Friendship Points Essential for Stardew Valley Immersion

Stardew Valley: A Comprehensive Guide to Friendship

Forging strong relationships is key to thriving in Stardew Valley's charming Pelican Town. This guide details how to maximize friendship with villagers, whether you're aiming for companionship or romance. While talking and gifting are essential, understanding the nuances of the friendship system is crucial for success. This guide has been updated to reflect the changes introduced in the 1.6 update.

The Heart System

Access your relationship status with each NPC via the in-game menu's heart tab. This shows friendship levels (hearts) earned. Reaching heart milestones unlocks special events, mailed recipes, and unique dialogue. However, the heart display only partially reflects friendship gain.

Earning Friendship Points

Each heart requires 250 friendship points. Interactions—talking, gifting, etc.—affect friendship levels. Positive actions earn points; negative actions or ignoring villagers decrease friendship.

Boosting Friendship Gains

The "Friendship 101" book permanently boosts friendship gains by 10%. Find it as the ninth Prize Machine prize (Mayor's Mansion) or, with a 9% chance, from the Bookseller (Year 3 onward). The book costs 20,000g. Note: this bonus only applies to friendship increases, not decreases.

Friendship Point Values

Many interactions impact friendship points:

Daily Interactions:

• Talking: +20 (or +10 if the villager is busy). Not talking results in a friendship decrease (-2 per day, or -10 if a bouquet was gifted, or -20 for a spouse).
• Bulletin Board Deliveries: +150 with the recipient.

Gifting:

Villagers have gift preferences:

• Loved: +80 points
• Liked: +45 points
• Neutral: +20 points
• Disliked: -20 points
• Hated: -40 points

Gifts given on the Feast of the Winter Star or birthdays are worth 5x and 8x the usual points, respectively.

Stardrop Tea:

This universally loved gift grants +250 points (+750 on birthdays/Feast of the Winter Star). Sources include the Prize Machine, Golden Fishing Chests, the Helper's Bundle (remixed Community Center), and raccoon requests.

Movie Theater:

Invite villagers to the movies. Movie choice and concessions affect friendship:

• 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 and Dialogue:

Conversations offer opportunities to gain (+10 to +50 points) or lose friendship points. Heart Events can significantly impact friendship (+/- 200 points).

Festivals and Events

• Flower Dance: Dancing with a villager (≥4 hearts) grants +250 points.
• Luau: Soup contributions impact friendship.
• Community Center: Completing the Bulletin Board bundles grants +500 points with each non-datable villager.

By mastering these strategies, you'll cultivate thriving relationships in Stardew Valley!