first week of the game, but the second Rival Heart Event cannot occur before the beginning of the second year. The third Rival Heart Event cannot occur before the beginning of the third year and the fourth and final Rival Heart Event cannot occur before the beginning of the fourth year.

It is only the Fourth Rival Heart Event that will kill your chance of marrying an eligible girl or bachelor. If you experience the Fourth Rival Heart Event of any eligible girl or bachelor, their marriage will occur a week later.

That is written in stone. Experiencing the first three Rival Heart Events, however, will not prevent you from marrying the eligible girl/bachelor. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO, TO PREVENT THE FOURTH RIVAL HEART EVENT FROM OCCURRING IS TO RAISE THE HEART LEVEL OF THE GIRL OR BACHELOR TO RED. ONCE ANY ELIGIBLE GIRL/BACHELOR IS AT RED HEART LEVEL, THE FOURTH RIVAL HEART EVENT WILL NOT TRIGGER.

Why should any player wish to experience rival heart events? Well, one reason is that every event gives the player points towards his/her Farming Degree level. Another reason is that you only can marry one eligible girl/bachelor in any Harvest Moon game. If you wish to allow the other couples to marry, you need to experience all four of the Rival Heart Events in order to trigger their wedding.

Remember: all four of the Heart Events can be triggered even if the eligible girl/bachelor has reached red heart level. The colour designation of any Heart Event simply represents the minimum level at which that event can be experienced. The colour designation of the Rival Heart Events, on the other hand, represents the MAXIMUM heart level at which that event can be triggered.

Heart Levels in Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS are:

Black Heart: 0 to 10,000 AP
Purple Heart: 10,000 to 20,000 AP
Blue Heart: 20,000 to 30,000 AP
Green Heart: 30,000 to 40,000 AP
Yellow Heart: 40,000 to 50,000 AP
Orange Heart: 50,000 to 60,000 AP
Red Heart: 60,000 AP and above

In most cases, the Four Heart Events correspond to the following levels: Black Heart or 1st Heart Event; Purple Heart or 2nd Heart Event; Blue Heart or 3rd Heart Event; and finally, Yellow Heart or 4th Heart Event.

There is one exception to this in Harvest Moon Cute DS: Skye, a maverick where any rules are concerned, is the only bachelor with five heart events. He therefore has a Green Heart Event that occurs at 30,000 AP. His Yellow Heart Event is his 5th and Final Heart Event.

The rules concerning the requirements for heart and rival heart events actually follow logic if you think about it. A Rival Heart Event shows that the eligible girl/bachelor is interested in the rival. If you have brought the girl or bachelor to deepest red heart level, he/she no longer will have ANY interest in your rival. You can sit back and relax, concentrating only fulfilling all the other marriage requirements and making certain that you experience all the Heart Events for the girl or bachelor you wish to marry. Red heart level simply means that the heart of the eligible girl/bachelor is yours exclusively. It does not mean that your proposal will be accepted.

For example, in most Harvest Moon games, you must have expanded your house twice, have the bachelor/girl at deepest red heart level, experienced all the Heart Events and have purchased the Big Bed as well as the Blue Feather in order to be able to propose successfully to the man/woman of your dreams. In Harvest Moon DS and Cute DS, there is an added requirement: you must have rescued 60 Harvest Sprites, thereby automatically rescuing the Harvest Goddess. Without the blessing of the Harvest Goddess, NO marriage can occur.

My Heart Event and Rival Heart Event Guides, otherwise known as the Courtship and Marriage Guides, include individual sections for each of the eligible girls/bachelors in any Harvest Moon game. In these sections, you will find a list of the likes and dislikes of that bachelor/girl, the Most Favourite Item (gift with the highest value in terms of boosting heart level) as well as a complete schedule of all Heart and Rival Heart Events for that girl/bachelor. A section at the end of each of these guides includes the text of every Heart and Rival Heart Event. The reason I do this is to allow a player to make certain that all the events have been experienced. Some players become confused between Heart Events and Rival Heart Events. If any doubt exists, all the player has to do is consult the text section of the guide.

