Stardew Valley – Getting Started

As of October 5th, Stardew Valley has finally been released on Nintendo Switch. If you’re not aware, it’s a 2D farming/life simulation game much like Harvest Moon. It’s available in the eShop for $14.99 (U.S. price). Even though it’s been on other platforms for quite a while, I’ve generally avoided videos and spoilers, so I’m really heading into this blind.

Anyway, I started up the game by customizing my character. I chose Ravine as the name of my farm, coffee as my favorite thing, and I decided to wear the shirt that has a “J” on it. The intro tells the story of how I became a farm owner, and then I arrived in town. Robin, the local carpenter, showed me where I’ll be living. The farm is quite run down, and this all sounds just like Harvest Moon so far.

Robin: Sure, it's a bit overgrown, but there's some good soil underneath that mess!I met the mayor of Pelican town…when he came out of my house. He was supposedly cleaning it up, but I think he was really just using my bathroom. After a little chat, the intro ended.

I then woke up and began my first official day on the farm. Since I’m new to the game, I was just checking everything out. I turned on the TV to see each channel, and I opened up a gift from the mayor that contained 15 parsnip seeds.

Then, I went outside and started chopping up sticks and weeds to make my field a bit less of a disaster zone. I examined the menu options a bit, and then set off to explore. One of the tasks mentioned in my journal was to greet all 28 people in town. This girl Haley seemed nice…until she called my clothes horrendous! How rude!

Haley: Hmm... If it weren't for those horrendous clothes you might actually be cute.So I tried chopping her up, but it didn’t work. I continued exploring, and later bumped into her again. But she was “too involved with her camera” to notice me. LIES!

Haley's too involved with her camera to notice you.At the Stardrop Saloon, I played an arcade game called Journey of the Prairie King. It’s a dual-stick shooter like Robotron or Smash TV, but with a western theme.

The arcade inside the Stardrop Saloon in Stardew Valley for Nintendo Switch.The Journey of the Prairie King mini-game in Stardew Valley.I didn’t do very well, but I’ll give it another try in the future. It’s always nice to have a game within a game, though.

I met an old couple in a house, and the woman was quite nice. She even told me I could call her “Granny.” The man George, who I assume was her husband, was a bit rude though. So I stood in front of him to block his view of his TV. 😛

Standing in front of George's TV.Night soon fell, and I returned home to sleep. In the morning, I set off exploring in a different direction. This must be the town park, with a fountain and a playground. Wow, public works projects I don’t have to pay for! 😉

A park in Stardew Valley.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t play on the playground equipment.

Down on the dock, I met a guy named Willy who had a fishing rod to give me. The fishing process is a bit more complicated than what I’m used to in Animal Crossing games, but I’m sure I’ll get the hang of it before long. I caught my first fish, only to realize my pockets were full…so I had to let the fish go.

Fishing in Stardew Valley for Nintendo Switch.Once I made my way back home, I made sure to clear out some pocket space. And I finally planted my first seeds (and watered them) before turning in for the night. Although I haven’t played the game much yet, I imagine this could become addictive once I get into the flow of things.

Here is a video showing my first two days in town.

I realize the blog entry and the video are a bit redundant. I’m considering just making this a video series and not posting regular blog entries. Or maybe just occasional blog entries. I haven’t decided for sure yet. Any thoughts?

BOTW #16: Eventide Island

While exploring, I made my way to Lakeside Stable and completed a nearby shrine. A bit later, I ran into Kass. His song told me that I should call lightning down from a giant mound. So I did just that, and the lightning strike exposed a new shrine.

Lightning strikes the mound (and Link).
Ow.

I completed it and continued on my journey. I ran into a banana salesman that was so pushy, I literally had to fight him off. Sorry, but I don’t want your grubby ‘nanas, dude.

Traveler: ...What--do you hate bananas?Soon, I came across a pretty heart-shaped lake.

A heart-shaped lake in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for Nintendo Switch.I made a love connection here for a side quest, and then moved along to a nearby shrine. I completed it and then explored the town I was in–Lurelin Village. It’s a small fishing town, and it’s beautiful.

Lurelin Village in Zelda: Breath of the Wild.Here, I ran into a Gerudo named Flavi. She pointed me in the direction of Eventide Island. I decided to make my way over there, to see what it was all about.

