Building friendships in Stardew Valley is a rewarding experience that enriches your time in the charming Pelican Town. As a newcomer, integrating into the community through acts of kindness and generosity not only fosters friendships but can also lead to romantic relationships. Understanding the mechanics of the friendship system is crucial for maximizing your relationships with the town's residents.
Most players are aware that engaging in conversations, giving thoughtful gifts, and selecting the right dialogue options can boost friendship levels. However, the impact of these actions varies, with some being more effective than others. Here's a detailed guide on how to elevate your relationships to the highest level in Stardew Valley.
Updated January 4, 2025, by Demaris Oxman: With the release of the 1.6 update, many players have returned to Stardew Valley or are experiencing it for the first time. While the core mechanics of the friendship system remain unchanged, new additions in the update enhance the social dynamics. This guide has been updated to reflect these changes, ensuring players can make the most of their social interactions.
The Heart Scale
To monitor your relationships with every NPC, open the Menu and navigate to the tab with the heart icon. This displays a list of each NPC and the number of hearts (friendship levels) you've earned with them. As you accumulate more hearts, you unlock special Heart Event scenes, receive recipes in the mail, and access unique dialogue options. However, the heart scale alone doesn't fully explain how friendship is earned.
What Is One Heart?
To increase friendship by one heart, you need to earn 250 friendship points with an NPC. Nearly every interaction, from talking to giving gifts, contributes to these points. Positive actions increase friendship, while neglecting characters or making negative choices can lead to a decrease.
Boosting Friendship Gain
To accelerate your friendship gains, seek out the book "Friendship 101." This can be obtained as the ninth prize from the Prize Machine in the Mayor's Mansion or has a 9% chance of appearing in the Bookseller's inventory starting in Year 3 for 20,000g. Reading this book grants a permanent 10% increase to your friendship gains, making each positive interaction more valuable. Note that this boost does not affect friendship decreases or stack if read multiple times.
Point Values For Individual Character Interactions
Everyday Interactions
- Talking to a character typically earns +20 points. If they're engaged in an activity, the reward drops to +10 points, but it's still beneficial to greet them to prevent friendship decay. A check mark in the Social menu tab indicates you've spoken to a character that day.
- Completing an item delivery from the Bulletin Board outside Pierre's store grants +150 points with the recipient.
- Neglecting to talk to a character results in a -2 point decrease per day. This increases to -10 points per day if you've given them a bouquet, and -20 points if you're married and ignore your spouse.
Giving Gifts
Each villager has unique gift preferences, but some gifts are universally appreciated:
- Loved Gifts: +80 points
- Liked Gifts: +45 points
- Neutral Gifts: +20 points
- Disliked Gifts: -20 Points
- Hated Gifts: -40 Points
Gifts given during the Feast of the Winter Star yield 5x the usual points, while birthday gifts provide 8x the points. Be cautious, as disliked or hated gifts on these special days can lead to significant friendship decreases.
Stardrop Tea
Stardrop Tea is a universally loved gift that increases friendship by 250 points (one full heart). When given as a birthday or Feast of the Winter Star gift, it triples to three full hearts. You can gift it even after reaching the usual gift limits. Obtain Stardrop Tea from the Prize Machine, Golden Fishing Chests, the Helper's Bundle on the remixed Community Center Bulletin Board, or as a reward from the raccoon for completing higher-level requests.
The Movie Theater
Once the movie theater is available, you can invite friends or romantic interests to watch a film. Purchase a Movie Ticket for 1000g and present it like a gift. Each character has preferences for movies and snacks, affecting friendship points:
- Loved Movie: +200 points
- Liked Movie: +100 points
- Disliked Movie: 0 points
- Loved Concession: +50 points
- Liked Concession: +25 points
- Disliked Concession: 0 points
Conversations & Dialogue
During conversations, characters may ask questions. Choosing the right responses can earn +10 to +50 points, while incorrect answers may decrease friendship. Heart Events also feature dialogue choices that can impact friendship by up to 200 points. Understanding the character's personality helps in selecting the best responses.
Festivals & Events
The Flower Dance
To invite an NPC to dance at the festival, you must have at least four hearts with them. The dance itself increases friendship by 1 heart (250 points).
The Luau
At the community potluck during the Luau, adding an item to the soup can affect your friendship with every villager:
- Best Soup: +120 points
- Good Soup: +60 points
- Neutral Soup, no item added, or Lewis' Purple Shorts added: 0 points
- Bad Soup: -50 points
- Worst Soup: -100 points
The Community Center
Completing the "Bulletin Board" bundles at the Community Center, which include the Chef's Bundle, the Enchanter's Bundle, the Fodder Bundle, the Field Research Bundle, and the Dye Bundle, rewards you with 500 friendship points (2 hearts) with every non-dateable villager.
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