One final point should be mentioned concerning the Blue Feather. In many Harvest Moon games, the Blue Feather usually becomes available when at least one eligible girl or bachelor reaches Orange Heart Level or 50,000 AP. This is not a high enough heart level for marriage, however. You still have to increase his/her level to red before your proposal will be accepted. If you have not experienced ALL Heart Events, your proposal will be rejected even at red heart level until you HAVE experienced all Heart Events for that girl or bachelor.

Skye is the only bachelor who has a Green Heart Event. For most eligible girls or bachelors, no event will be triggered upon attaining Green Heart level or 30,000 AP. This often is forgotten by players, as all other Heart Events simply require an increase of 10,000 AP. Going from Black to Purple is an increase of 10,000 AP. Going from Purple to Blue is another increase of 10,000 AP. Going from Blue to Yellow, however, represents an increase of 20,000 AP. Going afterwards to Red Heart level is another increase of 20,000 AP although, once again, there is no Orange Heart Event. What is triggered at Orange Heart Level is the ability to acquire a Blue Feather, a necessary accompaniment to any marriage proposal.

There are Harvest Moon games that do not follow this system strictly but most of them do. If you have any further questions, feel free to send me an email or post a comment here.

Good luck with your courtship of the girl or man of your dreams!

Freyashawk's Return

Good morning, every one! I returned home late last night to find 1000 emails containing game questions in my box (overflowing in fact, with AOL refusing to cram even one more into the postbox) but thought I had best publish a quick post here first to let every one know once more why your emails have NOT been answered during April. I had very little access to the internet during most of April. Now I hope to be able to answer all emails once again, while continuing to work on the upcoming Harvest Moon game for the DS and soon, the upcoming Wii game for Harvest Moon.

I missed my fellow Harvest Moon fanatics, but feel a bit overwhelmed by 1000 emails!

Announcement about Game Questions

I'm afraid I will have limited access to the internet for awhile and therefore will not be able to answer game questions for a couple of weeks perhaps. Links to all my guides are included on the right side of this page.

The Character you play in Cute

When you begin Harvest Moon Cute, DS, you have the option to choose between the Mineral Town character from 'More Friends of Mineral Town' and the girl character from Forget-Me-Not Valley in 'Another Wonderful Life'. Essentially, the game appears to choose your appearance according to the predominance of bias towards one or the other.

I tried many different permutations and here are the results of each from my own game journal:


Harvest Goddess: Dum-da-da-DAA! I'll be asking you some questions. Remember that your character's appearance will change depending on how you answer. Well, let's get started. Which do you primarily play, GameCube or Game Boy Advance?

Game Cube
Game Boy Advance
Both

GBA

Do you like blonde hair?

Love it.
It's okay, I guess.
Not really.

Love it

How about ponytails?
I guess I like them.
Pigtails are better.
Not really.

Not really.

Now be honest, which do you like the best?

Mineral Town character
Wonderful Life character
I don't really care.

Mineral Town character.

O.K. Your character's appearance has been determined.

You will get straight blonde hair with the character from MFoMT.

Which do you primarily play, GameCube or Game Boy Advance?
GameCube
Do you like blonde hair:
Love it
How about ponytails?
I guess I like them

Which do you like best?
I don't really care.

You will be the character from MFoMT with long blonde hair.



Which do you like best?
I don't really care.
Both
Not really
I guess I like them

You will be the character from Another Wonderful Life with red hair.

If you answer:

Both
Not really
Pigtails are better

Again, you will be the character from Forget-Me-Not Valley in Another Wonderful Life.

The Ultimate Walkthrough for Courtship of Skye

Here are the steps to take if you wish to court and marry Skye (and who wouldn't?):

1. Introduce yourself to EVERY character in the Valley even if you do not give them all gifts. (This is a necessary step in obtaining a Fishing Rod as well as you must introduce yourself both to Galen and Nina if you wish to experience that event.)
2. Go up the wide staircase towards Romana's Villa on any sunny night between 10.00 p.m. and 11.50 p.m. and Skye's 1st Heart Event will trigger, introducing you to Skye.
3. Do NOT expect to find him the next day as he never appears in the Valley on the day following any of his Heart Events.
4. Go to the Valley exit at 10.20 p.m. on the next sunny night to find him at the earliest time and give him any toiletry (sun block, lotion, whatever) from the Excavation Site to boost his AP by
+300 points and change your outfit daily to boost his AP by an additional +200 points, giving you an increase of +700 AP per day with Skye.