Paragliding to Eventide Island in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (BOTW).Once I got to shore, I received an on-screen message telling me that this island is a trial that I must complete without my normal equipment. So all of my weapons, clothes, armor, and food were taken from me! I was told I had to offer three orbs to three altars on this island to get my equipment back.

Offer up the orbs to the three altars on this island. Only then will I acknowledge your skill and return your items.
This isn’t the vacation getaway I was expecting.

While I could pick up items I found here on the island, there weren’t exactly powerful weapons lying around. At first, I had to use tree branches and boat oars to defeat enemies!

Attacking an enemy with a boat oar in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for Nintendo Switch.Some enemies such as Bokoblins dropped their weapons after being defeated, but they were still weaker and less durable than the weapons I’m accustomed to. At least I could still use my rune abilities (stasis, bombs, etc.).

I explored and found two orbs in (or near) enemy camps. It wasn’t quick or easy, but I was able to defeat (or sneak past) the enemies and put the orbs into their altars. The third and final orb, however, was going to be considerably tougher. That’s because a giant Hinox was wearing it around his neck!

Defeating a Hinox giant isn’t an easy task even when you’re at full strength. So imagine trying to beat one with very little food on hand, and using weapons like tree branches!

Fighting a giant Hinox with a tree branch in Zelda BOTW.Straight combat wasn’t getting me very far. After he butt-stomped me down a hill, I ran. I ran so far away. He followed me for a while, but eventually he gave up on me and went back to sleep. That gave me a breather, sure, but at a cost. When I returned for round two, I saw that his health had reset! What little damage I had done to him was all gone!

Clearly, I needed a new strategy. Eventually, I found a spot up a hill where he couldn’t quite reach me. He could throw rocks at me, sure. But I was able to avoid them for the most part. And I started dropping bombs on him. Sure, each one did very little damage to him. But I kept at it, and I gradually whittled down his health bar.

Fighting a Hinox in Zelda BOTW.Once his health was getting low, I remembered something else I could use: Urbosa’s Fury. That’s the electric attack I learned after defeating Vah Naboris. I used it, and it finished off the Hinox. Whew!

I took the Hinox’s orb to the final altar, which was just a bit off-shore. After placing it in the slot, a shrine popped up and I got my stuff back! Finally! I went inside the shrine, grabbed the treasure (a gold rupee), and collected my spirit orb. While Eventide Island was an interesting challenge, I was glad to get it over and done with.

The next time I played, I visited a fairy to upgrade some armor, and then expanded my stamina wheel twice. Next, I went to work on Tarrey Town some more. I chopped down some trees for wood to give to Hudson. Once I did that, he suggested that I find a good tailor for this town.

So I headed off for Kara Kara Bazaar in the desert, where I met up with Rhondson. She’s the tailor that makes all my women’s clothing for me. 😛 She agreed to move to Tarrey Town, and she set up her own clothing shop.

The tailor's shop in Tarrey Town.I gathered another batch of wood for Hudson, and he then suggested that we needed a general store in town. I’ll have to go to Rito Village to find the right bird person, but I’ll do that in a future entry. Anyway, I defeated a couple of guardians nearby for a side quest (and a disappointing reward).

Back in Kakariko Village, I completed a side quest where I collected a man’s Cuccos (chickens). I know a lot of people probably did this side quest about six months ago, but I just got to it now. 😛 Much like an angry Cucco, time flies.

Cado: That faint yet lovely flapping of wings... That musical clucking... Ah, truly the epitome of joy!!After exploring, I saw a large, tall maze off-shore. I paraglided over to it, and it’s called Lomei Labyrinth Island. I think this may have been the “apartment building” I saw before, although it certainly doesn’t look like an apartment building from this angle.

Soaring towards the Lomei Labyrinth in Breath of the Wild.As you might expect, it consists of a very large maze. Checking the map frequently helped me out a lot, although some passageways don’t show up there. But I made my through and completed the shrine–it was one of those “you’ve already proven your worth by getting here” shrines.

After I came out of the shrine, I found a passageway that heads down underneath the maze. There was a huge room full of guardians down here! Fortunately, they don’t all activate at once. But I killed several of them for some ancient gear, shafts, springs, and screws. These should help me upgrade my armor–I’ll be sure to do that before I take on Calamity Ganon.