Once you have met Skye in his First Heart Event, he will be found in the Valley on any night when the weather is fine. He enters the Valley between 10.10 and 10.20 p.m. I usually entered Vesta's house at 10.10 p.m., equipped a toiletry in my items slot, then walked outside to waylay Skye as soon as he entered the Valley. His dialogue is romantic when he is on this screen and when he is on the screen with the Waterfalla and Goddess Spring. His path will take him west across the bridge and north to the Goddess Spring where he stands until dawn. His dialogue actually changes according to heart level when he is on the screen with the Waterfall and Goddess Spring and is heart-stopping in some cases.

All of his events, apart from the 1st heart Event are in two parts. You set up the event in the morning by going to the right location and agreeing to participate. If you do not agree to participate, you will lose FP with the villagers involved but you still can change your mind and participate in Part II of the Event.

Part II of every event occurs at Skye's usual time frame, between 10.00 p.m. and 11.50 p.m. but weather requirements are different where Skye's Heart Events are concerned. I experienced both his 2nd Heart Event and his 3rd Heart Event on rainy days. I experienced the 3rd on a sunny day as well, but I think the 2nd actually may require rain.

The most difficult event in terms of Part II is the Third Heart Event or Blue Heart Event because Part II requires the presence both of Flora and Carter in the tent between 10.00 p.m. and 11.50 p.m. On Tuesday, Flora will be out until late. On Sunday, Carter does not even enter the tent until midnight strikes, making it too late for Part II of the event to trigger. My advice: if you walk into the screen that contains the Excavation Site on Tuesday or Sunday at a time when it would trigger Part I of Skye's Blue Heart Event, reload your game without saving! Just wait until the next day... It is his most romantic heart event and it is sad if you miss it.

If you DO miss Part II of ANY of Skye's Heart Events, it will not prevent you from experiencing the next Heart Event or from marrying him. You only NEED to experience Part I but it is Part II that increases his AP.

Marrying Skye: You cannot propose to Skye in the ordinary way by flourishing the Blue Feather. There is NOTHING ordinary about this bachelor. You can show it to him but he will mutter something about your interest in other bachelors. Do not fret. Go home and go to bed with the Blue Feather in your rucksack. (If you are not ready for the marriage proposal because you wish to experience other bachelors' heart events first, just stow the Feather in your toolbox and the Proposal Event will not trigger.)

If the Blue Feather is in your rucksack, Skye will come to your house in the night and you will have the opportunity to give him your heart with the Blue Feather.

There are complete details about all aspects of courtship and marriage, including the schedule of all heart and rival heart events for every bachelor in my Courtship and Marriage Guide at:

[link=http://faqs.ign.com/articles/861/861637p1.html]Harvest Moon Cute Courtship and Marriage Guide[/link]

It includes the recipes of all the 'Most Favourite Items' for each of the bachelors. Skye's Most Favourite is Finest Curry, but you can make do with Toiletries from the Excavation Site instead until you have a Kitchen and a Pot (rather cruelly the last utensil offered by the Shopping Channel).
Skye is the only bachelor with five Heart Events. The additional Heart Event occurs at Green Heart level.


How to Make Skye's Most Favourite Dish:

Finest Curry

Ingredients:
Rainbow Curry
White Curry
Burnt Food Frying Pan
Burnt Food Pot
Burnt Food Oven
Burnt Food Mixer
Burnt Food Steamer
Burnt Food No Utensil
Utensil: Pot

N.B. Use a Weed to make any Burnt Food Dish rather than wasting good
ingredients.