Fighting two guardians in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.While walking down the coastline, I spotted a monument that told me to take an orb to Rist Peninsula. So I made the trek, put the orb in the altar, and opened up another shrine.

After completing it, I figured it was time for a status update. I’ve completed 70 shrines so far.

Status update as of September 21, 2017.As for my Hyrule Compendium, I have 266 out of 385 objects filled in. I haven’t bought any of them either; they’re all pictures I’ve taken myself.

BOTW: Magda’s Rage

Since last time, I’ve set off without any particular goals in mind. Sure, I wanted to find more shrines, treasure, and even Korok seeds, but I didn’t have any big goal in mind just yet.

I found a couple of shrines, including this one where I had to float on a platform held up by balloons, and maneuver around sharp objects.

A floating platform held up by balloons approaches some spikes in Zelda: Breath of the Wild.While back outside exploring, I spotted a big red dragon! I shot some arrows at it, but they didn’t seem to do anything.

A red dragon flies by in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.After fighting a camp full of enemies nearby, I spotted something glowing in the distance.

Something glows in the distance (Zelda BOTW).Naturally, I went over to check it out. It was Dinraal’s scale! This apparently fell off of the dragon! I previously learned that this is what I need to offer at the Spring of Power. So I headed there and offered the scale to the goddess statue. A new shrine opened up. After completing it, I traded in four spirit orbs for another heart container.

Later on, after recovering a memory near the Bottomless Swamp, I found a new shrine on a small island. The Floret Sandbar, to be exact. I walked towards the shrine, only to be interrupted when I stepped on the flowers circling the shrine.

Magda: Hey! What do you think you're doing?! You must not harm the flowers!This lady told me how she planted the flowers and watches over them 24/7 like an obsessed psychopath. Okay, maybe she didn’t use those exact words, but it’s true. A side quest began, and my job was to make my way to the shrine without stepping on flowers.

There is a maze-like path through the flowers that leads to the shrine. After stepping on flowers a second time (and being warned again), I decide to just use Revali’s Gale (the ability I learned from defeating Vah Medoh) to fly over them and reach the shrine. That completed the crazy lady’s side quest, and I went inside.

After completing the fairly easy shrine, I came back out. Since both the shrine and the lady’s side quest had been completed, I thought it was finally safe to walk on the flowers. I was wrong.

Magda: How many times do I have to say it?! Please treat the flowers with care! They're living things, you know!At this point, she was really starting to get on my nerves. So I stepped on those flowers again. I’d stomp them if I could, but she interrupts too quickly. Her reaction this time was quite different. At first, she looked depressed.

Magda, bent over: How do you not understand? Why don't you get it?But then she really lost it. She exploded in anger.

Magda, screaming: ARGGG!! NOOOOOOO!!She started running like crazy, trampling the flowers she’s so intent on protecting! This woman is psycho.

Magda, running through flowers: I worked day...after day...after day...to plant those flowers... Then you come and hurt them...over...and over...She then vowed to make me feel the flowers’ rage!

Magda, looking crazy and angry: ...the flowers' rage!!!The screen went dark and she beat me up! Really!

(footage not found)When the game faded in from black, I was on the ground, barely conscious, and with three hearts worth of health missing.

Link lies flat on the ground after a beating from Magda in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for Nintendo Switch.At this point, you’d think I would have learned my lesson. But no. I was angry now, so I took out my meteor rod and set her precious flowers on fire!

Link sets Magda's flowers on fire in Zelda BOTW.
“Fire is bright. Fire is clean. Efficient and divine.” – Toadies

Her reaction was surprisingly tame this time (perhaps the beating she laid on me reset her mood cycle). But seeing her flowers burn left me with a nice satisfying feeling (even if the flowers returned to health after her warning). So I moved on.

I saw a sleeping giant (a Hinox) and I decided to pick a fight with it. I used my meteor rod to shoot some fire at the Hinox. At first, he tried to stamp out the fire with his feet. But after I shot at him again, he quickly ignored the fire and started coming for me.

An angry Hinox on fire in Zelda BOTW.These giants may be slow, but they take a while to beat. But once I did defeat him, I teleported to near the Gerudo Highlands. I love the view from up here!

A nice view from up in the mountains.After a bit more exploring, I wrapped up my game for now. Next time, I just might try heading over to Hyrule Castle to fight Calamity Ganon. That should be fun. 🙂

Update: Here is a video of my encounter with Magda.