To make Rainbow Curry:

Ingredients:
Curry Rice
Blue Curry
Green Curry
Red Curry
Yellow Curry
Orange Curry
Purple Curry
Indigo Curry
Utensil: Pot

To make White Curry:

Ingredients:
Rice Ball
Curry Powder
White Grass
Utensil: Pot

To make Curry Rice:

Ingredients:
Rice Ball
Curry Powder
Utensil: Pot



Schedule of Skye's Heart Events


1st Heart Event, aka Black Heart Event
Location: Walk from Main Path to Romana's Mansion
Time: 10.00 p.m. to midnight, any day
Requirement: must be sunny day

2nd Heart Event, aka Purple Heart Event
Location: Blue Bar
Time: 6.00 a.m. to 11.00 a.m. on Monday, Part I
10.00 p.m. to midnight, Part II
Requirements: Must be a rainy Monday, Skye must be at 10,000 AP or higher


3rd Heart Event, aka Blue Heart Event
Location: Go north along path from Vesta's farm towards Carter's Tent
Time: 8.00 a.m. to 12.00 noon, except Tuesday, Part I: DO NOT TRIGGER ON
SUNDAY!!!
10.00 p.m. (preferably 11.30 p.m.) to midnight, Part II, cannot experience on
Sunday night
Requirements: Skye must be at 20,000 AP or higher
Added requirement for Part II: Flora and Carter BOTH must be inside the Tent


4th Heart Event, aka Green Heart Event:
Location, Part I: Walk from crossroads across the bridge towards Vesta's farm
Time: 6.00 a.m. to 10.00 a.m. on Friday, except Winter Season, Part 1
Location, Part I: Vesta's Farmhouse on Friday, except Winter Season, 10.00
p.m. to midnight, Part II
Requirements: Must be a sunny Friday, not in Winter; Skye must be at 30,000
AP or higher

N.B. Heart Events usually are four in number. There is no Green Heart Event
for any other Bachelor

5th Heart Event, aka Yellow Heart Event:

Location: Lobby, Inner Inn
Time: 11.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m. on sunny Wednesday, Part I
10.00 p.m. to midnight, Part II
Requirements: Must be sunny Wednesday, Skye must be at 40,000 AP or higher

The Incredible Potential in Rune Factory

I'm going to take a quick break from the Harvest Moon game I am playing at the moment to write briefly about Rune Factory as I have been receiving quite a few emails from players who have asked about the game.

Quite frankly, it is one of my very favourite games, inside or outside the Harvest Moon series. I studied sabre fencing and collect edged weapons in 'real life' and to be able to play a game in the Harvest Moon series that allowed me to forge and use my own weapons afterwards was the ultimate fantasy fulfillment for me. Furthermore, as some one who loves jewelry and designed some custom pieces at one time, it was very exciting to be able to make accessories at my forge in Rune Factory.

Rune Factory has incredibly beautiful graphics. The characters are some of the most attractive I ever have encountered in terms of their 'portraits'. The plot is compelling and you actually have the opportunity to become the 'saviour' of your country... but ultimately, it all works within the framework of the wonderful Harvest Moon philosophy: it is Nature who comes to your aid! When you defeat monsters in the mines, you do not slay them. Instead, you send them back to their original pure natural state, one that is not hostile. In essence, your sword frees them.

If you wish, you can tame the monsters and keep them on your farm instead of releasing them back to their original world. There are varieties of monsters who give you eggs, milk and wool. Other varieties can be ridden. I really loved being able to ride a monster who looked and acted like a wolf.

My General Guide as well as my Bestiary and Caves Guide gives detailed information about all the monsters and their precise location as well as the method by which each cave is unlocked.

My General Guide deals with all aspects of the game, including courtship, but as usual, I wrote little specialised mini-guides as well. Links to all my guides can be found on the right side of this page...

In the general excitement about Cute (which I share completely), it is good to remember that there are OTHER magnificent Harvest Moon games out there, and Rune Factory is one that was made for the DS, my own platform of choice.

N.B. The DS platform appears to allow games from any part of the world. Players in Europe CAN purchase the U.S. Natsume version of any Harvest Moon game and play it successfully. I am adding this note because Rune Factory has not been yet released in any European edition...